Test Bank For Information Systems International Edition 10th Edition by Ralph M. Stair

Test Bank For Information Systems International Edition 10th Edition by Ralph M. Stair

Chapter 06: Telecommunications and Networks

TRUE/FALSE

1. In the face of the slowdown in the economy, many organizations are canceling video teleconferencing meetings and replacing it with business travel in order to save on costs.

ANS: F PTS: 1

2. Telecommunications devices relay signals between computer systems and transmission media.

ANS: T PTS: 1

3. Transmission media can be divided into two broad categories: guided transmission media and wireless.

ANS: T PTS: 1

4. Bluetooth is a wireless communications specification that describes how to connect various telecommunications devices over distances of up to 300 feet at speeds greater than 5 Mbps.

ANS: F PTS: 1

5. Microwave is a high-frequency signal sent through the air via line-of-sight, often between earth based stations or between earth-based stations and satellites.

ANS: T PTS: 1

6. A geo-stationary satellite orbits the earth in a very low orbit at an altitude of less than 1,000 miles.

ANS: F PTS: 1

7. Fortunately, there is a single, unified, worldwide standard for 3G communications which simplifies the deployment of 3G communications equipment and devices.

ANS: F PTS: 1

8. The Droid smartphone is manufactured by Motorola and uses the Android operating system from Apple.

ANS: F PTS: 1

9. A PBX is a telephone switching exchange that serves a single organization, enabling users to share a certain number of outside lines (trunk lines) to make telephone calls to people outside the organization.

ANS: T PTS: 1

10. Choosing which smart phones to purchase such as the Palm Pre, Blackberry Curve, and Apple iPhone 3 is extremely difficult because they are all nearly identical in terms of size, functions, and cost plus they can all run the same applications.

ANS: F PTS: 1

11. A networking protocol is a set of rules, algorithms, messages, and other mechanisms that enable software and hardware in networked devices to communicate effectively.

ANS: T PTS: 1

12. Kbps stands for thousands of bytes per second.

ANS: F PTS: 1

13. The ITU and the IEEE are two telecommunications standards setting organizations in the U.S.

ANS: F PTS: 1

14. A half-duplex channel can transmit data in either direction, but not simultaneously.

ANS: T PTS: 1

15. Broadband communications means high-speed, wireless communications.

ANS: F PTS: 1

16. Organizations need telecommunications solutions that provide more and more bandwidth.

ANS: T PTS: 1

17. Sending an e-mail message is an example of asynchronous communications.

ANS: T PTS: 1

18. In a circuit-switching network, no fixed path is created between the communicating devices and the data is broken into packets for sending over the network.

ANS: F PTS: 1

19. A metropolitan area network is a telecommunications network that connects users and their computers in a geographical area that spans a campus or city.

ANS: T PTS: 1

20. With distributed processing, processing devices are placed at remote locations but are connected to each other via a network.

ANS: T PTS: 1

21. In file server systems, multiple computer platforms are dedicated to special functions, such as database management, printing, communications, and program execution.

ANS: F PTS: 1

22. The process of translating an analog signal to a digital signal is called modulation.

ANS: F PTS: 1

23. Network management software controls the computer systems and devices in a network and allows them to communicate with each other.

ANS: F PTS: 1

24. Guided media networks are inherently more secure than wireless networks.

ANS: T PTS: 1

25. Most wireless networks now use the Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) security protocol that offers significantly improved protection over Wired equivalent privacy (WEP).

ANS: T PTS: 1

26. A VPN supports a secure, encrypted connection between an organization’s private network and remote users.

ANS: T PTS: 1

27. There are well over 2 billion cell phone users worldwide.

ANS: T PTS: 1

28. Picocells deliver high-speed Internet access to homes and small businesses over existing phone lines.

ANS: F PTS: 1

29. Automated Clearing House and Wire Transfers are two forms of electronic funds transfer.

ANS: T PTS: 1

30. GPS receivers receive the signals from four GPS satellites to determine a highly accurate location of the receiver, even though just three signals are sufficient.

ANS: T PTS: 1

MULTIPLE CHOICE

1. The ____ is a device that converts a signal from binary or analog form into a signal of another form.

a.

transmission media

c.

multiplexer

b.

modem

d.

switch

ANS: B PTS: 1

2. Many utilities, cities, and organizations are experimenting with ____ to provide Internet access to homes and businesses over standard high-voltage power lines.

a.

DSL

c.

4G

b.

Wi-MAX

d.

BPL

ANS: D PTS: 1

3. ____ is a bundled set of communications services, including Internet, telephone, and TV, that operates over a total fiber-optic communications network.

a.

BPL

c.

FiOS

b.

Bluetooth

d.

Cable communications

ANS: C PTS: 1

4. ____ is NOT a frequency commonly used for wireless communications.

a.

infrared

c.

radio

b.

microwave

d.

ULF

ANS: D PTS: 1

5. ____ is a very short range wireless connectivity technology that enables consumers to swipe their credit cards or even cell phones within a few inches of a special point of sale terminal to pay for purchases.

a.

Ultra wideband

c.

Near field communications

b.

Bluetooth

d.

Wi-Fi

ANS: C PTS: 1

6. The area covered by one or more interconnected wireless access points is commonly called a(n) ____.

a.

reception area

c.

coverage zone

b.

hot spot

d.

access area

ANS: B PTS: 1

7. ____ is a wireless telecommunications technology brand owned by an alliance of 300 technology companies that is popping up at airports, coffee shops, college campuses, libraries, and restaurants.

a.

Wi-MAX

c.

Sci-Fi

b.

Wi-Fi

d.

UWB

ANS: B PTS: 1

8. A(n) ____ satellite system employs many satellites, each in an orbit at an altitude of less than 1,000 miles.

a.

very small aperture

c.

low earth orbit

b.

microwave

d.

geostationary

ANS: C PTS: 1

9. ____ operates the world’s largest 3G network.

a.

AT&T

c.

Sprint Nextel

b.

Verizon

d.

China Mobil

ANS: D PTS: 1

10. ____ can support wireless communications at a rate of 70 Mbps between towers located up to 30 miles apart.

a.

Wi-Fi

c.

Bluetooth

b.

WiMax

d.

Ultra wideband

ANS: B PTS: 1

11. The RIM operating system is used in the ____ smartphone.

a.

Apple iPhone

c.

BlackBerry

b.

Palm

d.

Android

ANS: C PTS: 1

12. The signals from ____ GPS satellites are used to determine the accurate position of a GPS receiver.

a.

three

c.

five

b.

four

d.

none of the above

ANS: B PTS: 1

13. Unified communications supports ____.

a.

instant messaging

c.

voice mail

b.

e-mail

d.

all of the above

ANS: D PTS: 1

14. Telecommuting is well suited for ____.

a.

salespeople

b.

people who require frequent face-to-face interaction

c.

people who need much supervision

d.

people working on many tasks with very short term deadlines

ANS: A PTS: 1

15. The National Do Not Call Registry ____.

a.

includes fewer than 10 million people

b.

is designed to stop unsolicited calls from advertisers, salespeople, and political campaigns

c.

has actually resulted in an increase in the number of unwanted calls to consumers

d.

none of the above

ANS: D PTS: 1

16. Asymmetric DSL ____.

a.

provides high speed Internet access over a subscribers cable network

b.

requires an additional phone line to provide “always on” Internet access

c.

provides a dedicated connection from each user to the phone company’s local telephone office

d.

provides a level of service that is independent of how far the subscriber is from the local telephone office

ANS: C PTS: 1

17. With a VPN ____.

a.

users are often provided a token that displays a constantly changing password

b.

users can gain access to an organization’s private network

c.

users can gain wide area network access

d.

all of the above

ANS: D PTS: 1

18. One way to help safeguard a wireless network is to ____.

a.

connect to the router and change the default logon and password

b.

enable service set identifier broadcasting

c.

configure the security to WEP

d.

none of the above

ANS: A PTS: 1

19. With network management software, a network manager can ____.

a.

monitor the use of individual computers as well as shared hardware devices

b.

scan for viruses

c.

ensure compliance with software licenses

d.

all of the above

ANS: D PTS: 1

20. A multiplexer ____.

a.

combines data from multiple sources into a single output signal that carries multiple channels

b.

can greatly increase telecommunications costs

c.

is seldom used on long-distance phone calls

d.

greatly affects the speed and quality of an individual call

ANS: A PTS: 1

21. Smartphone applications are developed by ____.

a.

manufacturers of the handheld device

b.

operators of the communications network on which they operate

c.

third-party software developers

d.

all of the above

ANS: D PTS: 1

22. ____ are NOT commonly used smartphone operating systems

a.

Symbian and Palm OS

c.

HP-UX and z-OS

b.

iPhone OS and RIM OS

d.

Android and Windows Mobil

ANS: C PTS: 1

23. With the ____ basic processing alternative, isolated processing devices are placed at various remote locations and cannot communicate with other devices.

a.

distributed processing

c.

centralized processing

b.

file processing

d.

decentralized processing

ANS: D PTS: 1

24. ____ is a network that connects computer systems and devices within an office, home, or several floors in a building.

a.

Metropolitan area network

c.

Wide Area network

b.

Local area network

d.

Personal area network

ANS: B PTS: 1

25. ____ operates like Wi-Fi, only over greater distances and at faster transmission speeds.

a.

Broadband

c.

WiMAX

b.

ZigBee

d.

Ultra Wideband

ANS: C PTS: 1

COMPLETION

1. eBay, Google, Microsoft, and Yahoo are promoting themselves by providing free ____________________ to people at several airports.

ANS: Wi-Fi service

PTS: 1

2. ____________________ refers to the electronic transmission of signals for communications.

ANS: Telecommunications

PTS: 1

3. A(n) ____________________ is any material substance that carries an electronic signal to support communications between a sending and receiving device.

ANS: telecommunications medium

PTS: 1

4. ____________________ refers to the rate at which data is exchanged, usually measured in bits per second.

ANS: Channel bandwidth

PTS: 1

5. ____________________ is a common form of guided transmission media that uses extremely thin strands of glass bound together in a sheathing and light beams to transmit signals.

ANS: Fiber optics

PTS: 1

6. In addition to providing broadband service to electric customers, ____________________ connectivity will enable electric companies to better monitor, manage, and control the reliability of their electric grids.

ANS:

BPL

broadband over power lines

PTS: 1

7. ____________________ transmission involves the broadcast of communications in one of three frequency ranges: microwave, radio, and infrared.

ANS: Wireless

PTS: 1

8. ____________________ enables users of multifunctional devices to synchronize with information in a desktop computer, send or receive faxes, print, in general, coordinate all mobile and fixed computer devices.

ANS: Bluetooth

PTS: 1

9. ____________________ is a very short range wireless connectivity technology designed for cell phones and credit cards.

ANS: Near Field Communications

PTS: 1

10. ____________________ is a wireless communications technology that transmits extremely short electromagnetic pulses, lasting just 50 to 1,000 picoseconds, across a broad range of radio frequencies of several gigahertz.

ANS: Ultra wideband

PTS: 1

11. A(n) ____________________ is a satellite ground station with a dish antenna smaller than 3 meters in diameter.

ANS: very small aperture terminal (VSAT)

PTS: 1

12. Three major U.S. carriers plan to build a 4G network based on the ____________________ technology which has the potential to download data at a rate of 100 Mbps.

ANS: LTE

PTS: 1

13. ____________________ is an Intel marketing strategy to deliver innovative mobile platforms for “anytime, anywhere.”

ANS: Centrino

PTS: 1

14. A(n) ____________________ is a network device that serves as an entrance to another network.

ANS: gateway

PTS: 1

15. ____________________ is a low cost form of wireless communications technology often used in security systems and heating and cooling systems.

ANS: ZigBee

PTS: 1

16. ____________________ is a(n) transmission media type that uses twisted pairs of copper wire that may be shielded or unshielded.

ANS: Twisted pair

PTS: 1

17. In a packet switching network, no ____________________ is created between the communicating devices.

ANS: fixed path

PTS: 1

18. The Internet is an example of a packet switching network that uses the packet switching protocol called ____________________.

ANS: TCP/IP

PTS: 1

19. The traditional telephone network is an example of a(n) ____________________ network.

ANS: circuit switching

PTS: 1

20. A(n) ____________________ is a form of distance learning where students and instructor attend the online course at the same time.

ANS: synchronous class

PTS: 1

21. A(n) ____________________ channel permits data transmission in both directions at the same time.

ANS: full-duplex

PTS: 1

22. ____________________ transmission sends signals at a frequency greater than microwaves but less than visible light and is frequently used in home entertainment systems, intrusion detectors, and fire sensors.

ANS: Infrared

PTS: 1

23. ____________________ uses a multiple Wi-Fi access points to link a series of interconnected local area networks to form a wide area network capable of serving a large campus or entire city.

ANS: Wireless mesh

PTS: 1

24. The computers and devices on a network are also know as ____________________.

ANS:

nodes

network nodes

PTS: 1

25. A(n) ____________________ is any computer that sends messages requesting services from the servers on the network.

ANS: client

PTS: 1

ESSAY

1. Briefly describe a general model of telecommunications.

ANS:

The model starts with a sending unit such as a person, a computer system, a terminal, or another device that originates the message. The sending unit transmits a signal to a modem that can perform many tasks, which can include converting the signal into a different form. The modem then sends the signal through a medium that carries the electronic signal. Another modem connected to the receiving device receives the signal. The process can be reversed, and the receiving unit can send another message to the original sending unit.

PTS: 1

2. Briefly describe how a Wi-Fi network operates.

ANS:

The user’s communicating device has a wireless adapter that translates data into a radio signal and transmits it using an antenna. A wireless access point, which consists of a transmitter with an antenna, receives the signal and decodes it. The access point then sends the information over the Internet over a wired connection. When receiving data, the wireless access point takes the information from the Internet, translates it into a radio signal, and sends it to the device’s wireless adapter. The area covered by one or more interconnected wireless access points is called a “hot spot.”

PTS: 1

3. Define encryption and briefly explain how it works.

ANS:

Encryption is the process of converting an original message into a form that can only be understood by the intended receiver. An encryption key is a variable value that is applied (using an algorithm) to a set of unencrypted text to produce encrypted text or to decrypt encrypted text. The key is chosen from one of a large number of encryption keys. The longer the key, the greater the number of possible encryption keys.

PTS: 1

4. List several benefits associated with telecommuting.

ANS:

Parents find that eliminating the daily commute helps balance family and work responsibilities. Qualified workers who otherwise might be unable to participate in the normal workforce (e.g. those who are physically challenged or who live in rural areas too far from the city office to commute regularly) can use telecommuting to become productive workers. When gas prices soar, telecommuting can help workers reduce significant expenses. Extensive use of telecommuting can lead to decreased need for office space, potentially saving a large company millions of dollars. Corporations are also being encouraged by public policy to try telecommuting as a means of reducing their carbon footprint and traffic congestion. Large companies also view telecommuting as a means to distribute their workforce and reduce the impact of a disaster at a central facility.

PTS: 1

5. Describe how GPS positioning works.

ANS:

To determine its position, a GPS receiver receives the signals from four GPS satellites and determines its exact distance from each satellite. (While the position of the receiver could be determined by just three measurements, a fourth distance measurement helps to adjust for any impreciseness in the other three measurements). This is done by very accurately measuring the time it takes for a signal to travel at the speed of light from the satellite to the receiver (distance = time x 186,000 miles per second). It then uses these distances to triangulate the precise location of the receiver in terms of latitude, longitude, and altitude.

PTS: 1