Unit 30 - Task 1

Computer System

Computer itself, monitor, keyboard, mouse

A computer system is a complete working computer which includes a mouse, monitor, and the actual computer itself. Without the computer system you wouldn’t able to connect any of your devices such as digital cameras and printers to it. You also wouldn’t be able to turn any physical files to digital copies as you would have nothing to upload on.

I have decided that I am going to use an iMac. It will have all the basic essentials I need such as a mouse that is well designed and easy to use, a keyboard and the actual computer system is built into the monitor so it takes up less space. It has 4 usb slots so I can connect a few of them at once which means that I can do more than once thing at a time. The keyboard and mouse are both wireless which means that it’s a lot more portable and is easy to store. Although it could possibly limit me to certain things because not all software works on macs so if I may have to download alternate software to be able to complete some work if needed.

Input Devices

Digital Camera, scanners, graphics tablet

These are things that you can connect to your computer system and use. For example you could connect a digital camera to upload photos or a scanner to turn documents into digital files.

I will use a SAMSUNG WB200F Smart WiFi Advanced Compact Digital Camera as it 14.2 megapixels which will help take better quality photos which means they will look better when they’re uploaded digitally. A disadvantage of this is that it could be quite complicated to use because it is quite complex so it may take time to learn all of the functions on it. Also the cameras pixels aren't large enough for large format printing. I will also use an EPSON Perfection V600 Photo Scanner to enable to turn any physical images or documents into digital files. This scanner has LED technology which means that it scans immediately which no waiting time which will help save time. A limitation of this scanner would be that it can only scan A4 size documents. I am going to use a graphics tablet as well which will enable me to hand draw images which will then show up on the computer. I am going to use the Intuos Pro Large PTH-851-ENES Graphics Tablet. It can be used wirelessly and I can also use it as a mouse if I wanted to. It’s not too big as well so it is quite portable but it may take some time to get used to using the graphics tablet as some people may just be used to using a normal mouse.

Output Devices

Printer, Vinyl Cutter, Laser Cutter

I will need an output device in order to print out my work that I have completed. To print out my word documents, PowerPoints and any other straightforward files I will use the CANON PIXMA PRO-10 Wireless A3 Inkjet Printer. Although this printer is expensive it will be very useful as it is high paced so it can print a lot of documents very quickly and it can also be connected through Wi-Fi. A limitation of this device would be that it can only print out in A4 which limits me to what type of designs and documents I can make. It also can't print all the way to edge of the paper and I can't print on any other type of material except from paper. I will also need a vinyl cutter in case I need to cut out any vinyls. I will use the Summa S Class S75 T Series Tangential Vinyl Cutter. This device just like the printer can be used wirelessly as well as being able to connect it using a usb making connectivity easier. The laser cutter I will get will be a CO2 Laser cutter machine. This will help me if I need to create any designs or engrave onto anything. It will keep it neat and precise making my work look more professional. The only problem with this machine would be the size of it. It would take up a lot of space and can’t be easily moved.

Storage

Hard drive, external storage

I will need storage because I will need to be able to store the work that I am doing as I may not be able to complete it all at once or I may need to use it in the future and without ant storage I won’t be able to save any files or go back and open any files that I have previously saved.

I will need to get a Seagate External Hard Drive in case I need extra space. I will already have a lot of memory on the iMac but the external hard drive will be useful if I manage to fill up all the space on it or if I just want to move files from one computer to another. Also it can help me keep organised by keeping some work on the hard drive and some on the iMac. It has 2TB of space and it transfers files very quickly. This hard drive would be very useful and doesn't have any limitations.

Software

Vector software, bitmap software (Used to edit pixels), desktop publishing

I will need vector software to able to edit text and logos and I will also need bitmap software so that I can edit pixels. I will use Adobe Photoshop CS6 Extended for Mac as it offers me all the latest features which will be useful when creating or editing bitmap or vector files. Also as this is more of a professional software it will make my work look quite professional as well. I chose this software because it is the newest edition which will give me all the newest features which will allow me to be more creative when doing my work. A limitation to this software is that it is quite complex and might be hard to get used to and learn, especially since I don’t use Photoshop very often.

Limitations in red.

Task 6 [M3]

D2

D1

Verbal Communication

I used verbal communication during my coursework when I asked my teachers to explain the tasks that I needed to do. This was a good way of communication because it was quick way of getting the information that I needed. A disadvantage of this could be if I misinterpreted what was said because then I would have done the wrong thing or struggled to complete the work properly.

Teacher Broadcasting Demonstration

This is when a teacher uses their projector to let students see useful information or documents that can help them complete their work. This is useful because you are able to see relevant information that you may need to complete your work and the teacher is also able to show other people’s work as examples so you can know if you’ve done your work correctly. A disadvantage of this is that it could possibly be inconvenient for a student if they have already done it or know how to do the work because they’ll just have to sit and listen while the teacher shows everyone.

Blogger

Blogger is a site where you can upload certain documents and pictures. Blogger was helpful during my coursework because I was able to publish my work on it so that my teachers could look at it. I was also able to keep track of the work that I done because all the work that I had completed was on there so I would easily know what needed to be done. A disadvantage of blogger would be that for me at the start it was slightly complicating so I needed someone to explain how to use it.

Gmail

I didn’t really use Gmail that much to complete my work but if I did I would be able to use it easily because it is very simple and easy to use.

Publishing Images (Screenshots)

For some of the tasks I had to take screenshots of work that I had done and I found this very easy to do. It is very simple as all you have to do is press the print screen button on the keyboard and it will copy exactly what is on the screen. When I done this I just pasted it into the appropriate documents.

Using PowerPoint

I had to use PowerPoint to do many of the tasks and it is very easy and straight forward to use. I had no problems with it at all with it and what made it even more useful is that I could save slides as JPEG images so that I could then publish them on blogger. PowerPoint was so useful that I couldn’t find any disadvantages.

Using Publisher

I had already used publisher before this to do work for other subjects so I was already familiar with the program. It is also another useful program that helped me complete a lot of my work. Just like PowerPoint you can also save it to JPEG images so you can upload it blogger. The only disadvantage of publisher is that sometimes when you want to do certain things it can be a difficult program to use.

Using Google Calendar

I hadn’t used Google Calendar before but I had to use it complete some of the tasks and I didn’t find it too hard to use. It was useful because it helped me complete my work and put important dates and deadlines on my calendar. A disadvantage of it would be that it isn’t very straightforward as I struggled to use it at first.

p5

M2

Google Calendar