Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
with ALGOL, COBOL, FORTRAN, PL/I, APL, and others, reduced coding time,
significantly reduced coding errors, and converted programming into a viable oc-
cupation.
Random-Access Storage
Sequential storage of data on paper tape, card decks, or magnetic tape had a fairly
long and useful life. But it was very inefficient and required far too much move-
ment of tapes to achieve high speeds. The invention of disk drives and random-ac-
cess storage allowed faster processing, sophisticated search algorithms, and a path
that eventually would lead to today's “big data” world with billions of records and
millions of files being accessed for specific problems.
Without random access, modern computing and software could handle only a
small fraction of important data analysis problems. Random access would also
lead to the relational database concept, sorts, and a variety of powerful query lan-
guages in the Structured Query Language (SQL) family.
The Impact of Software on People and Society
The time frame in which computers and software have developed has barely been
more than 75 years. Yet their impact on individual humans and on societies has
been as important as the printing press, airplanes, television, and automobiles.
Beneficial Tools and Applications
The following is a summary of tools and applications that have transformed the
way businesses operate; wars are fought; and individuals gather information, com-
municate, and use their leisure time. It is surprising that these have all originated
within the past 50 years. Probably half of these tools and applications are less than
25 years old.
• Business tools
•
Accounting
•
Actuarial studies
•
Advertising via the web
•
Agricultural planning
•
Analytics
•
Bar-code scanners
•
Big data
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