Understanding Operating Systems, Networks, And Memory

Question 1

Question 1:

1. Processor Speed – 466 MHz
2. Processor Model – Intel Celeron
3. Processor Manufacturer -Intel
4. Sound Card Manufacturer-Creative Labs
5. Graphics Card Slot Type-AGP
6. Video Memory-4 MB
7. Actual Screen Image Size-800 x 600
8. RAM Capacity- 64 MB
9. Type of RAM- SDRAM
10. Operating System – Microsoft Windows 98 and Home Essentials

It is not possible to Install Windows 7 or Window 8 and 8.1 to this Computer. The requirements are:

• 1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor*
• 1 gigabyte (GB) RAM (32-bit) or 2 GB RAM (64-bit)
• 16 GB available hard disk space (32-bit) or 20 GB (64-bit)
• DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM 1.0 or higher driver

The system does not support the mentioned requirements. Hence , the installation cannot be performed .

Question 2:

Operating system:

Operating system can be regarded as the most essential program, executed on any computer system. Operating system is essential for every computer system. With an operating system, the computer is just a bare machine without any use. A computer cannot be used without the combination of hardware and software. Only hardware and software alone cannot perform the programs that are used to be executed by the computer system. There should be effective communication between the software and hardware in order to make the computer work. Operating systems are deployed to manage both the hardware and software and make effective communication between them. The operating system performs basic task like processing input from the keyboard and displaying it on the screen, keeping track of different files and directories, stored on different storage drives and it also controls different peripheral devices like mouse, printers. However, operating systems, used for larger systems, are more powerful and assigned with greater responsibilities of managing several programs simultaneously and accurately.

Network Operating System (NOS):

NOS is basically an operating system for the computer, which helps in managing workstation and personal computer. It is also used to manage the older terminal that is connected with the help of local area network, commonly known as LAN. NOS provides necessary interface to share file using printer, database and applications. It can manage the network directory, security and other important aspects related to the network.   

Question 3:

Difference between Wide Area Network (WAN) and Local Area Network (LAN):

Wide Area Network (WAN):

WAN is networking technology used in telecommunication and computer networking. The network is extended to serve a large geographical area. The network helps to communicate with devices that are far distant. Wide area networks need telecommunication circuits that are designed in leased fashion to make communication with devices.

The network is deployed by government, educational institutes and business organizations to send and receive data over the network. This network is highly effective for business organizations as it allows for communication with clients and other organizations, regardless of their location and distance. The internet can be considered as wide area network.

Local Area Network (LAN):

Question 2

However , local area network , commonly referred to as LAN, is used to establish connection between computers that are within short and limited distance. Many LANs makes use of the technologies related to wireless communication which are normally built in and used by Smartphones, tablet computers and laptops. The concept of wireless network has become very popular due to ease of use and simple installation technique.

In the LAN, connection between devices is maintained with the help of leased line, leased services. Over the internet, the connection is maintained through virtual private network, popularly known as VPN. Two of the most popular technologies that are commonly used for local area networks are Ethernet and Wi-Fi.

LAN is used for short area communication like interconnecting devices in residence, school, laboratory, university campus or office building.

Question 4:

 Different types of transmission media:

Transmission media helps to transmit data from between two connected devices.  Two types of transmission media is primarily used (Polak and Laskowski 2016):

• BOUNDED/GUIDED MEDIA
• UNBOUNDED/UNGUIDED MEDIA

BOUNDED MEDIA:

Bounded media provides physical links for transmitting data and the signal follows a narrow path for travelling through the media. These links are referred to as guide media. The common types of bounded media that are mainly used include Coaxial Cable, Fiber Optics Cable, and Twisted Pairs Cable

COAXIAL CABLE:

The most common form of common form of transmission media that is widely used for communication is coaxial cable. It is constitutes of two conductors parallel to each other, hence the name coaxial cable. Copper is used as the primary conductor for this cable through which the actual data travels.

 Following are coaxial standards commonly used :

• 50-Ohm RG-7 or RG-11 : used with thick Ethernet.
• 50-Ohm RG-58 : used with thin Ethernet
• 75-Ohm RG-59 : used with cable television
• 93-Ohm RG-62 : used with ARCNET.

CHARACTERISTICS OF COAXIAL CABLE

• Low cost
• Easy to install
• Up to 10Mbps capacity
• Medium immunity form EMI
• Medium of attenuation

ADVANTAGES COAXIAL CABLE

• Inexpensive
• Easy to wire
• Easy to expand
• Moderate  EMI immunity

DISADVANTAGE COAXIAL CABLE

• Entire network stops working due to a single cable failure.

Twisted Pair Cable:

Twisted pair cable can be regarded as one of the most preferred cable network used for communication. The transmission speed supported is up to 100 mps. Two types of twisted pair cables are commonly used:

1. Unshielded twisted pair (UTP):

Unshielded twisted pair or popularly known as UTP is commonly preferred for communication. It has an impendence value of 100 ohm. The cost is also less than the Shielded twisted pair (STP) and it is also easily available due to the demand. There are five levels for rating of the UTP.

Category 1

These are used for  low speed com

Category 2

 Supports up to 4 mps implementation.

Category 3

 Supports  up to 16 mps

Category 4

 Used  for large distance with high speed with support up to 20mps.

Question 3

Category 5

This is the highest rating for UTP cable and can support up to 100mps.

Characteristics of UTP

• low cost
• easy to install
• High speed capacity
• High attenuation
• Effective to EMI
• 100 meter limit

Advantages of UTP:

• Easy installation
• Capable of high speed for LAN
• Low cost

Disadvantages of UTP

Suitable for short distance communication due to attenuation

1. Shielded twisted pair (STP):

It is similar to UTP but has a mesh shielding that’s protects it from EMI which allows for higher transmission rate.

IBM has set some rules to categorize STP cable.

Type 1:

It uses two pairs of 22-AWG

Type 2:

It includes type 1 with 4 telephone pairs

Type 6

It contains two pairs of standard shielded 26-AWG

Type 7

It consist of 26-AWG standard shielded in pair.

Type 9

It consist of 26-AWG shielded wire

Characteristics of STP:

• Medium cost
• Easy to install
• Higher capacity than UTP
• Higher attenuation, but same as UTP
• Medium immunity from EMI
• 100 meter limit

Advantages of STP:

• Shielded
• Faster than UTP and coaxial

Disadvantages of STP:

• More expensive
• Difficult to install
• High rate of attenuation

Fiber Optics:

Fiber optics transmits data with the help of electrical signals. Light is converted into electrical signals for data communications. It supports only one-way communication as the light travels in only one direction. To enable two-way communication to take place, another device is needed in the communication.  Pulse of light is sent  through the cable to another  device connected at the other end. These pulses are then encoded to  “1’s” and “0’s” which is decoded a by the end  device to facilitate the  communications.

The cable can be divided into core and cladding. Glass is used for core through which light travels and for the cladding part a reflective material is used so that light cannot pass through it due to internal reflection. Fiber optics are used for long distance and high speed communication due to lower attenuation property of the cable (Kumar 2014).

UNBOUNDED/UNGUIDED MEDIA :

It referrers to transmission media that is extends beyond the traditional bounded cable system. These types of transmission media are used for high speed communication and operated at very high frequency. The main three types of unbound transmission media include : Radio wave, Micro wave, Infrared.

Question 5:

Difference between volatile memory and non-volatile memory:

There are fundamental differences between volatile memory and non-volatile memory (Meena, Sze and Chand 2014)

Volatile Memory:

Any  storage  device that can hold data temporarily and all the data are erased as soon as the device is disconnected from the power source is known as volatile memory. The best example of volatile memory is the Random Access Memory ( RAM ), which can only retain data as long as the power supply is on and all the data is cleared once disconnected from the source.

 Non Volatile Memory:

Any  storage  device that is capable to store data permanently and all the data is not  erased  as the device is disconnected from the power source,  is known as volatile memory. The best example of volatile memory is the Hard Drive , which can  retain data permanently once stored and retains it even when  it is disconnected from the power source.

Question 6:

1. There are  about  21972 characters  in the 15 pages document
2. That is  97265625kilobytes
3. That is 0215megabytes
4. There is about 10,986 nibble is the fifteen (15) pages documents .
5. If the whole document occupies 17.5 megabytes on the disk;
6. That is 17500 kilobytes
7. That is 0.00175 gigabytes

References:

Kumar, M.S., 2014. Fundamentals of Optical Fibre Communication. PHI Learning Pvt. Ltd..

Meena, J. S., Sze, S. M., Chand, U., & Tseng, T. Y. (2014). Overview of emerging nonvolatile memory technologies. Nanoscale research letters, 9(1), 526.

Polak, R. and Laskowski, D., 2016. Network reliability with use of various transmission media. Journal of KONBiN, 39(1), pp.57-78.