UNIT I : COMPUTER FUNDAMENTALS
Structure
1.1. Introduction 1.2. Objectives 1.3. What are computers? 1.4. Characteristics of a computer 1.5. Classification of Computers
1.5.1 Purpose Based Classification 1.5.2 Function Based Classification 1.5.3 Classification of Computers According to Size
1.6 Parts of a Computer
1.6.1 Key Board 1.6.2 Mouse 1.6.3 Monitor 1.6.4 Central Processing Unit 1.6.5 Functional Units 1.7 Other Input Devices 1.8 Other Output Devices 1.9 Primary and Secondary Devices 1.10 Let Us Sum up
1.11 Unit End Exercises
1.12 Answers to Check your Progress
1.13. Suggested Readings 1.1. Introduction : Computers play a vital role in every field. Computers have changed the way we work, in all types of profession and the computer technology has a deep impact on education too. Therefore, in the recent years, the role of computers in education has been given a lot of prominence. Computer education forms a part of the school and college curricula, a sit is important for every individual today, to
1 have the basic knowledge of computers. The advantages of computers in education include an efficient storage and rendition of information, quick information processing and very importantly the saving of paper. Computer teaching plays a key role in the modern systems of education. Students find it easier to refer to the Internet than searching for information in fat reference books. The process of learning has gone beyond learning from prescribed textbooks. Today, aspirers can satisfy their thirst for knowledge by means of the Internet. It is easier to store information on computers than maintaining hand-written notes. A life without computers would seem almost unimaginable for many. Today, computers are a part of almost every industry. They are widely used in networking, information access, data storage and the processing of information. The importance of computers is evident today and having the perfect know-how of computers can only propel one‘s career in the right direction. The present day computers are not only compact, extremely powerful and versatile but are also low priced, commonly accessible and easy to use. The computer has, indeed become an integral part of our daily life. Most importantly, the society at large is rapidly overcoming its initial hesitation and is all set to exploit the full potential of this new tool. Parallel developments in the field of telecommunications have opened up unique opportunities. The application of computers in education though started late, but has recently made deep inroads in this area. The conventional teaching methodology has undergone tremendous change and has radically modified the role of a teacher. This has generated a wealth of ideas, experience and resource material. So much so, that "Computer in Education" has emerged as a rigorous discipline in its own right. In recent years, computer studies" have become an essential part of school curriculum even at the primary level. However, there is growing realisation that it is not learning about computers as such but knowing what to do with computers that is going to make all the difference. This unit will introduce to you about the fundamentals of computers such as the parts, classification, characteristics, input and output devices of computers.
2 1.2 Objectives of the Unit: After learning this unit you will be able to list out the characteristics of computers. describe the classification of computers explain the parts of computers give the difference between primary and secondary devices say the different kinds of primary and secondary devices discuss the other input and output devices 1.3 What are computers?
Computers are electronic machines that perform tasks or calculations according to a set of instructions, or programs. The term ‗computer‘ is derived from the Latin term ‗computare‘, which means to calculate. Computer can not do anything without a Program. It represents the decimal numbers through a string of binary digits. The Word 'Computer' usually refers to the Central Processor Unit plus Internal memory. Charles Babbage is called the "Grand Father" of the computer. The First mechanical computer designed by charles Babbage was called Analytical Engine. It uses read-only memory in the form of punch cards. The first fully electronic computers, introduced in the 1940s, were huge machines that required teams of people to operate. Compared to those early machines, today's computers are amazing. Not only are they thousands of times faster, they can fit on your desk, in your lap, or even in your pocket.
1.4 Characteristics of a computer A computer is an electronic computing device which performs the execution according to the given set of instructions called program. It accepts the data, processes it and produces the information.
Let us identify the major characteristics of a computer. These can be discussed under the headings of speed, accuracy, diligence, versatility and memory.
3 Speed As you know computer can work very fast. It takes only few seconds for calculations that we take hours to complete. Suppose you are asked to calculate the average monthly income of one thousand persons in your neighbourhood. For this you have to add income from all sources for all persons on a day to day basis and find out the average for each one of them. Do you know your small computer can finish this work in few seconds? The weather forecasting that you see every day on TV is the results of compilation and analysis of huge amount of data on temperature, humidity, pressure, etc. of various places on computers. It takes few minutes for the computer to process this huge amount of data and give the result.
You will be surprised to know that computer can perform millions (1,000,000) of instructions and even more per second. Therefore, we determine the speed of computer in terms of microsecond (10-6 part of a second) or nano-second (10-9 part of a second). From this you can imagine how fast your computer performs work.
Accuracy
Suppose some one calculates faster but commits a lot of errors in computing. Such result is useless. There is another aspect. Suppose you want to divide 15 by 7. You may work out up to 2 decimal places and say the dividend is 2.14. I may calculate up to 4 decimal places and say that the result is 2.1428. Some one else may go up to 9 decimal places and say the result is 2.142857143. Hence, in addition to speed, the computer should have accuracy or correctness in computing.The degree of accuracy of computer is very high and every calculation is performed with the same accuracy. The accuracy level is determined on the basis of design of computer. The errors in computer are due to human and inaccurate data.
Diligence A computer is free from tiredness, lack of concentration, fatigue, etc. It can work for hours without creating any error. If millions of calculations are to be performed, a computer will perform every calculation with the same accuracy. If there are surplus amount of executions to be made then each and every execution
4 will be executed at the same time. They can perform their assigned task without taking any refreshment. Due to this capability it overpowers human being in routine type of work.
Versatility
It means the capacity to perform completely different types of work. You may use your computer to prepare payroll slips. Next moment you may use it for teaching and evaluation. In our day to day life computers has been a part, with their extended flexibility they are used, all over the world. They can be used as personal computers, for home uses, for business oriented tasks, weather forecasting, space explorations, teaching, railways, banking, medicine etc. All Modern computer can perform different kind of tasks simultaneously.
Computers seem capable of performing almost any task, provided that the task can be reduced to series of logical steps. For example, a task such as preparing a payroll or controlling the flow of traffic can be broken down into a logical sequence of operations. Yet the computer itself has only limited ability and, in the final analysis, actually performs only four basic operations:
It exchanges information with the outside world via I/O devices,
It transfers data internally within the CUP,
It performs the basic arithmetical operations,
It performs operations of comparison.
In one sense, then, the computer is not versatile because it is limited to four basic functions. Yet, because so many daily activities can be reduced to an interplay between these functions, it appears that computers are highly ingenious. Programming is the craft or reducing a given problem into an interplay between these few operations.
Automation
A computer is much more than an adding machine, calculator or check-out till, all of which require human operators to press the necessary keys for the operations to be performed. Once a program is in the computer's memory, the individual instructions are then transferred, one after the other, to the control unit
5 for execution. The CPU follows these instructions until it meets a last instruction which says 'stop program execution'.
Storage
Computer has the power of storing any amount of information or data. Any information can be stored and recalled as long as you require it, for any numbers of years. It depends entirely upon you how much data you want to store in a computer and when to lose or retrieve these data. The Computer has an in-built memory where it can store a large amount of data. You can also store data in secondary storage devices such as floppies and CDs which can be kept outside your computer and can be carried to other computers.
Secondary storage devices are the key for the data storage. They store the data for which the user wants to retrieve these data for future use. The examples for various secondary devices are Floppy disk, Optical disks (CD and DVD), Zip drives, Thumb drives etc. The data of smaller size can be easily fetched and they can be copied to the primary memory (RAM).
No IQ Computer is a dumb machine and it cannot do any work without instruction from the user. It performs the instructions at tremendous speed and with accuracy. It is you to decide what you want to do and in what sequence. So a computer cannot take its own decision as you can. The only draw back of computer is, it cannot make the decision of its own. It needs a guidance to enhance the process as it is a machine. No Feeling It does not have feelings or emotion, taste, knowledge and experience. Thus it does not get tired even after long hours of work. It does not distinguish between users. Cheaper Computers are short term investment in order to achieve a long term gain. Though the investment is high they reduce the cost of each and every transaction. They reduce man power and leads to an elegant and efficient way for computing various tasks.
6 1.5 Classification of Computers
Now I will explain each of the classification of computers in the following lines. Computers differ based on their data processing abilities. They are classified according to purpose, Size and functionality.
Purpose Based Classification : According to purpose, computers are either general purpose or specific purpose. General purpose computers are designed to perform a range of tasks. They have the ability to store numerous programs, but lack in speed and efficiency. Specific purpose computers are designed to handle a specific problem or to perform a specific task. A set of instructions is built into the machine.
Function Based Classification: According to functionality, computers are classified as
1. Analog Computers
Analog computers are used to process continuous data. Analog computers represent variables by physical quantities. Thus any computer which solve problem by translating physical conditions such as flow, temperature, pressure, angular position or voltage into related mechanical or electrical related circuits as an analog for the physical phenomenon being investigated in general it is a computer which uses an analog quantity and produces analog values as output. Thus an analog computer measures continuously. Analog computers are very much speedy. They produce their results very fast. But their results are approximately correct. All the analog computers are special purpose computers.
2. Digital Computers
Digital computer represents physical quantities with the help of digits or numbers. These numbers are used to perform Arithmetic calculations and also make logical decision to reach a conclusion, depending on, the data they receive from the user.
7 3. Hybrid Computers
Various specifically designed computers are with both digital and analog characteristics combining the advantages of analog and digital computers when working as a system. Hybrid computers are being used extensively in process control system where it is necessary to have a close representation with the physical world.
The hybrid system provides the good precision that can be attained with analog computers and the greater control that is possible with digital computers, plus the ability to accept the input data in either form. Classification of Computers According to Size
1. Super Computers :
Large scientific and research laboratories as well as the government organizations have extra ordinary demand for processing data which required tremendous processing speed, memory and other services which may not be provided with any other category to meet their needs. Therefore very large computers used are called Super Computers. These computers are extremely expensive and the speed is measured in billions of instructions per seconds.
2. Main Frame Computers: The most expensive, largest and the most quickest or speedy computer are called mainframe computers. These computers are used in large companies, factories, organizations etc. the mainframe computers are the most expensive computers, they cost more than 20 million rupees. In this computers 150 users are able to work on one C.P.U. The mainframes are able to process 1 to 8 bits at a time. They have several hundreds of megabytes of primary storage and operate at a speed measured in nano second.
8 3. Mini Computers: Mini computers are smaller than mainframes, both in size and other facilities such as speed, storage capacity and other services. They are versatile that they can be fitted where ever they are needed. Their speeds are rated between one and fifty million instructions per second (MIPS). They have primary storage in hundred to three hundred megabytes range with direct access storage device.
4. Micro Computers: These are the smallest range of computers. They were introduced in the early 70‘s having less storing space and processing speed. Micro computers of todays are equivalent to the mini computers of yesterday in terms of performing and processing. They are also called ―computer of a chip‖ because its entire circuitry is contained in one tiny chip.
The micro computers have a wide range of applications including uses as portable computer that can be plugged into any wall.
5. Laptop Computers: The smallest computer in size has been developed. This type of small computers look like an office brief case and called "LAPTOP" computer. The laptops are also termed as "PORTABLE COMPUTERS." Due to the small size and light weight, they become popular among the computer users. The businessmen found laptop very useful, during travelling and when they are far away from their desktop computers. A typical laptop computer has all the facilities available in microcomputer.
9 6. Notebook / Laptop Computers:
Having a small size and low weight the notebook is easy to carry to anywhere. A student can take it wit h him to his school in his bag with his book. This is easy to carry around and preferred by students and business people to meet their assignments and oth er necessary tasks. The approach of this computer is also the same as the Personal computer. It can store the same amount o f data and having a memory of the same size as that of a personal computer. One can say that it is the replacement of personal desktop computer.
7. Palmtop : The smallest laptops are called "PALMTOP". More commonly known as Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), palmtops are tightly integrated computer that often use flash memory instead of a hard drive for storage.
These computers usually do not have keyboards but rely on touch screen technology for user input. Palmtops are typically smaller than a paperback novel, very lightweight with a reasonable battery life. A slightly larger and heavier version of the palmtop is the hand held computer.
8. Wearable Computers : The latest trend in computing is wearable computers. The concept of wearable computing was first brought forward by Steve Mann, who, with his invention of the ‗Wear Comp‘ in 1979 created a pioneering effort in wearable computing. With computing devices becoming smaller and smaller it is now possible for an individual to don such a device like a hat or jacket. It is clear that this technology will enable us to extent the desktop resources to any where in travel. Essentially, common computer applications
10 (e-mail, database, multimedia, calendar/scheduler) are integrated into watches, cell phones, visors and even clothing! A wearable computer is a very personal computer. It should be worn like apiece of clothing, as unobtrusive a s possible. A user should interact with the computer based upon context. It could be a communications device (immediate or store and forward), a recorder (visual, audio, other sensors) or a reference device (local or remote resources). Also this constant access, augmented by a battery of body mounted sensors will enable a computer to be sensitive to the activities in which we are engaged and thus allow the computer to participate in an active manner as we perform our tasks. With the advent of the internet and wireless networking technologies, wearable devices have developed a great deal.
CHECK YOUR PROGRESS: 1
Notes: 1. Write your answer in the space given below.
2. Compare your answer with those given at the end of the unit.
1. Mention any four characteristics of a computer. ------
2. How will you classify the computers based on their functions? ------
3. Write the different types of computers classified according to their size. ------
11 1.6. Parts of a Computer
Computer is an advanced electronic device that takes raw data as input from the user and processes these data under the control of set of instructions (called program) and gives the result (output) and saves output for the future use. It can process both numerical and non-numerical (arithmetic and logical) calculations. The computer is a collection of devices that function as a unit. The most basic collection includes a Computer CPU, a Monitor, a Keyboard, and a Mouse. The Computer CPU is normally a rectangular box that sits on your desktop (called a "Desktop Case") or next to your knee under the desk (called a "Tower Case"). The computer's CPU is actually a small electronic device inside the case but the term is often used to refer to the whole collection of electronics inside the box. The basic components of a modern digital computer are: Input Device, Output Device and Central Processing Unit.
Information is not much use to anyone if it is locked up inside the guts of a computer. We need methods of adding new data (Input) and of retrieving and displaying the information (Output) once the computer has done its work. A keyboard is an input device: as I type this I'm inputting data into my PC. I can see what I'm typing because my LCD screen is an output device. The PC contains special electronic circuits that translate what I type into computer-understandable bits of data and then re-translate that data into something that can be displayed on my screen. They can all be collected together on the main circuit board of the computer - called the "Motherboard". There are industry standard methods of connecting such peripheral devices.
Key Board: The keyboard is similar to a typewriter – it has all of the same keys, along with additional keys for different uses. However, instead of typing onto paper, the text and characters appear on the monitor and operate the computer. A 'keyboard' is a human interface device which is represented as a layout of buttons. Each button, or key, can be used to either input a linguistic character to a computer, or to call upon a particular function of the computer. Traditional keyboards use spring-based buttons, though newer variations employ virtual keys, or even projected keyboards.
12 Mouse: The mouse is an input device that functions as a pointing device. It is a small plastic case that fits under your hand. It is a relatively new addition to the computer; earlier keyboards served the purpose of mouse as well. The mouse has made it easy to feed instructions in the computer.
In computing, an input device is any peripheral (piece of computer hardware equipment) used to provide data and control signals to an information processing system such as a computer or other information appliance. Input and output devices make up the hardware interface between a computer and a scanner or a controller.
Monitor: The monitor looks like a television screen, except instead of watching television programs on it, the monitor allows for viewing of computer programs. It is connected to the main computer box. There are several types of monitors, but they all function in the same way. The power button is usually located on the front of the monitor, beneath the screen. Often, there will be a small light to indicate if the power is on. Computer monitors can be categorized as: CRT (cathode ray tube) monitors and Flat screen monitors. Some might have a Scanner so that you can copy all your old holiday snaps into digital format and store them on the PC. Music is well-served by the Musical Instrument Digital Interface ("Midi") connector (Input) and speaker sound systems (Output). Some musicians have produced whole albums on a home PC equipped with these special interfaces.
Central Processing Unit (CPU):
A computer can process data, pictures, sound and graphics. They can solve highly complicated problems quickly and accurately. Computers work through an interaction of hardware and software. Hardware refers to the parts of a computer that you can see and touch, including the case and everything inside it. The most important piece of hardware is a tiny rectangular chip inside your computer called the central processing unit (CPU), or microprocessor. It's the "brain" of your computer—the part that translates instructions and performs calculations. Hardware items such as your monitor, keyboard, mouse, printer, and other items are often called hardware devices. Software refers to the instructions, or programs, that tell the hardware what to do.
13 A computer as shown in Fig. performs basically five major computer operations or functions irrespective of their size and make. These are 1) accepting data or instructions by way of input, 2) storing data, 3) processing data as required by the user, 4) giving results in the form of output, and 5) controlling of all operations inside a computer.
We discuss below each of these Computer operations
Fig : Basic computer Operations
1. Input: This is the process of entering data and programs in to the computer system. You should know that computer is an electronic machine like any other machine which takes as inputs raw data and performs some processing giving out processed data. Therefore, the input unit takes data from us to the computer in an organized manner for processing. 2. Storage: The process of saving data and instructions permanently is known as storage. Data has to be fed into the system before the actual processing starts. It is because the processing speed of Central Processing Unit (CPU) is so fast that the data has to be provided to CPU with the same speed. Therefore the data is first stored in the storage unit for faster access and processing. This storage unit or the primary storage of the computer system is designed to do the above functionality. It provides space for storing data and instructions. The storage unit performs the following major functions:
14 • All data and instructions are stored here before and after processing. • Intermediate results of processing are also stored here. 3. Processing: The task of performing operations like arithmetic and logical operations is called processing. The Central Processing Unit (CPU) takes data and instructions from the storage unit and makes all sorts of calculations based on the instructions given and the type of data provided. It is then sent back to the storage unit. 4. Output: This is the process of producing results from the data for getting useful information. Similarly the output produced by the computer after processing must also be kept somewhere inside the computer before being given to you in human readable form. Again the output is also stored inside the computer for further processing. 5. Control: The manner in which instructions are executed and the above operations are performed. Controlling of all operations like input, processing and output are performed by control unit. It takes care of step by step processing of all operations inside the computer.
FUNCTIONAL UNITS
In order to carry out the operations the computer allocates the task between its various functional units. The computer system is divided into three separate units for its operation. They are 1) arithmetic logical unit 2) control unit. 3) central processing unit.
Arithmetic Logical Unit (ALU) After you enter data through the input device it is stored in the primary storage unit. The actual processing of the data and instruction are performed by Arithmetic Logical Unit. The major operations performed by the ALU are addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, logic and comparison. Data is transferred to ALU from storage unit when required. After processing the output is returned back to storage unit for further processing or getting stored. Control Unit (CU) The next component of computer is the Control Unit, which acts like the supervisor seeing that things are done in proper fashion. Control Unit is responsible for coordinating various operations using time signal. The control unit determines the sequence in which computer programs and instructions are executed.
15 Things like processing of programs stored in the main memory, interpretation of the instructions and issuing of signals for other units of the computer to execute them. It also acts as a switch board operator when several users access the computer simultaneously. Thereby it coordinates the activities of computer‘s peripheral equipment as they perform the input and output.
Central Processing Unit (CPU)
The ALU and the CU of a computer system are jointly known as the central processing unit. You may call CPU as the brain of any computer system. It is just like brain that takes all major decisions, makes all sorts of calculations and directs different parts of the computer functions by activating and controlling the operations.
Random Access Memory (or RAM): While a computer is operating, it needs to keep certain information available so that it can be accessed almost instantly. It also needs to be able to go directly to a particular bit of data without having to seek through a long sequence of other bits in order to reach it. This ability to directly address a single bit in memory is called "Random Access". RAM can be thought of as "short term" memory and it should be noted that this type of memory is reset (cleared) when the power to the computer is switched off or when it is rebooted. This is because the memory is made up of millions of little transistors on microchips and transistors need electricity in order to operate.
Hard Disk Drive: If RAM is short term, then the hard disk would be the long term storage: it doesn't disappear when the power is switched off. Hard Disks are encased in a metal and plastic drive unit, they spin at incredible speeds and they store the information magnetically in a thin layer of iron oxide (rust). You can magnetise a particle of iron to point to one pole or the other (north or south) - and stay that way until you want to change that polarity. North or south can be read as "on or off", which is exactly what computers understand.
16 Other Hardware: We also need to mention some of the other important parts of a modern computer system: some essential, some not. In the essential category we would have the Power Supply Unit (PSU) which does exactly as its name suggests: supplies all the electrical power (at various voltages) to the rest of the components. Not so essential but pretty important nevertheless: some form of permanent storage media. These days you are likely to have a CD and/or DVD writer so that you can save all your precious pictures and backup your important documents (as well as listening to your CD music collection watching the occasional DVD movie).
CHECK YOUR PROGRESS: 2
4. Mention the main four parts of a computer. ------
5. Write the names of the functional units. ------
6. Discuss the five major computer operations. ------7. Give the expansion for the following: CPU, CRT Monitor, RAM, PSU and ALU ------
1.7. Other Input Devices:
17 Pointing devices
A pointing device is any human interface device that allows a user to input spatial data to a computer. In the case of mice and touch screens, this is usually achieved by detecting movement across a physical surface. Analog devices, such as 3D mice, joysticks, orpointing sticks, function by reporting their angle of deflection. Movements of the pointing device are echoed on the screen by movements of the pointer, creating a simple, intuitive way to navigate a computer's GUI. High-degree of freedom input devices
Some devices allow many continuous degrees of freedom as input. These can be used as pointing devices, but are generally used in ways that don't involve pointing to a location in space, such as the control of a camera angle while in 3D applications.
Input devices, such as buttons and joysticks, can be combined on a single physical device that could be thought of as a composite device. Many gaming devices have controllers like this. Technically mice are composite devices, as they both track movement and provide buttons for clicking, but composite devices are generally considered to have more than two different forms of input.
. Game controller
. Gamepad (or joypad)
. Paddle (game controller)
. Wii Remote
. Microsoft Kinect Sensor
Imaging and Video input Devices:
Video input devices are used to digitize images or video from the outside world into the computer. The information can be stored in a multitude of formats depending on the user's requirement.
. digital camera
18 . Webcam
. Image scanner
. Fingerprint scanner
. Barcode reader
. 3D scanner
. Laser rangefinder
Audio Input Devices:
In the fashion of video devices, audio devices are used to either capture or create sound. In some cases, an audio output device can be used as an input device, in order to capture produced sound.
. Microphone
. MIDI keyboard or other digital musical instrument
An input device is any hardware device that sends data to the computer. Without any input devices, a computer would only be a display device and not allow users to interact with it, much like a TV. Below is a complete listing of all the different computer input devices that can be used on a computer.
Types of input devices
Description of the Input Devices Input Devices - Figures Keyboard - The keyboard is a way to input letters or numbers into different applications or programs. A keyboard also has special keys that help operate the computer. Mouse - The mouse is used to open and close files, navigate web sites, and click on a lot of commands (to tell the computer what to do) when using different applications.
19 Compact Disc (CD) - CDs store information. The CD can then be put into another computer, and the information can be opened and added or used on the second computer. A CD-R or CD-
RW can also be used as an OUTPUT device. Digital Camera - A digital camera can be used to take pictures. It can be hooked up to a computer to transfer the pictures from the camera to the computer. Some digital cameras hold a floppy disk, and the floppy disk can be taken out of the camera and put directly into the computer. Camera - most cameras like this are used during live conversations. The camera transmits a picture from one computer to another, or can be used to record a short video. Tablet Writer - A drawing tablet is similar to a white board, except you use a special pen to write on it and it's connected to the computer. Then the word or image you draw can be saved on the computer. Microphone - is an acoustic-to- electric transducer or sensor that converts sound into an electrical signal. In computers microphone is used to record sound, for recording voice, speech recognition and for non-acoustic purposes such as ultrasonic checking. A The sound is then saved as a sound file on the computer.
Scanner - A scanner is used to copy pictures or other things and save them as files on the computer.
20 Disk Drive - A disk drive can hold a CD or a floppy disk. It reads the information on the disk so that the computer can use it.
Joystick - A joystick is an input device consisting of a stick that pivots on a base and reports its angle or direction to the device it is controlling. Joysticks are often used to control video games, and usually have one or more push-buttons whose state can also be read by the computer. The joystick has been the principal flight control in the cockpit of many aircraft. Joysticks are also used for controlling machines such as cranes, trucks and underwater unmanned vehicles. Touch Screen - A touch screen is a computer screen or other screen that you can touch with your finger to enter information. Examples of touch screens include a smart board, a microwave, a dishwasher, or an ATM at a bank. Bar Code Scanner - A bar code scanner scans a little label that has a bar code on it. The information is then saved on the computer. Bar code scanners are used in libraries a lot.
Microsoft Kinect sensor seen here on a TV, works by detecting human motion visually.
Wii Remote with attached strap
21 1.8. Other Output Devices:
A List of Output Devices:
Computer Monitor is a screen that displays output from a computer. Here you can see the flat Screen Monitor and Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) Monitor.
Printers: In computing, a printer is a peripheral which produces a text or graphics of documents stored in electronic form, usually on physical print media such as paper or transparencies. Many printers are primarily used as local peripherals, and are attached by a printer cable or, in most new printers, a USB cable to a computer which serves as a document source.
Plotters: A plotter is a vector graphics printing device to print graphical plots.
LCD projectors are generally smaller in size and more easily transportable than former systems. Armed with a lens capable of projecting the images on any surface with a flat plane. The projector‘s resolution generally determines the price; the higher the resolution, the greater the price. If the need is for minute details to be precisely displayed, then higher resolution projectors are the way to go.
22 Computer speakers are speakers external to a computer that disable the lower fidelity built-in speaker. They often have a low-power internal amplifier. The computer speakers typically packaged with computer systems are small, plastic, and have mediocre sound quality. Some computer speakers have equalization features such as bass and treble controls.
Fax Machine: Faxing or telecopying, is the telephonic transmission of scanned printed material (both text and images), normally to a telephone number connected to a printer or other output device. The original document is scanned with a fax machine which processes the contents (text or images) as a single fixed graphic image, converting it into a bitmap, and then transmitting it through the telephone system. The receiving fax machine reconverts the coded image, printing a paper copy.
23 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS: 3
8. Mention any five input devices of a computer. ------
9. List any five output devices of a computer. ------
10. Write the different types of computer Monitors. ------
1.9. Primary and Secondary Devices
Primary storage
A computer stores data using several different methods. Therefore, there are different levels of data storage, which may be referred to as primary and secondary storage. A computer's internal hard drive is often considered a primary storage device, while external hard drives and other external media are considered secondary storage devices. However, primary and secondary storage may also refer specifically to the components inside the computer. In this case, primary storage typically refers to random access memory (RAM), while secondary storage refers to the computer's internal hard drive.
24 RAM, commonly called "memory," is considered primary storage, since it stores data that is directly accessible by the computer's CPU. RAM is a high-speed storage medium that can be accessed with minimal delay. Because the RAM is connected directly to the CPU via the memory bus, the CPU can access data stored in RAM very quickly. For this reason, RAM is used to store data loaded by active programs and the operating system.
Hard drives are considered secondary storage since they are not connected directly to the CPU. Instead, hard drives send and receive data through an I/O bus, which may pass through a cache or other type of memory before getting to the CPU. Processor cache is an intermediate stage between ultra-fast registers and much slower main memory. It's introduced solely to increase performance of the computer. Most actively used information in the main memory is just duplicated in the cache memory, which is faster, but of much lesser capacity. On the other hand, main memory is much slower, but has a much greater storage capacity than processor registers. Multi-level hierarchical cache setup is also commonly used— primary cache being smallest, fastest and located inside the processor; secondary cache being somewhat larger and slower.
Also, hard drives are not as fast a RAM, which means they cannot transfer data as quickly. However, unlike RAM, hard drives retain data when the computer is turned off. This is because hard drives store data magnetically, while RAM requires an electrical current. As the RAM types used for primary storage are volatile (cleared at start up), a computer containing only such storage would not have a source to read instructions from, in order to start the computer. Hence, non- volatile primary storage containing a small startup program (BIOS) is used to bootstrap the computer, that is, to read a larger program from non- volatile secondary storage to RAM and start to execute it. A non-volatile technology used for this purpose is called ROM, for read-only memory.
While the computer's primary internal hard drive is the most common secondary storage device, other devices may be considered secondary storage devices as well. These include additional internal hard drives, external hard drives, and optical drives, which are used for CDs, DVDs, and other optical media.
25 Primary Storage Devices CPU RAM Mother Board
Secondary storage (also known as external memory or auxiliary storage), differs from primary storage in that it is not directly accessible by the CPU. The computer usually uses its input/output channels to access secondary storage and transfers the desired data using intermediate area in primary storage. Secondary storage does not lose the data when the device is powered down—it is non-volatile. Per unit, it is typically also two orders of magnitude less expensive than primary storage. Consequently, modern computer systems typically have two orders of magnitude for more secondary storage than primary storage and data are kept for a longer time there.
In modern computers, hard disk drives are usually used as secondary storage. The time taken to access a given byte of information stored on a hard disk is typically a few thousandths of a second, or milliseconds. By contrast, the time taken to access a given byte of information stored in random access memory is measured in billionths of a second, or nanoseconds. This illustrates the significant access-time difference which distinguishes solid-state memory from rotating magnetic storage devices: hard disks are typically about a million times slower than memory. Rotating optical storage devices, such as CD and DVD drives, have even longer access times.
Some other examples of secondary storage technologies are: flash memory (e.g. USB flash drives or keys), floppy disks, magnetic tape, paper tape, punched cards, standalone RAM disks, and Iomega Zip drives.
The secondary storage is often formatted according to a file system format, which provides the abstraction necessary to organize data into files and directories, providing also additional information (called metadata) describing the owner of a certain file, the access time, the access permissions, and other information.
26 Secondary Storage Devices USB Drive External Hard Drive Optical Drive
The differences between the primary and secondary storage devices are listed below.
S.No. Primary Storage Devices Secondary Storage Devices 1. These devices are temporary. These devices are permanent.
2. These devices are expensive These are cheaper. 3. These devices are faster therefore These devices Computers via cables, expensive. and slow, therefore cheaper. 4. These devices have less storage These devices have high storage capacity. capacity. 5. These devices refer to RAM. These devices refer to FDD
Tertiary storage Large tape library. Tape cartridges placed on shelves in the front, robotic arm moving in the back. Visible height of the library is about 180 cm.
Tertiary storage or tertiary memory provides a third level of storage. Typically it involves a robotic mechanism which will mount (insert) and dismount removable mass storage media into a storage device according to the system's demands; these data are often copied to secondary storage before use. It is primarily used for archiving rarely accessed information since it is much slower than secondary storage (e.g. 5–60 seconds vs. 1–10 milliseconds). This is primarily useful for extraordinarily large data stores, accessed without human operators. Typical examples include tape libraries and optical jukeboxes.
27 When a computer needs to read information from the tertiary storage, it will first consult a catalog database to determine which tape or disc contains the information. Next, the computer will instruct a robotic arm to fetch the medium and place it in a drive. When the computer has finished reading the information, the robotic arm will return the medium to its place in the library.
Tertiary storage Zip Drive Punch Cards
Off-line storage
Off-line storage is computer data storage on a medium or a device that is not under the control of a processing unit. The medium is recorded, usually in a secondary or tertiary storage device, and then physically removed or disconnected. It must be inserted or connected by a human operator before a computer can access it again. Unlike tertiary storage, it cannot be accessed without human interaction.
Off-line storage is used to transfer information, since the detached medium can be easily physically transported. Additionally, in case a disaster, for example a fire, destroys the original data, a medium in a remote location will probably be unaffected, enabling disaster recovery. Off-line storage increases general information security, since it is physically inaccessible from a computer, and data confidentiality or integrity cannot be affected by computer-based attack techniques. Also, if the information stored for archival purposes is rarely accessed, off-line storage is less expensive than tertiary storage.
In modern personal computers, most secondary and tertiary storage media are also used for off-line storage. Optical discs and flash memory devices are most popular, and to much lesser extent removable hard disk drives. In enterprise uses, magnetic tape is predominant. Older examples are floppy disks, Zip disks, or punched cards.
28 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS: 4
11. Mention the primary storage devices of a computer. ------
------
------
------
------
------
12. Give example for the secondary storage devices of a computer ------
------
------
------
13. What are the main differences between the primary and secondary storage devices? ------
------
------
------
------
------
29 14. Match the following.
1. Input devices Memory that the computer user can use.
2.ROM A program that consists of instructions used to control
hardware.
3.Secondary Programs and data that are permanently recorded when the storage computer is manufactured.
4.RAM Hardware devices that accept data in a form that the computer can use.
5.Software A more permanent form of storage that does not depend on a constant flow of electricity.
1.10. Let Us Sum up
In the above discussion we have learnt about the basic ideas essential to understand a computer functions such as the parts, classification, characteristics, input and output devices of computers. Computers are electronic machines that perform tasks or calculations according to a set of instructions, or programs. It accepts the data, processes it and produces the information.
We have identified the major characteristics of computer as speed, accuracy, diligence, versatility and memory. Computers differ based on their data processing abilities. They are classified according to purpose, Size and functionality. According to functionality, computers are classified as Analog Computers, Digital Computers and Hybrid Computers. Based on their Size they are classified as Super Computers, Main Frame Computers, Mini Computers, Micro Computers, Laptop Computers, Notebook Computers, Palmtop and Wearable computers. The computer is a collection of devices that function as a unit. The most basic collection includes a Computer CPU, a Monitor, a Keyboard, and a Mouse. . We need methods of adding new data (Input) and of retrieving and displaying the information (Output) once the computer has done its work. We have
30 dealt with different types of input and output devices and the various kinds of storage devices. The present day computers are not only compact, extremely powerful and versatile but are also low priced, commonly accessible and easy to use. The computer has, indeed become an integral part of our daily life. The application of computers in education has influenced all in this area. The conventional teaching methodology has undergone tremendous change and has radically modified the role of a teacher.
1.11. Unit-End Exercises
1. Mention all the characteristics of a computer.
2. Describe the classification of computers
3. Explain the different types of computers classified according to their size.
4. Discuss the input devices of a computer.
5. List all the output devices of a computer.
6. Write the different types of computer Monitors.
7. Explain the main four parts of a computer.
8. Give details of the functional units of a computer.
9. Discuss the five major computer operations.
10.Give the expansion for the following: CPU, CRT Monitor, CD, PSU and ALU
11. Mention the primary storage devices of a computer.
12. Give example for the secondary storage devices of a computer.
13. What are the main differences between the primary and secondary storage devices?
14. What do you understand from primary storage device and secondary storage device in computers.
15. Why the secondary storage devices replaced the already available primary storage device.
31 1.12. Answers to Check your Progress: 1. Speed: A computer can work very fast. It takes only few seconds for calculations Accuracy: It calculates faster without commiting errors in computing. Diligence: A computer is free from tiredness, lack of concentration and fatigue. Versatility: The capacity to perform completely different types of work. Storage: Computer has the power of storing any amount of information or data. No Feeling: It does not have feelings or emotion, taste, knowledge and experience. Automation (You can write any four relevant points.)
2. Analog Computers, Digital Computers and Hybrid Computers. 3. Super Computers, Main Frame Computers, Mini Computers, Micro Computers, Laptop Computers, Notebook, Palmtop and Wearable computers.
4. The basic parts of a Computer are CPU, a Monitor, a Keyboard, and a Mouse.
5. 1) arithmetic logical unit, 2) control unit and 3) central processing unit. 6. 1) accepting data or instructions by way of input, 2) storing data, 3) processing data as required by the user, 4) giving results in the form of output, and 5) controlling of all operations inside a computer.
7. CPU- Central Processing Unit, CRT Monitor - Cathode Ray Tube Monitor, RAM - Random Access Memory, PSU- Power Supply Unit, ALU- Arithmetic Logical Unit.
8. Keyboard, Mouse, Digital Camera, Scanner, Joystick. 9. Computer Monitor, Printer, Computer speakers, LCD projectors, Fax Machine.
10.Two types of Computer Monitors are flat Screen Monitor and Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) Monitor. 11. CPU, RAM, Mother Board. 12. Secondary storage devices include additional internal hard drives, external hard drives, and optical drives, which are used for CDs, DVDs, and USB Drive.
32 13. Primary devices are temporary. Secondary devices are permanent.
Secondary are cheaper. Primary devices are expensive Secondary devices Computers via Primary devices are faster therefore cables, and slow, therefore cheaper. expensive. Primary devices have less storage Secondary devices have high storage capacity. capacity. Primary devices refer to RAM. Secondary devices refer to FDD
14. Match the following. - Answer
1.Input devices Hardware devices that accept data in a form that the computer
can use.
2.ROM Programs and data that are permanently recorded when the
computer is manufactured.
3.Secondary A more permanent form of storage that does not depend on a storage constant flow of electricity.
4.RAM Memory that the computer user can use.
5.Software A program that consists of instructions used to control hardware.
1.13. Suggested Readings:
1. Leon, A. M. (2001). Computer for every one. Vikas Publishing house Ltd: New Delhi. 2. Norton, P. (1998). Introduction to computers. New Delhi: Tata McGraw Hill Publishing Co Ltd. 3. Arul Jothi, Balaji, D.L., Rajesh Verma (2009). Computers in Education. Centrum Press: New Delhi. 4. Rajasekar, S. (2008). Computer Education. Neelkamal Publications Pvt. Ltd: Hyderabad 5. Lalini Varanasi, Sudhakar, V., Mrunalini, T. (2008). Computer Education. Neelkamal Publications Pvt. Ltd: Hyderabad. 6. Sinha, P.K.(1992): Computer Fundamentals, BPB Publications, New Delhi.
33 UNIT - II OPERATING SYSTEMS
Structure 2.1 Introduction
2.2 Objectives
2.3 Concept of Operating System 2.3.1. Need for Operating System 2.3.2. Functions of Operating System
2.4. Types of Operating Systems 2.4.1. Windows 2.4.2. Linux 2.4.3. Mac
2.5. Introduction to windows 2.5.1. Desktop 2.5.2. My Computer 2.5.3. Folders and files 2.5.4. Explorer
2.6. Other Utilities of Windows
2.6.1. Clock
2.6.2. Calendar
2.6.3. Notepad
2.7. Basic Functions in Windows
2.7.1. Cut and Paste
2.7.2. Saving
2.7.3. Deleting
2.7.4. Searching
2.8. Data Management
2.9. File types
2.10. Let Us Sum up 2.11. Unit End Exercise 2.12. Answers to Check your Progress 2.13. Suggested Readings
34 2.1 Introduction:
In the previous unit we have learnt about the characteristics and parts of the computers in detail. We have also studied about the input and output devices and Primary and secondary storage devices. With this basic knowledge let us enter into a discussion regarding an important aspect the Operating Systems. In this unit we are going to discuss the Concept of Operating System and its types.
All computer systems need two types of parts that work together to make them run. These parts are: 1. Hardware 2. Software. The hardware is the part of the computer you can touch and see.( ex. keyboard, mouse, monitor) The software is a part of the computer you cannot touch but is very important. The software is all the programming that makes the computer run; controlling everything that the computer does. The operating system is the most important program that runs on a computer. Every general-purpose computer must have an operating system to run other programs. Operating systems perform basic tasks, such as recognizing input from the keyboard, sending output to the display screen, keeping track of files and directories on the disk, and controlling peripheral devices such as disk drives and printers.
For large systems, the operating system has even greater responsibilities and powers. It is like a traffic cop -- it makes sure that different programs and users running at the same time do not interfere with each other. The operating system is also responsible for security, ensuring that unauthorized users do not access the system. The operating system is the first software we see when we turn on the computer, and the last software we see when the computer is turned off. The operating system organizes and controls the hardware on our desks and in our hands.
After learning about the Operating System we are going to consider the OS windows in detail to assist you to get an overall idea about windows, its utilities and basic functions so that you can use it in the best manner possible.
35 2.2. Objectives:
After studying this unit you will be able to
define an Operating System explain the concept of Operating System differentiate various Operating Systems: Windows, Linux and Mac. discuss the utilities of windows such as Desktop, My Computer, Folders and files, Explorer, Clock, Calendar and Notepad. enumerate the basic functions of Windows - Cut and Paste, Saving, Accessing, Searching and Deleting. give details about Data Management describe File types Use all the basic functions
2.3. Concept of Operating System
Early computers were built to perform a series of single tasks, like a calculator. Operating systems did not exist in their modern and more complex forms until the early 1960s. Basic operating system features were developed in the 1950s, such as resident monitor functions that could automatically run different programs in succession to speed up processing. Hardware features were added that enabled use of runtime libraries, interrupts, and parallel processing. When personal computers by companies such as Apple Inc.,Atari, IBM and Commodore became popular in the 1980s, vendors included operating systems in them that had previously become widely used on mainframe and mini computers.
Operating systems provide a software platform on top of which other programs, called application programs, can run. The application programs must be written to run on top of a particular operating system. Your choice of operating system, therefore, determines to a great extent the applications you can run. For PCs, the most popular operating systems are DOS, OS/2, andWindows, but others are available, such as Linux. As a user, you normally interact with the operating system through a set of commands.
36 For example, the DOS operating system contains commands such as COPY and RENAME for copying files and changing the names of files, respectively. The commands are accepted and executed by a part of the operating system called the command processor.
Examples of popular modern operating systems include Android, BSD, iOS, GNU/Linux, Mac OS X, Microsoft Windows and IBM z/OS.
Definition: OS is system software, which may be viewed as collection of software consisting of procedures for operating the computer and providing an environment for execution of programs. It‘s an interface between user and computer.
2.3.1. Need for Operating System In earlier day's user had to design the application according to the internal structure of the hardware. Operating System was needed to enable the user to design the application without concerning the details of the computer's internal structure. In general the boundary between the hardware & software is transparent to the user. At the simplest level, an operating system does two things:
1. It manages the hardware and software resources of the system. In a desktop computer, these resources include such things as the processor, memory, disk space, etc. (On a cell phone, they include the keypad, the screen, the address book, the phone dialer, the battery and the network connection.)
2. It provides a stable, consistent way for applications to deal with the hardware without having to know all the details of the hardware.
The first task, managing the hardware and software resources, is very important, as various programs and input methods compete for the attention of the central processing unit (CPU) and demand memory, storage and input/output (I/O) band width for their own purposes. In this capacity, the operating system plays the role of the good parent, making sure that each application gets the necessary resources while playing nicely with all the other applications, as well as managing the limited capacity of the system to the greatest good of all the users and applications.
37 The second task, providing a consistent application interface, is especially important if there is to be more than one of a particular type of computer using the operating system, or if the hardware making up the computer is ever open to change. A consistent application program interface (API) allows a software developer to write an application on one computer and have a high level of confidence that it will run on another computer of the same type, even if the amount of memory or the quantity of storage is different on the two machines.
Even if a particular computer is unique, an operating system can ensure that applications continue to run when hardware upgrades and updates occur. This is because the operating system and not the application is charged with managing the hardware and the distribution of its resources. One of the challenges facing developers is keeping their operating systems flexible enough to run hardware from the thousands of vendors manufacturing computer equipment. Today's systems can accommodate thousands of different printers, disk drives and special peripherals in any possible combination.
The operating system is the interface between the hardware and the user. If there were no O/S, the computer would be an expensive door stop.
2.3.2. Functions of Operating System :
OS enables easy interaction between the human & computer. It Starts computer operation automatically when power in turned on. Executes user programs and makes solving user problems easier. The OS makes the computer system convenient to use and utilizes the computer hardware in an efficient manner. The main functions performed by most Operating Systems of today are given below: -
1. Process Management : - The process management module of an Operating System takes care of the creation and deletion of processes, scheduling of various system resources to the different process requesting them, & providing mechanism for synchronization & communication among processes.
38 2. Memory Management : - The memory management module of an Operating System takes care of the allocation & reallocation of memory space to the various program in need of this resource.
3. File Management : - Computer use a lot of data & programs, which are, stored on secondary storage devices. File management functions of an Operating System involves keeping track of all different files & maintaining the integrity of data stored in the files including file directory structure.
4. Security : - The security modules of an Operating System protect the resources & information of a computer system against destruction& unauthorized access.
5. Command Interpretation : - The Command Interpretation module of an Operating System takes care of interpreting of user commands, & directing the system resources to handle the requests. With this mode of interaction with the system, the user is usually not too concerned with the hardware details of the system.
6. Input/Output or Device Management: - Coordination & control of various input & output devices is an important function of the Operating System. This involves receiving the request for I/O interrupts, & communicating back to the requesting process.
7. Job Control: - When the user wants to run an application program, he must communicate with the Operating System telling it what to do. He does this using Operating System job control language or JCL. JCL consists of a number of Operating Systems commands, called system commands that control the functioning of the Operating System.
2.4. Types of Operating Systems
As computers have progressed and developed so have the operating systems. Windows, Linux and Mac are the different operating systems developed recently. Let us deal with these three operating systems one after the other.
2.4.1. Windows
Microsoft Windows is a family of proprietary operating systems designed by Microsoft Corporation and primarily targeted to Intel architecture based computers, with an estimated 88.9 percent total usage share on Web connected
39 computers. The newest version is Windows 7 for workstations and Windows Server 2008 R2 for servers. Windows 7 recently overtook Windows XP as most used OS.
Microsoft Windows originated in 1985 as an operating environment running on top of MS-DOS, which was the standard operating system shipped on most Intel architecture personal computers at the time. In 1995, Windows 95 was released which only used MS-DOS as a bootstrap. For backwards compatibility, Win9x could run real-mode MS-DOS and 16 bits Windows 3.x drivers. Windows Me, released in 2000, was the last version in the Win9x family. Later versions have all been based on the Windows NT kernel. Current versions of Windows run on IA-32 and x86-64 microprocessors, although Windows 8 will support ARM architecture. In the past, Windows NT supported non-Intel architectures.
Server editions of Windows are widely used. In recent years, Microsoft has expended significant capital in an effort to promote the use of Windows as a server operating system. However, Windows' usage on servers is not as widespread as on personal computers, as Windows competes against Linux and BSD for server market share.
40 2.4.2. Linux
Linux is a Unix-like computer operating system assembled under the model of free and open source software development and distribution. The defining component of Linux is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released 5 October 1991 by Linus Torvalds.
Linux was originally developed as a free operating system for Intel x86- based personal computers. It has since been ported to more computer hardware platforms than any other operating system. It is a leading operating system on servers and other big iron systems such as mainframe computers and supercomputers. More than 90% of today's 500 fastest supercomputers run some variant of Linux, including the 10 fastest. Linux also runs on embedded systems (devices where the operating system is typically built into the firmware and highly tailored to the system) such as mobile phones, tablet computers, network routers, televisions and video game consoles; the Android system in wide use on mobile devices is built on the Linux kernel.
The development of Linux is one of the most prominent examples of free and open source software collaboration: the underlying source code may be used, modified, and distributed—commercially or non- commercially-by anyone under licenses such as the GNU General Public License. Typically Linux is packaged in a format known as a Linux distribution for desktop and server use. Some popular mainstream Linux distributions include Debian (and its derivatives such as Ubuntu), Fedora and open SUSE. Linux distributions include the Linux kernel, supporting utilities and libraries and usually a large amount of application software to fulfil the distribution's intended use.
A distribution oriented toward desktop use will typically include the X Window System and an accompanying desktop environment such as GNOME or KDE Plasma. Some such distributions may include a less resource intensive desktop such as LXDE or Xfce for use on older or less powerful computers. A distribution intended to run as a server may omit all graphical environments from the standard install and instead include other software such as the Apache HTTP Server and an SSH server such as Open SSH. Because Linux is freely redistributable, anyone may create a distribution for any intended use.
41 Applications commonly used with desktop Linux systems include the Mozilla Firefox web browser, the Libre Office office application suite, and the GIMP image editor.
Presently, Linux is successfully being used by several millions of users worldwide. The composition of user groups varies from private users, training companies, universities, research centres right through to commercial users and companies, who view Linux as a real alternative to other operating systems. Since the main supporting user space system tools and libraries originated in the GNU Project, initiated in 1983 by Richard Stallman, the Free Software Foundation prefers the name GNU/Linux.
2.4.3. Mac Mac OS is a series of graphical user interface-based operating systems developed by Apple Inc. (formerly Apple Computer, Inc.) for their Macintosh line of computer systems. Mac OS is credited with popularizing the graphical user interface. The original form of what Apple would later name the "Mac OS" was the integral and unnamed system software first introduced in 1984 with the original Macintosh, usually referred to simply as the System software. OS X, introduced as Mac OS X and renamed OS X in 2012, is the latest version of Apple's operating system. Although it is officially designated as simply "version 10" of the Mac OS, it has a history largely independent of the earlier Mac OS releases.
Mac OS X is a line of open core graphical operating systems developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc., the latest of which is pre-loaded on all currently shipping Macintosh computers. Mac OS X is the successor to the original Mac OS, which had been Apple's primary operating system since 1984. Unlike its predecessor, Mac OS X is a UNIX operating system built on technology that had been developed at NeXT through the second half of the 1980s and up until Apple purchased the company in early 1997.
The operating system was first released in 1999 as Mac OS X Server 1.0, with a desktop-oriented version (Mac OS X v10.0 "Cheetah") following in March 2001. Since then, six more distinct "client" and "server" editions of Mac OS X have been released, the most recent being OS X 10.8 "Mountain Lion", which was
42 first made available on February 16, 2012 for developers, and to be released to the public late summer 2012. Releases of Mac OS X are named after big cats. The server edition, Mac OS X Server, is architecturally identical to its desktop counterpart but usually runs on Apple's line of Macintosh server hardware. Mac OS X Server includes work group management and administration software tools that provide simplified access to key network services, including a mail transfer agent, a Samba server, an LDAP server, a domain name server, and others. In Mac OS X v10.7 Lion, all server aspects of Mac OS X Server have been integrated into the client version. As computers have progressed and developed so have the operating systems. Below is a basic list of the different operating systems and a few examples of operating systems that fall into each of the categories. Many computer operating systems will fall into more than one of the below categories. GUI - Graphical User Interface
A GUI Operating System contains graphics and icons and is commonly navigated by using a computer mouse A GUI uses windows, icons, and menus to carry out commands such as opening files, deleting files and moving files. Although many GUI Operating Systems are operated by using a mouse, the keyboard can also be used by using keyboard shortcuts or arrow keys. GUI Operating Systems are much easier for end-users to learn and use because commands do not need to be known or memorized. Because of their ease of use, GUI Operating Systems have become the dominant operating system used by end- users today.
Below are some examples of GUI Operating Systems.
System7.x Windows98 Windows CE
Multi-user - A multi-user operating system allows for multiple users to use the same computer at the same time and different times. Below are some examples of multi-user operating systems.
43 Linux Unix Windows 2000
Multiprocessing - An operating system capable of supporting and utilizing more than one computer processor uses Multiprocessing. Multiprocessing is an ability of a computer to utilize two or more processors for computer operations. With multiple processors, the computer performance can be significantly increased. On a standard home computer, it is important to realize that not all standard applications will utilize two or more processors in a computer; therefore, multiple processors may not be fully utilized and the user may not notice a speed increase. Today, multiple physical processors have been replaced with multi-core processors.
Below are some examples of multiprocessing operating systems.
Linux Unix Windows 2000
Multitasking - An operating system that is capable of allowing multiple software processes to run at the same time. During multitasking, tasks such as listening to a CD or browsing the Internet can be performed in the background while using other programs in the foreground such as an e-mail client. With the help of multitasking, data can be copied and moved between programs and programs that are updated can be seen immediately. For example, if a new e-mail is received you immediately know. This OS is more productive, as dozens of different programmes can be made to run simultaneously. But this multitasking system requires more system resources. On a laptop or portable device it takes more battery power. Below are some examples of multitasking operating systems. Unix Windows 2000
Multithreading - Operating systems that allow different parts of a software program to run concurrently. Multithreading is an ability of a software program or operating system to run several threads of the same program at the same time. Operating systems that would fall into this category are:
44 Linux Unix Windows 2000
Users who are considering making a change from Windows to Linux or Linux to Windows commonly want to know the advantages and disadvantages of each of the operating systems. Below is a chart to help illustrate the major advantages and disadvantages of each of these operating systems.
Topic Linux Windows
The majority of Linux variants are Microsoft Windows can run Price available for free or at a much lower between $50.00 - $150.00 US price than Microsoft Windows. dollars per each license copy.
Microsoft has made several advancements and changes that Although the majority Linux variants have made it a much easier to have improved dramatically in ease of Ease use operating system, and use, Windows is still much easier to although arguably it may not be use for new computer users. the easiest operating system, it is still Easier than Linux.
The majority of Linux variants and Although Microsoft Windows has made great improvements in versions are notoriously reliable and Reliability reliability over the last few can often run for months and years versions of Windows, it still cannot match the reliability of without needing to be rebooted. Linux. Because of the large amount of Linux has a large variety of available Microsoft Windows users, there software programs, utilities, and is a much larger selection of Software games. However, Windows has a available software programs, much larger selection of available utilities, and games for software. Windows.
45 Many of the available software Although Windows does have programs, utilities, and games software programs, utilities, and available on Linux are freeware Software games for free, the majority of or open source. Even such complex Cost the programs will cost anywhere programs such as Gimp, Open between $20.00 - $200.00+ US Office,StarOffice, and wine are dollars per copy. available for free or at a low cost.
Linux companies and hardware Because of the amount of manufacturers have made great Microsoft Windows users and advancements in hardware support for the broader driver support, Linux and today Linux will support Windows has a much larger Hardware most hardware devices. However, support for hardware devices and many companies still do not offer a good majority of hardware drivers or support for their hardware manufacturers will support their in Linux. products in Microsoft Windows.
Although Microsoft has made Linux is and has always been a very great improvements over the secure operating system. Although it years with security on their Security operating system, their operating still can be attacked when compared system continues to be the most to Windows, it much more secure. vulnerable to viruses and other attacks. Many of the Linux variants and many Microsoft Windows is not open Open Linux programs are open source and source and the majority of Source enable users to customize or modify Windows programs are not open the code however they wish to. source.
Although it may be more difficult to Microsoft Windows includes its find users familiar with all Linux own help section, has vast variants, there are vast amounts of amount of available online Support available online documentation and documentation and help, as well help, available books, and support as books on each of the versions available for Linux. of Windows.
46 Check Your Progress 1. Expand GUI
------2. Which is the virus free OS
------3. What is the smallest unit of speed of computer?
------
4. Which one is the very small size computer?
------
2.5. Introduction to windows
Microsoft Windows is the operating system found on most personal computers. The following discussions will introduce you to Windows and how to use it.
2.5.1 Desktop
Figure1. - Desktop
47
The Windows Desktop Two major components of any "real" office are its filing cabinet and desktop. The filing cabinet is where you store and organize things you may need access to at some time. The desktop is where you do your work. In a computer, your hard disk plays the role of the filing cabinet. Everything in your computer is actually stored on the computer's hard disk. The Windows desktop is the equivalent of your "real desktop", where you keep things for your personal work.
When you first start your computer, you probably see only the Windows desktop and some desktop icons, the Start button, and other objects shown in Figure 1. Your desktop and icons won't look exactly like those in Figure 1. But you'll learn to easily recognize your own desktop in a moment.
Icons On the desktop screen you will see several small pictures. These pictures are called "Icons." The "My Computer" picture below is an example of an icon. Double clicking the left mouse button on an Icon will start the programme it represents. Another way to start programmes is by using the ―Start‖
Fig.2 - My Computer Fig.3 - The "Start" button
The "Start" button is probably the most used part of the Windows Desktop. The start button is where you access all the programmes on the computer. When you click on the"Start" button you will be shown a menu of the major computer headings. These headings provide access to the major programs on your computer.
48 Menus
When you click on the "Start" button a menu with options will appear. Moving the mouse over the items in the menu causes them to highlight. Clicking on a highlighted item will open that program. Fig.4 – The Start button - Menu
To close the "Start" menu click on the screen anywhere other then the menu. Finding a program Moving the mouse over a menu item marked with an arrow as shown below will open another list with more options. To see all the programs available for you to use on your computer click on the Start button and in the menu that appears, highlight the item named ―Programs.‖ A new list will appear that holds more selections. (Fig.6) Explore these lists to see all the programs available to you. When you have found the program that you want to use click on its icon.
The taskbar
Windows has the ability to run several programs at once and to easily switch back and forth between running programs. All programs currently running are shown on the windows "taskbar." The taskbar is a gray bar with pictures on in it that runs across the very bottom of the screen. The taskbar can be recognized by the "Start" button located on its left hand side and the clock on its right. To switch between programs that are running at the same time, click on the program buttons shown on the taskbar. This is demonstrated below:
49 Fig. 5 – Task bar Fig.6 - Finding a program
Adjusting a window's size Most Windows programs share the same look and feel. Changing the size of a window sets the default size of subsequent windows you open for that particular program or folder. For example, if you are using WordPad, and you want your document windows to open to the same size, you can resize one document window, and then any document windows you later open will be the same size. To resize a window
1. To change the height, point to the top or bottom window border. When the pointer changes into a vertical, double-headed arrow , click the border, and then drag it up or down. 2. To change the width, point to the left or right window border. When the pointer changes into a horizontal, double-headed arrow , click the border, and then drag it to the right or left. 3. To change the height and width at the same time, point to any window corner. When the pointer changes into a diagonal, double-headed arrow , click the border, and then drag it in any direction.
New ways to Manage windows
Overwhelmed by open windows? Windows 7 comes with three simple yet powerful new features called Shake, Peek, and Snap to help you instantly clear through desktop clutter.
50
Peek-a-boo: Peek turns open windows translucent so you can see what's on your desktop.
Spectacular new wallpapers
We spend a lot of time staring at our PCs. Aesthetics shouldn't just be an afterthought. That's why Windows 7 includes a slew of new desktop backgrounds—wallpapers—that range from sublime to silly. Or try the new desktop slide show, which displays a rotating series of pictures (ours or yours). Your desktop will never be dull again.
Visit the Personalization Gallery to download free Windows 7 themes and desktop backgrounds (wallpaper).
51
Windows 7 makes it easy to express your personality with creative new themes and other custom touches. Retooled taskbar
Since Windows 95, the taskbar has served as the go-to spot for launching programs and switching windows. Times and PC habits have changed. So in Windows 7, the taskbar has been completely redesigned to help you work smarter, cut clutter, and get more done.
Improvements to the new Windows 7 taskbar include thumbnail previews of web pages, documents—even running video. Improved gadgets
Gadgets, the popular mini-programs introduced in Windows Vista, are now more flexible and fun. Based on the user‘s feedback, the Sidebar has been removed, so that you can stick your gadgets anywhere on the desktop.
52
Start menu
The start orb now has a fade-in highlight effect when the user moves the mouse over it.
The search results pane in Windows 7, demonstrating a search for the word "wireless".
Windows 7's Start menu retains the two-column layout of its predecessors, with several functional changes:
53 The "Documents", "Pictures" and "Music" buttons now link to the Libraries of the same name. A "Devices and Printers" option has been added that displays a new device manager. The "shut down" icon in Windows Vista has been replaced with a text link indicating what action will be taken when the icon is clicked. The default action to take is now configurable through the Taskbar and Start Menu Properties window. Taskbar Jump Lists are presented in the Start Menu via a guillemet; when the user moves the mouse over the guillemet, or presses the right-arrow key, the right-hand side of the Start menu is widened and replaced with the application's Jump List.
The search box, first introduced with Windows Vista, has been extended to support searching Control Panel items. For example, clicking the Start button then typing "wireless" will show Control Panel options related to configuring and connecting to wireless network, adding Bluetooth devices, and troubleshooting. Group Policy settings for Windows Explorer provide the ability for administrators of an Active Directory domain, or an expert user to add up to five Internet web sites and five additional "search connectors" to the Search Results view in the Start menu. The links, which appear at the bottom of the pane, allow the search to be executed again on the selected web site or search connector. Microsoft suggests that network administrators could use this feature to enable searching of corporate Intranets or an internal SharePoint server.
Taskbar
The Windows Taskbar has seen its most significant revision since its introduction in Windows 95. The taskbar is 10 pixels taller than in Windows Vista to accommodate touch screen input and a new larger default icon size (although a smaller taskbar size is available), as well as maintain proportion to newer high resolution monitor modes. Running applications are denoted by a border frame around the icon. Within this border, a color effect (dependent on the predominant RGB value of the icon) that follows the mouse also indicates the opened status of the application. Applications can be pinned to the taskbar, so that shortcuts to them
54 appear when they are not running. The glass taskbar is also more transparent. Taskbar buttons show icons by default, not application titles, unless they are set to 'not combine'. In this case, only icons are shown when the application is not running. Programs running or pinned on the taskbar can be rearranged.
The Windows 7 taskbar. Pinned applications The Quick Launch toolbar has been removed from the default configuration, but may be easily added. The Windows 7 taskbar is more application-oriented than window-oriented, and therefore does not show window titles (these are shown when an application icon is clicked or hovered over, provided there are multiple windows for the application). Applications can now be pinned to the taskbar allowing the user instant access to the applications they commonly use. There are a few ways to pin applications to the taskbar. Icons can be dragged and dropped onto the taskbar, or the application‘s icon can be right- clicked to pin it to the taskbar.
The Windows 7 taskbar shows a preview of the window. Thumbnail previews Thumbnail previews which were introduced in Windows Vista have been expanded to not only preview the windows opened by the application in a small- sized thumbnail view, but to also interact with them. The user can close any window opened by clicking the X on the corresponding thumbnail preview. The name of the window is also shown in the thumbnail preview. A "peek" at the
55 window is obtained by hovering over the thumbnail preview. Peeking brings up only the window of the thumbnail preview over which the mouse hovers, and turns any other windows on the desktop transparent. This also works for tabs in Internet Explorer: individual tabs may be peeked at in the thumbnail previews. Thumbnail previews integrate Thumbnail Toolbars which can control the application from the thumbnail previews themselves. For example, if Windows Media Player is opened and the mouse is hovering on the application icon, the thumbnail preview will allow the user the ability to Play, Stop, and Play Next/Previous track without having to switch to the Windows Media Player window.
Windows Media Player Jump List. Jump lists
These are menu options available by right-clicking any icon on the taskbar or by holding the left mouse button and sliding towards the center of the desktop on an icon. Each application has unique jump lists which correspond to the features unique to the application, such as files recently opened or common tasks. For example, a Microsoft Word jump list might display all the recent documents opened; the Windows Media Player jump list displays recently played tracks and playlists that have been played. Internet Explorer's jump list displays recent history of websites and the ability to open a new tab or start In Private Browsing. Windows Live Messenger's jump list displays select common tasks such as instant messaging, signing off, and changing online status. While up to 10 menu items may appear on a jump list by default, Windows 7 provides the ability to customize this.
56
The redesigned notification area and a balloon notification showing the Action Centre messages.
When the action centre detects a security threat, it displays a thumbnail with problems listed.
Notification area The notification area has been redesigned; the standard Volume, Network, Power and Action Centre status icons are present, but no other application icons are shown unless the user has chosen them to be shown. A new "Notification Area Icons" control panel has been added which replaces the "Customize Notification Icons" dialog box in the "Taskbar and Start Menu Properties" window first introduced in Windows XP. In addition to being able to configure whether the application icons are shown, the ability to hide each application's notification balloon has been added. The user can then view the notifications at a later time. A triangle to the left of the visible notification icons displays the hidden notification icons. Unlike Windows Vista and Windows XP, the hidden icons are displayed in a window above the taskbar, instead of on the taskbar. Icons can be dragged between this window and the notification area.
57 2.5.2. My computer
An icon is a picture used to identify a program or another type of object on the computer. As such, the small pictures that appear on the computer desktop are called icons. Besides the desktop, there are many other places where you will see icons when using the computer.
There are two entities that mainly need to interact with icons:
As a person using the computer, icons allow you to familiarize with the various programs that are installed in a computer. Every application or every category of application has its own icon. This is easily possible because every person who creates an application has the possibility of providing a special icon for that particular application.
The operating system also has an interior mechanism to identify an icon or a type of icon and associate it with a particular application or a series of applications of the same type.
Microsoft Windows ships with various icons for its own use. For example, every version of Microsoft Windows ships with a special icon for the My Computer program. There is also a special icon for Recycle Bin, etc.
The sizes of icons are standardized and they should not have just any random dimensions. For example, the icons on the desktop are 32x32 pixels. Sometimes, the icons display in a 16x16 dimension.
58
From the Computer folder, you can access locations such as hard disks, CD or DVD drives, and removable media.
You can also access other devices that might be connected to your computer, such as external hard drives and USB flash drives.
A common reason to open the Computer folder is to view the available space on your hard disks and removable media.
If you right-click an item in the Computer folder, you can perform tasks such as ejecting a CD or DVD, viewing the properties of a hard disk, and formatting a disk.
Using Icons
1. Start the computer
2. To see some icons, on the Taskbar, click Start, position the mouse on (All) Programs
3. Notice that each program is represented by an icon. Notice also that all menu items that have an arrow use the same type of icon used on Accessories. These are called Program Groups
59 4. Position the mouse on Accessories and click Windows Explorer. If you are using Windows 98 and you don't see Windows Explorer, look for it in the list under Accessories (not in the arrow menufrom Accessories)
5. On the left side of the window, click My Computer. Notice that it has a small icon on its left
6. On the main menu of the window, click View -> Icons or View -> Large Icons
7. Notice that the icons on the right side are big:
8. Right-click an empty area on the right side, position the mouse on View and click List or click Small Icons
60
9. Notice that the icon on the upper-left section of the window, the icons in the left frame, and those in the right frame are the same size
10. To close the window, on the main menu, click File -> Close
2.5.3. Files and Folders A file is a collection of data that is stored together. Files can be stored on a hard drive, a floppy disk, or a CD. Everything that a computer does is based on data stored in files. You can do lots of things with files - create them, name them, rename them, save them, or delete them. Certain files can even be looked at, listened to, and run. In some ways, files are like television shows. All TV shows have 3 things, just like computer files:
Name Location Length Just as you recognize your favorite TV program by its name, you can also recognize a file by its name. File names often consist of 2 parts: name and type. There are many different types of TV shows - comedies, dramas, cartoons, sports shows, game shows, etc. Similarly, computer files come in different types - text files, graphic files, program files, e-mail files, etc. In many computer systems, files are named so that you know what type of file it is just by looking at the abbreviation behind the name.
61 A period is used to separate the name from the type, like this: "name.type". If TV show titles came in 2 parts like computer files, they would give the name of the program, followed by a period, followed by the type of show it is. It might look like this: "Sillykids.toon" or "Emergency Room.drama" or "Football.sport"! One important thing that you should know about file types or extensions is that they are always written as abbreviations, usually with 3 letters. For example, a text file is shown as .txt when you are using the program notepad or as .doc when you use Microsoft Word and an executable program file is shown as .exe. You may not always see the extension on a file name, because many PCs offer the option of turning off the extension. Even though you don't see it, the computer still does. On the Macintosh system, however, the practice of naming files with extensions is not always followed; but you can see what kind of file it is by the icon or 'kind' identifier in the directory listings. Common Mac extensions you'll see are .sit (a compressed stuffit file), .hqx (a binhexed encoded file), .pdf (Adobe Acrobat file). Web pages (no matter what system) always use extensions to identify the kind of file - .htm or .html for the web pages, .gif for gif graphics, .jpg for jpg graphics and so on. Files are stored in certain places within your computer, much like TV programs are shown on certain channels. So, to find a file you must know where it is located, just like you must know on what channel to find your favorite TV show. If you forget what channel a TV show is on, you can either flip through channels until you find the program or you can look in a TV guide to find the information you need quickly. The quickest way to find files on most computers is to use Search. This is a type of search program where you can type in the name of a file and the computer will search and tell you where the file is located. If you use a Windows Operating System, Search is located on your Start Menu. On a Macintosh System, go to the menu bar at the top of your screen and click the magnifying glass. A search box will appear where you can type the name of the file. TV Programs, like files, have specific lengths. TV shows may be 30 minutes long, 1 hour long, or several hours long. Files are not measured in time, but in bytes. A byte is a measurement of stored data. Larger files may be measured in kilobytes or megabytes. The length of a file tells how much storage space that file is using within the computer.
62 Folders or Directories
With so many thousands of files stored inside a computer, it is very important to keep them organized. Folders, also known as Directories, keep files organized by grouping them together.
Imagine for a moment that you had a giant toy room filled with toys and you were given the job of organizing all of those toys. You decide to start the job by sorting all of the toys and grouping similar toys together. For example, you put all of your red marbles in a box and all of your blue marbles in another box and all of your clear marbles in a third box. Then, you put all of those boxes into a bigger box and label it "marbles". Then, you might even put the "marbles" box into a bigger box that contains boxes of "super balls" and "tennis balls" and "baseballs". You would name that big box "balls". If you continued to organize toys that way, you would end up with an entire room of boxes with labels that contain similar kinds of toys. Then if you needed to find your plastic brontosaurus, you would know to open the box labeled "toy animals" and go past the "bug box" and the "reptile box" until you find the "dinosaur box" - open it and there is the brontosaurus! In this example, the toys are like files and the boxes are like folders. Your computer is set up to store similar files in specific folders. Then similar folders can be put inside other folders, and so on.
Many times, the computer will automatically store files in certain folders in order to keep itself organized. However, when you create new files, you must decide which folders to put them. You can even create new folders to store your files. For example, let's say that a boy named Adam wants to make a folder of all the fun things he creates on the computer. With an adult's help, Adam creates a folder titled "Adam". Within that folder, he creates 3 new folders titled "stories", "drawings" and "jokes". Then, when Adam writes a story called "Alien Tap Dancing", he stores or saves that file that contains the story in the "stories" folder. On a PC, the file name would be "Alien Tap Dancing.txt" because it is a text file.
The best way to keep up with a file is to know its address. The address basically tells you what drive and folders to look in for a file. For example, the
63 address for Adam's story might look like this on a Macintosh system: "Macintosh HD\Users\Adam\stories\Alien Tap Dancing" (Macintosh HD indicates the hard drive). On a PC, the address might look like this: "C:\\My Documents\ Adam\stories\Alien Tap Dancing.txt". In this case, the letter "C" indicates the hard drive, as most PCs assign a letter to each drive in the system. Note, that the file address always includes the drive, folder(s), and file name in exactly that order.
2.5.4. Explorer
The Explorer is an indispensible tool in an operating system, since with it we can organize and control the files and folders of the different storage systems at our disposal such as the hard drive, disk drive, etc.
The Windows Expolrer is also known as the File Manager. Through it we can delete, see, copy, or move files and folders.
We suggest you pay particular attention to this unit because of its great importance.
Starting the Explorer
The quickest way to start up the Explorer is through the icon on the task bar or desktop. If you don't already have the icon created, you can open the Explorer as follows:
Click on Start
Select All programs
Select Accesories
Select Windows Explorer
Fig. The Windows Explorer´s window
64
The Explorer can also be started from the Start button by choosing My documents, My images or My music; the difference is that in these cases we will go directly to those folders. This window is similar to the one you can find as you open your Windows explorer. It is possible that it may differ slightly in appearance since we can customize it to our liking. The explorer consists basically of two sections. On the left side there is the directory tree, which is the list of units and folders that we have. Only units and folders appear, no files. On this image we can see a few folders such as My Documents, aulaclic, ... the My Computer icon, My Network Places and the Recycle Bin.
Basic Concepts about Files, Folders and Units The Windows Explorer is the basic tool in an operating system because with it we can control all the information that we have stored in our hard disk, floppy, CD, etc.
To be able to work with the Windows Explorer we need to know the terminology with which it works so that handling it will be easier.
A byte is the smallest unit of information. It is used to measure the size of our documents.
A kilobyte (Kb) is 1024 bytes, a Megabyte (Mb) is 1024 Kb, a Gigabyte is 1024 Mb.
A File is a group of bytes. For example a text document is a file, a drawing is a file, etc.
65 Types of Files. There are different types of files depending on the type of information they contain. There are image files, program files, text files, music files, etc. To distinguish the type of information that they contain, the files are assigned a type of file or document. When the files are Word documents, for example, they are .doc.
Names of files. The name can have up to 255 characters, it can contain letters, numbers, blank spaces and special characters like dashes, underlines, etc., but there is a group that cannot be used ( ", ? , \, >, <, | ).
Folder. The folders are used to classify the files in our computer. The folders receive a name just like the files. We suggest that the folders, as well as files, be given names that are as descriptive as possible. A folder can contain files or other folders.
The folders are also known as directories.
In the Explorer the folders are represented by a yellow folder.
A Unit is like a folder but it encompasses much more information. The units are imaginary divisions that we make in our computer to access information easily.
The units that we have in our computer usually have the name of a letter from the alphabet. The floppy drives usually receive the letters A, B. The hard disks and the CD-Rom receive correlated letters.
In this image one can appreciate that there are 4 units; the disk units are represented by a , with the units of the disk drives the first represents the floppy drive (A:) then the DVD drive (F:) and the CD-Rom recorder (G:).
66 Desktop Structures
Here we have the file structure that may possibly appear when we open the Windows File Explorer.
The file structure is like a family tree.
First our most general folder is shown, which in our case is the Desktop. Within in we find My Computer, which at the same time has the different units that we have (A,C,D,E,F,G,H); by clicking on + to the left of a unit the folders that they contain will be displayed until reaching the smallest level of detail. When a folder is open the + becomes a -. If you want to hide a branch of the tree click on the (-). symbol.
We can delete, create and move folder.
Windows Internet Explorer
Windows Internet Explorer (formerly Microsoft Internet Explorer, commonly abbreviated IE or MSIE) is a series of graphical web browsers developed by Microsoft and included as part of the Microsoft Windows line of operating systems, starting in 1995. It was first released as part of the add-on package Plus! for Windows 95 that year. Later versions were available as free downloads, or in service packs, and included in the OEM service releases of Windows 95 and later versions of Windows.
Internet Explorer is one of the most widely used web browsers, attaining a peak of about 95% usage share during 2002 and 2003. Its usage share has since declined with the launch of Safari (2003), Firefox (2004), and Google Chrome (2008), each of which now have significant market share. Estimates for Internet Explorer's overall market share range from 16.7% to 32.31%, as of May 2012 (browser market share is notoriously difficult to calculate). Microsoft spent over US$100 million per year on Internet Explorer in the late 1990s, with over 1000 people working on it by 1999.
Since its first release, Microsoft has added features and technologies such as basic table display (in version 1.5); XML Http Request (in version 5), which aids creation of dynamic web pages; and Internationalized Domain Names (in version 7), which allow Web sites to have native-language addresses with non-Latin characters. The browser has also received scrutiny throughout its
67 development for use of third-party technology (such as the source code of Spyglass Mosaic, used without royalty in early versions) and security and privacy vulnerabilities, and both the United States and the European Union have alleged that integration of Internet Explorer with Windows has been to the detriment of other browsers.
The latest stable release is Internet Explorer 9, which is available as a free update for Windows 7, Windows Vista SP2,Windows Server 2008, and Windows Server 2008 R2. Internet Explorer was to be omitted from Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 in Europe, but Microsoft ultimately included it, with a browser option screen allowing users to select any of several web browsers (including Internet Explorer).
Versions of Internet Explorer for other operating systems have also been produced, including a Xbox 360 version called Internet Explorer for Xbox and an embedded OEM version called Pocket Internet Explorer, later rebranded Internet Explorer Mobile, which is currently based on Internet Explorer 9 and made for Windows Phone, Windows CE, and previously, based on Internet Explorer 7 for Windows Mobile. It remains in development alongside the desktop versions. Internet Explorer for Mac and Internet Explorer for UNIX (Solaris and HP-UX) have been discontinued.
2.6. Other utilities of Windows 2.6.1. Clock The clock in your Windows taskbar shows the current time but not the date or the day of the week. You can however setup a keyboard shortcut that will open the Windows clock on your desktop that will have both the date as well as time.
But before that, let us look at some existing options that help us view the current date on Windows desktops:
Option 1: Drag the edge of your taskbar towards north and the date will automatically become visible along with the system time.
Option 2: Install calendar gadgets that are available with Google Desktop or the Vista Sidebar.
68 Option 3: Take your mouse pointer to the extreme right-bottom corner of your desktop, wait for few seconds and the date information will pop on your screen.
Do you find any of these methods efficient? #1 and #2 are discounted because they occupy precious screen estate on your desktop. #3 is popular but again, keyboard fans often do not like the idea of using a mouse to accomplish tasks in Windows. Most Useful Desktop Keyboard Shortcuts If you neither want to increase the height of your taskbar nor want to install new clock widgets, here‘s an alternate trick that will popup the Windows Calendar + Clock on your screen when your press the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+Alt+D.
Step 1. Right click anywhere on the desktop and choose New -> Shortcut.
Keyboard Shortuct to Display Windows Clock with Date and Time Step 2. Type timedate.cpl and click "Finish." You will see a time-date shortcut on your desktop.
Step 3. Right click that shortcut icon, select Properties and type "D" in the box that says "Shortcut key".
You‘re done. Whether you reading a web page or typing an email in Outlook, press Ctrl+Alt+D to see the current date and time on your screen. Press Esc to close that Window.
Main features Time Left offers Windows desktop clock, which can be displayed as a separate floating window or can be built in the system tray instead of the standard Windows tray-clock. Time Left Windows desktop clock, when used as a separate floating window, is very convenient for those of you who prefer to have Windows taskbar hidden. You can resize your Windows desktop clock up to the screen size (full screen). You can setup your Windows desktop clock to display time in any time zone.
69 You can choose to display time in 12-hour or 24 (military) format. You can change Windows desktop clock layout. For example, you can setup your Windows desktop clock to display date and time or date only. By using Time Left atomic clock function, you can always keep your system time accurate - Time Left atomic clock can synchronize your Windows system time according to the atomic servers.
2.6.2. Calendar In windows, to change the time or date, you should have special privilege. Only administrator can undertake these activities. It is given in the following illustration. On the left half of the dialog box, the current month‘s calendar is displayed. To view the calendar for some other month, click on the month and drop down list box and year spinner box and select the month and year you want.
2.6.3. Note pad Notepad is a basic text editor that you can use to create simple documents. The most common use for Notepad is to view or edit text (.txt) files, but many users find Notepad a simple tool for creating Web pages. Because Notepad supports only very basic formatting, you cannot accidentally save special formatting in documents that need to remain pure text. This is especially useful when creating HTML documents for a Web page because special characters or other formatting may not appear in your published Web page or may even cause errors.
70 You can save your Notepad files as Unicode, ANSI, UTF-8, or big-endian Unicode. These formats provide you greater flexibility when working with documents that use different character sets.
Using different language formats in Notepad Notepad allows you to create and open documents in several different formats: ANSI, Unicode, big-endian Unicode, or UTF-8. These formats allow you to work with documents that use different character sets. By default, your documents will be saved as standard ANSI text. Unicode is a superset of all the major scripts of the world. It includes character sets common to business and computer use. When you save a document in Unicode, you can use Unicode control characters to help with text flow and direction for languages such as Arabic and Hebrew. Some fonts cannot display all of the Unicode characters. If you see any characters missing in your text file, you can change the font to one that includes the character. Generally, Microsoft Sans Serif is a good choice for Unicode characters. The bytes (a unit of storage) in a word in a Unicode document created on a big- endian processor, such as the Macintosh, are arranged in an order opposite to that of the bytes in a word in a document created on an Intel processor. The most significant byte has the lowest address, with the word stored big end first. To make your documents accessible to users on these types of computers, save your Notepad file in the big-endian Unicode format. UTF stands for Universal Character Set Transformation Format. UTF-8 is the 8-bit form of Unicode. Save your document in UTF-8 if you are using older transmission media that support only 8 bits of significant data within individual bytes.
Using Notepad Notepad is a basic text editor you can use for simple documents or for creating Web pages. To create or edit files that require formatting, use WordPad. Open Notepad To open Notepad, click Start, point to All Programs, point to Accessories, and then click Notepad. For information about using Notepad, click the Help menu in Notepad.
71 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS 2 5. Which served as the go-to spot for launching programs and switching windows? ------6. What is the shortcut key to pop up clock? ------7. What is the extension for notepad files? ------8. What is UTF? ------
2.7. Basic functions in windows 2.7.1. Cut and Paste
Copy: The primary means of using the clipboard consists of putting information in it. One of the ways you do this is to copy information from a source. To do this, you must first select that information and this depends on what you are using. The document from which you are copying an item is referred to as source. To get text from a text-based application, first select it. To copy it, most applications have a menu called Copy under Edit. Copying an Item to the Clipboard
1. Log on to http://www.functionx.com/html/articles/specialchars.htm then find the œ character and select it
2. Press Ctrl + C to copy it to the clipboard
3. Return to Notepad
Paste: As mentioned above, copying consists of putting information into the clipboard. To use that information, you must retrieve it from the clipboard and put it where you want. This operation is referred to as pasting. The document into which you are pasting an item is referred to as destination.
Before pasting something, you should first make sure that the clipboard is not empty and, most of the time, you should know what is in the clipboard. Remember that when the computer starts, the clipboard is empty. Also, you have
72 no way of visually checking the contents of the clipboard. You would just need to remember what you had previously put in the clipboard.
We mentioned that the clipboard could contain just about anything: a character, a picture, a book, a group of pictures, a whole library, a paragraph of text, an icon. Notice that these are disparate items that may not share anything at all, except that they are retrieved from the computer. To distinguish these items, the computer (the operating system) categorized using a technique referred to as format. Because of the differences among these items, each uses a specific format. Based on this, some items are categorized as text. Some items are categorized as images (bitmap), and so on. To paste the content of the clipboard, most applications have a Paste item under their Editmenu. In most applications also, you can right-click the area or section where you want to paste. The context menu would have a Paste item. In both cases (using the main menu or the context menu), if you click Paste, the contents of the clipboard would be added to that section.
As mentioned already, not all items use the same format. For this reason, not just anything can be pasted in just anywhere. A text-based item such as a letter, a symbol, a word, a sentence, a paragraph, a book (as text) can be pasted in a document that can receive it. On the other hand, a picture cannot be pasted in a text-based application like Notepad because the format is not compatible. Some other applications (OLE-based, don't ask) can be pasted almost anything, even a whole object from an application that has nothing to do with the destination.
Pasting an Item
1. Click the right side of C to position the caret there. On the main menu of Notepad, click Edit -> Paste
2. Continue typing as follows:
Le Cœur Dormant Henry de Mesquieux is a young French movie director who, once more, has produced a masterpiece of cinematography. A few years ago, his commendable ability to carry an audience started with “La Fille Cr
73 3. Return to http://www.functionx.com/html/articles/specialchars.htm then find the écharacter and select it 4. Press Ctrl + C to copy it to the clipboard 5. Return to Notepad and press Ctrl + V to paste the character 6. Type ole aux Yeux Per 7. Return to http://www.functionx.com/html/articles/specialchars.htm then find the çcharacter and select it 8. Press Ctrl + C to copy it to the clipboard 9. Return to Notepad and press Ctrl + V to paste the character 10. Continue as follows:
Le Cœur Dormant Henry de Mesquieux is a young French movie director who, once more, has produced a masterpiece of cinematography. A few years ago, his commendable ability to carry an audience started with ―La Fille Créole aux Yeux Perçants”. This movie had put its own reference in the world of wonderful pictures and won various awards, including the Marsouni Critique Consortium.
Cut: We mentioned that you could copy an item and put it in the clipboard. When you do this, the item is only copied; in other words, a copy of the item stays in the source and a copy is made in the clipboard. If you want to remove an item from a source and have it only in the destination, you can Cut it. When this is done, the item is deleted from the source. To cut an item, most applications have a Cut item under the Edit category of their main menu. They may also have a Cut item in their context menu that appears when you right-click. Different applications handle cutting differently. In most applications, once you click Cut, the character, word, sentence, paragraph, the whole text, the picture, the group of pictures, etc, is immediately deleted and put into the clipboard. With some other applications, the item that was cut becomes dimmed or disabled but not completely deleted.
After cutting an item and pasting, it becomes available in the destination. As stated already, if the destination is not equipped to receive the contents of the
74 clipboard because of a different format, the contents would not be pasted and nothing would happen. You would not even receive a message stating that the pasting operation failed. Cutting and Pasting
1. On the main menu of Notepad, click Edit -> Select All
2. Again on the main menu of Notepad, click Edit -> Cut and notice that the whole text has been erased
3. Start WordPad and press Enter to move the caret to the second line
4. On the main menu of WordPad, click Edit -> Paste
5. Log on to http://www.functionx.com/windows/images/cover1.gif
6. Right-click the picture and click Copy
7. Return to WordPad and press Ctrl + Home to move the caret to the beginning. On the main menu, click Edit -> Paste to paste the picture.
2.7.2. Saving
Saving a Document:
After creating a document, you may want to preserve it for later use. Preserving a document is referred to as saving it. You have many options and this
75 may depend on the application you are using. In most cases, if an application was created using the standards described and recommended by Microsoft, to save the document, on the main menu, you can click File -> Save:
If the document was never saved before, a dialog box would come to assist you
If the document was saved previously, it would be saved behind the scenes and the new version would include the new changes
A document can also be saved when you attempt to close an application:
If you create a document or modify one, if you close the application (or the window), you will be asked whether you want to save it. If you want to save it, you should click Yes. If the document was not saved previously, a dialog box would come up.
If you have modified a previously saved document and if you attempt to close the application (or the window), the computer would ask you whether you want to save the document. If you want to save it, you should click Yes. In this case, the new version of the document would keep the changes you made. If you click No, the document would revert back to what it was before it was opened or the previous time it was saved.
When saving a document for the same time, you must give it a name and a location.
2.7.3. Deleting: To delete a folder, first place the pointer on it.
Once the folder has been selected go to the Standard bar and click on or you can use ‗Delete‟ key. When we delete a folder or file, by default Windows will move it to the Recycle Bin. The settings can be changed so that it deletes it completely. The Recycle Bin is nothing more than a space reserved on the hard disk so that in case of having deleted any element it would be possible for us to retrieve it.
76 2.7.4. Searching The built-in search feature in Windows 7 is significantly better than the horrible search options in Windows XP. Instead of installing a third-party program like Google Desktop to search for files on inside files on your computer, you can now do it with easily from Windows 7. For example, let‘s say you‘re a programmer or web developer and you want to be able to search your code files like .aspx, .html, .java, .php, etc. With Windows 7, you can configure the search indexer to not only index any file you want, but also to index the file contents. By default, the Search Indexer in Windows 7 indexes the most common locations where your files would be stored, i.e. all libraries, everything in your User folder, and e-mail. If this is not enough, you can add or remove index location really easily. That means you can tell Windows 7 to index and return results from files and folder on network drives or external hard drives. To get started, click on Start, then type in search into the search box.
This will bring up the Indexing Options dialog. At the top, you‘ll see the total number of items that have currently been indexed on your computer. Below that, you will see a list of all the locations that have been included for indexing.
77
To add a new location to the index, click on the Modify button. Any network drive or external hard drive will show up in the list of possible locations. You can check off any drive or folder that you would like to include in the index.
Depending on how many files and folders are in a location, it could take some time for search indexer to index everything. If you have noticed that certain files are not being indexed by search indexer even though they are included in the search locations, you may have to add the file type. You can do this by clicking on the Advanced button on the main Indexing Options screen. Then click on the File Types tab.
78
If the file extension is not in the list, go ahead and add it at the bottom. Then select it and choose whether you want to index just the properties or the properties and the file contents. If you know the file contains only text, make sure to select the second radio button.
You can also click on Index Settings to modify some of the settings for the Search Indexer.
Here you can choose to index encrypted files and other options like treating similar words with diacritics as different words. If you are having problems with Windows search or something has become corrupted, you can rebuild the index by clicking the Rebuild button.
79 2.8. Data management
Use the following tips to organize your computer files.
1. Use Documents. For many reasons, it is smart to take advantage of the Documents feature, which is called Documents in Windows 7 and in Windows Vista and is called My Documents in Windows XP. To open Documents in Windows 7 and Vista, click Start, and then click Documents to discover an easy way to store your personal documents. In Windows 7, the Documents feature is actually a virtual library. By default, the Documents library includes your My Documents or Documents folder and the Public Documents folder. You can customize the Documents library (in addition to the Music, Pictures, and Videos libraries that are also included by default) in Windows 7 to group files and folders from any location on your computer—without actually moving them. Or you can build your own libraries to easily organize your files.
Libraries are a flexible way to organize your files in Windows 7 without moving them into one location. By using Libraries in Windows 7, Documents in Windows Vista, and My Documents in Windows XP, you can organize more easily:
80 Find files. Windows provides easy access to the Documents folder (and its subfolders) in many places, including the Start menu, the task pane in Windows Explorer, and common File Open and File Save dialog boxes, among other places. Back up files. You should back up files regularly. Documents and libraries can help make backups a snap. Keep files separate from programs. By separating document files and program files you reduce the risk of accidentally deleting your documents when you install or upgrade programs. To move files or folders from one location to another, right-click the file or folder name in the existing location and then click Cut. Navigate to the new location, and then click Paste. You can also drag a file or folder from one location to another. To display two folder windows simultaneously in Windows 7, hold down the Shift key when you click to open the second window. 2. Adopt consistent methods for file and folder naming. When learning how to manage files and folders, it is important that you develop a naming scheme for the kinds of files you create most often and then stick to it. To change an existing file or folder name, right-click the name in the folder structure. Click Rename, and then type the new name. 3. Keep names short. Even though you can use long file names in Windows, you should not necessarily do so. Long file names can be harder to read. Let your folder structure do some of the naming. For example, rather than creating a file called Great American Novel Chapter One First Effort, you can build a structure like this:
The folder structure can help you avoid using lengthy file names.
81
4. Separate ongoing and completed work. To keep the Documents folder from becoming too unwieldy, use it only for files you are actively working on. As a result, you can reduce the number of files you need to search through and the amount of data you need to back up. Every month or so, move the files you are no longer working on to a different folder or location, such as a folder on your desktop, a special archive folder, a flash drive, an external hard disk drive, or even a CD.
5. Group your files and store with like. Restricting folders to a single document type (or predominantly one type) makes it easier for you to find files. For example, with all of your graphics in a single folder—or in a single library in Windows 7—it's easy to use the slide show feature in Windows Explorer to find the right picture for your newsletter. You can also use libraries in Windows 7 to group files together for easier searching without moving them into the same place or use the Arrange by command to sort files by criteria, such as author, date modified, and type. These criteria can change based on the file type (documents have different Arrange by criteria than photos, for example).
6. Avoid large folder structures. If you need to put so many subfolders in a folder that you can not see all of them at a glance, consider creating an alphabetic menu.
Alphabetized folders can help you stay organized.
82 7. Use shortcuts and shortcut links instead of multiple copies. If you need to get to the same file from multiple locations, don't create copies of the file. Create shortcuts to it instead. Shortcuts are links to files or programs and are represented by icons with an arrow in the lower-left corner. To create a shortcut, right-click the file and then click Create Shortcut. You can drag the shortcut to other locations. Microsoft Office 2010 includes some built-in shortcuts with the new Backstage view. To see Backstage view, open an Office file and then click the File tab. In Backstage view, click the Recent tab for a list of links to your recent documents. The Recent tab even includes a Recover Unsaved Documents option. In Backstage view, you can create, save, and send documents, inspect documents for hidden metadata or personal information, set options, and more. 8. Quickly get to the items you use every day. Jump Lists, a fun new feature in Windows 7, are lists of recently opened items, such as files, folders, or websites that are organized by the program that you use to open them. You can use a Jump List to open items, and you can even pin favourites to a Jump List. To see a Jump List for a particular program, just right-click the program button on the taskbar. 9. Consider storing documents online. You can also keep documents on your company‘s Microsoft SharePoint 2010 site or on Windows Live Sky Drive so that you can easily access them from outside the office, share them, and edit them online by using Office Web Apps.
2.9. File Types
Word Definition
.AU A sound file format used on Sun Microsystems or other UNIX computers
.EMF Enhanced Windows Metafile (filename extension).
.CGI Common Gateway Interface (filename extension). A file that makes it possible for HTTP hosting servers to interface with computer programs to provide interactive functions
83 like fill-out forms.
.AST Assistant file - Claris Works (filename extension). Assistants guide the user through a task by asking a series of questions and then use the answers to perform a task. Assistants in Claris Works can be used to create such useful items as calendars, newsletters, stationery, labels, and address lists, to make footnotes within a file, to find documents, etc.
.ANS ANSI text (filename extension).
.INI Initialization - configuration settings
.ADB Appointment Database, HP 100LX (filename extension). 2. Body file type, Ada language (filename extension).
.ADR AfterDark Randomizer (filename extension). AfterDark is a screensaver program that can be set to randomly display a variety of screensaver patterns one after another.
.AIF Audio Interchange File Format or AIFF (filename extension). A format developed by Apple Computer for storing high-quality sampled audio and musical instrument information. It can be played on PC and Mac.
.BAS BASIC program file
.BK Backup copy
.DOC Document file
.XLS Excel worksheet
.ASC ASCII text file
.BAK Backup copy in DOS or OS/2
.BMP Bitmap
.C C program file
.HPL HP Graphics
84 .DOX MultiMate document
.htm DOS filename extension for a document with HTML coding, which can be read by WWW browsers.
.MIME MIME (filename extension); the encoding format used by the Multipurpose Internet Mail Extension.
.ICON Sun icon and cursor
SYS System file
.TIF TIFF graphics file
.PCX PC Paintbrush 2. Graphics file - Zsoft format
.TAR Tar - Tape ARchive (filename extension). Tar is a UNIX method of archiving files, which can also be used by PCs. Tar archives files but does not compress them, so sometimes .tar files are compressed with other utilities, which produces extensions like .tar.gz, .tar.Z, and .tgz. Archive files with the .tar extension can be extracted in UNIX with tar or on a PC with WinZip or on the Mac with the program Tar.
.pkg AppleLink package compression format These files are decodable by StuffIt Expander.
.ACV Drivers for compressing or decompressing audio files, OS/2 (filename extension).
Check Your Progress 3 9. What is the shortcut key used for the option select all?
------10. What is the extension for system files? ------
85 2.10. Let us sum up Software is of two types. They are System Software and Application Software. Operating System is a system Software that comes under System Software. Operating System is an intermediary between the user and the hardware. There are Single user Operating System and Multi-user operating system. The I/O operations are tedious and they are always maintained by the Operating system. When Application programs want to access the I/O capabilities, they merely substitute with the system call. Direct Memory Access (DMA) mechanism allows transferring data to and from memory without the intervention of the CPU. Spooling is superior to buffer. Spooling takes care of the printing work with the printer. Multiprogramming gives the illusion that many programs run simultaneously. The operating system is the most important program that runs on a computer. Every general-purpose computer must have an operating system to run other programs. Operating systems perform basic tasks, such as recognizing input from the keyboard, sending output to the display screen, keeping track of files and directories on the disk, and controlling peripheral devices such as disk drives and printers. For large systems, the operating system has even greater responsibilities and powers. It is like a traffic cop -- it makes sure those different programs and users running at the same time do not interfere with each other. The operating system is also responsible for security, ensuring that unauthorized users do not access the system.
2.11. Unit End Exercise Suggested activities
1. Set a remainder in your computer
2. Create a simple program file using notepad
3. What are the gadgets available in windows 7
4. Display all excel files in your computer using search option
86
2.12. Answers to Check your progress: 1. Graphical User Interface 2. LINUX 3. Pico 4. Palmtop 5. Task bar 6. CTRL + ALT + D 7. .txt 8. Universal character set Transformation Format 9. CTRL + A 10. .sys
2.13. Suggested Readings:
Arul Jothi, Balaji, D.L., Rajesh Verma (2009). Computers in Education. Centrum Press: New Delhi.
Rajasekar, S. (2008). Computer Education. Neelkamal Publications Pvt. Ltd: Hyderabad
Lalini Varanasi, Sudhakar, V., Mrunalini, T. (2008). Computer Education. Neelkamal Publications Pvt. Ltd: Hyderabad.
87 UNIT III WORD PROCESSING
Structure
3.1. Introduction
3.2. Objectives
3.3. A word about word
3.3.1. Concept of word processing
3.4. Entering text
3.5. Selecting and inserting text
3.6. Making a paragraph
3.6.1. Getting help
3.7. Moving and copying
3.8. Searching and replacing
3.9. Formatting character and paragraph
3.9.1. Data entry – editing – saving and retrieval of data
3.9.2. Formatting of text – handling multiple documents
3.9.3. Manipulation of tables – columns and rows
3.9.4. Footnotes
3.10. Table of contents
3.10.1. Index
To create the index
To edit an index entry
3.11. Sorting
3.11.1. Formatting sections and documents
3.12. Let us Sum-up
3.13. Unit-End Exercises 3.14. Answers to check your Progress 3.15. Suggested Readings
88 3.1. Introduction
Microsoft Word is Microsoft‘s Word processing software. It was first released in 1983 under the name Multi tool Word for Xenix systems. Versions were later written for several other platforms including IBM PCs running DOS(1983), the Apple Macintosh and so on. It is a component of the Microsoft Office system; however, it is also sold as a stand-alone product and included in Microsoft Works Suite. Beginning with the 2003 version, the branding was revised to emphasize world‘s identity as a component within the office suite; Microsoft began calling it Microsoft Office Word instead of merely Microsoft Word. The latest releases are Word 2010 for Windows and Word 2008 for Mac OS X, while Word 2010 can also be run on Linux. There are commercially available add-ins that expand the functionality of Microsoft Word. In this unit, let us learn about the various functions of Word processing software.
3.2. Objectives
After going through this unit you will be able to;
learn the options in the Microsoft Word make tables easily prepare documents distinguish between 2010 and other version acquire knowledge about word document preparation
3.3. A word about „Word‟
MS Word is a word processor through which one can type the text, Edit the text, Merge the text and Print the text. It is a user friendly word processor. With the help of this software one can set up the page to be typed by fixing the margin, line spacing, font sizing and so on. Also it is possible for the user to attach header and footer facility and inserting the page numbers in this word. Its correct spelling may Check and Grammar facilities through which the correct spelling of any word may be checked. Almost all types of figures like line rectangles circles etc can be drawn in this software.
89 3.3.1 Concept of word processing
A word processor is a computer application used for the production (including composition, editing, formatting, and possibly printing) of any sort of printable material. Word processor may also refer to a type of stand-alone office machine, popular in the 1970s and 1980s, combining the keyboard text-entry and printing functions of an electric typewriter with a dedicated processor (like a computer processor) for the editing of text. Although features and design varied between manufacturers and models, with new features added as technology advanced, word processors for several years usually featured a monochrome display and the ability to save documents on memory cards or diskettes. Later models introduced innovations such as spell-checking programs, increased formatting options, and dot-matrix printing. As the more versatile combination of a personal computer and separate printer became commonplace, most business- machine companies stopped manufacturing the word processor as a stand-alone office machine. Word processors are descended from early text formatting tools (sometimes called text justification tools, from their only real capability). Word processing was one of the earliest applications for the personal computer in office productivity.
Although early word processors used tag-based markup for document formatting, most modern word processors take advantage of a graphical user interface providing some form of what-you-see-is-what-you-get editing. Most are powerful systems consisting of one or more programs that can produce any arbitrary combination of images, graphics and text, the latter handled with type- setting capability.
Microsoft Word is the most widely used word processing software. Microsoft estimates that over 500,000,000 people use the Microsoft Office suite, which includes Word. Many other word processing applications exist, including WordPerfect (which dominated the market from the mid-1980s to early- 1990s on computers running Microsoft's MS-DOS operating system) and open source applications OpenOffice.org Writer, Libre Office Writer, AbiWord, KWord, and LyX. Web-based word processors, such as Office Web Apps or Google Docs, are a relatively new category.
90 In other words, the processing of text-based information is known as word processing. It consists of typing, editing, formatting, printing etc of the text based data or information. The word processing has been carried out with the help of software known as a word processor. It is really superior to a typewriter as it consists of the following important and significant characteristics. Flexible editing procedures Neat and error free printing of text documents Provision to change the size and type of the fonts Provision to change the font size bold, italics, underline etc. Facility to copy or cut and paste the text option Option to draw diagrams of different kinds and so on.
Typed textual information through word needs to be stored in a file with a name. Then the retrieval of the data can be made by using the file names. 3.4. Entering text Before entering the text, open word software from the option ―start‖ in the similar way to that of opening the other office software like Excel, Power Point and so on. Start → all programs → Microsoft office → Microsoft office word.
91 Now you can see the word worksheet in the following illustration.
After getting the window shown above, you can type the required text in the work sheet shown in the above diagram. Then the typed text may be saved in a file with a suitable name in the following way. In the menu bar keep the cursor on the option ―office button‖ and click; you will get a dropdown menu in the following way.
choose the option ―save‖ from the drop down menu and click; you will get the following window.
92
Then, choose the location where the file to be saved and type the file name in the appropriate box and click the ―save‖ button. Now the text will be saved in the file name given by you. 3.5. Selecting and inserting text The text must be typed in the work sheet area. You can type in the same way as you type in the typewriter. The initial settings like line spacing, margin, font size, font type, ect can be done with the help of the tool bar shown below.
1 2 4 6
5
7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 3 1. Office button 2. Menu bar 3. Tool bar 4. Cut 5. Copy 6. Past 7. Font type
93 8. Bold font 9. Italics font 10. Underline the font or word 11. Font size 12. Font colour 13. Left, center, right and justify the margin by clicking the appropriate option 14. Line space 15. Numbering option and introducing bullets
There are several types of fonts available out of which the users can select any one according to their taste. Just click the box ―font type‖ you will get the following menu.
Font types
Any one of the font types may be selected from the above list. Then in the same way the size of the font can also be selected by clicking the box ―font size‖, from the tool bar. The other remaining options can be utilized by the user while typing with help of the tool bar shown above. By continuous practice, the user can get familiarity in using other options.
If you want to select a particular part of text either from the same document or from the other document, then you keep the cursor on the first letter of the sentence of the text and press the left button of the mouse and drag the cursor by holding the left button and then place the cursor on the last letter of the sentence of the text to be selected. Now you can see the whole selected text is dark in colour.
94
This selected text can be inserted either on any of the pages of the same document or on a different document. First, copy the selected text either by using ―copy‖ or by using ―cut‖ command from the tool bar and then place the cursor on the place where we want to insert the selected text and then click on the command ―paste‖. Now the selected text has been inserted in the chosen place of the document.
Check Your Progress 1
1. The option ―save‖ can be found in which menu item? ------2. What is the shortcut key to choose the option ―cut‖? ------3. The extension name of word document is…. ------
95
3.6. Making a paragraph
Making a paragraph in the text can be done either through Tab setting key or through paragraph option. Depending upon the requirement, one can choose the value for tab and set the tab for that value from the option ―paragraph‖ from the right click drop down menu.
Now you can assign a value for tab stop as per our wish and then click on ―ok‖.
3.6.1. Getting help There is a separate provision available in word to help the user in different aspects of the word. It is given in the following illustration.
When you click on this symbol which is located at the right top corner, a new window will appear.
96
Here you can get any help from the Microsoft office. 3.7. Moving and Copying There are three different methods through which you can move or copy the block content of the text from one location to other. First method: . Select the required text from the document . To move the selected text,place the mouse pointer any where inside selected the block and drag the block to the position where it ha to be removed and release the mouse buton. . To copy the selected block: Press the Ctrl button and hold it and then drag the block to tht position where it has to be copied and release the mouse button. Second method: . Right click on the selected block. A shortcut popup menu will be displayed. . Select cut from the menu to move or Select copy from the menu to copy the block . Click at the position and select paste command from the shortcut popup menu Third method: . Press Ctrl+C or select the copy command from the edit menu to move the block selected . Click on the position where the block has to be moved . Press Ctrl+V or select Paste command from the edit menu to paste it.
97 3.8. Searching and replacing Search(find) and replace commands can be got from the option ―find‖ from the tool bar. It is illustrated below.
Then Search(find) and replace of the word can be done by following the steps given below 1.place your cursor at the beginning of your document 2. Go to the home menu and select Find. The Find and replace windows opens. 3. Select the replace tab. 4. Type the word or phrase that you want to find in the ―Find What‖ box. 5. Type the word or phrase that you want to replace it with in the ―Replace with‖ box. 6. Select all, up, or Down in the search drop-down menu to tell word how much or which part of the document you want to cover with this search and replace. 7. Select Find Next or Replace if you want to manually replace each word or pharse 8. Select Replace All if you want Word to automatically search for and replace each instant of the word or phrase without first checking with you.
Check Your Progress 2 4. What is the shortcut key for the option ―copy‖?
------5. What is the shortcut key to select the whole document?
------6. To search any word or phrase which option can be used?
------
98 3.9. Formatting character and paragraph-using a document In word paragraph means text where paragraph marked through the use of enter key. As we press enter key a new paragraph starts from next line. To make changes to a selected paragraph, use paragraph option. From the dialog box shown below we can align paragraphs, set line spacing indent etc.
With the help of this command maximum paragraph formatting can be done. When you type a letter or circular and you would like to draw the attention of the reader to a particular paragraph you wish to keep some space to the left or to the right want the or you may just want the first line of the paragraph to start after some space these extra spaces are known as indents. There are four different types of indents: Left: leaves a gap at the left side of a paragraph Right: leaves a gap at the right side of a paragraph First line: Leaves a gap at the beginning of first line of paragraph Hanging: Leaves a gap at the left side of the paragraph except for the first line in the paragraph Alignment is a way of organizing the text. It can be left, centred, right or justified.
99 3.9.1. Data entry-editing-saving and Retrieval of Data You can enter the data or type sentences in the work area of the word. This has already been explained in the previous paragraphs. Therefore, the editing aspect of word has been taken up for explanation. There are plenty of editing options available in word. With the help of the following dropdown menu of EDIT option, editing can be done effectively. Even though we have so many editing options available in the drop down menu of editing, the options a) CUT, b) COPY and c) PASTE are alone taken for explanation here.
The option CUT is used to remove a particular selected text completely from the body of the text. If you want to cut the text, that text must be selected with the help of the mouse and keep the cursor on the "CUT" option and click, then the selected text will be completely removed. The same text which has been cut may be pasted anywhere in the work area of the text by clicking the option "PASTE". The option COPY is used to copy a selected text from the work area. This can be done by clicking the option "COPY" after selecting the text to be copied from the work area. Then the copied text may be pasted anywhere in the text with the help of the option "paste"
100 The main difference between the options "cut" and "copy" is that "cut" option will remove the selected text completely and the option "COPY" will not remove the selected text, but the selected copied text may be pasted anywhere in the text. To save the whole document, we have a lot of specifications for saving in addition to the options available in the "Office Button". 3.9.2. Formatting of text-Handling multiple documents This type of formatting can format font size, style, underline, and colour and so on. It can be performed from the format menu through a dialogue box by choosing font command in the following way. One can select the required font from the given list. Similarly the required font style can be chosen from the list ―regular bold, italic, and so on. In the same way the other attributes like size, underline, colour, effect and so on can be chosen from the respective option given in the above illustration. By continuous practice the users can familiarize with the rest of the commands.
101 Handling of multiple documents can be done very easily in MS word. After opening several numbers of documents files one can do all sorts of editing like copy, cut, replace move and so on. All these said commands can be used by simple drag and drop operation after keeping the entire window open. An illustration is given below.
In the above illustration, three documents are available in the reduced size, having the name document I, II and III. Though all the documents are opened and ready at a time only one document is active and ready for editing. To make other documents active. Keep the cursor on the task bar of any one of the documents and click on it. Now this document is active and ready for editing. In the same way you can make other document active from time to time. Suppose you want to copy‖ document-I‖ to any one of the document: suppose: select the word ―document-I‖ and drag the selected portion through mouse in to the respective document on which you want to keep this selected portion or the word ―document-I‖. In the same way you can replace a paragraph or any portion of the text to any portion of the text to any required document. 3.9.3. Manipulation of Tables –Columns and rows Manipulation of tables can be done with the help of the option ―table‖ from the menu bar. To draw a table chooses the option ―table‖ from the menu bar click on it. You will get a dropdown menu shown below.
102
If you want to draw a table manually, select the option ―insert table‖ from the dropdown menu and by simply dragging the mouse you can draw a table in the usual way as we use to draw a table manually on the paper with the help of pen or pencil. But if you want to insert a table with specific columns and rows, select the option ―insert‖ from the dropdown menu. This will give you another dialog box shown in the above illustration.
Here in the dialogue box specify the numbers for number of columns and for number of rows as per our requirements. Also you can adjust their width. Even after inserting the table one can alter the dimension and also the number of columns and rows of the table.
3.9.4 Footnotes
Footnotes can be included in a document with the help of the command ―Header and Footer‖ available under the option ―insert‖ of the menu bar, shown below.
103
If you choose this option you will get space with dotted lines both in the top and bottom of the page. Now you choose the bottom space and type the footnotes you want to write. You can insert page numbers, date, and time and so on in to the document with the help of this option. Check your progress 3 7. What is the shortcut key for the option ―paste‖?
………………………………………………………………………………………… 8. The option ―page number‖ is located in which menu item?
………………………………………………………………………………………… 9. List out any three options in ―insert‖ menu.
…………………………………………………………………………………………
3.10. Table of Contents: MS word has the provision to prepare the table of content for a chapter or for a document. It makes the writers‘ job very easy by preparing a table of content for the particular document. This can be done with the help of the following steps: 1. First keep the cursor on the heading of the chapter. 2. Choose the option‖ home‖ from the menu bar and click on it.
104 3. You will get a tool bar. Choose the option ―styles‖ to get different suggested styles of formatting in the right side of the document. (It is illustrated below)
4. Choose a style ―heading I‖ (for example or you can choose any heading or you can make your own style by clicking on the option ―new quick style‖) 5. Then from of the top of the document choose the first sub-heading and select it then press ―F4‖functional key. 6. Similarly choose other sub-heading one after the other and then press ―F4‖ functional key every time. 7. After having chosen all the sub-heading required for the preparation of table content; save the document in a usual way. 8. Then again choose the option ―reference‖ and select the option ―Table of contents‖ from the above drop down menu; it will give you another dropdown menu shown below
105 9. Choose of option ―table of contents in frame‖ from the above dropdown menu and click on it. You can see the table of content of the respective document in the left hand side of the document. Now save the document with a file name.
10. The table of the content of the respective document alone has been saved separately by the computer for our reference and this file can be used for showing table of content of the respective document.
3.10.1 Index An index lists the terms and topics discussed in a document along with the pages they appear on. To create an index, you mark the index entries (index entry: A field code that marks specific text for index inclusion in an index. When you mark text as an index entry, Microsoft word insert an XE (Index Entry) field formatted as hidden text), in your document and then build the index. Once you mark the index entry, Microsoft word adds a special XE (Index Entry) field to your document (field : A set of code that instructs Microsoft Word to insert text, graphics, page numbers, and other material in to a document automatically. For example the DATE field inserts the current date) You can create an index entry:
For an individual word, phrase, or symbol. For a topic that spans a range of pages. That refers to another entry, such as ―Transportation‖.
Do one of the following to mark index entries (index entry: A field code that makes specific text for inclusion in an index. When you mark text as an index entry, Microsoft word inserts an XE (Index Entry) field formatted as hidden text. 1. To use existing text as an index entry, select the text. To enter your own text as an index entry, click where you want to insert the index entry. 2. Press ALT + SHIFT + X. 3. To create the main index entry, type or edit text in the main entry box. You can customize the entry by creating a subentry (subentry: an index entry that falls under a more general heading. For example, the index entry ―hardware‖ could have the subentry ―mouse‖ and ―hard disc‖) or by creating a cross reference to another entry.
106 4. To select a format for the page numbers that will appear in the index, click to select the bold or italic checkbox below page number format. If you want to format the text for the index, right click on the main entry or subentry box, and click font. Select the formatting option that you want to use. 5. To mark the index entry, click mark. To mark all occurrences of this text in the document, click mark all. 6. To make additional index entries, select the text, click in the mark index entry dialog box, and then repeat the step 3 and 5.
After you have marked all the index entries, you choose an index design and build the finished index. Word then collect the index entries, shorts them alphabetically, references their page numbers, finds and removes duplicate entries from the same page, and display the index in the document. Word places symbols, such as @, at the beginning of the index. If you selected an index format that includes headings for alphabetic groups, the symbols are grouped under the # (number sign) heading. To use additional options for customizing the index, you can use fields. For example, you can build the index for only part of the document.
To create the index
After you have marked all the entries, you can then create the index.
Go to the last page of the document
Click in the page, as this is where your index will appear
Select Insert Index to open the dialog box that you can see below
Select the format. The preview pane displays the different formats
Click OK to create index
107
The generated index appears as text with grey background. However, the printed document does not display this background. To edit an index entry When producing large documents, errors will no doubt occur for different reasons. In this situation, you need to edit the entries, and then regenerate the index. To edit the entries, you activate the ―show hidden text‖ feature in MS word. The shortcut to display this is: CRTL + SHIFT + F8. In word, when you mark an index entry, it inserts an XE (Index Entry) field. To change an index entry, you modify the text in the index entry field. 1. If you do not see the XE fields, click Show / hide on the standard toolbar. 2. You can do one of the following: To edit an index entry, change the text inside the quotation marks or To delete an index entry, select the entire index entry field, including the braces {}, and then press DELETE.
Do not edit the index directly. Avoid typing in index entries, as after you regenerate the index, all changes will be lost. To update an index after editing entries, move the cursor anywhere into the index and press F9. You can locate index fields, by opening edit | find | special and selecting the field option. Remember to make the fields visible first, as otherwise nothing will be displayed.
108 3.11. Sorting Another useful option available in the word is ―sorting‖, through which one can sort text, numbers and date either ascending or descending. If you have a list of names in a document, you can sort then alphabetically with the help of this option sort. To do sorting; the steps given below can be followed. Select the names in the document with the help of the mouse
Choose the option ―Sort‖ from the menu bar and click on it. You will get a new dialog box Select the option ascending or descending. Then click ok.
Now the selected names in the document have been sorted in ascending order. 3.11.1 Formatting sections and documents Documents can be decorated after finishing the typing process. It also comes under the heading formatting. One can change the margin, paper size, shape of character of text and so on through formatting. The formatting paragraph and text character has already been explained in the earlier sections of this chapter. So the formatting coming under the heading ―page design and layout‖ alone is taken up for explanation.
109 With the help of this formatting, you can change the size of the paper according to our needs. This function can be activated by page setup option available in the option ―page layout‖ from the menu bar; shown in the following illustration.
One can change the orientation of paper into either Portrait or Landscape. One can also set the margin for all the four sides. Gutter margin will have extra space for binding and that can also be fixed.
110 If you choose the option ―paper‖ from the above dialog box, you can change the size of the paper and also you can modify the printing options too. The option ―layout‖ will be helpful for decorating the document with borders and with other additions. Finally, a word about ―Word‖ - even though all the important commands and options of MS word have been described in this chapter, one should not forget that word has many more options and applications, which can be known only through constant and continuous practice. Check Your Progress 4 10. The new Index Entry is denoted by ………
……………………………………………………………………………………. 11. What are the two types of page organization?
…………………………………………………………………………………… 12. Which one is the biggest size paper?
…………………………………………………………………………………..
3.12. Let us sum up Entering a new text or modifying the existing text in a document is known as text editing. The user can move to the various portions of the document using the keyboard shortcuts or the mouse. The required word or portion of the text can also be selected using the keyboard shortcuts or using the mouse. Copy, Cut, Paste, Find and Replace are some of the commonly used editing functions. There are two types of formatting - hard formatting and soft formatting. Changing the text style- bold, italic, underlined, and the font properties - size, colour are the commonly used formatting changes. Indentation helps in providing the document more readability. Bullets and Numbers are used to list the important points and messages. An alternate method of formatting refers to creating a particular style and applying it quickly to a document instead of making individual changes to the line spacing, paragraph alignment, indentation etc. Spelling mistakes can be corrected both while typing as well as after the entire document is typed. Automatic Spelling Correction feature corrects some of the misspelled words. Auto Correct option is very useful for correcting the spelling of the commonly misspelled words. Tables can be easily inserted at any point in the document. The
111 margins for a particular page can be set to an exact value using a Page Style dialog box or approximately using Rulers. There are two types of page orientation viz., portrait and landscape. The page numbers of different styles can be inserted to a document. Header and footer are some references remarks added at every page of the document of the top and bottom margins respectively. 3.13. Unit-End Exercises
1. Which is the most popular and the newest version of Microsoft Windows? 2. What is the short cut key to open the Open dialog box? 3. To make it easy to find your files, save them to a ------4. To begin typing a new line even when the line you are working on is not filled, press ------5. What is the standard font size in word processing documents? 6. Explain the concept of word processing. 7. Describe all the options used for editing the text in MS word. 8. State and explain how you will prepare a table of content for a document 9. Mention the different types of formatting available in word and explain them. 3.14. Answers to Check your Progress: 1. Office button 2. CTRL + X 3. .docx 4. CTRL + C 5. CTRL + A 6. Find 7. CTRL + V 8. Insert menu 9. Table, Header & Footer and Page number 10. XE 11. Portrait and Landscape 12. A1 3.15. Suggested Readings:
Arul Jothi, Balaji, D.L., Rajesh Verma (2009). Computers in Education. Centrum Press: New Delhi. Lalini Varanasi, Sudhakar, V., Mrunalini, T. (2008). Computer Education. Neelkamal Publications Pvt. Ltd: Hyderabad.Ltd. Norton, P. (1998). Introduction to computers. New Delhi: Tata McGraw Hill Publishing Co Petzold, C. (1998). Programming windows. USA: Microsoft Press. Rajasekar, S. (2008). Computer Education. Neelkamal Publications Pvt. Ltd: Hyd. Simon, C. (1995). The way microsoft windows 95 works. USA: Microsoft Press.
112 UNIT IV SPREAD SHEET
Structure
4.1 Introduction 4.2 Objectives 4.3 The Excel environment 4.3.1 Cells 4.3.2 Values 4.3.3 The spreadsheet value rule 4.3.4 Automatic recalculation 4.3.5 Real time update 4.4 Entering and Changing information and formula 4.4.1 Entering the formula 4.5 Functions 4.6 Copying, Moving and Deleting information 4.6.1 Move or copy entire cells 4.6.2 Move or copy entire cells by using the mouse 4.6.3 Insert moved or copied cells between existing cells 4.6.4 Copy visible cells only 4.6.5 Prevent copied blank cells from replacing data 4.6.6 Move or copy the contents of a cell 4.6.7 Copy cell values, cell formats, or formulas only 4.7 Names and Arrays 4.7.1 Create one-dimensional and two-dimensional constants 4.7.2 Use constants in formulas 4.7.3 Elements you can use in constants 4.7.4 Naming array constants 4.7.5 Troubleshooting array constants 4.7.6 Array constants in action 4.8 Saving worksheet 4.9 Working with rows and columns 4.9.1 Formatting the columns and rows
113
4.10 Displaying calculation, Charts and graphs 4.10.1 Calculation of Mean 4.10.2 Calculation of median 4.10.3 Calculation of mode 4.10.4 Graphical representation 4.10.5 Pie diagram 4.10.6 Bar graph 4.10.7 Frequency curves 4.11 Let us Sum-up 4.12 Unit-End Exercises 4.13 Answers to check your Progress 4.14. Suggested Readings 4.1. Introduction
MS-Excell is one of the most versatile and popular spreadsheet programmes that are used by millions of people around the world today. This software package provides a large spreadsheet consisting of several rows and columns in which the data can be entered. Initially the spreadsheet applications were designed to perform mathematical calculations only. The latest versions of spreadsheet programmes can also serve as powerful data management tools. Using a spreadsheet programme one can not only store huge amount of data in the worksheets but also make use of various functions to arrange and analyse the data. A number of graphical utilities are also added to these spreadsheet applications. Microsoft has done a significant work in the development of spreadsheet application programmes. Let us discuss about the important features of spreadsheets.
4.2. Objectives
After going through this unit you will be able to;
learn the options in the spreadsheet understand the concept of manipulating worksheet do calculations using excel express the results in graphical representation
114
What is a spreadsheet?
A spreadsheet is a computer application that simulates a paper worksheet. It displays multiple cells that together make up a grid consisting of rows and columns. Each cell contains either alphanumeric text or numeric values. A spreadsheet cell may alternatively contain a formula that defines how the contents of that cell is to be calculated from the contents of any other cell (or combination of cells) each time any cell is updated. Spreadsheets are frequently used for financial information because of their ability to re-calculate the entire sheet automatically after a change to a single cell is made. Visicalc is usually considered the first electronic spreadsheet (although this has been challenged) and it helped turn the apple II computer into II success and greatly assisted in their widespread application. Lotus 1-2-3 was the leading spreadsheet when DOS was the dominant operating system. Now excel is considered to have the largest market share on the windows and Macintosh platforms.
4.3. The Excel environment 5 6 7
1
2 6
3
9 4 8 10
1. Office button 2. Cut, copy, paste options 3. Name box 4. Row 5. Menu bar 6. Tool bar 7. Formula bar 8. Work sheet 9. Column 10. Cell
115
4.3.1. Cells A "cell" can be thought of as a box for holding a datum. A single cell is usually referenced by its column and row (A2 would represent the cell below containing the value 10). Its physical size can usually be tailored for its content by dragging its height or width at box intersections (or for entire columns or rows by dragging the column or rows headers).
My Spread sheet
A B C D
01 Value 1 Value 2 added Multiplied
02 10 20 30 200
An array of cells is called a "sheet" or "worksheet". It is analogous to an array of variables in a conventional computer program (although certain unchanging values. Once entered, could be considered, by the same analogy constants). In most implementations, many worksheets simply a subset of the spreadsheet divided for the sake of clarity. Functionally, the spreadsheet operates as a whole and all cells operate as global variables within the spreadsheet ('read' access only expert its own containing cell). A cell may contain a value or a formula, or it may simply be left empty. By convention, formulas usually begin with ―=‖ sign. An excel spreadsheet is given below.
116 4.3.2. Values A value can be entered from the computer keyboard by directly typing into the cell itself. Alternatively, a value ‗c‘ is based on a formula, which might perform a calculation, display the current data or time, or retrieve external data such as a stock quote or a database value. 4.3.3. The Spreadsheet Value Rule Computer scientist Alan Kay used the term ‗value rule‘ to summarize a spreadsheet's operation; a cell's value relies solely on the formula the user has typed into a cell. The formula may rely on the value of other cells, but those cells are likewise restricted to user entered data or formulas. There are no 'side effects' to calculating a formula: the only output is to display the calculated result inside its occupying cell. There is no natural mechanism for permanently modifying the contents of a cell unless the user manually modifies the cell's contents. In the context of programming languages, this yields a limited form of first-order functional programming. 4.3.4. Automatic Recalculation A standard of spreadsheets since the mid 80s, is the optional feature that eliminates the need to manually request the spreadsheet program to recalculate values (nowadays typically the default option unless specifically 'switched off' for large spreadsheets, usually to improve the performance). Some earlier spreadsheets required a manual request to recalculate, since recalculation of large or complex spreadsheets often reduced data entry speed. Many modern spreadsheets still retain this option. 4.3.5. Real time update This feature refers to updating a cell's contents periodically when its value is derived from an external source such as a cell in another "remote" spreadsheet. For shared, web-based spreadsheets, it applies to "immediately" updating cells that have been altered by other user. All dependent cells have to be updated also. Check Your Progress 1 1. Spreadsheet is one of the application of ------2. Who used the term value rule? ------3. A cell can be referred by its ------4.4. Entering and Changing information and formula
117 A formula identifies the calculation needed to place the result in the cell it is contained within. A cell containing a formula therefore has two display components; the formula itself and the resulting value. The formula is normally only shown when the cell is selected by "clicking" the mouse over a particular cell; otherwise it contains the result of the calculation. A formula assigns values to a cell, and typically has the format: = expression when the expression consists of:
values, such as 2,9,14 or 6.67E-11: reference to other cells, such as e.g., A1for a single cell or B1; B3 for a ranges; arithmetic operations, such as +, -, *, /, and others; relational operators, such as >, =, <, and others; and, functions, such as SUM( ), TAN( ), and many others.
When a cell contains a formula, it often contains references to other cells. Such a cell reference is a type of variable. Its value is the values of the referenced cell or some derivation of it. If that cell in turn references other cells, the value depends on the values of those referenced cells. The references can be relative (eg., A1, OR B1:B2) absolute (e.g., $A$1, or $B$3) or mixed row-wise or column-wise absolute/relative (e.g., $A1 is column-wise absolute and A$1 is row-wise absolute). The available options for valid formulae depend on the particular spread sheet implementation but, in general, most arithmetic operations and quite complex nested conditional operations can be performed by most of today‘s commercial spreadsheets. Modern implementations also offer functions to access custom-build functions, remote data, and applications. A formula may contain a condition (or nested conditions) – with or without an actual calculation – and is sometimes used purely to identify and highlight errors. In the example bellow, it is assumed, the sum of a column of percentages (A1 through A6) is tested for validity and an explicit message put into the adjacent right-hand cell. =IF (SUM (A1:A6) > 100, ―More than 100%‖, SUM (A1:A6)) A spreadsheet does not, in fact, have to contain any formulae at all, in which case it could be considered merely a collection of data arranged in rows and columns ( a database) like a calendar, timetable or simple list. Because of its ease of use, formatting and hyper linking capabilities, many spreadsheets are used solely for this purpose.
118 4.4.1. Entering the formula
Formula can be entered in any of the cells by directing typing the formula in the cell itself or in the formula box, starting with the symbol ―=‖. It is shown in the following illustration.
4.5. Functions Enter the data first in the worksheet. Click the option ―formulas‖ in the menu bar; you will get a dropdown menu. From this menu select the option ―insert function‖ and click on it; then you will get a dialog box.
Then select the function and click ―ok‖. The following window will appear. Then enter the cell value of the data (the data starts from the cell A1 and ends on
119 the cell A10) in the following way (i.e., to indicate A1 to A10 you have to type A1:A10 in the box shown below; then you can see the result as 341 (for our example ―SUM‖) in the heading ―formula result‖ shown below.
4.6. Copying, Moving and Deleting information 4.6.1. Move or copy entire cells When you move or copy a cell, Excel moves or copies the entire cell, including formulae and their resulting values, comments, and cell formats. 1. Select the cells that you want to move or copy. How to select cells
TO SELECT DO THIS A single cell Click the cell, or press the arrow keys to move to the cell. A range of cells Click the first cell of the range, and then drag to the last cell. A large range of cells Click the first cell in the range, and then hold down SHIFT while you click the last cell in the range. You can scroll to make the last cell visible. All cells on a worksheet Click the Select All button.
Nonadjacent cells or cell Select the first cell or range of cells, and then hold ranges down CTRL while you select the other cells or ranges. More or fewer cells than the Hold down SHIFT while you click the last cell active selection that you want to include in the new selection. The rectangular range between the active cell and the cell that you click becomes the new selection. Note: To cancel a selection of cells, click any cell on the worksheet.
2. Do one of the following:
To move cells, click Cut on the Standard toolbar, or press CTRL+X.
120 To copy cells, click Copy on the Standard toolbar, or press CTRL+C. 3. Select the upper-left cell of the paste area. ( To move or copy a selection to a different worksheet or workbook, click another worksheet tab or switch to another workbook, and then select the upper- left cell of the paste area.)
4. Click Paste on the Standard toolbar, or press CTRL+V.
To choose specific options when you paste cells, you can click the arrow next to Paste on the Standard toolbar, and then click the option that you want. By default, Excel displays the Paste Options button on the worksheet to provide you with special options when you paste cells, such as Keep Source Formatting and Match Destination Formatting. If you do not want to display this button every time you paste cells, you can turn this option off. On the Tools menu, click Options. On the Edit tab, clear the Show Paste Options buttons check box. Excel replaces existing data in the paste area when you move cells. When you copy cells, cell references are automatically adjusted. When you move cells, however, cell references are not adjusted, and the contents of those cells and of any cells that point to them may be displayed as reference errors. In this case, you'll need to adjust the references manually. If the selected copy area includes hidden cells, Excel also copies the hidden cells. You may need to temporarily unhide cells that you do not want to include when you copy information. If the paste area contains hidden rows or columns, you might need to unhide the paste area to see all of the copied cells.
4.6.2 Move or copy entire cells by using the mouse
By default, drag-and-drop editing is turned on so that you can use the mouse to move and copy cells.
1. Select the cells or range of cells that you want to move or copy.
How to select cells
TO SELECT DO THIS A single cell Click the cell, or press the arrow keys to move to the cell.
121 A range of cells Click the first cell of the range, and then drag to the last cell. A large range of cells Click the first cell in the range, and then hold down SHIFT while you click the last cell in the range. You can scroll to make the last cell visible. All cells on a worksheet Click the Select All button.
Nonadjacent cells or cell Select the first cell or range of cells, and then hold down CTRL ranges while you select the other cells or ranges. More or fewer cells than Hold down SHIFT while you click the last cell that you want to the active selection include in the new selection. The rectangular range between the active cell and the cell that you click becomes the new selection.
2. Do one of the following:
To move a cell or range of cells, point to the border of the selection. When the pointer becomes a move pointer , drag the cell or range of cells to another location. To copy a cell or range of cells, hold down CTRL while you point to the border of the selection. When the pointer becomes a copy pointer , drag the cell or range of cells to another location.
Excel replaces existing data in the paste area when you move cells. When you copy cells, cell references are automatically adjusted. When you move cells, however, cell references are not adjusted, and the contents of those cells and of any cells that point to them may be displayed as reference errors. In this case, you will need to adjust the references manually. If the selected copy area includes hidden cells, Excel also copies the hidden cells. You may need to temporarily unhide cells that you don't want to include when you copy information.
If the paste area contains hidden rows or columns, you might need to unhide the paste area to see all of the copied cells.
4.6.3 Insert moved or copied cells between existing cells
1. Select the cell or range of cells that contains the data that you want to move or copy. 2. Do one of the following: To move the selection, click Cut on the Standard toolbar, or press CTRL+X.
122 To copy the selection, click Copy on the Standard toolbar, or press CTRL+C. 3. Select the upper-left cell of the paste area. ( To move or copy a selection to a different worksheet or workbook, click another worksheet tab or switch to another workbook, and then select the upper-left cell of the paste area.) 4. On the Insert menu, click Cut Cells or Copied Cells. 5. In the Insert Paste dialog box, click the direction in which you want to shift the surrounding cells. Note: If you insert entire rows or columns, the surrounding rows and columns are shifted down and to the left.
4.6.4 Copy visible cells only
If some cells, rows, or columns on your worksheet are not displayed, you have the option of copying all cells or only the visible cells. For example, you can choose to copy only the displayed summary data on an outlined worksheet. 1. Select the cells that you want to copy. 2. On the Edit menu, click Go To. 3. In the Go To dialog box, click Special. 4. In the Go To Special dialog box, click Visible cells only, and then click OK. 5. Click Copy on the Standard toolbar, or press CTRL+C. 6. Select the upper-left cell of the paste area. ( To move or copy a selection to a different worksheet or workbook, click another worksheet tab or switch to another workbook, and then select the upper-left cell of the paste area.) 7. Click Paste on the Standard toolbar, or press CTRL+V. Excel pastes the copied data into consecutive rows or columns. If the paste area contains hidden rows or columns, you might need to unhide the paste area to see all of the copied cells. If you click the arrow next to Paste on the Standard toolbar, you can choose from several paste options to apply to your selection. When you copy or paste hidden or filtered data to another application or another instance of Excel, only visible cells are copied.
4.6.5 Prevent copied blank cells from replacing data
1. Select the range of cells that contains blank cells. 2. Click Copy on the Standard toolbar, or press CTRL+C. 3. Select the upper-left cell of the paste area. 4. Click the arrow to the right of Paste on the Standard toolbar, and then click Paste Special.
123 5. Select the Skip blanks check box. 4.6.6 Move or copy the contents of a cell 1. Double-click the cell that contains the data you want to move or copy. Note: By default, you can edit and select cell data directly in the cell by double-clicking it, but you can also edit and select cell data in the formula bar. 2. In the cell, select the characters that you want to move or copy. 3. Do one of the following: To move the selection, click Cut on the Standard toolbar, or press CTRL+X. To copy the selection, click Copy on the Standard toolbar, or press CTRL+C. 4. In the cell, click where you want to paste the characters, or double-click another cell to move or copy the data. 5. Click Paste on the Standard toolbar, or press CTRL+V. 6. Press ENTER. Note: When you double-click a cell or press F2 to edit the active cell, the arrow keys work only within that cell. To use the arrow keys to move to another cell, first press ENTER to complete your editing changes to the active cell. 4.6.7 Copy cell values, cell formats, or formulas only
When you paste copied data, you can do any of the following:
Convert any formulas in the cell to the calculated values without overwriting the existing formatting. Paste only the cell formatting, such as font color or fill color (and not the contents of the cells). Paste only the formulas (and not the calculated values).
1. Select the cell or range of cells that contains the values, cell formats, or formulas that you want to copy. 2. Click Copy on the Standard toolbar. 3. Select the upper-left cell of the paste area or the cell where you want to paste the value, cell format, or formula. 4. Click the arrow to the right of Paste on the Standard toolbar, and then do one of the following: To paste values only, click Values. To paste cell formats only, click Paste Special, and then, in the Paste Special dialog box, click Formats. To paste formulas only, click Formulas. Note: If the copied formulas contain relative cell references, Excel adjusts the references (and the relative parts of mixed cell references) in the duplicate
124 formulas. For example, suppose that cell B8 contains the formula =SUM(B1:B7). If you copy the formula to cell C8, the duplicate formula refers to the corresponding cells in that column: =SUM(C1:C7). If the copied formulas contain absolute cell references, the references in the duplicate formulas are not changed. If you don't get the results that you want, you can also change the references in the original formulas to either relative or absolute cell references and then recopy the cells. Check Your Progress 2 4. Every formula should start with ------5. Where we can get the function tool? ------6. What is the shortcut key to cut a selected area? ------7. What is the shortcut key used to copy? ------
4.7 Names and Arrays Array constants are a component of array formulas. You create array constants by entering a list of items and then manually (yes, manually) surrounding the list with braces ({ }), like so:
={1,2,3,4,5}
In the first column, we emphasized the need to press CTRL+SHIFT+ENTER when you create array formulas. Because array constants are a component of array formulas, you surround the constants with braces manually. You then use CTRL+SHIFT+ENTER to enter the entire formula.
If you delimit (separate) the items with commas, you create a horizontal array (a row). If you delimit the items with semicolons, you create a vertical array (a column). To create a two-dimensional array, you delimit the items in each row with commas, and you delimit each row with a semicolon.
Like array formulas, you can use array constants with any of the built-in functions that Excel provides. The following sections explain how to create each kind of constant and how to use them with functions in Excel.
4.7.1 Create one-dimensional and two-dimensional constants
125 At this point, a little practice creating horizontal, vertical, and two- dimensional constants won't hurt. Follow these steps.
To create a horizontal constant
1. Use the workbook from the previous column, or start a new workbook. 2. Select cells A1 through E1. 3. In the formula bar, enter the following formula and press CTRL+SHIFT+ENTER: ={1,2,3,4,5} You see the following result.
You're probably wondering why you can not just type the numbers manually. Keep going, because the Use constants in formulas section later in this column demonstrates the advantages of using array constants. To create a vertical constant
1. In your workbook, select a column of five cells.
2. In the formula bar, enter the following formula and press CTRL+SHIFT+ENTER: ={1;2;3;4;5} You see the following result.
To create a two-dimensional constant
1. In your workbook, select a block of cells four columns wide by three rows high.
2. In the formula bar, enter the following formula and press CTRL+SHIFT+ENTER:
126 ={1,2,3,4;5,6,7,8;9,10,11,12}
You see the following result.
The next section shows you how to put array constants to use.
4.7.2 Use constants in formulae
Let us start with a simple example that uses what we have discussed:
1. Open a blank workbook. 2. Copy the following table starting at cell A1. Use the Paste Options button to match the destination formatting. 3 4 5 6 7 3. In cell A3, enter the following formula and press CTRL+SHIFT+ENTER:=SUM(A1:E1*{1,2,3,4,5})
Notice that Excel surrounds the constant with another set of braces, because you entered it as an array formula.
Also, the value 85 appears in cell A3. The next section explains how the formula works.
A look at the array constant syntax
The formula you just used contains several parts.
The last element inside the parentheses is the array constant: {1,2,3,4,5}. Remember that Excel does not surround array constants with braces. That's your job. Also, remember that after you add a constant to an array formula, you press CTRL+SHIFT+ENTER to enter the formula.
127 Because Excel performs operations on parentheses first, the next two elements that come into play are the values stored in the workbook (A1:E1) and the operator. At this point, the formula multiplies the values in the stored array by the corresponding values in the constant. It's the equivalent of:=SUM(A1*1,B1*2,C1*3,D1*4,E1*5) Finally, the SUM function adds the values, and the sum appears in cell A3: 85. To avoid using the stored array and to keep the operation entirely in memory, replace the stored array with another array constant: =SUM({3,4,5,6,7}*{1,2,3,4,5}) Try it. Copy the function, select a blank cell in your workbook, paste the formula into the Formula Bar, and then press CTRL+SHIFT+ENTER. You see the same result as you did in the earlier exercise. 4.7.3 Elements you can use in constants Array constants can contain numbers, text, logical values such as TRUE and FALSE, and error values such as #N/A. You can use numbers in the integer, decimal, and scientific formats. If you include text, you must surround that text with double quotation marks.
Array constants can not contain additional arrays, formulas, or functions. In other words, they can only contain text or numbers separated by commas or semicolons. Excel gives you an error message when you use something like {1,2,A1:D4} or {1,2,SUM(Q2:Z8)}. Also, numeric values can't contain percent signs, dollar signs, commas, or parentheses.
4.7.4 Naming array constants
Possibly the best way to use array constants is to name them. Named constants can be much easier to use, and they can hide some of the complexity of your array formulas from beginning users.
To name an array constant and use it in a formula
1. On the Insert menu in Excel, point to Name, and then click Define. The Define Name dialog box appears. 2. In the Names in workbook box, enter Quarter1. 3. In the Refers to box, enter the following constant (remember to type the braces manually): ={"January", "February", "March"} The dialog box should look like this:
128
4. Click OK. 5. In your workbook, select a row of three blank cells. 6. Enter the following formula, and then press CTRL+SHIFT+ENTER: =Quarter1 You see the following result.
When you use a named constant as an array formula, remember to enter the equal sign. If you do not, Excel interprets the array as a string of text. Finally, keep in mind that you can use combinations of text and numbers.
4.7.5. Troubleshooting array constants
Look for the following problems when your array constants do not work:
Separate all elements with the proper character. If you omit a comma or semicolon, or if you put one in the wrong place, Excel complains. Select a range of cells that matches the number of elements in your constant. For example, if you select a column of six cells for use with a five-cell constant, the #N/A error value appears in the empty cell. Conversely, if you select too few cells, Excel just omits the values that do not have a corresponding cell.
129 4.7.6 Array constants in action
The following examples demonstrate a few of the ways in which you can put array constants to use in array formulas. Some of the examples use the TRANSPOSE function to convert rows to columns and vice versa. To multiply each item in an array
1. Select a block of empty cells four columns wide by three rows high. 2. Enter the following formula, and then press CTRL+SHIFT+ENTER: ={1,2,3,4;5,6,7,8;9,10,11,12}*2 To square the items in an array
You can do the following:
={1,2,3,4;5,6,7,8;9,10,11,12}*{1,2,3,4;5,6,7,8;9,10,11,12} Or you can make your life easier: ={1,2,3,4;5,6,7,8;9,10,11,12}^2 To transpose a one-dimensional row 1. Select a column of five blank cells. 2. Enter the following formula, and then press CTRL+SHIFT+ENTER: = TRANSPOSE ({1,2,3,4,5}) Even though you enter a horizontal array constant, the TRANSPOSE function converts the constant into a column.
To transpose a one-dimensional column
1. Select a row of five blank cells. 2. Enter the following formula, and then press CTRL+SHIFT+ENTER: =TRANSPOSE({1;2;3;4;5}) Even though you enter a vertical array constant, the TRANSPOSE function converts the constant into a row. To transpose a two-dimensional constant 1. Select a block of cells three columns wide by four columns high. 2. Enter the following constant, and press CTRL+SHIFT+ENTER. =TRANSPOSE({1,2,3,4;5,6,7,8;9,10,11,12}) The function converts each row into a series of columns.
130 4.8 Saving worksheet If you want to keep an Excel version of your file, you must first save the file as an Excel worksheet, for example in the .xlsx file format, and then save it again in the Open Document Spreadsheet (.ods) format. 1. Click the office button. 2. Click Save As. 3. In the Save as type list, click Open Document Spreadsheet. 4. Name and save your file.
CHECK YOUR PROGRESS 3 8. What is the shortcut key to create array formula? ------9. What operator is used to multiply any item in an array? ------10. What is the file extension of spreadsheet? ------11. What is the shortcut key for ―save as‖ option? ------
4.9 Working with rows and columns Some of the important and frequently used tasks related to the manipulation of cells, columns and rows are given below: Entering the data in a cell and saving the data Formatting the columns and rows Entering the formula Calculations Graphical representation 4.9.1 Formatting the columns and rows Formatting can be done with the help of the option ―format‖ available in the home menu. It is illustrated in the following window.
131
Choose the option ―Row‖; then it will give you another dropdown menu, shown above. Select the option height and click on it. It will give you another dialogue box shown below.
Type the required value in the box and click on ―ok‖. Then accordingly the height of the row will be changed. In the same way you can change the width of the column also, by choosing the option ―column‖ instead of ―row‖ in the dropdown menu shown above. 4.10 Displaying calculation, Charts and graphs 4.10.1 Calculation of Mean Enter the data first in the worksheet. Click the option ―formulas‖ in the menu bar; you will get a dropdown menu. From this menu select the option ―insert function‖ and click on it; then you will get a dialog box.
132
Then select the function ―Average‖ click ―ok‖. The following window will appear. Then enter the cell value of the data (the data starts from the cell A1 and ends on the cell A10) in the following way (i.e., to indicate A1 to A10 you have to type A1:A10 in the box shown below; then you can see the result as 34.1 (for our example) in the heading ―formula result‖ shown below.
4.10.2 Calculation of median
133 To calculate median, you can repeat the steps explained above for the calculation of mean. But you can choose the function "median" instead of "average" and then click "ok"
Then the above menu will be displayed. Then enter the cell values of the data in the same way as you have entered the data to calculate the mean value. Then it will give you the result of your calculation.
4.10.3 Calculation of mode Mode can be calculated in the similar way to that of mean and median. Repeat all the steps till you get the following menu.
134 Then choose the function "mode" and click "ok". You will get the following menu with the result.
4.10.4 Graphical representation With the help of ms-excel, graphs like bar graph, pie diagram, line diagrams of curves, etc can be drawn very easily. After entering the data, the first step in drawing a graph is to open the "chart wizard" from the tool bar or from the "Insert" option in the menu bar and select the option "chart" which is illustrated below.
From the above window you can choose the type of graph which you want to draw. 4.10.5 Pie diagram This can be drawn by choosing the option "pie" from the option "chart type" in the above display; you will get the following. In the following display you can choose any chart sub-type according to our requirement.
135
4.10.6 Bar graph Bar graph can also be drawn with the help of the chart wizard. The same steps for drawing pie diagram may be followed for drawing the bar graph. But while choosing the chart type. You have to choose "bar". Which is shown in the following illustration.
136
4.10.7 Frequency curves The frequency curves can also be drawn by following the same steps used to draw pie and bar diagrams. The only difference in the procedure to draw line graph is to choose the "chart type" as "line graph".
137
Thus excel spreadsheet has a lot of applications. Only through continuous practice the users can develop the skill to operate the software in an effective manner. Check your progress 4 12. What function is used to calculate standard deviation? ------13. Chart wizard is located in ------
4.11. Let us sum up A spreadsheet is a tool for working with numbers. A spreadsheet program is used to calculate and analyze sets of numbers. A spreadsheet is divided into columns and rows. The intersection of row and a column is called a cell. A cell is referred to by its address – created by combining its column and row headings. Cells can contain values, labels, or formulae. A data file created with spreadsheet is called a worksheet. The process of creating a worksheet can involve organizing the data, entering data, creating formulae, editing, formatting, adding charts, analyzing data and printing the worksheet. A formula lets you create a value in one cell that is calculated based on the values in other cells. Formulae follow the order of mathematical operations: exponentiation, negation, multiplication and division, addition and subtraction. Functions are built – in formulae. Microsoft Office Calc offers a wide variety of functions. Creating a Worksheet References to cells can be relative or absolute. Data in the worksheet can be formatted in bold, italics and underlined. The alignment, font, size and color of the contents of the cells can also be changed. Numbers can be formatted as currency, percents and displayed with or without decimals. You can add pictures, special characters and your own drawings to the worksheet. You can insert movies, sounds, charts, floating frame, applets and OLE objects in worksheet. Charts are used to make data easier to understand. You can define which range of cells on a spreadsheet to print. Spreadsheets have database management capabilities including sorting, selecting and printing out reports.
138 4.12. Unit End Activities
1. Explain the basics of spreadsheet. 2. State and explain the applications of MS excel spreadsheet. 3. Describe how you will manipulate the data in cells, columns and rows of a spreadsheet. 4. Write down how you will carry out the statistical calculations through excel spreadsheet. 5. Describe how you will draw graphs of different kinds through Excel spreadsheet. 4.13. Answers to Check your Progress 1. Microsoft office 2. Computer scientist Alan Kay 3. Row and column 4. = sign 5. Formula menu 6. CTRL + X 7. CTRL + C 8. CTRL + SHIFT + ENTER 9. * operator 10. .xlsx 11. Office button 12. STDEVP 13. Insert menu 4.14 Suggested Readings: Arul Jothi, Balaji, D.L., Rajesh Verma (2009). Computers in Education. Centrum Press: New Delhi. Copestake, S. (2004). Excel 2002. New Delhi: Drem Tech Press. Curtis D. Frye, (2010): Microsoft® Excel® 2010 Step by Step: Accompanying Media: ISBN 9780735626942 Lalini Varanasi, Sudhakar, V., Mrunalini, T. (2008). Computer Education. Neelkamal Publications Pvt. Ltd: Hyderabad. Norton, P. (1998). Introduction to computers. New Delhi: Tata McGraw Hill Publishing Co Ltd. Petzold, C. (1998). Programming windows. USA: Microsoft Press. Rajasekar, S. (2008). Computer Education. Neelkamal Publications Pvt. Ltd: Hyderabad ------
139 UNIT V POWER POINT
STRUCTURE
5.1 Introduction 5.2 Objectives 5.3 Creating a presentation 5.4 Saving 5.5 Changing view 5.6 Printing 5.7 Closing a presentation 5.8 Creating presentation with presentation 5.9 Simple editing 5.10 Simple Animation 5.11 Adding pictures and drawings 5.12 Embedding voice 5.13 Preparation of presentation for teaching 5. 14 Let Us Sum up 5.15 Unit End Exercises 5.16 Answers to Check your Progress 5.17 Suggested Readings
5.1. Introduction:
PowerPoint is the powerful and omnipresent presentation program from Microsoft. It gives you the facility to create stunning presentations that incorporate video and PowerPoint animations. The image editing capabilities that PowerPoint offer get better and better with every new version. Starting to learn Microsoft PowerPoint can seem like a daunting task if you are not familiar with its environment. PowerPoint 2000 introduced a clipboard that could hold multiple objects at once. Another change was that the Office Assistant was changed to be less intrusive. Originally designed for the Macintosh computer, the initial release was called "Presenter", developed by Dennis Austin and Thomas Rudkin. In 1987, it was renamed to "PowerPoint" due to problems with trademarks, the idea for the name coming from Robert Gaskins. Microsoft PowerPoint is a proprietary commercial software presentation program developed by Microsoft. It was developed by Microsoft and officially launched on May 22, 1990. It is part of
140 the Microsoft Office suite, and runs on Microsoft Windows and Apple's Mac OS X operating system. The current versions are Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2010 for Windows and Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2011 for Mac. Let us learn how to prepare PowerPoint presentation for teaching in the classroom.
5.2. Objectives
After going through this unit you will be able to:
Prepare power point presentations Understand the concept of preparation Modify any presentation Create new presentations Add pictures, animations and sound to the presentation
Microsoft PowerPoint is a software product used to perform computer- based presentations. There are various circumstances in which a presentation is made: teaching a class, introducing a product to sell, explaining an organizational structure, etc.
There are two main kinds of presentations you can deliver: before an audience or not. The preparation and the actual delivery of each are quite different. Before getting into the details of each, we will first take a look at the software and analyze what it has to offer. 5.3 Creating a presentation
Starting Microsoft power point
To use Microsoft PowerPoint, you must first open it:
One way you can open Microsoft PowerPoint by clicking Start -> (All) Programs -> Microsoft Office -> Microsoft Office PowerPoint Sometimes somebody may send you a Microsoft PowerPoint presentation as an E-Mail attachment, a file on a floppy disk, or a file on the network, etc. The file is usually represented by a Microsoft PowerPoint icon. You can double-click the icon to launch Microsoft PowerPoint and immediately open the presentation. You can open Microsoft PowerPoint using a shortcut. If you happen to use the software on a regular basis, you can create a shortcut on your desktop or on the Quick Launch area. Many users also take advantage of the Microsoft Office Shortcut Bar. Sometimes, the icon you need will not be there; in that case you should insert it manually.
141 If you are working on a network of related computers, a presentation may be located in another computer. Once you locate the computer or the folder on the network and you see the Microsoft PowerPoint icon, you can double-click it. This would open the application and the presentation. The network administrator can also create a link or shortcut to the drive that is hosting the presentation. You can then click or double-click this link or shortcut to open the presentation and, as a result, launch Microsoft PowerPoint. Creating a new presentation
If you create a presentation using either the AutoContent Wizard or a design template, a presentation with ready-made slides would be created for you. If you start a presentation from scratch, you would have to create your own slides as you see fit. The primary difference is that, the slides created from a presentation from scratch do not have any design: they are presented with a white background. This gives you complete freedom to customize their appearance. Whether you start a presentation from scratch or you are using an already created presentation, you can add or insert a new slide any time. If you work from a blank presentation, a new slide would appear empty. If the presentation already has a design, that design would automatically be applied to it.
Creating a Presentation From a Template 1. Start Microsoft PowerPoint 2. On the right side, click Create A New Presentation... 3. On the right side, click From Design Template 4. Under Available For Use, click the button for Mountain Top (1st column - 7th row) and observe the slide
5. Under Available For Use, click Competition (2nd column - 10th row) and observe the slide
142 6. Under Available For Use, click Blends (1st column - 22nd row) 7. In the slide, click the ‗Click To Add Title‘ line and type Human Body Structure 8. Click the ‗Click To Add Subtitle‘ section to move the caret to the lower section of the slide 9. Type Helene Mukoko (or your name) and click outside of the marked box.
10. To add another slide, on the main menu, click Insert -> New Slide... 11. Type Body Organization in the title line 12. Click the Click To Add Text section 13. Type Definitions : Tissue, Cell, Muscle and press Enter 14. Complete the slide content as follows:
143 15. To insert another slide, on the Formatting toolbar, click New Slide 16. Type Digestion and press Ctrl + Enter 17. Type Nutrition - Digestion and press Enter 18. Type The Mouth 19. Complete the slide as follows:
20. To add another slide, press Ctrl + M 21. On the right side, scroll down and, under Other Layouts, click Title, Clip
Art and Text 22. In the slide, click ‗Click to Add Title‘ and type Introduction and Overview 23. Click ‗Click to add text‟ to Add Text 24. Type Presenter 25. On the left side of Microsoft PowerPoint, click the Outline tab 26. Click on the right side of Presenter and press Enter 27. Type Subject Overview and press Enter 28. Type Presentation Approach 29. To add another slide, press Ctrl + Enter 30. Type Respiration and Press Enter 31. Type Air Circulation and press Tab. That will make the new line part of a bulleted list inside of the current slide
144 32. Press Enter 33. Type The Mechanics of Breathing and press Enter 34. Type Air Transport and Exchange 35. On the left side of Microsoft PowerPoint, click the Slides tab 36. To insert another slide, on the Formatting toolbar click the ‗New Slide‘ button 37. On the right side, under Text Layouts, click ‗Title‟ and 2-Column
Text 38. Type The Circulatory System and press Ctrl + Enter 39. On the left list, type System Functions and press Enter 40. Type Heart and Blood Vessels and press Enter 41. Type The Blood 42. Press Ctrl + Enter to move to the other Click To Add Text column 43. Type Types of Blood Cells and press Enter 44. Type The Lymphatic System and press Enter 45. Type Diseases of the Circulatory System 46. On the left side of Microsoft PowerPoint, click the Outline tab if necessary. In the left section of the view, click one of the bulleted lines of slide 5, for example, click Mechanics 47. To add another slide, press Ctrl + Enter 48. Type Organisms Diversity 49. Press Enter and press Tab. 50. Type Fungi and press Enter 51. Type Viruses and press Enter 52. Type Protists and press Enter 53. Type Bacteria 54. To review slides in another view, on the main menu, click View -> Slide Sorter 55. To save the current presentation, on the menu bar, click File -> Save 56. In the File Name combo box, type Structure of the Human Body as the file name 57. Click Save
145
Presentation Design Change
The quickest way to apply a fancy background to a blank presentation is to assign one of the designs that ship with Microsoft PowerPoint. These are good and already formatted designs ready to complete a presentation with an already configured set. To apply one the designs to a presentation: On the main menu, you can click Format -> Slide Design... On the Formatting toolbar, click Design In the Normal View, you can right-click an unoccupied area of the slide and click Slide Design The available designs would appear on the right side of the screen. You can then click the desired design. Applying a Design 1. To open a previously used presentation, on the main menu, click File and click Alcoholism Factor. If you do not see it, open the Alcoholism1 presentation 2. On the main menu, click Format -> Slide Design... 3. On the right section of the window, under Recently Used, click Mountain Top. If it does not appear, under Available For Use, click Mountain Top (1st column - 7th row) 4. Close Microsoft PowerPoint 5. When asked whether you want to save, click ‗Yes‘
146 5.4. Saving A Microsoft PowerPoint presentation is a computer file that should be stored somewhere for later use or reference. When saving a presentation, you can store it on your computer, on a floppy drive, or on another computer (network drive). To save a new presentation, you use the Save As dialog box. The shortcut to save the file is Ctrl + S. There are two pieces of information you should provide when saving a file: the file name and the location. A file name can have up to 255 characters. Refrain from using fancy characters; instead, give an easily recognizable name. A file location is where the file will be stored; on your (local) computer, this is called a folder. If you want to save your presentation on a compact disk or another medium, make the selection from the Save In combo box. To save the presentation on another computer, make sure you are connected to that computer. If the presentation has already been saved, that is, if it has a recognizable name, if you click File -> Save or press Ctrl + S, the presentation would be saved behind the scenes. You can still save the presentation with a different name or at another location. To do this, on the main menu, you can click File -> Save As... The shortcuts to save the file with a different name or at a different location are F12 or Alt + F2. Saving a Presentation
1. To save the presentation with a different name, on the main menu, click File -> Save As... 2. From the Save As dialog box, replace the file name with Elements of Drug Addiction 3. Make sure your Microsoft PowerPoint Exercises folder displays in the Save In combo box 4. Click Save CHECK YOUR PROGRESS 1 1. Power point is an application of ------2. A file name can have up to how many characters ------3. What is the shortcut key for the ―save as‖ option ------
5.5. Changing view The Normal Outline View
147 The middle section of Microsoft PowerPoint is divided in two frames separated by a bar also called a splitter bar. This view made of two frames is also called a Normal View, the Outline View, or the Normal Outline View:
The left frame of this view displays the text parts of slides. If there are many slides, the splitter bar is equipped with a vertical scroll bar. Under the left frame, there are three buttons . These buttons allow you to change the current view. The right frame of the Normal View is itself divided in two frames. The top frame actually displays a slide but it displays only one slide at a time. The bottom frame can be used to create notes used during a presentation. Slide navigation consists of moving from one slide to another. In the Normal View, to navigate among slides, you can use either the left or the top right frames. In the left frame, if you click any text, the slide it belongs to would display in the right frame. In the right frame, to change a slide, you can click either the up arrow or the bottom arrow buttons of the vertical scroll bar. If you click the up arrow, the previous slide would display unless the first slide is displaying already, in which case nothing would happen. If you click the bottom arrow, the next slide would display unless the last slide is displaying already, in which case nothing would happen. To move to the very first slide, you can press Ctrl + Home. To move to the last slide, you can press Ctrl + End. Practical Learning: Using the Outline View
1. On the main menu, click View -> Normal 2. To change slides, in the left frame, click Goal. Notice that the slide in the right frame has changed.
148 3. On the right side of the right frame, click the down pointing arrow of the vertical scroll bar and notice that the slide has changed again. 4. Press Ctrl + Home to move to the first slide. The Slides View The last view we have introduced reduces the area dedicated to the slide. Of course, you can resize it to provide as much area as you need for each frame. That is what offered by the Slides View. To display the Slides View, on the left frame, click the Slides tab. The Slides View is drawn exactly like the Outline view except that the left frame displays small slides:
Practical Learning: Using the Slide View 1. In the upper-left section, click the Slides tab 2. Press Ctrl + Home to move to the first slide 3. To change slides, in the left frame, click the button that displays 6. Notice that the right frame displays the 6th slide 4. On the right side of the screen, click the down pointing arrow of the vertical scroll bar 2 times. Notice that, in the left frame, the number 8 is gray, indicating that the current slide in the right frame is the 8th slide. 5. Click the up arrow button of the right vertical scroll bar 5 times. The Slide Sorter View Instead of getting only a smaller outline of slides, you can use a view that displays them a little larger. This is offered by the Slide Sorter view. To get the Slide Sorter View: On the main menu, you can click View -> Slide Sorter
149 In the bottom left section of the window, you can click the Slide Sorter View button The Slide Sorter View is significantly different from the previous review. It shows as many slides as possible. Each slide displays as a smaller picture. If there are more slides than the view can display, it is equipped with a vertical scroll bar that allows you to view hidden slides:
If you double-click a slide, the view changes into Slide View and displays the slide you double-clicked.
Practical Learning: Using the Slide Sorter View 1. On the main menu, click View -> Slide Sorter 2. Click the picture above 8. Notice that is has a thick border 3. To change the view to Slides View, press Enter 4. To change to the Slide Sorter View again, in the lower-left corner of the screen, click the Slide Sorter View button 5. Press Ctrl + Home to select the first slide To close Microsoft PowerPoint, on the main menu, click File -> Exit (if you are asked whether you want to save, click No)
5.6. Printing
Printing allows you to put the presentation on paper. There are various reasons you would do this. Some members of your audience may want to have the slides on printed paper. Some times, for some reason, you may want your audience to have one or more pieces of paper that represent various slides so that each member can go back and forth among slides without asking you to change the slide especially if only one out of many wants to jump to a particular slide. In
150 some cases too, you may have text, charts, or document links in your slides which may attract your audience towards your presentation. To initiate printing, on the main menu, you can click File -> Print... The shortcut is Ctrl + P. Printing is highly supported in MicrosoftPowerPoint. This is mostly done using the Print dialog box. Print all Slides The simplest type of printing you can perform is to print all slides of your presentation, in color. To do this, after displaying the Print dialog box, you can simply click OK after making sure that the Allradio button is selected. Besides printing the whole presentation, if you want to distribute a few copies of your presentation to the audience, you can specify the number of copies to make using the Number of Copies spin button. Printing All Slides
1. Start Microsoft PowerPoint and open the Web Site Design presentation 2. To print all slides in color, press Ctrl + P 3. In the Print dialog box, make sure the appropriate printer is selected in the Name combo box. Increase the Number of Copies to 2 4. Click OK
Print Some Slides
In some cases, you may not want to print all slides of your presentation. For example, if you have a long presentation and judge that the members of the audience may only need specific slides, such as those that have pictures, charts, or web links, you may want to print only those specific slides. During your
151 presentation, a member of the audience may also request that you print a specific slide or a group of slides.
If you do not want or don't need to print all slides of your presentation, you have many options. If you want to print one specific slide, you can navigate to it and display the Print dialog box. To print only the slide that is displaying, you can click the Current Slide radio button. If you want to print more than one copy of that slide, you can change the value of the ‗Number of Copies‘ spin button. To print a range of slides, display the Print dialog box, click the Slides radio button and specify the slide or range of slides: To print one slide, type its number in the Slides text box. To print a range of slides, type the lowest slide number, followed by -, followed by the highest slide number. For example, if you have a presentation with 14 slides but you want to print only slides from 4 to 7, you would type 4-7. To print slides at random, type the number of each slide separated by a comma. For example, if you have a presentation with 14 slides, if you type 5,2,10 only the 5th, the 2nd, and the 10th slides would be printed. Printing Some Slides
1. On the main menu, click View -> Slide Sorter 2. In the Slide Sorter View, double-click slide 8 3. To print only the current slide (8), on the main menu, click File -> Print... 4. In the Print dialog box, click the Current Slide radio button and click OK 5. On the main menu again, click View -> Slide Sorter 6. To prepare a few slide for printing, click slide 6 7. Press and hold Ctrl 8. Click slides 2 and 4 9. Release Ctrl 10. To print only the selected slides, press Ctrl + P 11. In the Print dialog box, click the Selection radio button 12. Increase the Number of Copies to 4
152
13. Click OK 14. Press Ctrl + P 15. To print slides at random, click the Slides radio button 16. In the text box on the right side of Slides, type 9, 5-7 17. Click OK 5.7. Closing a presentation Now let us learn how to close the PowerPoint presentation. Since Microsoft PowerPoint shares the same functionality you are probably familiar with from using other applications, you can close it easily. To close Microsoft PowerPoint, from the menu bar, you can click File -> Exit To close Microsoft PowerPoint from the system icon, you can either click it and click Close, or you can double-click its system icon To close Microsoft PowerPoint from its title bar, you can click its Close button To close Microsoft PowerPoint like any regular window of the Microsoft Windows applications, you can press Alt + F4 To close Microsoft PowerPoint using mnemonics, you can press Alt, f, x. Closing Microsoft PowerPoint To close Microsoft PowerPoint, on the main menu, click File -> Exit
5.8. Creating presentation with presentation
153 Microsoft PowerPoint makes it very easily to create a presentation by providing ready-to-use sample presentations. Based on this, the easiest way to create a presentation consists of using a feature referred to as AutoContent Wizard. It is a suite of dialog boxes that allow you to select or specify the necessary features of a basic presentation.
To use the AutoContent Wizard, on the main menu of Microsoft PowerPoint, you can click File -> New... On the right side, under New, you can click From AutoContent Wizard.
Using the AutoContent Wizard 1. To start an instance of Microsoft PowerPoint, from the Taskbar, click Start -> (All) Programs -> Microsoft PowerPoint 2. On the menu, click File -> New... 3. On the right side, under New, click From AutoContent Wizard. The first page of the AutoContent Wizard appears:
4. Click Next
5. In the following dialog, you will choose the type of presentation you want the AutoContent Wizard to initialize for you. To select a presentation, you have two options. If you click the ‗All‘ button, all the presentation templates will display on the list. On the other hand, you can select a category of presentation by clicking the appropriate button. Either way, click a particular presentation from the list and proceed to the next dialog.
For this exercise, click the Projects button, then click Project Overview from the list.
154
6. Click Next
7. Once you choose the type you want, you will be asked to choose the type of output you want:
Accept the On-Screen Presentation radio button and click Next 8. The next dialog will ask you to give a title and a footer for your presentation. In the Presentation Title text box, type ‗How a Bill Becomes a Law‟. 9. Make sure the Footer text box is empty. Clear the Date Last Updated check box.
155
10. Click Next
11. After you click next, the AutoContent Wizard will open all the necessary answers to initialize your presentation:
Click Finish
12. To save the presentation, on the Standard toolbar, click the Save button 13. Locate your Microsoft PowerPoint Exercises folder and display it in the Save In combo box 14. In the File Name combo box, accept the name as How a Bill Becomes a Law and click Save The Presentation Templates
A template is an already created and formatted product that you can use to quickly perform a task. In the case of Microsoft PowerPoint, a template is a presentation that has already been created with text outline, formatting effects, and other-related issues that are the basis for time-consuming design. Most of the templates provided by Microsoft PowerPoint are professionally done and you can
156 simply use them to customize your presentation. The only aspect you would really need to change is the text included in the slides. In the above section, we learned to use AutoContent Wizard to work from one of the designs that Microsoft PowerPoint ships with. To create a presentation using one of the readily made designs, on the main menu, you can click File -> New... Then, on the right section, under New, click from design template.
Another technique you can use is to open an existing presentation, one that has a design you like or that the company you are working for already has. After opening it, you can either modify the contents of each slide, which allows you to preserve the other individual design of each slide, or you can delete all slides, except the first and another slide. You should not delete the first slide because it usually has a unique design as compared to the other slides. You should preserve one of the other slides because (as we will learn when studying the Master Slide) it has a design that is shared by the rest of the slides of the presentation.
Creating a Presentation Based on a Template
1. To create a new presentation using an existing design, on the main menu, click File -> New... 2. On the right side, under New, Click From Design Template 3. On the right side, click the design on the 1st column - 3rd row
4. Notice the display in the Preview section. In the right section, scroll down and the 13th design (1st column - 7th row) and observe the Preview 5. To save the presentation, press Ctr + S 6. Locate your Microsoft PowerPoint Exercises folder and display it in the Save In combo box 7. In the File Name combo box, replace the name with Building an Aircraft 8. Click Save
157 Check Your Progress 2 4. What are the two types of view? ------5. What is the shortcut key to move to the first slide of a presentation? ------6. What is the shortcut key to take printout ------
5.9. Simple editing When a presentation is made of more than one slide, which is usually the case, the slides follow an incremental number, also referred to as their sequence. Based on this, there is the entry or first slide, followed by the 2nd, 3rd, etc slides. While creating your presentation and before showing it to your audience, you may find out that a slide is in the wrong order or a group of slides are out of sequence. Fortunately, Microsoft PowerPoint allows you to easily insert, delete, copy or move slides. Copying Slides One of the most routine tasks you will perform consists of copying slides. If you have a slide whose contents and/or structure should be used in another location of the presentation, you can copy it and paste it to another section of the presentation. To copy a slide, in the Slide Sorter View or in the Normal View, right-click the slide button and click Copy. Then, right-click the slide that would precede it and click Paste.
Copying Slides
Open the Human Body Structure1 presentation. In the lower left section, click the Slide Sorter Viewbutton 1. Right-click slide 2 and click Copy
2. Right-click slide 7 and click Paste
3. In the lower left section of Microsoft PowerPoint, click the Normal View button
4. If necessary, scroll up completely to see slide 1. In the left section of the screen, position the mouse on the button header of
158 slide 3 until the mouse pointer becomes a cross
5. Right-click and click copy 6. Right-click the button of slide 5 and click Paste 7. Still on the left side of the screen (Normal View), click anywhere on (any word of) slide 6 to give it focus. 8. Press Ctrl + C 9. Click anywhere on (any word of) slide 4 to give it focus 10. Press Ctrl + V 11. Notice that slide 6 has been pasted 12. To save the presentation with an incremental name, press F12 13. Change the name of the slide to Structure of the Human Body1 Click Save
Moving Slides Very often, you will find out that a certain slide is out of sequence based on your desired logic of the presentation. In this case you would have to move it to another location. There are various ways you can move a slide:
159 You can cut it from its original location and paste it to the desired location In Slide Sorter View or in Normal View, you can drag the button representing the slide and drop it to the new location. Moving Slides 1. As we are still in the Outline tab of the Normal View, if necessary, scroll up to make sure you can see slides from 4 to 9. 2. Position the mouse on the button header of slide 4 until the mouse pointer turns into a cross and click. That selects the whole slide (clicking is not necessary but is recommended). 3. Click the same button and hold your mouse down. Drag it up. Notice that while you are dragging, there is a horizontal line that guides you.
4. When the horizontal line gets just above slide 2, release the mouse 5. Right-click the button of slide 4 and click Cut 6. Right-click the button of slide 8 and click Paste 7. To switch to another view, in the lower left section, click the Slider Sorter View button 8. In Slide Sorter View, click and hold your mouse on slide 4 9. Drag it down and left. Notice that a vertical line guides you
160
10. When the vertical line gets between slides 7 and 8, release the mouse. Save the presentation
Deleting Slides Whenever a slide doesn't fit or is not necessary on a presentation, you can delete it. There are two ways you can delete a slide. You can right-click it and click Cut. Although stored on the clipboard, the slide would disappear from the presentation. You can also click the slide button header in Normal View or in Slide Sorter View to select or highlight it, then press Delete. Deleting Slides 1. Still in Slide Sorter View, click slide 10 (it should be titled Body Organization; otherwise click the second slide that is titled Body Organization) to select it 2. Press Delete 3. In the left section, click the Outline tab. Right-click the button of slide 7 (it should be titled Digestion; otherwise click the second slide that is titled Digestion) to select it 4. Click Cut 5. Still in the Outline View, click the button of slide 8 (Digestion) to select the whole slide 6. Press Delete 7. Press Ctrl + Home to make sure the first slide receives focus 8. Press Ctrl + S to save the presentation 9. To preview the presentation, on the main menu, click Slide Show -> View Show To advance in the presentation, press Enter after viewing each slide
Slide Layout
161 Layout Modification As you probably realized in our previous lesson, when creating slides, Microsoft PowerPoint allows you to select a slide based on the intended layout. This is because various types of slides are available, those used to display text, those used for graphics or charts, those used for combined designs. At any time, you can change the layout of a slide if you judge its content suited for another type.
To change the layout of a slide, in Normal View, in the top-right section, right-click the title of the slide and click Slide Layout. From the Slide Layout window, select the desired layout. Modifying Slide Layout
1. In the lower left corner, click the Normal View button. If necessary, scroll up completely. On the left frame, click anywhere on slide 2 to make sure it is selected 2. On the right frame, right-click the title of the slide (slide 2) and click Slide Layout..
3. In the right side, under Text Layouts, click Title and Text 4. Save the presentation 5. Open the Web Site Design1 presentation 6. On the lower left corner, click the Slide Sorter View button 7. In the Slide Sorter View, double-click the slide 4 Web Languages 8. Right-click an empty area on the slide and click Slide Layout...
9. In the Slide Layout window, click Title and 2-Column Text 10. In the slide, click Active Web 11. Press and hold Shift. Then click SOAP and release Shift 12. Click and hold the mouse down on the selected text 13. Drag to the right section titled Click To Add Text
162
14. Release the mouse Click just above Markup Language and press Delete
15. To save the presentation with an incremental name, press F12 16. Change the name of the presentation to Web Design1 Click Save Slide and Text Layout Moving Text If you happen to have a section of text in the wrong slide, you can move it to the appropriate slide. To do this, you can click the bullet button of a line of text and drag it to the desired slide. You can also copy or cut text, then paste it inside of the desired slide. Practical Learning: Moving Text
163 1. Open the Alcoholism1 presentation To make sure you are in the normal view, on the main menu, click View -> Normal 2. In the left frame, in Slide 2, click the word Who 3. Press and hold Shift 4. In the same slide, click Diagnosis and release Shift 5. Press Ctrl + X to cut the selected text 6. In the left frame, click slide 3 (Drinkers: An Analysis) 7. In the right frame, click Click to add text and press Ctrl + V 8. In the left frame, click the empty line in slide 2 and press Delete 9. To save the presentation with an incremental name, press F12 10. Change the name of the presentation to Alcoholism Factor2 11. Click Save 12. Open the Human Body Structure2 presentation 13. In the left frame, in slide 3: The Respiratory System, position the mouse on the bullet button of Air Transport and Exchange until the mouse pointer becomes a cross
14. Click and drag up, until the guiding horizontal line is positioned under The Lungs
164
15. Release the mouse
Save the presentation
Promote and Demote Text
If some text inside of a slide is too important and should constitute its own slide, you can make it happen. In the same way, the header of a slide might not be suitable as its own slide and would rather fit inside of another slide, you can include it accordingly.
To make a bulleted item inside of a slide become the header of another slide, you can promote it. To make a header text become an item in a bulleted list of another slide, you demote it. You can promote or demote items in the Normal View or in the Slide Sorter View.
Practical Learning: Promoting and Demoting Text 1. Re-open the Alcoholism Factor2 presentation 2. If necessary, activate the Normal View On the main menu, click View -> Toolbars -> Outlining 3. In slide 5, click Assault
4. To demote that bulleted item, on the Outlining toolbar, click Demote 5. Position your mouse on the bullet of Homicide on slide 5 until the mouse pointer becomes a cross
165
6. Click and drag right. Notice the vertical line that guides you 7. When the line moves to the right, then release it.
8. To promote the Assault bullet to the same level with Homicide, click Assault 9. Press Shift + Tab 10. In slide 5, click the bullet of the Suicide line to select the line 11. Press Tab to demote the Suicide line 12. To save the presentation, press Ctrl + S 13. Open the Human Body Structure2 presentation 14. In the lower left corner, if necessary, click Normal View Scroll down to get the outline of slide 7: The Circulatory System 15. In the left frame, click anywhere on the line The Cerebrum 16. Press Tab. Notice that the bulleted item has been demoted 17. Press the down arrow key and press Tab to demote the other bulleted item 18. Scroll down and display the 9th slide (Body Organization) 19. In the left frame, click anywhere on the Skeleton Structure
20. On the Formatting toolbar, click the Demote button (it should be on the right side of the toolbar, upper-right side of the screen) 21. In the right frame, click The Joints and, on the Formatting toolbar, click the Demote button 22. Scroll up to slide 3: The Respiratory System
166 23. Click anywhere in the line Air Circulation. Press and hold Shift then click anywhere in The Lungs and release Shift 24. Press Tab to demote them 25. Click Choking and press F4 to repeat the previous action 26. Click Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and press F4 to repeat the previous action 27. Make sure you can see both slides 3 and 4 Click Organisms Diversity and, on the Formatting toolbar, click Demote 28. Click Fungi. Press and hold Shift. Then click Bacteria and release Shift 29. Press Backspace three times to delete the four bulleted lines, Save the presentation
5.10. Simple Animation An animation is the ability to move objects in a slide without your direct intervention during a presentation. For example, instead of displaying the main title directly when a slide comes up, you may want it to show one word at a time. Imagine you have a picture in a slide but you want to introduce the picture before displaying it. To achieve this, you can delay the picture. Furthermore, if you have a picture with various parts, you can show these parts one at a time. Based on this, you can see that animation can add very dramatic effects to your presentation. You create an animation on one slide or on some slides of the presentation. To apply a general animation to all slides, you can access the slide master. To support animations, Microsoft Power Point provides various options in the Slide Show group of the main menu.
Preset Animations
A preset animation is one that exists already as it ships with Microsoft PowerPoint. You can just use it when necessary. To access a preset animation: In Microsoft PowerPoint 2000, first select the text or the object that you want to animate. Then, on the main menu, click Slide Show -> Preset Animation and click the desired option In Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2003, display a slide. Then, on the main menu, click Slide Show -> Animation Schemes. In the slide, select the object or text that you want to animate When you select an object or text in the slide and select a preset animation, the animation would apply to that object. When performing your presentation and when you get to the slide, you can click and the animation would be produced.
Introducing Animations
167 1. Start Microsoft PowerPoint 2. Open the College Park Auto Shop2 presentation and make sure the first slide is displaying 3. On the slide, click Park to make sure the title is selected 4. On the main menu, click Slide Show and click either (in 2000) Preset Animation or (in 2003) Animation Schemes... 5. Click Fade In One By One 6. To apply an animation to all slides, on the main menu, click View -> Master -> Slide Master 7. Click title in the first line 8. On the main menu, click Slide Show -> Animation Schemes... and click Neutron 9. On the main menu, click Slide Show -> Preset Animation -> Typewriter 10. On the Master toolbar, click Close 11. Save the presentation and view it
Custom Animations
A custom animation allows you to consider the objects or the text boxes in a slide, one at a time, and to animate them. To support this, Microsoft PowerPoint allows you to identify each and apply the desired animation to it.
To perform custom animation on one slide:
You can right-click a work or an object in the slide and click Custom Animation...
While the slide is displaying, on the main menu, click Slide Show -> Custom Animation...
To apply a custom animation to all slides, first access the master slide. Then, either right-click it and click and click Custom Animation or, on the main menu, click Slide Show -> Custom Animation. Creating a Custom Animation
1. To create a custom animation for one slide, display the first slide 2. Right-click Park on the slide and click Custom Animation... 3. In the Check To Animate Slide Objects list, click the check box of Bevel 3
168 4. In the Entry Animation And Sound combo box of the Effects property page, select Dissolve
5. In the Check To Animation Slide Objects list, click the check box of Title 4 6. In the Entry Animation And Sound combo box, select Stretch 7. In the Check To Animation Slide Objects list, click the check box of Text 5 8. In the Entry Animation And Sound combo box, select Stretch 9. In the Check To Animation Slide Objects list, click the check box of Text 9 10. In the Entry Animation And Sound combo box, make sure Fly and From Left are selected. In the Introduce Text combo box, select By Letter
11. Click OK 12. On the main menu, click View -> Master -> Slide Master 13. On the main menu, click Slide Show -> Custom Animation... 14. In the Check To Animation Slide Objects list, click the check box of Title 12 15. Click the Effects property page 16. In the Entry Animation And Sound left combo box, select Blinds
169 17. In the Entry Animation And Sound right combo box, select Vertical 18. In the Introduce Text combo box, select By Word 19. In the Check To Animation Slide Objects list, click the check box of Rectangle 7 20. In and in its Start Animation section, click the Automatically radio button 21. Accept the default value of 00:00 22. Click the property page 23. In the Entry Animation And Sound left combo box of the Effects property page, select Wipe 24. In the Entry Animation And Sound right combo box, select Right 25. Click OK 26. Save the presentation and view it Chart Animation
As a high visual effect, a chart can be displayed using a custom animation. You have two main options. To apply an animation to a chart, you should first display the slide that contains the chart and click the chart to select.
When a chart on a slide is selected, on the main menu, you can click Slide Show -> Preset Animation -> Animate Chart. If you do this, Microsoft PowerPoint would identify each part of the chart and create a default animation to it. If you do not want the default animation applied to a chart, you can right-click it and click Custom Animation... In the Custom Animation dialog box, you can use the options available in the Chart Effects property page. Animating a Chart 1. Display the 7th slide that contains the chart and click the chart 2. On the main menu, click Slide Show -> Preset Animation and click Animate Chart 3. Save the presentation and view it to notice the effects when you get to the 7th slide 4. While the 7th slide is still displaying, right-click the slide and click Custom Animation... 5. In the Introduce Chart Elements combo box, select By Category 6. In the left combo box of the Entry Animation And Sound combo box, select Wipe 7. In the right combo box of the Entry Animation And Sound combo box, select Up
170
8. Click OK 9. Save the presentation and view it to see the effects on the chart The Order of Animations When you create the animations of the various parts of a slide, the list of animations on that particular slide is created in the Order and Timing property page of the Custom Animation dialog box. The list is incremental: the first object on which you created the animation becomes number 1, the second is number 2. This is also the order they would appear in the slide. If you want another order, you can click the item corresponding to the animation, and then click the up or the down buttons of the Move label.
Controlling the Order of Animations
1. On the main menu, click View -> Master -> Slide Master 2. Right any word in the slide and click Custom Animation... 3. Click the Order & Timing tab. In the Animation Order list, click Rectangle 7 and click the button above the Move label The Start Timing Effect of an Animation
After creating the animation on a slide or on slides, to show its effects, by default, you must click the mouse for each animation. This is convenient if you want to control when an animation would display. This can also be annoying. Fortunately, you can make an animation display either automatically when the slide comes up or you can delay the animation for a few seconds or minutes. This would make it come up by itself when the timing is reached, instead of clicking the mouse. This timing effect can be set or controlled in the Start Animation section of the Order & Timing property page of the Custom Animation dialog box. Controlling the Starting Time of an Animation
171 1. In the Animation Order list, click the Rectangle 7 item if necessary. In the Start Animation section of the Order & Timing property page, click the Automatically radio button 2. Accept the default value of 00:00 3. In the Animation Order list, click Title 12 4. In the Start Animation section, click the Automatically radio button 5. Increase the spin button to 00:05 6. Click OK The Dimming Effect of an Animation
After an animation has occurred, its object usually displays on the slide. If you want, you can hide text on which the animation occurred or you can change its font color. This is controlled by the After Animation combo box of the Effects property page.
Controlling the Dimming Effect of an Animation
1. Display the last slide 2. Right click Questions and click Custom Animation... 3. In the Check to Animate Slide Objects, click the check box of Text 2 and click the Effects property page 4. In the After Animation combo box, select More Colors 5. Click the Custom property page, select a yellow color and click OK 5.11. Adding pictures and drawings Shapes are geometric and non geometric objects that Microsoft PowerPoint provides to enhance the looks of slides. There are many types of shapes. The most basic shapes you can use are the rectangle, the ellipse, and the line. Besides these, you can find advanced or complicated shapes on the Drawing toolbar.
To add a shape to a slide, click the desired button on the Drawing toolbar and draw in the desired location on the slide.
A picture is an external graphical object you add to a slide to illustrate a point. Microsoft PowerPoint is very flexible with the types of pictures it allows on slides. To support pictures, there are two main ways you can get them to a slide. In a presentation, some slides provide a place holder for a picture.
Microsoft Office ships with various pictures grouped in a collection called the Microsoft Clip Gallery. To use one of those pictures, you can double-click the
172 picture of a slide. If you don't have a placeholder for a picture, you can still click Insert -> Picture -> Clip Art... Either way, this would open the Insert ClipArt window that allows you to select a picture from a categorized collection.
Using a ClipArt 1. With the Structure of the Human Body4 presentation still opened, navigate to slide 2 2. Right-click in the slide and click Slide Layout
3. In the Apply Slide Layout window, click the Title, Clip Art and Text
button 4. Double-click the placeholder above Double Click To Add Clip Art 5. In the list, click a picture 6. Click OK and resize the picture if necessary
173
If you do not have enough clip arts, access the Microsoft web site (http://www.microsoft.com/office) and look for the section that has clip arts to download them). 7. Save the presentation
Regular Pictures
You may realize that the pictures provided in the Microsoft Clip Gallery are somewhat limited. Besides the pictures that ship with Microsoft PowerPoint or Microsoft Office, you can use any of the regular pictures on a slide. To do this, from any slide, on the main menu, you can click Insert -> Picture -> From File... Locate the picture and click Insert. After the picture has been added to a slide, you can move it and even resize it until you are satisfied with its location and its size. Using a Picture 1. Navigate to slide 4 (The Respiratory System) 2. Right-click in the slide and click Slide Layout 3. In the Apply Slide Layout window, click the Title, Text and Clip Art button 4. On the main menu, click Insert -> Picture -> From File... 5. From the exercises made for these lessons, click respiratory1 and click Insert 6. Reposition the picture to cover the right area 7. Save the presentation.
174
Word Arts
A word art is a letter or a group of letters with a preset design. Microsoft Office ships with WordArt, which is a series of pre-designed formats in which you can type anything such as a title or name and insert it to a slide. To use WordArt, on the Drawing toolbar, you can click the Insert WordArt button . Alternatively, on the main menu, you can click Insert -> Picture -> WordArt... This would bring the WordArt Gallery window. You can then click a design and click OK. In the Edit WordArt Text dialog box, type the text of your choice. You can also change the font name, size, and style before clicking OK. Like the shapes and pictures we have reviewed so far, you can move and resize a WordArt to your liking. If you find out that you selected the wrong design, to change it, you can right-click the WordArt on the slide and click Format WordArt.
When the WordArt is selected on the slide, it displays the WordArt toolbar. This provides a series of buttons that allow you to add a new WordArt by clicking Insert WordArt, to change the text by clicking Edit Text..., to change the design by clicking WordArt Gallery, etc.
Using WordArt
1. Navigate to slide 2: Introduction and Overview 2. On the Drawing toolbar, click the Insert WordArt button 3. In the WordArt Gallery window, click the design in 4th column - 2nd row and click OK
175 4. Type Human Body and click OK 5. Move the WordArt object to the lower-right section of the slide 6. To change its text, while it is still selected, on the WordArt toolbar, click the Edit Text... button 7. Change the Font to Garamond 8. Change the font Size to 32 and click the Bold button 9. Select the text and type Pat Knight to replace it
10. Click OK 11. To change the design, while the WordArt is still selected, on the WordArt toolbar, click the WordArt Gallery button 12. Click the WordArt on 5th column, 2nd row 13. Click OK 14. Position the WordArt to the lower-right side of the picture 15. Save the presentation 16. Close Microsoft PowerPoint
176 The Rectangle and the Square
A rectangle is a four-sided geometric figure you can use either as an independent aesthetic object in a slide or as a border around text or around another object. The most regularly used rectangle has two combinations of two parallel sides that are equal. A square is a special rectangle in which all four sides are equal.
To draw a rectangle on a slide, on the Drawing toolbar, click the Rectangle
button and either click the desired area on the slide or draw a rectangle on the slide.
To draw a square, after clicking the Rectangle button on the Drawing toolbar, press and hold Shift. Then either click in the slide or click and drag to draw a square the size of your choice.
If you click and start dragging to draw a rectangle, the origin would be where your mouse landed to where you released the mouse. If you want to draw the rectangle or shape using your origin (where you first clicked) as the center of the shape, press and hold both Alt and Ctrl, drag until you get the desired size, then release the mouse and release Alt and Shift.
Drawing Rectangles
1. Start Microsoft PowerPoint and open the Human Body Structure3 In the lower-left side of the screen, click the Normal View button If the Drawing toolbar is not visible, on the main menu, click View -> Toolbars -> Drawing 2. In the left frame, click any text of slide 6
3. On the Drawing toolbar, click the Rectangle button and click the lower section of the slide (to make sure the rectangle doesn't disappear from the white background, while the rectangle is still selected, on the Drawing toolbar, click the Fill Color button (don't change its color)) 4. To save the presentation with an incremental name, press F12 5. Change the name of the presentation to Structure of the Human Body4 Click Save.
177 The Text Box
A text box is a rectangular shape that contains text. The text can be any length. Like all other shapes we will review, a text box can be positioned anywhere on the slide, giving you ample opportunity to enhance a slide. The text box is the main place holder of text that displays in slides. As such, all main titles and bulleted lists on slides are stored in text boxes. The advantage of the text box is its flexibility with regards to its position and its ability to hold or "carry" text. Text that is stored in a text is moved when the text box is moved.
To add a text box to a slide, on the Drawing toolbar, click the Text Box button and click anywhere on the slide. Then type the desired text into the text box. Using the Text Box
1. Click anywhere on the Nervous System slide 7 2. To add a new slide, press Ctrl + M 3. In the Text Layout window, click the Title and 2-Column Text
button 4. Click Click To Add Title and notice the borders of its text box 5. Type The Reproductive System
6. Click the left Click to Add Text and notice its border
178 7. Type Male and press Enter 8. Press Tab 9. Type Production of Sperm and press Enter 10. Type Maturation and Storage and press Enter 11. Type The Penis 12. Click the right Click To Add Text 13. Type Female 14. Press Enter 15. Press Tab 16. Type Ovaries - Uterus and press Enter 17. Type Reproductive Cycle and press Enter 18. Type Vagina - External Genitals and click somewhere else in the slide
19. To add your own text box, on the Drawing toolbar, click the Text Box button 20. Click an empty area in the lower section of the slide. If (and only if) a bullet appears in the text box, then, on the Formatting toolbar, click the Bullets button to remove the bullet 21. Type The Sexual Response and press Enter 22. Type Contraception and press Enter 23. Type Sexually Transmitted Diseases 24. Even if you don't like where the new text that was just added is placed on the slide, do not move it: leave it exactly where it is in your slide
179 25. In the Outline view on the left frame, click anywhere on the second slide to display it in the main view
26. On the Drawing toolbar, click the Text Box button 27. On the slide, click in the lower left section 28. Type SupportSite: http://www.functionx.com/powerpoint If the text appears with a bullet, on the Formatting toolbar, click the Bullets button to remove it Save the presentation.
The Ellipse and the Circle
An ellipse is a round geometric figure. A circle is a type of ellipse in which all opposite points use the exact same distance from the centre:
To draw an ellipse on a slide, on the Drawing toolbar, click the Ellipse
button and either click the desired area on the slide or draw a rectangle on the slide. Although an ellipse is not a rectangle, it would be represented by a type of rectangle it would have been included in.
To draw a circle, after clicking the Ellipse button on the Drawing toolbar, press and hold Shift. Then either click in the slide or click and drag to draw a square the size of your choice.
If you click and start dragging to draw an ellipse or a circle, the origin would be where your mouse landed to where you released the mouse. If you want to draw an ellipse or a circle whose center would be the first point you clicked, press and hold both Alt and Ctrl, drag until you get the desired size, then release the mouse and release Alt and Shift.
Using the Ellipse Shape
1. In the Outline view of the left frame, click anywhere in slide 7 (The Nervous System) to activate it
2. On the Drawing toolbar, click the Ellipse button and click in the lower-right section of the slide To make sure the ellipse doesn't disappear from the white background, while its square is still selected, on the
Drawing toolbar, click the Fill Color button Save the presentation.
180 Additional Shapes Besides the rectangle and the ellipse, there are additional shapes you can use. To access these shapes, on the Drawing toolbar, you can click AutoShapes, position your mouse on a category and click the desired shape:
Using Additional Shapes
1. Scroll down to slide 8: the Reproductive System and display it in the right frame 2. On the Drawing toolbar, click AutoShapes -> Basic Shapes -> Cross 3. On the slide, draw a rectangle that covers the bottom three lines completely
To make sure the rectangle doesn't disappear from the white background, while the rectangle is still selected, on the Drawing toolbar, click the Fill Color button 4. Scroll up to slide 1 and display it in the right frame 5. Save the presentation. Manipulating Shapes
181 Selecting Shapes
Before performing an operation on a shape, you should first select it. In the same way, if you want to perform a common operation of various shapes, you should first select them. To select a shape that is positioned on a slide, you can just click it. When a shape is selected, it displays 8 handles around:
To select various shapes on the slide, click one. Press and hold Shift, then click each shape desired. When the selection is complete, release Shift. Each shape selected would have its own 8 handles.
Resizing Shapes
Resizing an object consists of changing its size. Before resizing an object, select it first. To resize various objects at the same time, first select them. Before resizing an object, position the mouse on one of its handles. To resize many selected objects at the same time, position the mouse on the handle of one them. The mouse pointer would change into one of the following cursors which can produce one of the following results:
Pointer Role
Shrinks or heightens the control
182 Resizes the control in North-East <-> South-West direction
Narrows or widens the control
Resizes the control in North-West <-> South-East direction Resizing Shapes
1. With slide 1 still active, in the central view, click anywhere on Helene Mukoko or your name to display the borders of its text box 2. Position the mouse on the bottom center handle
3. Drag up to resize it to completely reduce the empty area 4. In the same way, shrink it using the right middle handle 5. Save the presentation.
Moving Shapes
Moving an object consists of changing its "physical" location on the screen or with regards to other objects. There are mainly two aspects involve with
183 moving an object. Objects on the screen (this includes any application on the computer, not just Microsoft PowerPoint) use a three dimensional axis to position themselves. The Windows coordinate system deals with how an object relates to the other objects on its left, those on its right, those above it and those under it. Before moving an object, first click it to select it. Before moving a group of objects, first select them. To actually move an object or a group of objects, position the mouse on it. The mouse pointer would change into a cross cursor . You can then click and drag in the direction of your choice. The object or the group of objects would be moved. Once you get to the desired location, release the mouse and press Esc or click somewhere else.
The objects on the screen are also positioned using a third dimensional axis. This is why you are able to have one window on top while the others are in the back. This axis uses the same origin as the origin axes. Based on this, if you have juxtaposed objects, that is, objects on top of each other, on a slide, you can specify what object should be positioned on top of which one. As obvious as it appears, only one object can be on top but if two objects are not juxtaposed, this detail is not important. To arrange the order of juxtaposed objects, right-click one of them, position the mouse on Order and you would receive four options. Imagine you have three objects positioned A on top of B and B on top of C: If you click Bring To Front: If the object you clicked is already the most top, nothing would change. If the object you clicked was under another, the object clicked would become positioned to the top of the others. If you click Send To Back: If the object you clicked was already the most back, nothing would change. If the object you right-clicked was on top of another or was on top of a group of others, the object you right-clicked would be sent to the very back of the other(s). If you click Bring Forward: If the object you right-clicked was the most back, nothing would change. If the object you right-clicked was on top of another object, the object you right-clicked would be sent behind the other object. If the object you right-clicked was on top of a group of objects, the object you right-clicked would be sent behind the object just under it. Behind the first two object, the order would not be changed.
If you click Send Forward: If the object you right-clicked was the most back, nothing would change. If the object you right-clicked was on top of another object, the object you right-clicked would be sent behind the other object. If the object you right-clicked was on top of a group of objects, the
184 object you right-clicked would be sent behind the object just under it. Behind the first two object, the order would not be changed. Moving Shapes
1. With the text box of the name still selected, click one of its borders and not the handles. Drag right and down to move it to the lower right section of the slide 2. Click somewhere else on the slide, Save the presentation.
5.12. Embedding voice
If you plan to use sound during your presentation, you can associate some sound effects with your animation. Microsoft PowerPoint installs various sound effects you can use for your presentation.
To associate a sound effect with an animation, in the Custom Animation property page, select the animation. In the Effects property page, select a sound effect in the lower combo box of the Entry Animation and Sound section. Adding Sound Effects
1. Display the first slide 2. Right-click the name in the lower section of the slide and click Custom Animation... 3. In the Check to Animate Slide Objects, make sure Text 9 is selected or click it and click the Effects property page if necessary. 4. In the Entry Animation And Sound third combo box, select Chime 5. On the main menu, click View -> Master -> Slide Master 6. Right any word in the title and click Custom Animation...
185 7. In the Check to Animate Slide Objects, make sure Title 12 is selected or click it and click the Effects property page if necessary 8. In the Entry Animation And Sound third combo box, select Laser 9. Click OK 10. Save and view the presentation. 5.13. Preparation of presentation for teaching
After creating a presentation, you can show it. The person or the group of people who views your presentation is referred to as your audience. There are two broad categories of presentations: Personally showing a presentation before an audience or not.
A presentation can be shown to an audience by one or more people. To do this, you would need a computer equipped to open the presentation file and display it. There are two types of scenarios you would face: A computer with Microsoft PowerPoint or a computer without Microsoft PowerPoint.
Using a Computer With Microsoft PowerPoint
If Microsoft PowerPoint is installed in the computer you intend to use for your presentation, you can save your presentation using a portable medium such as a floppy disc, a CD-ROM, a DVD, a flash drive, etc. To do this, on the main menu of Microsoft PowerPoint, you can click File -> Save As..., select the drive and click Save. If you want to burn a CD and include the presentation in it, the software would guide you on how to add files to a CD. Once you get to the computer, simply install the medium (floppy disc, CD, DVD, flash drive) into its drive. In Windows Explorer or My Computer, when you access the drive, you should see the icon of Microsoft PowerPoint with your presentation. You can simple double-click it. Using a Computer Without Microsoft PowerPoint
If the computer you intend to use does not have Microsoft PowerPoint installed, you have various options: You can use a product called Microsoft PowerPoint Viewer. To get this viewer, you can go to the Microsoft web site and do a search on PowerPoint Viewer. You would be led to a file you must download. When getting ready to go show your presentation, you should always have this viewer with you on a CD. It is too large to fit on a floppy disc but it perfectly fits in a CD or a flash drive. When using the PowerPoint viewer, the computer you would be using does not have to have Microsoft PowerPoint. Based on this, when preparing to go show your presentation, you should include the viewer in the CD you prepare for the presentation.
186 OpenOffice.org and Sun StarOffice can open almost any Microsoft PowerPoint presentation. Therefore, if the computer you intend to use doesn't have Microsoft PowerPoint but it has OpenOffice.org or StarOffice, you should be able to show your presentation. Package For CD
When getting ready to go show your presentation, you can save it to a medium as we mentioned above. Microsoft PowerPoint provides a more professional approach to preparing your presentation. This feature allows you to select all the necessary options you would need for a presentation on a computer that is not yours. To access this feature, on the main menu of Microsoft PowerPoint, you can click File -> Package for CD...
By Default, the Package for CD feature is not installed with Microsoft PowerPoint. If you didn't add it with a Custom installation, if you click Package for CD on the main menu, you may receive a message box informing you that the feature is not installed:
If you still want to use it, you can click Yes. If you click Yes, you may be prompted for the disc that contains Microsoft PowerPoint.
After installing Package for CD, you can use it to prepare your presentation. A dialog box would come up asking you to specify a name for the CD:
187
The Package for CD dialog box would ask you to specify what presentation you want to package. If a presentation was opened in Microsoft PowerPoint, it would be selected. Instead of, or in addition to, the currently opened presentation, you can select another to prepare. To do this, you would click the Add Files button. In the Add Files dialog box, locate the desired presentation to select it and click Add. After selecting the presentations, they appear in a list:
You can keep all the presentations; otherwise, you can remove those you do not want to keep. To remove a presentation from the package, click it in the list and click Remove. Once you are ready, you can click Copy to CD. Microsoft PowerPoint would prepare the files and then copy them to a CD. If there is no drive or no blank CD available, you will receive an error.
188 When it has finished, it would let you know:
Presentation Viewing Presenting Slides As mentioned earlier, a presentation can be shown in front of an audience or to people you are not viewing. Microsoft PowerPoint offers a special, full screen display that allows you to show your presentation. To view a presentation: On the main menu, you can click View -> Slide Show On the main menu, you can click Slide Show -> View Show
On the lower-left section of the window, you can click the Slide Show button
The presentation starts from the slide that had focus when the show was launched; therefore, whenever you want to start the presentation from the first slide, make sure you first navigate to the beginning.
When viewing a presentation, many techniques are available to navigate to the next, the previous, or any other slide. To move to the next slide, simply click the mouse; you can also press Enter, the right arrow key, or Page Down. To get to the previous slide, you can press the left arrow or the Page Up keys .
To stop the presentation any time, press Esc or right-click on the slide and click End Show.
Viewing a Presentation 1. Start Microsoft PowerPoint and open the Web Site Design presentation 2. To view the presentation, on the main menu, click View -> Slide Show 3. To move to the next slide, click 4. To move to the next slide again, press Enter 5. To move to the next slide, press the right arrow key 6. Continue clicking until the presentation is over 7. To start the presentation from a particular slide, in the left frame, click anywhere on slide 4 to give it focus 8. On the lower left corner of the screen, click the Slide Show button
189 9. To move to the other slides, press Page Down four times 10. When you get to the slide titled "e Commerce", to end the presentation, press Esc 11. To start the presentation again, press F5 12. To move to the next slide, press N 13. To move to the next slide, right-click and click Next 14. To move to a specific slide, right-click, position your mouse on Go -> By Title -> 6 Web Site Delivery Notice that you jump to slide 6 15. To move to the next slide, press the Space Bar 16. To get a blank screen, press B 17. To bring back the presentation, press B 18. To get back to the first slide, press both mouse buttons for 2 seconds and release the mouse (you should hear a beep after two seconds when the presentation gets to slide 1) 19. To get to slide 8, type 8 then press Enter 20. To make on screen highlights during presentation, right-click on the screen, position the mouse on Pointer Options -> Pen 21. To make an annotation on the screen, draw a horizontal line under Product Support 22. To change the pen's color, right-click, position your mouse on Pointer Options -> Pen Colors -> Magenta 23. To make another annotation, draw a circle around Customer Service 24. To move to another slide, type 4 then press Enter 25. To make another annotation, draw a line under XML 26. To change the pen's color, right-click -> Pointer Options -> Pen Colors -> Yellow 27. Draw a circle around Scripts 28. To erase the annotations, press E 29. To get rid of the pen pointer, press Esc
To end the presentation, press Esc.
Notes
By now, you may have realized that a realistic presentation is a list of point that would be developed in front of an audience. At the same time, a slide crowded with text is hard to catch. If you are planning to give a presentation in front of an audience whose member would mostly be away from the screen, you can prepare text that would be distributed to complement, emphasize, or illustrate your points.
Microsoft PowerPoint allows you to create notes that would accompany your presentation. To do this, you can display a slide in a view other than Slides
190 Sorter. In the lower portion, you can type text as you want. The notes you type are primarily for you. This means that, if only you intend to view them, you can type just anything you want as notes. If you plan to distribute the notes, then you should make them more professional. Otherwise, there are no strict rules as to what should go in the notes.
Creating Notes
1. In the lower-left corner of the screen, click the Normal View button
2. In the left frame, click HTML Editors
3. In the frame in the lower right section, click Click To Add Notes
Type This section serves as a brief introduction to the most widely used HTML editors, including text-based, WYSIWYG, and professional studios. We will mention Microsoft FrontPage, HotDog, Macromedia Dreamweaver, Microsoft Visual Studio, and others. We will also give an overview of scripting languages such as JavaScript, VBScript, Perl, PHP, JScript .NET. We will also review browser add-ins such as Flash, etc. Although we can leave this to another section, we should also mention ActiveX, its advantages and disadvantages
4. In the lower-left corner of the screen, click the Outline View button 5. In the left frame, click Databases 6. In the lower frame of the right section, click Click To Add Notes
191 Type Describe the mechanics of using a database on the Internet as opposed to using it on a desktop computer. Remember to describe how a newsletter works. Compare a newsletter to a magazine subscription. Tell the joke Richard mentioned in the last meeting. Remember to give the web addresses of popular forums and newsgroups, those that are relevant to web design. In case of questions about NNTP and Outlook Express, refer those to the end of the presentation.
Package for CD Setup
If you have prepared a presentation using Package For CD, when you get to the computer that you would use for the presentation, you must make sure it is ready. Package for CD creates an executable file for you. If you open your CD in Windows Explorer or My Computer, a window should come up asking you whether you accept the license agreement of the PowerPoint Viewer. If you agree, you can click Accept. The presentation would start with the first file that was added to the package. If you have more than one presentation on the CD, you can press Esc to open the next. Once you are ready, you can show the presentation.
Web-Based Presentation
One of the types of presentations you can give without seeing your audience is through the Internet. To do this, you could have saved your presentation as Web
192 Page and install it somewhere in your web site or in a network drive. This type of presentation allows people to view the presentation any time without your presence or your knowing.
To allow people to view your presentation on the Internet, you must provide them with a link they can click. This would usually automatically start the presentation on their computer.
Email Presentation
We mentioned in the previous lesson that you could email a presentation to somebody. Your recipient would see a Microsoft PowerPoint icon somewhere in the email. To view the presentation, the person can double-click the icon. This would open the presentation. Check Your Progress 3
7. Which menu is used to add pictures ------8. Which shortcut key is used to add a new slide? ------9. To resize a picture which can be used? ------10. What is the shortcut key for slide show? ------5.14. Let us sum up A presentation is used while speaking to a group, with a presentation to support and organize your information. Some presentations, or slide shows, can be used without a speaker, like a collection of photographs. A presentation can be created using a template or can be created from scratch. A presentation can contain different type of objects like Picture, Movies, Sound, Chart, Spreadsheet and other OLE objects. Slides in Impress can be designed according to different needs, by using Color, Gradient and Bitmap Image styles. Custom Slide Show allows you to display important slides during a presentation. MS Office Impress allows you to start slide shows from the current slide as well as hide slides during a slide show. Slides in a presentation can be printed as a handout, so that several slides can be printed on a single page of paper. MS Office Impress enables Media Player where you can preview movie and sound files as well as insert these files into the current presentation slide. The Media Player embedded in MS Office Impress supports different audio and video file formats.
193 5.15. Unit End Exercises
1. State and explain how you will prepare PowerPoint presentation. 2. Differentiate between animation and transition. 3. Explain how you will incorporate changes or modifications in the power point slides for effective presentation. 4. Describe how you will insert audio or video effects in slides or a slide. 5. What are clip arts?
5.16. Answers to Check your Progress:
1. Microsoft office 2. 255 3. F12 4. Normal and Outline 5. CTRL + Home 6. CTRL + P 7. Clip art 8. CTRL + M 9. Pointers 10. F5 5.17. Suggested Readings: Arul Jothi, Balaji, D.L., Rajesh Verma (2009). Computers in Education. Centrum Press: New Delhi. Lalini Varanasi, Sudhakar, V., Mrunalini, T. (2008). Computer Education. Neelkamal Publications Pvt. Ltd: Hyderabad. Norton, P. (1998). Introduction to computers. New Delhi: Tata McGraw Hill Publishing Co Ltd. Petzold, C. (1998). Programming windows. USA: Microsoft Press. Rajasekar, S. (2008). Computer Education. Neelkamal Publications Pvt. Ltd: Hyderabad Simon, C. (1995). The way microsoft windows 95 works. USA: Microsoft Press.
UNIT VI - COMPUTER FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING
STRUCTURE
6.1. Introduction 6.2. Objectives 6.3. Computer Assisted Instruction 6.4. Computer Assisted CBL Packages 6.5. Computer Based Testing 6.6. Technology in Teaching / Learning
194 6.7. Software for Computation 6.8. Let Us Sum up 6.9. Unit End Exercises 6.10. Answers to Check your Progress 6.11. Suggested Readings
6.1. Introduction:
This unit provides an introduction to CAI (Computer Assisted Instruction) and its related concepts. It also reviews Computer assisted CBL packages, the stages in the development of CBL packages and the use of computers in evaluation as Computer Based Testing. The next section gives an overview of role of Educational Technology in teaching and learning and explains its importance in offering individualized instruction. The last part of this unit discusses the softwares available for educational computation. Education is the life long process of acquiring new knowledge and skill through formal exposure of information, ideas and experiences. These can be done in the schools by way of systematic planning of instruction. In turn it needs proper method or technology to adopt in teaching the concepts of the subjects in the school. Recently they call it as educational technology which implies a scientific, technological sociology and behavioural science approach to teaching and learning. Educational technology has grown as a result of technological devices in the use of practices with the explored psychological principles of teaching, learning and behavioural modification. There are many means by which effective instruction can be imparted in the classroom. At present more and more schools are having computers and the use of Computer Assisted Instruction (CAI) in schools is gaining momentum.
6.2 Objectives
After going through this unit you will be able to: . Define the term CAI . Distinguish CAI from the other related terminologies . Differentiate the various modes of CAI . Explain the steps in developing Computer Assisted CBL Packages . Describe the different types of Computer Based Testing . State the advantages of Computer Based Testing . Give details about kinds of Technology in Teaching / Learning . Discuss the various Softwares used for educational Computation . Understand the role of computers in teaching and learning
195
6.3 Computer Assisted Instruction 6.3.1. Evolution of CAI : Computer Assisted Instruction has evolved out of the contributions of many experts in the field of Educational technology, Educational psychology and Education. Computer-assisted instruction (CAI) and the technology for learning on computers began taking roots in the late 1950s. The principles behind technology- enhanced learning were strongly influenced from the work of the behaviorist, B. F. Skinner. He introduced Programmed Learning into the field of education. According to the behaviorist, learning occurs by the formation of habits based on the components- stimulus, response and reinforcement. Especially, complex learning requires a series of small steps and reinforcements to succeed at each step. Pressey in the early 1920s developed a mechanical testing device that administered multiple-choice items one at a time. In this, if the student gave the right answer, the next item appeared; otherwise, the student repeatedly answered the same question until the correct answer was selected. Pressey observed that learning occured, and that perhaps the testing machines could also be used for teaching. In 1954, Skinner advocated the use of teaching machines for individualized instruction which would be responsive to the preferred pace of the learner. The advantage of teaching machines over programmed textbooks was that they helped assure that the student would answer all the questions and read important parts of the lesson. Computer Assisted Instruction (CAI) started in the 1950s with the linear Programs. Computer Aided/Assisted Instruction (CAI) has existed for over four decades, but it was not widely used until the advent of the personal computer. CAI started making inroads in the workplace when network personal computers started becoming widespread in the late1980s.In early 90s CAI as an alternative to the traditional classroom training has been implemented as an efficient method for delivering effective instruction to their students. CAI could benefit the human resources by opening up a greater number of training topics required for job advancement and provide new skills in using technology in the learning processes. Initially, the use of computer-assisted instructional material (CAI) to enhance traditional teaching was a novel concept. However, increasing pressures at all levels of education perpetuated a need for
196 time-efficient, effective teaching modalities that maintained the quality of teaching. CAI was considered to be a viable solution to these problems. Many educators resisted the machines and their programs because they felt the machines might displace teachers or impart instruction in an undesirable, mechanistic fashion. The awareness of the key role of informatics led to the introduction of computers in the education system from kindergarten to university. With the declining prices of computers along with growing capabilities and friendly user-interface, the computers were easily available in the educational institutions enabling the teachers and the students to harness the power of computers. A Pioneering effort was taken by the Stanford University, USA in the production of CAI materials even in 1960s. With the advent of personal computers, very recently India has also implemented the compulsory introduction of computers in colleges, high schools, and even at the primary level. 6.3.2. What is Computer-Assisted Instruction?
―Computer-assisted instruction‖ (CAI) refers to instruction or remediation presented on a computer. Computer-assisted instruction (CAI) is an interactive instructional method that uses a computer to present material, track learning, and direct the user to additional material which meets the student‘s needs. It can also be used to describe Internet based instruction through the use of web pages, web bulletin boards, newsgroups, video and real audio, graphics, and hands-on applications. Additionally, self-teaching programs on CD-ROM or the emerging DVD round out the group of available forms of CAI. CAI learning uses a combination of text, graphics, sound and video in the learning process.
6.3.3 Computer Assisted Instruction – Terminology You will frequently encounter terms such as Computer Based Learning (CBL), Computer Assisted Instruction (CAI), Computer Assisted Learning (CAL) and Computer Based Instruction (CBI). Exact definitions are difficult and most people use CAL, CBL, CAI and CBI interchangeably without considering about the extent of the role computer plays in the teaching- learning process. The most commonly used terms in Computer Based Education are given below.
197 Use of computer in education is referred by many names such as • Computer Assisted Instruction (CAI) • Computer Aided Instruction (CAI) • Computer Assisted Learning (CAL) • Computer Based Education (CBE) • Computer Based Instruction (CBI) • Computer Enriched Instruction (CEI) • Computer Managed Instruction (CMI) New Terminology • Web Based Training • Web Based Learning • Web Based Instruction Computer-Based Education (CBE) and Computer-Based Instruction (CBI) are the broadest terms and can refer to virtually any kind of computer use in educational settings, including drill and practice, tutorials, simulations, instructional management, supplementary exercises, programming, database development, writing using word processors, and other applications. These terms may refer either to stand-alone computer learning activities or to computer activities which reinforce material introduced and taught by teachers. Computer-Assisted Instruction (CAI) is a narrower term and most often refers to drill-and-practice, tutorial, or simulation activities offered either by themselves or as supplements to traditional, teacher directed instruction. Computer-aided instruction is defined as the use of a computer and other associated technology with the intention of improving academic performance (Everett, 1995). Computer-Managed Instruction (CMI) can refer either to the use of computers by school staff to organize student data and make instructional decisions or to activities, in which the computer evaluates students' test performance, guides them to appropriate instructional resources, and keeps records of their progress.
Computer-Enriched Instruction (CEI) is defined as learning activities in which computers (1) generate data at the students' request to illustrate relationships in models of social or physical reality, (2) execute programs developed by the
198 students, or (3) provide general enrichment in relatively unstructured exercises designed to stimulate and motivate students.
Computer Assisted Learning (CAL) refers to using computers as a learning resource that can enhance and extend the traditional curriculum. The computer is viewed as a tool that can assist students in the totality of their tasks. The strict emphasis on instruction has been replaced by the more freely structured, yet more effective, teaching-learning practices. Computer Based Training (CBT) is the acquisition of skills necessary for solving a particular problem or executing a certain task. Training can be isolated from learning and any distinction is made on the basis of the context and the setting in which learning takes place. Thus, the basic principles of CAL and CBT are the same.
Check Your Progress:1 Compare your answer with those given at the end of the unit.
1. What is Computer-Assisted Instruction? ------2. Differentiate CBI and CMI. ------3. Write the new terminology for computer Based Education. ------
Meaning of Computer Assisted Instruction (CAI) Computer-Assisted Instruction is a program of instructional material presented by means of a computer or computer systems A self-learning technique, usually offline/online, involving interaction of the student with programmed instructional materials. Computer-assisted instruction (CAI) is an interactive instructional technique whereby a computer is used to present the instructional material and monitor the learning that takes place. CAI uses a combination of text, graphics, sound and video in enhancing the learning process. The computer has many purposes in the classroom, and it can be utilized to help a student in all areas of the curriculum. CAI refers to the use of the computer as a tool to facilitate and improve
199 instruction. CAI programs use tutorials, drill and practice, simulation, and problem solving approaches to present topics, and they test the student's understanding. 6.3.4. Principles of CAI Small Steps – Content is analysed and classified into small steps or one concept or one teaching point at a time in a single frame. Active Responding / Interaction – Highly interactive with the learner. Questions are asked after teaching each concept and interaction is maintained throughout the teaching learning process. Student Testing – Testing of student knowledge is possible. Self Pacing – the learner can study at his own speed. Immediate Confirmation of Results – the knowledge of correct answer is given through proper feed-back. Diagnosis of errors – errors committed by the learners are analysed to provide immediate explanation through additional illusrations and explanations. Remediation – Remedial loops are attached for different concepts for different types of learners. Use of multimedia
6.3.5. How Is CAI Evaluated before Implementation?
Teachers should review the computer program or the online activity or game to understand the context of the lessons and determine which one fits the needs of their students and how it may enhance instruction.
Can this program supplement the lesson, give basic skills practice, or be used as an educational reward for students? Is the material presented so that students will remain interested yet not lose valuable instruction time trying to figure out how to operate the program? Does the program waste time with too much animation? Is the program at the correct level for the class or the individual student? Does this program do what the teacher wants it to do (help students organize the writing, speed up the writing process, or allow students to hear what they wrote for editing purposes)?
200 Teachers should also review all Web sites and links immediately before directing students to them. Web addresses and links frequently change and become inactive. Students might become frustrated when links are no longer available. Writing programs are beneficial to writing instruction because they allow students to learn in a variety of ways and can speed up the writing process. With proper training, students can learn to focus on the message instead of the mechanics. 6.3.6. How can we implement the CAI? Typically CAI programs incorporate functions such as:
Assessing student previous knowledge and capabilities with a pre-test and pre requisite test. Based on their performance select the suitable programme for the learner. Presenting educational materials in a navigable form Providing repetitive drills to improve the student's command of knowledge Providing game-based drills to increase learning enjoyment Assessing student progress with a post-test Routing students through a series of courseware instructional programs. Recording student scores and progress for later inspection by a courseware instructor.
Steps in Instruction:
The function ‗Presenting educational materials in a navigable form‘ involves the following steps. Secure student attention Present the task stimulus Direct the student to the task stimulus Prompt the student to observe salient characteristics of the task stimulus Direct the student to respond Prompt the response Signal that it is time for the student to respond Student responds Reinforce correct response Correct errors by re-presenting the material
201 Check Your Progress:2
Notes: 1. Write your answer in the space given below.
2. Compare your answer with those given at the end of the unit.
4. Mention any five principles of CAI. ------
5. Why should we evaluate the CAI before implementation? ------
6. What is the need for pre-test and post-test? ------7. Give the meaning of reinforcement in CAI.------
6.3.7. Methodology The CAI most common in the past was linear and "frame-based". In this mode, the instructional material or program is presented to the learner frame by frame in a relatively fixed sequence except certain simple remedial loops. With the developments in computer technology, a number of flexible ways to present the instructional material by computer have been developed, which are not frame- based. Today, CAI makes use of a number of techniques for teaching. It can provide drill and practice session on grammar, run a tutorial to teach a concept in algebra, simulate a science experiment or may provide practice in problem-solving. The educational programs can make use of these techniques either individually or in group. No programming knowledge is needed to use CAI package, although the user need to know how to operate the computer and load the software. Computer Programmes are interactive and can illustrate a concept through attractive animation, sound, and demonstration. They allow students to progress at their own pace and work individually or solve their problems in a group. Computers check the knowledge through objective type of questions and provide immediate feedback to their responses, letting students know whether their answer
202 is correct. If the expected answer is not given by the student, the programme demonstrates or illustrates students how to correctly answer the question. Computers offer a different type of activity and a change of pace from teacher-directed instruction or group instruction. Computer-assisted instruction improves instruction for students with disabilities because students receive immediate feedback and do not continue to practice the wrong skills. Computers capture the students‘ attention because the programmes are interactive and engage the students‘ spirit of competitiveness to increase their scores. Also, computer- assisted instruction moves at the students‘ pace and usually does not move ahead until they have mastered the skill. Programmes provide differentiated lessons to challenge students who are at risk, average, or gifted. Computer programs for writing help students with developing ideas, organizing, outlining, and brainstorming. Templates provide a framework and reduce the physical effort spent on writing so that students can pay attention to organization and content. The pedagogic merits and the power and flexibility with which computers can be used have led many people to believe in a condition where all of education will be through computer.
6.3.8. Types (Modes) of Computer Assisted Instruction
Some of the important modes for CAI are presented below: 1. Demonstration Mode: A program may include a ‗Demonstration Mode‘ as one of its options. The computer has a number of advantages as a medium of demonstration. Visual presentation in the form of pictures, graphs or tables can help to make clear the relationship between form and meaning. The most important advantage of all for the computer as demonstrator is that the demonstration and illustration, whether simple or complex, can be placed under the control of the student, to be repeated, interrupted, slowed down, or even reversed at will. With the help of demonstration mode the teacher can make the content of the course lively and vivid to amuse the attention of the students. 2. Drill-and-practice / Exercise Mode:
203 Drill and practice provide opportunities or students to repeatedly practice the skills that have previously been presented and that further practice is necessary for mastery. The objective is to let students train certain skills repeatedly under the control of the computer in order to reach a certain standard. The usual application of a training approach in learning involves drill- and –practice, where the assumption is that repetition and near-repetition is needed to ‗internalize‘ a piece of behaviour and add it to the stock of language behaviour that can be used spontaneously. A computer ‗drill-and-practice‘ program takes over the human trainer‘s role, and can provide the kind of endlessly patient and flexible supervision which the class teacher often can not spare the time for. For example, Exercise Mode‘ can be applied for teaching phonetics and phonology, vocabulary, grammar for training language skills of reading, listening, writing, speaking translating; for administrating interactive exercises in mathematics and Science. There are various exercise types capable of being implemented by the computer: Dictation, comprehension exercise (aural/written), dialogue etc. Drill and Practice instructional programs simply assist the student in remembering and utilizing information that the teacher has already presented, reinforcing previous learning through repetition. It is most important to improving knowledge level.
3. Personalised Instruction / Tutorial dialogue Mode
One mode of the teaching process is tutorial dialogue, in which one learner faces one teacher. This consists of exposition, questioning, evaluating the answers, correcting and explaining errors, and learner‘s questions. One-to-one teaching is far too expensive to implement on a mass scale, and the computer has been seen as a means of providing a cheaper substitute. Personalized Instruction Mode is a very convenient way of delivering the teaching system. Tutorial activity includes both the presentation of information and its extension into different forms of work, including drill and practice, games and simulation. In this mode, computer is used to simulate the most visible part of a teacher's activity to transmit knowledge and check whether the knowledge has been Correctly transmitted.
Tutorials are designed to introduce unfamiliar subject matter. The format of a computer tutorial often emulates a dialogue between the computer and the student, i.e. information is presented, questions are asked of the student and on the basis of the response given, a decision is made to move on to new material or
204 review what has already been presented. These first two CAI types are most successful at improving the knowledge and comprehension. 4. Games Mode It is natural that computer-assisted learning should attempt to exploit and develop the Games Mode in practice materials to locus the learner‘s attention on a game-like task hut to introduce repetitive training activity incidentally: to replace ―you‘re wrong with ‗I win‖. Essentially there are two types of games. The competitive one which has points scoring and a win or lose outcome, and the collaborative in which there is a task to he achieved and in which all participants, including perhaps the computer work together to achieve it. Computer games, which are interesting and stimulating, fuse entertainment and instruction together. The initiative of the learner is brought into play. Game software often creates a contest to achieve the highest score and either beat others or beat the computer. Instructional Games present course content in a competitive and entertaining manner, in an effort to maintain a high level of student interest. Though most frequently used to reinforce factual knowledge at the lower levels of the taxonomy, it is quite possible to create instructional games that demand application skills from all levels. It also develops keyboard handling skill and head and hand coordination.
5. Test Mode Testing is an integral part of education. The computer can be of great use to the tester as a means of testing approach processing the four features: objectivity, quantity, economy and efficiency. For the individual student the computer is an ideal medium for self-testing, providing diagnostic information that may rough- and-ready or fairly sophisticated. The computer can he applied in testing individual skills ‗Test mode‘ includes sectors of test paper composition, test administration, test scoring, test analysis and item bank maintenance. 6. Inquiry Mode inquiry mode of CAl stores in advance all sorts of teaching information into the compiler to let learner study on their own by means of searching the information they need as a learning tool. Types of references are encyclopaedias, specialized references, dictionaries, thesaurus, chronology, atlas and quotations. 7. Problem-Solution Mode
205 Problem solution Mode fosters in learners the ability of solving problem by them with the aid of the computer providing steps of prompting problem-solution. Problem solving approach helps children develop specific problem solving skills and strategies. Problem-solving software requires the student to use high level cognitive abilities in the process of considering the problem at hand, analyzing the problem situation and its various solutions, predicting respective outcomes, determining which specific plan to attempt, and enacting the appropriate actions. Well-designed software that fits this classification may require abilities from all levels of the taxonomy.
However, perhaps the best way to have a student use abilities of synthesis is to have him/her create a novel hypertext. In this case, the student would be forced to identify relationships and evaluate all aspects of the chosen set of course materials. Evaluative ability can be tested (and improved) throughout programs representing this types of CAI by prompting the student at significant times during the session and providing appropriate feedback or explanation.
8. Discovery Mode
Discovery Mode helps learners foster the ability of recognizing and searching thinking. It creates a study environment and provides tools for learners to discover phenomena and then analyze and summarize regularity by themselves. Discovery approach provides a large database of information specific to a course or content area and challenges the learner to analyze, compare, infer and evaluate based on their explorations of the data. Discovery-environment; in addition to the illustrated types of CAI, it is also possible to provide a discovery-environment within which the student is given a high level of freedom in determining the specific information presented during each session, as well as the order of presentation.
8. Simulation: Simulation software can provide an approximation of reality that does not require the expense of real life or its risks. Simulations require the student to apply acquired knowledge to a novel situation. As a result, the student must analyze a presented scenario, make decisions based on the
206 information given and determine a course of action. The simulated environment must change based on the course of action taken, presenting a significant challenge to the programmer. Successful performance relies on skills up to Bloom‘s level of analysis. Computerised simulations are models or imitations of processes. Simulations present life-like situations that allow students to learn through experience and to take risks without suffering the consequences of poor choices. Some training uses of simulation are: animal dissections, titrations, forest visit, car driving, aircraft, and astronauts, etc. Simulation is not meant to replace actual hands-on experience or experimentation if those are available options. Educators add that simulation is a worst case and should be avoided as far as possible as it is based on psychology of learning. They are certainly a major tool to overcome the above difficulties because carefully prepared, simulated experiments are conducted at the child's initiatives, at various levels of abstraction, can Include a wide spectrum of cases and can explore many different examples in a short time and act upon it. The simulations should be used as extensions of other classroom activities. With this the students can explore ideas and skills learned in some other manner.
Check Your Progress: 3
8. Mention any five modes of CAI. ------
9. Simulation mode is helpful to ------
10. The skills developed through Games mode are ------
6.3.9. Typical CAI provides
clearly stated behavioral objectives. text or multimedia content. multiple-choice questions. problems.
207 illustrate a concept through attractive animation, sound, and demonstration and interaction. allow students to work individually or solve problem in a group. exercises for practice. Worksheets and tests. Immediate feedback after each response. notes on incorrect responses. summarizes students' performance. self paced activities. mastery of the skill. different lessons to slow learner, average, or gifted. 6.3.10. Advantages of CAI • one-to-one interaction • great motivator • freedom to experiment with different options • instantaneous response/immediate feedback to the answers elicited • Self pacing - allow students to proceed at their own pace • Helps teacher to devote more time to individual students • Privacy helps the shy and slow learners to learn • Individual attention • learn more and more rapidly • multimedia helps to understand difficult concepts through multi sensory approach • self directed learning – students can decide when, where, and what to learn according to their convenience. 6.3.11. Limitations of CAI • students may feel overwhelmed by the information and resources available • over use of multimedia may divert the attention from the content • learning becomes too mechanical • non availability of good CAI packages • needs infrastructure facilities with computers with internet facilities CAN CAI REPLACE THE TEACHER? Physical Components of CAI: Bunderson described that the CAI comprises of three different components as a hardware component, a software component and a courseware component. Hardware component includes the physical, electronic and electro-mechanical components such as the CPU, Monitor, Keyboard and mouse of the computer. Software component is the Programmes to operate the computer. It is of two types in a CAI environment. One is the Delivery System Software which interfaces with the learner with the computer. The second one is the Authoring System
208 software that interfaces the Lesson Writer with the computer for designing the instruction. Courseware component is a program designed especially to administer the instructions or present a lesson to the learner. It is the computer software designed for instructional purposes. Software designed specially for classroom use and usually accompanied by a number of ancillary materials. Human Components of CAI: The following Experts are needed for CAI package development. Lesson Writer: The teacher or subject expert is the Lesson Writer. Computer Engineer: the expert who computes the programme using the softwares. System Operator: The technical assistant who operates the system.
Role of Human Components in Courseware Implementation Courseware implementation means making the courseware operational at the user site which may be as school or any other training institution or may be a home. It should make sure that the courseware has been installed and is running on the hardware. It also involves the training of the user or instructing personnel for operating the same. The system operator plays an important role at this stage. The designer developer or computer Engineer has to initially sit with the users to make the software fully operational. The designer or course developer may add, delete or modify certain things on the request of user at the initial stage or the suggestions and feedback given by the user may be considered to incorporate in the next version of software. It is desirable that a CBI designer should follow up the courseware so as to see if her users continue to be satisfied, i.e. study the user satisfaction. In practice this rarely happens for various reasons. However, the users should be encouraged to provide the feedback to courseware producers for future modifications or revisions. Hence the CAI Progrms need the help of the human experts at different stages and they can not totally replace the teacher or the other experts.
209 Check Your Progress:4
11. Mention any four advantages of CAI. ------
12. The three type of experts essential for the preparation of CAI are ------
13. What are the physical components of CAI? ------
6.4 Computer Assisted-CBL Packages
A package is a software developed so as to serve a specific purpose(s) e.g. word processing package, spreadsheet package, database package, accounting package, inventory package, etc. A package in the earlier time is used to be developed as a single module in which all the functions provided by developing only a single program. This approach was difficult to develop: modify, upgrade in future, and document and even a single fault could make the entire package inoperative. These were required to be developed by a single individual and hence more time required for development. As a result of this, this problem vas improved by adopting the modular approach in which the entire task was divided into separable units for independent development and testing by programmers. Once all the modules are developed, they were integrated together so as to form a complete software or package. This approach overcomes majority of the shortcomings of the earlier approach to software development.
The term Unitized package refers to a package which is developed using the modular approach by dividing the subject knowledge into self contained independent learning units. These units are then taken up for development of CBI units. Each unit is provided with its development specifications. These specifications help the designer to easily integrate these units into a workable CBI
210 for a subject area. ―Integration" means combining of two or more parts into a single one. When this term integration' is used in reference of software package then it means that two or more applications are combined into a single package. There is a smooth flow between, various independent units in terms of frames, screens, and topics within the CBL package. The independent CBL units can be integrated in various ways. It could be either on the basis of subject relationship, ease of use, order of complexity, etc. This flexible integration facility makes the user feel as if the CBI lesson is some sort of a package tailored to their needs.
6.4.1 Development of CBL Package
A Computer Based Learning Package/Computer Instruction Package (CIP) is a form of Computer-Assisted Instruction (CAI) that relies on and emphasizes self-learning. The package was developed by using multimedia technology to increase learning effectiveness. The sequence of the steps involved in the development of instructional materials may change according to the nature of the problem. The general steps involved in the development of software is discussed. For preparing the CAI package the steps proposed by Gabriel (1996) are given below. I. Tracking the need for CAI II. Selection of unit area III. Mapping objectives IV. Interactivity in CAI learning V. Selection of suitable design VI. Instructional structure
VII. Sequencing and Presentation
VIII. Rough draft IX. Pilot try out X. Field try out XI. Reporting. All the above ten stages are further explained in a detailed manner under four stages - Analysis Phase, Design Phase, Programming Phase and Validation Phase. A - Analysis Phase I. Tracking the need for CAI: The following questions are to be asked before you start to develop a CBL package. - Check for better alternatives than CAI to teach the subject area.
211 - Check how far it will suit to the learners‘ level. - Find reasons to satisfy, why do we opt for CAI. II. Selection of unit area - Based on the demands from the learners as difficult and complex nature of the content. - Will it form the threshold for understanding other areas? - Can it be better taught by other alternatives? What best can be done with CAI which other alternatives cannot provide? The subject unit area for the preparation of the package can be selected by asking the above questions and analysing the answer to those questions. Content analysis To develop any self-learning programme, we need to analyse the content properly. The teacher should know each and every teaching point from the selected topic. The process of dividing the topic into sub-topics or sub-points, ideas, concepts and then to teaching points is called Content Analysis. With the help of Content analysis the teacher can identify and differentiate all the concepts, definitions, facts, rules, examples, formulae, diagrams, illustrations and graphics related to the content. The analysis phase aimed to understand all related content and details that could be presented in the instruction and to re-order the contents for better learning. Concept drafting should be done by identifying and grouping similar topics together. In Content network analysis all topics must be ordered into a content network chart based on their priority. The arrangement of topics can be done either in sequential or in parallel order. Analysing the Learner‟s characteristics Next to the content analysis, analysis of the target group is extremely essential. If the target group is secondary level learner, his needs, interests, ability, vocabulary, learning style, conceptual level and comprehension level should be analysed for developing the educational software. Once the content and target group are analysed, a teacher call sequence the concepts so that they are logically arranged. We can not follow the content order given in a text book or in any other source. A new view of the content material is essential.
III. Mapping objectives - Do the objectives framed suit to the level and interest of the learner?
212 - How to select a suitable design of CAI to achieve the objectives? - Spell the objectives relating to the selected content. - Are the objectives Broad or Specific in nature? The instructional objectives can be determined keeping in mind the earlier learnt capabilities of the learner group both in terms of their previous knowledge and other competencies. Preparing statements of objectives describes the capability to be developed. Objectives should be written in observable and measurable terms. A well written objective immediately suggests relevant post-test items. Self-learning material also demands a pre- test to decide whether there is a need on the part of a learner to go through the material or a sub-unit or whether he can skip it. A pre requisite test is also prepared to check the necessary abilities and skills to learn the material. Thus objectives Specification leads to the preparation of pre/ post test/ criterion test and a pre requisite test. IV. Interactivity in CAI learning
- Decide the level of interaction provided. - Frequency of interaction in the course of learning. - Supportive modes of interaction. During this stage the level of interaction provided, Frequency of interaction in the course of learning, the modes of interaction must be decided based on the learner characteristics. The interactivity analysis stage aimed to understand all related content and details that could be presented in the instruction and to re-order the contents for enhancing the level of interaction for better learning. B-Design Phase The analysis phase is then followed by a creative phase in which the instruction is designed. Based on the expected learning operations and based on the nature and level of learners. V. Selection of suitable design The designing process was very elaborate. Lessons were assigned to the lesson writer who will outline the content, suggest teaching strategies, and provide practice exercises and glossary definitions for new terms for the lesson. This preliminary outline will be reviewed thoroughly by one other content expert, then was reviewed and approved by all content experts before it is given to the CAI designer. VI. Development of modular. structure Since CBL is a self-instructional approach, individual differences should be taken into consideration. Large-scale learning processes are more easily handled in a segmented or modular format. Modules are one full set of lesson packages with explanation, illustration, interaction and evaluation. In this modular approach one
213 learner can select the specific activity that are suitable for him. A particular learner will concentrate only on a particular sub-topic which he wants to master. In developing a modular structure, the course designer should identify the title of each module objectives and the combination of presentation methods most suitable. Thus, the whole package would be a set of various interrelated modules. Development of flowchart The flowchart is an important piece of documentation needed when developing courseware. Once all the information that is required to be included in the course has been identified, the relationships between events, concepts and activities can be constructed. The flow- chart becomes the link between this information and the screen-presentation. The flowchart shows the quickest route through the course. It shows the frame numbers and the number of remedial loops. It helps prevent the course getting muddled and clearly shows the branching. The flowchart can be used by the subject experts to alter or edit the course. Designing frames: The different types of frames such as Introductory frame, Teaching frame, Practice frame, Review frame and Testing frames are designed as per the pre plan and the other aspects such as Screen layouts, Text, Graphics, Timing, Animation, Sound and User control are designed according to the learners needs. C-Programming Phase Once the screen layout is ready, the next stage is to programme the CAI package. Some time the lesson writer may not possess the skill in programming the text. A computer expert can be used for the purpose of programming. The CAI designer writes a display-by-display script of the lesson from the approved content outline. This script is reviewed by the CAI designer. After revisions are made to this script, it is sent to all content experts for their approval. If approved, the script is revised and sent out for approval again. Similar review and revision cycles are followed for the programmed version of the lesson. D-Validation Phase Once the CAL package is ready for usage, it is expected to be used by a wide range of learners. Hence it needs testing to check whether it is suitable to different types of learners. VIII. Rough draft
214 - To check whether the software developed is according to the pedagogical principles and norms proposed - Draft on ―Paper Pencil‖ format. - Try on one – to one for personal observation. - Improvement of content of presentation (technical). - Retry with one-to-two. - Second improvement. The programmed draft on ―Paper Pencil‖ format is given to one target learner. He must work with the material and he should be personally observed. The difficult areas perceived by him and his performance in the material will help modify the package. After this, it should be given to two members of the target group and retry out must be conducted. Based on their performance the material should be modified and improved for the second time. IX. Pilot try out
- Updating on the basis of analysis of observations. - Re-sequencing if necessary for effective transfer. - Sequencing for learners‘ control. - Third improvement. - Validation with set criteria. Pilot study is undertaken with 5-10 learners. The Programme is tested on a small group of learners (5- 10). This time the administration is through the computer. The process of learning is discussed with them. Detail comparative study is done with reference to the learners' entry behaviour, time taken for learning, their learning habits, attitudes and results of post-tests. The learning package is once again revised in the light of their performance and reviewing of the programme is done before its implementation. X. Field try out - On the set target learners. - Establishing the effectiveness of software. - Preparing User Manual. - Making Master Copy. - Final touches for release of software. - Reporting. For the field tryout nearly 50-100 learners will be selected and the computer based learning is performed as an experimental study. 'The data obtained from the learners is analysed by applying statistical measures. This is called validation testing. The learners are encouraged to provide their opinion and
215 comments regarding the programme through structured questionnaires. The effectiveness of the material is calculated using the gain ratio of each and every individual and everything is kept in a record. User manual must be prepared indicating the effectiveness of the programme and the opinion regarding the study material. All the statistical evidences should be produced in the manual. Master Copies of the material can be prepared after making final modifications and final fine touches for sharpening the material. After this the software is ready for release.
Check Your Progress: 5
14. Mention the four main stages in the development of the CAI package. ------
15. What are the aspects to be analysed in the Analysis Phase? ------
16. Write the different stages in the Field Try-out. ------6.5. Computer-Based Testing
Assessment is a process by which one attempts to measure the quality and quantity of learning and teaching using various assessment techniques like testing, assignments, observation, etc. The performance assessment through its feedback mechanism generates interaction among various components of the teaching learning process, thereby leading to improvement of the learner, the teacher, the teaching learning strategies and even the administration. In a way evaluation should be considered as the service component of the teaching learning process used to emphasise regular feedback to improve teaching and learning. When we use computers for testing the learners‘ knowledge it is known as Computer-based testing (CBT). Computer Based Assessment is commonly directly made via a computer, whereas Computer Assisted Assessment is used to manage or support the assessment process.
216 6.5.1 Meaning of Computer-Based Testing A computer-based Testing is one in which the questions or tasks are delivered to a student via a computer terminal. In most cases, the student's answers are typed in at the computer keyboard and recorded and marked electronically.
There are a variety of products to support computer-based testing. Via an easy-to-use interface an instructor creates questions, groups questions into topics and tests and assigns them to students. Students use a web browser to take the test and then it is automatically graded. The form of the questions is limited, they can be, for example, true/false, multiple choices, or fill in the blank. Essay questions are possible, but can't be automatically graded. Questions can include audio and video components. For example, the test for a Science class could play a video clip and then use multiple choice questions to gauge a student's comprehension.
Computer-based tests can be delivered in the following ways:
Using stand alone machines Using a local area network of machines Computer-based testing (CBT) creates new possibilities for more effective testing when compared to tests that are delivered on paper in a classroom.
6.5.2 Purposes of CBT
The following are the main types of tests for which CBT is used: Diagnostic- tests which are taken to determine a student's prior knowledge of a subject.
Self-assessment - tests which are taken by students to check their understanding of particular concepts and terminology.
Formative - assessments which assist learning by giving feedback which indicates how the student is progressing in terms of knowledge, skills and understanding of a subject. In CBT, this often takes the form of objective questions with feedback given to the student either during or immediately after the assessment. Formative assessment may be monitored by the tutor, used purely for self-assessment or used to contribute marks to a module grade. Computer Assisted Assessment is typically formative, in that it helps students to discover whether they have learned what the educator intended and provide timely feedback on how best to teach a subject.
217 Increasingly, it can be summative, with limited feedback typically being given at the end of a course and serving to grade and categorise the student's work.
Summative - assessments are tests where the primary purpose is to give a quantitative grading and make a judgement about the student's achievement in a particular area. Summative assessment can include marked coursework as well as end of module examinations and can incorporate feedback to the student.
Norm Referenced versus Criteria Testing
Assessment techniques are usually either norm referenced or criterion referenced. Norm referenced assesses an individual's performance in relation to the norms established by a peer group. Criterion referenced occurs when a student is assessed on his or her ability to meet a required level of skill or competence. Computer Assisted Assessment is usually criterion referenced.
CBTs can be used for a wide variety of purposes, including the following:
Identifying whether an individual has met the specific objectives of a course.
Indicating an individual's level of achievement in a skill domain (e.g., listening, comprehension, drawing or subject knowledge).
Identifying specific areas in which a student needs additional educational experiences (e.g., knowledge and use of specific technical terms or recognition of specific idioms and vocabulary items).
Diagnosing an individual's skill-area strengths (e.g., the ability to recognize main ideas presented in a spoken mini-lecture) and weaknesses (e.g., inability to recall specific details from a short conversation about an academic topic).
Detecting whether candidates have met minimum course requirements as demonstrated in a mastery test.
6.5.3 Need for CBT
Computer-assisted testing is especially useful when you:
Need to include audio or video content as part of a question Need test results quickly
218 Need tests graded automatically Have many tests or quizzes to give Have some students off-campus Need to change questions often
Computer-based testing can require a large up-front investment. Every single question has to be entered. Questions must be grouped into tests. Each student must be entered. Tests must be scheduled and students assigned. Once a test has been defined, it can be easily used repeatedly, year after year.
All the information entered by the instructor is done via a web based interface or a custom application. Typically the data is stored remotely in a database where it is automatically backed up. To take a test, students go to a web site or follow a link to a web page. Then, they log in and take the test.
6.5.4 Types of CBT
Various terms are used to describe the use of a computer for assessment purposes. These include:
Computer-Assisted Assessment or Computer-Aided Assessment (CAA)Computer-Mediated Assessment (CMA) Computer-Based Assessment (CBA) e-assessment Online Assessment. Although these terms are commonly used interchangeably, they have distinct meanings. Computer Assisted/Mediated Assessment refers to any application of computers within the assessment process; the role of the computer may be extrinsic or intrinsic. It is, therefore, a synonym for e-assessment which also describes a wide range of computer-related activities. Within this definition the computer often plays no part in the actual assessment of responses but merely facilitates the capture and transfer of responses between candidate and human assessor.
Computer-Based Assessment refers to assessment which is built around the use of a computer; the use of a computer is always intrinsic to this type of assessment. This can relate to assessment of IT practical skills or more commonly the on screen presentation of knowledge tests. The defining factor is that the computer is
219 marking or assessing the responses provided from candidates. It can be performed on an equivalent electronic device such as a cell phone or PDA. CBA systems enable educators and trainers to author, schedule, deliver, and report on surveys, quizzes, tests and exams.[1] They may be a stand-alone system or a part of a virtual learning environment, possibly accessed via the World.
Online assessment refers to assessment activity which requires the use of the internet. In reality few high stakes assessment sessions are actually conducted online in real time but the transfer of data prior to and after the assessment session is conducted via the internet. There are many examples of practice and diagnostic tests being run real time over the internet. e-assessment
In its broadest sense, e-assessment is the use of information technology for any assessment-related activity. This definition embraces a wide range of student activity ranging from the use of a word processor to on-screen testing. Due to its obvious similarity to e-learning, the term e-assessment is becoming widely used as a generic term to describe the use of computers within the assessment process. Specific types of e-assessment include computerized adaptive testing and computerized classification testing. computerized adaptive testing
Unlike any test of evaluation Computerized-Adaptive Test is unique in the sense it is able to adjust to the level of learner ability. So there are individual components in the test material such as assessing the existing ability of the learner in terms of nature of test item. In computerized adaptive testing the computer tailors a test according to an examinee's level of achievement and ability. Computerized adaptive tests (CAT) are defined as the computer based tests which are created and adapted specifically for each examinee based on the examinee‘s ability estimate, and based on the way in which each examinee has responded to the previous item that has been administered to him. (Elena C. Papanastasiou, 2002)
In a Computerized Adaptive Test, each question is shown on a personal computer screen one at a time. On the test, questions are of high, medium, and low difficulty. In computerized adaptive testing the computer tailors a test according to an examinee's level of achievement and ability. For example, based upon the kind
220 of response made to a question on a particular topic, the computer will decide whether to stay on the same topic to ask another question that will help the student review or clarify background knowledge, or proceed to a higher level question and to a different topic (Welch & Frick, 1993). Consider the situation where a question has been posed but the student is unable to get started. In a traditional setting (for a summative test) this student would be forced to omit this question and try another. In an electronic setting, it is possible to include an option to attempt again by altering the difficulty level of the questions. Most computer based assessment packages can operate in a choice of modes, perhaps described as tutorial or exam mode. The exact number of modes available varies from package to package, each offering a different level of distracters, rotation of distracters, supplementary distracters, elevatory distracters and feedback for the student, to assist them in reaching the correct answer.
Components of Computerized Adaptive Test Package
Green, Bock, Humphries, Linn, and Reckase (1984), provide the following four components needed for developing computer adaptive tests: a) A pool of items to select from to develop a test, b) A criteria for selecting items, c) A method for scoring the test, d) A decision of when the test is finished or a stopping rule.
Often computer adaptive testing has been applied to a testing process that makes item selection decisions after each item is answered. That is, a CAT is a special test that uses each item as a Routing test. Measurement precision is consistently refined after each item is presented and answered. This method is more efficient than the traditional paper-pencil test and therefore CAT will provide results with higher accuracy.
A computerized classification test (CCT) refers to, as its name would suggest, a test that is administered by computer for the purpose of classifying examinees. The most common CCT is a mastery test where the test classifies examinees as "Pass" or "Fail," but the term also includes tests that
221 classify examinees into more than two categories. While the term may generally be considered to refer to all computer-administered tests for classification, it is usually used to refer to tests that are interactively administered or of variable-length, similar to computerized adaptive testing (CAT).
Check Your Progress: 6
Notes: 1. Write your answer in the space given below. 2. Compare your answer with those given at the end of the unit. 17. Define Computer Based Testing. ------18. Mention the different types of CBT. ------19. What are the Components of Computerized Adaptive Test Package? . ------20. Differentiate a computerized classification test and an adaptive test. ------
E-assessment can be used to assess cognitive and practical abilities. Cognitive abilities are assessed using e-testing software; practical abilities are assessed using e-portfolios or simulation software.
Components of e-testing system:
An e-testing system designed to focus on lower level associations comprises two components: (1) an assessment engine; and (2) an item bank. An assessment engine comprises the hardware and software required to create and deliver a test. Most e-testing engines run on standard hardware so the key characteristic is the software's functionality. There is a wide range of software packages. The software does not include the questions themselves; these are provided by an item bank. Once created, the engine uses the item bank to generate a test. Traditional paper-
222 and-pencil testing is similar, but the test is pulled from the bank at only one time, when it is sent to publishing.
The creation of the item bank is more costly and time consuming than the installation and configuration of the assessment engine. This is due to the fact that assessment engines can be bought "off the shelf" whereas an item bank must be developed for each specific application.
Advantages of e-assessment e-assessment is becoming widely used. It has many advantages over traditional (paper-based) assessment. The advantages include:
1. lower long-term costs 2. Instant feedback to students 3. Greater flexibility with respect to location and timing 4. Improved reliability (machine marking is much more reliable than human marking) 5. Improved impartiality (machine marking does not 'know' the students so does not favour nor make allowances for minor errors) 6. Greater storage efficiency - tens of thousands of answer scripts can be stored on a server compared to the physical space required for paper scripts 7. Enhanced question styles which incorporate interactivity and multimedia. There are also disadvantages. E-assessment systems are expensive to establish and not suitable for every type of assessment (such as extended response questions). The main expense is not technical; it is the cost of producing high quality assessment items - although this cost is identical when using paper-based assessment.
The best examples follow a Formative Assessment structure and are called "Online Formative Assessment". This involves making an initial formative assessment by sifting out the incorrect answers. The author/teacher will then explain what the pupil should have done with each question. It will then give the pupil at least one practice at each slight variation of sifted out questions. This is the formative learning stage. The next stage is to make a Summative Assessment by a new set of questions only covering the topics previously taught.
e - assessment standards
223 In order to create a mechanism for the sharing of high quality assessment items, global standards have emerged. The IMS Question and Test Interoperability specification (QTI) provides a common format for describing and distributing question items across different systems.
Hand-held student response systems
An area of e-assessment that has seen extensive growth in recent years is the use of hand held student response devices (often referred to as clickers or voting devices). These allow a teacher to carry out whole group assessments, polls and surveys quickly and easily. They use either radio or infra red to communicate with a central hub that is usually attached to a computer. In many school classrooms these devices may also be used in combination with an interactive whiteboard.
Online assessment is the process used to measure certain aspects of information for a set purpose where the assessment is delivered via a computer connected to a network. Most often the assessment is some type of educational test. Different types of online assessments contain elements of one or more of the following components, depending on the assessment's purpose: formative, diagnostic, or summative. Instant and detailed feedbacks, as well as flexibility of location and time, are just two of the many benefits associated with online assessments. There are many resources available that provide online assessments, some free of charge and others that charge fees or require a membership. Purpose of online assessments
Assessments are a vital part of determining student achievement. They are used to determine the knowledge gained by students and to determine if adjustments need to be made to either the teaching or learning process. Types of online assessments
Online assessment is used primarily to measure cognitive abilities, demonstrating what has been learned after a particular educational event has occurred, such as the end of an instructional unit or chapter. When assessing practical abilities or to demonstrate learning that has occurred over a longer period of time an online portfolio (or e-Portfolio) is often used. The first element that must be prepared when teaching an online course is assessment. Assessment is used to determine if learning is happening, to what extent and if changes need to be made.
Independent Work
224 Independent work is work that a student prepares to assist the instructor in determining their learning progress. Some examples are: exercises, papers, portfolios, and exams (multiple choices, true false, short answer, fill in the blank, open ended/essay or matching). To truly evaluate, an instructor must use multiple methods.
Most students will not complete assignments unless there is an assessment (i.e. motivation). It is the instructor‘s role to catalyze student motivation. Appropriate feedback is the key to assessment, whether or not the assessment is graded.
Group Work
Students are often asked to work in groups. With this brings on new assessment strategies. Students can be evaluated using a collaborative learning model in which the learning is driven by the students and/or a cooperative learning model where tasks are assigned and the instructor is involved in decisions.
Uses of online assessments
Pre-Testing - Prior to the teaching of a lesson or concept, a student can complete an online pre-test to determine their level of knowledge. This form of assessment helps determine a baseline so that when a summative assessment or post-test is given, quantitative evidence is provided showing that learning has occurred.
Formative Assessment - Formative assessment is used to provide feedback during the learning process. In online assessment situations, objective questions are posed, and feedback is provided to the student either during or immediately after the assessment.
Summative Assessment - Summative assessments provide a quantitative grade and are often given at the end of a unit or lesson to determine that the learning objectives have been met.
Practice Testing - With the ever-increasing use of high-stakes testing in the educational arena, online practice tests are used to give students an edge. Students can take these types of assessments multiple times to familiarize themselves with the content and format of the assessment.
225 Surveys - Online surveys may be used by educators to collect data and feedback on student attitudes, perceptions or other types of information that might help improve the instruction.
Evaluations - This type of survey allows facilitators to collect data and feedback on any type of situation where the course or experience needs justification or improvement.
Performance Testing - The user shows what they know and what they can do. This type of testing is used to show technological proficiency, reading comprehension, math skills, etc. This assessment is also used to identify gaps in student learning.
New technologies, such as the Web, digital video, sound, animations, and interactivity, are providing tools that can make assessment design and implementation more efficient, timely, and sophisticated.
Examples for Online Tests:
1. General Online Tests Online Aptitude Test Online Verbal Ability Test Online Logical Reasoning Test Online Verbal Reasoning Test Online Non Verbal Reasoning Test Online Data Interpretation Test Online General Knowledge Test
2. Technical Online Tests Online C Programming Test Online Java Programming Test Online Database Test
3. Engineering Online Tests Online Electronics Test Online Digital Electronics Test Online Electronic Devices Test Online Electrical Engineering Test Online Technical Drawing Test Online Engineering Mechanics Test Check Your Progress: 7
Notes: 1. Write your answer in the space given below. 2. Compare your answer with those given at the end of the unit. 21. What are the Components of e-testing system?------22. Write any three Advantages of e-assessment. ------23. What are the different Types of online assessments?
226 . ------24. Give any two Examples for Online Tests.------
6.5.5 Advantages of CBT
Owing to the influence of computer games, school technology programs, and the proliferation of home and office computers, there is an entire generation of students who are computer literate, possess great keyboarding skills, and are not threatened by technology. Undoubtedly, this group of test-takers would prefer the convenience of computer testing for a variety of reasons.
Immediate Feedback: One of the primary concerns of test takers is to get the results from testing as soon as possible, and to disseminate that information to the relevant institutions. Computer-assisted testing technology greatly increases the efficiency and speed of scoring exams, thereby decreasing the turnaround time required for the test taker to receive scores. The test taker can access test scores electronically and online with secure personal identification number codes.
Self-Pacing. CAT allows test takers to work at their own pace. Tests are individually paced so that an examinee does not have to wait for others to finish before going on to the next section. Self-paced administration also offers extra time for examinees who need it, potentially reducing one source of test anxiety. The speed of examinee responses could be used as additional information in assessing proficiency, if desired and warranted.
Improved Test Security. The computer contains the entire item pool, rather than merely those specific items that will make up the examinee's test. As a result, it is more difficult to artificially boost one's scores by merely learning a few items or even types of items. However, in order to achieve improved security, the item pool must be sufficiently large to ensure that test items do not reappear with a frequency sufficient to allow examinees to memorize them. Can reduce cheating through the randomisation of questions.
227 Challenging. Test takers are challenged by test items at an appropriate level; they are not discouraged or annoyed by items that are far above or below their ability level in taking CATs.
Multimedia Presentation. Tests can include text, graphics, photographs, and even full-motion video clips which allows for inclusion of questions not possible with paper assessments.
Computer testing is consistent with the many commercial standardized test review programs. The review software can be programmed to elevate the student to higher levels, or to hold the test taker for a longer time at middle or lower levels. Moreover, computer-assisted testing can accommodate test takers with disabilities, including hearing, visual, or motor impairment disorders. Braille keyboards are available for those with vision problems. Text can be enlarged or presented in a variety of ways that enhance readability. Various other types of keyboard or input devices may be used to extend access to students who cannot use conventional keyboards. Internet-based computer-assisted testing can lessen the costs of conducting large- scale testing programs, including facilities and personnel. In computer-based testing, revisions, updates, and modifications are automatic and instantaneous. Computerized standard testing also provides an advantage in scheduling, because tests can be administered in much less time than it takes to administer a paper test. This makes testing more accessible to those with full-time jobs or full class schedules. Since the schedule can be compressed, more test dates can be provided throughout the year. The immediate computation and availability of test scores makes it possible for test takers to plan for their next steps right after taking the exam. Computerised testing offers a number of options for timing and formatting. Therefore it has the potential to accommodate a wider range of item types. Significantly less time is needed to administer CBTs than fixed-item tests since fewer items are needed to achieve acceptable accuracy. CBTs can reduce testing time by more than 50% while maintaining the same level of reliability. Shorter testing times also reduce fatigue, a factor that can significantly affect an examinee's test results.
228 CBTs can provide accurate scores over a wide range of abilities while traditional tests are usually most accurate for average examinees.
For those who possess adequate keyboarding skills, computer testing provides a great advantage in the writing portions of standardized tests. Text-editing software is designed to accelerate the editing process. On a computer with a keyboard, it is much easier to correct grammar, sentence structure, spelling, or even to move whole blocks of text. Pedagogic advantages: Lecturers can monitor the progress of students through more frequent assessments. Students can monitor their own progress; self-assessment can be promoted. Detailed, specific feedback is available to students during and immediately after a test. A wide range of topics within a body of knowledge can be tested very quickly. Students acquire information technology (IT) skills. More frequent assessment of students is made possible by the automatic marking of scripts. Quality can be monitored by looking at the facility and discrimination of questions and tests. Formative assessments can be repeated as frequently as desired to aid student learning. Adaptive testing can be used to match the test to the student's ability. Students can be provided with clues and marked accordingly. Administrative advantages: Marking is not prone to human error. Computerised marking of tests saves staff time. Large groups can be assessed quickly. Diagnostic reports and analyses can be generated. Aids with the transmission and administration of marks which can be automatically entered into information management systems and student records databases. Neither answer sheets nor trained test administrators are needed.
229 6.5.6 Limitations of CBT Despite its advantages, CBT is not free from criticisms. Its limitations are listed below :
Construction of good objective tests requires skill and practice and so is initially time-consuming.
Because of the above, testing of higher order skills is difficult.
Implementation of a CBT system can be costly and time-consuming.
Hardware and software must be carefully monitored to avoid failure during examinations.
Assessors and invigilators need training in assessment design, IT skills and examinations management.
CBTs are not applicable for all subjects and skills and item types.
Hardware limitations may restrict the types of items that can be administered by computer. Items involving detailed art work and graphs or extensive reading passages, for example, may be hard to present.
CATs require careful item calibration. CATs are only manageable if a facility has enough computers for a large number of examinees and the examinees are at least partially computer-literate. This can be a big limitation.
The test administration procedures are different. This may cause problems for some examinees. With each examinee receiving a different set of questions, there can be perceived inequities.
Examinees are not usually permitted to go back and change answers. A clever examinee could intentionally miss initial questions. The CAT program would then assume low ability and select a series of easy questions. The examinee could then go back and change the answers, getting them all right. The result could be a 100% correct answers which would result in the examinee's estimated ability being the highest ability level.
230 Check Your Progress: 8
25. Mention any three Advantages of CBT. ------26. Write any three Administrative advantages of CBT------27. State any three Limitations of CBT ------
6.6 Technology in Teaching / Learning
Emerging technologies appear to offer the opportunity to gain access to knowledge and closer to real life. Innovation arises from ongoing circles of exchange, where information is not just accumulated or stored, but created. Human beings have the potential to create. This potential has enabled the people to solve problems and learn from their experiences. The ancient man learned to roll logs of wood, tried to communicate through verbal and non-verbal ways, evolved language and gradually then written and printed materials were developed. Later on, the technology of software based on psychology and sociology came into being. Now, we have mass learning, group learning, and individual learning in operation. In all these new ventures we have used many technologies and at present we are making use of the new technologies for enhancing teaching and learning process. 6.6.1 Technology in Education: Saettlef (1978) distinguishes between technology of education and technology in education. According to him, the former is a behavioural science conception whereas the latter is a machine (device) conception of educational technology. Radio, Television, OHP, Computer, Tape Recorder, etc., constitute technology in education, whereas the radio programmes, television programmes, computer programmes, OHP transparencies which are based on scientific knowledge of education constitute technology of education. Technology in Education refers to the use of technological hardware in education. It is mainly concerned with electrical and electronic gadgets which are used to facilitate the teaching- learning process.
231 Educational technology is a science of techniques and methods by which educational goals can be realised. Educational technology, as you have learned, has two aspects i.e., hardware and software. Hardware technology is based on the principle of engineering and software technology is based on the principles of social sciences. In our educational system, educational technology is utilised to educate the masses, store historical information, collect large amount of information, use as alternative to hazardous, costly, or non-feasible experiments by simulation. It also provides us the facility of distance education methodology and research by manipulating large amounts of data. 6.6.2 Growth of Educational Technology: In 1950s the term audio-visual education was used instead of Educational technology. There were various teaching aids like blackboard, charts, pictures, diagrams, radio, films were used in teaching. These were mainly media through which a teacher presented his messages. The materials developed were not systematically based on any psychological principles. Next the cybernetics principles which utilise the feedback mechanism to redirect the system have some implications for learning Educational Technology. After this the social sciences -psychology, sociology and anthropology have also contributed a lot to understanding of the teaching-learning process and in turn influenced educational technology. In addition to the contributions by the behaviouristic psychology, cognitive psychology has also thrown more light on how learning takes place. From the last two decades, the world has been flooded with software technology which has ample scope for education and training. Multimedia, E-mail, internet, intranet and website are used extensively today. There are telecommunication modes through which instructional materials can be given to students. There are many computer software packages developed for school children in many of the school subjects. These packages also have been used and proved to be effective in terms of time and level of students‘ achievement. 6.6.3 Technology in teaching learning Used to support both teaching and learning, technology infuses classrooms with digital learning tools, such as computers and hand held devices; expands course offerings, experiences, and learning materials; supports learning throughout the year; builds 21st century skills; increases student engagement and motivation; and accelerates learning. Technology also has the power to transform teaching by leading a new model of connected teaching. This model links teachers to their students and to professional content, resources, and systems to help them improve their own instruction and personalize learning.
Low technology methods of teaching use charts, pictures, diagrams, graphs, models, printed handouts and overhead transparencies. Overhead transparencies are primarily a labour saving device for classroom instruction. The teacher need not write the same information each time it is used. They allow easy presentation of colour and graphics. The common attributes of print and overhead
232 transparencies are affordability, reliability, flexibility, standardization of equipment, and ease of creation and use. However, they become unwieldy with large quantities of curriculum. They are static, and their distribution requires time and effort (Kearsley,1990) Check Your Progress: 9
28. Write the basic principles that operate in the development of Educational technology. ------29. Mention any three low technological aids. ------
6.6.4 Telecommunications and Networks
Television, videotape, and film have the advantage of ease of duplication and distribution to diverse audiences, but share a lack of interaction between the learner and the instructor. Disadvantages to these formats also include high production cost, lack of involvement of local instructors, and learner boredom due to the lack of interaction. Satellite training is a method of broadcasting curriculum to people in different locations simultaneously. Some systems have no feedback, some have audio feedback through a telephone line; which works well for question and answer periods. The feedback aspect solves some of the problems of one-way television broadcast. This system is suited for delivering consistent curriculum to widely scattered personnel. Teleconferencing consists of two-way communication. Audio- conferencing is a low cost, easily implemented system, and may be set up using existing telephone equipment. Videoconferencing is more technically challenging and requires more specialized equipment. Computer conferencing uses existing computer equipment with the addition of microphones, but has been severely limited by bandwidth considerations (Kearsley, 1990). (You will be learning about this technology elaborately in the IX unit.)
6.6.5 Computer Technology
CAI as an effective teaching method described that instruction supplemented by properly designed CAI is more effective than instruction without CAI. Computers can be used for text and test reading, games, tutorial, drill and practice, and simulation of laboratory experiments. Computer-assisted instruction
233 can play an important role in classrooms and laboratory work not as substitute for other activities but as an additional tool. Learners who could independently use a CAI-based tool gained a better working knowledge of essential concepts compared to learners listening to the same concepts presented by lecture. Bergman and Cheney (1996) found CAI increases learner knowledge when it involves the synergy of multiple senses. Learners were found to retain new knowledge better when the curriculum was presented with a combination of formats of text, sound, graphics and video. A comparative study conducted in 1996 on frog dissection in a traditional lab and by a CAI simulation found users reported higher satisfaction levels using the simulation. While some of the satisfaction was due to the ability to perform a dissection without requiring an actual animal, users also reported satisfaction with the branching ability of the instruction, the ability to make their own choice on navigating the dissection, and the ability to back up and correct mistakes. When utilizing the CAI as a tutor, involving the student in the learning process interactively is of utmost importance. Computers are not constrained to the linearity evidenced in textbooks or earlier instructional software. The use of hypertext and hyper linking allows the student to determine his/her own presentation sequence, within limits established by the instructor and/or programmer. The importance of maintaining the ‗human interaction‘ component in an on-line teaching learning environment and CAI cannot be over-emphasized. Interactions between instructors and students, as well as peer interactions between students, are requisite to facilitating critical thinking and promoting enriched learning. A major advantage of CAI is that, by necessity, it requires the student to be an active participant in the learning process. It is not only possible, but necessary for the student to interact with the computer or else nothing will happen. In order to progress from one screen of information to the next, in most cases, the student must respond using the computer‘s peripheral hardware (e.g. keyboard, mouse, joystick, or specially-designed devices). As a result, it is impossible for the student to assume the role of a mere observer. If an instructor, who uses structured CAI within a course, continues to hold traditional meeting sessions with students, the class rooms time can mature into an
234 enriched experience which benefits students more by allowing more interaction between faculty and peers than in the traditional classrooms. In traditional classrooms settings, students and faculty often do not interact; rather they sit, and write downwards describing a linear presentation of materials. In the computer-assisted teaching model, students could access CAI materials during their course preparatory time, and class time could be reserved for conceptual discussions, peer interactions and mentoring. Rather than spending time making linear presentations of lecture material, instructors could implement creative teaching strategies in the classrooms. Time liberated by replacing the most didactic lectures with computer-delivered lectures may benefit faculty, students and universities in several ways for example; it may allow faculty time to facilitate more learner-centred activities by promoting interaction between peers and between students and faculty. The digital classrooms and smart schools mainly aim at the following: To change the teaching/learning process by encouraging teachers to shift to child centred and more collaborative forms of learning in their classrooms; To prepare students who are creative, numerate, literate, well-trained and readily retainable at any point in their development; To ensure that all students understand the necessity of being able to live and work harmoniously with other people in their environment. Multimedia: Development in computers, communication, electronics and other Multimedia tools provide a wide range of sensory stimuli. The animations, simulations, software packages to teach various subjects, speech, music, multimedia networks, image enhancements, etc. create virtual realities and experience for the learners, which in turn, help in making learning a more direct, useful, and joyful experience and retain knowledge for a longer time.
Community resources: An electronic community allows students to engage in dialogue with each other, their teacher, experts and teachers in different parts of the country or the world. This can be done via two modes namely, asynchronous communication and synchronous communication. In asynchronous communication, exchanges take place in a delayed format. There are a number of activities that can be developed using asynchronous communication like presentations, free flow discussions on a topic, peer reviews, debates, message boards, bulletin boards, e-mails, listing servers, seminars, simulations, feed back on assignments, forums, learner led and threaded discussions. Where as, in a synchronous interactive environment, exchanges
235 take place in real time. The synchronous communication can also be used for online lectures and live demonstrations.
Individualized instruction: Technology can be used for individualized instruction in order to bridge the gaps between the teaching styles and the learning styles. The use of technology can be made to address the visual learners, auditory learners and kinesthetic learners. In an ordinary classroom with one teacher, it is difficult for the teacher to respond and provide feedback to each student. The programmed instruction models as suggested by Skinner can be used to provide learners learn at their own pace and give immediate feedback.
Audio-Visuals and Animations: Audiovisuals, video conferencing, short animations,virtual reality, etc can be used in teaching learning process. The abstract ideas can be focused upon and understood by means of visuals from different point of views. To illustrate the chapters / topics of the respective subjects can be taught by PowerPoint presentations. The Ministry of Human Resource Development, Information and Broadcasting and the Prasar Bharti have launched the Educational TV channel of India ‗Gyan Darshan‘ on 26th January 2000. The Central Institute of Educational Technology a constituent unit of NCERT also provides educational videos and audio programs for various stakeholders at school education level. All these attempts hope to have a positive impact on learning.
Digital devices: The digital devices like cameras, scanners can be used for instruction. For instance digital photographs and recordings can be used for electronic and virtual field trips, science experiments and demonstrations, etc. The portable scanners can read text from books, documents, research papers, newspapers and the information scanned can be pasted at ease for reference and documentation. The other digital devices like digital blackboards, electronic pens and touch screens etc. can also be used to enhance learning. Studies reveal that use of technology motivate students to learn and inspire teacher to explore how best a technology fits into his / her lesson.
CHECK YOUR PROGRESS: 10
30. CAI is more effective than Traditional instruction. Why? ------
236 ------
31. Mention any three, two-way telecommunication systems. ------32. Give three example for digital devices. ------
6.6.6 Internet and Intranet
Online learning opportunities and the use of open educational resources and other technologies can increase educational productivity by accelerating the rate of learning; reducing costs associated with instructional materials or program delivery; and better utilizing teacher time.
Virtual or online learning: Online learning opportunities that range from supplementing classroom instruction on an occasional basis to enrolling students in full-time programs are available. These opportunities include dual enrolment, credit recovery, and summer school programs, and can make courses such as Advanced Placement and remediation classes to students. Both core subjects and electives can be taken online, many supported by online learning materials. While some online schools or programmes are home grown, many others contract with private providers or other states to provide online learning opportunities.
Personal Digital Assistants (PDA): The PDA wireless devices are used as e- learning tools allowing the learners to access information any time, any where. It is observed that, there is a shift from the E-learning to M-learning (which includes learning via. mobile computation). The use of Bluetooth and infrared technologies has made it possible to transfer information in fractions of seconds.
Online materials: The online materials used in the educational setting are as listed below.
Database: Database is a good source of materials put up by the government, libraries and educational institutions. It contains extensive information on graphic interface, websites, electronic page layout, graphics, multimedia and animated designs. The websites like www.intschool-leipzig.com, www.discovery.com,
237 www.nationalgeographic.com, etc. provide information that serve educational purposes. Journals: There are many e-journals available on the web. Facilitators can include online journals as an integral component of their learning materials with knowledge that can be regularly updated and links that can remain active. Online journals like www.rsc.org, www. journals.cambridge.org, etc., are a good source of information for helping learners to complete projects, assignments and other research work.
Software libraries or Digital libraries: Software libraries contain programs that the learners may download to their own computers. However some websites require specific viewers and plug-ins before learners can view the website. There is a range of software available from many websites on education, which includes downloads for preschool, grade school and high school. The software library includes e-books, interactive CDs and teaching tools. The famous websites like www.chemsoc.org, www.library.thinkquest.org, www.iisc.ernet.in, etc. allow downloads of interactive CDs in various subjects.
Digital resources: Schools can use digital resources in a variety of ways to support teaching and learning. Multi User Virtual Environments (MUVES), Adaptive e- Learning, M-Learning, Electronic grade books, digital portfolios, Remote Access laboratories, learning games, and real-time feedback on teacher and student performance, are a few ways that technology can be utilized to power learning.
The knowledge mapping software designed to capture and organize brainstorming sessions into concepts and knowledge webs can also be used. A teacher can pose a problem before the students. The students thereby can create a diagram of ideas, web of ideas using hypertext and hypermedia for assembling and linking information to present their understanding of almost any topic. Simulated software can also be used to explore student‘s prior knowledge. The student makes choices while interacting with the software. Observing the choices and discussion made by the students enables the teacher to explore the student‘s prior knowledge and understanding about the same.
238 Interaction patterns: Some schools in India have started using the internet and intranet facilities to interact/ communicate with each other. The following patterns have been observed.
Teacher-parent interactions: William D. Muiihead (2000) observed that online conversation with parents involved greater discussion about pedagogical issues and often focused on student learning than they had been in traditional school settings. Voice mail and other messaging systems help in encouraging both parents and students to leave messages to their teachers. In addition the working parents and parents of hostellers have an opportunity to interact with the teachers at ease. The parents can also have the direct access to the classrooms instead of having their children‘s educational experiences filter and interpreted through the eyes of their children.
Teacher- teacher interactions: Teachers around the world can share their instructional activities and experiences with each other. The chat rooms like innovative teaching on www.yahoo.com and other websites like www.teachingideas.com, www.innovative teaching .com, etc. serve this purpose. Teacher-student interactions and student-student interaction: this helps in creating a learning environment. The students can decide a time to meet online and discuss the various aspects of the course on weekends and holidays.
Online testing: The teacher may prepare a question bank or an objective type test and place it on the network. The students answer and submit the test. The immediate feedback and scores can be obtained by the student. The evaluation can be done by means of assignments in the form of presentations, documents, and audio visuals, drill and practice, online quiz in various subjects, etc.
Full-time online schools: Students enrolled in these schools are not attending a regular school; instead they receive all of their instruction and earn all of their credits through the online school.
Blended learning: Blended learning opportunities incorporate both face-to-face and online learning opportunities. The degree to which online learning takes place, and the way it is integrated into the curriculum, can vary across schools. The strategy of blending online learning with school-based instruction is often utilized to accommodate students‘ diverse learning styles and to enable them to work
239 before or after school in ways that are not possible with full-time conventional classroom instruction. Online learning has the potential to improve educational productivity by accelerating the rate of learning, taking advantage of learning time outside of school hours, reducing the cost of instructional materials, and better utilizing teacher time. These strategies can be particularly useful in rural areas where blended or online learning can help teachers and students in remote areas overcome distance.
A school website: A school website is an innovative way of creating learning environment as well as involving the society in the same. The major components of the classroom website are the home page which is linked to the student page, parent page, teacher page, teaching philosophy page and professional page. Above mentioned are ways in which technology can be used in educational setting. The technology when used in teaching the curricula subjects like English, ScienceMathematics, Social studies helps the students see the unseen, to test theoretical concepts, comprehend abstract ideas and communicate effectively. IT has also made a remarkable contribution to the field of distance education making it is possible to learn anytime, anywhere. However, all the advances in technology and its impact on instructional modes have changed the role of a teacher from an instructor to a facilitator and creator of a learning environment.
6.6.7. Changing role of teachers:
New technology changes the way the teacher teaches and students do their work. It provides them new tools to increase the productivity in terms of learning outcomes. It makes learning easier, more effective and more enjoyable.
The starting point of a digital classroom is a teacher. Teachers must be trained to effectively use the technology for planning and student instruction. The role of the teacher has subtly shifted from being the sole 'provider' of knowledge to being a facilitator as the student explores for himself, the expansive world of knowledge. In today's world, life long learning has become a critical determinant of success. And hence, more than mastering various competencies, the key skill required is learning how to learn. The Learning Management System (LMS) harnesses the potential of technology to improve learning outcomes and to prepare students for
240 the accelerated changes in the world in which they live. Hence, the use of technology in teaching requires competencies on the part of the teacher and has indeed made the profession more challenging.
6.6.8. Factors that Affect the Effective Use of Technology
Some factors that affect the effective use of technology for teaching and learning are:
Leadership qualities and attitudinal change: It is especially important at the school level for the principal and teachers to have a vision of what is possible through the use of technology, and be able to work with others to achieve the vision. Without this vision, and the translation of the vision into action, lasting school improvement is almost impossible.
Time consuming: It is true that in the initial stages, integrating technology into teaching and learning is a slow, time consuming process that requires substantial levels of support and encouragement for educators. But as the teachers gain proficiency and become adept at technology usage, technology becomes a smart tool that allows them to work faster and better.
Infrastructure barriers: It is very difficult to focus on integrating technology to support learning, if you cannot overcome basic technological equipment and facilities issues. Schools that serve students in economically backward areas typically have greater barriers than schools in affluent communities in getting the basics in place.
India being a developing country, faces the problem of practicability to a great extent. There are various programmes and projects via which the government is making continuous efforts to make technology reach all parts of our country. Thus, the influence of technology in education cannot be underestimated. They have to be invented, planned, initiated and implemented in a way that will make educational practices more adequately geared to the changing objectives of instruction and make them more consistent with changing standards of instruction.
241 Check Your Progress: 11
33. Match the following: a. Database ------wireless devices b. Personal Digital Assistants ----- brainstorming c. software library ------accommodates students‘ diverse learning styles d. Blended learning ---- Remote Access laboratories e. knowledge mapping software ----- e-books, interactive CDs f. Digital resources ---- source of materials put up by the government 6.7. Software for Computation Software is a collection of instructions that enables a user to interact with the computer or have the computer perform specific tasks for them. Without any software the computer would be useless. For example, you wouldn't be able to interact with the computer without a software operating system. Almost all software purchased at a retail store and online is included in a box that usually contains all the disks (floppy diskette, CD, DVD, or Blu-ray) required to install the program onto the computer, manuals, warranty, and other important documentation. Computer instructions or data that can be stored electronically is software. The storage devices and display devices are hardware. The distinction between software and hardware is sometimes confusing because they are so integrally linked. Clearly, when you purchase a program, you are buying software. But to buy the software, you need to buy the disk (hardware) on which the software is recorded. Software is divided into three categories: 1. Systems Software 2. Applications software 3. Programming Software Let us discuss about these three computer softwares in detail. We are all surrounded by different types of computer applications. Some of them are application software and there are others that are system software. The term software is a generic term which is used to describe a group of computer programs, procedures and documentation, which perform some task on a computer system. Software is an ordered sequence of instructions given for changing the
242 state of the computer hardware in a certain predefined sequence. Computer systems are divided into three major parts; they are system software, application software and programming software. 6.7.1 Systems Software : System software is computer software designed to operate and control the computer hardware and to provide a platform for running application software. It includes the operating system and all the utilities that enable the computer to function. System software is computer software that is designed to operate the computer hardware and to give and maintain a platform for running application software. One of the most important and widely used system software is computer operating systems. It is with operating systems that parts of a computer are able to work together. This system software performs tasks such as transferring data between memory and disks or rendering the output onto the display device. Another important system software is computer BIOS and device firmware. This provides basic functionality to operate and control the hardware, which is connected to or built into the computer. System software helps in using the various computer systems, such as diagnostic tools, compilers, servers, utilities, language translator, data communication programs, data management programs, etc. We have already discussed in detail about this operating system software, its types and functions in the Unit –II. Hence let us deal with application software more elaborately than the system software. 6.7.2 Applications Software : Applications Software includes programs that do real work for users. For example, word processors, spreadsheets, and database management systems fall under the category of applications software. Application software is a computer software which is designed to help the user to perform single or multiple related tasks. In other words, application software is actually a subclass of computer software, which employs the capabilities of a computer directly and thoroughly to a task which the user wishes to perform. Hence, often application software is looked upon as software as well as its implementation. There are different types of application software, which include Enterprise Resource Planning Software, Accounting Software, Customer Relationship Management Software, Graphics Software, Media Players, etc. Application software applies the power of a particular computing platform or system software to a particular purpose. Some applications are available in versions for several different platforms; others have narrower requirements and are thus called, for example, a Geography application for Windows or an Android application for education or Linux gaming. Sometimes a new and popular application arises which only runs on one platform, increasing the desirability of that platform. This is called a killer application.
243 Application software can be contrasted with system software, which manages and integrates a computer's capabilities, yet does not typically apply them directly in the performance of tasks that will benefit the user. If we have to compare application software with system software and use an analogy for the same, we will have to use the example of an electric light bulb and an electric power generation plant. Electricity is generated by the power plant, but in itself it is of no real use, till it is harnessed in an application like an electric light bulb, which performs a service that is of benefit to the user. Similarly a bridge may support rail tracks which support trains, allowing the trains to transport passengers Application software can be contrasted with the system software, in that the system software takes care of integrating a computers‘ capability, yet does not typically directly apply them in performance tasks which benefits the user. It is important to note that both of them work together. It is the capability of both to interact with each other in different ways that are beneficial to the user. Some important Application softwares are given below:
Word Processing Software: This software enables users to create and edit documents. The most popular examples of this type of software are MS-Word, WordPad and Notepad among other text editors. Database Software: Database is a structured collection of data. A computer database relies on database software to organize data and enable database users to perform database operations. Database software allows users to store and retrieve data from databases. Examples are Oracle, MSAccess, etc. Spreadsheet Software: Excel, Lotus 1-2-3 and Apple Numbers are some examples of spreadsheet software. Spreadsheet software allows users to perform calculations using spreadsheets. They simulate paper worksheets by displaying multiple cells that make up a grid. Multimedia Software: They allow users to create and play audio and video files. They are capable of playing media files. Audio converters, audio players, burners, video encoders and decoders are some forms of multimedia software. Examples of this type of software include Real Player and Media Player. Presentation Software: The software that is used to display information in the form of a slide show is known as presentation software. This type of software includes three functions, namely, editing that allows insertion and formatting of text, methods to include graphics in the text and a functionality of executing slide shows. Microsoft PowerPoint is the best example of presentation software.
Enterprise Software: It deals with the needs of organization processes and data flow. Customer relationship management or the financial processes in an organization are carried out with the help of enterprise software. Information Worker Software: Individual projects within a department and individual needs of creation and management of information are handled by information worker software. Documentation tools, resource management tools and personal management systems fall under the category of this type of application software. Educational Software: It has the capabilities of running tests and tracking progress. It also has the capabilities of a collaborative software. It is often used in
244 teaching and self-learning. Dictionaries like Britannica and Encarta, mathematical software like Matlab and others like Google Earth and NASA World Wind are some of the well-known names in this category. Simulation Software: Used to simulate physical or abstract systems, simulation software finds applications in both, research and entertainment. Flight simulators and scientific simulators are examples of simulation software. Content Access Software: It is used to access content without editing. Common examples of content access software are web browsers and media players. Application Suites: An application suite is an important type of application software. It consists of a group of applications combined to perform related functions. OpenOffice.org and Microsoft Office are the best examples of this type of application software. These application suites, as you know, come as bundles of applications like word processors, spreadsheets, presentation software, etc. Applications in the suite can work together or operate on each other's files. Software that aid Engineering and Development of Products: These software are used in the design and development of hardware and software products. Integrated development environments (IDE) and computer language editing tools falls under this type of application software. Interestingly, software products are developed using other software, and software communicate with one another through software. Application programming interfaces which aid the communication of two or more software, are examples of this application software type.
6.7.3 Programming software used for educational computation
A program is written as a series of human understandable computer instructions that can be read by a compiler and linker, and translated into machine code so that a computer can understand and run it. From the moment you turn on your computer, it is running programs, carrying out instructions, testing your ram, resetting all attached devices and loading the operating system from hard disk or CD-Rom. Each and every operation that your computer performs has instructions that someone had to write in a programming language. These had to be created, compiled and tested- a long and complex task.
A vocabulary and set of grammatical rules for instructing a computer to perform specific tasks is called programming language.
245
6.7.4 Machine language
Machine language is the only language that a computer understands. Each statement in a machine language program is a sequence of bits. Each bit may be set to 0 or 1. Series of bits represent instructions that a computer can understand. For example, the number 455 is represented by the bit sequence 111000111. Machine language is a low-level programming language. It is easily understood by computers but difficult to read by people. This is why people use higher level programming languages. Programmes written in high-level languages are compiled and/or interpreted into machine language so computers can execute them. Each different type of CPU has its own unique machine language. 6.7.5 Assembly language
Lying between machine languages and high-level languages are languages called assembly languages. Machine languages consist of numbers only. Assembly languages are similar to machine languages, but they are much easier to program in because they allow a programmer to substitute names for numbers. Assembly language is a representation of machine language. In other words, each assembly language instruction translates to a machine language instruction. The advantage of assembly language is that its instructions are readable. For example, assembly language statements like MOV and ADD are more recognizable than sequences of 0s and 1s. Though assembly language statements are readable, the statements are still low-level. Another disadvantage of assembly language is that it is not portable. In other words, assembly language programs are specific to a particular hardware. Assembly language programs for a Mac will not work on a PC. But this can be an advantage for programmers who are targeting a specific platform and need full control over the hardware.
6.7.6 High-level language
The term programming language usually refers to high-level languages, such as BASIC, C, C++, COBOL, FORTRAN, Ada, and Pascal. Each language has a unique set of keywords (words that it understands) and a special syntax for organizing program instructions. High-level programming languages, while simple compared to human languages, are more complex than the languages the computer actually understands, called machine languages. High-level languages are what most programmers use. Languages such as C, C++ and Java are all high-level
246 languages. One advantage of high-level languages is that they are very readable. The statements in these languages are English-like. For example, you can gain a basic understanding of what a Java program is doing by simply reading the program source code. High-level languages use English words as statements. Loops in Java programs are indicated by the words for, while and do. To get the current system time (ms) in Java you would call System.currentTimeMillis(). Another advantage of high-level languages is that they are less tedious to use. A single statement in a high-level language can translate into many machine language statements. Finally, high-level languages are usually portable. A disadvantage of high-level languages is that they are usually less powerful and less efficient. Since statements are high-level, you cannot code at the bit level the way you can with assembly language. High-level languages also need to be compiled and/or interpreted into machine language before execution. That is a basic description of the three basic types of programming languages. 6.7.7 Fourth-Generation Languages
Lying above high-level languages are languages called fourth-generation languages (usually abbreviated 4GL). 4GLs are far removed from machine languages and represent the class of computer languages closest to human languages. Regardless of what language you use, you eventually need to convert your program into machine language so that the computer can understand it. 6.7.8 Difference between the three softwares: System software comprises device drivers, operating systems, servers and other such software components, which help the programmer abstract away from the memory and hardware features of the system. Programming software assists the programmer in writing programs by providing him/her with tools such as editors, compilers, linkers, debuggers and more. Application software, one of the most important types of software, is used to achieve certain specific tasks. Application software is used for commercial purpose. The application software is widely used in educational, business and medical fields. Computer games are the most popular forms of application software. Industrial automation, databases, business software and medical software prove to be of great help in the respective fields. Educational software is widely used in educational institutes across the globe.
Programming software includes tools in the form of programmes or applications that software developers use to create, debug, maintain, or otherwise support other programs and applications. The term usually refers to relatively simple programs such as compilers, debuggers, interpreters, linkers, and text editors, that can be combined together to accomplish a task, much as one might use multiple hand tools to fix a physical object. Programming tools are intended to assist a
247 programmer in writing computer programs, and they may be combined in an integrated development environment (IDE) to more easily manage all of these functions.
Programmers use the programming software to develop the programming languages necessary to run computer software. Compliers, interpreters, linkers and text editors are some of the basic tools used in programming software. The above mentioned softwares are available to the course writers and one can select them as per our computational needs.
Check Your Progress: 12 33. Define the term – ‗software‘. 34. Say true or false: a. Application software is used for commercial purpose. b. Compliers, interpreters, linkers and text editors are some of the basic tools used in the system software. c. Programming software includes tools such as device drivers, operating systems and servers. d. 4GLs represent the class of computer languages closest to machine languages. e. BASIC and COBOL are examples for high level languages. 35. Mention three examples for Application software. ------
6.8. Let us sum up: The use of computers in education started in the 1960s. With the advent of convenient microcomputers in the 1970s, computer use in schools has become widespread from primary education through the university level and even in some preschool programs. Instructional computers are basically used in one of two ways: either they provide a straightforward presentation of data or they fill a tutorial role in which the student is tested on comprehension. There are many advantages to using computers in educational instruction. The CAI provide one-to-one interaction with a student, as well as an instantaneous response to the answers elicited, and allow students to proceed at their own pace. Computers are particularly useful in subjects that require drill, freeing teacher time from some classroom tasks so that a teacher can devote more time to individual students. A computer program can be used diagnostically, and, once a student‘s problem has been identified, it can then focus on the problem area. Finally, because of the privacy and individual attention afforded by a computer, some students are relieved of the embarrassment of giving an incorrect answer publicly or of going more slowly through lessons than other classmates.
248 The computer assisted learning packages are available in the market. A teacher who is interested in the usage of CBL packages should possess the knowledge to select or evaluate the available packages. He can also develop the CBL packages according to the needs and abilities of his own students. In this unit we have analysed the different stages in the development of CAI packages and how to release them to the students. There are drawbacks to the implementation of computers in instruction, however. They are generally costly systems to purchase, maintain, and update. There are also fears, whether justified or not, that the use of computers in education decreases the amount of human interaction. One of the most difficult aspects of instructional computers is the availability and development of software, or computer programs. Courseware can be bought as a fully developed package from a software company, but the program provided this way may not suit the particular needs of the individual class or curriculum. A courseware template may be purchased, which provides a general format for tests and drill instruction, with the individual particulars to be inserted by the individual school system or teacher. The disadvantage to this system is that instruction tends to be boring and repetitive, with tests and questions following the same pattern for every course. Educational softwares such as system software, application software and programming software are available for computation. Software can be developed in a school, course, or teacher could provide the courseware exactly tailored to its own needs, but this is expensive, time- consuming, and may require more programming expertise. 6.9. Unit-End Exercises 1. Define CAI and mention the characteristics of CAI. 2. Describe the different modes of CAI. 3. Differentiate the various modes of CAI. 4. Explain the steps in developing Computer Assisted CBL Packages. 5. Describe the different types of Computer Based Testing. 6. State the advantages and disadvantages of Computer Based Testing. 7. What are the different kinds of Technology used in Teaching / Learning process? 8. Discuss the various Software used for educational Computation. 9. Bring out the role of computers in teaching and learning. 10. How will you validate an available CAI package? 11. Why should we evaluate the CBL packages available in the market? 12. How is CAI better than traditional system of instruction? 13. Discuss the method of administering a CAI package in your class. 14. Can Computers replace the human teachers? Why? 15. List the unique characteristics of online testing. 6.10. Answers to Check your Progress: Check Your Progress:1 1. CAI refers to drill-and-practice, tutorial, or simulation activities offered either by themselves or as supplements to traditional, teacher directed instruction.
249 2. CBI is any kind of computer use in educational settings, including drill and practice, tutorials or simulations. But CMI makes instructional decisions like the teacher, evaluates students' test performance, guides them to appropriate instructional resources, and keeps records of their progress. 3. Web Based Training, Web Based Learning and Web Based Instruction. Check your progress:2 4. Small Steps, Active Responding / Interaction, Student Testing, Self Pacing and Immediate Confirmation of Results. 5. To understand the context of the lessons and to determine which CAI programme fits the needs of the students and how it may enhance instruction. 6. Pre-test is for Assessing student capabilities and previous knowledge. Post-test is for Assessing student progress. 7. Reinforcement is the component that informs the student whether his response is correct or not.
Check your progress:3 8. 1. Demonstration Mode, 2. Drill-and-practice / Exercise Mode, 3. Personalised Instruction, 4. Games Mode, 5. Test Mode (or any other mode) 9. present life-like situations that allow students to learn through experience and to take risks without suffering the consequences of poor choices. Some training uses of simulation are: animal dissections, titrations and forest visit. 10. application skill and keyboard handling skill. Check your progress:4 11. one-to-one interaction; freedom to experiment with different options; Self pacing - allow students to proceed at their own pace; multimedia helps to understand difficult concepts through multi sensory approach and Individual attention. 12. The teacher or subject expert to write the Lesson. Computer Engineer compute the programme using the softwares. System Operator to operate the computer system. 13. Hardware component, Software component, Courseware component. Check Your Progress: 5
14. A - Analysis Phase, B-Design Phase, C-Programming Phase, D-Validation Phase 15. Analysing the need for CAI, Content analysis, analysis of Learner‘s characteristics and The instructional objectives. 16. Testing on the set target learners (50-100 selected learners), Establishing the effectiveness of software, Preparing User Manual, Making Master Copy, Final touches for release of software and Reporting. Check Your Progress: 6
17. A computer-based Testing is one in which the questions or tasks are delivered to a student via a computer terminal. In most cases, the student's answers are typed in at the computer keyboard and recorded and marked electronically.
18. Computer-Assisted Assessment or Computer-Aided Assessment (CAA), Computer-Mediated Assessment (CMA), Computer-Based Assessment (CBA), e- assessment and Online Assessment.
250 19. a) A pool of items to select from to develop a test, b) A criteria for selecting items, c) A method for scoring the test and d) A decision of when the test is finished or a stopping rule.
20. A test that is administered by computer for the purpose of classifying examinees into "Pass" or "Fail," is called Classification test. Computerized adaptive tests (CAT) are defined as the computer based tests which are created and adapted specifically for each examinee based on the examinee‘s ability estimate, and based on the way in which each examinee has responded to the previous item that has been administered to him. Check Your Progress: 7
21. (1) an assessment engine; and (2) an item bank.
22. Lower long-term costs; instant feedback to students and greater flexibility with respect to location and timing. (Any three points) 23. Independent Work and Group Work 24. 1. General Online Tests - Online Aptitude Test
2. Technical Online Tests - Online Java Programming Test Check Your Progress: 8
25. Improved Test Security, Multimedia Presentation, and promotion of Students‘ self-assessment. (Any three points) 26. Computerised marking of tests saves staff time; Large groups can be assessed quickly; Diagnostic reports and analyses can be generated. 27. CBTs are not applicable for all subjects and skills and item types. Construction of good objective tests requires skill and practice and so is initially time- consuming; Assessors and invigilators need training in assessment design, IT skills and examinations management. Check Your Progress: 9
28. psychological principles, cybernetics principles, behaviouristic psychology and Computer software technology. 29. charts, pictures, diagrams, graphs and transparencies. Check Your Progress: 10 30. CAI is more interactive, individualistic and self pacing than the traditional instruction. 31. Audio-conferencing and Videoconferencing 32. cameras, scanners, digital blackboards and electronic pens. Check Your Progress: 11 33. Match the following: a. Database ------source of materials put up by the government
251 b. Personal Digital Assistants ----- wireless devices c. software library ------e-books, interactive CDs d. Blended learning ---- accommodate students‘ diverse learning styles e. knowledge mapping software ----- brainstorming f. Digital resources ---- Remote Access laboratories Check Your Progress: 12
34. Software is a collection of instructions that enables a user to interact with the computer or have the computer perform specific tasks. 35. Say true or false: A. true. B. false. C. false. D. false. E. false. 36. Word Processing Software, Spreadsheet Software, Multimedia Software and Presentation Software.
6.11. Suggested Readings: Chauhan, S. S. (1985). Innovations in teaching learning process. New Delhi: Vikas development. NJ: Prentice Hall.
Koehler M (2005), What happens when teachers design Educational Technology Educational Computing Research, Vol 32(2) 131-152.
Kumar K.L.(1996), Educational Technology. New Delhi, New age international Pvt Ltd. Steketee C.(2005),
Mangal S.K., Uma Mangal, (2009), Essentials of Educational Technology. New Delhi: PHI Learning Private Limited. Publishing house Ltd. Sambath, K., Paneerselvam, A., & Santhanam, S. (2006). Introduction of educational technology. New Delhi: Sterling Publishers Private Limited. Sharma, R. A. (2008). Technological foundation of education. Meerut: R.Lall Books Depot. Stephen, M. A., & Stanely, R. (1985). Computer based instruction: Methods and Verma, R. (1990). Modern trends in technology. New Delhi: Anmol Pubblication. ------
UNIT VII ONLINE UTILITIES (INTERNET)
252 STRUCTURE
7.1. Introduction 7.2. Objectives 7.3 What is Internet? 7.4 Logging on to internet through internet service provider 7.5 Internet explorer 7.4.1. Internet Explorer 10 7.6 Search for information using key words 7.7 Saving information from WWW onto external devices 7.7.1 Saving Complete Web pages With Save As 7.7.2 Saving Complete Web pages With Firefox Add-Ons 7.7.3 Saving Complete Web pages As PDF 7.7.4 To save a webpage as a file 7.7.5 Simple 5 ways to save a webpage 7.8 e-mail: Creation of a mail account 7.8.1 To create gmail account 7.9 Sending mail with attachment 7.10 Reading mails 7.11 Replying 7.12 Search 7.13 Chatting 7.14 Searching in native language 7.15 Let Us Sum up 7.16 Unit End Exercises 7.17 Answers to Check your Progress 7.18 Suggested Readings 7.1 INTRODUCTION
Most traditional communications media including telephone, music, film, and television are reshaped or redefined by the Internet, giving birth to new services such as Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and Internet Protocol Television (IPTV). Newspaper, book and other print publishing are adapting to Web site technology, or are reshaped into blogging and web feeds. The Internet has enabled and accelerated new forms of human interactions through instant messaging, Internet forums, and social networking. Online shopping has boomed both for major retail outlets and small artisans and traders. Business-to- business and financial services on the Internet affect supply chains across entire industries.
The origins of the Internet reach back to research of the 1960s, commissioned by the United States government in collaboration with private commercial interests to build robust, fault-tolerant, and distributed computer
253 networks. The funding of a new U.S. backbone by the National Science Foundation in the 1980s, as well as private funding for other commercial backbones, led to worldwide participation in the development of new networking technologies, and the merger of many networks. The commercialization of what was by the 1990s an international network resulted in its popularization and incorporation into virtually every aspect of modern human life. As of 2011, more than 2.2 billion people – nearly a third of Earth's population — use the services of the Internet. Let us learn about the On Line Utilities in this Unit.
7.2 OBJECTIVES
After going through this unit you will be able to;
Understand the usage of internet Acquire knowledge about explorer Search using key words Create e-mail account Use the e-mail in proper way
7.3 What is Internet?
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite (often called TCP/IP, although not all applications use TCP) to serve billions of users worldwide. It is a network of networks that consists of millions of private, public, academic, business, and government networks, of local to global scope, that are linked by a broad array of electronic, wireless and optical networking technologies. The Internet carries an extensive range of information resources and services, such as the inter- linked hypertext documents of the World Wide Web (WWW) and the infrastructure to support email.
The Internet has no centralized governance in either technological implementation or policies for access and usage; each constituent network sets its own standards. Only the overreaching definitions of the two principal name spaces in the Internet, the Internet Protocol address space and the Domain Name System, are directed by a maintainer organization, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). The technical underpinning and
254 standardization of the core protocols (IPv4 and IPv6) is an activity of the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), a non-profit organization of loosely affiliated international participants that anyone may associate with by contributing technical expertise.
7.4. Logging on to internet through internet service provider Internet Service Provider, it refers to a company that provides Internet services, including personal and business access to the Internet. For a monthly fee, the service provider usually provides a software package, username, password and access phone number. Equipped with a modem, you can then log on to the Internet and browse the World Wide Web and USENET, and send and receive e-mail. For broadband access you typically receive the broadband modem hardware or pay a monthly fee for this equipment that is added to your ISP account billing. In addition to serving individuals, ISPs also serve large companies, providing a direct connection from the company's networks to the Internet. ISPs themselves are connected to one another through Network Access Points (NAPs). ISPs may also be called IAPs (Internet Access Providers).
An ISP is a company that provides access to the internet through modems, ISDN, T1s, etc. It is an organization that provides and sells physical internet access for global users. An ISP arranges access to the Internet for organizations and/or individuals. Access services provided by ISPs may include web hosting, e-mail, VoIP (voice over IP), and support for many other applications. You may have tried one of the traditionally big online services such as AOL, MSN, Prodigy, CompuServe, or WebTV to get access to the Internet. They apparently make every effort to assure that your first Internet experiences give you successful access to the WWW. A time may come when you will want to have your own website, with your own domain, and have it hosted with an Internet Service Provider (ISP). The big online services can connect you to the internet, so do ISPs. The big difference between the two is the kind of content! The online services provide proprietary (company owned) content; that is, large quantities of materials that include ads and promotional presentations. Most ISPs include very little (if any) original or promotional content; and they may do so only when it is ―free‖ or at a very low price. You are expected to provide your own subject matter; regardless of quality. You will probably discover that an ISP can provide you with services that are just as good, or better, at the same price or less than the big online services. Not all ISPs are created with the same characteristics. Some are very good, some are very bad, and some are both good and bad.
All your Internet activity is logged by your Internet Service Provider. They have a record of every page you visit, how long you spend there and what downloads you make. Your email activity is logged too and the addresses you
255 correspond with are recorded. All your incoming mail may be backed-up - copied for security reasons and stored elsewhere.
The amount of data generated by all this logging is terrible, and that is a very positive side to the story. There is so much data that your ISP can not afford to investigate it all. In fact very few bother to look at the data. Many erase it soon after it is created, because it is too expensive to store and they can not make money from it.
Also most ISPs are very aware of privacy, and they do not want to look in detail at what you are doing on the Internet. It is not polite.
But in theory, if they are asked by the police or security services to log all your Internet activity, they have the capability to do so. It does not happen very often, because Internet Service Providers do not like becoming arms of the State, and the amounts of data are so great.
In most parts of the world, the law (and police) is some distance behind the Internet revolution. Eventually they will catch up, and privacy will then become more difficult.
7.5 Internet Explorer
Windows Internet Explorer (formerly Microsoft Internet Explorer, commonly abbreviated IE or MSIE) is a series of graphical web browsers developed by Microsoft and included as part of the Microsoft Windows line of operating systems, starting in 1995. It was first released as part of the add-on package Plus! for Windows 95 that year. Later versions were available as free downloads, or in service packs, and included in the OEM service releases of Windows 95 and later versions of Windows.
Internet Explorer is one of the most widely used web browsers, attaining a peak of about 95% usage share during 2002 and 2003. Its usage share has since declined with the launch of Safari (2003), Firefox (2004), and Google Chrome (2008), each of which now have significant market share. Estimates for Internet Explorer's overall market share range from 16.7% to 32.31%, as of May 2012 (browser market share is notoriously difficult to calculate). Microsoft spent over US$100 million per year on Internet Explorer in the late 1990s, with over 1000 people working on it by 1999. Since its first release, Microsoft has added features and technologies such as basic table display (in version 1.5);XML Http Request (in version 5), which aids creation of dynamic web pages; and Internationalized Domain Names (in version 7), which allow Web sites to have native-language addresses with non- Latin characters. The browser has also received scrutiny throughout its
256 development for use of third-party technology (such as the source code of Spyglass Mosaic, used without royalty in early versions) and security and privacy vulnerabilities, and both the United States and the European Union have alleged that integration of Internet Explorer with Windows has been to the detriment of other browsers.
The latest stable release is Internet Explorer 9, which is available as a free update for Windows 7, Windows Vista SP2,Windows Server 2008, and Windows Server 2008 R2. Internet Explorer was to be omitted from Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 in Europe, but Microsoft ultimately included it, with a browser option screen allowing users to select any of several web browsers (including Internet Explorer).
Versions of Internet Explorer for other operating systems have also been produced, including a Xbox 360 version called Internet Explorer for Xbox and an embedded OEM version called Pocket Internet Explorer, later rebranded Internet Explorer Mobile, which is currently based on Internet Explorer 9 and made for Windows Phone, Windows CE, and previously, based on Internet Explorer 7 for Windows Mobile. It remains in development alongside the desktop versions. Internet Explorer for Mac and Internet Explorer for UNIX (Solaris and HP-UX) have been discontinued.
7.5.1 Internet Explorer 10
Microsoft announced Internet Explorer 10 in April 2011 at MIX 11 in Las Vegas, releasing the first Platform Preview at the same time. At the show, it was said that Internet Explorer 10 was about 3 weeks in development. This release further improves upon standards support, including CSS3 gradients. Internet Explorer 10 drops support for Windows Vista and will only run on Windows 7 and later. Internet Explorer 10 Release Preview was also released on the Windows 8 Release Preview platform.
257
7.6 Search for information using key words
Most information is found on the Internet by utilizing search engines. A search engine is a web service that uses web robots to query millions of pages on the Internet and creates an index of those web pages. Internet users can then use these services to find the information they are looking for. When searching for information on the Internet keep the below things in mind.
Surround searches in quotes
If you are searching for multiple common words such as computer and help, it is a good idea to place quotes around the full search to get better results. For example, "computer help". This trick can also be used in parts of your search query. For example, Microsoft "computer help" would search for anything containing 'Microsoft' and that also has "computer help" together. Finally, you can also do multiple words surrounded in quotes. For example, "Microsoft Windows" and "computer help" would refine your results even more.
Be aware of stop words
Many search engines will strip out common words they refer to as stop words for each search that is performed. For example, instead of searching for why does my computer not boot, the search engine would search for computer and boot. To help prevent these from being stripped surround the search with quotes.
If stop words are not important, do not enter them into your search.
258
Familiarize yourself with Booleans
Many search engines allow Booleans, which can prevent results you many not want from being displayed. Although common Booleans include "and", "or", and "not" most search engines have replaced these keywords with symbols. For example, if you were wanting to find computer help but did not want to return any results for Linux computer help you woulasd type computer help – linux the - linux indicates to exclude any results containing the word Linux.
Know what features are available
Many search engines allow for additional syntax to help limit your search strings. For example, Google enables users to search for links to a particular page by typing "link:" and many other keywords at the beginning of the search query. For example, to see who is linked to Computer Hope you'd type: link:http://www.computerhope.com.
Try alternative search engines
Finally, if you continue to not find what you are looking for, try a different search engine. A listing of search engines can be found on our network search engine section.
Check Your Progress 1 1. Expand WWW ------2. Who developed Internet Explorer? ------3. Which is the latest version of Internet Explorer? ------
7.7 Saving information from WWW onto external devices
259 7.7.1 Saving Complete Web pages With Save As Firefox From the menu, click on File ““ Save Page As”¦ (Or alternatively, press Ctrl+S).
The Save As dialog window appears. Select Web Page, complete in the Save as type drop down.
The webpage is saved as a set of HTML file and a folder that holds the other elements of the page.
260
Firefox‘s page saving command can be further improved using the Save Complete Firefox add-on. There is no functional difference between the default and the add-on aided saves. Chrome Chrome also has a Save as option. You can access it from the Page icon that‘s next to the address bar. You can also load the webpage and right click anywhere on the page to get to the context menu. Or do the quick keyboard thing with a press on Ctrl+S.
The same kind of Save As dialog window appears and lets you save the page as Web Page, complete in a location of your choice. Internet Explorer Internet Explorer also follows the conventional File ““ Save As routine. But just when you start to ho and hum, you will notice that Internet Explorer gives you another option in the Save as type dropdown. It reads ―― Web Archive, single file (*.mht).
261
This is exactly the kind of convenience you were looking for. Instead of a complete folder that tags along with each saved single HTML page, we now just have a single file. MHT or MHTML (MIME HTML) is a standard for saving a webpage as a single file. It was introduced by Microsoft as a way to tie together all webpage elements like images and HTML together into a single file. Not all browsers are pally with this format. Opera is the only other popular browser that has the MHT save. Firefox users though can call upon two add-ons to handle this file standard, Mozilla Archive Format & UnMHT. Both these add-ons can be installed and used to open and save complete web pages. The MHTML file format is one of the ways to save complete web pages as single files. But it is definitely not the best way because web pages get displayed differently across browsers. Also, MHTML is not so good when it comes to handling Java script code that‘s a usual part of webpage code. 7.7.2 Saving Complete Web pages With Firefox Add-Ons Scrapbook Plus
262 Scrapbook Plus claims to be an improvement over the better known and similarly named Scrapbook. Tina did a very early review of Scrapbook in her two part series on Offline Browsing Anywhere Anytime (Part One & Part Two). Scrapbook Plus is similar but aims to bring faster handling of all your saved pages. You can set options for what you want to retain from a webpage and the level of pages you want to link down to and save. You can capture all tabs and sort them in specified folders. Both Scrapbook and its Plus avatar come with the Combine feature. Read It Later
We have written about Read It Later before. Read It Later is a browser plug-in that comes with absolute ease of use. With a single click you can save the currently displayed webpage. For offline use, just download your saved pages to the local machine and read it when you are away from the net.
263 You can click through links (instead of opening the pages) and save them for later reading using the ―˜Click to Save‗ mode. All open tabs can be concurrently saved too. The best part of Read It Later is its inter-operability between many browsers and mobile devices. Read It Later has a lot of official applications and a few user created ones that makes it one of the more recommended tools to have in your browser. 7.7.3 Saving Complete Web pages As PDF Saving web pages as PDF files sounds like taking a few steps back. Especially after we have seen the ease add-ons bring to the task. But consider a tool like PDF Download. PDF Download can be installed as an add-on or a bookmarklet on most of the browsers (Google Chrome, Safari, Opera, Firefox, Flock and Internet Explorer).
With a single click, PDF Download‘s Web-to-PDF feature lets you to quickly and accurately convert any (unsecured) webpage into a high-quality PDF file. The PDF file can be printed, shared or just kept in a folder for later viewing. Or just merge them all into one combined bundle using the free PDF Hammer from the same developers. Save a webpage as a file.
This information applies to Windows Internet Explorer 7 and Windows Internet Explorer 8.
If you want to save the webpage you're viewing as a file on your computer, you can do so.
7.7.4 To save a webpage as a file
1. Open Internet Explorer by clicking the Start button , and then clicking Internet Explorer.
264 2. Go to the webpage you want to save.
3. Click the Page button, and then click Save As.
4. Navigate to the folder where you want to save the webpage. By default, webpages are saved in the Documents folder.
5. Type a new name in the File name box if you want to change the name.
6. In the Save as type box, do one of the following:
To save all the files associated with the page, including graphics, frames, and style sheets in their original format, select Webpage, complete.
To save all information as a single file, select Web Archive, single file (*.mht).
To save just the current HTML page, without graphics, sounds, or other files, select Webpage, HTML only.
To save just the text from the current webpage, select Text File.
7. Click Save.
7.7.5 Simple ways to save a webpage
Here are five different ways to copy a Web page's content for offline browsing, plus a reason why you may never need to bookmark another page. The Quick Draw McGraw approach: The fastest way to capture what's currently in the browser window is to press Alt + Print Screen in Windows to copy the currently active window, or Command+Shift+3 on a Mac to take a snapshot of the entire screen. (On a Mac, Command+Shift+4 lets you select the portion of the screen to capture.) Then open any image processor (such as Paint in Windows) and press Ctrl + V to paste the window or desktop capture into a new file. Save the file as a JPEG, PNG, BMP, or other image format.
The screen capture is fast, but you probably want to copy more of the page than can fit in one browser window, or you may want just some of the page's text or images, not the whole enchilada. Also, you won't be able to copy text from or otherwise interact with the duplicated content: it is one big image. The Content Capture approach: To copy all of the page's content, press Ctrl + S to open the Save As dialog box. Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, and Google Chrome let you save the page at the default "Web Page, complete" setting or "Web
265 Page, HTML only." Firefox adds two other file-save options: "Text files" and "All files."
"Web Page, complete" saves the HTML file and a folder containing other elements on the page, such as images and scripts. When you open the local file in your browser, links, images, and other elements on the page may or may not work, depending on network connection, availability of the host Web server, and other variables. The Firefox Help site explains your page-saving options in that browser. Microsoft's Help & How-to site provides the same information for IE 9. The Text Only approach: If you merely want the page's text without images and interactive elements, the fastest way is to press Ctrl + A to select the entire page, press Ctrl + C to copy it, open any word processor or text editor, and click Edit > Paste Special > Unformatted text. The resulting text file includes all the text on the page, some of which you probably don't want, such as the page's site navigation.
The text-pasting is more precise if you use the mouse to select only the text you want to copy rather than the entire page. Then press Ctrl+C, open your text editor/word processor, and press Ctrl+V to paste the semi-formatted text. In many word processors, links in the resulting text will be Ctrl-clickable. Alternatively, you can click Edit > Paste Special > Unformatted text to paste plainly. The Print as PDF approach: Google Chrome's built-in support for "printing" a page to a PDF file gives the browser an edge over Firefox and IE. Simply click the wrench in the top-right corner and choose Print > PDF > Save as PDF. In Windows the print-preview window lets you adjust the page layout from portrait to landscape, select only certain pages, and access other options by clicking Advanced.
266
Google Chrome's built-in print-to-PDF feature lets you tweak the options for saving a Web page as a PDF file. The Print dialog in the Macintosh versions of Chrome and Firefox (as well as every other Mac app) provides a PDF drop-down menu that lets you create a PDF of the page and fax or e-mail the PDF file, among other options. The Save As dialog lets you add a subject or keywords for the file. You can also require a password to open, copy, or print the PDF.
The print-to-PDF options in the Macintosh version of Chrome let you fax or e-mail the PDF, among other settings. Firefox will list PDF options in the Print dialog on Windows PCs if the machine has PDF software installed. If you don't have a copy of Adobe Acrobat or another PDF program, Acro Software's free Cute PDF Writer is an option. As the comments from that post indicate, there are dozens of other free-PDF options, but Cute PDF Writer has stood the test of time, and now a version is available for 64-bit Windows 7.
267 Internet Explorer 9 lets you right-click a page and choose either "Convert to Adobe PDF" or "Append to existing PDF." You can also choose the XPS option in IE's Print dialog to create an XML Paper Specification version of the page. The Microsoft Developer Network site offers an XPS overview. The Browser Plug-in approach: After you sign up for a free account with the Read It Later service, you can create a single list all the pages you have saved for offline viewing, regardless of which browser or PC you use. There are even versions of Read It Later for smart phones.
The Read It Later add-on for Firefox puts a button in the upper-right corner of the browser that provides quick access to your list of saved pages. You can filter, search, sort, or sync your list, and access your account options. Right-click anywhere on the page and choose Read This Page Later to add the current page to your offline-browsing list.
To add pages to your Read It Later list from Chrome and IE, drag the service's book marklets to the IE's Favorites toolbar and Chrome's bookmarks bar. If the bookmarks bar isn't visible in Chrome, click the wrench icon in the top-right corner, select Preferences, and check "Always show the bookmarks bar" under Basics.
The Google Web History alternative to bookmarks A cottage industry has developed to help people manage their browser bookmarks and favorites, but it has been many months since I bookmarked a page. When I need to retrace my steps on the Web, I visit my Google Web History page, which lists everything I have searched for and every site I have visited in reverse- chronological order. Many people prefer not to have their Web activities tracked so precisely. To prevent your history from being recorded, just sign out of your Google account. Better still, sign out and use an alternative to Google for your Web searches, such as the Ixquick metasearch engine.
7.8 e-mail: Creation of a mail account 7.8.1 To create gmail account
268 This manual describes in detail how to create a free Gmail account now that it is open for everyone. Step by step instructions are provided with related screenshots so that even beginners are able to create an email address for themselves using the free online webmail service from Google. Creating a free Gmail account should take you less than 5 minutes. What is Gmail? Everyone knows about Google and their free web based email called Gmail. The service was launched with a lot of marketing actions and was 100% free from the start but one could only create a Gmail account through special invites. If you knew someone who had a Gmail account, you could request them to send you this invitation. In those early days, Gmail accounts were so coveted that invitations were being sold through ebay.com auctions. The high demand for Gmail email address was also because the service offered 1GB (gigabyte) storage space for emails at a time when all the others were providing only a fraction of that. Anyway, after a few years, Google opened the doors of Gmail for everyone... so you did not need a special invitation to create an account. Step 1: Open the Gmail web site To create your Gmail account you only need a web browser and an internet connection. Go to http://gmail.google.com. You should now get to a page that collects essential information. Click on the Sign up for Gmail link circled in the screenshot and then proceed to the next step. Step 2: Enter all the required information in the "Create an Account" online form After you click on the signup link, you shall be shown the Create an Account form with several fields that need your inputs. Do not worry if the screen displayed to you and the screenshot image on the left are not exactly the same. You now need to start filling the form. Once you have entered your first and last names, it is time to choose a login name. This is important as your login name will decide the email address you will get, and in case of a Gmail account, would be your-chosen- [email protected]. So be sure to pick a login name, also called the username, with care. Step 3: How to choose a login name or username for your email address Choosing a login name is part art and part common sense. And because it determines what your email address will be, we suggest you spend a little time over it. Since, email addresses need to be unique which means no two people in the world can have the same address, there is no guarantee that your preferred login name would be available. The following are advice and suggestions on how to choose a login or username. First check if you can get a login name of your name, first name, last name, as first name last name or the more popular, first name.last name (the period sign can be used in a login name). You can also try out first name last name. Getting a Gmail email address of your name is indeed very fortunate because of the sheer number of subscribers to the service. Your login name needs to be catchy and at the same time describe you so people are able to recall it without much difficulty and associate it with you. The availability of a login or
269 user name can be verified by entering it first in the text field and hitting the check availability button. Step 4: Choosing a password for your email Securing your Gmail email account with a strong password is imperative. Think of the password as the key combination to your safe and you need to give the same amount of importance. A combination of uppercase and lowercase letters with some digits thrown in would be a strong enough password. on the right of the text fields in which you enter your password a sort of meter would indicate the strength of the password. You need to enter the password twice and you can leave the "Remember me on this computer" box unchecked. Step 5: Protecting your Gmail account with a security question You now need to either select a security question from the drop down list or enter one - and you need to provide the answer. This additional security helps in getting your email account password if you forget it. Step 6: Word verification and confirmation After providing your secondary email address - you can leave this blank, if you don't have one - and your location, you need to enter the characters that you see in the picture above the field in your form. Why is this required? So that Gmail knows the inputs are from a human being and not some automated program. Now that everything is set, you can go through the Terms of Service and click on the "I accept. Create my account." button which will create your very own free Gmail account! To access your Gmail account in future, you need to go to the web site http://gmail.google.com using a web browser and enter your username (login name) and password once again.
Solutions to some problems in getting your Gmail email address Here are solutions to two common problems faced by account creators: Login names of my choice are not available Gmail is a very popular service and it is likely that the login names you choose are no longer available. The only solution to this trouble is to keep trying to work with different permutations and combinations. Gmail Account Creation Failed Occasionally you might get a screen like one below that displays an "Account Creation Failed" message. The error message is a result of Gmail's spam filters working overtime. As mentioned on the help pages http://mail.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?answer=67512, Gmail refuses to create email addresses from a computer/connection if it exceeds a defined limit. Web users trying to create a lot of addresses at once, like a class or a group, may hit this limit. This is Gmail's way of protecting itself from users who they believe will be creating email addresses for spamming. The solution is to go through the
270 process of getting your Gmail address from another computer using a different I.S.P. to create yahoo mail account 1. Visit the Yahoo! Mail home page.
2. Click on the 'Sign Up' link that appears near the top right of the Yahoo home page. Then select "Create New Account".
3. Enter your name and other requested information in the fields provided. 4. Create a username that you will be comfortable using for a long time and will identify you to your email recipients. Remember that you can use numbers and letters and even a single dot.
5 Type the username you choose in the field provided. Check the availability of your username by clicking the box below that reads 'Check Availability of This ID.' You may have to think of an alternative username if your top choice is already taken by another Yahoo user. 6
271 Choose a password when you have successfully entered a unique username. Passwords must be at least 6 characters long and keep in mind that passwords are case-sensitive. You will be asked to type your password twice to ensure accuracy. 7 Select a question from the following drop-down menu as your security question. Yahoo will ask you this question if you should forget your password in the future, in order to verify that you are the correct user.
8 Type in your answer to the question in the field below.
9 Enter your birth date, zip code and any other requested information in the fields provided. Entering an alternate email address is not required but it is good to give Yahoo personnel a place where you can be reached if for any reason you do not have access to your Yahoo account. 10 Verify your registration by typing the characters you see shown in the last section of the registration page into the field provided.
272
11 Read the Terms of Service thoroughly and print a copy for your records.
12.
Select 'I Agree.' You have successfully set up your Yahoo email account.
7.9 Sending mail with attachment
Email attachments allow you to send files along with your email messages. An attachment can be any type of file, but the most common ones are text documents and images (photos etc).
Before you send an attachment, you need to know where it is located on your computer. Usually you will have saved the file using Windows Explorer or some other software. Whenever you save a file to use as an attachment, select "Save As..." and make a note of where you save it. If you can't find a file, use the Windows search function.
Once you know where the file is you can create the email message.
Create a new email message and enter the usual details (recipient address, subject, etc). Look for an icon in your toolbar which looks like a paper clip and click it. A "Browse" window will open. Locate and select the attachment file. The file will now be attached to the email. Send the email in the normal way. Important: before you send an attachment, you must be sure the person receiving it will be able to open it. Not all attachments will work on someone else's computer! In order to open your attachment the recipient must have the appropriate software. Some types of files are very common and most people can open them, but other types can be rare or require expensive software. These files are quite common and safe: o .txt - Plain text file o .jpg (or .jpeg) - Image file for photos etc o .gif - graphic file These files are often used for attachments, but they also cause a lot of problems: o .doc - MS Office document
273 o .xls - MS Excel Spreadsheet o .pub - MS Publisher document 7.10 Reading mails 1. Go to Gmail.
2
Click on "Sign up for Gmail" in the lower right corner of the screen.
3
Fill in all the forms in order to continue. Click on Yes.
4
The website will automatically redirect you into your email box. Click on Inbox to check your incoming emails.
5
The next time you want to check your emails, just go to http://www.gmail.comand fill in username, password and click ok.
Microsoft Outlook and some web email clients (like Yahoo! Mail and Hotmail) support a tri-pane design – the folders appear in the left sidebar, email messages are at the center and then there‘s a handy reading pane that you can add to the right side of your messages or at the bottom (see the screenshot above).
The reading pane is useful because you can quickly preview the contents of your email messages without having to actually open them thus saving you some time.
Gmail does not have a standard reading-pane but they have added something similar called ―Sneak Peek‖ that also lets you preview messages in your
274 mailbox but with a simple right-click. You can think of Sneak Peek in Gmail as a floating reading-pane that can be activated on-demand – see screenshot.
To enable this feature in your Gmail or Google Apps for Gmail account, hit the Labs icon, search for ―Message Sneak Peek‖ and select ―Enable.‖ You can view any email message with a right-click but this feature would not work inside the ―Spam‖ folder though it works for Trash.
If you do not plan to add this feature to your Gmail mailbox, you can still view emails without changing the current view – just hold the Shift key while clicking on any email message and it will open in new window.
Check Your Progress 2 4. What is the shortcut key to print a webpage? ------5. How much data you can have in your gmail account? ------6. What is the URL for gmail? ------7. To create a new mail id what option we should use? ------
7.11 Replying
To reply to an email you have received in Yahoo! Mail: 1. Click the email to open it. 2. Click the "Reply" button located at the top of the Inbox. If you would like to reply to everyone who got the email (if you were part of a group of people who received it), click the down arrow on the right side of the Reply button, and select "Reply To All." This sends your reply to all recipients of the original email, as well as the sender.
275 3. A Compose window opens. If you want to add more recipients, you can type in additional email addresses. 4. Type your reply. If you chose to include the sender's original email in your reply, you can type in the area above it, below it, or even within the sender's email itself -- to respond to different parts of their email bit by bit. Click the cursor wherever you want to begin typing. To make your reply easy to read, it helps to press Enter a couple of times to add spacing. 5. Click "Send" to send your reply. If you are in the middle of composing an email, and you need to stop, click the "Save Draft" button to the right of "Send." This saves your uncompleted email in your Drafts folder. You can always come back whenever you want to finish it. In gmail Visit gmail by typing http://mail.google.com into the address bar of your browser.
2 Select the email that you wish to reply to and double left click on it to open and read it.
276 3 Click the "Reply" button on the right hand side of the email.
4 Add any text you like to the body of the email and press the "Send" button. Edit the "Subject" field if you like by clicking the "edit subject" button.
5 This task should now be complete. If not, review and repeat the steps as needed. Submit any questions using the section at the bottom of this page. 7.12 Search To find mail in Yahoo! Mail:
Type your query into the search box at the top. You can search for an exact quote by surrounding your terms with quotations marks. Type '"melodic enthusiasm"' (including the inner but not the outer quotation marks), for example, to find messages containing "melodic enthusiasm" as a phrase. See below for operators to search specific email fields. Hit Enter or click Search Mail.
277 Yahoo! Mail Search Operators
You can precede search terms with special operators to search only in certain fields, not across all of an email's content and headers.
from: — Search for email addresses and names (or parts thereof) in the From: fields of your emails. Type "from:homer" (not including the quotation marks), for example, to find all messages from, say, "Homer
Combining Search Terms and Operators
You can combine search terms and operator to further search results' precision:
Separate multiple search terms, phrases and operators with a white space character to create queries whose results must match all terms. Precede a term, phrase or operator construct with "-" to exclude it from results. To search for all mail from Homer that have "about email" but not "caramba" in the Subject:line, use 'from:homer subject:"about email" - subject:caramba' (not including the outer quotation marks), for example. Search for Messages in Yahoo! Mail Classic Yahoo! Mail search itself is easy to find: Click the Search Mail button in the top Yahoo! Mail navigation bar. A simple search page with a few options that allow you to specify where you want to search — only the sender and subject or complete messages and only in a particular Yahoo! Mail folder or across all your emails — comes up. If you need more fine-grained search options, follow the Advanced Search link. Instead of wading through all of your folders, try Yahoo! Mail search the next time you are looking for "something" in "some" message.
278
7.13 Chatting Gmail is Also Google Talk In Gmail, you can also chat with anybody quickly, though Gmail includes an instant messaging client that lets you talk to Gmail users as well as other people connected to the Google Talk network right from your browser, right from Gmail. The chat conversations you have in Gmail (or using another client connected with Google Talk) can be recorded. And, like chatting it, chatting in Gmail is easy. Chat with Somebody (or a Group) in Gmail
To send somebody an instant message in Gmail: Locate the contact. o If you want to chat with somebody with whom you exchange emails often, they will appear in your Quick Contacts panel automatically. o You can also use the Search, add, or invite field in the Quick Contacts panel to locate somebody by name or email address. o Alternatively, open an email from the desired sender or locate them in the Gmail Contacts. o Hover your mouse over the contact name or email address. o Select the Chat button on the sheet that comes up. o If you can only see Invite to Chat, the contact has yet to accept instant messages from you. Click it and follow the steps.
279 o If a contact is offline, the ball next to their name will appear gray instead of green (online), orange (away) or red (busy). Send them an email. Type your message and hit Enter. To add more people to your chat: Click Options in the chat window. Select Group chat. Type the desired contact's name under Add a person to this chat. Click Invite. Facebook
Facebook Chat is Facebook's answer to instant messaging. IM, or chat on Facebook, is really quite easy. All you need to chat on Facebook is a Facebook account, nothing to download or install.
When you log into Facebook you are automatically logged into Facebook Chat so you can chat on Facebook. Just go to your Facebook page and you can start to chat on Facebook right away.
At the bottom of every Facebook page you will see your Facebook Chat tools. The first of the three Facebook Chat tools is the online friends‘ tool. This simply tells you which of your Facebook friends is online right now. The next Facebook Chat tool is notifications which will let you know if you have any new Facebook notifications right from the tool. The third tool in Facebook Chat is the actual chat tool.
7.14 Searching in native language
You may now search the Web and ask to get foreign language web pages included in search results. Google will translate them on the fly. But you may also stop Google from translating your site.
280 Google Blog scoped reports that Google‘s cross-language search is up and running.
Google‘s translation service has been there for a long time. Enter some text or a URL and Google has (tried to) translate the page for you. Needless to say, the translations themselves have sometimes had a comic slant, but you may at least get an idea on what the page is about.
Foreign language search results: Now Google takes this one step further. You may now search the web in your own language (let us say English) and at the same time ask Google to include German web pages in the search results.
The result page has two columns: to the right search results in the original language, to the left links to the same pages translated into your own language.
Why?
Why does this matter? Well, there are some pretty large language communities out there with people that have access to so much information in their own language, that they do not feel the need to publish in other languages.
We know quite a few German, French, Spanish and English speaking people that stick to their own language, and feel uncomfortable with writing or reading other tongues (even if most of them know some English).
This means they will miss a lot of useful information. If an American wants to follow — let us say — the European search engine scene, she will miss out of a lot of interesting analysis if she does not read French or German sites like Abundance or @-web.
Now these sites may be included in her search for SEM related information.
Google‘s Franz Ochs, Maureen Heymans, and Jeff Chin put it this way:
While machine translation is not perfect, it is usually good enough for you to obtain the gist of information in a language you might otherwise be unable to access. We think this feature will be particularly useful for our international users since although the majority of Internet users out there are non English speakers, a majority of the content on the Internet is still in English.
Note that search result translation does not support advanced Boolean search queries.
How to stop Google from translating
There are copyright issues involved here. The translated pages are served by Google and have a Google URL. Since Google keeps the original formatting
281 and graphics ads will remain, and we guess that most web sites will not mind getting some additional visitors and PR.
However, you may stop Google from translating your pages. Add the following tag to the HEAD section of the HTML file:
Languages supported
Google offers the following language pairs:
English to/from Arabic English to/from Chinese (Simplified) English to/from Chinese (Traditional) English to/from French English to/from German English to/from Italian English to/from Korean English to/from Japanese English to/from Russian English to/from Spanish English to and from Portuguese Chinese (Simplified) to/from Chinese (Traditional) German to and from French
Check Your Progress 3
8. To give your chat session in its own window what option can be used? ------9. In which mode the ball next to their name will appear in red color? ------10. Google search supported to how many languages? ------
7.15 Let us sum up
The Internet is the worldwide, publicly accessible network of interconnected computer networks that transmit data by packet switching using the standard Internet Protocol (IP). It is a "network of networks" that consists of millions of interconnected smaller domestic, academic, business, and government
282 networks, which together carry various information and services, such as electronic mail, online chat, file transfer, and the interlinked Web pages and other documents of the World Wide Web. Windows Internet Explorer (formerly Microsoft Internet Explorer, commonly abbreviated IE or MSIE) is a series of graphical web browsers developed by Microsoft and included as part of the Microsoft Windows line of operating systems, starting in 1995.Email attachments allow you to send files along with your email messages. An attachment can be any type of file, but the most common ones are text documents and images (photos etc).
7.16 Unit End Exercises
1. Create a professional e-mail id 2. Save a webpage using different options 3. Send an attachment to your college id from your mail 4. Change the status in your mail account 5. How to sign up in facebook?
7.17 Answers to Check your Progress:
1. World Wide Web 2. Microsoft 3. Internet Explorer 10 4. ALT + P 5. 1GB 6. http://gamil.google.com 7. Sign up 8. Pop-out 9. Busy 10. languages
7.18 Suggested Readings:
Allan J. (1999), The online learning handbook in developing and using web based learning. Oxford press. Dern, Daniel, (1994), The internet guide for New Users. New York: McGraw- Hill. Hahn, H. (1998). The internet- complete reference. New Delhi: Tata McGrow Hill Publication. Keiko Pitter, Sara Amato et al. (2003), Every Student‘s Guide to the Internet. New Delhi: Tata McGrow Hill Publication.
283 Marine, April, et al. (1992), Internet: Getting Started. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: PTR Prentice Hall. Internet Security Hacking, Counterhacking and Society Publisher: Cbs Piblishers (2007), ISBN: 8123914725
Sundararajan, K. (1998). Internet. Chennai: Kannadhasan Publications. ------
284 UNIT VIII WEB RESOURCES FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING
Structure
8.1 Introduction 8.2 Objectives 8.2.1 Classification of e-resources 8.2.1.1 Online resources 8.2.1.2 Offline resources 8.3 Web services 8.4 Web search 8.5 Web sites 8.5.1 Google 8.5.2 Yahoo 8.6 Wikipedia sites 8.6.1 Other sites 8.7 Search for teaching and learning materials 8.8 File types 8.8.1 Common file formats 8.9 Copying 8.10 Modifying 8.11 Referencing 8.12 Creating own website 8.13 Contributing to Web 8.14 Let Us Sum up 8.15 Unit End Exercises 8.16 Answers to Check your Progress 8.17 Suggested Readings
8.1 Introduction It is not important how much resources you have, than how feasible they are. In other words, resources should be readily accessible to all. Before the development of computer and internet technology, printed version of resources like books, journals, dictionaries, workbooks, etc played a significant role in teaching and learning process. But these printed versions are not easily accessible to all and are also expensive in nature. For example, if two teachers want to refer a book simultaneously, two separate copies of the same book must be needed in the
285 library. Instead of having the printed version of the book, if we have the electronic or e-version of the book, the same book can be easily accessed simultaneously by many and also can be accessed from their drawing room with the help of a personal computer. In this computer age, e-version of books, journals and e- resources in general have become inevitable. 8.2 Objectives
After going through this unit you will be able to; Acquiring knowledge about web resources Understand the concept of searching Identify the different file types Work with different websites
8.3 What are Web Resources?
Teachers work to help you integrate technology into your classroom by offering online tools and resources. This web sites help teachers locate and create ready-to-use Web lessons, quizzes, rubrics and classroom calendars. There are also tools for student use. You can discover valuable professional development resources addressing issues such as equity, technology planning and at-risk or special-needs of students. Academic Skill Builders are engaging on-site professional teacher educators and developing educational video games offering fun ways to learn mathematics and vocabulary skills.
The collaboration projects are learning activities that provide collaboration between two or more classrooms. The participating classrooms will be from various locations around the world, will use the Internet to interact with one another and will be working on a similar topic for a specific length of time. By using the Internet, students and teachers will share their activities, findings and reflections. In addition to student collaboration, teachers will also be provided with the necessary tools to collaborate with one another.
8.3.1 Classification of e-resources Generally, e- resources may be classified into two major categories, viz, Online e-resources and Offline e-resources
8.3.1.1 Online e-resources E-books Email E-library E-forum E-dictionaries and so on
286 8.3.1.2 Offline e-resources CD ROMs Offline e-books Offline e-dictionaries Training software and so on 8.4 Web services Web Services can convert your application into a Web-application, which can publish its function or message to the rest of the world.
The basic Web Services platform is XML + HTTP.
What are Web Services?
Web services are application components Web services communicate using open protocols Web services are self-contained and self-describing Web services can be discovered using UDDI Web services can be used by other applications XML is the basis for Web services
How Does it Work?
The basic Web services platform is XML + HTTP.
XML provides a language which can be used between different platforms and programming languages and still expresses complex messages and functions.
The HTTP protocol is the most used Internet protocol.
Web services platform elements:
SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol) UDDI (Universal Description, Discovery and Integration) WSDL (Web Services Description Language)
Web Services have Two Types of Uses
Reusable application-components.
There are things that need applications very often. The web services can offer application-components like: currency conversion, weather reports, or even language translation as services.
Connect existing software.
287 Web services can help to solve the inter operability problem by giving different applications a way to link their data. With Web services you can exchange data between different applications and different platforms.
8.4 Web search Called a Web search, the process of looking for information online helps determine the usefulness of the Internet to particular users. The most common form of an Internet search takes place using a search engine to facilitate although many sites offer a specific type of ‗in house‘ search relevant to their niche – such as a flight search. Search engines evolved from the simple lists of Web servers that were popular in the early 1990s into the form that now is recognizable. Right now, most Internet users visit the most popular search engines, Google, Bing and Yahoo to perform a Web search. The results displayed are typically prioritized by relevance, so those who search the Web can quickly find material that is relevant to their needs. Without a search engine, finding information and resources on the Internet is very difficult, especially when specific servers and domains containing desired information are unknown. The reason a search engine helps people search for information online is because they regularly crawl the Internet looking for servers and indexing the information they contain. As long as Web hosts are discoverable to the search engine crawlers, the information they contain will at some point be included in the index. Because different search engines use different algorithms or methods to crawl Internet hosts, they often display different results. Making a thorough search of the Web may therefore require multiple searches using different search engines. To help automate the process of searching multiple sites, users can use meta-search engines which combine the search results from multiple search engines into a single comprehensive list. Although the meta-search engine concept has never caught on as a mainstream way to search the Web, it does offer new ways to make faster and smarter online searches. Hosts that are not discoverable on the Internet using a variety of techniques comprise the so-called invisible Web. These are Web hosts that either block search engines from crawling them or they are hosts that use non-ICANN domains.
288 Although some efforts to facilitate Web search on the invisible Web exist, finding information among those alternative sites is still difficult for most people. Many Internet experts suggest that a large portion of the Internet is inaccessible by search engine users, meaning that a vast amount of information located on the Internet is inaccessible to most people. Check Your Progress 1 1. What are the basic web service platforms? ------2. Which is the most used internet protocol? ------
8.5 Web sites 8.5.1 Google
The Google Family Safety Center introduces and shows the parents how to use Google's safety tools including safe search, safe search lock, and YouTube's safety mode. Google has partnered with a number of child safety organizations to develop educational materials for dealing with topics like cyber bullying, strangers online, protecting personal information, and avoiding malware online. Finally, Google's Family Safety Center contains a collection of videos featuring Google employees sharing the strategies they use with their own kids for teaching online behavior and keeping their kids safe online. The main purpose of Google Search is to hunt for text in Web pages, as opposed to other data, such as with Google Image Search. Google Search was originally developed by Larry Page and Sergey Brin in 1997. Google Search provides at least 22 special features beyond the original word-search capability. These include synonyms, weather forecasts, time zones, stock quotes, maps, earthquake data, movie show times, airports, home listings, and sports scores. There are special features for numbers, including ranges (70..73), prices, temperatures, money/unit conversions ("10.5 cm in inches"), calculations ("3*4+sqrt(6)-pi/2"), package tracking, patents, area codes, and language translation of displayed pages. In June 2011, Google introduced "Google Voice Search" and "Search by Image" features for allowing the users to search words by speaking and by giving images. In May 2012, Google introduced a new Knowledge Graph semantic search feature to customers in the U.S. The frequency of use of many search terms has reached such a volume that they may indicate broader economic, social and health trends. Data about the frequency of use of search terms on Google (available through Google Adwords, Google Trends, and Google Insights for Search) have been shown to correlate with
289 flu outbreaks and unemployment levels and provide the information faster than traditional reporting methods and government surveys.
8.5.2 Yahoo
Yahoo! Search is a web search engine, owned by Yahoo! Inc. and was as of December 2009, the 2nd largest search directory on the web by query volume, at 6.42%, after its competitor Google at 85.35% and before Baidu at 3.67%, according to Net Applications.
Yahoo! Search, originally referred to as Yahoo! provided Search interface, would send queries to a searchable index of pages supplemented with its directory of sites. The results were presented to the user under the Yahoo! brand. Originally, none of the actual web crawling and storage/retrieval of data was done by Yahoo! itself. In 2001 the searchable index was powered by Inktomi and later was powered by Google until 2004, when Yahoo! Search became independent. On July 29, 2009, Microsoft and Yahoo! announced a deal in which Bing would power Yahoo! Search. All Yahoo! Search global customers and partners are expected to be transitioned by early 2012.
8.6 Wikipedia sites
Wikipedia is a free, collaboratively edited, and multilingual Internet encyclopedia supported by the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation. Its 22 million articles (over 4 million in English alone) have been written collaboratively by volunteers around the world. Almost all of its articles can be edited by anyone with access to the site, and it has about 100,000 regularly active contributors. As of July 2012, there are editions of Wikipedia in 285 languages. It has become the largest and most popular general reference work on the Internet, ranking sixth globally among all websites on Alexa and having an estimated 365 million readers worldwide. It is estimated that Wikipedia receives 2.7 billion monthly page views from the United States alone. Wikipedia was launched in January 2001 by Jimmy Wales and Larry Sanger. Sanger coined the name Wikipedia, which is a portmanteau of wiki (a type of collaborative website, from the Hawaiian word wiki, meaning "quick") and encyclopedia. Wikipedia's departure from the expert-driven style of encyclopedia building and the presence of a large body of unacademic content have received extensive attention in print media. In its 2006 Person of the Year article, Time magazine recognized the rapid growth of online collaboration and interaction by millions of people around the world. It cited Wikipedia as an example, in addition to YouTube, MySpace, and Facebook. Wikipedia has also been praised as a news source because of how quickly articles about recent events appear. Students have been assigned to write Wikipedia articles as an exercise in clearly and succinctly explaining difficult concepts to an uninitiated audience. Although the policies of Wikipedia strongly espouse verifiability and a neutral point of view, criticisms leveled at Wikipedia include allegations about
290 quality of writing, inaccurate or inconsistent information, and explicit content. Various experts (including Wales and Jonathan Zittrain) have expressed concern over possible (intentional or unintentional) biases. These allegations are addressed by various Wikipedia policies. Other pessimists of Wikipedia simply point out vulnerabilities inherent to any wiki that may be edited by anyone. These critics observe that much weight is given to topics that more editors are likely to know about, like popular culture, and that the site is vulnerable to vandalism, though some studies indicate that vandalism is quickly deleted. Critics point out that some articles contain unverified or inconsistent information, though a 2005 investigation in Nature showed that the science articles they compared came close to the level of accuracy of Encyclopedia Britannica and had a similar rate of "serious errors" 8.6.1 Other Sites
Welcome to the Web is a series of lessons for teaching young students how to navigate the Internet. There are seven lessons in the series although the first lesson is really just an introduction to the site. The other lessons in the series teach kids the basic vocabulary of the web, online safety, and search techniques. The series concludes with a challenge exercise in which students test their new knowledge and skills. Every lesson in the series comes with an optional worksheet in PDF form.
LMK Life Online is a website created for the purpose of educating girls about online safety. LMK Life Online is sponsored by the Girl Scouts and Microsoft. On the site girls can learn through articles and videos about protecting themselves from online predators. Girls will also find lessons about cyber-bullying and online privacy. After reading the articles and watching the videos, girls can test their knowledge through interactive quizzes.
291
Own Your Space is a free, sixteen chapter e-book designed to educate tweeds and teens about protecting themselves and their stuff online. This e-book is not a fluffy, general overview book. Each chapter goes into great detail explaining the technical threats that students' computers face online as well as the personal threats to data that students can face online. For example, in the first chapter students learn about different types of malware and the importance of installing security patches to prevent malware infections. The fourteenth chapter explains the differences between secured and unsecured wireless networks, the potential dangers of an unsecured network, and how to lock-down a network. You can download the whole book or individual chapters from these websites.
The Virginia Department of Education has produced an engaging and useful site for teaching students web safety lessons. Internet Safety With Professor Garfield currently offers an animated lesson on cyber-bullying and an animated lesson about online safety. As you might guess from the site's title, the lessons feature Garfield. Both lessons use the same model in which students watch a cartoon, take an informal quiz and then try to apply their new knowledge to a few different scenarios.
PBS Kids offers the Webonauts Academy in which elementary school students can learn about safe online behaviors. When students have completed all
292 of the Webonauts missions they will graduate from the Webonauts Academy. The educator‘s tips page offers some practical suggestions for using Webonauts in the classroom or in a school library.
A Thin Line is a digital safety education resource produced by MTV in collaboration with other media partners. The purpose of the site is to educate teenagers and young adults about the possible repercussions of their digital activities. A Thin Line offers a series of fact sheets about topics like sexing, digital spying, and excessive text messaging and instant messaging. A Thin Line gives students advice on how to recognize those behaviours, the dangers of those behaviors, and how to protect your digital identity. Students can also take a short quiz to practice identifying risky digital behaviours.
8.7 Search for teaching and learning materials To search any teaching learning material in website we can go after the following instructions:
To search a web page for specific words type "Ctrl" + "F" on your keyboard
(Command + "F" on a Mac).
Then, type the word you are searching for in the window that pops up.
For example, you could look for the word "technology" as shown below:
293
Check Your Progress 2 3. Who developed Google search? ------
4. Who launched Wikipedia?
------
8.8 File types
The types of files recognized by the system are either regular, directory, or special. However, the operating system uses many variations of these basic types.
The following basic types of files exist:
Regular Stores data (text, binary, and executable) Directory Contains information used to access other files Special Defines a FIFO (first-in, first-out) pipe file or a physical device
All file types recognized by the system fall into one of these categories. However, the operating system uses many variations of these basic types.
Regular files
294 Regular files are the most common files and are used to contain data. Regular files are in the form of text files or binary files: Text files
Text files are regular files that contain information stored in ASCII format text and are readable by the user. You can display and print these files. The lines of a text file must not contain NUL characters, and none can exceed{LINE_MAX} bytes in length, including the newline character.
The term text file does not prevent the inclusion of control or other nonprintable characters (other than NUL). Therefore, standard utilities that list text files as inputs or outputs are either able to process the special characters or they explicitly describe their limitations within their individual sections. Binary files
Binary files are regular files that contain information readable by the computer. Binary files might be executable files that instruct the system to accomplish a job. Commands and programs are stored in executable, binary files. Special compiling programs translate ASCII text into binary code.
Text and binary files differ only in that text files have lines of less than {LINE_MAX} bytes, with no NUL characters, each terminated by a newline character.
Directory files
Directory files contain information that the system needs to access all types of files, but directory files do not contain the actual file data. As a result, directories occupy less space than a regular file and give the file system structure flexibility and depth. Each directory entry represents either a file or a subdirectory. Each entry contains the name of the file and the file's index node reference number (i-node number). The i-node number points to the unique index node assigned to the file. The i-node number describes the location of the data associated with the file. Directories are created and controlled by a separate set of commands.
Special files
Special files define devices for the system or are temporary files created by processes. The basic types of special files are FIFO (first-in, first-out), block, and character. FIFO files are also called pipes. Pipes are created by one process to temporarily allow communication with another process. These files cease to exist when the first process finishes. Block and character files define devices.
295 Every file has a set of permissions (called access modes) that determine who can read, modify, or execute the file.
File naming conventions
The name of each file must be unique within the directory where it is stored. This ensures that the file also has a unique path name in the file system.
File path names
The path name for each file and directory in the file system consists of the names of every directory that precedes it in the tree structure.
Pattern matching with wildcards and meta-characters
Wildcard characters provide a convenient way to specify multiple file names or directory names.
Pattern matching versus regular expressions
Regular expressions allow you to select specific strings from a set of character strings. The use of regular expressions is generally associated with text processing.
8.8.1 Common file formats
File type Description
.adm An administration (.adm) file defines the system policies and restrictions for the desktop, shell, and security. You can customize and restrict the settings in an .adm file by using the IEAK or the Windows System Policy Editor. For a list of system policies and restrictions that you can set from standard .adm files, see Understanding the IEAK Profile Manager.
.asp If you distribute Internet Explorer from a Web server, you can include Active Server Page (.asp) files in your custom browser package. By using .asp files, you can embed script within your HTML pages to create dynamic, interactive Web content. For example, you can create sign-up pages that enable users to download the browser and register for Internet services. You can point to .asp files in the Internet Explorer 6 Customization Wizard or the IEAK Profile Manager. The Resource Kit CD-ROM includes sample .asp
296 files.
.bat An ASCII text file containing a sequence of operating-system commands, possibly including parameters and operators supported by the batch command language. When the user types the name of the batch file at the command prompt, the computer processes the commands sequentially.
.bmp, .gif, Internet Explorer can include static and animated graphics that use .jpeg, .jpg .bmp, .gif, .jpeg, or .jpg file formats. In addition to using graphics files supplied with the IEAK, you can create your own and include them with your custom browser package. For example, you can replace the Internet Explorer logo or AutoRun splash screen with your own static or animated graphic files. The IEAK includes two tools to help you create customized animated graphics. For more information about the requirements for graphics that you customize, see Creating Customized Graphics.
.cab Cabinet (.cab) files organize and store compressed installation files that are copied to the user's computer. Windows Update Setup (IE5Setup.exe) downloads the .cab files necessary for Internet Explorer installation to the user's computer. These .cab files can contain both browser and custom components. After the files are downloaded successfully, Windows Update Setup is complete. The IEAK contains a set of tools that can help you build .cab files for custom components.
.cif A component information (.cif) file named IESetup.cif identifies the components that you can install with Internet Explorer, including any new components or component updates. In the .cif file, each component has an associated ComponentID. Windows Update Setup reads the .cif file to determine whether a component with a specific ComponentID is already installed and whether a newer version is available for installation.
.cmp Connection profile (.cmp) files are generated by CMAK and contain information specified by the user. Do not edit the .cmp files because any changes you make can be overwritten by the user.
.cms Service provider (.cms) files are generated by CMAK and specify the configuration of the phone book and most of the other functions of your service profiles. Most advanced customization for a service profile is done by editing the .cms file for that service profile.
.exe An executable (.exe) file named IE5Setup.exe is the installation program that controls the setup process. This .exe file downloads the .cab files that install your custom browser package on users' computers. Those .cab files can, in turn, include additional self- extracting .exe files for browser and custom components.
297 .htt The HTML template (.htt) files provide customizable templates for My Computer (Mycomp.htt), Control Panel (Controlp.htt), Printers (Printers.htt), and the default Web view for folders (Folder.htt). Using a text or HTML editor, you can customize these files with special instructions, logos, or links to Web sites. You can include Mycomp.htt and Controlp.htt in your custom browser package. You need to customize the Printers.htt and Folder.htt templates directly on your users' computers.
.inf Typically, each Internet Explorer .cab file contains an associated information (.inf) file, which provides further installation information. The .inf file can reference files in the .cab file, as well as files at other URLs.
.ins Windows Update Setup contains an Internet settings (.ins) file, which configures the browser and its components. You can create multiple versions of your browser package by customizing copies of this .ins file. The IEAK Profile Manager also enables you to create, save, and load .ins files for updating Internet Explorer configuration settings.
.isp If you are implementing a sign-up process with your custom browser package, an Internet sign-up (.isp) file named Signup.isp provides dial-up information for your Internet services. Using the Internet Explorer 6 Customization Wizard, you can edit the parameters contained in the Internet sign-up file. For a server-based sign-up method, this sign-up file also contains a link to the URL of the server script that generates your .ins configuration file.
.pac, .js, You can use a text editor to create an auto-proxy script file for your .jvs custom browser package. An auto-proxy script file can be a JScript (.js), JavaScript (.jvs), or proxy auto-configuration (.pac) file. When an auto-proxy script file is specified, Internet Explorer uses the script to determine dynamically whether it should connect directly to a host or use a proxy server. In Stage 4 of the Internet Explorer 6 Customization Wizard, you can specify an auto-proxy URL for configuring and maintaining advanced proxy settings.
.pdf If you use Microsoft Systems Management Server to distribute Internet Explorer, your custom browser package consists of a folder of installation files and a package definition file (.pdf) file. This file, named IE5.pdf, contains a setup program, installation options, and command-line syntax for automatically installing Internet Explorer on your server or users' computers. This .pdf file enables the installation to occur without administrative or user intervention.
.pvk A private key file, that contains the private key associated with a digital signature.
.pwl File containing the Windows password of a user of this computer.
298 .sed Connection profile (.sed) files are generated by CMAK and contain the instructions for building a self-extracting executable (.exe) file for your service profiles. Do not edit any .sed files.
.spc A software publishing certificate file. Certificates contain the name and other information identifying the owner of the certificate, the public key associated with the certificate, a serial number, a validity period for the certificate, and the digital signature of the certification authority that issued the certificate.
8.9 Copying
Copying is the duplication of information or an artifact based only on an instance of that information or artifact, and not using the process that originally generated it. With analogforms of information, copying is only possible to a limited degree of accuracy, which depends on the quality of the equipment used and the skill of the operator. There is some inevitable deterioration and accumulation of "noise" (random small changes, not sound) from original to copy; when successive generations of copy are made, this deterioration accumulates with each generation. With digital forms of information, copying is perfect. Copy and paste is frequently used for information a computer user selects and copies to an area he or she wishes. Most high-accuracy copying techniques use the principle that there will be only one type of possible interpretation for each reading of data, and only one possible way to write an interpretation of data. 8.10 Modifying If you've been linked to this topic, you've probably asked if something can be changed, found a bug, or are being presented with a small tweak. What follows should be a list of files to open, what to look for, and what to add or replace to what you find. To do this, you'll need a text editor of some sort. Notepad will work, but will not give you line numbers and a few other things - other editors include ConTEXT, Crimson Editor, and EditPad. Once you have a text editor, you'll need to get to the files. This means using FTP to download the file in question, opening it with whatever text editor you wish to use, making the changes, and then uploading it again. Sometimes, we may leave off common paths to files. Here is a list of some of them: - Admin.php, QueryString.php, etc. (files ending in .php) are usually in Sources/. - Something.template.php or similar is usually found in your theme's directory - for example, Themes/converted or Themes/yourtheme. However, it is usually a bad idea to modify the default theme... instead, you should make a copy of the file and then upload the modified file to that folder. - Something.english.php (or any other language) should be in Themes/default/languages. As to the changes themselves, usually they will be either "find" and "replace" (meaning, find a block of code and replace it with another block..) or
299 "find" and add above/below/after/before. In the latter case, you should just add the code block to said position relative to the code to find, on a separate line. Check Your Progress 3 5. What is the extension for executable file? ------6. Which is used to modify any text file? ------
8.11 Referencing
What is referencing? Referencing is a standardised method of formatting the information sources you have used in your assignments or written work. Any given referencing style serves two purposes:
1. acknowledges the source, and 2. allows the reader to trace the source.
Referencing styles The Library provides guides and support only for Harvard AGPS and APA referencing styles.
Harvard AGPS Referencing Guide APA Referencing Guide Australian Guide to Legal Citation (AGLC)
In Arts, several disciplines use other referencing styles. The guides to using these styles such as Oxford for History, and MLA for Literature and Visual Arts, are supplied by your lecturers. The bibliographic software, EndNote also has versions of these styles for your use. On your courses' Study Desk, via UConnect, My Library Research (Arts) provides guides to Oxford and MLA as supported by your lecturer.
Need for referencing Referencing is part of the code of conduct for students and academics. It is a standard required of scholarly communication. It is also a standard for written communication expected by professional organisations where you will eventually be employed.
Referencing:
shows adherence to academic writing standards shows respect for and acknowledges the work of other scholars (thereby
300 avoiding plagiarism) provides evidence that you have read and considered the relevant literature allows validation and confirmation of sources used in your work, and gives your work credibility.
Avoiding plagiarism is the individual's responsibility, and there are penalties for failing to do so. In professional life, you will find that plagiarism can have serious effects on your reputation and that of your colleagues and employer. It may prompt legal action from the copyright owner of any work that is not acknowledged.
A reference or citation is required when you:
1. Cite by quoting another person word for word (direct quotation). It doesn't matter whether it is a phrase, sentence or paragraph, you will need to provide a reference to the source. 2. Cite by paraphrasing or summarising ideas or data obtained from another source. 3. Use statistics in your work obtained from another source (e.g. population, results of surveys). 4. Use tables, figures, diagrams or images created by someone else. 5. Use controversial facts, opinions, or dates from another source.
Information of a general nature such as facts which are common knowledge (e.g. the years of World War II) are not referenced. Otherwise, you will need to reference any ideas or data you have used which are not your own.
Practical guidelines for referencing
1. As you work on your assignment, you will need to record and keep the details of each source as you use it (this includes details such as author, title, publication date, publisher, place of publication, journal title, volume, issue, page numbers, date viewed or accessed, URL, database, etc.). 2. In-text citations: Both the Harvard AGPS and APA referencing styles used at USQ are author-date styles. The in-text citations will consist mainly of the authors' surnames and the year (and page numbers if appropriate). If there is no discernable author, the title and date are used. Examples can be found in the guides on this site. 3. List of references: More comprehensive details for each source are put in the list of references at the end of the assignment. This allows the reader to trace and verify your sources. Examples showing the amount of detail required and how to format each source can be found in the guides on this site.
For Harvard AGPS and APA style guide enquiries contact a campus Library. For AGLC style guide enquiries, contact the appropriate academic staff or the Faculty Librarian (Law).
301 For any other styles, please contact the appropriate academic staff.
Referencing style manuals at USQ Library - These include:
Style manual for authors,editors and printers (6th ed.). This includes the Harvard AGPS Style. The call number is 808.02 Sty. Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.). This includes the APA style. The call number is 808.06615 Pub. The Library also holds copies of the APA style guide to electronic references at 808.06615 Apa.
8.12 Creating own website The Essential Step-by-Step Guide to Making Your Own Website 1. Get Your Domain Name
The first thing you need to do before anything else is to get yourself a domain name. A domain name is the name you want to give to your website. For example, the domain name of the website you are reading is "thesitewizard.com". To get a domain name, you have to pay an annual fee to a registrar for the right to use that name. Getting a name does not get you a website or anything like that. It is just a name. It is like registering a business name in the world; having that business name does not mean that you also have the shop premises to go with the name. o Detailed information on getting a good domain name can be found in the article ‗Tips on Choosing a Good Domain Name‘. o After you read that, you will need to know the steps to registering a domain name and the things you need to look out for when registering. You can find a detailed guide in the article ‗How to Register Your Own Domain Name‘. o It may also be wise to take a look at some of the Important Precautions to Take When Buying a Domain Name, just so that you do not commit the same mistakes that some newcomers make when buying a domain name. 2. Choose a Web Host and Sign Up for an Account A web host is basically a company that has many computers connected to the Internet. When you place your web pages on their computers, everyone in the world will be able to connect to it and view them. You will need to sign up for an account with a web host so that your website has a home. If getting a domain name is analogous to getting a business name, getting a web hosting account is analogous to renting office or shop premises for your business.
There are many issues involved in finding a good web host. Read up on the various things you need to look for in searching for a good web host in the article ‗How to Choose a Web Host‘.
302 After you have an idea of what to look for, you can search for one from the Budget Web Hosting page. You can also find out from the ‗Which Web Host Do You Recommend?‘ page.
After you sign up for a web hosting account, you will need to point your domain to that account on your web host. Information on how to do this can be found in the guide ‗How to Point a Domain Name to Your Website‘ (Or What to Do After Buying Your Domain Name).
3. Designing your Web Pages
Once you have settled your domain name and web host, the next step is to design the web site itself. In this article, I will assume that you will be doing this yourself. If you are hiring a web designer to do it for you, you can probably skip this step, since that person will handle it on your behalf.
Although there are many considerations in web design, as a beginner, your first step is to actually get something out onto the web. The fine-tuning can come after you've figured out how to get a basic web page onto your site. One way is to use a WYSIWYG ("What You See Is What You Get") web editor to do it. Such editors allow you to design your site visually, without having to muck around with the technical details. They work just like a normal word processor.
There are many commercial and free web editors around. For those who do not mind spending money on a good commercial web editor, one of the most highly-regarded WYSIWYG web editors is Dreamweaver. If you are planning to use this editor, thesitewizard.com has an online tutorial on Dreamweaver CS5.5 Tutorial: How to Design a Website with Dreamweaver CS5.5. The tutorial takes you through all the steps of creating a fully-functional website with multiple pages and a feedback form, and provides you with the theoretical and practical foundation that will help you create and maintain your site.
If you prefer to use free software, you can find a complete tutorial on using KompoZer, a free WYSIWYG web editor, in the article How to Design and Publish Your Website with KompoZer. Like my Dreamweaver tutorial, this one also guides you through the process of creating a website that has a home page, an about page, a site map, a links page and a feedback form. It also shows you some of the main features of the KompoZer software so that you can go on improving and updating your website on your own.
303 There are many other web design softwares around. If you prefer not to use either of the above, you can find some others listed on thefreecountry.com's Free HTML Editors and WYSIWYG Web Editors page.
After you have acquired enough knowledge in this, and if you are on the way to designing your website, you have to read the article ‗Appearance, Usability and Search Engine Visibility in Web Design‘ as well. The article takes a brief look at some of the real world issues that every web designer must deal with.
An integral part of web design is search engine readiness. Search engine promotion does not start after the web site is made. It starts at the web design stage. There are many other issues regarding the design of web pages. The above points will help you start your work.
4. Testing Your Website
Although here list this step separately, this should be done throughout your web design cycle. I list it separately to give it a little more prominence, since too few new webmasters actually perform this step adequately.
You will need to test your web pages as you design them in the major browsers: the latest versions of Internet Explorer (version 9 at the time of this writing), Firefox, Opera, Safari and Chrome. All these browsers can be obtained free of charge, so it should be no hardship to get them. Unfortunately, directly testing your site in all these browsers is the only way you can really be sure that it works the way you want it to on your visitors' machines.
If you want to improve the chances that your website will work in future versions of all web browsers, consider validating the code for your web pages. In layman's language, this means that you should check that the underlying code of your web page, called "HTML" and "CSS", have no syntax errors. You do not actually need technical knowledge of HTML and CSS to validate the page, since you can use one of the numerous free web page validators around to do the hard work. On the other hand, if the validator tells you that your page has errors, it may sometimes be hard to figure out what's wrong (and whether the error is actually a serious one) if you do not have the requisite knowledge. Having said that, some
304 validators actually give concrete suggestions on how to fix your code, and one of them, called "HTML Tidy", is even supposed to be able to fix your code for you.
5. Collecting Credit Card Information, Making Money
If you are selling products or services, you will need some way to collect credit card information. You should read up on How to Accept Credit Cards on Your Website. If you need advertisers for your website, you might want to read ‗How to Make Money From Your Website‘ and the follow-up article ‗How to Increase Your Website Revenue from Affiliate Programs‘. A list of advertisers and affiliate programs can be found on Affiliate Programs: Free Sponsors and Advertisers. Those companies are on the constant lookout for new web publishers to display their advertisements.
6. Getting Your Site Noticed When your site is ready, you will need to submit it to search engines like Google and Bing. You can use the links below to do this. Google's Link Submission Page Bing's Site Submission Page In general, if your site is already linked to by other websites, you may not even need to submit it to these search engines. They will probably find it themselves by following the links on those websites. Apart from submitting your site to the search engine, you may also want to consider promoting it in other ways, such as the usual way people did things before the creation of the Internet: advertisements in the newspapers, word-of-mouth, etc. There are even companies on the Internet, likePRWeb, that can help you create press releases, which may get your site noticed by news sites and blogs. You can also advertise in various search engines. you can also advertise in other search engines like Bing and Yahoo!. This has the potential of putting your advertisement near the top of the search engine results page, and possibly even on other websites.
8.13 Contributing to Web The Web service and Web service client creation framework (from here on called the framework) divides the process of creating Web services and Web service clients into distinct phases of Web services lifecycle. Extenders of WTP
305 can contribute Web service runtimes to the framework, and in doing so, provide all the tasks needed to develop, assemble, deploy, install and run Web services and Web service clients. The extender can specify the scenarios (e.g. bottom-up, top- down) and implementation types (e.g. Java bean, EJB) supported by the Web service runtime, along with the project facets (e.g. web, EJB) required on projects that will contain Web services or Web service clients created by this Web service runtime. Container specific project facets can be used by extenders to target a Web service runtime to a particular container.
The Web service and Web service client creation framework divides the process of creating Web services and Web service clients into nine phases: discover a Web service (if needed), develop, assemble, deploy, install, run, test and publish. The activities performed in each of these phases can be further divided into those that are common to all Web service runtimes (common activities) and those that are specific to each Web service runtime (specific activities). The framework performs the common activities and delegates to the Web service runtime extension to perform the specific activities. Outlined below is a brief description of each of the phases and examples of common and specific activities. Discover:
In top-down Web service creation or Web service client creation, locate a Web service described via a WSDL service element. The framework provides a GUI mechanism to enter a URL or browse for WSDL files in the workspace. Extenders can contribute more sophisticated discovery facilities. Bottom-up Web service creation does not require discovery of Web services but rather, selection of the implementation artifact, such as a Java bean or stateless session EJB. Extenders can contribute the kinds of available artifacts as well the GUI widgets needed to locate them.
Develop: Develop the WSDL definition and implementation of the Web service. Common activities include the creation of modules which will contain the generated code. Web service runtime extensions should provide the develop tasks specific to the extension.
306 Assemble:
Depending on the target server, assembly may or may not be required. If required, assemble and configure modules into a module, such as an EAR, that is compatible with the target server type. Common activities include the association of modules to EARs. Extenders should perform tasks specific to the Web service runtime, such as any additional modules that need to the created and configured and any module dependencies that need to be established.
Deploy Generate the deploy artifacts. Framework delegates entirely to the Web service runtime extension.
Install
Install and configure the module on the target server. Installing the module on the server is a common activity. Web service runtime specific install tasks might include modifying the server configuration.
Run
Start the Web service or Web service client by starting the server, which is a common activity. Any additional tasks extenders would like to perform on the started server can be done here.
Test
Test the Web service or Web service client. The framework allows the user to choose from an extensible list of test facilities. Existing examples are the Web Services Explorer and the Generated sample JSPs. Other possible future test extensions include Junit tests.
Publish: Publish the Web service. Framework allows the user to choose from an extensible list of publication facilities (e.g. Web services explorer).
307 Check Your Progress 4 7. Identify the domain name in the following website http://www.practicals.edu/computer/experiment.htm ------8. Expand URL ------8.14 Let us sum up Generally, e- resources may be classified into two major categories, viz, online e-resources and offline e-resources. Web Services can convert your application into a Web-application, which can publish its function or message to the rest of the world. Web search is the process of looking for information online helps determine the usefulness of the Internet to particular users. Wikipedia is a type of collaborative website; wiki is a Hawaiian word that means "quick". The types of files recognized by the system are regular, directory, or special. Creating a own website contains 6 essential steps, viz., Get Your Domain Name, Choose a Web Host and Sign Up for an Account, Designing your Web Pages, Testing Your Website, Collecting Credit Card Information & Making Money and Getting Your Site Noticed. 8.15 Unit End Exercises 1. What are search engines? Mention their uses. 2. How will you search the concept of technology on web? 3. Create a simple website for your college. 8.16 Answers to Check your Progress: 1. HTML and XML
2. HTTP
3. Larry page and Sergey Brin in 1997
4. Jimmy Wales and Larry
5. .exe
6. Text editor
7. Practical.edu Universal Resource Locator 8.17 Suggested Readings:
Allan J. (1999), The online learning handbook in developing and using web based learning. Oxford press. ------______
308 UNIT IX - ICTs PEDAGOGY IN TEACHER EDUCATION ______STRUCTURE 9.1 Introduction 9.2 Objectives 9.3 e-Learning 9.4 Blended Learning 9.5 Open and Distant Learning 9.6 Teleconferencing in Education 9.7 Integrating ICTs in Teacher Education 9.8 Improving Educational Management 9.9 Future of ICT 9.10 Let Us Sum up 9.11 Unit End Exercises 9.12 Answers to Check your Progress 9.13. Suggested Readings
9.1 Introduction
ICTs Pedagogy in Teacher Education Change appears to be the only constant in the field of information and communication technologies and what was ultra-modern two years ago is today outdated. If coping with such rapid change in the field is getting increasingly difficult and complex, it is even more difficult when one tries to simplify the concepts and processes and help academics and educators who have to tackle with effective educational delivery. While it is clear that information and communications technology offers tremendous opportunities for capturing, storing, disseminating and communicating a wide variety of information, does it influence learning, and if it does, what is the nature and extent of that influence? These questions are at the heart of a longstanding debate and discussion on the influences of media on learning. The origins of this debate and discussion on the influences of media on learning date back to the invention of radio and television. On developing a camera that used film rolls, Thomas Edison had expected that the motion picture would revolutionize education and make schooling a lot more attractive and motivating
309 for students. Commentators of that time had suggested that instead of wanting to stay away from school, students would rush back to school and not want to leave school. While we know that this did not actually happen, the moving image did influence our ability to represent many things in many different ways, in and outside of school.
Nowadays, it is commonly thought that new technologies can strongly help in education. In young ages especially, children can use the huge interactivity of new media, and develop their skills, knowledge, perception of the world, under their parents monitoring, of course. In no way traditional education can be replaced, but in this era of fast technological advance and minimization of distance through the use of the Internet, everyone must be equipped with basic knowledge in technology, as well as use it as a medium to reach a particular goal. Let us discuss about the never ending role of ICT in teacher education by dealing with the topics e-Learning, Blended Learning, Open and Distant Learning, Teleconferencing in Education, Improving Educational Management using computers and Integrating ICTs in Teacher Education.
9.2 Objectives After going through this unit you will be able to: Define the terms e-Learning, Blended Learning, Open and Distant Learning. Distinguish e-Learning from Blended Learning. Differentiate the various modes of e-Learning and Blended Learning. Explain the features of Open and Distant Learning. Describe the different types of Teleconferencing in Education. State the advantages of ICT in Teacher Education. Give details about different approaches of Integrating ICTs in Teacher Education. explain the advantages of computers in Educational Administration. Discuss the various ways of improving Educational Management through ICT. Understand the future of ICT in teaching /learning process.
9.3 e-LEARNING
310 Definition and scope e-learning is commonly referred to the intentional use of networked information and communications technology in teaching and learning. A number of other terms are also used to describe this mode of teaching and learning. They include online learning, virtual learning, distributed learning, network and web based learning. Fundamentally, they all refer to educational processes that utilize information and communications technology to mediate asynchronous as well as synchronous learning and teaching activities. On closer scrutiny, however, it will be clear that these labels refer to slightly different educational processes and as such they cannot be used synonymously with the term e-learning. The term e- learning comprises a lot more than online learning, virtual learning, distributed learning, networked or web-based learning. As the letter ―e‖ in e-learning stands for the word ―electronic‖, e-learning would incorporate all educational activities that are carried out by individuals or groups working online or offline, and synchronously or asynchronously via networked or standalone computers and other electronic devices. Other Definitions e-Learning includes all forms of electronically supported learning and teaching, and more recently Edtech. (Education Technology connected with tools for e-learning. Currently Edtech specialists are exploring such topics as integrating Blogs, Podcasts, Wikis, and other types of interactive technologies into the classroom to engage students and enhance the learning experience.) The information and communication systems, whether networked learning or not, serve as specific media to implement the learning process. The term will still most likely be utilized to reference out-of-classroom and in-classroom educational experiences via technology, even as advances continue in regard to devices and curriculum. e-learning is the computer and network-enabled transfer of skills and knowledge. e-learning applications and processes include Web-based learning, computer-based learning, virtual education opportunities and digital collaboration. Content is delivered via the Internet, intranet/extranet, audio or video tape, satellite TV, and CD-ROM. It can be self-paced or instructor-led and includes media in the form of text, image, animation, streaming video and audio. e-Learning is the use of technology to enable people to learn anytime and anywhere. e-Learning can include training, the delivery of just-in-time information and guidance from experts.
Abbreviations like CBT (Computer-Based Training), IBT (Internet-Based Training) or WBT (Web-Based Training) have been used as synonyms to
311 e-learning. Today one can still find these terms being used, along with variations of e-learning such as elearning, Elearning, and eLearning. Types of e-learning
Individualized self-paced e-learning online refers to situations where an individual learner is accessing learning resources such as a database or course content online via an Intranet or the Internet. A typical example of this is a learner studying alone or conducting some research on the Internet or a local network.
Individualized self-paced e-learning offline refers to situations where an individual learner is using learning resources such as a database or a computer- assisted learning package offline (i.e., while not connected to an Intranet or the Internet). An example of this is a learner working alone off a hard drive, a CD or DVD.
Group-based e-learning synchronously refers to situations where groups of learners are working together in real time via an Intranet or the Internet. It may include text-based conferencing, and one or two-way audio and videoconferencing. Examples of this include learners engaged in a real-time chat or an audio-video conference.
Group-based e-learning asynchronously refers to situations where groups of learners are working over an Intranet or the Internet where exchanges among participants occur with a time delay (i.e., not in real time). Typical examples of this kind of activity include on-line discussions via electronic mailing lists and text- based conferencing within learning managements systems.
CHECK YOUR PROGRESS: 1 Notes: 1. Write your answer in the space given below. 2. Compare your answer with those given at the end of the unit. 1. Define e-learning. ------2. Write the different types of e-learning. ------
312
9.4 BLENDED LEARNING Meaning: Blended learning in educational research refers to a mixing of different learning environments. It combines traditional face-to-face classroom methods with computer-mediated activities. According to its proponents, the strategy creates a more integrated approach for both instructors and learners. Formerly, technology-based materials played a supporting role to face-to-face instruction. For a blended learning approach, technology will be more important. For example, consider a traditional class meeting schedule. Say that the course would normally meet Monday-Wednesday-Friday, from 1-3pm. If the institution were to apply a blended learning approach, the course may change so that it meets once per week instead of the usual three-session format. Learning activities that otherwise would have taken place during classroom time can be moved online. In other circumstances, a greater reliance on technology within the classroom may occur. Activities may be structured around access to online resources, communication via social media or interaction with distance learners in other classrooms or other learning environments. There are different approaches to blended learning. It can take on many shapes or forms, depending on the teachers and learners involved. As of now, there is no consensus on a single agreed-upon definition for blended learning. The terms "blended," "hybrid," and "mixed-mode" and "Blended E-Learning" are used interchangeably in current research literature. Blended Learning has been around for many years, but the name has changed as the uses and recognition have increased. Many people may be using a form of blended learning in lessons and teaching, but may not realize it or be able to give it an actual name. Blended learning is not a new concept, but may be a new term to many users. Below is a list of just a few of the more common, but older, names of blended learning. "You may hear blended learning described as ―integrative learning‖, or ―multi- method learning‖ (Node, 2001). "The term "blended learning" is being used with increasing frequency in both academic and corporate circles. Blended learning
313 often refers specifically to the provision or use of resources which combine e- learning (electronic) mobile-learning (with other educational resources, also called hybrid courses. Some would claim that key blended-learning arrangements can also involve e-mentoring or e-tutoring. In 2003, the American Society for Training and Development identified blended learning as one of the top ten trends to emerge in the knowledge delivery industry" (Rooney, 2003) (Graham, 2004). Blended learning began as online learning when poor rural school districts had to rely on online learning for students who were taking higher level classes that they could not afford a teacher to come in and teach.
Definition:
In 2004 Heinze and Procter have developed the following definition for blended learning in higher education: Blended learning is learning that is facilitated by the effective combination of different modes of delivery, models of teaching and styles of learning, and is based on transparent communication amongst all parties involved with a course. A blended learning approach can combine face-to-face facilitation with computer- mediated instruction and/or discovery learning opportunities. It also applies science or IT activities with the assistance of educational technologies using computer, cellular or Smart phones, Satellite television channels, videoconferencing and other emerging electronic media. Learners and teachers work together to improve the quality of learning and teaching, the ultimate aim of blended learning being to provide realistic practical opportunities for learners and teachers to make learning independent, useful, sustainable and ever growing. Whether a course should be proposed as a face-to-face interaction, an online course or a blended course depends on the analysis of the competencies at stake, the nature and location of the audience, and the resources available. Depending on the cross-analysis of these 3 parameters, the course designer will opt for one of the 3 options. In his course scenario he/she will then have to decide which parts are online, which parts are offline. A basic example of this is a course of English as a second language where the instructor reaches the conclusion that all audio-based activities (listening comprehension, oral expression) will take place in
314 the classroom where all text-based activities will take place online (reading comprehension, essay writing). In a perfect world, an ideal harmony can be created between face to face and online learning. Blended learning strives to do that. In this scenario, the benefits of both approaches would be utilized, without incurring the negative side effects of an unbalanced approach. The challenge, though, is that it is difficult to come up with a perfect prescription for how to establish a course that will be effectively blended. The needs of every course is different, as are the needs of learners in a given course. There is no way to set up a perfect formula that says ―use 10% internet, 30% intranet and 20% face to face interaction‖ and then you‘ll have a perfect learning environment. Researchers Russell T. Osguthorpe and Charles R. Graham from Brigham Young University suggest that there are at least three environments that are effective blended learning environments: 1. online and face-to-face learning activities, 2. online and face-to-face students, and 3. online and face-to-face instructors. Modes of Blended Learning The following is a summary of instructional strategies, tactics and activities which can make up a blend. A Blended Course involves two or more of the following learning delivery modes: Instructor-Led (ILT) Classroom: face-to-face sessions Presentations from experts Field Trips Lab Exercises Observations Coaching & mentoring Personal style inventories (learning preferences & information processing) Group process experiences
Independent Study
Books & Handouts: reading assignments Audio tapes & downloaded Podcasts Video tapes & downloaded Webcasts Action learning projects Case study analysis Distance Learning (non-internet) Broadcast Television
315 Video tele-conferencing Phone conferencing
Synchronous Learning Activities (real time) Virtual Learning Sessions / Web Casts Virtual Classroom Online Collaboration: e-meetings, online coaching Chat &Instant Messaging
Asynchronous Learning Activities (time-independent)
Web-Based Training (WBT tutorials — online, self-paced) Simulations (realistic skill practice) Knowledge Builders (information-on-demand with case-study examples) Performance Support: Job Aids, EPSS Intranet Portal (information access; discovery learning) Threaded Discussion Synchronous & Asynchronous Learning Event
A good way to understand blended learning options is to look at them from the standpoint of place and time combinations: Same time/same place (synchronous -- physical) Same time/different place (synchronous -- virtual) Different time/same place (asynchronous -- physical) Different time/different place (asynchronous -- virtual) This model provides an immediate understanding of the how traditional delivery modes are being combined with the new online delivery modes. Role of the facilitator Combining two or more methods of teaching: The facilitator can combine two or more methods of teaching. A typical example of blended learning methodology would be an integrated combination of technology-based materials and face-to-face sessions to present content. An instructor can begin a course with a well-structured introductory lesson in the classroom, and then proceed with follow-up materials online. Using integrated System: Blended learning can also be applied to the integration of e-learning with a Learning Management System using computers in a physical classroom, along with face-to-face instruction. Providing Guidance: Guidance is suggested early in the process, to be used more sparingly as learners gain expertise. Developing Independent Learners: Facilitators must focus on literacy instruction, using both technology and face-to-face instruction, in order to develop independent learners so that they can interact with the texts in meaningful ways. Facilitating Technological Learning: The role of the instructor is critical as this requires a transformation process to that of learning facilitator. Quite often, with
316 the increase of baby boomers going back to school and pursuing higher education the skills required for technology use are limited. Instructors then find themselves more in the role of assisting students with computer skills and applications, helping them access the internet, and encouraging them to be independent learners through both guided and individualized instruction. Blended learning takes time for both the instructor and learner to adapt to this relatively new instructional concept. The other important functions of facilitator are classified into the following four categories: 1. developing online course content and structure 2. communication 3. guiding and individualizing learning 4. assessing, grading, and promoting. Implications for Teacher Preparation
Following current trends, many high school classes will be offered online by 2019, or blended learning will be popularised. The additional skills or training necessary for teachers utilizing online or mobile learning are:
Training in skills targeted to online education: Teachers need to be educated in both traditional classroom methods, but also enhanced training to develop skills targeted to online education. Training in online pedagogy: The elements of teacher preparation for online learning fall into two categories. First, they need to be trained to use the available tools and technology. Secondly, they need to be trained in online pedagogy; particularly, how to communicate content without the use of contextual cues. Using online professional development programs: According to Watson (2006), many online professional development programs focus on helping teachers ―understand how to motivate individual learners, enhance student interaction and understanding without visual cues, tailor instruction to particular learning styles, and develop or modify interactive lessons to meet student needs.‖ Communication Skills: Teacher preparation programs will need to help teachers develop clarity in their instructions not required by traditional classrooms. Time management (in asynchronous classes): students can be online at any time, so teachers can‘t predict when heavier work loads will occur. Teacher planning (in synchronous classes): lessons may be improved by a multimedia component which requires more planning than a traditional classroom lesson Catering to Individual Differences: If students have different learning styles or disabilities, teachers must be able to adapt online content for them. Reaching students with physical or learning disabilities will be much different than in a traditional classroom. Teachers will need to ensure that students have, or have access to learn, the skills they need to succeed online.
317 While all these skills are necessary for traditional teachers, they must be strengthened to incorporate online components.
Advantages of Blended Learning One clear advantage of blended learning in education is its connection with differentiated instruction. Differentiated instruction involves ―custom-designing instruction based on student needs.‖ In differentiated instruction, educators look at students‘ learning styles, interests, and abilities. Once these factors have been determined, educators decide which curriculum content, learning activities, products, and learning environments will best serve those individual students‟ needs. Blended learning can fit into a number of these areas. By using blended learning, educators are definitely altering the learning environment when students work collaboratively in learning communities online, for example. Teachers could also add relevant curriculum content that would be unavailable or difficult to comprehend outside of the internet. Learning activities and products can also be changed to use technologies in a classroom that uses blended learning. The research studies also showed that providing several online options in addition to traditional classroom training actually increased what students learned. The student interaction and satisfaction were improved, along with students‟ achievement, in courses that incorporated blended learning. Another advantage of blended learning is pacing and attendance. In most blended learning classrooms, there is the ability to study whenever the student chooses to do so. If a student is absent, she/he may view some of the missed materials at the same time that the rest of the class does, even though the student cannot be physically in the classroom. This helps students stay on track and not fall behind, which is especially helpful for students with prolonged sicknesses or injuries that prevent them from attending school. These ―self-study modules‖ also allow learners to review certain content at any time for help in understanding a concept or to work ahead for those students who learn at a faster pace. Because of the ability of students to self-pace, there is a higher completion rate for students in blended learning classrooms than to those in strictly e-learning situations. This self-pacing allows for the engagement of every learner in the classroom at any given time. Students also see that the learning involved becomes a process, not individual learning events. Life Long Learning One more strategic advantage is that blending traditional learning with Online Distance Learning provides the learner with a real chance to experience independent learning; moreover, Blended Learning is a sure step towards Life Long Learners, and Life Long Meaning Making.
318 There are a variety of motivations for utilizing blended learning environments such as pedagogical richness, access to knowledge, social interaction, personal agency, cost effectiveness, and ease of revision.
Conclusion: Blended learning increases the options for greater quality and quantity of human interaction in a learning environment. Blended learning offers learners the opportunity ―to be both together and apart.‖ A community of learners can interact at any time and anywhere because of the benefits that computer- mediated educational tools provide. Blended learning provides a ‗good‘ mix of technologies and interactions, resulting in a socially supported, constructive, learning experience; this is especially significant given the profound effect that it could have on distance learning.
Check Your Progress: 2 3. What is blended learning? ------4. Write the different modes of blended learning. ------5. What kind of skills are essential for using blended learning?------9.5 OPEN AND DISTANCE LEARNING
Meaning: Distance learning is a field of education that focuses on the pedagogy and andragogy, technology, and instructional systems design that aim to deliver education to students who are not physically "on site". Rather than attending courses in person, teachers and students may communicate at times of their own choosing by exchanging printed or electronic media, or through technology that allows them to communicate in real time and through other online ways. Distance education courses that require a physical on-site presence for any reason including the taking of examinations is considered to be a hybrid or blended course of study.
9.5.1 Learner –centredness/learner-autonomy
Distance education puts the student, first and then the institution. Distance education lays emphasis on the needs and convenience of the learners while taking
319 into account the individual diversity among them. Further, it does not advocate a definite time frame for any course of study. In that sense, it is a flexible kind of system which adapts itself to the needs of the learners as they actually exist and arise from time to time and place to place. It does not distinguish between the young learner and the old learner, but provides them with a possibility that permits individuals to programme their specific course of study. 9.5.2 Indirect Education The provision for face-to-face interaction here is minimal. It is indirect also in the sense that it provides for as many inputs to learning as can be maintained and preserved. These inputs to learning are placed at the disposal of the learner, within whom lies the crucial ability to learn and to make use of these inputs. Of course, the learners must have the minimum preparedness and the abilities to learn and complete the course. 9.5.3 Education in real-life setting
The recent development in the telecommunication and computer technologies, have increased the possibilities of teacher-student dialogue and peer group interaction. Through e-mail and internet facilities, collaborative learning has become a reality. Given the access to these facilities, distance learners would feel less lonely and alienated. If some sort of face-to-face teaching-learning component in the form of summer schools and contact programmes can be arranged, the loneliness of distance learners can be reduced still further.
Definition of Open and Distance Education:
Distance education is known by a variety of names, Such as Correspondence Education, Home Study, Independent study, External study, Extra-mural system, Off-campus Study, Open Learning, Open education, etc.
In India, we have been using three terms: Correspondence Education, Open education and Distance Education. Correspondence Education refers to the traditional type of education given mainly through printed materials, by the postal system.
Distance Education refer to non-traditional innovative type of education that uses all the possible means of communication, the postal system being only one of them.
320 Open Education refers to that kind of non-conventional education which has been weaning away from the conventional / the traditional school/college/university education.
The difference between Correspondence Education and Distance Education is characterised essentially by the advanced strategies and technologies of communication used in Distance Education. Obviously, the shift has been effected by advancement in communication technology. The relationship between Distance Education and Open education is that open education can be effected easily through distance education system on the one hand, and on the other advances in the practice of distance education help and encourage education to become more and more open. Naturally, the two go together, and therefore, the visible overlap. 9.5.4 The main features of Open education:
They are autonomous bodies and are free to take their own decisions and formulate their courses.
They use multi-media for instructional purposes-electronic media is an important component.
There is a strong student support service. The material is prepared by teams of experts.
Entry qualifications are flexible and relaxed. One can study according to his own pace of convenience. There is uniformity in the quality of education, i.e. the students have access to the same high quality education. 9.5.5 Characteristics of Distance Education i) The separation of teacher and learner: The teacher and the learner are separated from each other and this is a central characteristic of this form of education. ii) Attachment with the educational organisation: Distance education is an institutional kind of educational system. It is, therefore, distinct from private study which may result from private reading or watching TV or attending a talk. iii) Use of technical media: Distance education makes use of the various technically advanced media such as printing, telephone, audio-video, broadcasting, computer, etc. iv) Two-way communication: It is two-way communication because the student can receive information and interact through assignment-responses or other media
321 and therefore can receive feedback. The student thus enters into a dialogue with the institution. v) Separation of the learner from his peer group: although the learners form a fairly sizable population they do not have face-to-face interaction among themselves. Thus distance education becomes a highly individualised learning system. vi) Industrialisation: Distance education is a specific answer to a specific need. It is the developed industrial society that has created a need for a more capsular kind of educational system that will cater to a specialised kind of need for education.
9.5.6 Innovative Technologies in Open and Distance Education: The following are the list of computer related technologies which find their place in Open and Distance Education. Local Area Network (LAN), Wide Area Network (WAN), Electronic Mail (e-mail), Internet, Multimedia, CD-ROM, Electronic Conference, Tele Conference, Elecronic Bulletin Boards. Satellite Communication In India: India has been using satellite communication for educational purposes since 1975. When the first experiment called the Satellite Instructional Television Experiment (SITE) to —broadcast educational programmes to rural schools was conducted. The University Grants Commission (UGC), National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) and Central Institute of Educational Technology (CIET) have been using satellite broadcasting on the national network for various educational programmes. Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) has been transmitting educational programmes over the national network to reach out to its learners. An interesting hardware development in India is the Simputer, a simple, inexpensive multilingual computer originally designed in 1998. It was conceived to allow illiterate people to use computer facilities such as the Internet and email, via facilities such as handwritten text comprehension and audio. Factors limiting its potential are the Simputer's dependence on batteries, and its cost which is still excessive for poor people. The corDECT wireless local loop standard is another technological innovation from India. Unlike the Simputer, however, it has been utilised extensively in India.
322 Sponsored by the Indian Institute of Technology in Madras, corDECT is best implemented within an advanced phone-line infrastructure, with the addition of radio-signal features for Internet connectivity. The system is particularly useful in rural settings, where it can cover approximately 10 km, easily extendable to 25 km, and is considered one of the best connectivity solutions available in this situation.
9.5.7 ICT Infrastructure Essentials in Open Distance Learning
Open distance learning system requires ICT infrastructure to provide various services effectively at different phases of a student life cycle. The ICT infrastructure includes the network infrastructure, the computing infrastructure, the system and application software, the Internet Service Provider(ISP), the bandwidth, the policy framework and the security infrastructure.
The network infrastructure: The institution, that provides education in open distance learning mode requires a structured network at all its operational nodes (headquarters, the regional and study centres) and interconnected each other through a dedicated network so that all student services can be accessed easily by all operational nodes, students and other public.
The computing infrastructure: The standard computing infrastructure include standard computer hardware such as servers(database servers, web servers, backup/recovery servers and application servers) to host various student learning and support services and personal computers (desktop computers, laptops and net books) to access and use services. The stable system and application software: The system and application software is required to develop software for various student learning and support services that are needed at various phases of student learning life cycle.
The internet service provider(ISP) and internet bandwidth: Internet bandwidth is needed to access web-based student learning and support services. The amount of internet bandwidth required is directly proportional to the number of users, who access the service(s) and is one of the parameters to access a service easily with no time. The security infrastructure: Security infrastructure is essentially required to protect the systems(servers and personal computers), software,
323 applications and the data that are being used in an institution, where student learning and support services are made available in open distance learning system.
The policy document: Policy document covers various policies that are to be enforced in an institution where student learning and support services are made available in a open distance learning system. The policies shall broadly categorized to operational policies, behavioral policies, resource access(system, service and network) control policies, security policies and organizational policies. The policy document helps to setup the ICT infrastructure properly and to have access control.
9.5.8 Technological Barriers
There are various factors, which influence the growth and adoption of communication technology in a country. New communication technologies are not free from technical problems. There are a number of studies which revealed that technology itself as a barrier in its growth. For instance, lack of regular flow of electricity can make technologies defunct. Appropriateness: The technology should suit the geographical conditions of the country. For instance, India‘s policy of having her own communication satellite to cover the entire country is justifiable.
Accessibility: Certain constraints such as lack of money, lack of sufficient software, courseware, lack of political will ctc. will invariably affect the accessibility of technology to educational sector. Handling: Computers need specialized operators and programmers to use them.
Maintenance: The poor maintenance of various technologies imported or adopted from the developed countries may be due to lack of expertise, lack of resources/infrastructure, non-availability of spare parts, or indifferent attitude of users. Storage and use of information: The hot and humid climate (for a major part of the year) of many South Asian countries is not suitable for computer technology. It is difficult for educational institutions in these countries to arrange venues free from dust, heat and moisture for the storage of data, software and hardware.
Software/courseware: There is a dearth of relevant software/courseware (a lesson is stored electro-mechanically for teaching/learning a particular skill).
Various Social and Psychological Problems: The communication technologies like satellite, television, radio, telephone, computer, videotext. etc., if adapted by the Indian society on a large scale, could make the country a well-informed one,
324 which in turn may bring about a change in the political structure of the society. Technologies, at the same time, may isolate the members in the same office working in small cubicles. The absence of physical communication may create psychological isolation, which will give rise to social problems. Unemployment: Application of new communication technologies may disturb the rhythm and pace of the society. For example, the introduction of computer threw out many typists, secretaries and clerks. Direct dialling system may throw out many telephone operators from offices and agencies. Human and administrative factors: If the students do not have access to the technology being implemented, the situation may cause serious problems. Two classes of students, the ‗haves‘ and the ‗have-nots‘, will emerge which, in turn, will cause various other problems.
Economic factors: The application of any communication technology is a costly affair. The investment runs into millions of dollars. Such a huge investment requirement forces many of us not to use technology.
Equipment-related factors: The problems pertaining to The equipment or the hardware is usually imported from various developed countries. For maintenance the adopting countries will have to rely on the foreign agencies.
Conclusion:
It is true that ICT is playing a vital role in open distance learning but at same time there are many issues and challenges that are to be addressed for smooth functioning of various online services that are to be implemented for its learners and other public. In this topic, the required ICT infrastructure and various issues and challenges in usage and setting up of ICT infrastructure in open distance learning are addressed. The institution that is providing education in ODL mode should look at all the addressed issues and challenges and take necessary precautions with a proper action plan along with timeframe.
Check Your Progress: 3 6. What are the characteristics of open learning? (Any three points)------7. Mention the ICT infrastructure facilities essential for Open and Distance learning. ------8. Write any three technological barriers in Distant Learning?------
325 9.6 TELECONFERENCING
Teleconferencing - Definition
Teleconferencing refers to "interactive electronic communication among people located at two or more different places." Today, teleconferencing may connect multiple locations and can be divided into three major types: audio, video, and computer. These types can be combined for an almost endless set of applications. Need for Teleconferencing College and university users have discovered that teleconferencing enables them to
extend educational opportunities to distant locations; accommodate a variety of classes, from college credit courses to continuing education and public service programs; and provide a flexible format for meetings. gain information within their budget. Types of teleconferencing: There are four types of teleconferencing based on the nature and extent of interactivity and the sophistication of the technology: 1. audio conferencing 2. audio-graphic conferencing 3. videoconferencing 4. Web-based conferencing Audio conferencing Audio conferencing involves the live (real-time) exchange of voice messages over a telephone network. Audio conferencing is actually telephone conferencing because telephone technology makes up the network that interconnects the conferees. Although audio conferencing is not entirely suitable for such tasks as resolving conflicts and interviewing, the medium's advantages include the following:
Use of familiar technology--the telephone Accessibility (400,000,000 telephones worldwide) Ability to set up conferences on short notice Comparative low cost
To make audio conferencing more comfortable, speaker phones are available to permit callers physical flexibility. These work satisfactorily for up to eight or ten
326 participants. More sophisticated speakers are available for larger groups. Costs for dial-up conferencing vary; telco or meet-me usually will cost $20 to $40 per location per hour. The following audio teleconferencing options are available: Dedicated Conference Networks: A dedicated conference network permanently wires preselected locations together. To conference, callers need only to pick up the phone at each location. These systems can be very large. The University of Wisconsin, for example, uses a network of more than 200 locations throughout the state to disseminate information and teach classes. Dedicated networks generally have better sound quality than dial-up networks and are cost-effective when usage is high. Dial-Up Networks: Dial-up networks use the public switched telephone network. In the telco operator-assisted mode, the operator calls and connects all participants. This system works well for a few locations, but difficulties occur when numbers increase. Meet-Me Conferencing: To overcome these difficulties in Dial-up networks, several private telephone conferencing companies have formed to offer a new type of service, "Meet Me" Conferencing, in which each participant calls the conferencing centre from any convenient location. If everyone is prompt, a large number of locations can be interconnected for conferences in five minutes or less. The sound quality is superior and is generally unaffected by numbers of participants. Telephones anywhere can be connected, in contrast to limited locations in dedicated networks. Meet-me systems are now available for in-house installation where usage makes them cost-effective. Direct Dial Conferencing Systems: Direct Dial Conferencing System is an innovation that makes it possible for one caller to set up a telephone conference with up to six additional participants by using a touch tone phone. Audio-Graphic Conferencing Blending video and audio conferencing characteristics, "audio graphics" refers to the transmission of print and graphic information over telephone lines to complement voice communication with visuals. Audio graphics systems include a variety of devices: electronic pens, blackboards, and tablets, as well as computer systems, slow scan television, microfiche, telewriters, and facsimile machines. Although not widely used, a potentially useful educational device is the electronic blackboard. The blackboard converts writing to audible tones which are transmitted over telephone lines, received at one or more locations, and displayed upon a television screen. Video Conferencing Video teleconferencing combines the audio and visual media to provide interactive voice communications and television pictures. The images include anything that can be captured by a television camera. Though full motion video (such as that
327 transmitted on home television) is the most familiar technology, a number of options exist, including freeze-frame television, compressed video systems, and full motion video systems. Costs vary for these three systems; freeze frame is the least and full motion video the most expensive. Although most educational institutions use economical audio teleconferencing, several pioneer videoconferencing systems (including satellite systems) are available. Many video systems used in higher education are dedicated networks used on a local, regional, or state wide basis. Most use one-way video and two-way audio networks for point-to-multipoint education programming. Some programs are directed toward health professionals, others to continuing education courses, university credit courses, and administrative meetings. Several full motion educational video systems connect as many as 30 locations. Freeze- Frame Television: Freeze-frame, or Slow Scan Television, uses the narrowband telephone system to transmit data, voice, and still video images. Transmission time may vary from a few seconds to more than a minute.
Compressed Video Systems: A Compressed Video System also uses a telephone data circuit. It compresses the video signal to eliminate redundant electronic information with a picture processor. The video picture appears instantly but there may be some jerkiness or blurring of fast movements. Full Motion Video Systems: A Full Motion Video System uses wideband channels to send video, voice, and data. Because of the large channel capacity, it transmits a full video picture with continuous motion instantly, using cable, microwave, or satellites. The advantage of full motion teleconferencing is high quality and natural conferencing format. The major disadvantages of full motion video are its high cost and limitations in linking multiple locations. Unlike the systems that use telephone channels, wideband video cannot readily link multiple sites for two-way video. Computer conferencing / Web-based conferencing Computer conferencing / Web-based conferencing, as the name implies, involves the transmission of text, and graphic, audio and visual media via the Internet; it requires the use of a computer with a browser and communication can be both synchronous and asynchronous.
328 How does it work? You schedule your event/lecture etc. in one of our teleconference rooms on campus. We send your event to ICS (Instructional Communications Systems) by using our compressed video polycom teleconferencing unit. ICS then bridges (interconnects) this event out to all sites you have requested see it. The bridge provides sites access to the program via a web address. You provide the link to your participants and they can listen or watch from their computers. You and your participants can then have access to the files whenever you choose or it can be watched live. It is important to remember that it is one-way video and audio: the sites can see and hear your event but not be seen or heard. When participants click on the link to begin playback, their streaming media players download several seconds worth of audio or video into a part of memory called a buffer. When the buffer is full, it sends data into the player portion of the software and they hear or see your program. At the same time, the software continuously downloads data into the buffer. This process allows nearly immediate access. There is no long wait for an entire file to be downloaded. We can also provide a live streamed link to your conference or meeting and allow participants to listen or watch via their computers as the conference is happening. Live streams can also be archived for later playback. Essentials of Web-based conferencing: All you need to be able to listen to streaming media is a computer with an Internet connection, sound card, and speakers or headphones, and a streaming audio player. There are several free streaming media players available for download from the web including Real Network RealAudio, Microsoft's Windows Media, Apple's QuickTime, and Nullsoft's streaming MP3 technology, Shoutcast. ICS records data in RealAudio format. Advantages of Web Conferencing : Web teleconferencing's main benefit is its immediacy. It begins just seconds after you click on the link. TThere is no delay in programming and no waiting for long downloads. Web teleconferencing is a great way to provide wider access to your event. Satellite Teleconferencing : Downlink courses, seminars, meetings, etc., via satellite; the programs are down linked to campus sites; one-way video and two-way audio; can be held in numerous locations on campus. Uses of Teleconferencing: Teleconferencing is used in both formal and non-formal learning contexts to facilitate teacher-learner and learner-learner discussions, as well as to access experts and other resource persons remotely. In open and distance learning, teleconferencing is a useful tool for providing direct instruction and learner support, minimizing learner isolation. The audio graphic teleconferencing network aims to provide continuing education and academic upgrading to students in different parts of India where access to higher education has been extremely limited. Other higher education institutions using teleconferencing in their online learning programs include the
329 Open University of the United Kingdom, Indira Gandhi National Open University, India, University of Malaysia and Open University of Hong Kong.
CHECK YOUR PROGRESS: 4 9. Define Teleconferencing------10. Write the different types of teleconferencing. ------11. What is Audiographics?------12. Give the Advantages of Web Conferencing. ------
9.7 INTEGRATING ICTS IN TEACHER EDUCATION Information and communication technologies (ICTs) are a major factor in shaping the new global economy and producing rapid changes in society. Within the past decade, the new ICT tools have fundamentally changed the way people communicate and do business. They have produced significant transformations in industry, agriculture, medicine, business, engineering and other fields. They also have the potential to transform the nature of education-where and how learning takes place and the roles of students and teachers in the learning process. Teacher education institutions may either assume a leadership role in the transformation of education or be left behind in the swirl of rapid technological change. For education to reap the full benefits of ICTs in learning, it is essential that
pre-service and in-service teachers have basic ICT skills and competencies. Teacher education institutions and programmes must provide the leadership for pre-service and in-service teachers and model the new pedagogies and tools for learning. They must also provide leadership in determining how the new technologies can best be used in the context of the culture, needs, and economic conditions within their country. To accomplish these goals, teacher education institutions must work closely and effectively with K-12 teachers and administrators, national or state educational agencies, teacher unions, business and community
330 organizations, politicians and other important stakeholders in the educational system. Teacher education institutions also need to develop strategies and plans to enhance the teaching-learning process within teacher education programmes and to assure that all future teachers are well prepared to use the new tools for learning. Objectives of ICT Education in Teacher Education courses ICT is introduced in secondary teacher training courses at various levels as a compulsory subject or a special field subject. Sometimes, it is also introduced as one of the subjects to be studied under a course titled ‗Educational Technology‘ /‗Innovations in Education‘/ ‗ICT in Education‘ / ‗Instructional Technology‘/ ‗Computers in Education‘. Various objectives/rationales for introducing the course are as follows: Understanding the scope and importance of ICT in contemporary society.
Developing effective perspectives and attitude towards emerging technologies. Developing skills in handling, maintaining and protecting different types of hardware and equipment in the institutions of learning. Acquiring a theoretical basis of ICT and to develop an awareness about recent developments in the area of ICT. Acquiring adequate knowledge about the fundamentals of computers and operating systems. Acquiring the necessary skills of handling software packages for the purpose of education in the institutions of learning. Acquiring knowledge about new Internet technologies and their place in the field of education. Approaches to ICT Integration in Teacher Education
Use of ICT within teacher-training programs around the world is being approached in a number of ways with varying degrees of success. These approaches were subsequently described, refined and merged into four primary approaches as follows. Use of ICT within teacher training programs around the world is being approached in a number of different ways with varying degrees of success. These approaches were subsequently described, refined and merged into following approaches:
331 1. ICT skills development approach: Here importance is given to providing training in use of ICT in general. Student teachers are expected to be skilled users of ICT for their daily activities. Knowledge about various software, hardware and their use in educational process is provided.
2. ICT pedagogy approach: Emphasis is on integrating ICT skills in a respective subject. Drawing on the principles of constructivism, pre-service teachers design lessons and activities that center on the use of ICT tools that will foster the attainment of learning outcomes. This approach is useful to the extent that the skills enhance ICT literacy skills and the underlying pedagogy allows students to further develop and maintain these skills in the context of designing classroom based resources. 3. Subject-specific approach: Here ICT is embedded into one‘s own subject area.
By this method, teachers/subject experts are not only exposing students to new and innovative ways of learning but are providing them with a practical understanding of what learning and teaching with ICT looks and feels like. In this way, ICT is not an 'add on' but an integral tool that is accessed by teachers and students across a wide range of the curricula.
4. Practice driven approach: Here emphasis is on providing exposure to the use of ICT in practical aspects of teacher training. Focus is on developing lesson lans, power point presentations, multimedia lessons and technology related assignments. Using ICT and implementing it in their work experience at various levels provides students an opportunity to assess the facilities available at their school and effectively use their own skills.
Ideally, an integrated approach is to be followed for developing ICT skills in teaching. Whatever may be the approach followed in the institutions to develop knowledge about ICT, it has its own limitations and coupled with other reasons, they are not making student-teachers fully confident of using ICT in their day-to-day classrooms and other situations. All the four approaches are required to develop awareness of expert level skills in student-teachers.
Thus, ICT in teacher training can take many forms. Teachers can be trained to learn how to use ICT tools. ICT can be used as a core or a complementary
332 means to the teacher training process (Collis & Jung, 2003). The various ways in which ICT teacher training efforts could be classified into four categories are shown in the following Figure.
ICT application in Teacher Education
ICT as core ICT as Delivery Part of Content
ICT
ICT As ICT as Core Facilitator Content
Under the changing scenario, there is a need to redefine the role of a teacher-educator. The National Council of Teacher Education (NCTE), based on a thorough job analysis, has come out with three areas in which a teacher-educator needs to acquire mastery. These are i) five performance areas; ii) ten competency areas; and iii) five commitment areas. For the successful integration of ICT in teacher education, the teacher in addition to taking up the role responsibilities mentioned in these areas, must shoulder the additional, rather survival responsibilities outlined below :-
Act as a role model for pre-service trainees and in-service teachers, demonstrating the use of technology across the curriculum. Encourage technology integration among the trainees, colleagues, teachers and parents. Be involved in planning and implementing ICT professional development training. Be up-to-date with the latest technological developments and advise the in situations concerning technology advancements and up gradation. Interact through e-mail/forum/communities/blogging with trainees, participating schools, and parents. Aid in the implementation of technology plans of the institutions.
333 Plan, design, and demonstrate the use of multimedia applications for instructional use through multimedia projects. Examine a variety of evaluation and assessment tools including electronic portfolio assessment. Become active, competent online users of telecommunication services and act as model in the use of internet as an instructional tool. Direct trainees and teachers to digital resources that will be able to answer their questions. Address issues related to acceptable user policies, student safety, ethics, security, copyright, etc. Be involved in marketing the best practices of technology integration. Manage the available resources more productively to face the ever increasing financial crunch. Use information literacy to access, evaluate, and use information from a variety of sources. Have the competencies in software evaluations Techno-Pedagogy a Skill
The aim of teacher education is to develop skills and appropriate knowledge among teacher trainees for using and integrating the correct technology in an appropriate manner. Every teacher should know how to use technology, pedagogy and subject area content effectively in their daily classroom teaching. It is clear that merely introducing technology to the educational process is not enough. One must ensure technological integration since technology by itself will not lead to change. Rather, it is the way in which teachers integrate technology that has the potential to bring change in the education process. Hence, attitude and self-efficacy towards technology play an important role. For teachers to become fluent in the usage of educational technology means going beyond mere competence with the latest tools to developing an understanding of the complex web of relationships among users, technologies, practices, and tools. Teachers must understand their role in technologically-oriented classrooms. Thus, knowledge about technology is important in itself, but not as a separate and unrelated body of knowledge divorced from the context of teaching--it is not only about what technology can do, but perhaps what technology can do for them as teachers. In techno-pedagogy, there are three areas of knowledge, namely: content, pedagogy, and technology. Content (C) is the subject matter that is to be taught. Pedagogy (P) describes the collected practices, processes, strategies, procedures, and methods of teaching and learning. It also includes knowledge about the aims of instruction, assessment, and student learning.
Technology (T) encompasses modern technologies such as computer, Internet, digital video and commonplace technologies including overhead projectors, blackboards, and books.
334 Speaking truthfully, technology integration entails the understanding and negotiating of the relationships among the aforementioned three components. Good teaching is not simply adding technology to the existing teaching and content domain. Rather, the introduction of technology causes the representation of new concepts and requires developing sensitivity to the dynamic, transactional relationship between all three components suggested by the TPC framework. (Koehler, M. J. and Mishap, P. 2005) Depending upon the nature of content, scope of content, and level of students, appropriate technology integration must be sought. Technology as an aid enhances the process of learning and helps in achieving higher level objectives.
Skills Necessary for ICT Integration
The student teachers have to develop ICT skills which allow them to prepare for careers, requiring them to acquire new knowledge, learn new technologies, rapidly process information, make decisions and communicate in a global and diverse society. The various skills and competencies to be developed on the part of student teachers would be: Surfing the Internet and locating useful information from the Internet for the development of lesson plans. Developing lessons plans incorporating student use of technology in the learning process. Evaluating and selecting appropriate software for a particular subject as per student needs. Generating printed documents like student assignments, newsletters, communication, etc. utilizing a variety of applications software like word processing and desktop publishing. Managing student data ; using data management tools for efficiently managing learning. Using technology to gather, organize, and report information about student performance like Excel and Access for database management. Developing tools to evaluate technology-based student projects including multi-media, word processing, database, spreadsheet, PowerPoint, desktop publishing, and Internet/telecommunications. Using the Internet to support professional development including locating professional organizations, communicating with other teachers electronically, and participating in on-line professional development workshops and seminars. Developing assignments and project work for students; giving them broader and deeper knowledge in a field of study; developing critical thinking and infusing creativity among students. Impact of ICT on Student and Teachers It acts as the gateway to world of information and enables teachers to be updated.
For professional development and awareness of innovative trends in instructional methodologies, evaluation mechanism etc. For effective implementation of certain student - centric methodologies such as project-based learning which puts the students in the role of active researches and technology becomes the appropriate tool.
335 It is an effective tool for information acquiring - thus students are encouraged to look for information from multiple sources and they are now more informed then before. It has enabled better communication, presentation of ideas in an effective manner.
The dissemination of ideas to a larger mass now seems possible due to technology.
Student-teachers are transformed into self learners.
Barriers to Integration of ICT into Education
In teacher training programs at the secondary level, the ICT education scenario is struggling with the following problems: Only at the awareness development level are objectives being achieved, but
higher order thinking skills regarding the use of ICT tend not to be occurring.
Technology, pedagogy and content area integration is a rare feature. All components are dealt with separately which creates confusion for students.
There is a serious discrepancy among syllabi of teacher training institutions and secondary schools. Syllabi at various institutions are not on a par with school level curriculum.
Time duration of the courses related to ICT education is too short to develop knowledge and necessary skills among students to achieve higher order thinking skills.
There is a lack of availability of proper infrastructural facilities at most of the institutions.
There is a mismatch between available hardware and software to develop required learning resources.
Support from technical staff for maintenance is tedious.
Lack of confidence and competence among the Teacher Educators due to lack of proper technological knowledge, lack of relevant training in ICT related skills and fear of failure.
Lack of access to the resources including home access, is another complex barrier that discourages teachers from integrating new technologies into education.
336 Another challenge of preparing teachers to teach with technology is that as result of knowledge generation, our knowledge about computer technology is constantly changing. In addition to this factor, there are various other dimensions like attitude, motivation, computer anxiety, and computer self- efficacy which play an important role in developing skills and competencies among prospective teachers.
Conclusion: A teacher plays a pivotal role in the process of teaching learning. Hence, knowledge of ICT and skills to use ICT in teaching/learning has gained enormous importance for today‘s teachers. Teachers are expected to know to successfully integrate ICT into his/her subject areas to make learning more meaningful. This knowledge development during pre-service training has gained much importance with the notion that exposure to ICT during this time is helpful in increasing student teachers‘ willingness to integrate technology with classroom teaching. Thus, management of change in teacher education is a complex and demanding task involving comprehension, concern, caution, and contemplation. Planners and administrators of teacher education have to provide academic leadership to prepare reflective teachers who can manage the educational system efficiently at various stages of education at the pre-primary, primary, elementary, secondary, and higher secondary levels. Effective change in schools is possible only when there are corresponding changes in the management of teacher education programmes.
CHECK YOUR PROGRESS: 5 13. How ICT can be applied in Teacher Education? ------14. What are the approaches to ICT Integration in Teacher Education? ------15. Mention any three essential techno-pedagogy skills. ------9.8 ICT IN EDUCATIONAL MANAGEMENT Being the largest producer of technical and professional manpower, India is an active participant in the development and use of information and communication technologies. Rapid developments in information and communication technologies (ICT) in recent years have resulted in significant changes in the way the world operates and communicates. This in turn has had an impact on educational needs, both in terms of the content and the delivery of educational services, and there has been increasing pressure on decision-makers to
337 acquire new technologies. At the same time, forms of ICT are multiplying with an increasing array of ICT options for decision-makers to choose from when integrating ICT into educational management. Computers can be used extensively for educational administration. The following are some of the areas where computers can be used for effective educational administration:
• General Administration • Pay Roll and Financial Accounting • Administration of Student Data • Inventory Management • Personnel Records Maintenance • Library System
Information and Communication Technology (ICT) plays a vital role in supporting powerful, efficient management and administration in education sector. It is specified that technology can be used right from student administration to various resource administration in an education institution. General Administration
Office automation facilitates the basic functions of an office as an information processing centre. the functions of Office Automotion System (OAS), involve:
Collection of information, Information processing, Information storing and Information retrieval.
The application areas of automated office in general administration of an educational institution include: (a) Word Processing: Word processing has been widely used and perceived as the driving force of the automated offtce. Word processing be linked to a computer network permitting documents to be shared within and between school offices. The individual schools can get access to these letters using internet. Using spell check the documents can be checked for typing and spelling errors. With the use of mail-merge, personalised letters can be prepared for students and parents on school opening and closure, student progress, and other information. (b) e-mail: Electronic mail or e-mail refers to the procedure of sending messages from one person to another person using internet facilities. Advantages of using e-mail are : (a) speed, resulting in instantaneous delivery, (b) low-cost, (c) freedom of access, which permits user to send and receive messages as they
338 wish, (d) increased productivity obtained by decreasing the number of times a sender wishes to contact a receiver. (c) Computer Filing: Electronic systems such as word processor, data base Educational Administration management systems, and spread sheets can store large amount of data information on a compact disk. The benefits of electronic filing in a school are: reduction in storage space, faster access to information, reduction in misfiling, portability of files, and limited dependence on filing systems developed by office personnel.
(d) computer calendars: The electronic calendar has the capability as does the desk calendar, to setup an appointment schedule maintaining dates, times, expected participants, and space for comments. A school calendar can also be created which would record the date and time of plays, athletic events, field jobs, guest speakers, social events, reporting periods etc. (e) Computer Networks: Electronic network offers users the ability to communicate and share information. The networks could be local area networks (LAN), wide area networks (WAN), e-mail, teleconferencing, or internet. The electronic networks are also very useful in giving access to the results of entrance tests, board examinations, admission announcements, circulars, and other useful information. Computer Based Payroll And Financial Accounting
Payroll: Computers are used widely for preparation and maintenance of payrolls system. It has the potential in terms of time saving, accuracy, legibility, data storage, record check, and amenable for further data analysis, comparative statements, task calculations, and preparation of summary reports. Currently, the salary payments to teachers, and other staff of the schools are paid through banks. Through computer payroll system the school can prepare the summary statements of the net pay of its staff and the same can be shared with the banks electronically or hard copy to facilitate the bankers to pay the salary due. The computer payroll system should be flexible enough to allow the schools to generate pay reports not only month-wise but also bimonthly, quarterly, or annually and handle school payroll schedules simultaneously without creating serious or difficult problems for the staff preparing payrolls.
339 The typical reports produced by payroll systems are:
Preparation of pay slips to employees indicating gross salary on basic pay, special pay, HRA, DG CCA, etc.; deductions of PF, insurance premiums, loans and advances taken etc.: and net salary payable. Summary statements indicating employee with net salary payable. Pension payment reports for the retired employees. Summary statements on payroll totals, deductions etc. Preparation of income tax reports of employees for onward transmission to income tax Departments and employees. Payroll deduction reports. Statements on loans and advances to employees and their recovery. Financial Accounting: Schools maintain financial records regularly on the following activities:
income from student fee and other internal resources; building donations from public; grants from funding agencies; expenditure on building, equipment materials and consumables; salary to employees, administration staff etc.; debts or liabilities to banks and other lending agencies; and maintenance of records of employees provident fund etc.
The records of all these accounts are to be maintained systematically. The computerisation of accounts system helps in maintaining the records accurately, systematically, and timely.
Budget: Annually the schools are required to prepare budget. The use of electronic spreadsheet facilitates the task of preparation of budget of a scbool easy and time saving. In recent years many electronic spreadsheet software packages are available in the market. Microsoft Excel is one of the most popular software packages for financial accounting offered by Microsoft.
Administration of Student Data
The major applications of computers which have direct impact on the students are course schedules, attendance, and academic performance. The three types of student data information are input through computer to monitor and control the
340 course schedules, attendance reports, and graded marks reports. The historical data information obtained through these reports are also used for reviewing the performance of the school. Course schedules: Generation of course schedules and their implementation through computers will certainly improve the control and management of academic calendar. Admission activities: The school should be able to provide the following information to the students and parents on request.
announcement of student registration information on courses offered by schools, historical record/performance of the school, fee structure, entry qualifications
Maintenance of data through computers will facilitate these tasks easier for the school administration. Academic Activities: Once the student admission process is completed, the school administration needs to maintain the following works. Time-tables on completion schedules of syllabus; Conducting unit tests Term-end examinations Final examinations Creation of mark registers Announcement of results through progress reports Assigning the individual classes and subjects to the teachers.
Students‟ Attendance: students is a major concern to school administrators and teachers. Computerisation of student attendance data will help school administrators and teachers: to publicize the rules of schools and to stipulate minimum attendance as a prerequisite for appearing examination to monitor attendance periodically and take appropriate measures to report the attendance data to higher officers and examination boards as required to identify students who are not attending the school periodically to encourage them to attend the school regularly to reduce the clerical time required to check absence of students; to communicate the absence to the parents to enable attendance data to be entered on grade marks reports. As compared to manual attendance maintenance system, a computerised system will be able to meet the above objectives in a better and more effective
341 manner. Advantages of ICT Based Administration
The reasons for the success of computerisation of Educational Management are:
The whole process of conducting examinations and declaration of results has become more manageable even if the students numbers are very large. It is more cost-effective and time saving than the manual system. The accuracy of recorded information is greatly improved. The computers can speed-up the generation of report cards for school personnel, students and parents. Effortless analysis of examination results for school administrators and public. Confidentiality can be maintained to a great extent. Computerisation of entrance examination process facilitates greatly to announce the ranks obtained by students and final admission of students to various courses in shortest possible time. This also helps the students to workout their own alternative career choices depending on the ranks obtained by students, course-wise and college wise seats available, and the demand for individual courses and colleges. Management of Stock Registers (Inventory Management)
Schools are required to maintain all supplies and equipment. The physical inventory should be taken by school periodically in agreement of accounts with records. The inventory list should identify each item by
date of purchase, cost of the items, location of items in the school, item control number, date of last inventory, quantity of each item presently in stock, location of each item in the store, the list of the items, the reorder point, the quantity currently in order, and Bill number the name and address of the shop from where the item is purchased. The inventory system should facilitate adding new equipment and furniture to the master file, removing old or obsolete equipment, and recording the transfer of items. An effective inventory system can enhance the functioning of school, aid cost accounting and development of budget, and avoidance of excessive stocks and shortage of stocks. The transaction file might maintain records on tem number, quantity received, purchase price, items received, and senders name and address. A number of inventory control software packages are available in the market which can satisfy the needs of the institution.
342
Personnel Records Maintenance
Maintenance of personnel records on each employee of a school should include information on:
The application form giving personal particulars Interview and test record Job history including transfers and promotions, Pay details Provident Fund details Education and training record Details of performance assessment and appraisal Absence, accident, medical and disciplinary records with details of formal warnings and suspensions. In-service Training undergone Action Research works or Minor Projects undertaken Seminars and Conferences attended Participation in innovative programmes Self appraisal reports Future goals and Feed-backs Maintenance of personnel records in schools is useful in: providing information on the employee‘s grade, pay, length of service, age, sex, qualifications, training details etc. producing standard letters and forms for recruitment, promotion, transfer, upgrading, appraisal, pay review, career promotions etc. analysing payroll costs and to assess the impact of various pay increase options on the pay structure storing personnel details (like name, address, telephone number, date of birth, educational qualifications and experience, salary, health data etc.) for future reference. providing a basis for decision-making in every area of personnel work like recruitment and selection, termination and redundancy, education and training, pay, administration, health etc. Recording and analysing absenteeism and sickness with reasons.
Computer Based Library Systems
343 Library automation: The term 'library automation' refers to computerisation of manual library activities. Library automation functions include book ordering system, cataloguing, circulation control, and periodicals control systems. The typical functions of an automated book ordering system are:
Pre-order searching, Creating purchasing orders Providing information on orders outstanding and work-in-progress Preparing vouchers to pay for the books Maintaining book fund accounts and printing book fund reports The process of a computer aided cataloguing system include: Preparing spreadsheet Preparing input for cataloguing (from the spreadsheet) Generating bibliographical records Printing the bibliographical records
A typical automated circulation system is usually performs the functions such as Identifying the location of the books, Identification of books on loan to a particular borrower, Printing the recall notices, Renewal of loans, Notification to the library staff of overdue books and printing of overdue notices. The main functions of an automated periodical control system are ordering, renewing, sending reminders to the seller, and reader services. A systematic implementation of library automation will encourage the efficiency of library management. The advantages of having a computerised library database are: The amount of redundancy in the stored data can be reduced and in effect problems of inconsistency in the stored data can be avoided. Different users can share the stored data. Standards can be enforced. Security restrictions can be applied. Data accuracy can be maintained. Library Networks:
A library network is broadly described as a group of libraries coming together with some agreement of understanding to help each other with a view to satisfying the information needs of their clients. Presently, there are three types of computer networks: Local Area Network (LAN): A LAN is a number of related computers and electronic devices that share information over a transmission media. A typical use of LAN is to tie together personal computers in an office so that they can all use a single printer and a file server. The LAN can be within a building or a campus wide network.
Metropolitan Area Network (MAN): Attempts are being made to develop
344 this type of network in metropolitan areas such Delhi, Calcutta, Bangalore, Madras, etc. Wide Area Network (WAN): Library networks have been divided into two categories: general network and specialized network. The latter can further be divided into metropolitan network and countrywide network. Each participating institute prepares computerised bibliographic information and connects it to the network. The user can find out the books available of his interest and their location. They can also get the books on loan through participating institutes. This avoids the duplication of buying expensive books by institutions and saves a lot of money. This promotes and supports adoption of standards in library operations and creates databases for projects, specialists and institutions to provide online information services. Some Important Library Networks in India are
SIRNET: Scientific and Industrial Research Network ERNET: Educational and Research Network DESINET: Defence Science Information Network NICNET: National Information Center Network CALIBNET: Calcutta Library Network DELNET: Developing Library Network Information and Library Network (INFLIBNET), Ahmedabad Madras Library Network Mysore Library Network (MYLIBNET), Mysore
Conclusion: This topic provides a brief account of the identification of the activities in school administration where the computers can be of much help. The identified areas include office automation in general administration, payroll and accounting, administration of student data, inventory management, personnel records maintenance, and library system. The current level of usage indicates a clear integration of ICT for managerial or information-based administration in higher education institutions. This reveals that enhancing the usage of ICT on these functional areas and especially for general administration will enable enhancement of overall information administration.
CHECK YOUR PROGRESS: 6 16. Mention the different areas of ICT Management. ------17. Give the ICT managed academic functions. ------
345 ------18. List the functions of ICT managed admission. ------19. What are the advantages of ICT based administration? (3 points) ------20. Give examples for library networking. ------9.9 FUTURE OF ICT
New technology has permeated every aspect of our lives. Whether you are a scientist, historian, musician or athlete, new technology has changed your discipline, it has changed the things you can do and the ways in which you can do them. There is a growing trend to apply ICT based technologies in schools and other educational institutions. Many schools have dynamic and vibrant virtual learning methods which gives students access to study materials, skills questions, sample papers and assignments. Some schools even have smart interactive white boards for teaching. Children find it more interesting and become more adept in multimedia presentations when engaging with them in their assignments. Quite a percentage (24%) of schools in India use Open Distance Learning. Teachers and students both claim that ICT-enabled learning is more interesting, interactive and keeps students hooked. Assignments are also accepted via email in many schools. The importance of using ICT for improving education has been emphasized in the policy framework for over a decade now in India. Numerous initiatives have been started by both public and private entities. One notable example of a public- private partnership is the Intel Education Initiative. India is working towards the broad use of computer-aided learning in such schools through the Intel® Teach Program. The program covers schools associated with the central Government and various state Governments.
Students Use Information Technologies to: 1. Participate in a media revolution, profoundly affecting the way they think about and use information technologies. 2. Improve the ways of learning in new learning fashions 3. Extend the ability and skills of applying their learning in real situation. 4. Working in groups for cooperative and collaborative learning 5. Developing self-learning habits at their own pace and time.
346 6. Learn with the teacher rather by the teacher. 7. Develop inquiry-learning habits. 8. Use right information at right time to achieve right objective. 9. Review and explore qualitative data. 10. Exchange learning experiences and information with other students and teachers living anywhere in the world. Information technologies facilitate students in their learning process through their active participation on one hand and help teachers on the other hand. Teachers Use The Information Technologies to:
1. Present the material in more interesting and attractive way. 2. Guide and help students in searching the qualitative material. 3. Make best use of time. 4. Coach the students. 5. Provide individualized instruction. 6. Direct the students toward cooperative as well as collaborative learning activities. 7. Prepare learning material for students, rather teaching in conventional situations. 8. Diagnose the learning problem of students and help them to overcome. 9. Solve the study problems of students.
Influence of Information technologies on teaching learning process Information technologies affect the teaching learning process in different ways. These help the teachers in preparing lecture notes for interesting presentation, on the one hand and facilitates the students on the other hand. Different technologies help the teachers and students according to their respective nature and capabilities of storage and presentation. For example computers are used in education for various purposes as they can store and retrieve a huge amount of information. All 20 volumes of the Oxford English Dictionary are contained on one compact disc. Information technologies provide the opportunities of global interactions. Students can learn from interactions with the information, interface, teachers and co-learners using global networks. They can interact at their own and get rid of their routine work. They may review and explore the qualitative as well as quantitative data through computer networks. They can work on group projects participating in peer learning and knowledge building activities. Under the influence of information technologies, teaching and learning occurs in a changed situation. There seems a shift from teacher centered teaching to student centered learning. Menges (1994) stated that the eight ―shifts‖ of Collins (1991) reflect the effects of information technologies on teaching and learning process. These shifts put greater emphasis on the activity of the students than on that of the teacher‘s. These include: 1. A shift from lecture and recitation to coaching Students learn by interactive technologies and teacher facilitates them on how to use and reflect responses. He/she may be diagnosing learning problems and helping learners to find their solutions. When students work with information
347 technologies, teachers reduce the time they spend directing students; they spend more of their time facilitating student learning. 2. A shift from whole-class instruction to small group instruction Students progress at different rates and pace in their learning process. Teachers can interact with individual students and in small groups. They can become better informed of the individual student‘s progress and problems in their learning. So they can help and facilitate students individually in more effective way. 3. A shift form working with better students to working with weaker students Individual differences exist among students at all levels of learning. Information technologies enable teacher to cope with this problem in large classes working with individual students and in small groups. The teacher is then able to aim instruction at one specific target group and to devote time to those who mostly need help. 4. A shift from all students learning the same things to different students learning different things Conventionally, all students had to learn the same things what the teacher intended to teach them in a class. However, now the situation has changed and the use of information technologies has enabled the students to learn what they need, and what they want to learn. There also exists individuality in some common attainments. Resources for learning are available through information technologies, it becomes possible for students to recognize and use the appropriate information to achieve the goals under the guidance of teacher. 5. A shift towards more engaged students
Conventionally, majority of students is passive listener in the classrooms for most of the time. Teachers carry on delivering lectures without any concern of students‘ participation in the teaching learning process. Use of Information technologies in classroom situation particularly interactive technologies however; ensure attention and active involvement of students. Well-designed computer- mediated instruction is more likely to engage individuals for effective learning than simple lectures and book reading a classroom. 6. A shift from assessment based on test performance to assessment based on products and progress
Competencies and skills are necessaries to live a successful and productive life. These may result from undertaking creative projects rather than repeating or paraphrasing information from lectures and textbooks. The best projects include realistic tasks that generalize the student‘s learning and its application in new situations. Information technologies actively involve the students in different competency based activities through skill oriented projects in real situations. 7. A shift from competitive to a cooperative goal structure Collaborative and cooperative learning approach provides learners the opportunities of extensive interaction. Students have access to extensive databases and share their own work through networked communications to work on collaborative projects. Teachers guide the students on how to share and interact in networked collaborative learning environments.
348 8. A shift from the primacy of verbal thinking to the integration of visual and verbal thinking. Using information technologies students would have extensive experience with video than with print, yet instruction is based primarily on print. However, visual literacy is poorly understood and poorly utilized in perceiving instruction. Teachers need to consider what capacities for visual knowledge and skills students should possess, and determine how they can ensure progress towards developing these capacities. Information technology can help the teacher on the one hand and facilitates the learners on the other hand. Both, teachers and students get rid of their routine work, and have to play their new roles in new situations respectively. Teachers spend much of their time in assisting the students rather lecturing; and students access the information of their need. Menges (1994. pp 188-190) considers the changed role of teachers of great importance. The following shifts reflect the new role of teachers in new situations. 1. A Shift From Covering Material To Assisting Students In Sampling Material Teachers decide what is essential and what is optional for students when the information is too much to decide by students. The essential information can be assigned and students guided to work in an effective way. The content should span a variety of media to ensure that students become adept in using information sources and that they experience the effects of diverse media. 2. A Shift From Unilaterally Declaring What Is Worth Knowing to Criteria That Identify What Is Important Instead of providing net packages of content, the teacher plunges into primary sources with students. Together they develop ways to discriminate the more important from the less important. Courses‘ exercises can help to develop criteria about the importance of information and its use for specific purposes. Students can discuss these criteria for understanding and developing the new one if needed. A discipline-specific criterion validates the information and enables students to develop expertise in formulating criteria in other disciplines. They must also medium specific as the characteristics of print and electronic information significantly differ from each other. 3. A Shift From Ranking Students Relative to One Another to Negotiating Standards Specific to Individuals Information technologies promote diverse academic opportunities and paths for each student. Students show progress according to their capabilities and some students may progress slowly than others. The teacher can not use uniform standards of achievement and uniform rate of learning to evaluate students‘ work. Therefore, it would be necessary to negotiate learning objectives and rates of progress that reflect individual interests, abilities, skills and needs.
4. A Shift From Grading According To Individual Attainments To Grading According To Collaborative Contributions Evaluation of individual work is easy. But judging and rewarding individuals‘ work in group performance is difficult because roles and responsibilities of each group member vary. Information technologies permit almost variability in the tasks that group members pursue.
349 5. A Shift From Merely Verifying Student Source To Deriving Standards for Fair Use and Credit Plagiarism is a curse in academic affairs. For a teacher it is too difficult to verify all the sources to ensure the originality of students‘ work. This role of plagiarism detector seems impractical when sources are so numerous and information can be so easily altered. But the computer software has made it possible to detect the plagiarism. 6. A Shift From Requiring Students To Produce Knowledge To Rewarding Them for Demonstrating Originality A student should have the skills and capabilities of understanding and applying knowledge in real situations. Without the application of knowledge students can no longer retain it and soon they forget. In the era of information technologies students should be able to apply core concepts and generalize principles to significantly different situations. Exposure to information technologies leads to this affective principle. PREPARATION FOR THE AGE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
Certain skills and capabilities of using different information technologies are necessary for students as well as teachers. Therefore, gradual encounters with the technologies are necessary to prepare themselves for the age of information technology. They will anticipate in the age of information technology as:
Requiring students to use electronic databases in their searches. Encouraging students to use electronic mail to ask questions, and for submitting assignments.
Becoming familiar with the advantages and disadvantages of the technologies and exploring the capabilities of compact-disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), tele/videoconferencing etc.
Surveying students about their familiarity with the information technologies and asking if they will share their knowledge and skills with the class. Using a word processor to develop class notes and editing a version to use as students‘ handouts and a version for overhead transparencies.
Using computer programs for keeping records in large class-enrollment lists, test items and so on and having students review and update their own record from time to time. Using different packages for data analysis Encouraging students to include visual elements as part of their projects.
Spending students‘ time as a multimedia workstation, planning a presentation; assembling projection graphics, video clips, animation, sound and other materials; trying to match particular materials with specific learning objectives; and integrating the materials into a unified presentation.
Eliminating and/ or minimizing physical problems arising from the use of information technologies.
350 Areas for Teacher Engagement
The teachers should develop interest in collaboratively exploring
. Course Redesign – new models to integrate technology into learning environments. They must particularly concentrate in high enrollment courses or large multi-section opportunities. Their redesign efforts typically should look to integrate the technologies we are currently promoting and working to better understand. . Blogs – novel uses of blogs particularly in the areas of blogs for teaching, personal content management, research, and portfolio creation/management. . Social and Collaborative Technologies – novel uses of collaborative environments (such as the Google Docs suite) to support teaching, learning, and engagement. . Social Ratings and Content Aggregation – how aggregation and social ratings can impact teaching and learning. . Serious Game and Virtual Worlds – novel uses of games for teaching and learning purposes to establish learning environments within virtual worlds. Empowering 21st century teaching and learning
The Intel® Teach Program is a professional development program that helps classroom teachers effectively integrate technology to enhance student learning. With over 7 million teachers trained in 60 countries, Intel Teach has been driving systemic change in teaching and learning since 1999. Teachers learn from other teachers how, when and where to incorporate technology into their lesson plans, with a focus on developing students' higher-order thinking skills. As a result of the Intel Teach Program, 89 percent of teachers reported using technology with their students. Moreover, they also experience new approaches to create assessment tools and align lessons with educational learning goals and state and central syllabus guidelines. In India, Intel® Teach Program was launched in February 2000 in the cities of Delhi, Bangalore and Mumbai. Within a span of nine years, the program has impacted over one million teachers all over India in both In-service and Pre-service segments. The Program has been impacting many more students and changing the way teaching and learning takes place in the classrooms. The program is receiving great support from all central and state education bodies like state education boards, SCERTs, universities, etc. for teacher and educationist reforms for technology supported project based learning in the schools and Pre- service institutions.
351 Utility of Intel® Teach Program 1. In-Service: The Intel® Teach In-service Program offers K-12 classroom teachers a curriculum designed specifically for their needs. Teachers learn how, when, and where to incorporate technology tools and resources into their teaching. They also learn how to create assessment tools and align lesson plans with provincial learning outcomes. The goal is to prepare today's teachers and students for tomorrow's demands.
Under the program, trainings have been conducted for teachers from schools of Central Board of Secondary Education Board (CBSE), Indian Certificate of School Examination Board (ICSE), State Education Boards and Projects and Support Organizations under the administrative control of Union Department of Education. Intel Teach program provides both face-to-face and online instruction to help teachers integrate technology into their classrooms. The Intel Teach trainings emphasize on the effective use of technology in the classroom, research, communications productivity strategies and working in teams to solve problems. Teachers learn how, when and where to incorporate technology into their lesson plans, with a focus on developing students' higher-order thinking skills. They experience new approaches to create assessment tools and align lessons with educational learning goals and state syllabus outcomes. Teachers are provided with all the necessary curriculum materials.
2. Pre-service:
The Intel® Teach Pre-service Program empowers the faculty in teacher education institutions to train their students with the knowledge, skills and attitude required to integrate technology supported project based learning into the future classrooms. During the training, pre-service teachers learn how to integrate technology judiciously and seamlessly in their classroom processes. As a result, they enter their first classrooms equipped with the knowledge, skills, and capabilities to integrate technology resources into any unit they teach.
In India, the program works in close collaboration with Universities and apex educational bodies. Till date, 36 Universities have integrated the Intel Teach Pre-Service curriculum in the Bachelor of Education (B. Ed.) courses. The
352 program is presently associated with 66 Universities and 11 State Councils of Education Research & Training (SCERT‘s).
3. National Educators‟ Network
National Educators‘ Network (NEN) is an innovative educators‘ forum of like-minded and techno- savvy educators and teachers. This community has redefined the role of a teacher from an information giver to that of a facilitator, a co-learner and a co-investigator with the students. Key offerings for schools under the Inspiring Young Innovators School Program: Science workshops and competitions for all students Exposure visits for selected students and teachers to the Intel campus Talks and interactive sessions with Intel technologists Training and workshops for teachers Program Newsletter
The aim of the Network is to carry forward the essence of Intel® Teach Program; facilitate integration of technology supported project based learning in the school curriculum and prepare students to face the 21st Century knowledge economy.
CHECK YOUR PROGRESS: 7 21. What would be the future impacts of ICT on teaching?
------22. Give the future ICT Areas for Teacher Engagement. ------23. List the useful programmes of Intel® Teach Program. ------24. What are the Key offerings for schools‘ Inspiring Young Innovators? ------
9.10 Let Us Sum Up Information technologies are the result of knowledge explosion. These include hardware & software technologies and facilitate teaching learning process. Using Information Technologies learners are now able to participate in learning communities throughout the world. They are independent and free in choice of their programmes of study and access to the resources. e-learning is growing in popularity in all areas and levels of education and training. The critical attributes of e-learning include flexibility of time, place and pace of study. e-learning affords
353 opportunities to design learning environments that are authentic. e-learning can manifest itself in four different ways: Individualized self-paced e-learning online, Individualized self-paced e-learning offline, Group-based e-learning synchronously and Group-based e-learning asynchronously. Blended e-learning refers to the learning which takes place through a combination of face-to-face facilitated learning, e-learning and self-study. Some of the advantages of blended learning include; cost effectiveness for both the accrediting learning institution and the learner, accessibility to a post secondary education, and flexibility in scheduling and timetabling of course work. In an era where the world of education and learning are changing rapidly, bringing new realities and challenges to Teacher Education Institutions through innovations in use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) has important implications. Today Teacher Education in India is being renovated and redesigned to include the changes taking place across the world. Use of ICT within teacher-training programs around the world is being approached in a number of ways with varying degrees of success. These approaches were subsequently described, refinedand merged into four primary approaches as ICT skills development approach, ICT pedagogy approach, Subject- specified approach and Practice-driven approach. Under the changing scenario, there is a need to redefine the role of a teacher-educator. He has to act as a role model for pre-service trainees and in- service teachers, demonstrating the use of technology across the curriculum and to encourage technology integration among the trainees, colleagues, teachers and parents. Integrating ever-changing ICT is a challenge to the academia as it throws open new corridors for both teachers and learners. Students may learn collaboratively, share information, exchange their learning experiences and work through cooperative activities in virtual learning communities in Open and Distance mode. Information technologies facilitate teaching learning process in more productive fashion. Similarly, the role of teacher is also different in new settings than in the conventional system. Teacher facilitates and guides the learners in their study playing the role of a coach or mentor. Now teacher is not at the centre of the instruction and sole source of information as in traditional classrooms. He/she decides contents/experiences and/or activities, locates the resources and guides learners how to have access and utilize the
354 information for required outcomes. ICT is also useful for the automation of various important functions of an institution and in improving Educational Management. The Intel® Teach Project has been launched to improve the teachers‘ efficiency. In nutshell, in India, information technologies are restructuring teaching learning process to meet the International standards. 9.11 Unit-End Exercises 1.Define the terms – e-learning, Blended learning and Open and Distance Education. 2. Discuss the different modes of e-learning and Blended learning. 3. Explain the characteristics and special features of open and distance education. 4. List the ICT infrastructure requirements for open and distance education. 5. Give the advantages of Blended learning. 6. What is Teleconferencing? Describe its different types. 7. Explain the different approaches to integrate ICT into Teacher Education. 8. What are the ICT related skills essential for the Teachers? 9. What is an automated office? Discuss the different areas of computerisation in educational management and the specific advantages. 10. How does school administration facilitated by computers to improve its efficiency? 11. What are the typical functions of an automated school library system? 12. What are the main features of computerised inventory system? 13. How does computerisation of personnel record maintenance in a school help in managing Human Resources more efficiently? 14. What is the role of computers in improving the efficiency of admission and examination process of Schools? 15. What are the advantages of using computers in school administration? 16. Discuss in detail how distance education is an improvement over Correspondence Education. 17. What are the characteristics of distance education? 18. What are the features of Open University system? 19. What changes would you expect in the teaching and learning process as a result of use of ICT in education? 20. Explain the impacts of ICT introduction in to the classrooms. 21. Write about the Intel® Teach Project in India for improving teaching efficiency. 9.12 Answers to Check Your Progress:
Check Your Progress: 1 1.e-learning is commonly referred to the intentional use of networked information and communications technology in teaching and learning. 2. Individualized self-paced e-learning online, Individualized self-paced e-learning offline, Group-based e-learning synchronously and Group-based e-learning
355 asynchronously. Check Your Progress: 2 3. Blended learning refers to a mixing of different learning environments. It combines traditional face-to-face classroom methods with computer-mediated activities. Blended learning is learning that is facilitated by the effective combination of different modes of delivery, models of teaching and styles of learning.
4. Instructor-Led (ILT), Independent Study, Distance Learning (non-internet), Synchronous Learning Activities (real time) and Asynchronous Learning Activities (time-independent).
5. skills targeted to online education, Training in online pedagogy, communication skills and skill in understanding Individual Differences
Check Your Progress: 3 6. i) The separation of teacher and learner, ii) Attachment with the educational organisation, iii) Use of technical media, iv) Two-way communication, v) Separation of the learner from his peer group, and vi) Industrialisation.
7. The network infrastructure, The computing infrastructure, The stable system and application software, The internet service provider(ISP) and internet bandwidth, The security infrastructure and The policy document.
8. lack of regular flow of electricity can make technologies defunct; lack of money, lack of sufficient software, courseware, lack of political will ctc. will invariably affect the accessibility of technology to educational sector; Computers need specialized operators and programmers to use them; lack of expertise, lack of resources/infrastructure, non-availability of spare parts, or indifferent attitude of users. (Write any three points)
Check Your Progress: 4 9. Teleconferencing refers to "interactive electronic communication among people located at two or more different places 10. There are four types of teleconferencing. audio conferencing, audio-graphic conferencing, videoconferencing and Web-based conferencing. 11. "Audio graphics" refers to the transmission of print and graphic information over telephone lines to complement voice communication with visuals. 12. Web teleconferencing's main benefit is its immediacy. There's no delay in programming and no waiting for long downloads.
Check Your Progress: 6 13. ICT as part of content, ICT as core content, ICT as core delivery and ICT as facilitator. 14. 1. ICT skills development approach, 2. ICT pedagogy approach, 3. Subject- specific approach, 4. Practice driven approach. 15. Surfing the Internet and locating useful information, Evaluating and selecting appropriate software for a particular subject, Using technology to gather, organize, and report information about student performance. Check Your Progress: 6
356 16. • General Administration, • Pay Roll and Financial Accounting, • Administration of Student Data, • Inventory Management, • Personnel Records Maintenance, • Library System.
17. Time-tables on completion schedules of syllabus, Conducting unit tests; Term- end examinations, Final examinations, Creation of mark registers, Announcement of results through progress reports and Assigning the individual classes and subjects to the teachers.
18. announcement of student registration, information on courses offered by schools, historical record/performance of the school, fee structure and entry qualifications. 19. It is more cost-effective and time saving than the manual system. The accuracy of recorded information is greatly improved. The computers can speed-up the generation of report cards for school personnel, students and parents. 20. Local Area Network (LAN), Metropolitan Area Network (MAN) and Wide Area Network (WAN). CHECK YOUR PROGRESS: 7 21. A shift from lecture and recitation to coaching, a shift from whole-class instruction to small group instruction, a shift form working with better students to working with weaker students, a shift towards more engaged students. 22. Course Redesign, Blogs, Social and Collaborative Technologies, Social Ratings and Content Aggregation, Serious Game and Virtual Worlds.
23. The Intel® Teach In-service Program, The Intel® Teach Pre-service Program and National Educators‘ Network (NEN) is an innovative educators‘ forum.
24. Science workshops and competitions for all students, Exposure visits for selected students and teachers to the Intel campus, Talks and interactive sessions with Intel technologists, Training and workshops for teachers and Program Newsletter Publication. 9.13. Suggested Readings: Agarwal J. C. (2006). Essential of educational technology. Teaching and learning. New Delhi: Vikas Publishing House Pvt. Ltd. Ben-Zion Barta., et.al. (1995),‖ Information Technology in Educational Management‖, Chapman and Hall, London. Caroline Salerno (2009),‖Administrator‘s Role in Technology Integration‖, EducationWorld 2009. Goel, H. K. ( 2005). Teaching of Computer Science. New Delhi: R.Lall Book Depot. Krishnamurthy, R. C. (2003). Educational technology: Expanding our vision. Delhi: Authors Press. Mohanty, L. (2006). ICT strategies for schools. New Delhi: Sage Publication. Sambath, K., Paneerselvam, A., & Santhanam, S. (2006). Introduction of educational Sharma, R. A. (2008). Technological foundation of education. Meerut: R.Lall Books. Depot.
357
UNIT X COMPUTER SECURITY
STRUCTURE
10.1 Introduction 10.2 Objectives 10.3 Computer security - Meaning 10.4 Online security tips 10.4.1 Internet security 10.5 Online crooks 10.6 Login Precautions 10.6.1 Facebook login precautions 10.7 Use of password 10.7.1 Choosing a Password 10.6.1.1Password Management 10.7.2 Use strong passwords 10.6.2.1 Risks 10.6.2.2 Do use strong passwords 10.6.2.3 Do not use weak passwords 10.6.2.4 Look after your passwords 10.7.3 How to create a password reset disk 10.6.3.1 How to use a password reset disk 10.6.3.2 Troubleshooting
10.8 Avoiding external devices 10.9 Antivirus software
358 10.8.1 Identification methods 10.8.2 Issues of concern 10.10 Scanning 10.9.1 Antivirus scanning 10.9.2 Hard disk drive scanning 10.11 Cautious about mails and free downloads 10.12 e-commerce cautions 10.12 Let Us Sum up 10.13 Unit End Exercises 10.14 Answers to Check your Progress 10.15 Suggested Readings 10.1 Introduction A computer means so many things. It is an electronic box that allows people to surf the World Wide Web. It lets people in different countries communicate in real time. It can be used as a tool for business or even in our homes for personal use. Computer security is what keeps your computer safe from virus and people trying to hack into the information you have on your computer while you are online. There are many different types of security programs you can either purchase at a store or download.
Computer security refers to the protection of data kept on a computer. Threats to data integrity could come in the form of a hacker or that cup of coffee you set on top of the tower. In recent years, the need for education in computer security and related topics has grown dramatically – and is essential for anyone studying Computer Science or Computer Engineering. This is the only text available to provide integrated, comprehensive, up-to-date coverage of the broad range of topics in this subject. In a generic sense, security is "freedom from risk or danger." In the context of computer science, security is the prevention of, or protection against, access to information by unauthorized recipients, and intentional but unauthorized destruction or alteration of that information.
This can be re-stated: "Security is the ability of a system to protect information and system resources with respect to confidentiality and integrity." Note that the scope
359 of this second definition includes system resources, which include CPUs, disks, and programs, in addition to information.
10.2 Objectives After going through this unit you will be able to; Protect your system from virus Understand the concept of computer security Identifies online crooks Install and use the antivirus software Handle mails securely
10.3 Computer security - Meaning Computer security is a branch of computer technology known as information security as applied to computers and networks. The objective of computer security includes protection of information and property from theft, corruption, or natural disaster, while allowing the information and property to remain accessible and productive to its intended users. The term computer system security means the collective processes and mechanisms by which sensitive and valuable information and services are protected from publication, tampering or collapse by unauthorized activities or untrustworthy individuals and unplanned events respectively. The strategies and methodologies of computer security often differ from most other computer technologies because of its vague objective of preventing unwanted computer behaviour instead of enabling wanted computer behaviour. 10.4 Online security tips Here are some tips to optimize your online security: Never use the same password for different sites. ―Typically people use one password to get into a number of systems,‖ said Brad Garrett, ABC News consultant and former FBI special agent. So as a result if you have someone‘s password, you could easily compromise other accounts they have at other locations. Never use your name or even part of your name in a password.
360 Change all your passwords often. ―Cyber shopping is cyber warfare,‖ said Garrett. ―You have to create and maintain defenses against the bad guys. You can not set [passwords] up once and forget them.‖
10.4.1 Internet security
The internet is full of thieves and vagabonds united by one common goal – to separate you from your hard-earned cash. Follow the internet security tips to stay safe online and you can shop, surf and socialize online, and sleep soundly afterwards too.
1. Guerrilla psychology
Do not be fooled into thinking cyber crime is a technical problem with a purely technical solution. A firewall and antivirus software can protect your computer, but they will not keep you and your identity safe. Social engineering is the black art of influencing people, and it is the hacker's best friend. In essence, hackers can control us thanks to a refined understanding of human characteristics such as trust, ignorance, greed, the need to be liked, the desire to help and plain old gullibility. Not even the most sophisticated software can hope to protect us from ourselves. In order to stay safe, educate yourself about social engineering. Take a trip to the Symantec website for a brilliant briefing on the subject. 2. Avoid being a mule
Working from home, earn £500 a week commission. It sounds too good to be true, and it is. Scammers pass stolen cash to unsuspecting people, who transfer it back to the thieves via electronic payment. Your job with the work taken out is money laundering. Beware. 3. Set a serious password
If you are struggling to create passwords that will stump a hacker, check out Microsoft's guide to adding complexity to access codes in such a way that you can still remember the logon. When you have made a password, you should rate its relative security. Microsoft offers an excellent password checking tool, which can be used wisely.
361 4. Split your emails
Rather than linking Facebook, Twitter, newsgroups, forums, shopping and banking sites to one email address, use multiple addresses. As a minimum, use one for social activities and one for financial business. Your social address will rightly draw more attention than your business one – that is the way you want it to be. If the former is hacked, it will not be as nightmarish as losing control of your financial address. 5. Take care on public networks
Never, under any circumstances, use a public network for financial transactions. Only send your personal and financial details over a network you've set up yourself, or one you know to be secure. Who knows what horrors are lurking on the hard disk of that internet cafe machine, or somewhere between it and its internet access point?
Hackers have also been known to set up laptops to broadcast networks with names such as 'Free Internet Access' in hotels. They'll let you pass internet traffic through them and harvest any juicy details as you type.
6. Virtualizing
The truly suspicious should be virtualized. The idea is simple: create a virtual PC, use it to surf the internet and, when you have done, destroy it, along with any viruses that may have infected it while you were online. Running a virtual version of Ubuntu from within Ubuntu is likely to be the easiest way of achieving this style of computing, and it is likely to be very safe too.
7. Anatomy of an iffy shop
By making online shops look slick, official and safe, online criminals hope to dupe us into disclosing credit card details. Fake shopping sites, like much online criminality, rely on social engineering. There are, however, some tell-tale signs that should help you spot an iffy shop. First, avoid sites that ask for cash, cheque or virtual cash payments only – only do business with sites that accept credit cards. Next, ensure that the shop has a physical address, ideally in the UK – shopping abroad throws up more potential problems.
362 8. Be wary of Facebook
There are two key areas of social networking security – the technical sphere and the human one. Technical security is about setting up your profile correctly – your favorite site will explain how, so follow its guides. Next is the human aspect of security and our old friend, social engineering. No quantity of settings and checkboxes can prevent a user from willingly complying with the bad guys, and this is what they depend on. There is one simple rule to follow here: do not do or say anything online that you would not do or say in real life.
9. A price on your identity
If you are in doubt about the value of your credentials, visitwww.everyclickmatters.com/victim/assessment.html. Complete the questionnaire and discover what you are worth to a scammer…
10. Beware geeks bearing gifts
Social engineering can be our worst enemy when it comes to making us run malware installers.
On the day StarCraft II was released, security firms reported a huge number of warez downloads for the game that was really wrappers for viruses. On the day Michael Jackson died, sites sprang up claiming video exclusives of the singer's last moments. Again, these were links to malware. Employing the lure of a hot topic as a means of walking us towards malware is a common hacker tactic. When you are tempted to click a link,
363 follow the old mantra: if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is. 11. Choose your flexible friend
Never be tempted to use or enter details from your debit card – always use a credit card. Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act (1974) makes credit card companies liable to pay if you are the innocent victim of fraud. Card companies may, however, avoid paying out if you are proved not to have taken 'reasonable' care with your card – doing something like writing down your PIN, for example. Credit cards themselves also offer different levels of fraud insurance, so shop around before choosing a card and make sure you read the terms and conditions closely.
12. Pump and dump
Do not be tempted to follow unsolicited dead-cert share tips. The senders will probably hold a lot of them. When you and other victims buy, the price will go up. They will then sell, leaving you in an unwanted situation. 13. Just like that
A common online auction site scam is to sell goods that are 'like' top brand goods. Your new watch may be like a Rolex insofar as it ticks, but that could be your lot. 14. Act on your doubts
If you think an online shop or service is dodgy, do some checking. A WHOIS search may let you see the registration details of a site. Visit the website www.whois.net and check out your suspect site. Companies House also enables you to check out details about company addresses, owners and the like. Look for big discrepancies between onscreen addresses and physical offices. 15. We have found a virus
Bogus security experts call unsuspecting PC owners claiming they have found a virus on their hard drive. All you need do is pay a fee and they will remotely remove the nasty. In reality, the scammers are just working through phone lists, planting the seeds of fear and then collecting bucket loads of cash. 16. Ditch IE6
If you are still using Internet Explorer 6, shame on you. Not only are you likely to be getting less from the internet – Google and YouTube having
364 now stopped supporting the ageing browser – but it is also riddled with security flaws. Do yourself a favour and download a newer browser. 17. Check out Virus Total
If you've received a file and are worried about its provenance, upload it to www.virustotal.com. The site will run the file through a number of virus- scanning engines to find any hidden malware. It will also send you a handy report document.
18. Listen to Bruce Schneier
Renowned security expert, blogger and self-styled security guru Bruce Schneier has a thing or two to say about every aspect of the topic, ranging from the virus right up to national security policy. Visit his blog at www.schneier.com and add it to your bookmarks. 19. Check firewall logs
Firewalls keep logs of traffic they have rejected. Check these and look for patterns – maybe a particular IP address is confusing your network or a certain port on your setup is sending out too much traffic. These sorts of things can suggest a viral infection. 20. Stop redundant services
The more software and services you are running, the greater the risk you could be compromised. Be ruthless – delete or deactivate applications and services you do not use. This will reduce the number of ways into your machine that are available to hackers. 21. Be cautious
If you must use file sharing, do so with the utmost fear about security. When you have downloaded a file, isolate it and, if possible, execute it from a virtual environment to ensure it is safe before letting it into your true computing environment. 22. Update software
Windows 7 and most major apps are happy to update themselves automatically, but you should still run their update systems manually to ensure they are working. Smaller apps may need updating manually, so check their makers' sites for updates. 23. Enter your own URLs
Never follow links to URLs emailed to you and do not Google your bank's address. Google can be tricked into moving spoof sites up its rankings table by criminals looking to entice people to sites designed to harvest logon details. Enter important URLs yourself. 24. Check site safety
Download McAfee's excellent Site Advisor from www.siteadvisor.com. The browser plug-in has a traffic light system that shows dangerous sites in
365 search results. Following its green, yellow and red site rating icons will help you to avoid compromised web locations. 25. Test your system
Test your antivirus system using the Eicar string. It is a text file that all antivirus engines should pick up, no matter how it is wrapped or compressed. Get it from www.eicar.org. It is completely safe and will not land you in legal matters.
Check Your Progress 1 1. When the credit card act came?
------
2. Which site is used to find out the hidden malware in your files? ------3. Expand URL ------10.5 Online crooks Cybercrime today seems like a nearly insoluble problem; much like piracy was centuries ago. There are steps, however, that can be taken to curb cybercrime‘s growth—and perhaps begin to marginalize the people behind it. Some of the methods used to sideline piracy provide a useful, if incomplete, template for how to get it done. Shutting down the markets for stolen treasure cut off the pirates‘ financial lifeblood; similar pushes could be made against the companies that support online criminals. Piracy was eventually brought to heel when nations took responsibility for what went on within its borders. Based on this precedent, cybercrime will only begin to be curbed when greater authority—and accountability—is exercised over the networks that form the sea on which these modern pirates sail. In this new campaign, however, private companies, not governments, will have to play the central role, as Harvard‘s Tyler Moore and others have suggested. After all, the Internet is not a network of governments; it is mostly an amalgam of businesses that rely almost exclusively on handshake agreements to carry data from one side of the planet to another. The vast majority of the Internet‘s infrastructure is in the hands of these 5,000 or so Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and carrier networks, as is the ability to keep crooks off that infrastructure. If this relatively small group can be persuaded to move against online criminals, it will represent an enormous step towards turning these crooks into global exiles. The most productive thing ISPs can do to curb crime is put pressure on the companies that support and assist these underground enterprises. Currently, registration companies sell criminals their domain names, like ―thief.com.‖ Hosting firms provide the server space and Internet Protocol addresses needed to make malicious content online accessible. But without ISPs, no business, straight or crooked, gets online. A simple statistic underscores the ISPs‘ role as a critical intermediary: just 10 ISPs account for around 30 percent of all the spam-spewing machines on the planet.
366 ISPs are well aware of which hosting companies, for example, are the most friendly to criminals; lists of these firms are published constantly. But, currently, ISPs have little motivation to cut these criminal havens off from the rest of the Internet. There is no penalty for allowing illicit traffic to transit over their networks. If anything, there is a strong incentive for maintaining business-as-usual: the hosting company that caters to crooks also has legitimate customers, and both pay for Internet access. So ISPs often turn a blind eye, even though the worst criminal havens are well-known. That is where government could help. It could introduce new mechanisms to hold hosting companies liable for the damage done by their criminal clientele. It could allow ISPs to be held liable for their criminal hosts. It could encourage and regulate ISPs to share more information on the threats they find. Government could also encourage more private businesses to come clean when they are victimized. Today, just three in ten organizations surveyed by the security firm McAfee report all of their data breaches. That not only obscures the true scope of cybercrime; it prevents criminals and criminal trends from being caught earlier. Government can alter that equation by expanding the requirements to report data breaches. It could require its contractors to purchase network security insurance, forcing companies to take these breaches more seriously. It can pour new resources into and craft new strategies for disrupting criminals‘ support networks. These steps will serve as important signals that America will no longer tolerate thieves and con artists operating on its networks. After all, 20 of the 50 most crime-friendly hosts in the world are American, according to the security researchers at Host Exploit. As the United States gets serious in curbing these criminals, it can ask more from—and work more closely with—other countries. China, for instance, sees itself as the world‘s biggest victim of cybercrime, even as it remains a hotbed for illicit activity. Not coincidentally, China is also only partially connected to the global community of ISPs. Dialogues to bring the Chinese closer into the fold will not only make it easier to marginalize cybercriminals, but it will also build momentum for broader negotiations on all sorts of Internet security issues. 10.6 Login Precautions
A cyber cafe is a concept which is very popular in India. It is a business in which internet connected computers are offered for use to the public at the rate of Rs.10/- to Rs.20/- per hour (The rate varies from place to place.) Some cyber cafes also offer computer games. Many people (young and old) use cyber cafes for browsing the internet, sending email, and chatting. Some old people who have never used computers before and having children abroad come to the cafes to send/check email to/from their children. They tell the cyber cafe personnel their email id, password etc and ask him/her to send/check the email. This is very dangerous and can be misused. An alternative is to use the guidance of the people in the cybercafe to get upto the login window and then enter the personal details like password by themselves.(Most cybercafe personnel are helpful).
367 Some young people come to the cyber cafe with their resume on floppies or CDs in order to send via email. Usually the individual computers do not have floppy or cd drives. So they give the floppy or cd to the cafe personnel who will copy it to the individual's computer from the server. The files are usually copied to My Documents folder or the desktop. Sometimes the user will attach the resume documents to the email and will go home without deleting the original documents especially if it is not on the desktop. Even if they delete the documents they sometimes forget to empty the recycle bin. {Note that even emptying the recycle bin does not mean that the files are gone forever. Some files can be recovered using utilities like pc- inspector (site: www.pcinspector.de). If possible it is always better to use software which overwrites the files before deleting the file. An example is the open source program eraser (site: www.tolvanen.com/eraser/ ) or try sourceforge (site: sourceforge.net ). If necessary ask the cafe personnel to install such software for you as installing software in another person's computer without their permission is not legal. People who use the cafe to send email or login to some websites should take care that the 'remember my id on this computer ' or similar option button is not selected. They should also check whether the auto complete option in the browser is off. This can be accessed in ' tools - internet options - content – auto complete' tab in internet explorer and ' tools - options - privacy - password ' tab in firefox. You can also go through the 'tools - options - privacy - saved forms' tab in firefox. Other interesting options to go through are the history, download history, cookies, cache, tabs all under ' tools - options - privacy - ' tab in firefox (and also clear private data tab in the new versions of firefox) If you are using internet explorer go through 'temporary internet files', and history tab under ' tools - internet options - general -' tab in internet explorer. (Note that some of these options require a restart of windows for the new setting to work. Most cyber cafe personnel do not like the customers restarting their computers! ) People who use messenger software should logout properly after using the messenger software. Some people just close the messenger software without logging out, some software do not shut down, it will just minimize to the system tray without logging you out so that the next user after you can use your account if he so wishes. The same is true for properly logging out of email accounts like yahoo. As in the previous paragraph, you should go through the options in the messenger software like 'remember my id on this computer ' and also some options which offer to archive your messages for you as text files. Users of public computers should be aware of the existence of some dangerous software like keyloggers, trojan horses, etc. Keyloggers are softwares which run in the background (usually will not show up in the running program's list) and records the computer users keystrokes which might include passwords and sensitive data and saves the keystrokes as encrypted files on the computer itself or sends the files as email to the person who installed the keylogger. A funny thing about keyloggers is that some of the keylogging softwares are commercialy sold to parents who want to keep a watch on their children's activities on their computers or to
368 people who want to spy on their spouses. Some of the keyloggers can be detected by antivirus softwares and also by using spyware detection software like spybot search and destroy (site: www.safer-networking.org) or ad-aware (site: www.lavasoft.de ) {If necessary ask the cafe personnel to install such software for you }. Some cybercafe system administrators use remote administration software like radmin (site: www.famatech.com) which enable the cafe personnel to administer the users computer remotely from the server. They can also watch the sites that you browse, the programs you use and your chat from the remote computer.
10.6.1 Facebook login precautions In order to obtain your login and account information the Phishing specialists may attempt to trick you by pretending to be an official login page that you have an account with, prompting you to enter your account information. Even though these login pages created look identical to the login page of the organization you have an account with, the website does not belong to them. So, always remember to never enter your account info especially your password unless you are on the legitimate Facebook page. The important check that can tell you whether you are on the legitimate Facebook page or not is the domain on which the webpage you are using is based. For example, "www.facebook.login.com" is not a legitimate Facebook page on the "www.facebook.com" domain, but "www.facebook.com/login.php" is a legitimate Facebook page because it has the "facebook.com" domain. If you are using 'Facebook Connect' to log-in to your accounts, do that only on trusted third-party websites. Before giving your account information using Facebook Connect always make sure that the login opens in a separate browser pop-up window, and the url of the pop-up window contains proper "www.facebook.com" domain. This confirms whether it is a legitimate Facebook page or a phishing attempt and can assure you to log in safely and securely.
Check Your Progress 2 4. Expand ISP ------5. The crime activities happening in internet is called as ------
10.7 Use of password
A password is a secret word or string of characters that is used for authentication, to prove identity or gain access to a resource (example: an access code is a type of password). The password should be kept secret from those not allowed access. The use of passwords is known to be ancient. Sentries would challenge those wishing to enter an area or approaching it to supply a password or watchword. Sentries would only allow a person or group to pass if they knew the password. In modern times, user names and passwords are commonly used by people during a log in process that access to protected computer operating
369 systems, mobile phones, cable TV decoders, automated teller machines (ATMs), etc. A typical computer user may require passwords for many purposes: logging in to computer accounts, retrieving e-mail from servers, accessing programs, databases, networks, web sites, and even reading the morning newspaper online. 10.7.1 Choosing a Password Longer and more complex passwords are more secure. If the government seizes your computer it can quickly guess simple passwords by automatically trying large lists of words from a dictionary. Automated dictionary attacks use lists of regular words as well as proper names and common variations of these (e.g. adding a number to a dictionary word or replacing letters with similar numbers, e.g. replacing o with 0).
So, if it is human-readable, it is computer-breakable. Do not use names, song titles, random words or any dictionary words at all, whether alone, in combination with numbers, or with letters replaced by numbers – the government can and will break it. For stronger password security, use a lengthy passphrase that includes upper- and lower-case letters, one or more numerical digits and special characters (e.g. #,$ or &), and change it frequently.
New computer hardware usually comes with default passwords, such as "password" or "default" or the name of the technology vendor. Always change the default passwords immediately!
10.7.1.1 Password Management
When it comes to passwords, the only truly secure password is the one that is only in your head. Written-down passwords can be seized or withheld. But there is a tough trade-off — the better your password, the harder it will be to remember. If you forget the password and do not have it recorded somewhere, you could lose access to a critical asset at just the wrong time — perhaps even forever.
Although we recommend memorizing your passwords, we recognize you probably will not. So, here are a few other options to consider:
Use a password safe. There are a number of software tools available that will keep all of your passwords for you on your computer, in an encrypted virtual safe, which you access with one master password. Just remember to never write down the password to your password safe — that piece of paper can become a single point of failure for all of your password-secured assets. This brings another drawback, of course — if you forget that master password, you have lost all of your other passwords forever.
Carry your passwords on paper, in your pocket. This is a somewhat controversial solution promoted by security expert Bruce Schneier — even though he wrote the digital password management program Password Safe.
370 Schneier advocates that people keep their passwords in their wallets. What you sacrifice in security, the argument goes, is made up for by the convenience — with easy access to your passwords, you are more likely to use very strong ones that you could not remember otherwise, plus you can access your passwords even when you are away from your computer. An added benefit is that when your passwords are in your wallet, you will find out very quickly if they have been lost or stolen.
However, to mitigate the risk of a loss, add a certain number of dummy characters before and after the real passwords to make it harder to identify them, and use simple code-words to indicate what asset they protect, rather than saying "Chase Manhattan Bank" or "Work Computer."
Do not use the same password to protect multiple assets. Sure, it is acceptable to use the same password to log into the New York Times web site that you use for the Washington Post, because those are not valuable assets. But when it comes to the important stuff, use unique passwords. That way, even if one asset is compromised, the others are still safe.
Never keep a password in the same physical location as the asset it protects, unless it is encrypted. This is the biggest password boo-boo, and it is an object lesson in security planning: if a security measure is too inconvenient for day-to-day use, people will not use it correctly. Your password is worse than useless if it is on a sticky note next to your computer, and probably useless against secret searches if it is anywhere in the same office.
Change passwords regularly. A password may have already been compromised and you just do not know it. You should change passwords every week, every month, or every year — it all depends on the threat, the risk, and the value of the asset, traded against usability and convenience.
10.7.2 Use strong passwords Your passwords are the keys to your internet life Do not make it easy for hackers to guess your password. Use strong passwords and keep the bad guys out. 10.7.2.1 Risks
The best security in the world is useless if a malicious person has a legitimate user name and password. They can do everything you can do. Some people‘s passwords are just easy to guess, like ―password‖. Others use plain words that can be guessed by a hacker‘s program that tries every word in the dictionary. If you use the same password for every site, a hacker only has to break it once to have access to everything.
371 10.7.2.2 Do use strong passwords A good password: Need not be a word at all. It can be a combination of letters, numbers and keyboard symbols. Is at least seven characters long. Longer passwords are harder to guess or break. Does not contain your user name, real name, or company name. Contains a mix of upper and lower case letters, numbers and keyboard symbols (i.e. ` ~ ! @ # $ % ^ & * ( ) _ + - = { } | [ ] \ : " ; ' < > ? , . /). However, be aware that some of these punctuation marks may be difficult to enter on foreign keyboards if you are travelling. Is changed regularly.
10.7.2.3 Do not use weak passwords Avoid weak passwords. This means: Using no password at all. Using a common place dictionary word. Something that is easy to work out with a little background knowledge. For example: favorite football team, birthday, spouse's name etc. The most common password is ‗Password‘ so that it is an obvious one to avoid. A password you have not changed in more than a couple of months. 10.7.2.4 Look after your passwords Never disclose your passwords to anyone else.
Do not enter your password when others can see what you are typing. Use different passwords for different services. In particular have a unique password for banking sites. Change passwords regularly. Do not recycle passwords (e.g. password2, password3). Do not write passwords down. Instead, use memory tricks to remember them. For example, make a password out of the first letters of each word in a memorable phrase or substitute numbers for letters (for example: 5 for s, 3 for e). Do not send your password by email. No reputable firm will ask you to do this. If you think that someone else knows your password, change it immediately.
372 10.7.3 How to create a password reset disk
Note that this procedure requires one blank, formatted floppy disk.
To create a password reset disk for your local user account, follow these steps:
1. Press CTRL+ALT+DELETE. The Windows Security dialog box appears. 2. Click Change Password. The Change Password dialog box appears. 3. In the Log on to box, click the local computer--for example, click Computer (this computer). 4. Click Backup. The Forgotten Password Wizard starts. 5. On the Welcome to the Forgotten Password Wizard page, click Next. 6. Insert a blank, formatted disk in drive A, and then click Next. 7. In the Current user account password box, type your password, and then click Next. The Forgotten Password Wizard creates the disk. 8. When the progress bar reaches 100 percent complete, click Next, and then click Finish. The Forgotten Password Wizard quits and you return to the Change Password dialog box. 9. Remove and then label the password reset disk. Store the disk in a safe place. 10. In the Change Password dialog box, click Cancel. 11. In the Windows Security dialog box, click Cancel.
10.7.3.1 How to use a password reset disk
If you forget your password, you can log on to the computer by using a new password that you create by using the Password Reset Wizard and your password reset disk. To gain access to your local user account on a computer that is a member of a domain, or has been disconnected from a domain, follow these steps: 1. In the Welcome to Windows dialog box, press CTRL+ALT+DELETE. 2. In the Log On to Windows dialog box, type an incorrect password in the Password box, and then click OK. 3. In the Logon Failed dialog box that appears, click Reset. The Password Reset Wizard starts. You can use the Password Reset Wizard to create a new password for your local user account. 4. On the Welcome to the Password Reset Wizard page, click Next. 5. Insert the password reset disk in drive A, and then click Next. 6. On the Reset the User Account Password page, type a new password in the Type a new password box.
373 7. Type the same password in the Type the password again to confirm box. 8. In the Type a new password hint box, type a hint that will help you remember the password if you forget it. Note This hint is visible to anyone who tries to log on to the computer by using your user account. 9. Click Next, and then click Finish. The Password Reset Wizard quits and you return to the Log On to Windowsdialog box. The password reset disk is automatically updated with the new password information. You do not have to create a new password reset disk. 10. In the Log On to Windows dialog box, type your new password in the Password box. 11. In the Log on to box, click the local computer--for example, click Computer (this computer), and then click OK. You are logged on to the local computer with your local account information.
10.7.3.2 Trouble shooting
You cannot use the password reset disk to reset the password on another computer.
You can use the password reset disk that you create with only the computer where it was created. For example, if you have two Windows XP-based computers with the same user names and passwords, you cannot use a password reset disk that you create on the first computer to reset the password on the second computer. You cannot use the password reset disk to reset your domain account password. You can use the password reset disk only to reset the local computer account password. If you forget your domain account password, contact your system administrator. The password reset disk contains sensitive information. Others may use the password reset disk to gain access to your computer. Make sure that you store this disk in a safe location. 10.8 Avoiding external devices Never allow external storage devices:-
Do not permit anyone to take data out of your system in any form of external storage device, such as floppy disks, CDs etc. for any reason. Obviously, this compromises your safety.
Third party outsourcing:-
374 Outsource your payment system to a third party such as PayPal, so that your liability is reduced in case of any computer security problems. This third party will have the necessary technological support to ensure that the customer and your business are safe. But to be sure of this, you will need to do a thorough check on your selected provider or choose a reputable one.
Check your progress 3
6. What is the shortcut key to get windows security dialog box? ------7. Which password can not be reset? ------8. Which external devices should be avoided for your computer safety? ------
10.9 Antivirus software
Antivirus or anti-virus software is software used to prevent, detect and remove malware, such as: computer viruses, adware, backdoors, malicious BHOs, dialers, fraudtools, hijackers, keyloggers, malicious LSPs, rootkits, spyware, Trojan horses and worms. Computer security, including protection from social engineering techniques, is commonly offered in products and services of antivirus software companies.
A variety of strategies are typically employed. Signature-based detection involves searching for known patterns of data within executable code. However, it is possible for a computer to be infected with new malware for which no signature is yet known. To counter such so-called zero-day threats, heuristics can be used. One type of heuristic approach, generic signatures, can identify new viruses or variants of existing viruses by looking for known malicious code, or slight variations of such code, in files. Some antivirus software can also predict what a file will do by running it in a sandbox and analyzing what it does to see if it performs any malicious actions.
No matter how useful antivirus software can be, it can sometimes have drawbacks. Antivirus software can impair a computer's performance. Inexperienced users may also have trouble understanding the prompts and
375 decisions that antivirus software presents them with. An incorrect decision may lead to a security breach. If the antivirus software employs heuristic detection, success depends on achieving the right balance between false positives and false negatives. False positives can be as destructive as false negatives. Finally, antivirus software generally runs at the highly trusted kernel level of the operating system, creating a potential avenue of attack.
10.9.1 Identification Methods
Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware version 1.46 - a proprietary freeware antimalware product
One of the few solid theoretical results in the study of computer viruses is Frederick B. Cohen's 1987 demonstration that there is no algorithm that can perfectly detect all possible viruses.
There are several methods which antivirus software can use to identify malware.
Signature based detection is the most common method. To identify viruses and other malware, antivirus software compares the contents of a file to a dictionary of virus signatures. Because viruses can embed themselves in existing files, the entire file is searched, not just as a whole, but also in pieces.
Heuristic-based detection, can be used to identify unknown viruses.
File emulation is another heuristic approach. File emulation involves executing a program in a virtual environment and logging what actions the program performs. Depending on the actions logged, the antivirus software can determine if the program is malicious or not and then carry out the appropriate disinfection actions
376 Signature-based detection Traditionally, antivirus software heavily relied upon signatures to identify malware. This can be very effective, but cannot defend against malware unless samples have already been obtained and signatures created. Because of this, signature-based approaches are not effective against new, unknown viruses.
As new viruses are being created each day, the signature-based detection approach requires frequent updates of the virus signature dictionary. To assist the antivirus software companies, the software may allow the user to upload new viruses or variants to the company, allowing the virus to be analyzed and the signature added to the dictionary.
Although the signature-based approach can effectively contain virus outbreaks, virus authors have tried to stay a step ahead of such software by writing "oligomorphic", "polymorphic" and, more recently, "metamorphic" viruses, which encrypt parts of themselves or otherwise modify themselves as a method of disguise, so as to not match virus signatures in the dictionary.
Heuristics
Some more sophisticated antivirus software uses heuristic analysis to identify new malware or variants of known malware.
Many viruses start as a single infection and through either mutation or refinements by other attackers, can grow into dozens of slightly different strains, called variants. Generic detection refers to the detection and removal of multiple threats using a single virus definition. For example, the Vundo trojan has several family members, depending on the antivirus vendor's classification. Symantec classifies members of the Vundo family into two distinct categories, Trojan.Vundo and Trojan.Vundo.B.
While it may be advantageous to identify a specific virus, it can be quicker to detect a virus family through a generic signature or through an inexact match to an existing signature. Virus researchers find common areas that all viruses in a family share uniquely and can thus create a single generic signature. These signatures often contain non-contiguous code, using wildcard characters where differences lie. These wildcards allow the scanner to detect viruses even if they are padded with extra, meaningless code. A detection that uses this method is said to be "heuristic detection."
377 Rootkit detection
Anti-virus software can attempt to scan for rootkits; a rootkit is a type of malware that is designed to gain administrative-level control over a computer system without being detected. Rootkits can change how the operating system functions and in some cases can tamper with the anti-virus program and render it ineffective. Rootkits are also difficult to remove, in some cases requiring a complete re-installation of the operating system.
Real-time protection Real-time protection, on-access scanning, background guard, resident shield, autoprotect, and other synonyms refer to the automatic protection provided by most antivirus, anti-spyware, and other anti-malware programs. This monitors computer systems for suspicious activity such as computer viruses, spyware, adware, and other malicious objects in 'real-time', in other words while data loaded into the computer's active memory: when inserting a CD, opening an email, or browsing the web, or when a file already on the computer is opened or executed. This means all data in files already on the computer is analysed each time that the user attempts to access the files. This can prevent infection by not yet activated malware that entered the computer unrecognised before the antivirus received an update. Real-time protection and its synonyms are used in contrast to the expression "on-demand scan" or similar expressions that mean a user-activated scan of part or all of a computer.
Most real-time protection systems hook certain API functions provided by the operating system in order to scan files in real-time. For example, on Microsoft Windows, an antivirus program may hook the Create Process API function which executes programs. It can then scan programs which are about to be executed for malicious software. If malicious software is found, the antivirus program can block execution and inform the user.
10.9.2 Issues of Concern Unexpected renewal costs
Some commercial antivirus software end-user license agreements include a clause that the subscription will be automatically renewed, and the purchaser's credit card automatically billed, at the renewal time without explicit approval. For
378 example, McAfee requires users to unsubscribe at least 60 days before the expiration of the present subscription while BitDefender sends notifications to unsubscribe 30 days before the renewal. Norton AntiVirus also renews subscriptions automatically by default.
Rogue security applications
Some apparent antivirus programs are actually malware hidden as legitimate software, such as WinFixer, MS Antivirus, and Mac Defender.
Problems caused by false positives A "false positive" is when antivirus software identifies a non-malicious file as a virus. When this happens, it can cause serious problems. For example, if an antivirus program is configured to immediately delete or isolate infected files, a false positive in an essential file can render the operating system or some applications unusable. In May 2007, a faulty virus signature issued by Symantec mistakenly removed essential operating system files, leaving thousands of PCs unable to boot. Also in May 2007, the file required by Pegasus Mail was falsely detected by Norton Antivirus as being a Trojan and it was automatically removed, preventing Pegasus Mail from running. Norton Antivirus had falsely identified three releases of Pegasus Mail as malware, and would delete the Pegasus Mail installer file when that happened. In response to this Pegasus Mail stated:
―On the basis that Norton/Symantec has done this for every one of the last three releases of Pegasus Mail, we can only condemn this product as too flawed to use, and recommend in the strongest terms that our users cease using it in favour of alternative, less buggy anti-virus packages‖.
In April 2010, McAfee Virus Scan detected svchost.exe, a normal Windows binary, as a virus on machines running Windows XP with Service Pack 3, causing a reboot loop and loss of all network access.
In December 2010, a faulty update on the AVG anti-virus suite damaged 64-bit versions of Windows 7, rendering it unable to boot, due to an endless boot loop created.
379 In October 2011, Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE) removed the Google Chrome web browser, rival to Microsoft's own Internet Explorer. MSE flagged Chrome as a Zbot banking trojan.
When Microsoft Windows becomes damaged by faulty anti-virus products, fixing the damage to Microsoft Windows incurs technical support costs and businesses can be forced to close whilst remedial action is undertaken.
System and inter operability related issues Running multiple antivirus programs concurrently can degrade performance and create conflicts. However, using a concept called multi scanning, several companies (including G Data and Microsoft) have created applications which can run multiple engines concurrently.
It is sometimes necessary to temporarily disable virus protection when installing major updates such as Windows Service Packs or updating graphics card drivers. Active antivirus protection may partially or completely prevent the installation of a major update. Anti-virus software can cause problems during the installation of an operating system upgrade, e.g. when upgrading to a newer version of Windows "in place" — without erasing the previous version of Windows. Microsoft recommends that anti-virus software be disabled to avoid conflicts with the upgrade installation process.
The functionality of a few software programs can be hampered by active anti-virus software. For example TrueCrypt, a disk encryption program, states on its troubleshooting page that anti-virus programs can conflict with TrueCrypt and cause it to malfunction or operate very slowly.
Support issues also exist around antivirus application inter operability with common solutions like SSL VPN remote access and network access control products. These technology solutions often have policy assessment applications which require that an up to date antivirus is installed and running. If the antivirus application is not recognized by the policy assessment, because the antivirus application has been updated or because it is not part of the policy assessment library, the user will be unable to connect.
380 Effectiveness Studies in December 2007 showed that the effectiveness of antivirus software had decreased in the previous year, particularly against unknown or zero day attacks. The computer magazine c't found that detection rates for these threats had dropped from 40-50% in 2006 to 20-30% in 2007. At that time, the only exception was the NOD32 antivirus, which managed a detection rate of 68 percent.
The problem is magnified by the changing intent of virus authors. Some years ago it was obvious when a virus infection was present. The viruses of the day, written by amateurs, exhibited destructive behaviour or pop-ups. Modern viruses are often written by professionals, financed by criminal organizations.
Independent testing on all the major virus scanners consistently shows that none provide 100% virus detection. The best ones provided as high as 99.6% detection, while the lowest provided only 81.8% in tests conducted in February 2010. All virus scanners produce false positive results as well, identifying benign files as malware.
Although methodologies may differ, some notable independent quality testing agencies include AV-Comparatives, ICSA Labs, West Coast Labs, VB100 and other members of the Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization.
New viruses Anti-virus programs are not always effective against new viruses, even those that use non-signature-based methods that should detect new viruses. The reason for this is that the virus designers test their new viruses on the major anti-virus applications to make sure that they are not detected before releasing them into the wild.
Some new viruses, particularly ransomware, use polymorphic code to avoid detection by virus scanners. Jerome Segura, a security analyst with ParetoLogic, explained: ―It is something that they miss a lot of the time because this type of [ransomware virus] comes from sites that use a polymorphism, which means they basically randomize the file they send you and it gets by well-known antivirus products very easily. I have seen people first hand getting infected, having all the pop-ups and yet they have antivirus software running and it is not detecting anything. It actually can be pretty hard to get rid of, as well, and you are never
381 really sure if it is really gone. When we see something like that usually we advise to reinstall the operating system or reinstall backups.‖
A proof of concept virus has used the Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) to avoid detection from anti-virus software. The potential success of this involves bypassing the CPU in order to make it much harder for security researchers to analyse the inner workings of such malware.
Rootkits
Detecting rootkits is a major challenge for anti-virus programs. Rootkits have full administrative access to the computer and are invisible to users and hidden from the list of running processes in the task manager. Rootkits can modify the inner workings of the operating system and tamper with antivirus programs.
Damaged files
Files which have been damaged by computer viruses are normally damaged beyond recovery. Anti-virus software removes the virus code from the file during disinfection, but this does not always restore the file to its undamaged state. In such circumstances, damaged files can only be restored from existing backups; installed software that is damaged requires re-installation.
Firmware issues
Active anti-virus software can interfere with a firmware update process. Any writeable firmware in the computer can be infected by malicious code. This is a major concern, as an infected BIOS could require the actual BIOS chip to be replaced to ensure the malicious code is completely removed. Anti-virus software is not effective at protecting firmware and the motherboard BIOS from infection.
10.10 Scanning
10.10.1 Antivirus scanning
1. Save your files and shut down all open programs. 2. Disconnect your computer from the network by unplugging the network cable from the back of your computer. (This will not be necessary if IS Services have already disabled your network connection.)
382 3. Ask a colleague to download the latest virusscan update file and copy it to a zip disk, memory stick or cdr\dvdr in order to copy it onto your computer. 4. Copy the downloaded file onto your computer and double click on the update file. 5. When your anti-virus software has updated run a full scan of your computer in the following way: Select Start - All Programs - Network Associates - Virusscan On- Demand Scan
Click Start 6. The scan should detect any virus present and remove it. If you have any problems removing the file you could try running the latest Stinger file alternatively you can contact the helpdesk for further information. 7. Now that your computer has been cleaned you can reconnect it to the network, or contact the helpdesk if your network point has been disabled. 8. It is good practice at this stage to ensure the latest Microsoft security patches have been installed on your computer. See the IT Security pages on Windows Update for more information.
10.10.2 Hard disk drive scanning
Hard disk failure is possibly the worst thing that can happen to your computer and it often occurs without giving any warning signs.
Test Your Hard Drive for Impending Problems. You may however run certain tests on your computer beforehand to get an idea about the current condition of your hard disk. This should in turn help you decide whether a replacement drive is necessary or not.
Step 1: Check your hard disk for errors
All recent versions of Windows include a utility called Chkdsk.exe that can check your hard disk for any bad sectors.
383 You may either run Chkdsk from the command line or launch Windows Explorer, right click the drive that you wish to examine and choose Properties. Switch to the Tools tab and click the ―Check Now‖ button under Error checking. Select ―Scan for and attempt recovery of bad sectors‖ to perform a thorough disk check.
Step 2: Understand the sounds of your disk
Do you sometimes hear strange sounds coming out of the CPU box? Well, if the hard drive is making those sounds, it could be an alarming situation and your best bet would be that you turn off the computer before any further damage is done to the disk. But how do you distinguish between sounds coming from a hard disk with noise that is made by the fans or the power supply? Here is a useful page where you can listen to recorded sounds of various hard drives that have lead to a crash. If your disk is making a similar sound, get a replacement quickly.
Step 3: Catch errors before they happen
Disk Checkup is a free hard disk monitoring utility that displays tons of diagnostic data about your disk. While the level of detail it provides may easily confuse even tech-savvy users, just ignore the numbers and keep the utility running in the background. It monitors your disk‘s temperature, read and write error rate, etc. and will alert you when the values of any of these parameters approach dangerous levels. These may be signs of an impending disk failure. Disk Checkup is free for personal use.
Step 4: Thoroughly test your Hard Disk
SeaTools is free diagnostic tool that can completely test your hard drive regardless of the OS installed on it. The tool is provided by Seagate but it works with non- Seagate disk drives as well. To get started, you need to download the ISO image of SeaTools for DOS and create a bootable CD. Now boot the computer with the CD in the drive, accept the license agreement and run a long test (the full scan). If any defects are found, a list will be offered at the end or after aborting the disk scan.
384 Other computer vendors /disk manufactures including Samsung, Hitachi, Toshiba (Fujitsu),Western Digital, Lenovo, Dell, etc. too offer diagnostic tools that work only with their own brand of hard drives. If you are having frequent computer problems (like system hangs or fails to boot up), you may run these tools to confirm if the problems are hard drive related. Important: While these tools can help you diagnose your hard drive‘s health, they are still no good substitute for regular backups.
10.11 Cautious about mails and free downloads
Opening Emails
Be careful when opening emails. There are obvious emails that you know you should not open, however what about the ones you get from people you know? What if your friend has a virus and it is spreading itself through emails? An email cannot be important enough to risk getting a virus. Delete the email and send a fresh email to your friend asking them if they actually did send you the email. It is better to be safe than sorry. You can also create a white list so only certain emails get through. You will still have to be careful though, as you do not know what security the sender has installed on their computer. It is like driving on the road; you need to watch how others are driving to stay safe.
Downloading
When surfing the internet avoid websites that contain illegal software downloads, sexual references, free screensavers, cracks or serials, etc. sure you get the picture. If you go near these sites you are immediately asking for trouble. Some other websites that you should stay away from include foreign websites where you cannot understand the language on them. This is because you cannot tell what is on the website. System infection is one of the greatest problems today that is faced by many net users all over the world. It is not practically possible to be overly suspicious on the links and contents that we see daily and it is absolutely possible for your system to get affected even if you had exercised a great deal of effort to keep it safe. So instead of blaming it on yourself, you can look out for the best
385 methods that aids in removing the virus infection from the system and to balance out things in the best possible way.
Things to know about virus attack There are certain ways using which one can effectively stay away from the virus and the issues created by them. If there is anything that can be carried on, then it is this preventive measure in order to safeguard the data stored in your computer and your computer itself in several ways.
1. First of all, it is important to show some attention to the authenticity of the email that you receive. While it is not possible for one to be overly cautious, little attention can be put across when it comes to opening any mails or files that you receive from the third party.
2. Make sure that you turn on the firewall or the virus protection system in your computer. This will help you to prevent from any virus to enter the system operation to an immense extent and will thereby acts as a perfect protection against attacks. If there is no firewall in your system then it is sure that your system will get affected in several ways.
3. Ensure that you use a good anti-virus program on your system on a regular basis. Carry with it as a routine activity. You may not know in which form the virus attack will come as it may come in the form of emails and files. Thus, you need to have it all time and turn off only in case of necessity.
4. There are many free downloads available in the internet and in order to make things better on all fronts, you need to check them for virus before downloading. Some of these free downloads comes with virus, so better be careful with it than to regret later.
5. It is absolutely necessary for one to update their anti-virus program, if they have any. The increase of this deadly virus is tremendous and in many cases some of the viruses are almost endless. Thus, one need to be making use of the best software possible that has got a lot of advanced features and functionalities possible on the whole.
386 6. Detect the drive or system that is affected at the earliest time possible and isolate it from the rest of them so that there is no spreading of virus to other locations as well. 10.11 e-commerce cautions Although consumers are well aware of the risks they take being online and engaging in e-commerce, most of them are not taking the necessary precautions to protect themselves, according to a recent survey. Seventy-five percent of respondents thought a firewall offered them enough protection to safeguard their identities online while another 62 percent believed antivirus software was enough protection against malware, according to the survey from Anonymizer Inc., a vendor of consumer online anonymity solutions. While firewalls and antivirus software are important for protecting a computer, the tools do not offer enough protection to safeguard a consumer‘s privacy and identity while online, according to the company. "Online identity theft is much more common than we think and consumers are flooded with conflicting information about what they need to do to protect themselves as they surf the Web," said Bill Unrue, president of Anonymizer, in a statement. "Consumers need to realize that the steps they take to protect their computer system are not the same measures they need to safeguard their privacy and identity when they are online. Firewalls and antivirus software simply are not enough."
According to the survey:
When the consumers are online, they are most concerned about identity theft (45 percent), privacy (41 percent) and computer viruses (45 percent); Consumers are increasingly aware that their mobile devices are also vulnerable to malicious cyberactivity. Only 28 percent thought that their identities were secure on a mobile device ;
Eighty-five percent of respondents were aware that they were being profiled by advertisers as they surfed the Internet;
Eighty-five percent said they were aware that they were being stalked by cybercriminals.
387 To protect your identities online, Anonymizer said users should:
Have a plan that includes privacy and identity protection, computer system protection, browser protection, and a fraud alert service. Hide your IP address. An IP address reveals seemingly harmless information such as your city, state, Zip code, and what browser you are using, which can be exploited by cyber criminals. Install software that hides your IP address, and therefore your identity and online activities, from criminals, search engines, and advertisers. Use Wi-Fi protection. Virus protection and protection against malicious software do not protect you from cybercriminals who might be lurking on unsecure connections. When you access the Internet through a Wi-Fi hotspot — whether through a computer or mobile device — use an online anonymity product that encrypts your identity. Think twice before you type. Beware of what you post on social networking sites because cybercriminals are lurking there to try and steal your personal information. Why Additional Software is Needed to Protect Your Computer from Online Threats The Biggest Threat to Internet Security ... Maybe Public Wi-Fi Can Be Hacked in 5 Seconds
Check Your Progress 4
9. What command can be used to scan the disk drive? ------10. Expand IP address ------
10.12 Let us sum up
Computer security is a branch of computer technology known as information security as applied to computers and networks. The internet is full of thieves and vagabonds united by one common goal – to separate you from your hard-earned cash. Never use your name or even part of your name in a password. Rather than linking Facebook, Twitter, newsgroups, forums, shopping and banking sites to one email address, use multiple addresses. As a minimum, use one for
388 social activities and one for financial business. Password should contain a mix of upper and lower case letters, numbers and keyboard symbols (i.e. ` ~ ! @ # $ % ^ & * ( ) _ + - = { } | [ ] \ : " ; ' < > ? , . /). Signature based detection is the most common method to identify viruses and other malware. Heuristic-based detection, like malicious activity detection, can be used to identify unknown viruses. 10.13 Unit End Exercises: 1. Install any antivirus software in your computer 2. How you will connect your computer to a Wi-Fi connection? 3. Explain the steps to scan the hard disk drive 4. What is the procedure to login in any e-mail service? 5. How will you protect your system from online threads?
10.14 Answers to Check your Progress: 1. 1974 2. www.virustotal.com. 3. Universal resource locator 4. Internet Service Provider 5. Cybercrime 6. CTRL +ALT + DELETE 7. Domain account password 8. External devices 9. Chkdsk 10. Internet Protocol address
10.15 Suggested Readings: Dern, Daniel, (1994), The internet guide for New Users. New York: McGraw- Hill. Hahn, H. (1998). The internet- complete reference. New Delhi: Tata McGrow Hill Publication. Keiko Pitter, Sara Amato et al. (2003), Every Student‘s Guide to the Internet. New Delhi: Tata McGrow Hill Publication. Sundararajan, K. (1998). Internet. Chennai: Kannadhasan Publications. Internet Security Hacking, Counterhacking and Society Publisher: Cbs Piblishers (2007), ISBN: 8123914725
Hacking: The Art of Exploitation, 2nd Edition, (2008) Jon Erickson ISBN: 1593271441
Vishnu P. Singh, (2009): Internet & E-Mail Hacking: Computech Publications Ltd ------Bibliography Agarwal J. C. (2006). Essential of educational technology. Teaching and learning. New Delhi: Vikas Publishing House Pvt. Ltd.
389 Allan J. (1999), The online learning handbook in developing and using web based learning. Oxford press. Arul Jothi, Balaji, D.L., Rajesh Verma (2009). Computers in Education. Centrum Press: New Delhi. Aswal, R.S., ed. (2003). Information Networks in India. NewDelhi: Ess Ess Publication. Baruah, A. (2002). Computer Networking in Libraries. Delhi; Kalpaz, 2002. Ben-Zion Barta., et.al. (1995),” Information Technology in Educational Management‖, Chapman and Hall, London.
Caroline Salerno (2009),”Administrator‘s Role in Technology Integration‖, EducationWorld 2009. Chauhan, S. S. (1985). Innovations in teaching learning process. New Delhi: Vikas development. NJ: Prentice Hall. Dern, Daniel, (1994), The internet guide for New Users. New York: McGraw- Hill. Franklin David Jebaraj, Fredrick Robin Devadoss (2004), Library and Information Networks in India. Library Philosophy and Practice Vol. 6, No. 2 (Spring 2004) (libr.unl.edu:2000/LPP/lppv6n2.htm) ISSN 1522-0222 Gabriel, J. P. (1996), ―Designing Computer Assisted Instruction‖ Journal of Educational Research Media Vol. 3, No. 4, Oct-Nov, 1996. Goel, H. K. ( 2005). Teaching of Computer Science. New Delhi: R.Lall Book Depot. Hahn, H. (1998). The internet- complete reference. New Delhi: Tata McGrow Hill Publication. Keiko Pitter, Sara Amato et al. (2003), Every Student‘s Guide to the Internet. New Delhi: Tata McGrow Hill Publication.
Koehler M (2005), What happens when teachers design Educational Technology Educational Computing Research, Vol 32(2) 131-152. Krishnamurthy, R. C. (2003). Educational technology: Expanding our vision. Delhi: Authors Press.
Kumar K.L.(1996), Educational Technology. New Delhi, New age international Pvt Ltd. Steketee C.(2005), Lalini Varanasi, Sudhakar, V., Mrunalini, T. (2008). Computer Education. Neelkamal Publications Pvt. Ltd: Hyderabad. Leon, A. M. (2001). Computer for every one. Vikas Publishing house Ltd: New Delhi. Mangal S.K., Uma Mangal, (2009), Essentials of Educational Technology. New Delhi: PHI Learning Private Limited. Publishing house Ltd. Marine, April, et al. (1992), Internet: Getting Started. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: PTR Prentice Hall.
390 Mohanty, L. (2006). ICT strategies for schools. New Delhi: Sage Publication. Norton, P. (1998). Introduction to computers. New Delhi: Tata McGraw Hill Publishing Co Ltd. Rajasekar, S. (2008). Computer Education. Neelkamal Publications Pvt. Ltd: Hyderabad Sambath, K., Paneerselvam, A., & Santhanam, S. (2006). Introduction of educational technology. New Delhi: Sterling Publishers Private Limited. Sharma, R. A. (2008). Technological foundation of education. Meerut: R.Lall Books. Depot. Sinha, P.K.(1992): Computer Fundamentals, BPB Publications, New Delhi. Stephen, M. A., & Stanely, R. (1985). Computer based instruction: Methods and Sundararajan, K. (1998). Internet. Chennai: Kannadhasan Publications. Verma, R. (1990). Modern trends in technology. New Delhi: Anmol Pubblication. Online References:
Bernadette Robinson, 2008, ‗Using distance education and ICT to improve access, equity and the quality in rural teachers‘ professional development in western China‘, International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, Volume 9, Number 1, Chaina. Dr.R.Krishnaveni and J.Meenakumari, (2010) Usage of ICT for Information Administration in Higher education Institutions – A study. International Journal of Environmental Science and Development, Vol. 1, No. 3, August 2010; ISSN: 2010-0264 Singh, Harvey. "Blended Learning".November - December 2003 Issue of Educational http://www.mu.ac.in/myweb_test/ma%20edu/M.A.%20Edu.%20ODL..pdf Irshad HUSSAIN and Muhammad SAFDAR (2008), Role of Information Technologies In Teaching Learning Process: Perception of the Faculty, Turkish Online Journal of Distance Education-TOJDE April 2008 ISSN 1302-6488 Volume: 9 Number: 2 https://tojde.anadolu.edu.tr/tojde30/pdf/notes_for_editor_5.pdf IGNOU (2008). Computers in Education of D.E. New Delhi, Study Sangay Jamtsho, 2005, ‗Challenges of ICT use for distance learning support in Bhutan, ICDE International conference‘, New Delhi.
Koul, B.N., Singh, Baushise; Ansari, M. M. (ed) 1988. Studies in Distance education. New Delhi, AIU.
IGNOU (2008). Growth and Philosophis of D.E. New Delhi, Study material of PGDDE programme
Harichandan, D (199). Open University System : A broad based attempt at Distance Education. University News, V0127 No. 36 pages 3-7, New Delhi, AIU.
391 Christiana Maki (2008),”Information and Communication Technology for Administration and Management for secondary schools in Cyprus‖, Journal of Online Learning and Teaching Vol. 4 No. 3. Hossein Zainally (2008),‖ Administration of Faculties by Information and Communication Technology and Its Obstacles‖, International Journal of Education and Information Technologies , Vol. 2, issue1, 2008. Magni (2009),”ICT usage in Higher education‖, International Technology and Education and Development Conference, Spain March 9-11 2009. Sharad Sinha(2008), National Policy on ICT in School Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development Government of India Malwad (N.M), et al, eds.. Digital Libraries: Dynamic Storehouse of Digitized Information : Papers Presented at the SIS '96 15th Annual Convention and Conference Jain, N.K, ed. (1998). 50 Years: Library and Information services in India. A. Murali M Rao, 2010, ‗Digital Library Security: A Layered Approach‘, Proceedings of International Conference on Digital Libraries(ICDL 2010), Volume 2, New Delhi, pp 1167-1171. Intel education., &Ncte. (2007). Hand book for teacher educators. Bangalore: NCTE. Bersin, Josh (2004). The Blended Learning Book: Best Practices, Proven Methodologies, and Lessons Learned. San Francisco, CA: Pfeiffer, 2004. Bennett, S., Marsh, D., & Killen, C., (2008). Handbook of online education continuum. New York: International Publishing group.
Integrating ICT as an integral teaching and learning tool into pre-service teacher training course. http:// www.nd.edu.au Aswal, R.S., ed. (2003). Information Networks in India. NewDelhi: Ess Ess Publication. Baruah, A. (2002). Computer Networking in Libraries. Delhi; Kalpaz, 2002. Bernadette Robinson, 2008, ‗Using distance education and ICT to improve access, equity and the quality in rural teachers‘ professional development in western China‘, International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, Volume 9, Number 1, Chaina. Sangay Jamtsho, 2005, ‗Challenges of ICT use for distance learning support in Bhutan, ICDE International conference‘, New Delhi. Ulf Fredriksson et.al(2009),”Ways to use ICT in schools to optimize the impact on teaching and learning‖, Paper presented at ECER, September 28 – 30 in Vienna, Austria Gunmala Suri (2005),” ―Organizational culture in ICT implementation and knowledge management in Spanish and Indian Universities: A conceptual Model‖, published in A Special Interest Groups of CSI. Hasan et. al. (2007), CIT reflections ,Annual Magazine of the FTK-Centre for Information Technology ,Jamia Millia Islamia , New Delhi, Issue-1 April 2007.
Websites:
392 Characteristics of a computer: http://www.freezonal.com/characteristics-of- computer.html
Cyber crime: http://rbmix.com/mixture/cyb/cyb.php
Desktop features: http://www.labnol.org/software/tutorials/display-windows-clock- date-time-desktop-
Disk error: http://www.labnol.org/software/test-hard-drive-for-problems/17430/ ecomputernotes.com/...computer/write-a-detailed-note-on-classification e-mail: http://quikstarts.com/internet/gmail/how-to-reply-to-an-email-in-gmail/ e-mail: http://support.google.com/mail/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=6585 e-mail: http://www.eurofiling.info/documents/ e-mail: http://www.mediacollege.com/internet/email/attachments.html e-mail: https://mail.google.com/mail/help/chat.html
File types: http://pic.dhe.ibm.com/infocenter/aix/v6r1/index.jsp?topic=/com.ibm.aix.baseadm n/doc/ http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/technology/2012/01/42931/ http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1029&context=libphilp rac&sei- redir=1&referer=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.co.in%2Furl%3Fsa%3Dt%26rct %3Dj%26q%3Dlibrary%2Bn http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blended_learning http://ecomputernotes.com/fundamental/introduction-to-computer/write-a-detailed- note-on-classification-of-computers http://ecomputernotes.com/fundamental/introduction-to-computer/write-a-detailed- note-on-classification-of-computers http://ecomputernotes.com/fundamental/introduction-to-computer/write-a- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Application_software http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linux http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operating_system http://howto.cnet.com/8301-11310_39-20111396-285/five-ways-to-save-a-web- page/ http://isservices.tcd.ie/security/removal.php http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/excel-help/change-and-save-data-on-a-web-page- HP005256164.aspx http://parenting.kaboose.com/education-and-learning/learning-resources/comp- les7.html
393 http://pc.net/helpcenter/answers/primary_and_secondary_storage http://pic.dhe.ibm.com/infocenter/aix/v6r1/index.jsp?topic=/com.ibm.aix.baseadm n/doc/baseadmndita/filetypes.htm http://quikstarts.com/internet/gmail/how-to-reply-to-an-email-in-gmail/ http://rbmix.com/mixture/cyb/cyb.php http://saypoint.blogspot.in/2011/02/secondary-storage-device-in-pc.html http://support.google.com/mail/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=6585 http://support.microsoft.com/kb/306214 http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd346736 http://tech-wonders.blogspot.in/2009/04/facebook-login-precautions.html http://tips4pc.com/top_10_computer_tips/top-10-tips-to-protect-yourself-against- computer-viruses.htm http://voices.yahoo.com/programming-concepts-three-basic-types-programming- 8985937.html?cat=15 http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Give_the_different_input_and_output_devices#ixzz1xp O3dv5l http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows7/products/features/desktop http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-vista/Introduction-to-computers http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows-vista/Parts-of-a- computer#section_1 http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-vista/save-a-webpage-as-a-file http://www.allinterview.com/showanswers/1333.html http://www.bin95.com/Employee-Training- Assessments/Industrial_Training.php http://www.brookings.edu/research/papers/2011/07/25-cybersecurity-shachtman http://www.combofix.org/complete-guide-to-stay-away-from-system-virus- infection.php http://www.combofix.org/complete-guide-to-stay-away-from-system-virus- http://www.computerhope.com/os.htm http://www.courts.state.ny.us/howdoi/searching.shtml http://www.eclipse.org/webtools/jst/components/ws/documents/ContributingWebS erviceRT.html http://www.ed.gov/oii-news/use-technology-teaching-and-learning http://www.educationinindia.net/download/Shamsha-emanuel.pdf http://www.ehow.com/about_7229096_cordless-vs_-optical-mouse.html http://www.eurofiling.info/documents/Instructions_on_how_to_create_a_free_Gm ail_account.pdf http://www.freetech4teachers.com/2011/01/11-resources-for-teaching-learning- web.html http://www.freezonal.com/characteristics-of-computer.html http://www.getsafeonline.org/nqcontent.cfm?a_id=1127
394 http://www.labnol.org/software/test-hard-drive-for-problems/17430/ http://www.labnol.org/software/tutorials/display-windows-clock-date-time- desktop-keyboard-shortcut/2924/ http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/save-complete-webpage-offline-reading/ http://www.mediacollege.com/internet/email/attachments.html http://www.pandia.com/sew/458-translation.html http://www.techradar.com/news/internet/25-internet-security-tips-907003 http://www.tekxam.com/StudyGuide/concepts/General- Concepts/Computer_Components_GLOSSARY.html http://www.tekxam.com/StudyGuide/concepts/General- Concepts/Computer_Network_Concepts.html http://www.thesitewizard.com/gettingstarted/startwebsite.shtml http://www.timeleft.info/windows-desktop-clock.html http://www.usq.edu.au/library/help/referencing/ http://www.wacona.com/input/input.html http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/C/computer_systems_administrator.html http://www.wordsources.info/words-mod-ISP-Pt1.html https://mail.google.com/mail/help/chat.html https://ssd.eff.org/your-computer/protect/passwords https://www.bobibanking.com/online_security_tips1.htm Input Devices, wacona Elementary School.
Instructions_on_how_to_create_a_free_Gmail_account.pdf
Internet searching: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd346736
Internet searching: http://www.courts.state.ny.us/howdoi/searching.shtml
Internet surfing: http://www.computerhope.com/issues/ch000082.htm
ISP: http://www.wordsources.info/words-mod-ISP-Pt1.html
Linux: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linux
OS: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operating_system
OS: http://www.computerhope.com/os.htm
OS: http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/O/operating_system.html page/
Password protection: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/306214
Password protection: http://www.getsafeonline.org/nqcontent.cfm?a_id=1127
Password protection: https://ssd.eff.org/your-computer/protect/passwords
395 Power point: http://www.functionx.com/powerpoint/Lesson03.htm
References: http://www.usq.edu.au/library/help/referencing/
Resources:http://parenting.kaboose.com/education-and-learning/learning- resources/comp-les7.html
Saving web page: http://howto.cnet.com/8301-11310_39-20111396-285/five- ways-to-save-a-web-
Saving web page: http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/excel-help/change-and-save- data-on-a-web-page-
Saving web page: http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-vista/save-a- webpage-as-a-file
Saving web page: http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/save-complete-webpage-offline- reading/
Security: http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/technology/2012/01/42931/
Security: http://isservices.tcd.ie/security/removal.php
Security: http://tech-wonders.blogspot.in/2009/04/facebook-login-precautions.html
Security: http://www.techradar.com/news/internet/25-internet-security-tips-907003
Security: https://www.bobibanking.com/online_security_tips1.htm security: Virus infection.php Resources: http://www.freetech4teachers.com/2011/01/11-resources-for-teaching-learning- web.html
Security:http://www.brookings.edu/research/papers/2011/07/25-cybersecurity- shachtman
System admin: http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/C/computer_systems_administrator.html
The Turkish Online Journal of Educational Technology – TOJET October 2008 ISSN: 1303-6521 volume 7 Issue 4 Article 2 http://www.informa.com.au/conferences/education-conference/technology-for- learning-and-teaching
Virus Security:http://tips4pc.com/top_10_computer_tips/top-10-tips-to-protect- yourself-against-
Web search: http://www.pandia.com/sew/458-translation.html
Web server: http://www.eclipse.org/webtools/jst/components/ws/documents/
396 Website: http://www.thesitewizard.com/gettingstarted/startwebsite.shtml
397