Thursday 30 June 2011
Heritage Studies: Annual Exhibition 2011
Wednesday 29 June 2011
Pre-Calc!
Course Code: BSC 0110
Venue: Tutorial Room 4, Kulliyyah of Architecture and Environmental Design
Time: 02:30 p.m.
Wish me luck, guys!
Friday 24 June 2011
Islam and ICT
In 1999, Islamic Internet Conference (MISIC'99) was held with the objective of utilizing the Internet to present and acquire knowledge on Islam, sharing information among Muslims all over the globe, as well as establishing personal and organizational networks. This event has become a yearly programme under the supervision of the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), and was renamed to "International Conference on Information Technology"2. In essence, supports from ICT will enable the Islamic knowledge to be effectively transmitted to the ummah.
Relation between Islam and ICT:
Information Technology (IT) is defined as "the use of computers and telecommunications for the processing and distribution of information in digital, audio, video and other forms". Based on this definition and the fact that Quran is neither a scientific text book nor a technological "how-to" manual, those who are unfamiliar with Islam might be questioning themselves about the relationship between IT and the book revealed more than 1400 years ago.
Quran stresses the importance of seeking both divine and worldly knowledge from the very first revelation: "Read in the name of your Lord who created * created man from a clot ....."
Knowledge Category
The Islamic tradition has categorized knowledge into two categories.
The second type of knowledge is that acquired by humans via rational inquiry based on experience and observation, which normally concern with worldly matter.
Technologies Offered by ICT:
ICT offers various technologies that can be used by the humans in order to facilitate their routine activities. It is said that ICT will be changing the way we work, communicate, study, do business and other aspects of human life. One of the greatestbenefits to be gained from the use of ICT is Internet.
Links:
There are lots of Islamic sites have been developed with the purpose of providing and disseminating Islamic knowledge and information:
Do’s:
- Spread information about Islam:
- Forum Forum
- Chatting Chatting
- NewsGroup NewsGroup
- Listserv
Don’t:
- Blackmail Blackmail
- Send pornography
- Send virus
Introduction to Internet
We will need:
- A computer with an operating system, such as MAC OS, Windows, or UNIX, that supports Internet protocols
- Communications equipment such as a modem, ISDN adapter, or Ethernet card
- An Internet service provider (ISP)
- Web browser software such as Safari, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome or Internet Explorer
The Hypertext Concept:
Hypertext is a way of presenting information so that the order in which it’s read is left up to the reader.
Hyperlinks are underlined or highlighted words that can be used to view another document or Web page.
Hypermedia refers to a link to multimedia, such as music and movies.
The Web is a distributed hypermedia system or a system where the responsibility for creating content is distributed among many people.
Web Browsers and Servers:
Web browsers display a Web document and enable users to link to other Web pages. The first browsers were text-only. Mosaic was the first graphical browser. Web servers respond to the requests of browsers. They find and send requested resources back to the browser.
- .com – commercial businesses
- .edu – educational institutions
- .gov – government agencies
- .mil – military organisations
- .net – network providers
- .org – nonprofit organisations
Downloading is when document or file is transferred from another computer to our computer.
Uploading is when files transferred from our computer to another computer.
Finding Information on the Web:
There are ways to find information on the Web:
- Browse or surf the Web – This involves linking from one Web page to another, and so forth.
- Search the Web – This method involves using search engines to locate Web pages with the information we’re looking for.
- Subject guides – Web pages are grouped under headings.
To use a search engine, we:
- Choose a search engine (Google, Yahoo, MSN, Lycos, Alta-Vistaetc.).
- Type in one or more words describing your topic.
Using Search Techniques
- Inclusion/exclusion operators
- Wild cards
- Phrases
- Boolean operators
Words Entered | Possible Results: Web pages containing |
Fire station | Fire station Fire station |
Using search operators:
Words Entered | Possible Results: Web pages containing |
+Fire+station | Fire station |
+Fire+station* | Fire station Fire stations |
+Fire-station* | Fire |
“Fire station” | Fire station |
Fire and station | Fire station |
Fire or station | Fire station Fire station |
Fire not station | Fire |
E-Mail: Staying in Touch:
myname@someserver.com
User’s name@name of the server that the user is on
Instant Messaging: E-Mailing Made Faster
Internet relay chat consists of real-time, text-based conversations. Chat groups are divided into channels that cover a specific topic.
Usenet is the part of the Internet which enables users to participate in discussions and newsgroups. Usenet newsgroups are organised into hierarchies (categories) and subcategories. Subcategories include Standard, Alt, Biz, and Local newsgroups.
comp | computer applications, databases, multimedia |
misc | activism, books, business, health |
sci | chemistry, archeology, math |
soc | human rights, world cultures |
talk | Euthanasia, gun control, religion |
news | Usenet announcements |
rec | sports, gardening, bicycles |
A listserv is an automatic list server. Mail is sent to everyone on the list when e-mail is generated. It is similar to a newsgroup or a forum.
Networks
Network types are local area networks, home networks, wireless LAN, personal area networks, metropolitan area networks, and wide area networks.
Computer networks fall into 2 categories: local area network (LAN) and wide area network (WAN).
LAN uses cables, radio waves, or infrared signals to link computers or peripherals e.g. printers, within a small geographic area, e.g. building or group of buildings.
WAN uses long-distance transmission media to link computers separated by few miles or even thousands of miles. The Internet is the largest WAN as it connects millions of LANs all over the globe.
Advantages of Networking
- Reduced hardware costs.
- Application sharing.
- Sharing information resources.
- Centralised data management.
- Connecting people.
- Loss of autonomy.
- Lack of privacy.
- Security threats.
- Loss of productivity.
Communications
Simply put, communications are the process of sharing data, programs, and informations between computers.
Communications today:
Numerous applications e.g. e-mail, instant messaging (IM), Internet, telephone, and e-commerce, depend on communication systems. Connectivity uses computer networks to link people and resources. Going wireless has been the most dramatic change.
Communication channels (also known as links) are the path through which messages are passed from one location to the next. There are 2 categories: physical connections and wireless connections.
Physical connections i.e. wired:
- Ethernet Cable (twisted pair cables)
The same type of wire used for telephones, twisted pair uses 2 insulated wires twisted around each other to provide a shield against electromagnetic interference, which is generated by electric motors, power lines, and powerful radio signals.
Although twisted pair is an inexpensive medium, the bandwidth of traditional twisted-pair telephone lines is too small to carry video, voice, and data simultaneously. Twisted pair carries data at transfer rates of 1Kbps.
- Coaxial Cable
Familiar to cable TV users e.g. Astro in Malaysia, coaxial cable consists of a centre copper wire surrounded by insulation, which is then surrounded by a layer of braided wire. Data travels through the centre wire, while the braided wire provides a shield against electrical interference.
Coaxial cable carries data at transfer rates of 10 Mbps. In contrast to twisted pair, coaxial cable makes it easy to achieve very-high-end-bandwidth data communication.
- Fibre-Optic Cable
Fibre-optic cable consists of a thin strands of glass that carry data by means of pulses of light. Broadband uses fibre-optic or coaxial cable to transmit data. Fibre-optic cable can carry more data without loss of signal strength for longer distances than twisted pair or coaxial cable. Fibre-optic cable carries data at transfer rates of 1 Gbps.
Wireless connections:
- Radio frequency (RF)
- Wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) 802.11
- Bluetooth
Unlike infrared technologies, Bluetooth doesn’t require a direct line on sight to be connected. Because the frequency used by Bluetooth devices changes often, Bluetooth devices never use the same frequency at the same time and don’t interfere with each other. Bluetooth can accommodate data transfer rates up to 1 Mbps.
- Microwave
- Satellite
- Infrared e.g. Remote control
Infrared is a wireless transmission medium that carries data via beams of light through the air. No wires are required, but the transmitting and receiving devices must be in line of sight or the signal is lost. When the path between the transmitting and the receiving devices is not obstructed by trees, hills, mountains, buildings or other structures, infrared signals can work within a maximum of about 100 feet.
Last-Mile Technologies:
Because the local loop’s last mile of twisted-pair will be with us for many years, phone companies and other providers offer a number interim digital telephony technologies that make use of twisted-pair wiring that’s sometimes called as last-mile technologies. These solutions include digital telephone standards e.g. ISDN and DSL* that use twisted-pair wiring as well ‘always on’ high-speed wired services i.e. coaxial cable and cable modems.
Simply put, telephone, DSL, cables and wireless are the connection devices.
*I’ll explain the ISDN and DSL later
Application Software
- Graphic Interchange Format (GIF) - lossless, simple images, solid colour.
- Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG) - lossy, photographs
- Portable Network Graphics (PNG) - lossless
- Windows Bitmap (BMP) - optional compression.
- 3D Rendering Programs add 3D effects to graphic objects.
- Image Editors used to edit and transform bit-mapped images
- Animation i.e. Flash simulates motion.
- MP3 or MPEG3 are the most popular format for downloading and storing music. Can be compressed while maintaining good quality. I have around 8000 plus of MP3 stored in my iPod.
- Advanced Audio Coding (AAC) is a standardized, lossy compression and encoding scheme for digital audio. Designed to be the successor of the MP3 format, AAC generally achieves better sound quality than MP3 at similar bit rates.
- AU are the small-sized of file and normally used to distribute short audio clips over the Internet.
- WAV are used mainly in Windows PCs. Commonly used for storing uncompressed.
- MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) is an industry-standard protocol that enables electronic musical instruments (synthesizers, drum machines), computers and other electronic equipment (MIDI controllers, sound cards, samplers) to communicate and synchronize with each other.
- MPEG-4 (files with extension .mp4) is method of defining compression of audio and visual (AV) digital data. It usually have a high-quality picture. I always have to convert videos from various formats with extensions like .flv, .avi, .mkv. to MPEG-4 so I can open them in my iPhone and iPod Touch.
- QuickTime is an extensible proprietary multimedia framework developed by Apple Inc., capable of handling various formats of digital video, picture, sound, panoramic images, and interactivity. The classic version of QuickTime is available for Windows XP and later, as well as Mac OS X Leopard and later operating systems. A more recent version, QuickTime X is currently only available on Mac OS X Snow Leopard.
- Windows Media Video (.wmv) is the Microsoft's lossy compression format for motion video. Used for both streaming and downloading content via the Internet.
- Billing programs i.e. electricity bills.
- Inventory tracking programs (I used this while working in Nike Concept Store).
- Point of Sale software (my friend used this while working as Parkson's cashier).
- Custom software
| Microsoft Office | WordPerfect Office 12 | Lotus SmartSuite |
Word processing | Microsoft Word | WordPerfect | Word Pro |
Spreadsheet | Microsoft Excel | Quattro Pro | Lotus 1-2-3 |
Database | Microsoft Access | Paradox | Lotus Approach |
Presentation Graphics | Microsoft PowerPoint | Corel Presentations | Freelance Graphics |
Personal information managers | Microsoft Outlook | Corel Central | Lotus Organizer |
Thursday 23 June 2011
Virus
- Inserting a disk with an infected program and then starting the program.
- Downloading an infected program from the Internet.
- Being on a network with an infected computer.
- Opening an infected e-mail attachment.
- Password guessing.
- Shoulder surfing.
- Packet sniffing.
- Dumpster diving.
- Social engineering.
- Superuser status.
Wednesday 22 June 2011
Monday 20 June 2011
Friday 17 June 2011
Found Something!
Landscape assignment. A map. A plan...
I think it's quite okay so I made a copy... =)
P.S.: to the owner, I won't use for other purpose other than personal use so no worries!
Important!
On Monday we'll be having a quiz, covering the 2nd and 3rd week's topic.
..and we have to retrieve some notes from the photocopy centre on Excel's topic.
anyway, since our instructor isn't feeling well, she finished the class at 9.
Thursday 16 June 2011
That Was a Lot!
We covered Limits and Continuity in one day for Pre-Calculus!
I'll have the 5th quiz on Matrices tomorrow... Wish me luck!
Wednesday 15 June 2011
2 Weeks Before Finals!
2 months of vacation! Ramadhan, 'Eid... and not forgetting my birthday!
Still working on my birthday list but I think I'll just go with latest iPad and iPhone...
Anyway, yesterday I had my 4th Maths quiz and got my mid term paper result.. both of them are okay I guess... Since I know I'm not good at Maths...
P.S.: I'm in the computer lab... the keyboard feels so nice under my fingertips.. LOL
Tuesday 14 June 2011
Done with Trigonometry!
I actually have been dreading the day since the first day about this topic...
Monday 13 June 2011
I Want To Go To His Country!
Anyways, let's talk about other presenters!
Second presenter is from Republic of Somaliland. He talked about the location and the history of the country.
Third presenter is actually from Palestine but he lives in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
He talked about basic facts of the people and culture... Mecca as the Qiblatul Muslimin...
Next one is a girl - also from Republic of Somaliland. She talked about experiencing the nature in her country like in Mountain Daalo...
Next is a guy from from Palestine. He talked about myths and the realities in Palestine...
Another one is from Republic of Somaliland who talked about the location of the Republic and little bit of the history...
Next one, Hasan who is from Sudan. Since he have been living in Saudi Arabia most of his life, little that he can talk about his country.
Final presenter is from Jordan! I think this guy has the most abundant interesting facts about his home country... Jordan also known as 'The land of Adventure', has a lot of beautiful places we can go like the Red City Rose Petra, the "Dead Sea" and etc. Since it's a 4 season country, he said we can do different activities at different times throughout the year. He also talked about the currency 1JOD= 1.34 USD, the traditional food - Mansaf, and lastly, he showed some videos of the country.
Saturday 11 June 2011
Mid Term Computer!
Date: 11th of June 2011
Time: 02:00 p.m.
Venue: Examination Hall 1, E01, Kulliyyah of Engineering
Friday 10 June 2011
System Software
- Starting the computer
- Cold boot – Loads the OS when the power is turned on
- Warm boot – Reloads the OS when the computer is already on (Sleep Mode)
- Is the central part of the operating system
- Starts all applications
- Manages devices and memory
- Resides in memory at all times
- Performs other essential functions
- BIOS (basic input/output system) is the part of the system software that includes the instructions that the computer uses to accept input and output
- Setup program is a special program containing settings that control the computer’s hardware. The program can be accessed while the BIOS information is visible.
- POST (power-on-self-test) is a series of tests conducted on the computer’s main memory (random access memory or RAM), input/output devices, disk drives, and the hard disk.
- BIOS conducts a Power-On-Self-Test (POST) to check the input/output system for operability.
- The computer will produce a beeping sound and an error message will appear on the monitor if any problems are encountered.
- BIOS searches for the OS.
- Settings in the complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) determine where to look for the OS.
- The operating system’s kernel is loaded into the computer’s memory.
- The OS takes control of the computer and begins loading system configuration information.
- Registry is a database that stores information about peripherals (computer equipments) and software.
- Driver utility program that makes peripheral devices function properly
- The system is configured from the operating system’s registry.
- Drivers are loaded into memory.
- System utilities are loaded into memory.
- Volume control
- Antivirus software
- Authentication or user login occurs. The computer asks for user's name and the password.
- The user interface starts, enabling user interaction with computer programs.
- Managing Applications
- A foreground application is the active program or program in use
- A background applications is the inactive program or program not in use.
- Managing Memory
Next Operating System's function is,
- Handling Input and Output
Input and output devices generate interrupts, or signals, that tell the operating system that something has happened.
Interrupt request (IRQ) lines handle the communications between input/output devices and the CPU.
The last Operating System's function is,
- Providing the User Interface
- Start application programs
- Manage disks and files. We can format new disks, copy files from one disk to another, rename files, and delete files.
- Shut down the computer safely by following an orderly shutdown procedure.
Menu-driven User Interface enable us to to avoid memorizing keywords e.g. copy and paste, and syntax i.e. set of rules for entering commands. On screen, text-based menus are used to show all of the options available at a given point. With most systems, we select an option with the arrow keys and press Enter.
Wednesday 8 June 2011
MS PowerPoint
Monday 6 June 2011
Storage
- Don't touch the surface of the disk. Fingerprints can contaminate the disk and cause errors.
- Don't expose disk to magnetic field e.g. those from transformers, desktop telephones, and magnets. Because data are magnetically encoded on the disks, direct exposure to magnetic fields may cause cause loss of data.
- Avoid contamination, don't eat or drink around disks as crumbs and spillage may destroy the disk.
- Avoid condensation, keep disks in dry place.
- Avoid excessive temperatures.
- Do not expose discs to excessive heat or sunlight.
- Do not touch the underside of discs. Hold them by their edges.
- Do not write on the label side of the disc with hard instrument, such as ballpoint pen.
- To avoid scratches, do not stack discs.
- Store discs in jewel boxes (plastic protective cases) when they are not in use.
- PC Card - a credit card-sized accessory typically used with notebook computers (I had this in my 06's Acer laptop model)
- Flash memory Card - Wafer thin, highly portable and capable of storing as much as 1 GB of data.
- Smart Card - credit card-sized device that combines flash memory with a tiny microprocessor, enabling the card to process as well as store information.
- Smart media Card - Flash memory card standard owned by Toshiba, with capacities ranging from 2 MB to 128 MB but these are no longer manufactured.
- CompactFlash Card - mass storage device format used in portable electronic devices. Capacities ranging from 2 MB to 128 GB. Developed by SanDisk.
- Memory Stick - Sony's chewing gum-sized flash memory card that is currently available up to maximum of 2 TB of capacity (Memory Stick XC).
- USB Drive - flash memory data storage device integrated with USB interface. Capacities as of 2011 can be as large as 32 GB with steady improvements in size and price per capacity expected.
- Digital cash system - enables users to purchase a prepaid amount of electronically stored money to pay the small amounts required for parking, transport fares, even movie tickets! (e.g. In Malaysia, Touch 'n Go Card)
Saturday 4 June 2011
Important!
Date: 7th of June 2011
Venue: Examination Hall, Level 3, Kulliyyah of Engineering
Time: 2.00 p.m.