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VII. ANSWERS TO ANALYSIS EXERCISES
1. Hardware costs
a. Prepare a spreadsheet summarizing this pricing information and showing the cost from each supplier of
the following options: (1) units with the basic configuration, (2) the incremental cost of each upgrade
separately, and (3) the cost of a fully upgraded unit. If you cannot find features that exactly match the
requirements, then use the next higher standard for comparison and make a note of the difference.
b. Prepare a set of PowerPoint slides summarizing your results. Include a discussion of the warranty and
servicing contract options offered by each supplier.
2. Price and Performance Trends for Computer Hardware
a. Create a spreadsheet based on the figures above and include a new row for each component, showing the price
b. Create a set of graphs highlighting your results and illustrating trends in price per unit of performance
(speed) or capacity.
c. Write a short paper discussing the trends you found. How long do you expect these trends to continue?
Why?
Findings: the trends for all three elements, CPU, RAM, and hard drives all point to continued advances. This
trend is loosely described by “Moore’s Law.” We can attribute this trend to new technologies and increasing
d. Prepare a summary presentation outlining the points from your paper (above). Be sure to link your Excel
chart into the PowerPoint presentation so that it automatically updates when any data change in the
spreadsheet.
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See Data Solutions Disk for a sample presentation [Chapter 03 – Solutions Ex 2.ppt].
3. Can Computers Think Like People?
Note: For decades, computer scientists have promised “thinking machines” within a “few years”. The useful
business application of the Turing test provides an ironic twist to this history.
a. Aside from those mentioned above, in what applications might businesses find it useful to distinguish
between a human and a computer?
Just about any security application where there’s a risk that software might try to fool a security system into
b. Describe a Turing test that a visually impaired person, but not a computer, might pass.
c. Search the Internet for the term CAPTCHA and describe its strengths and weaknesses.
Strengths:
CAPTCHA software has (until recently) imposed a significant barrier to bot-based spamming.
4. Radio Frequency Identification
a. How would you feel if your university used RFID tags embedded in student IDs to replace the magnetic
swipe strip? On a campus, RFID tags might be used to control building access, manage computer access, or
even automatically track class attendance.
RFID tags offer modest convenience compared to card swiping. One simply approaches a door and is instantly
recognized. The risks associated with losing an ID card remain about the same. Mitigating methods
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b. Enter “RFID” into an Internet search engine and summarize the search results. Of the top 20 results,
how many were positive, negative, or neutral?
Summary
• Definitions
c. Enter “RFID” and “privacy” into an Internet search engine, select a page expressing privacy concerns,
and summarize them in a brief essay. Do you find these concerns compelling?
Privacy concerns
• Theft of personal information
ANSWERS TO REAL WORLD CASES
RWC 1: AstraZenica, UnitedHealth, and Others
Case Study Questions
1. What are the companies mentioned in the case trying to control, or manage, through these projects?
What is the problem? And how did they get there?
Objectives
To more effectively manage its IT department’s…
• hardware
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2. What are the business benefits of implementing strong IT asset management programs? In what ways
have the companies discussed in the case benefited? Provide several examples.
Business benefits
• Respond quickly and confidently to audits
3. One of the companies in the case, UnitedHealth Group, tackled the issue by imposing standardization
and “charging” those stepping outside standard models. How should they balance the need to standardize
with being able to provide business units with the technologies best suited to their specific needs? Justify your
answer.
Approaches to achieving balance
• Create multiple, manageable standards (e.g. desktops for various types of work: clerical, secretarial,
Real World Activities
1. An important metric in this area considered by companies is the Total Cost of Ownership ( TCO) of their
IT assets. Go online and research what TCO is and how it is related to IT asset management. How are
companies using TCO to manage their IT investments? Prepare a presentation to share your research with
the rest of your class.
TCO
Total Cost of Ownership consists of the hardware, software, training, and support costs from acquisition to final
2. What does Don Barry of IBM mean by “life–cycle” in the context of this case? How would this life-cycle
management work when it comes to IT assets? Break into small groups with your classmates and create a
working definition of life-cycle management and how it works as you understand it from the case.
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Life-cycle
Life-cycle begins with the analysis of a business need and ends when IT removes the hardware/software from its
RWC 2: IT in Health Care
Case Study Questions
1. What are some of the benefits afforded to organizations implementing voice recognition technologies in these
settings? How can you quantify these benefits to assess the value of the investment? Provide several examples from
the case.
Benefits
The case study describes several benefits:
• cost savings
2. There is no margin for error when working in a health care setting. How would you go about implementing
these technologies in this high-risk environment? What precautions or approaches would you take to minimize
risks? Develop some recommendations.
Implementation precautions
• Start with a small group to test the implementation process and give the organization its own experience base.
3. In what other areas of medicine would you expect technology to make inroads next? Where do you think it
would be most beneficial, and how would it change the way doctors and nurses work today? Provide several
examples.
Future of Medical Technology
Changes in government sponsored entitlement programs will absorb most of the health industry‘s IT capacity over the
Chapter 03 – Computer Hardware
Real World Activities
1. The case talks about electronic medical or health records systems. These are slowly becoming standard in many
hospitals and clinics, both private and public. Go online and search for reports of these implementations. What are
the main benefits derived from their adoption? What have been the major roadblocks preventing their acceptance?
Prepare a report to share your findings.
Benefits
• Improved health care
2. The case above was presented from the perspective of practitioners and hospital administrators. How
comfortable would you feel, as a patient, knowing that your health care providers are using these technologies?
Would you have any concerns? Break into small groups with your classmates to discuss this issue.
How comfortable are patients in any case? Patients are in a position where they have to trust their providers. If their
RWC 3: IBM, Wachovia, and PayPal: Grid Computing Makes IT Easier and Cheaper
Case Study Questions
1. Applications for grid computing in this case include medical diagnosis and financial transaction
processing. What other areas do you think would be well suited to the use of grid computing and why?
Provide several examples from organizations other than those included in the case.
Examples:
• Search for space aliens – SETI @ Home11
10
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2. The joint effort by IBM and the Cancer Institute of New Jersey works by digitalizing medical diagnoses
on the World Community Grid (WCG). What are the advantages and disadvantages of relying on a
volunteer-based network such as this? Provide examples of both. Visit the Web site of the WCG to inform
your answer.
Advantages:
It works. For whatever reason, volunteers are willing to donate CPU cycles to worthy causes. 15
3. IBM, Wachovia, and PayPal are arguably large organizations. However, several vendors have started
offering computing power for rent to smaller companies, using the principles underlying grid computing.
How could small and medium companies benefit from these technologies? Search the Internet for these
offerings to help you research your answer.
Small to mid-sized businesses can capitalize on grid computing’s scalability. They can build applications and
Real World Activities
1. Grid computing technology is becoming increasingly popular and has recently received support from
other? Prepare a presentation to share your findings with the class.
Note: all three vendors provide storage, management, and backup products in addition to their grid computing
software. IBM and Oracle essentially offer cluster (rather than grid) computing. Both are subsets of distributed
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2. One of the main benefits of grid computing arises from the possibility of replacing expensive hardware,
such as mainframes or supercomputers, with commodity-priced servers and even personal computers. What
about the cost of administering so many different servers and the power consumption associated with them?
Go online to search for information that would allow you to compare grid computing to more traditional,
mainframe-based alternatives. Write a report to present your findings.
IBM and Oracle’s solution require the installation of clustered servers. These servers require dedicated space, power
RWC 4: Apple Inc.: The iPod, the iMac, and the Business Lessons of Closed Systems
Case Study Questions
1. Do you agree with the sources in this case that Apple will continue to dominate the digital music market
for years to come? Why or why not?
One of Apple’s key’s to success is Microsoft’s buggy software. If Microsoft ever corrects these problems, Apple
may begin to experience an erosion in its market share.
2. Can the key technology and business strategies Steve Jobs implemented with the closed system of the
iPod be applied successfully to the iMac and other Apple closed-system computer products? Defend your
answer with several examples of what could or could not be accomplished for Apple’s computer product line.
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Just as Jobs did with personal computers, Apple was the first to launch a closed music system that included user
friendly hardware and software components. These products took the consumer market by storm. The
battle, but it has been making inroads.
3. Will the cachet of the iPod and the capabilities of Boot Camp and the Leopard version of Apples OS X
continue to lure more first-time computer buyers and Windows PC users to the Mac lineup of desktops and
portables? Why or why not?
Yes. The O/S, the switch to an Intel CPU, and the emulators will all help Apple’s sales. In addition, one must
Real World Activities
1. Use the Internet to check out the claims of the iPod’s dominance by the sources in this case. Research
how the iPod’s competitors are doing now, including new entrants like Microsoft’s Zune, and what strategies
they are employing to gain market share. Has the market changed since this case was written? Defend your
view of the status of the battle for the digital music market.
iPod’s competitors
iPod continues to face new threats even after knocking out previous challengers HP and Dell. However, Apple
2. What is your view of digital rights management tactics like copy-protection that are used by Apple, its
competitors, and the music industry? Is this capability a proper protection of the music companies’ and
artists’ intellectual property rights? Is it an infringement on a purchaser’s right to reproduce content? Is it
an anti-competitive restraint of trade, especially for the closed system of the iPod? Break into small groups
with your classmates to discuss these issues.
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A DRM view: The copy protection tactics are pretty much dictated by the music industry, so it’s difficult to
blame Apple. I feel comfortable buying music I already know I like and which I can easily back up and share
RWC 4: Apple, Microsoft, IBM, and Others
Case Study Questions
1. What benefits may Starwood Hotels derive from the introduction of touch-screen technology, as noted in
the case? What possible disruptions may occur as a result? Provide several examples of each.
Benefits:
• halo-effect associated with wiz-bang technology
2. Bill Buxton of Microsoft stated that “Touch now may be where the mouse was in about 1983.” What do
you make of his comments, and what do you think it would take for touch technology to displace the WIMP
interface? Justify your answer.
Note
The iPhone product line and other mobile devices now all use touch screens, thereby introducing a generation of
users to touch screen’s abilities and limitations.
3. Is advanced touch-screen technology really a solution in search of a problem? Do you agree with this
statement? Why or why not?
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Disagree: touch screens provide an intuitive user interface while taking away a clumsy pointer device.
Example: interpretive video can go far beyond mere “pointing.” Like personal secretaries, interpretive video
Real World Activities
1. Most of the fame attached to the iPhone has resulted from individual, end-user applications. How could
companies use the iPhone as a platform for commercial use? Break into small groups and brainstorm some
possible uses of the technology, as well as what benefits organizations can derive from them. Then prepare a
presentation to share your ideas with the class.
Companies can build on the iPhone platform if they would consider it to be a networked I/O device. Possible
applications include:
2. Information technology advances rapidly, and touch screen is no exception. Go online and search for
developments more recent than those mentioned in the case. What new large scale (i.e., wall-sized)
applications could you find? Prepare a report comparing new developments with the examples mentioned
here.
Examples:
• collaborative projects24