Data & Info Fundamentals & Values.pptx.pdf

Unit 1 – Fundamental Concepts Lesson 1.4 Data & Information Fundamentals CompTIA ITF+ (FC0-U61) Learning Objectives Domain 1: Concepts & Terminology 1.4 Explain the value of data and information 1.5 Compare and contrast common units of measure Domain 6: Security 6.2 Explain methods to s...

Unit 1 – Fundamental Concepts Lesson 1.4 Data & Information Fundamentals CompTIA ITF+ (FC0-U61) Learning Objectives Domain 1: Concepts & Terminology 1.4 Explain the value of data and information 1.5 Compare and contrast common units of measure Domain 6: Security 6.2 Explain methods to secure devices and best practices. 6.5 Explain password best practices. Part 1: The Importance of Data Data vs. Information Data Information Data is a collection of Information is the result of individual facts or statistics. analyzing and interpreting pieces of data. Data is raw and Information is organized. unorganized. Data points are individual Information maps out that and sometimes unrelated. data to provide a big-picture view of how it all fits together. Data vs. Information (continued) Data Information Data, on its own, is When data has been meaningless. analyzed and interpreted, it becomes meaningful information. Data isn’t sufficient for Information is something decision-making. A human humans can read and can cannot make a decision understand it. They are now off of raw data. capable of making decisions from it.  Data vs. Information (continued) Example of Data Example of Information Raw weather data: Data from weather satellites Data from weather balloons Solar data Data from weather This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY observation stations Software and Data The purpose and use of software is to create information from data. – Example: A spreadsheet program takes data from rows and columns of data that can be converted into information such as a bar chart showing a comparison of sales for the past few years. Data Analytics Data analytics is the process of turning data points into useful information. Data-driven business decisions is the use of data analytics to inform business operations. This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA-NC Data Analytics Process Step 1: Collect the Raw Data How you collect or capture the data depends on what data you are trying to collect for analysis. – Some may be input into databases (like sales to customers or survey data). – Some might come from various logs kept by software applications (like tracking cookies). – Other data might be captured from sensors or other Internet of Things (IoT) devices (like capturing data from scanning sensors or tracking systems). Data Collection Using Spreadsheets A spreadsheet is a good way to store a simple sheet of data, perform some calculations on the data, and display the data visually. – Microsoft Excel – Google Sheets Some simple features available in spreadsheets are: – Column sorting – Adding rows to enter more data This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA – Total row (a row with totals of the columns above it) Data Analytics Process Step 2: Data Correlation Once the raw data has been collected, analysts use statistical tools and formulas to look for trends, patterns, and data correlations. Analysts try to determine what the data is saying. Example: You look at customer sales to see if customers who bought blouses also bought a skirt. Data Analytics Process Step 3: Meaningful Reporting Once the data has been analyzed for trends, patterns, and data correlations, the analysts present the data for people to analyze and interpret. This normally includes using a system that includes search features, charts, and graphs. Reporting Tool Line Graph A line graph is used to display data that changes over time at specified intervals. Examples: – Temperature change over time. – Number of cybersecurity This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA incidents per month. Reporting Tool Bar Graph A bar graph is best used for data that has distinct categories with independent measurements. It’s a good way to show relative sizes. Example: – Sales revenue by salesperson per financial quarter. Reporting Tool Pie Chart A pie chart works well for viewing data that has relative percentages that add up to 100%. Example: – Percentage of different types of cyber attacks during a specific month. Reporting Tool Database Report Data will normally be stored using a database management system (DBMS) that provides a more effective way to add, edit, and view data compared to a spreadsheet. DBMSs like Microsoft Access & Structured Query Language (SQL) databases use reports to organize and summarize data. This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND We will look at databases in more detail later in this course. “Big Data” The term Big Data refers to the vast amount of data collected from Internet searches, social media posts, customer transactions, military surveillance, medical tests, weather sensors, and other data sources. Businesses mine information from big data and use machine learning projects, predictive modeling, and advanced analytics applications in order to improve operations, provide better customer service, and take other actions that can increase revenues This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA and profits. Part 2: Data Units of Measure Bits The most basic unit of measurement in digital data is a bit. – Short for binary digit. A bit is a single 1 or 0 in a digital signal. The first computers used vacuum tubes in their calculations, and the programmers turned the vacuum tubes on (1) or off (0) to program the calculations. Digital data has since then remained as 1s and 0s Byte The basic unit of measurement for storage is a byte. A byte is eight bits. A byte is the first multiple of a bit when referring to digital data. This basic unit of storage measurement for both files and for memory allocation in programs in measured in bytes. Storage Measurements (Smallest to Largest) Storage Measurement: Decimal vs. Binary The traditional measurement for storage was originally measured in decimal – 103, 106, 109, etc., for kilo, mega, giga, etc. However, data is actually stored in powers of 2 (binary). – 210, 220, 230, etc., for 1024, 10242, 10243, etc. Some academics, technical writers, and open system developers use binary prefixes instead of decimal prefixes to denote storage capacity. – Kibi instead of kilo, mebi instead of mega, etc. Storage Measurements (Smallest to Largest) Data Rates Data is transmitted one bit at a time. The base unit for data rate is bit per second (bps). Data rates are also referred to as bandwidth and/or throughput. Common Transfer Speeds Computer equipment available for use for transferring data between devices operate with speeds in the Gbps range. Commercial data centers will operate with throughput speeds measured in Tbps.  Processing Speeds The unit for measurement for processing speed is a hertz (Hz). One hertz is one cycle per second. – For microprocessors, one “cycle” is one instruction performed by the processor. Modern microprocessors are capable of performing, millions, billions, or even trillions of instructions per second. Processing Speeds (continued) Processing Speeds (continued) Older equipment (PCs, switches, routers, etc.) operated with speeds measured in MHz. Modern equipment (modern PCs, switches, routers, fiber optic equipment) operate with speeds measured in GHz. Activity: Checking Your Computer’s Capabilities Checking Your Computer’s Processing Speed & RAM Capacity Access your computer’s Settings. – Click the Windows Start button in the lower left of the screen and select the Settings option. Checking Your Computer’s Processing Speed & RAM Capacity (continued) Choose the System settings. Checking Your Computer’s Processing Speed & RAM Capacity (continued) Scroll down the options on the left side to the About option. Checking Your Computer’s Processing Speed & RAM Capacity (continued) You will see both your processor speed and Random Access Memory (RAM) storage capacity. Checking Your Computer’s Storage Capacity Select the Storage option on the left side of the window. Checking Your Computer’s Storage Capacity (continued) You will be able to view your computer’s storage capacity and current usage data. Checking Your Device’s Network Throughput Click in the upper left corner of the screen to return to the main settings page. Checking Your Device’s Network Throughput (continued) Select the Network & Internet option. Checking Your Device’s Network Throughput (continued) Click the Properties button for your network connection. Checking Your Device’s Network Throughput (continued) Your network connection’s throughput will be shown in the Properties section as the Link speed.