Tech Topic: Web and Mobile Apps

Let us discuss web and mobile apps. It is a topic that touches most categories of information technology. When it comes to integrating technology into our lives, web and mobile apps are on the cutting edge.

Before smart phones were prevalent, web apps were mobile, but only as mobile as the computer and internet connection. It meant that the applications usually had a whole machine to utilize. Today's apps run with limited local processing power and storage and use cloud resources for storage and processing. Web and mobile apps are also highly compatible. Many mobile apps have a version for the two most popular mobile platforms, Android and Apple, meaning that they can run on most mobile devices. The web version of mobile apps usually has a version for all common browsers.

Network Security

Organizations that use computer systems must protect those systems and the information they contain. The functions and services of computer systems are critical for success. Disabling or compromising the computer systems that a business uses can cause irreparable damage to the business and its customers (Vahid et al., 2017).

Two of the threats that organizations must consider are viruses and phishing. A computer virus is a program that is designed to damage, encrypt, or steal information, computer software, or hardware. Viruses must be kept away from critical information systems. Organizations can use a network firewall to prevent unauthorized access to systems. Without it, viruses can be placed directly onto computer systems by hackers who access the systems from outside of the organization's network. Virus scanning software detects viruses that are in storage and memory of computer systems, but in many cases the damage has already been done (Khan et al., 2017).

Computers in the workplace

The industry I will be discussing is healthcare revenue cycle management, also known as RCM, and formerly known as medical billing. Information technology is used in the industry during all phases of the revenue cycle. The future has many good things in store for the RCM industry.

Before we look at the present and future of the industry, it is helpful to look at the way things were done in the past. In the past, RCM companies used to receive charts on paper from each hospital, along with a log of all patients seen. The paper charts were given to the medical coders, and the coders coded the charts on paper. The paper charts were then entered manually by a data entry staff for billing. The log was checked to verify that data was received for all patients seen. Payments would come in, and each one would be analyzed and processed manually. At the end of the process, the paper charts were scanned in for historical purposes. In this setting, personnel with little computer expertise were needed for things such as mail room processing and scanning.

Traveling through a Network

The best way to describe a packet's trip through the network is with some PING commands.

The first address I pinged was Google.com. The ping sent four packets by default, and all four were received with zero lost packets. The response speeds ranged between 21 and 26 milliseconds for an average of 23 milliseconds.

The next address to be pinged was fujigoko.tv in Japan. The ping sent four packets, and all four were received with zero lost packets. The response speeds ranged from 133 to 149 milliseconds, with an average of 139 milliseconds.

The last address to be pinged was worldcam.eu in Europe. Again, the ping sent four packets, and all were received with zero lost packets. The response speeds ranged from 168 to 194 milliseconds, with an average of 175 milliseconds.

Reflections on the Role of Applications

Today I documented my day from start to finish in three different ways, using three applications, including word processing, spreadsheet, and presentation. Looking back on the activity, it seems that each application is best suited to certain aspects of this type of documentation.

When I wrote about my day in the word processor, I went into detail about each task that was performed. A word processing document is best suited to documenting details. It was done after the fact because writing a detailed blurb about each task throughout the day would have been cumbersome. This part of the work was like writing a newspaper article because it went into detail, but it was not available right away. Neither of the other applications was suited to cover the level of detail that the word processor was. Word processing documents are great tools for describing information that is not structured.

Mobile App Review: Chess.com

Summary

The Chess.com application is a web and mobile version of the game of chess. It allows users to play chess against other players or the computer, study chess with lessons and puzzles, connect with other chess players for conversation, and join leagues for chess tournaments. It has evolved over the past decade into a well-designed application.

Programming Languages

Programming, like many other activities, must be practiced. The Scratch language and development environment provides an excellent place to practice programming logic without having to touch any production or mission-critical servers. I found the language simple to understand, and the ability to instantly click and see what effect your changes made was helpful. Scratch is an excellent tool for understanding the underlying architecture of code.