Clint on Security

What is an Information System?

Clint Laskowski — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 02:00:25 +0000

We use them all the time, but what exactly is an “Information System”?

Let’s break down the words…

To me, a System is “a collection of components organized to meet an objective.”

What kind of components? What ever components are needed to meet the objective! Traditionally, that means “people, processes, and technologies.” And, what is the objective of an Information System?

To me the objective of an Information System is “to transfer, process, store, and manage” information.

But, what is Information?

Information is data that is relevant and has meaning in a context.

So, the numbers 7155551212 are not information; they are data. But, if I ask you to call Linda at 715-555-1212, those numbers become information in the context of making a telephone call.

Now, our definition of an Information System is more complete. Let’s put it all together:

An Information System is a collection of people, processes, and technologies organized to transfer, process, store and manage data that is relevant and has meaning in a context.

It’s quite interesting because data are only representations of aspects of the real-world and of our ideas. There really is no physical thing that is the letter “A”. “A” is just a symbol to represent something in the real-world (perhaps the sound we make when we say the letter “A”), or an idea (what ever that “A” sound represented long ago).

So, in reality, an Information System (such as a computer) is just a collection of components organized to transfer, process, and store relevant and meaningful representations of the real-world and our ideas. Simple enough. But, take that collection of components and make them operate very, very fast, and now you have something that can really transform our world and our ideas.

Source: Laskowski, Clint. What is an Information System?:We use them all the time, but what are they, exactly? [Internet]. Version 3. Knol. 2008 Jul 24. Available from: http://knol.google.com/k/clint-laskowski/what-is-an-information-system/3v4qe269ituzc/2.

UV Outliner

Clint Laskowski — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 13:21:48 +0000

OMG! A modern single pane outliner for Windows! I’ve been looking for one so long that I seriously considered coding one myself. I don’t know how good it is yet, but the screenshots look fantastic.

UV Outliner is by Fedir Nepyivoda (Kiev, Ukraine).

My New Blogging Platform

Clint Laskowski — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 21:13:56 +0000

WordPress.Com will be my new blogging platform. I’ve used WordPress software many times in the past, but I’ve never hosted with WordPress.Com. So far, the experience has been wonderful. Getting this blog up and running, for example, has been a breeze. The hardest part by has been picking a theme.

Update: I’m quite taken with the Journalist theme by Lucian Marin and will stay with it for now.

My First Computer

Clint Laskowski — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 17:00:35 +0000

In 1979, at age 16, I saved money from my paper route and purchased my first computer – an Ohio Scientific (OSI) C2-4P – from Allied Electronics in West Allis, Wisconsin. It had a 6502 microprocessor and 4K(!) of RAM. I used a cassette tape recorder for mass storage (transfer rate was 300 baud), and an RF converter and a television set as my video monitor. This provided a stunning monochrome 80×40 character display!

Within a few months I grew tired of the 15+ minutes it took to load BASIC into RAM from cassette and decided to learn assembly language. This was better since there was a “monitor” program in ROM and therefore always available immediately.

Today, I flip-flop back and forth between thinking, “Those were the days!” and “How could 30 years have gone by so quickly?”

Donn Parker’s Number

Clint Laskowski — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 00:10:09 +0000

I here by declare 84.6% to be known as “Donn Parker’s Number.” It is good to be King!

Social Media and the Job Search

Clint Laskowski — Sun, 31 May 2009 00:05:27 +0000

I was just talking to my neighbor and friend, Phil Gerbyshak – The Make It Great Guy, about using social media when looking for new work. I have friend who has been looking for new work in IT for quite a few months. Here are some ideas Phil suggested:

1. Make sure your profile on LinkedIn is complete and up-to-date.

2. Make sure you have plenty of positive recommendations. If you feel you did a good job, you should not hesitate to ask for a LinkedIn recommendation for every project and every manager you’ve worked for.

3. Make time during your job search to join and participate in discussions in LinkedIn Groups, and to answer questions posted to LinkedIn Answers. The goal is to present yourself as an expert in your domain(s).

4. Use TweetDeck to follow JobAngels (@jobangels). Filter by tags if needed (i.e., #milwaukee if you are in Milwaukee, WI).

5. Join one of the professional organizations in your field and help them get up-and-running on Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.

Phil’s last suggestion was his best:

6. Read Phil Gerbyshak’s blog. He covers real-world use of social media – including LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter – every day.

How about it? What are your tips for using social media when looking for a new job in IT in 2009?

GUI Mockup Tools

Clint Laskowski — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 00:15:06 +0000

For future reference:

Infosec Poetry #1

Clint Laskowski — Thu, 01 May 2008 00:00:45 +0000

It’s all fun and games, until someone looses the decryption key.