This is the syllabus I used for my 2014 ‘Platforms and Operating Systems’ class at the Lopez Island Library. There might be some information here you’ll find useful. Enjoy!
Cover:
Physical platforms, operating systems – purchasing decisions
Applications – locally installed and cloud
Networking – sharing
Printing – wired and wireless
Storage and backup – local and cloud
Uninterruptible Power Supplies and Surge Protectors
Physical platforms
PC or Mac (tablets covered previously) – video
Form factors (popular types):
PC – tablet, laptop*, desktop, All-in-1 desktop, also ChromeBook, netbook, nettop, mini-PCs, etc.
Mac – iPad (iOS), MacBook, Mini, Mac Pro, iMac
Demo
Prices
Operating systems
Microsoft Windows or Apple OS X (Windows 8.1 or Mavericks)
Demo
Similarities, differences, choices
Consider the cloud – ChromeBook/ChromeOS/Google Apps pitch – what’s missing?
Applications
E-mail, office suite, web browser, other essential apps
E-mail – Microsoft Outlook/Express, Windows Mail, Apple Mail, Mozilla Thunderbird
Office – Microsoft Office, Apple iWork, Apache OpenOffice, LibreOffice, Google Docs, Microsoft Office Web Apps
Browser – Microsoft Internet Explorer, Mozilla FireFox, Google Chrome
Other Installed Apps – VLC Player, Audacity, Adobe Flash/Reader, Kindle, OverDrive, CutePDF, Picasa, Microsoft Security Essentials/Defender, iTunes, QuickTime, 7-Zip, CutePDF Writer, Skype…
Cloud Apps – Microsoft Office 365, Adobe Creative Cloud, Google Docs, Microsoft Office Web Apps, Kindle Cloud Reader, CloudConvert
[Installed vs. cloud, paid vs. free, file format interoperability]
System/software update – Windows Update, Apple Software Update
Networking
What is DSL? (digital subscriber loop) is a technology that provides Internet access by transmitting digital data over the wires of a local telephone network.
Lopez Island challenges
Modem – connects a computer or router to a telephone line
Router – home and small office routers pass data, such as web pages, email, videos, etc. between home PCs and the Internet
Wireless base station – radio receiver/transmitter that serves as the hub of the local wireless network, and may also be the gateway between a wired and wireless network (aka wireless access point – WAP)
Extending a wireless signal – interior/exterior – directional vs. omni-directional antennas
Wired vs. wireless connectivity, incl. RF emissions concern
Printing
Color vs. black & white
Ink jet vs. toner
Multi-function devices
Initial price vs. ongoing operating costs
Other considerations: USB connected, wireless, shared, cloud print
Storage and Backup
Define
Local vs. cloud
Demo CrashPlan, TimeMachine vs. File History, Carbonite (Carbonite & CrashPlan compared)
Surge Protection and UPS
