ADMINISTRATION Sources of Information REVISION – BLOCK 6

Sources of Information In order for an organisation to function and carry out its business effectively it must be able to access information. Examples of information needed:  train/air/ferry timetables  road conditions  hotels  foreign exchange rates  telephone and fax numbers  up-to-date share prices

Where can organisations get access to this information? It is impossible for an employee to hold lots of information in their head. So organisations get information from various sources. Sources can be grouped into:  People Based Sources  Paper Based Sources  ICT Based Sources

People Based Sources Some examples are: Conversations -  by telephone  at meetings  face-to-face eg with line managers

Paper Based Sources Examples:  reference books  directories eg Who’s Who eg Yellow Pages  brochures  catalogues  manuals eg computer manuals  files eg customer records

ICT Based Resources Examples:  computer files eg spreadsheets/databases   electronic diary for times of meetings  the internet for all kinds of information such as flight times  cd-roms

The Intranet Features:  an internal computer network eg the Mitel network you use in class  makes information available to users working for the organisation  software, files and printers can be shared  server stores all software and data  workstations are connected to a server  staff access is controlled by user codes

Advantages of an Intranet employees have access to fast, up-to-date information  reduced software & printer costs  efficient communications using internal  software can be updated for everyone simultaneously  files eg databases can be accessed by many simultaneously

Disadvantages  staff training is essential  can be expensive to set up  when the network crashes, work may come to a stop

Some uses of the Intranet  Any documents frequently used eg price lists and staff newsletters, can be posted on the intranet  Newsgroups can be set up to exchange information  File sharing saves lots of time and inconvenience  Messages can be ed

The CD-ROM The following are commonly supplied on CD-Rom: Census information – about the population Road maps and route finders Encyclopedia Back issues of quality newspapers Regional and social trends Magazines and journals

The Internet Is a world wide communications network which can be accessed by anyone.  The Internet links vast numbers of computers and computer networks  These networks are run by Governments, universities, and private companies

To Access the Internet You need:Some services offered:  Communications software  An account with an ISP eg AOL  A phone line  A modem  A computer  ftp – file transfer protocol – users can “zip” files to save space and send to other users  www – world wide web – for access to more than 500 million pages of information 

Accessing the Internet  Large  Large organisations can have direct access to the Internet.  Different ISPs offer different deals eg monthly fixed charge for unlimited use  ISPs can allow internet access at local call rate  Most individuals access through an ISP ie an Internet Service Provider

Finding Information (1) Search engines eg Yahoo and Excite match ‘search’ words to opening words of a web site  URLs – Uniform Resource Locators or web addresses eg  Hyperlinks – words in blue on web pages which link to another page

Finding Information (2) Computer files eg word processing documents, can be sent as attachments on messages  Confidential information should be encrypted (put into code) before being sent over the net

Finding Information (3) Home Page Page – This is the first web page a user sees when he/she accesses the www.  Bookmarks – allow you to save addresses of sites you use often  Web browser software – eg Microsoft Internet Explorer – accesses the www

Information Available Travel eg Scotrail, Eurostar Hotels eg Hilton Group, Stakis Weather Companies eg Companies Online Media eg Daily Telegraph, The Times English language eg Roget’s Thesaurus Government eg Department of Health Political parties General Reference eg Britannica Online Yellow Pages N.B Not all provide free access Financial eg Exchange Rate Share Prices

Creating a Website You must: 4 Advertise the existence of the website 3 Place the pages on the host computer 2 Design the web pages 1 Rent space on the ISP’s host computer

Now answer the following questions in sentences on paper please. 1 What kinds of information do organisations normally need to access? 2 What 3 sources can firms use to access information? 3 Give an example of a “people-based” source of information. 4 What is an Intranet? 5 List 2 advantages to an organisation of using an Intranet. 6 What is the Internet? 7 Name 3 things required to access the Internet. 8 What does ISP stand for? 9 In what form should confidential information be sent over the internet? 10 How could you let customers know you have a web site? Check your answers with the solution and note your score.