I use my computer at home for producing neat written documents for homework. I also use it for the internet to research information.
Advantages of using a computer to produce written documents are that all the work made is to a more professional standard and is neater. Templates and Wizards make layout and designs easier and faster. Disadvantages are that if the computer crashes or there is a power cut, all the unsaved work will be lost but regular saving can prevent this.
Computers are affected by the Software Copyright Laws which says that any software can only be used for one computer and by the owner. The software isn’t to be copied and resold.
Mobile phones; - can be used for communicating in a number of ways; either by call or by SMS (Short Message Service), also WAP (Wireless Application Protocol), enabled phones can use the e-mail feature from their mobile phone.
I use my mobile phone to send text messages to people.
Advantages of mobile phones are that they can be used anywhere without the need of a cable. Texts are more private than phone calls. Although there are some disadvantages such as when calling you need a good signal to be able to hear someone clearly. To use the internet on your mobile you need a very high signal to enable a good enough connection.
Mobile phones are affected the Data Protection Act. When you sign up with a contract phone all your information is stored in a computer and this must be backed up and also the owner must follow the eight principles.
Telephones; - are used to communicate with people by a voice conversation. A telephone line is also used to run an internet connection through.
I use telephones to talk to friends and family and I also run my internet connection through the phone line.
The advantages of this are that they are fast, easy and clear. Disadvantages are things like the phone line can’t always get a connection to the internet. Sometimes phones cannot be accessed if the number is busy or has a fault.
Fax machines; - are connected to a normal phone line, a fax machine allows you to transmit pieces of paper to someone else instantly. Theses are fast and effective and can allow you to send personal and official documents without any need of editing. The text is normally received instantly and printed out at the other end of the phone line.
Fax machines are fast and effective and personal. They are free to receive as only the person sending them would pay for the time that the connection is being sent on the telephone line. Some of the problems are that if there is no ink in the fax machine you cannot print out the message document and it may be lost.
Radio; - is used to broadcast signals across the country. It is used to broadcast music stations and talk stations.
Advantages are that there is a good as a variety of stations can be picked up from one radio player.
Disadvantages are that the signal isn’t always clear. There are so many stations that there is no longer room for anymore to be made.
Satellite, cable and digital; - are different ways of viewing programs. Digital provides a wide range of channels through a ‘dish’ that is attached to the outside wall of your house. Cable offers many channels through a cable that runs under the ground outside your home. Satellite works using…
I watch digital as it provides many channels for sport, music and movies ect. It is interactive and is useful for checking cinema listing.
The advantages of using satellite, cable and digital are that there are many channels to choose from and they are all easy to use.
Disadvantages are the price, which is constantly increasing. Bad weather can create interference is an adequate reception is no acquired.
Electronic organisers and pagers; - are used for keeping reminders and notes safely using electronic systems which can record date and time and keep you in schedule with up to date events worldwide. Pagers can be set up to deliver you live news reports from around the world and are also a good use of communicating with people. I don’t use a pager or a personal organiser. Advantages of using a pager or electronic organiser are that they deliver news up to date and instantly. Messages are sent and received also instantly and easily. Disadvantages are that they can have problems with the battery and other faults can easily occur with setting date and time ect.
Uses of ICT at School
ICT technologies used at school are things like;-
- the internet,
- computers,
- smart boards,
- telephones,
- Information system,
Internet; - the internet is used in schools as a resource for information. Students are allowed internet access with restrictions. Disadvantages are that there are a lot of websites under the categories like games, tasteless and others that are blocked.
Advantages are that students have direct and immediate access to helpful resources and web pages that can help them with there work and for finding information.
I use the internet at school for finding information to do with the work that I am doing. I use it to find images and to get written information.
When students are using the internet for research and for collecting images, they have to be careful from where they take them from and what they use them for because most things on the net are copyrighted, and if you are found to be using someone’s images or writing you can be sued and fined.
The information is not always guaranteed to be accurate and true, some website creators may have information that is not true or accurate on their site.
Computers; - are used in school for students work. There are several computers in a room and so students have good access to a computer for printing out neat and well presented work.
Advantages of having these computers are that students can create neat and professional work. It can be printed out several times so that copying out work doesn’t take as long.
Disadvantages are that sometimes the computers may be out of order. The printers might not be in use.
I use computers in school for writing up documents and neatly presenting my work. I use programs like Microsoft Excel to generate graphs and charts from inputted data.
Smart boards; - are used in many classes are becoming more and more popular. They are used for displaying work through a desktop computer onto a large display board that can be viewed by a class. It is interactive and can be used through the computer or be used directly sing special tools onto the board.
Advantages are that is easy and effective to use. It displays information and is easier to demonstrate pieces or work on the board.
Disadvantages are that it takes a while to set up and make sure that the board is in co-ordination with the computers and points where it is touched.
We use a smart board in out IT lessons to show easily to a large group how to carry out tasks on the computer and how to use features in programs.
Telephones; - are used to communicate from the school to the student’s parents and other companies. The phones are used by the receptions to call out to parents if a child is absent they can check up by calling the parents to see why there aren’t in school.
Advantages of phones are that they are fast and easy to use. They are personal conversations.
Disadvantages are that the person won’t always answer the phone and so you can’t always get through.
Information technology system; - is used to provide information to people through a television screen. It can be used to show slide shows and other presentations to people watching.
Advantages are that. . .
Disadvantages are that. . .
We use our information technology system through a television in the social area and it plays Power point presentations on the screen for the students to watch.
Fire alarms; - fire alarms in school are used to detect a fire that may be occurring in the school. They can also be manually set of, by breaking the glass. In out cases alarms are set up to automatically call out the fire brigade to the situation. Schools carry out many fire drills so that pupils know what actions to take and where to go in the case of an actual fire. The fire service is always contacted before so that unnecessary call outs aren’t made.
Uses of ICT in by an Adult in Employment and Businesses.
ICT technologies used at businesses are things like;-
- fax machines,
- computers,
- e-mail,
- the internet/intranet
- telephones,
- mobile phones,
- electronic organisers and pagers,
- photocopiers,
Fax machines; - are very popular in businesses. They are used to send and receive business documents, data sheets, letter, information, and contracts ect.
Advantages are that is it fast and effective. It can store a large amount of names and address ad has a large memory. It can copy out documents and images easily. They come with a variety of feature like scanner, copying system and cordless telephone.
Disadvantages are that they can be very expensive and also when used in business with frequent use they can easily run out paper and ink within a sort time and messages may not be received.
Computers; - in businesses are used to process and print out documents. They may be used to create professional brochures, flyers and other documents as well as for typing up reports and creating questionnaires. They can also be used to store data such as names and addresses of people in a database.
The advantages of using computers in a business are that everything is produced and printed out neatly and professionally. Corrections can be made without any trace of alteration and data can easily be made into graphs and charts.
Disadvantages are that some of the programs may be down and which if go down on one will go down on all as the computers are linked. Some programs may not be working because of faults. A power cut can occur and you could lose unsaved information and it could cause problems with the computer, but regular saving can help to reduce and prevent this.
E-mail; - in a business can be used to send and receive business documents and files which can contain either text or graphics or a mixture. Some businesses have separate e-mail accounts to the different working departments whereas others may have a shared account. Businesses use e-mail to send out online news letters and special offers as advertisement online to try and promote their business.
The advantages are that it is fast, easy and free and the message can always be received even if the computer is turned off or not connected to the internet. The e-mail can be printed, saved or forwarded.
Disadvantages are that you must be connected to the internet to use the service and the recipient must also have access to the internet to receive the message. Viruses can be attached and downloaded to the e-mail which could destroy or damage software or hardware.
Internet; - is used to research written information about projects that the business could be working on. It can be used to find graphics and images and other required things. It can be used to host a company’s website which will help with advertisement and can be accessed by more people anywhere in the world.
Advantages are that information can easily be found and inappropriate sites are filtered to restrict people from visiting them. The internet is worldwide and using this to host a business website means that it is open to more people worldwide to view the page and hear about your company. It helps with promotion of the business.
Disadvantages are that the internet could go down and could cause problems.
Telephones; - are used to keep in contact with other members and is very popular. It is also used to ring up customers and customers can in return call the company. It can be used to order stocks and cancel stocks, arrange meeting and make appointments and many other things.
Advantages of using a telephone are that it is fast, easy and personal. it can be used for a variety of reasons and can be used to contact people from anywhere in the world who has access to a telephone.
Disadvantages are that they may need more than one phone line an could always be busy if there aren’t enough phone lines. If there is a power cut then the phones may be down for a long time and it could cause a big problem as one of the main communications would be out of order.
Mobile phones; - are popular in businesses but not as popular as most of the other technologies. They are very useful when you are travelling as they are portable. You can keep in contact by using it for voice the same way you would a normal land line phone or via text or e-mail with a WAP enabled phone.
Advantages are that is it easy to keep in contact with other people in your business. You can use your phone from anywhere in the world and it doesn’t require a cable or phone line connection. You can also use a phone to research limited text information via WAP.
Disadvantages are that you need a good signal for sufficient usage of the phone. Your phone may not be compatible to call overseas and you may have problems connecting to the internet with a low signal.
Electronic organisers and pagers; - they can be used to send and receive short messages, reminders, calendars date and time, store memos. Pagers and electronic organizers are very useful in businesses because they can be used to set schedule and appointments so that they don’t clash.
Advantages of these are that they are fast, effective and reasonably cheap to buy. Organisers have many useful features that are helpful in a variety of ways.
Disadvantages are that they run off battery power which isn’t always reliable and may run out at any time.
Photocopiers; - are used for making identical copies of a sheet or several sheets. They are very versatile and can be used to copy only a certain section on a page or a full page. They can make one copy or several hundred copies. And they can also be altered so that the copies are darker or lighter or go from coloured to black and white.
Advantages are that they are fast easy and effective.
Disadvantages are that some of the page(s) may be cut off. The ink cartridges may run out and may only copy half of the document. Images that are copied from colour into black and white may be dark or not very clear once printed.
When copying anything the user has to be aware of any copyright on the images or documents, because this could otherwise cause the company fines and other forfeits.
Use of ICT by a Person Special Needs.
ICT technologies used by a person with special needs are things like;-
- Touch screen,
- Magnifier,
- Voice typing and reading,
- Sound enhancer,
- Hearing aids,
Touch screen; - is to be able to control what happens on the screen by touching it rather than using a mouse. This is helpful for people who cannot control a mouse properly or for those who don’t have very good hand-eye co-ordination. It is also useful for people who may have difficulties holding a mouse.
Advantages of these are that they are easy, effective and can be used by anyone.
Disadvantages are that they are limited and may be expensive. If someone has a problem with controlling their hand’s movement then it’s not very useful.
Magnifiers and voice typing and reading; - are used to magnify the screen so that it is clearer for people who may have vision problems. There are two types of visual impairment and two types of technology to suit each of these. The people who are partially blind can use magnifiers which use special software to display the text on the screen in extra large fonts.
For those people who are totally blind they must rely on other sense. They may for instance use a Braille output device which converts the text on the screen into Braille characters which can be read off a touch pad. There is also software that can read to the user what the text on the screen says.
Advantages are that people who may not be able to see the screen to read the text can still read and find out what it says without needing to see it directly.
Disadvantages are that they need the special software which may be expensive to buy. If the software has a fault then they are unable to use it.
Sound enhancers and hearing aids; - are for people who have hearing difficulties. You may be able to buy a special telephone hand set that amplifies the volume of the speech so that it is louder and clearer to listen to. They may also use special hearing aids which are hidden in the ear and can make the sound clearer for the user.
Advantages of theses devices are that they make it easier for people with hearing difficulties and they are relatively cheap to buy.
Disadvantages are that they may not always meet the needs of every person and they cannot make it possible for a deaf person to hear.
Uses of ICT by the Local Community.
ICT technologies used by the local community are things like;-
- internet
- chat rooms
- public transport and travel information
- GPS
Internet; - is used in public libraries for research and access to public records. Usually a library will now have all their books and resources linked to an online catalogue which covers the whole country. Members can request a title and have it order to a branch in their county. In addition it can be used to renew books, pay fines and make reservations.
High speed Internet/Telephone kiosk points located in many train/bus stations and hotels can be used to gain access to web-services, check and send e-mails. They can be used by inserting phone cards/coins.
The advantages of this are that the internet is being used by more people and more information can be easily and quickly accessed.
Disadvantages are that not all people have easy access to the internet.
Chat rooms; - are where you can chat to people through the internet whether it be friends or family, by typing messages to each other either through a chat room screen or through an IM (instant message).
Advantages of this are that people can keep in touch and chat to people from anywhere in the world easy and fast.
Disadvantages are that they are not personal and you may not always know who you are chatting to. People can lie about their identity.
Public transport and travel information; - is now available from web-sites which cover all aspects of your travel needs. They include rail information, National Express Bus information, plane bookings, Underground connections, water taxi, cross-channel ferry crossings and Eurostar train travel.
Advantages of these are that you can fast and easily access travel information for faster and safer journeys.
Disadvantages are that If the site is down you cannot access the information and may have to find alternative ways.
GPS; - stands for Global Positioning Systems and is a worldwide system of satellites and their ground stations which are used for identifying earth locations. They are owned and used by the United State Department of Defence. By triangulation of signals from three of the satellites, a receiving unit can pinpoint its current location anywhere in the world to within a few metres.
Advantages are that they can easily locate anything in the world.
Disadvantages are that they are not very economical but GPS receivers have been miniaturised to just a few integrated circuits and so are now more economic