Download Sources of Information

ADMINISTRATION
REVISION – BLOCK 6
Sources of Information
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 eg Who’s Who
 directories eg Yellow Pages
 brochures
 catalogues
 manuals eg computer manuals
 files eg customer records
ICT Based Resources
Examples:
 computer files eg spreadsheets/databases
 e-mail
 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
 workstations are connected to a server
 server stores all software and data
 staff access is controlled by user codes
 makes information available to users
working for the organisation
 software, files and printers can be shared
Advantages of
an Intranet
 employees have access to fast, up-to-date
information
 reduced software &
printer costs
 efficient communications
using internal e-mail
 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 e-mailed
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.
 These networks are run by
Governments, universities,
and private companies
 The Internet links vast numbers of
computers and computer networks
To Access the Internet
You need:
Some services offered:
 A computer
 E-mail
 A modem
 www – world wide web –
for access to more than 500
million pages of information
 A phone line
 An account with an
ISP eg AOL
 Communications software
 ftp – file transfer protocol –
users can “zip” files to save
space and send to other users
Accessing the Internet
Large organisations can have direct access
to the Internet.
 Most individuals access through an ISP
ie an Internet Service Provider
 ISPs can allow internet access at local call rate
 Different ISPs offer different deals eg
monthly fixed charge for unlimited use
Finding Information (1)
 Search engines eg Yahoo and Excite match
‘search’ words to opening words of a web site
 Hyperlinks – words in blue on web pages
which link to another page
 URLs – Uniform Resource Locators or web
addresses eg http://www.made4it.co.uk
Finding Information (2)
 Computer files eg word
processing documents, can
be sent as attachments on
e-mail messages
 Confidential information should be encrypted
(put into code) before being sent over the net
Finding Information (3)
 Home Page – This is the first web page a
user sees when he/she accesses the www.
 Web browser software – eg Microsoft
Internet Explorer – accesses the www
 Bookmarks – allow you to
save addresses of sites you
use often
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:
1 Rent space on the ISP’s host computer
2 Design the web pages
3 Place the pages on the
host computer
4 Advertise the existence of the website
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.