Final Remarks

This semester has been a very difficult semester. Sometimes I wonder why I am going for my second Masters Degree. In the beginning of the class I was going to withdraw because of the workload and taking a second class. There is light at the end of the tunnel. The topics discussed this semester were very informative. Even with my mediocre computer background there were still topics that were new to me. The only downside of the class was the group project. I think we failed because we did not assign a group leader. It seemed as though no one truly wanted the responsibility. WE did not communicate as frequently as we should which resulted in the low grade. It was a first failure for me an experience I will not forget.

The great part of the class was the articles. I enjoyed the mini projects as well. It was a pleasure learning from you, and I would enjoy taking another class, hopefully not this one, with you again.

Session Fourteen

This was probably the best session of all, probably because it was the last. However, delaying IT investments to cut cost is probably depended upon how much debt of the business. IT system upgrades are not cheap, but delaying an upgrade can be more costly. I am caught in the middle in my decision. I would not cut costs if upgrading would improve the business. I would cut staff or reduce man hours to invest in IT. It is totally depended upon what the business goals and what is expected of the return.
Increased spending in my car did not make me drive faster. I am still limited to 60mph. It did decrease my gas mileage. Funds that are invested properly in IT systems can bring results. Investing in a system that will be outdated in a couple of years may bring immediate results and additional future costs.

Session Thirteen

Reading the statue for HIPAA provided me with information that I was not aware. I was always under the impression that HIPAA was strictly to prevent medical employees from viewing patient’s records. I learned that it protected patients from insurance fraud. One managerial issue with teleworking is managers do not have the face to face interaction needed for career development and mentoring. The business or work from the employees would be based on production. Mangers would monitor only the work accomplished, which will elude them from other factors concerning the employees personal life. I believe the teleworking can be used on a case by case basis, that is circumstances that prevents the employee from coming to work for a prolong period.

Session Twelve

Standards are necessary in the computer industry I think to ensure that computers are able to communicate with each other. Television or radio waves have standards. Broadcasters have to follow the laws of the FCC in order to communicate to consumers. Maybe if there was standard of Operating Systems Microsoft would have such a grip on the market. Outsourcing is the trend for most businesses using when they are planning to expand beyond their borders. Finder cheaper resources and cutting production costs is a great strategy for businesses to adopt. Outsourcing can have a negative impact on businesses if local workers are not trained to handle customer complaints or working conditions fall short of the industry standard.

Session Eleven

A Systems Development Life Cycle is the best strategy to use in developing any project. I certainly believe that planning, analyzing, designing, and maintaining will bring positive results in development of any project, especially web development. Extreme programming has been a method that Microsoft seems to use in developing their operating systems. Every operating system that I have owned from Microsoft has been rushed to market. I have used Windows 95, 98 and XP. Each product needed constant updates to function with computers. I think it is necessary with all the amount of input and output peripherals on the market. It would be difficult to have drivers for each one in a introductory project.

Session Ten

Session ten’s topic on the dot.com failures was very interesting. There seemed to be a consensus on what caused e-businesses to fail. I think too many business were entering the market at the same time without much capital to sustain them in the time of crisis.

The e-businesses that survived had a competitive advantage over their rivals. They had the product customers wanted that competitors were not able to imitate. To survive in any business you want a product that is unique to competitors and marketable to consumers.

I think the secret to success is to have a vision and a belief that you will succeed. In reality capital, marketing, and networking is a key to success. Without a chain to supply your product other that yourself, it will probably limit your ability to reach more consumers.

Session Nine

The topics this session were interesting, GPS and data mining. GPS has been used in many different ways. I think locating a vehicle is a nice tool to use GPS. I used On Star on my vehicle four years ago and did not find it necessary. The phone did not work and I felt the reason I was paying insurance and taxes was to recover and protect my vehicle. I do not think GPS probably has not reached its potential. It has been integrated with cell phones, which is the newest technology. There were also some interesting comments on data mining. In my opinion it is an infringement on a person’s right if the information is used illegally. I think people need to be more protective in sharing there personal information.

Session Eight

Organization memory was an interesting topic this week. I think businesses should not allow one person to obtain and retain all the important information about the business. When CEO, CIO, and CFO leave a business they take much of their marketing, leadership and financial expertise with them. When research and development leaders and supervisors leave a business they could possibly take information that is needed to complete a project. I agree that information should be stored and shared amongst team members. It should be recorded in the business’s database for future review. One person should not prevent an organization from reaching its maximum potential. It is important to have groupware tools in place to prevent this from happening.

Session Seven

Well it is great to be back at home and behind my computer. There were some interesting discussions on Sales taxes over the internet. As I stated, I am totally against it. Before the government tries to tax the internet, it should provide something to the users. How is it possible to tax something that is not owned?

It is easy with all the search engines to market and promote your website. When I first setup my blogger, Google immediately put it in their search engine. It felt good seeing my name on a Google website. After two weeks I could hardly find my website. I am guessing because it was not website beneficial to Google.

An ideal website is one that is user friendly and accessible. Most real estate and e-commerce website develop the same format to make it easy for some users. The easier it is to access information on a website the more the user will logon.

Session Six

The Information Technology field seems to have as many acronyms as the military. After this week I am going to start a list of acronyms so I can refer to them after this course. CRM was an interesting discussion. I have always speculated how businesses developed and improved their customer help desk. It was interesting to see how important it is for the consumer and technician to work hand in hand. Environmental resource planning plays a role in developing a customer research management project. If the correct software is implemented into the system, then both the consumer and technician will be able to resolve any issue.

Session Five

Learned a great deal about security threats this session. Nearly every classmate had a different experience. Encryption devices and hardware is probably the next vision for the PC and IT community. Home users are going to want the same security they have at work. As employers develop new systems they want to protect them from hackers and illegal use.

Protecting your identity seems to tie into protecting your home or office network. Some people their personal information on their computers. Employers keep personal information about their clientele on their networks. Encryption and security will help protect both.

Session Four

There were some interesting comments on data bases and their security. The data bases on the internet are secure depending upon which are used. Banks have a very secure database which uses the internet to provide customers information. The encryption that the databases uses makes them secure. Businesses should be concerned about how much access they give to one employee. Firms want to ensure if somethings happens to one employee, that employee does not have the only access to the database. This was a great session about datbases. There are different areas of concern which I can reflect back should I begin building my own database. The willow website identified reasons it is important to troubleshoot your website before publication

Session Three

Session three was great learning experience. It was good to see the futuristic visions some of my colleagues. I learned the new versions used to operate the internet. The internet is going to be how consumers conduct their daily routines. Some people depend on the internet entirely to pay bills and make bank transactions. I do not think the FCC will let televison be televised over the internet, becuase it would probably behard to sanction. VOIP technology is the communication of the future. There were some interesting ways of how to reduce the volume of e-mail. Some of which I plan to use.

Session Two

Session Two

This session increased my knowledge about how computers can good and bad for a company. Businesses loose a great deal of production because of computers. Employees that have desk top computers can waste at an hour or two a day, searching the internet and reading personal e-emails.

Six or seven years ago on super computers would be the only machines containing 1 terabyte hard drives. I am about two weeks away from purchasing a 1 terabyte hard drive for the personal computer. It seems that computers are being phases out after 5 years. Either the monitor is too big or the processor does not as efficiently with the new software.

Session two highlighted key points about how fast technology is changing. It is hard for consumers to make decisions on purchasing computers when they know two years down the road they will be almost obsolete. Businesses today have to build systems to grow as the business grows. I think if a business monitors computer hardware effectively, it can cut cost by purchasing at the right time.

Session One

Session one has always been an icebreaker for me. I use session one to get an idea of how much work is going to be required of me during the week. I use this to adjust my schedule to me the required deadlines. I also find out in session one how well I read the syllabus. In this class I mixed up the required dates for the group projects and the term paper.

This was the first time I had to complete a group assignment in the first week. I see many of us are still trying to adjust our schedules to meet deadlines. Some have little to adjust, which makes it easier for the group in the beginning. The groups I worked with have all helped and understood challenges people may face during the term. I have been in groups where one or two people may do the work for a couple of weeks, while others handle personal problems. It worked out well as long as we were all there at the end.

I like the pace and work load of the class. The book introduces IT from the basics. I am almost sure it will get more technical at the end. The articles in the UMUC library are outdated when it comes to IT. I am second guessing if I should subscribe to some of the IT magazines at the beginning of the class.

Rickey

ITEC 610

My name is Rickey Wilbourn. I was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. I joined the military at age 31 to support the military, seek an education, and support my family. The same day I joined was the day the Iraq War ended in 1991. I currently have 17 years years in the military. I have been to over ten countries and deployed three times. I enjoy my life in the military and I am pleased at the educational benefits they have offered me thus far.

I have several degrees: AAS in Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement; BS in Business Administration; MS Management concentration in Human Resources. Currently seeking my MS in Information Technology concentration Information Assurance.

I plan to complete my certification in Human Resource Management, Computer Information Security.

I have a son and 1 daughter who have produced 3 grandchildren.