MANAGEMENT

INFORMATION
SYSTEM (MIS)

1ST ASSINGMENT
(16/7/09)

Submitted to: -
SUBMISSION BY :-

Prof . Richa tiwari

AVICK BISWAS
 Sectio
n–B

1.The Five Generations of Computers:-

The history of computer development is
often referred to in reference to the different generations of
computing devices. Each generation of computer is
characterized by a major technological development that
fundamentally changed the way computers operate, resulting
in increasingly smaller, cheaper, and more powerful and more
efficient and reliable devices. Read about each generation and
the developments that led to the current devices that we use
today.

First Generation - 1940-1956: Vacuum Tubes:-

The first computers used vacuum tubes for circuitry and magnetic
drums for memory, and were often enormous, taking up entire rooms. They were very
expensive to operate and in addition to using a great deal of electricity, generated a lot of
heat, which was often the cause of malfunctions. First generation computers relied on
machine language to perform operations, and they could only solve one problem at a time.
Input was based on punched cards and paper tape, and output was displayed on printouts.

Second Generation - 1956-1963: Transistors:-

 Transistors replaced vacuum tubes and ushered
in the second generation of computers. The transistor was
invented in 1947 but did not see widespread use in computers
until the late 50s. The transistor was far superior to the vacuum
tube, allowing computers to become smaller, faster, cheaper,
more energy-efficient and more reliable than their first-
generation predecessors. Though the transistor still generated
a great deal of heat that subjected the computer to damage, it
was a vast improvement over the vacuum tube. Second-
generation computers still relied on punched cards for input
and printouts for output.

Second-generation computers moved from cryptic binary

machine language to symbolic, or assembly, languages, which
allowed programmers to specify instructions in words. High-
level programming languages were also being developed at this
time, such as early versions of COBOL and FORTRAN. These
were also the first computers that stored their instructions in
their memory, which moved from a magnetic drum to magnetic
core technology.

Third Generation - 1964-1971: Integrated Circuits

:-

The development of the integrated circuit was

the hallmark of the third generation of computers. Transistors
were miniaturized and placed on silicon chips, called
semiconductors, which drastically increased the speed and
efficiency of computers.

Instead of punched cards and printouts, users interacted with

third generation computers through keyboards and monitors
and interfaced with an operating system, which allowed the
device to run many different applications at one time with a
central program that monitored the memory. Computers for the
first time became accessible to a mass audience because they
were smaller and cheaper than their predecessors.

Fourth Generation - 1971-Present:

Microprocessors :-

The microprocessor brought the fourth generation

of computers, as thousands of integrated circuits were built
onto a single silicon chip. What in the first generation filled an
entire room could now fit in the palm of the hand. The Intel
4004 chip, developed in 1971, located all the components of
the computer - from the central processing unit and memory to
input/output controls - on a single chip.

In 1981 IBM introduced its first computer for the home user,
and in 1984 Apple introduced the Macintosh. Microprocessors
also moved out of the realm of desktop computers and into
many areas of life as more and more everyday products began
to use microprocessors.

As these small computers became more powerful, they could

be linked together to form networks, which eventually led to
the development of the Internet. Fourth generation computers
also saw the development of GUIs, the mouse and handheld
devices.

Fifth Generation - Present and Beyond: Artificial

Intelligence:-
 Fifth generation computing devices, based
on artificial intelligence, are still in development, though there
are some applications, such as voice recognition, that are being
used today. The use of parallel processing and superconductors
is helping to make artificial intelligence a reality. Quantum
computation and molecular and nanotechnology will radically
change the face of computers in years to come. The goal of
fifth-generation computing is to develop devices that respond
to natural language input and are capable of learning and self-
organization.

Computers today have some attributes of fifth generation

computers. For example, expert systems assist doctors in
making diagnoses by applying the problem-solving steps a
doctor might use in assessing a patient's needs. It will take
several more years of development before expert systems are
in widespread use.

2. Companies which analyze business reports for

the company:-

1. TCS ( Tata Consultancy Services Ltd.) - TCS offers a wide

range of IT services, outsourcing and business solutions. TCS
applies specific industry experience to create tailored business
solutions.

2. Wright Reports - Wright Reports are produced on over

33,000 companies by Wright Investors' Service an independent
global investment management firm located in Milford,
Connecticut, USA. Wright has researched and analyzed
company information since the inception of the firm in 1960.
Wright's proprietary analysis tools, developed over several
decades, include a Quality Rating that is applied to each
company contained in Wright Reports. Wright Reports also
includes extensive explanatory footnotes to help you interpret
company results.

3.RNCOS (Industry Research Solutions) - RNCOS offers a

wide range of market research solutions for clients from diverse
business domains. All reports are comprehensive, thoroughly
analyzed and act as excellent support systems for clients to
make strategic decisions. The team of research analysts with
expertise in diverse industry fields, track emerging economies
using state-of-the-art research and analytical tools to provide
information most valuable for business growth.

4. ADVIZOR Solutions, Inc. - ADVIZOR Solutions, Inc.

provides business analysis software for business managers and
analysts. It offers ADVIZOR Analyst, a Microsoft .NET client-
based solution that enables business users to visually analyze
desktop and enterprise data, create dashboards that can be
shared, publish dashboards, and export findings to Microsoft
Office and Adobe PDF products; ADVIZOR Analyst/X that
includes descriptive and predictive analytics, as well as key
field/variable analytics, missing values calculations, and target
value predictions; and ADVIZOR Server AE, which enables
Microsoft.

5.Crocus Information Ltd. - All about our IT Consultancy and

Business Analysis service for blue chip companies.Centric a has
been a major client in recent years as we have been helping
them with business restructuring and a number of projects
resulting from that. it focuses on analysis, focusing on process
and data.
3. About LAN, CAN, MAN, WAN, GAN
:-

LAN -

A local area network (LAN) supplies networking

capability to a group of computers in close proximity to each
other such as in an office building, a school, or a home. A LAN
is useful for sharing resources like files, printers, games or
other applications.

Most local area networks are built with relatively inexpensive

hardware such as Ethernet cables, network adapters, and hubs.
Wireless LAN and other more advanced LAN hardware options
also exist.

WAN –
WAN spans a large physical distance. The Internet is the largest
WAN, spanning the Earth. A WAN is a geographically-dispersed
collection of LANs. A network device called a router connects
LANs to a WAN. In IP networking, the router maintains both a
LAN address and a WAN address. A WAN differs from a LAN in
several important ways. Most WANs (like the Internet) are not
owned by any one organization but rather exist under collective
or distributed ownership and management. WANs tend to use
technology like ATM, Frame Relay and X.25 for connectivity
over the longer distances.

MAN-

A metropolitan area network (MAN) is a network that

interconnects users with computer resources in a geographic
area or region larger than that covered by even a large local
area network (LA) but smaller than the area covered by a wide
area network (WAN). The term is applied to the interconnection
of networks in a city into a single larger network (which may
then also offer efficient connection to a wide area network). It is
also used to mean the interconnection of several local area
networks by bridging them with backbone lines. The latter
usage is also sometimes referred to as a campus network.
CAN-

Campus Area Network is a high-integrity serial data

communications bus for real-time control applications Operates
at data rates of up to 1 Mega bits per second .Has excellent
error detection and confinement capabilities Was originally
developed for use in cars Is now being used in many other
industrial automation and control applications Data messages
transmitted from any node on a CAN bus do not contain
addresses of either the transmitting node, or of any intended
receiving node. Instead, the content of the message (e.g.
Revolutions Per Minute, Hopper Full, X-ray Dosage, etc.) is
labelled by an identifier that is unique throughout the network.
All other nodes on the network receive the message and each
performs an acceptance test on the identifier to determine if
the message, and thus its content, is relevant to that particular
node. If the message is relevant, it will be processed; otherwise
it is ignored. The unique identifier also determines the priority
of the message. The lower the numerical value of the identifier,
the higher the priority. In situations where two or more nodes
attempt to transmit at the same time, a non-destructive
arbitration technique guarantees that messages are sent in
order of priority and that no messages are lost.

GAN-
Global Area Network or GAN for short is a global satellite
internet Network with telephony using portable terminals. The
terminals are normally used to connect a laptop computer to
broadband Internet in remote locations, although as long as line
of sight to the satellite exists, the terminal can be used
anywhere. The value of GAN terminals is that unlike other
satellite Internet services which require bulky & heavy satellite
dishes to connect, a GAN terminal is about the size of a laptop
and thus can be carried easily. GAN is currently the fastest
global data link available via a portable terminal. It can be
easily set up by anyone, and has excellent voice calling quality.
It works on the band, avoiding rain fade and other issues of
traditional larger satellite systems.