Learning Outcomes

At the end of this unit the students should be having an understanding of

a range of IT applications in their everyday life and be aware of the impact of IT in terms of:

• communicating applications (such as newsletters, websites, multimedia presentations, music scores, cartoons, flyers and posters);
• data handling applications (such as surveys, address lists, tuck shop records, clubs and society records, school reports and school libraries);
• measurement applications (such as scientific experiments, electronic timing and environmental monitoring);
• control applications (such as turtle graphics, control of lights, buzzers and motors, automatic washing machines, automatic cookers, central heating controllers, burglar alarms, video
• recorders/players, microwave ovens and computer controlled greenhouse);
• Modelling applications (such as 3D modelling, simulation (e.g. flight or driving) and use of spreadsheets for personal finance and tuck shop finances).

The differences between batch processing, on-line processing and real-time processing. They should have an understanding of a wider range of work-related IT applications and their effects, including:

• communication applications (such as the Internet, electronic mail, fax, electronic conferencing and mobile telephones);
• applications for publicity and corporate image publications (such as business cards, letterheads, flyers and brochures);
• applications in manufacturing industries (such as robotics in manufacture and production line control);
• Applications for finance departments (such as billing systems, stock control and payroll);
• School management systems (including registration, records and reports);
• Booking systems (such as those in the travel industry, the theatre and cinemas);
• Applications in banking (including Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT), ATMs for cash withdrawals and bill paying, credit/debit cards, cheque clearing, phone banking, Internet banking);
• Applications in medicine (including doctors' information systems, hospital and pharmacy records, monitoring, and expert systems for diagnosis);
• Applications in libraries (such as records of books and borrowers and the issue of books);
• the use of expert systems (for example in mineral prospecting, car engine fault diagnosis, medical diagnosis, chess games);
•  Applications in the retail industry (stock control, POS, EFTPOS, internet shopping, automatic reordering).{/slide}