Term Paper on "Small Computer Systems"

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Small Computer Systems

Proposed Research Plan: Current and Future Trends in Small, Communicating Computer Systems

The topic or problem to be addressed.

Computers continue to get smaller and the evolution of processing speeds is following Moore's Law. It is reasonable to assume that at some point in the foreseeable future, the desktop computer may simply become a thing of the past. Increasingly, mobile communications devices are being used to develop informal "networks" of friends, co-workers and family members. As a result, the use of small, communicating computer systems, mostly in wireless configurations, is becoming an increasingly popular alternative to older (i.e., a few years) computer systems that do not provide the same level of flexibility and functionality for a company's growing information technology needs today. Identifying current and future trends in this environment, then, assumes a new level of importance for companies seeking to maximize their return on their scarce it resources, as well as for consumers who are seeking to identify the most appropriate wireless tool for their needs today.

The initial search domains.

To develop a better understanding of the key OS design issues associated with the small, communicating computer systems that are driven by the requirements of the application domains, the initial search will extend to scholarly online databases such as EBSCO and Questia, as well as university and public libraries; however, in view of how rapidly the industry change, additional material may be located in the popular press, but will be secondary to the peer-reviewed and scholarly

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sources described above. The focus of the research process will be to identify peer-reviewed articles that were published within the last 5 years, particularly for the Annotated Bibliography relevant articles that remain timely that are older than this will also be reviewed and considered for inclusion in the final project.

The key words and concepts to be used in your initial searches.

Beyond the obvious searches for material on "application domain" and "operating sytems," "small computing systems," "communicating computing systems," and so forth, additional searches will be conducted to identify sources concerning "design" and "design issues," "wireless," "information technology needs," "mobile telephony," and others that emerge during the research process.

Current and Future Trends in Small, Communicating Computer Systems

Annotated Bibliography

Arkin, H. (1991). Choosing the Right Operating System for Your PC. The CPA Journal,

This was a fairly dated source, but the author provides a comprehensive overview of operating systems and their typical applications. Even at this point in time, the marketplace was being inundated with new offerings, and the author makes two points: "more options can bring confusion and make for tougher choices" (p. 46), and, "Just for the record, there is no one, all encompassing operating system.... There is no one OS that could possibly satisfy every company's needs, and there is no stock answer for which OS will not only be the best for you, but will also be around in the future" (Arkin, 1991, p. 47)." (Arkin, 1991, p. 46). This article was a good starting point for the research process.

Cohen, D. (2001, February 1). Virtually Flirting with Love's New Language; Text Messaging on Mobile Phones Is Creating a New Language as Users Ignore Traditional Spelling and Grammar. David Cohen Charts the Rise of the SMS Culture and Asks: '1 dA Wil Nglsh B. ritN Llk This?' Daily Telegraph, 07.

The author makes the point that the overnight popularity of text messaging has been attributed to the introduction of pay-as-you-go mobile phones:

Teenagers were the first heavy users, texting each other in the classroom instead of passing around paper notes." This article turned out to be more valuable than initially thought, since it led to the identification of a shift in the social order that had not occurred to the researcher previously. "e-mail is cut down even further by the mini-missives of a text message. We are composing a new chapter in our vocabulary, thereby opening up a new channel of playful, frank and 24-hour communication." This was an excellent resource for this study.

Finn, S., & Inman, J.G. (2004). Digital Unity and Digital Divide: Surveying Alumni to Study Effects of a Campus Laptop Initiative. Journal of Research on Technology in Education 36(3), 297.

These authors surveyed the effects of an information technology initiative on undergraduates at a Western Pennsylvania college; as part of the initiative, all first-year students were provided with a wireless lap-top computer and Internet access. Not surprisingly, the researchers found that the undergraduates were using these devices extensively for academic applications (as well as some that were unrelated), but all of which tended to facilitate communications and improve student productivity. This article seemed to reinforce the perception that there is a distinct trend for universities today to incorporate wireless network applications as an integral part of their approach to educational services delivery, but this preponderance of reports in the peer-reviewed literature may be the result of more academicians writing about their experiences than their private sector counterparts who may not be so inclined to share their success stores with their competition; however, the article "Emerging Technologies" seems to support the notion that a good deal of this technology is being directed at younger students who may be more apt to embrace it than their faculty counterparts. Given its relative recentness and on-point theme, this essay was an excellent resource for this study.

Mckay, J.P. (2002, January). Hype or Hope?: 3G Technology Is on the Horizon -- the Distant Horizon. Black Enterprise, 32(6), 40.

This author provides a good overview of the interim technologies that were emerging over the past few years. Mckay reports that third-generation wireless networks, also known as 3G evolved from first-generation analog cellular networks and offer business and consumer users unparalleled experiences compared with what has been possible before. Featuring data speeds of up to 2 Mbps, 3G will allow subscribers send and receive e-mails with attachments, download songs, purchase goods and services, and even trade pictures over mobile devices. The author also reports on 2.5 and some of the devices currently in use at this point in time. A good addition to the study.

Mckimmy, Paul B. (2003). Wireless Mobile Instructional Labs: Issues and Opportunities. International Journal of Instructional Media, 30(1), 111.

Although this article was targeted to network applications in academic settings, the author provides a comprehensive overview of general wireless networking considerations and the supporting technology. This was a good resource for this study.

Current and Future Trends in Small, Communicating Computer Systems

Introduction

More and more people are using small, communicating computer systems to stay in touch with their offices, family and friends; companies are using these devices to improve their worker productivity and schools are increasingly requiring students to use them. As a result, industry leaders such as Sprint have responded in kind by developing increasingly sophisticated mobile telephones, hand-held computing devices, and other electronic gadgets that scarcely resemble the telephones of just a few years ago. This expansion of user-friendly applications can be directly attributed to the emergence of more powerful operating systems in the 1990s. According to Howard Arkin (1991), "The advanced technology of today's personal computers has given software developers the opportunity to expand the options available in operating systems (OS), the main nerve system of software applications" (p. 47). As a result, today's devices are capable of Internet access, text messaging, video conferencing and much more, and the applications continue to expand. This paper provides a discussion of the application domains that are typically associated with the small, communicating computer systems class, and how this OS design has been impacted by the requirements of these application domains. A summary of the research is provided in the conclusion.

Application domains typically associated with the small, communicating computer systems class.

According to McNutt, "Computers (including mobile, wireless computers) are the representatives of the newest class of machines. Examples of this kind of system include Internet applications, tablet computers, set-top boxes, cell phones, and personal digital assistants (PDAs). These machines are built as a small, portable, communicating computer, yet they should support many of the same kind of applications as desktop or notebook computers" (p. 21). The term "ubiquitous computing" has been credited to a researcher at Xerox PARC near Stanford University, Marc Weiser, (MacDonald, 1997).

In fact, Weiser (1998) has identified three distinct "waves" of computing; the first being mainframes, the second being networked PCs, and a third, yet to come, in which digital technology has become so finely integrated into everyday activities that it will be virtually indiscernible (Finn & Inman, 2004). While this sounds like so much magic (and it would appear to be so to someone from even say, the 19th century), this is clearly the trend for the future. The particular requirements that influence the small, communicating computer domain today, though, are discussed further below.

Particular requirements of this application domain.

According to Vance (2002), "The growing popularity of mobile devices (such as laptops, PDAs, etc.) has driven demand for wireless connectivity" (p. 36). One… READ MORE

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Quoted Instructions for "Small Computer Systems" Assignment:

“

Research Questions

In Section 1.2 Nutt presents six computer system classes that have different baseline operating system strategies. The first three

- Batch

- Timesharing

- PC and Workstation

came into existence in response to expanding user requirements as computer technology evolved from the earliest machines into the '80s. The remaining three classes,

- Embedded Systems

- Small, Communicating Computer Systems

- Networked Systems

address needs that became more prominent later and represent today's most actively evolving application domains.

For your research project, choose one of these last three classes. Then, for your research, answer the following two questions:

1. What application domains are associated with this OS class?

2. How is the OS design impacted by the requirements of these application domains?

To answer the first question, provide an overview of the application domains the OS class addresses. To answer the second question, identify and explain the key OS design issues associated with the class that are driven by the requirements of the application domains. For instance, embedded systems are often associated with applications that require hardware sensors and actuators that must operate in real time. Your overview would list some of these applications (found through your research) and provide typical or representative requirements they place on their OS. In discussing the design impact you would explain how the Real Time Operating System (RTOS) requirement (as discussed in one of the articles you found) forces the OS scheduler to be designed to provide guaranteed response times.

Your first Research Project deliverable is a plan of how you are going to perform your research. Read carefully the description of the Research Plan in the Research Project Guidelines prior to starting to develop your plan. Specifically note that Research Plan is not an early draft of the paper. It should explain your understanding of the topic to be addressed and provide your initial search domains and key words you plan to use. It should be a future tense document, explaining what you plan to do. Of course you will probably want to have done some exploratory searching to see if your plan is likely to work, but you should write the plan itself as if most of the real work remains to be done.

Your second deliverable is an Annotated Bibliography. Again, be sure to carefully read its description in the Research Project Guidelines prior to starting to develop it. It's probably a good idea to read the description again several times while you're developing it to make sure you stay on track. Pay particular attention to the questions the description in the Research Project Guidelines asks you to consider in your annotations. (main idea, relevancy, usefulness, etc.) While these questions should be answered in your Annotated Bibliography, they do not need to be directly addressed in your paper.

Your third and final deliverable is the Paper. As with the Research Plan and Annotated Bibliography, be sure to carefully read the description of the Paper in the Research Project Guidelines, particularly the "What's Expected" part. As you think about how to structure your paper, consider organizing the body so that it is obvious how you are addressing each of the two questions assigned above. For instance, consider an outline similar to the following:

* Introduction

* Application domains associated with the XXXX OS class

* Particular requirements of these application domains

* How these requirements impact the OS designs for the XXXX class

* Conclusion

This particular organization is not a requirement. You may wish to use a different one. However, papers receiving a grade of A are usually structured such that it is obvious to the grader after just reading the section headings where the research questions are addressed. Conversely, papers receiving a C or lower usually require considerable work on the part of the grader to find where and how (or if) they addressed the research questions. Remember, your job is to clearly address the assigned research questions, not related issues you happen to find material on or that you feel are more interesting.

There is considerable material in the literature on all these OS classes. You won't have much room in a 9 - 10 page paper, so try to keep a big picture perspective. Be sure to read all you can find in your textbook (especially Section 1.2) about the OS class you've chosen prior to going to the literature. The textbook's bibliography (p. 873) may provide some initial help in your searching. Also, be sure to make use of the textbook's glossary (p. 844). Remember, your textbook qualifies as a scholarly source.

I will fax in section 1.2 and textbook bibliography (p873)

Introduction

An important part of your CSMN educational experience is the Individual Research Project. The objective is to enhance the further development of your information literacy skills while providing an opportunity to examine some aspect of the course subject domain in depth. A Research Question discussion topic will be provided early in the course listing possible research questions. Each student is to select one of these for their project. The conference format will provide the class an opportunity to ask questions and discuss the requirement.

Before you do anything ...

Examine the following web pages available at the UMUC Library.

o The Library Databases and E-Journals page is a good place to start for a general search..

o The Computer Systems and Technology Databases page lists the full text, citation, and abstract databases that should be particularly useful for computer operating system issues.

o Use the Finding Journal Articles guide for help searching for journal articles in full text online, as well as in print in the library.

o The Identifying Periodical Literature guide will help you differentiate between scholarly articles and popular articles.

o The Searching the Internet guide provides advice about different search engines.

o The Evaluating Internet Resources guide identifies useful criteria for evaluating information found on the Internet.

o The Ask a Question page provides information on how to contact the Library for help with your research.

Please take a few minutes and review them before you do any further planning. Starting on the right track can save you much time and frustration later.

Deliverables

The project will be performed in three stages, first producing a Research Plan, then an Annotated Bibliography, and finally a Paper. Pay particular attention to the following descriptions of these three deliverables. Your grade on each will reflect how closely what you produce follows them. A common mistake students often make is to provide something that reflects their interpretation of what the deliverable should be instead of what is asked for here. For instance, a well written plan that just provides an outline of the planned paper will probably get a grade of C or lower since it deviates from what is asked for here.

Research Plan: The initial deliverable is a Research Plan. This should be a one page single spaced description, in your own words, of:

o The topic or problem to be addressed (Look on this as your interpretation of the research question you've chosen.),

o The initial search domains (The journals, library databases, etc. you expect to use for your research.), and

o The key words and concepts to be used in your initial searches.

Your instructor will provide feedback on your understanding of the problem and suitability of your proposed approach. Please provide your submission as an rtf or text file via the "Assignments" mechanism in Web Tycho. See your Lesson Guide for the due date.

Annotated Bibliography: A second step in your Research Project is the construction of an Annotated Bibliography. This should be consistent with your research plan, although it may reflect changes made as a result of information obtained during your initial searching. List three (3) to five (5) significant articles that address some aspect of the question being researched. Use the APA Reference Style format found in Section 4.06 of the APA manual. At least two (2) of the articles or papers should be from professional or scholarly literature (e.g., Journal of the ACM). Annotate each article listed with a 100-250 word discussion of:

o the main ideas of the article

o the relevancy of the article (Authority, Accuracy, Objectivity, Currency, and Coverage)

o the usefulness of the article in understanding the research topic

o any personal comments you might have after reading the article

o the priority of the article relatively to the others you have chosen to use

This Annotated Bibliography then forms the basis of the Research Paper. At least two (2) of the articles or papers making up the bibliography should be used and cited in the Research Paper. For the research paper, these references may also be supplemented with additional reference material. Some excellent guidance on how to prepare an annotated bibliography can be found at http://www.library.cornell.edu/okuref/research/skill28.htm.

Please provide your submission as an rtf or text file via the "Assignments" mechanism in Web Tycho. See your Lesson Guide for the due date.

Research Paper: Your Research Paper documents the completion of the research in the form of a 9 -11 page paper carefully prepared according to APA Style guidelines. This page limit refers to the Abstract, Introduction, Body, Conclusion, and End notes sections of the paper. (A Conclusion section isn't called for in the APA, but is required here. End notes are not required.) The page limit is exclusive of the title page and references. Do not provide a table of contents or appendices. Provide your submission as an rtf or text file via the "Assignments" mechanism in Web Tycho. See your Lesson Guide for the due date.

Be particularly careful to insure that all material from reference sources is properly cited. There are a number of sites that provide APA style tips and highlights. You may have your own, but here are some that others have found useful:

o http://www.wisc.edu/writing/Handbook/DocAPA.html

o http://www.psywww.com/resource/apacrib.htm

o http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/research/r_apa.html

o http://info.umuc.edu/mde/apa.html

What's Expected

As a guideline when performing this assignment, consider the following questions (which will be used when grading your papers):

Overall

o Does the subject match the research question?

+ This is a requirement that is often overlooked when a student attempts to recycle a previously written paper or write one for simultaneous submission to two classes. Failure to clearly address the assigned research question may result in a low or even failing grade for the paper. Extending or modifying work you have previously done or that you are currently doing for another class is not a problem, but make sure the version to be submitted in this class clearly addresses the research question assigned for this class when you finish.

+ This requirement also sometimes gets overlooked as the research develops and the focus creeps. Be sure to periodically review the research question to make sure you stay on track with your original interpretation as provided in your Research Plan.

Paper Abstract and Introduction

o Does the Abstract present a concise overview of the paper?

o Does the Introduction clearly introduce the subject and focus of the paper?

o Does the Introduction identify any limitations of the study and their consequences?

Paper Body

o Is the analysis complete, presented logically, and consistent with the Introduction?

o Are methods of data collection appropriately explained?

o Is previous work on the topic identified and critically appraised?

o Are technical terms used properly?

o Are definitions clear and unambiguous?

Paper Conclusion

o Are the results, conclusions, and/or recommendations clearly stated?

o Do the conclusions flow logically from the analysis in the body?

The paper should not:

o Simply parrot back information found in the text, lecture notes, or other references,

o Contain long passages quoted from other sources,

o Provide a general tutorial on the generic topic of the essay, rather than addressing the specific question, or

o Consist of "cut and paste" compilations of material obtained from the Internet or other sources.

The paper should reflect original student writing. Be sure to properly cite sources paraphrase or quote. The UMUC policies regarding plagiarism will apply to the Research Paper as well as all other deliverables in this course. Instructors may choose to submit all or some of any submitted assignment to Turnitin.com for plagiarism detection. Please refer to UMUC policies concerning action in cases of confirmed plagiarism. For more information on how to avoid plagiarism please refer to the Undergraduate Online Writing Center guidance on this matter.

Develop a rough outline starting with the "What's Expected" items listed above as soon as you complete your Research Plan. This makes it easy for the grader to verify that your paper addressed all the "What's Expected" items.

How to avoid plagiarism

According to UMUC's policy (http://www.umuc.edu/policy/aa15025.shtml), "plagiarism is the presentation of another person's idea or product as one's own. Plagiarism includes but is not limited to the following: copying verbatim all or part of another's written work; using phrases, charts, figures, illustrations, or mathematical or scientific solutions without citing the source; paraphrasing ideas, conclusions or research without citing the source; or using all or part of a literary plot, poem, film, musical score or other artistic product without attributing the work to its creator."

Here is a set of guidelines for avoiding plagiarism: http://www.umuc.edu/ugp/ewp_writingcenter/modules/plagiarism/guidelines.html

Your work may be directly submitted to Turnitin! for verification. During this process your work will be compared to a current database and to Internet documents. A report is finally sent to your instructor, and the level of matches with other sources is determined.

Checklist

Prior to submitting your paper, you should verify that it:

o Fulfills all the requirements listed above,

o Has your name following the title,

o Adheres to the APA Publication Manual (applies to the entire paper - not just the citations), and

o Has been carefully proof-read and spell checked.

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