Ink Jet- Advantages- Cost effective, easy to replace
Disadvantages- doesn’t last very long.
Dot matrix- Advantages- Very cheap
Disadvantages- Not very clear, low quality
SCANNERS
Used to edit pages or to use already existing information such as paper records to be transferred to computer records.
Carl Howard 5 MOUSE
Cordless- compact, ideal for travelling, can use on any surface. Quite expensive.
Cord attached mouse- Comes with most computers, reliable although they are easily damaged.
KEYBOARD
QWERTY- Advantages- easy to use, easy to speed type with, simple to use
Disadvantages- none
Hybrid- Advantages- modern, stylish
Disadvantages- hard to adapt to, unconventional design
Specialist- not suitable for this project as they are used in industry and have no use.
HARD DRIVE
Pentium- Advantages- popular, easily upgradeable
Disadvantages- slow, an upgrade every 2 years so its out of date the
Moment that you by it
AMD- Advantages- very fast, efficient
Disadvantages- not many people now about it due to lack of advertisement
DESIGN Carl Howard 6
To collect the adequate information about each customer I will have to produce a short but appropriate questionnaire using the Microsoft Word application. Many people are uncomfortable about sharing their details for various reasons. To get round this the company will have to use an incentive such as the person will be put into a raffle, with the chance to win free unlimited movies for a month.
To get the customers attention the questionnaire will have to be eye catching and colourful. It would be helpful if they were passed out outside of the cinema or given to the customer with each ticket sold.
The information gathered will then be inserted into a suitable database with the appropriate field names (make sure of this by inputting the field names and types in the design view).
Each of the customers will have their own row in the database in which to store their details.
The most relevant questions to put in the questionnaire are more than likely going to be:
Forename -----------------------
Surname -------------------------
Tel no.----------------------------
Title: -------------------------
How many times do you go to the cinema per month?
What is your favourite type of movie?
N.B. the questions in bold are questions that have non-specific answers that can be anticipated by a scroll down selective menu when entering the answers into the database e.g.
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How many times do you go to the cinema per month?
An easy way to get the answer would to provide tick boxes on the questionnaire such as:
This is my first time Hardly ever
- Times 3-5 times
More than 5 times
These options could then be put into a scroll down selective menu for the user to select when needed, all in all speeding up the process.
While using this system it is possible to use mail merge to send letters or emails to certain members, for example if there was a new horror film coming out. Using mail merge would enable the user to send a letter or email to all members who prefer horror films. This would be done by creating a query or form (as I have typed this project up at home I am not capable of showing screen shots of this method as I do not have Microsoft access at home).
But what I can do is show you an example of what the finished mail merge letter would may look like.
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(ADDRESS1)
(ADDRESS2) (ADDRESS3)
Dear (TITLE)(SURNAME)
This letter has been sent to you because here at Big M cinemas we take your needs in high regard, as we know that your favourite type of movies are (FAVOURIE TYPE OF MOVIE), we thought it would be in your best interest that we inform you that a new comedy movie will be hitting our screens shortly. As you are a member, you will get 15% off of every ticket that you buy.
Hope to see you soon
C. Howard
Outlet manager
The urgency and order the letters will be produced will be defined by the number of times that the individual goes to the cinema per month, the individuals who go least will be priority. You may ask why, the people who go to the cinema 3-5 or more then5 times a month do so without encouragement whereas the people who don’t go that often can be encouraged to go more often thus improving business and profit.
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Log sheet- Implementation
This is only a rough guide to how long each aspect of the project took. On the next page there is the final draught of the questionnaire, which will be used by Big M cinemas to collect information about customer
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Example
All you have to do is to fill this short questionnaire to get
FREE MEMBERSHIP and to be entered into a raffle to WIN
FREE UNLIMITED ENTRY TO THE CINEMA FOR A MONTH!!!
Forename:
Surname:
Title: (Please tick when applicable)
Mr Mrs.
Ms Miss
Address: _______________________________________
_______________________________________
_______________________________________
Tel. No.______________________
How many times a month do you go to the cinema? (Please tick when applicable)
This is my first time Hardly ever
1-2 times 3-5 times
More than 5 times
What is your favourite type of film? (Please tick when applicable)
Adventure Art Comedy
Drama Horror Period
Romance Sci-fi Thriller
Other (please state)____________________
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Example- I do not have Access so I have done the example using Word.
The columns in bold are fields in which the answer can be anticipated.
Such as the column with the Field name Title can be anticipated by inserting a scroll down menu, which the user can select an option to insert into the database. As seen below:
The column in italic is auto-numbered which means the program will make sure that each record is individual, I will also use this as the key field.
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Testing
2 of my classmates have tested the database fully by using the rubbish in, rubbish out method in which if they inserted data that was not applicable or that didn’t make sense into the database, and in theory the database should not recognise the data. For example if a number was inserted into a strictly text field whether the database would recognise the data or not. The response was excellent as there were no problems with the database, this means that if any error occurred it would be down to the user. Even this should be very difficult to accomplish.
The way they did this was to make a table about a number of tests that they could run, what they would input and the expected output and the actual output.
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Evaluation
Big M cinemas asked me to collect information about the cinemas customers and to set up a computerised system to allow the cinema to contact customers about future presentations and special offers. Their requirements were: the system should be capable of sending relevant information to particular customers. For example if a new comedy film being shown next month, the system should be able to pick all those customers who like comedy films and automatically produce a letter about the film and to send it to them.
My solution was to produce a questionnaire using Microsoft Word in which has questions about the customer and what they like. To encourage them to fill in the questionnaire, they would be entered into a raffle to win free cinema passes for a month. If they fill in this questionnaire they would automatically become a member of the cinema club. This makes the whole process easier.
After the data was collected I built a database using Microsoft Access in which the data could be inserted and stored.
After the data has been entered and stored into the database, I then made a mail merge letter in which information could be sent via post or email to specific customers to which the information would be appropriate. I did this as I feel that this is the best way to carry out the task set, it is also the easiest to maintain. It is a lot better system to what the cinema used to use as it can be stored on multiple discs in case of fire which is a lot safer than the paper based system that the cinema
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-used, it is a lot easier store, as it doesn’t take up any space whereas the paper-based system took up a whole office.
It’s a lot easier to access by using searches and queries.
This system will definantly change the way that the current employees jobs and what they consist of as they may need training if they are not computer literate or aren’t familiar with the application.
When they are trained it will make their jobs much easier and take them less time to perform tasks.
If I was given more time, I would have liked to build a training program for the employees to use, this would save the company a lot of money because they wouldn’t have to pay for them to be trained at a college because they could be trained on the premises.
My system full fills all the requirements of the task set for me by Big M cinemas.
Carl Howard 11ac
Big M
Cinemas
Website
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ICT in the wider World
If Big M cinemas existed, it would have gone to an ICT consultant company who they would have told their situation. The consultant’s next job would then have been to find a company that could accommodate their problem, if the first company could not. The process would have taken longer but it would have been more thorough. The finished product would have looked a lot more professional, especially the questionnaire.
If Big M were to use a system like mine, they would not have to employ as many people as there would only need to be 1 person to use this system instead of the several which would probably have been employed before. That employee’s hours would be cut down because things would take less time if done on a computer.
The employees would need to be trained to use this system. The training would not take long as the system is very easy to use.
If any of the employees are epileptic or mentally challenged then they may not be able to use this system. The employee’s will have to have breaks every couple of hours to prevent repetitive stress syndrome in their hands.
People’s lives have drastically changed since ICT was brought into the work place.
Some companies have become very rich because computers can process and produce products letters and complicated number problems quickly and more
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efficiently than workers efficiently. This means that the company can produce more products quickly and so get more revenue as they do not have to employ as many people.
But at the other end of this situation, people are losing their jobs because computers can do their jobs in less time and more efficiently.
The Internet has also affected millions of people as it enables anyone to access information 24 hours a day, it enables people to communicate with people who live thousands of miles away.
Computers can be used for such trivial things as stock control or a child’s homework yet at the same time they are used to produce a 50 ft dinosaur for a Hollywood film or to launch space shuttles to Mars.
Computers have done everything but take over the world, yet with A.I. development this will soon be a possibility.
It is very hard to imagine a world without ICT, yet only 50 years ago the thought of computers in peoples houses was laughable.
