D2 explain and justify improvements that could be made to a computer system.

Introduction

The purpose of this report is to highlight, explain, and justify possible improvements that could be Mr Ali’s computer system to both aid him with his use of the computer system to combat his disabilities as well as generally speed up his system to make it more efficient and smooth when operating.

Left Handed Keyboard/Mouse

Implementing a left handed keyboard and/or mouse into Mr Ali’s computer system will help to operate his computer system with ease as he is a left handed user. Using these peripherals will increase his efficiency with the computer system and make it more comfortable for him to operate it as these peripherals are designed to be used by individuals who are left handed.

Wireless adapter

Putting a wireless adapter into the computer system will enable Mr Ali to move the computer system to a more appropriate and comfortable position, as at the moment his computer system will have to be within cables length of the internet router for him to use the internet. Utilizing wireless capabilities will also mean fewer cables to worry about which means less clutter as well as the possibility of moving his working area to a better location, away from the confinements of the internet router.

Larger/Better quality monitor

Mr Ali has vision issues, this means that he may have trouble reading text on the computer monitor, to combat this we initially enlarged the icons on the desktop as well as some other features, to further combat the issue we can implement a larger monitor, or a better quality one, this will help Mr Ali to view the text easier, reducing strain on his eyes and making his computer experience more comfortable.

Upgrade hardware (HDD RAM)

We can upgrade the hardware on his system, such as his HDD and RAM, this would speed up the performance of his computer system as well as giving him more space to store media. Increasing the RAM further would also allow him to have more programs/higher performance programs open.

Anti-virus

Implementing a good quality and effective anti-virus software will help to protect Mr Ali’s computer system from malware and malicious attackers; this will mean that his computer system will operate without trouble.

Registry Cleaner

Installing a good quality registry cleaner, such as CCleaner will help to keep his computer system clean from bad registry entries; this in turn will help to speed up the performance of his computer system.

Modern Browser

Installing a modern browser, such as Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox over the standard Internet Explorer will mean that browsing will be faster as well as a lot more comfortable.

D1 explain how software utilities can improve the performance of computer systems

Virus Protection

This utility helps to improve system performance by maintaining a safe environment for the user to use and keep out malware that will slow down and decrease system performance and effectiveness, it does this by preventing malware from entering a system, detecting any malware that is on a system and ultimately removing that malware from the system. If the system is malware free then the system can run effectively and without interference or performance decrease, this is because without virus protection malware would go relatively unnoticed on a system unless the user found and deleted the malware, but virus protection does this for the user and also speeds up the process as it is designed to perform this function.

Firewall

This utility helps to keep out bad traffic that may contain malware or malicious code, this in itself helps to maintain a stable system performance by terminating any suspicious data packets that could contain malware or code that could damage the system. This helps to keep the system safe and maintain a constant security which helps the user to complete other tasks without interference from malware.

Clean Up Tools

This utility deletes unnecessary files and data such as temp files, internet history, cookies and files in the systems recycling bin, this helps to free up space and keep the systems performance from being decreased due to the excess of unused files. Deleting these unused and unnecessary files will help maintain a steady performance by not letting it be slowed down by these files, this will in turn mean the user can consistently maintain a stable working system without a performance decrease.

Defragmentation

This utility frees up disk space and removes fragmentations from storage media, this means that when trying to find a file the system can locate it easier, this increases system performance as it takes less time to find files and data, and also creates more disk space. This improves the system by allowing it to run faster and also effectively extends the amount of data that can be stored on the storage media by removing these fragmentations and freeing up space.

Drive Formatting

This utility prepares storage media for use by creating partitions and readying it to store files, this benefits the system by allowing it to have a fully-functioning storage media device that is ready to use. This is an improvement to current systems by ensuring storage media is ready to use.

Backup Tools

This utility duplicates any files targeted and stores them in an alternate location such as a separate hard drive to the original files or even a cloud service, this is done so that in the event of a technical failure or the original files becoming unavailable, there is then a copy of those files in a separate location that can be obtained and implemented back into the system so no files are permanently lost.

This improves the performance of a system by allowing the users activities to resume as quickly as possible in the event of a disaster.

M3 evaluate the performance of a computer system. [IE4]

Introduction

This report aims to evaluate and explain the changes made to Mr Ali’s computer that were implemented to his computer system to allow more functionality and better performance, these will aid him in operating his computer system and help to combat him being impaired by his disabilities whilst using his computer system.

Improvements

We upgraded the RAM in his system, making this change will boost the performance of the computer system and allow it to run smoother with less lag. This will aid Mr Ali by allowing him to easily and effectively use programs on his computer system without performance issues and interruptions. Increasing the RAM has also allowed Mr Ali to run multiple high performance programs simultaneously, allowing him to multitask programs and juggles tasks.

Installing a CD/DVD drive into Mr Ali’s computer system improves the functionality of the computer system by increasing the amount of actions that Mr Ali can now do with his computer system. With the CD/DVD drive installed Mr Ali can import music, videos, and other media from CDs and DVDs. Much like he can import media, he can also export media onto CDs and DVDs.

Antivirus Software was also installed onto Mr Ali’s computer to protect him and the computer system against malicious software and attacks.

The desktop was configured to help Mr Ali to use his computer system better which will help to aid his visual impairments; we increased the size and font of the desktop icons so that he could view them better. We also switched the mouse buttons around to aid him as he is left handed. We changed the desktop background and screensaver to make it more visually appeasing and suit his tastes better.

M1 compare the features and functions of different operating systems

Linux

Linux is a free and open source operating system that is derived from Unix, it’s code is open source meaning that anyone can view, modify or distribute it, commercially or non-commercially. Because it’s open source there are lots of variants that have been made by the community such as Devian and its derivatives such as Ubuntu, Fedora and Gentoo. These variants, often called Distros have varying features and functions, some being optimized for server use and others for other uses.

When referring to specific functions I will be basing it off the variant of this OS, Ubuntu

Windows

Windows was initially created as a GUI for MS-DOS by Microsoft and now provides variants for PC’s, Mobile Devices, Servers and Embedded Devices.

Windows provides a GUI and make’s the computer user friendly, allowing for information to be easily and effectively organised. It utilizes tools and icons to simplify the complex functions a computer performs.

When referring to specific functions I will be basing it off the variant of this OS, Windows 7

Mac OS

Mac OS is a GUI based operating system that is developed by Apple for their products and hardware, such as the Macintosh line of computers. The GUI is optimized to mitigate the users awareness of the fact they’re using an OS and create an OS that required little technical knowledge.

When referring to specific functions I will be basing it off the variant of this OS, OS X Mavericks