PRACTICAL EXAM

PART 1: BUYING A COMPUTER

PROBLEM

Logan is having a horrible week. On Monday she set her laptop case on the trunk on her car while she put away her books in the back seat and you guessed it, she drove off and it went flying. Needless to say, it didn't survive. Then to add insult to injury, on Wednesday, she accidentally spilled a Diet Pepsi on her desk wiping out her cell phone, PC and desktop printer. She desperately needs to figure out a new technology solution but only has $3,000 to spend. She is looking to you to help her shop on-line and figure out what solution will work best for her. Logan's income fluctuates based on her work schedule, so she uses a no-contract cell phone service but would like to investigate other no-contract cell phone service options. She is a frequent gamer and plays both role playing games (RPG) on her PC as well as multiplayer games online. She is going to be starting college in the fall and needs a solution that will meet the requirements of a typical college student living in a dorm. She is combining her love of Photography and Art and plans to major in Studio Arts and Art History so she will have to write (and print out) a lot of her homework. She will also need a significant amount of storage (the average song about 5MB and a photograph is about 400K) because she needs to store her music and a lot of photographs. Oh and of course she wants to be able to watch streaming videos from Netflix and Hulu.

TASK

The first step is to analyze the problem - what are Logan's needs versus her wants. Compare this to buying a car. Cars come with various packages and the buyer decides if all they need is a get around town kind of car or one with better gas mileage capable of driving cross country. You may want the shiny red Lexus or Lamborghini, but maybe what you need is good reliable transportation with few maintenance issues and low gas mileage.

Computers can be evaluated the same way. There are lots of different features like physical characteristics (height, weight, and display size), processor and processor speed, system memory, expansion memory, the list goes on. They can also be placed into categories based on usage.

• Desktop/Gaming Desktop: This is best if you need a device capable of editing videos, importing and manipulating photographs, playing videos and interactive games, creating documents, sending email etc.

• Laptop: This is best if you need to travel with your device for work or school, create documents and spreadsheets and send email but still want to use this for entertainment, playing the occasional video or surfing the web

• Tablet: This is a great choice if you just need basic capabilities with heavy usage of cloud technology for things like email, word processing and spreadsheets with some basic entertainment features like app based games or streaming video.

Requirements Definition

Requirements are statements of need: re-read the Problem Statement at the beginning of this document and think about what Logan needs to use technology to accomplish. Then identify five requirements in the table below (one has been done for you as an example):

Technology Analysis

Computing Devices

Decide what you want to propose as a solution to Logan's dilemma. Use the following tables to compare and contrast different alternative computers to help you decide what you would recommend. Make sure you compare two different computers by inputting in both columns of the table.

 
Printers

Review your options for printers and decide what type you will compare. Use the following tables to compare and contrast two different printers to help you device what you recommend. Make sure you compare two different printers by inputting input data in both columns of the table.

Mobile Communication

Review your options for communication devices and a vendor that would be providing the service. Decide what type you will compare (smart phone, plain cell phone, etc.). Keep in mind, Logan wants to use a no-contract provider for mobile communications. In this exercise, Logan cannot take advantage of any subsidies that would reduce the cost of her mobile device - she will have to pay for the device in full. Make sure you compare two different communication options by inputting data into both columns of the table.

Software

As part of your recommendation, you should also think about the software required to make your solution work. Don't assume an operating system or office solution software (word processing, spreadsheets, etc.) is included. Make sure you review the requirements and get the software she will need as an Art History major.

If the software is included in the purchase, indicate what operating system comes with the purchase, and list at least two software applications that should be purchased.

Accessories

As you begin to think through your recommendations, you may find you need additional items to meet the requirements or for ease of use (a mouse for example or maybe a keyboard for a tablet). List these requirements in the table below, the device selected and the cost. You must list at least two external storage device.

Recommended Technical Solution

Written Summary

Review the data you've collected in Part 1 of this project and decide on a technical solution that you think would best suit Logan's needs.

Use the area text box below to provide a technical solution summary and the rationale for the selections. Your summary should be at least three sentences and should:

1. Address all of Logan's requirements; and
2. Provide justification for each of your recommendations.

Cost Summary

In the table below, document all of the different items you have recommended for Logan. Each recommended item should be entered on a single line in the item column. For each entry in the item column, provide the item's cost in the cost column. Once all your data has been entered, use a calculator to add up all the entry's costs. Enter the total cost of all the items next to Total Cost at the bottom of the table.

PART 2: SECURITY

PROBLEM

Lately, Logan has noticed some problems; she calls you for advice. It seems her web browser is displaying the wrong home page and frequently skips between different web sites. When she clicks on links in email, she gets taken to sites that offer her great deals on things but despite leaving her account number, nothing has shown up in her mail box. She also noticed that her computer is running much slower than it used to and she is receiving a lot of email from companies that she never heard of. Logan needs help fast!

Analyze the problem. When you helped Logan select a computer system, did you include any security software? If you did, great - you are ahead of the game. Regardless, now is the time to analyze what's going on with Logan's computer. Logan has been all over the Internet. She frequently uses Public Wi-Fi Hot Spots. She often opens email attachments sent by people she has never heard of. Help Logan out - do a little research, then review what security is already in place on Logan's computer. Decide what Logan can do to make her computer more secure. Your job is to research potential security concerns and identify a security addition to the technical solution you developed in Part I of this project.

SECURITY THREAT ANALYSIS

Use the following table to document your investigations into potential security threats. You should analyze the information you find and write it in your own words (do not just copy and paste, points will be deducted if it's a straight copy and paste). For each identify the source or sources of your information by entering the URL(s) in the box labeled source (none of your sources should be Wikipedia, or a search engine). Some useful websites to get you started include the following (note: the URL's listed below should be used as a starting point - you may have to perform additional research):

• http://www.devry.edu/know-how/top-5-cyber-security-threats-that-could-affectyour-life/
• https://www.stanford.edu/group/security/securecomputing/mobile_devices.html
• http://www.symantec-norton.com/11-most-common-computer-securitythreats_k13.aspx
• http://home.mcafee.com/virusinfo/glossary
• http://blog.emsisoft.com/2012/08/22/tec120822/

Recommended Security Solution

Written Summary

Review the data you have collected in Part 2 of this project and decide on a security solution that you think would best suit Logan's needs.
Use the area text box below to provide a technical solution summary and the rationale for the selections. Your summary should be at least three sentences discussing what Logan can do to establish or improve her security plan.

Cost Summary

In the table below, document any additional items Logan needs to purchase to establish or improve her security plan. This table should include all the items you listed in the Cost Summary in Part 1 of this project plus anything else Logan will need to purchase for her security plan. Enter the total cost of all the items next to Total Cost at the bottom of the table.