Software Concepts

Basic Computer Literacy

Skills for the Electronic Workplace

Course Description
Why would you take this course? Don’t laugh, but we have seen people write memos
using Excel. This course is an introductory overview of computer software topics. It is
recommended that UW staff be familiar with the information taught in this course. By the
end of the course you will be able to identify the application to use for a specific task, and
know what the alternatives applications are. The topics include:

Course Description ..........................................................................................................1

UW Supported Software..................................................................................................2
Computer Training Programs...........................................................................................2
Skills for the Electronic Workplace Training Program .................................................2
Skills for the Academic E-Workplace ..........................................................................3
Web Based Training ....................................................................................................3
IST Courses.................................................................................................................4
Typing and Mousing Skills..............................................................................................4
Operating Systems...........................................................................................................4
Networking Software.......................................................................................................5
Word Processors..............................................................................................................5
Database Managers..........................................................................................................5
Electronic Spreadsheets...................................................................................................6
Presentation Software......................................................................................................7
Graphics Software ...........................................................................................................7
Desktop Tools .................................................................................................................8
World Wide Web.............................................................................................................8
Software for Creating Web Pages ....................................................................................8
Programming Languages .................................................................................................9
Scientific Software ..........................................................................................................9
Statistical Software..........................................................................................................9
Integrated Software .........................................................................................................9
Anti-Virus Software ......................................................................................................10
Backing Up Your Data ..................................................................................................10
Software Piracy .............................................................................................................10
PC Depot and Macintosh Depot.....................................................................................10
Popular Software for Your Computer ............................................................................10

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During this course a number of topics will be demonstrated. The intent is not to teach you
how to use a specific application, but rather to give you an idea what it is used for. As
well, you may find yourself saying “Hey, I didn’t know you could do that”.
Permission to use this document for non-commercial purposes, in original or modified
form, is granted, provided that the original source of the document is acknowledged as
Information Systems and Technology, University of Waterloo.

UW Supported Software
There are thousands of different software applications available. It would be impossible
to be able to know how to use them all. At the University of Waterloo, it is recommended
that people use software from the UW supported software list. By doing this, they can
expect to get help with problems with this software, attend courses given by Information
Systems and Technology (IST) and take advantage of special pricing (site licensed
software).

Demonstration: More information about UW supported software can be

found on the Web at the URL http://ist/ew/software/index.htm.

Site licensed software can be purchased from IST’s Computing Help and Information
Place, located in MC 1052.

Computer Training Programs

Skills for the Electronic Workplace Training Program

The courses in the "Skills for the Electronic Workplace" (SEW) program are designed to
teach recommended computing skills for UW staff and faculty. There are eight categories
of courses being taught: Basic Computer Literacy, Desktop Tools, Operating Systems,
Word Processing, Database Management, Electronic Spreadsheets, Presentations, and
Web Authoring. A selection of the courses in the complete SEW program are offered
every two months.

Detailed descriptions about the SEW courses can be found on the Web at the URL

http://ist.uwaterloo.ca/cs/sew/program.html

At this Web site you will also find the handouts and sample files for the courses. The
SEW training program will:

♦ Offer standard courses at various levels

♦ Make it easier for staff to choose courses
♦ Help ensure staff have the prerequisites to take courses
♦ Provide more in-depth training. The first part of the course will be used to
demonstrate and practise the skills necessary to complete various tasks. The second

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 part of the course will be project-oriented, where staff will have the opportunity to
apply all the skills taught in the first part of the course.

Skills for the Academic E-Workplace

The Skills for the Academic e-Workplace (SAW) is a new programme that will be
available in February 2000. It will provide standardized training on fundamental
computing skills related to academic work. Its direct audience will be professors,
demonstrators and grad students from across campus. SAW will indirectly serve course-
related needs of undergraduate students via the dissemination of its Hypercam-based
tutorials.

The Academic e-Workplace is a place for Research and Instruction. In common to both
activities are the skills of: e-mail; web site construction; presentations; digital media;
interactive multimedia; diagrams and animations; composing notes, articles, books and
theses; mathematical computations; and data analysis.

Research makes more use of additional skills such as: scientific programming; data
acquisition; and data visualization. Instruction makes more use of other skills like:
concept maps, exam and mark processing, and simulation.

These skills are addressed in the Skills for the Academic e-Workplace (SAW) program
which is divided into three broad categories: 1. General Skills, 2. Academic
Communications, and 3. Academic Computations. More information about the SAW
program can be found at

http://ist.uwaterloo.ca/~campbell/saw/

Web Based Training

Sometimes the course you may want to take is not offered at a time that is convenient for
you. Now there is another option. The University of Waterloo has subscribed to a Web
based training facility offered by ZD Incorporated.

There are two types of training offered: self-study and instructor-led. You take both types
of training using your Web browser (Netscape or Internet Explorer). We are expecting
that most people will be interested in the self-study programs, where you control the pace
of your learning by repeating a lesson, topic or activity as often as necessary. The course
is a simulation of the application you are learning, giving you hands-on, interactive
training as if you were actually in the real desktop application. You can take these
courses at any time. In instructor-led courses, you are led by industry experts and taught
online using a message board. The instructor-led courses are offered only at specified
times.

IST has purchased five accounts (for faculty, staff and students) and the UW Staff
Training and Development Committee has five accounts (for staff and faculty). To use

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and/or reserve an account for one week please call the Computing Help and Information
Place (X3456) or call Human Resources (x2078)

More information about this form of training can be found at the URL

http://www.ist.uwaterloo.ca/cs/zdu.html

IST Courses
The courses in this program are not available in the other three training programs. The
courses will vary by month, but will contain training and presentations on new versions
of software, Unix topics, Web topics and much more. You register for these courses on
the Web at the URL:

http://www.ist.uwaterloo.ca/cs/brochure/courses.html

These courses are available to faculty, staff and students.

Typing and Mousing Skills

You interact with software by typing and by using your mouse. If you are typing a memo,
you will find the experience much more enjoyable if you have some typing skills. If you
have to look up and down the rows of the keyboard for letter, after letter, after letter, it
will be very tedious. As well if you try to select some text with your mouse, and end up
moving the text elsewhere, you will be annoyed and frustrated. When you are first
learning how to use a mouse, you will find double-clicking on an icon very challenging.

There are typing programs available to learn how to type. Persistence with such typing
tutor programs will pay off – but most people will lose interest. A keyboarding course
will be well worth the investment if you will be using a computer on a regular basis. You
will learn how to type about 25 to 30 words a minute in one keyboarding course. If you
are dedicated enough to learn how to type on your own, check out the Web site located at
http://www.qwerty.com to obtain an evaluation copy of a typing tutor program.

Mousing is more practise than anything else. You can practise using a Paint program,
playing a game, or even surfing the Web.

Operating Systems
The operating systems used and supported at the University of Waterloo are Windows
(95 or NT Workstation), Macintosh OS and Unix. When your PC gets powered on, the
operating system is loaded into the computer’s memory.

How you interact with your computer is determined by the operating system. The whole
process of managing your files (i.e. copying, renaming, deleting, folders) is done with
operating system commands. Windows and Macintosh OS use a graphical interface for
interacting with it, which means you use a mouse for most things. While there are
graphical interfaces for Unix, most Unix users type commands.

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The operating system courses will show you how to login, startup (launch) programs,
switch between running programs, rename files, copy and move files, delete files,
selecting files, set the default printer, use the help system, find files, how to learn about
system information, and how to shutdown (logoff) the system.

Demonstration: File Management in Windows 95

Networking Software
Most PCs in offices are connected to an office or department network. This network
might be Waterloo Polaris or Microsoft NT. Each staff workstation is connected to a
server, which is just another PC with lots of disk space. The advantage of a network is
that it allows you to save files on the server’s hard disk, which makes it easier for you to
do backups. It also makes it easier for software installation and for printing.

Word Processors
If you are old enough to have ever used a typewriter, you will love using a word
processor. Word processors allow you to easily enter, edit, format and print documents
like letters, memos, reports, theses, and books.

At the University of Waterloo, Microsoft Word and WordPerfect are used and supported.
Basic editing is similar in both these word processors. There are differences in the way
you do more advanced functions like mail merge, table creating and editing, handling
larger documents. The word processor you use is dependent on a number of factors, but if
you share documents with others in your group or department, it is good advice to choose
a common one. Telling you that one is better than the other, would be a sure way to start
a war. For scientific papers containing a lot of mathematical formulae, many people on
campus use LaTeX.

Demonstration: Creating and modifying a simple document.

Database Managers
Database managers help you to keep track of information. This information might be, for
example, an inventory or a mailing list. A database manager allows you to first define
the information you want to keep, enter, edit, and extract the information, and produce
reports.

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At the University of Waterloo, the database managers Filemaker Pro, Microsoft Access
and Oracle are used and supported. Macintosh users have used Filemaker Pro for many
years. Windows users can either use Microsoft Access or Filemaker Pro. Large database
applications, like the University financial system, use Oracle.

Sometimes people ask if they should use Filemaker Pro or Microsoft Access. This is only
a choice for Window’s users. It is probably safe to say that Microsoft Access can be as
easy, or as complicated as you want to make it. It is bundled with the other Microsoft
Office components and it is very easy to share and move this data between the other
components (Word, Excel and PowerPoint). Again, the deciding factor might be one of
being compatible with the database other people in your group/department use, and/or
choosing one that the computing support people in your area know and recommend.

Demonstration: A Microsoft Access Database Used for a Mailing List

Electronic Spreadsheets
An electronic spreadsheet called Visicalc was one of main reasons why people wanted a
microcomputer in the early 1980s. Not only could it add up numbers like a calculator, but
it allowed you to change these numbers and the sum would automatically be recalculated.
It allowed you to ask “what if” questions. Many people use an electronic spreadsheet to
keep track of their budget, but there are lots of other uses. For example, maintaining an
inventory can easily be done in a spreadsheet, as they now provide some simple database
capability. Depending on the complexity of your inventory program needs, you might not
need a database program.

At UW, the supported electronic spreadsheet is Microsoft Excel.

Demonstration: Using Excel for a Budget

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Presentation Software
People use a variety of tools to do presentations, including:

• blackboard and chalk

• transparencies created with transparency pens
• transparencies created with presentation software
• a slide show using a computer, presentation software, and a projection system

If you are creating transparencies or doing a slide show, you should investigate
presentation software.

Presentation software allows you to quickly create professional looking transparencies.

You can create a variety of different types of transparencies, including ones that have:

• a bulleted list
• a graph
• an organization chart
• a table

A presentation tool allows you to print handouts containing several slides on one sheet of
paper. You can also print notes pages, with a slide at the top of the page, and your notes
at the bottom half.

Several rooms on campus have projection systems, which project your monitor on a large
screen. A presentation tool allows you to do a slide show, with many features to “wow”
your audience.

At UW, the supported presentation software is Microsoft PowerPoint.

Demonstration: Creating a PowerPoint presentation

Graphics Software
With a simple paint program, you can draw pictures with a variety of paint tools. Most
people quickly outgrow these simple programs and need more sophisticated graphics
software. To design a logo, for example, you may want a tool that can massage text in a
variety of ways. At UW, Corel Draw is a supported graphics software program.

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Engineers use other graphics software to design things. At UW, Autocad is a supported
Computer Aided Design program.

Demonstration: Using Paint

Desktop Tools
Desktop tools are software programs to

• process electronic mail (e.g. Eudora)

• maintain appointment calendars (e.g. Synchronize)
• connect to other computers (e.g. Netterm)
• move files between computers (e.g. ws_ftp and fetch)
• compress or uncompress files (e.g. winzip)

Demonstration: Eudora and Synchronize

World Wide Web

Computers all over the world are accessible to you via the Internet. These computers
contain files that you read and print. The information in these files will contain text, and
may contain graphics, audio and video. You read information on the Web with software
called a browser. The most popular browser at UW is called Netscape. Another browser
that people use is Microsoft’s Internet Explorer.

Most computers at UW are connected to the campus network, which is connected to the
Internet.

Demonstration: Using Netscape to check UW’s Daily Bulletin and faculty

Web pages

Software for Creating Web Pages

All documents on the Web are in a format called HyperText Markup Language, or simply
HTML. You can create HTML documents with a simple editor, or with a more enhanced
editor/previewer like Web Weaver. Other people create their Web pages using Netscape
or their favourite word processor.

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 Demonstration: Using Web Weaver to Create and preview a Web
document.

Programming Languages
Back in the olden days, the only way you could communicate with a computer was to
write a series of instructions in one of several (programming) languages. At UW, Fortran
and/or WATFIV were very popular for mathematical calculations. For business
applications like payroll, languages like Cobol were used, and amazingly enough, still
area. Today, people write applications using programming languages (e.g. C).

Scientific Software
Scientific software is available for performing computations that used to done using a
number of different programming languages. For example, one might have used a
programming language like APL or Fortran to manipulate matrices. Now, scientific
software like Mathcad make it a lot easier, and allow you to create scientific graphs.

Demonstration: http://www.ist.uwaterloo.ca/ec/scientific/scicom.html

Statistical Software
If you ever have to analyze the results of a survey or do an statistical analysis on data you
have acquired from an experiment, you will want to use statistical software. At the
University of Waterloo statistical software includes SAS, SPSS and Systat. This software
can be used to for everything from simple descriptive statistics to more complicated
statistical analysis. These programs can also be used for graphing.

Demonstration: A sample analysis from a survey.

Integrated Software
You can buy software in one package, that actually consists of several applications. For
example, Microsoft Office Professional consists of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Access.
With integrated software, it is easier to share data between the applications.

Demonstration: A mail merge from Microsoft Access

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Anti-Virus Software
A virus is software that someone has written to cause you to lose data, or to cause your
computer not to function properly. Everyone at UW should have virus detection software
called Norton Antivirus. Others have chosen to use McAfee software for virus protection.

Backing Up Your Data

If you use a computer, you are going to lose a file at some point. The key is to be
prepared by making sure you have a backup of your data files. If you are on a network or
are a Unix user, chances are this will be done for you. If you are not, it is up to you to do
a backup. You can choose to simply backup your files to diskettes, or perhaps burn a CD
of your hard disk. Another option is to use Retrospect, a service provided by IST. Contact
the IST Help Desk in the CHIP (MC 1052) for more details.

Software Piracy
Software piracy simply means that you are using commercial software that you have not
paid for. The University of Waterloo negotiates with several software companies for
special pricing. If you need software for you to do your job at UW, get your department
to pay for it.

Some software you use may be classified as shareware. This software is usually free to
acquire. It may expire after a certain type limit, or display an advertising window
everytime you use it. If you end up using this software on a regular basis it is a good idea
to purchase it. The software will not expire, you will get documentation, and you will get
future versions.

PC Depot and Macintosh Depot

Software is available from the PC Depot and Macintosh Depot. You need to use a file
transfer program (e.g. ws_ftp, fetch) or you can use the Web (ftp://pcdepot) to acquire
software from the depots.

Demonstration: What is on PC Depot and how to download a file.

Popular Software for Your Computer

A CD is available from the CHIP (MC 1052) that contains Netscape, Internet Explorer,
some Web browser plug-ins, Eudora Lite, ftp programs, terminal emulators, WinZIP for
PC and Stuffit Expander for the Macintosh, and a few other useful programs. This CD is
for both the Mac and PC, and costs $15. A diskette is also available to test your PC for
Year 2000 hardware compliance ($1.00).

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