INF 210 : Organizational Informatics
Course Syllabus
(Fall, 2008)
Prof. Hal Berghel; TBE
A-211; 895-5533 (INF office); "hlb -a t- berghel- d o t- net"
tentative office hours: 2:30-4:00 T-Th and by appointment.
Make arrangements before or after class.
General notes about this course:
- the Syllabus for this course will be maintained on the instructor's website at
www.berghel.net/courses/inf210/.
- the assigned readings will come from online resources. URLs for the readings will be listed in the syllabus under "reading assignments." Note that reading assignments are for the current syllabus entry (i.e., read the assignment for the next class ahead of class)
- Tests will include three hour-exams and a final exam, the time and date of which will be posted on this online syllabus. Homework will be periodically assigned and will count for approximately 25% of the overall grade.
- The current UNLV policies that govern instruction are posted on the website of the The Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost at
http://provost.unlv.edu/policies.html. This information is reproduced for your convenience in a document
entitled UNLV Classroom Policies on this website.
Specifically, please familiarize yourself with the UNLV Student Academic Misconduct Policy.
- UNLV requires that email communication be restricted to your UNLV Rebel email account. So that I may collect this information, please send an email to
me at "hlb -a t- berghel- d o t- net" on or before class time, September 2, 2008. Include the following information: LAST NAME, FIRST NAME, UNLV Rebel email account. Place "
INF 345" in the subject line of all email correspondence with me to ensure timely processing.
NOTE: Instructors do not have access to your email accounts on the course roster - you must provide that information.
- For homework purposes, relevant published online or offline resources are acceptable references. Quotation according to the principles of "fair use" under the U.S. Copyright laws apply. i.e., quoting and identifying a source is acceptable, plagiarizing a source is not. Any student found to have plagiarized will receive an "F" for the assignment in the first occurrence, and will receive an "F" in the course on the second occurrence. If you have any questions about this policy, consult with the instructor.
- This is the first time this course has been offered at UNLV, so an optimal pace of the course has yet to be determined. As a result, the syllabus will lead the lectures by at most 2-3 class periods.
Supplementary Text - not required!:
Ralph M. Stair and George W. Reynolds. Principles of Information Systems, A Managerial Approach, Eighth Edition, 2008, Thomson Court Technology, ISBN: 0-619-21561.
Professional Associations:
There are many opportunities for IT professionals to network in the Las Vegas. I strongly encourage you to get involved in their activities. Here's a partial list:
Local IT Recruiters:
Although you're unlikely to look for full-time employment before completing your Informatics degree, it would be wise for you to keep current with respect to sources of employment opportunities. The CIOs who visit your class will be pleased to discuss opportunities in their organizations and industries with you. In addition, there are local recruiting firms (aka headhunters) who recruit professionals for a fee (from my experience, the fee is usually paid by the employer not the employee. A few of these employment recruiters are listed below. You might check their websites from time to time to get a sense of the local IT job opportunities.
IT Technology Trends:
IT technology evolves at a breathtaking speed. Product life cycles may be measured in months in some cases. A computer or network appliance that is more than 5 years old is considered obsolete. The same applies to IT technology skills. The modern business world is very unforgiving of obsolete skill levels and technology misjudgments. Successful IT professionals stay atop technology trends. These resources are of use in this regard:
Course Description:
Needs, uses, and consequences of information in organizational contexts. Topics include organizational types and characteristics, functional areas and business processes, information-based products and services, use of and redefining role of information technology, changing character of work and organizational practices, socio-technical structures, and rise and transformation of information-based industries. Prerequisites: INF 110 and PHIL 114. 3 credits.
Course Outcomes:
By the end of the term, you will:
- Understand the integration of the technical and organizational dimensions of information technology to knowledge domains and the decision support systems used within them.
- Understand the importance of information within organizational structures
- Understand the governance issues within IT in an organization
- Learn about IT successes and failures in business and industry
- Become familiar with the tools used in OI
- Understand the major issues and controversies in OI
- Understand how to find resources on OI
- Understand how OI relates to business strategy
Core Competencies
- An understanding of the dynamics, strategies and tactics affecting the adoption of innovative information technology in organizational settings
- An understanding of the importance of groups, organizations and cultures in a successful organization
- An understanding of the many types of information systems (and the many jobs associated with them) that are found in modern organizations.
- An understanding of some of the social factors that affect the implementation and use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs).
- An understanding of the many types of organizational structures and the impact that ICTs can have on power and the power relationships.
- An understanding of the different perspectives that a Chief Executive Officers, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Information Officer, and Chief Security Officer tend to view the value of information technology.
- An understanding of the potential risks/costs/consequences inherent in failing to deploy an IT project successfully.
- An understanding of the impact of Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX), Gramm-Leach-Bliley (GLB), and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) on the IT infrastructure within modern organizations.
Acknowledgements:
My thanks to Barbara Hayes (Indiana University School of Informatics) and Liz Liddy (Syracuse University iSchool) for sharing their suggestions on course design and for sharing some of their course materials with me. Thanks to Bill Parker for providing the lists of professional organizations and IT recruiters.
Syllabus
August 26, 2008
- lecture: Introduction to Organizational Informatics: Hardware, Software, and Networks (part 1)
- search terms: informatics, organizational behavior, information technology, positional number systems and their extensional equivalence, base 10 (decimal), base 2 (binary), base 8 (octal), base 16 (hexadecimal)
August 28, 2008
- lecture: Introduction to Organizational Informatics: Hardware, Software, and Networks (part 2)
- search terms: computer organization, computer architecture, arithmetic logic unit, central processing unit, von Neumann architecture, switching circuits, Boolean algebra and propositional logic, gating diagrams, truth-functional completeness, truth-functional independence
- handout provided in class; revision sent by email on 8-29-08
September 2, 2008
September 4, 2008
- video: Bethany McLean and Peter Elkind's: "The Smartest Guys in the Room," HDnet Films and Jigsaw Productions, 2005. (continued)
- search terms: same as September 2, above.
September 9, 2008
- lecture: "Enron as a Case Study of Dysfunctional Enterprise IT"
- search terms: same as September 2, above.
September 11, 2008
- lecture: Introduction to Organizational Informatics: Hardware, Software, and Networks (part 3)
- search terms: computer programs, machine instructions, low-level computer languages and assemblers, high-level languages and compilers, computer networks, the OSI network Model, the Internet protocol suite (IP, TCP, HTML, HTTP, MIME, POP, FTP), TCP/IP, Internet, intranet, local area network, DNS-domain name system, Ethernet, client-server computing, telecommunications, world wide web
- lecture handout
September 15, 2008: Optional Review Class
- Time: 1-2:30
- Location: TBE A-220 (this is inside the second floor office complex in the "A" Building (across from my office and
adjacent to the INF Administrative Assistant)
- Topics: any aspect of Hardware, Software, and Networks of your choice. Please review
the search terms for the lectures of August 26, August 28, and September 11 before coming to class. This is your opportunity to clear up any confusions you might have.
September 16, 2008
- Guest Lecture: Fatma Nasoz: "The Role of Human-Computer Interaction in the Organization"
- search terms: intelligent user interfaces, emotion recognition, user modeling, affective computing, visualization
- Fatma's Powerpoint Slides (in PDF)
September 18, 2008
- Guest Lecture: Ju-Yeon Jo: " Digital Forensics: Network Reconnaissance". Note: class will involve a hands-on lab in network security (you'll be amazed at what is possibe in network security!) The current plan is that Ju-Yeon will meet you in the classroom and escort you to her lab. You must be present at the start of class!
- search terms: HoneyNet, Metasploit, Etherape, Wireshark, VMWare, Covert Channels, NetScanTools, NMap, LanGuard.
September 23, 2008
- lecture: Introduction to Institutions and Collaboration within them
- video: Clay Shirky: "Institutions vs. Collaboration" (view before coming to class)
- reading assignments:
- Clay Shirky: "A Group is its Own Worst Enemy"
- Hal Berghel: "1996 report from the ACM Electronic Communities Committee"
- search terms: Groups, social software, group dynamics, fun-time effect, BBSs, Carr-Benkler wager
- study questions:
- how do groups get work done?
- where can you get a picture of a roller skating mermaid?
- what is social bookmarking?
- Is there such a thing as the wisdom of crowds?
- what is flicker?
- what benefit is there to building collaboration into the IT infrastructure
- How does the "power law distribution" for unconstrained social systems explain the contribution of individuals to an organization?
- what is the cooperative infrastructure model of organizational behavior?
- Name a support group that is not socially beneficial?
September 25, 2008
- Guest Lecture: Laura Fucci: "Organizational Informatics in the Public Sector"
Laura Fucci is the the Chief Information Officer of Clark County, NV, one of the fastest growing and currently the 15th largest county in the United States, where she aspires to further improve county services through the use of technology. Laura previously worked for MGM MIRAGE where her roles included Chief Technology Officer and VP of Technology for CityCenter.
- search terms: ITIL, PMI, PMP, IIBA, SOX (Sarbenes Oxley), PCI DSS, IT governance, federated IT, distributed vs. centralized IT models
- Laura's Powerpoint Slides (in PDF)
September 30, 2008
- Guest Lecture: Dennis Cobb: "Public Safety Informatics: Policing via Information “Mash Ups"
Dennis Cobb is currently executive vice-president for public safety with Infinite Contingencies Group International after retiring from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police in 2007 as Deputy Chief for Communications and Information Technology.
- search terms:
intelligence led policing, COMPSTAT, total information awareness, non-obvious relationship analysis, NCIC, NCJIS, Public Safety Spectrum Trust, Police Executive Research Forum, police fusion center.
October 2, 2008
- lecture: "Digital Security I: Hacking in the New Millenium"
- search terms: computer viruses, computer worms, trojan horses, denial-of-service (DOS) attacks, perception management, social engineering, script embedding, script kiddies, hackers, crackers, phishing, war driving/flying/boating/spying/chalking, "whois", net scan tools, port scanning, network mapping, OS fingerprinting.
- readings:
- "Pernicious Ports"
- "The Code Red Worm"
- "Phish Phactors: Offensive and Defensive Strategies"
- "The Forthcoming Digital Tsunami"
- search terms: Bastion Host, SNORT, Sobig.F, Hashing, PGP, ISO 7799, AES, Bayesian Analysis
- lecture handout
October 6, 2008: Optional Review Class
- Time: 1-3:00
- Location: TBE A-220 (this is inside the second floor office complex in the "A" Building (across from my office and
adjacent to the INF Administrative Assistant)
- Topics: any aspect of the course you wish to review before the first exam.
October 7, 2008: EXAM I
- This test will cover all course material through September 30, 2008
October 9, 2008
- homework assignment #2 (due October 23, 2008. NO exceptions made on the due date of this assignment!): Write a tracking report on 5 current technologies that have importance to IT in an organization. Click Here for the Homework 2 Assignment details.
October 14, 2008:
- Guest Lecture: Peter Fiala: "Project Management - Best Career in the New Economy"
Peter Fiala, owner of Las Vegas based Project Management Consulting and Placement firm Fiala Project Resources (www.fialapr.com), is a PMI Certified Project Management Professional (PMP) with over 15 years of IT Project Management experience. He is active on the board-of-directors for the Las Vegas Project Management Institute and the Association for IT Professionals.
- search terms: Project Management Institute (PMI), Project Management Professional (PMP), Leadership careers, PMP Preparation, PM Certification
- Peter's lecture slides (in PDF)
October 16, 2008:
- Guest Speaker: Julie Johnson, Advisor, College of Fine Arts: "Fine Arts Opportunities in Informatics"
- in-class lab: "Introduction to network reconnaissance"
October 21, 2008:
- lecture: "Introduction to Digital Forensics I"
- search terms: digital forensics, anti-forensics, the Metasploit project, electronic crime, electronic fraud, credit card fraud, risk management, BRAP forensics, phishing, hacking, war driving
- readings:
- "Phish Phactors: Offensive and Defensive Strategies"
- "BRAP Forensics: Boutique Computer Activity Mining vs. Personal Privacy Management">
- "Credit Card Forensics"
- "Fungible Credentials and 'Next Generation Fraud'
- lecture slides: "Digital Forensics: Art and Practice"
October 23, 2008:
- lecture: "Introduction to Digital Forensics II"
- search terms: same as October 21.
- readings: same as October 21.
- lecture slides: same as October 21
October 27, 2008: Optional Review Class
- Time: 1-3:00
- Location: TBE A-220 (this is inside the second floor office complex in the "A" Building (across from my office and
adjacent to the INF Administrative Assistant)
- Topics: Any questions relating to the second homework assignment or digital forensics.
October 28, 2008:
October 30, 2008:
- lecture: "The Cost of Analog Executives in a Digital World: Technology Forecasting for Survival (cont'd)
- search terms: same as October 28.
- readings: same as October 28.
- lecture slides: same as October 28
November 3, 2008: Optional Review Class
- Time: 1-3:00
- Location: TBE A-220 (this is inside the second floor office complex in the "A" Building (across from my office and
adjacent to the INF Administrative Assistant)
- Topics: any aspect of the cEXAM II
- This test will cover all course material through October 30, 2008
November 4, 2008:
- Guest Lecture: Fatma Nasoz: "The Role of Human-Computer Interaction in the Organization"
- search terms: same as September 16.
- readings: same as September 16.
- lecture slides: same as September 16.
November 6, 2008: EXAM II
- This test will cover all course material since Exam 1.
November 11, 2008: no class - Veteran's Day
November 13, 2008:
- Guest Lecture: Marshall Andrew: "Roles and Responsibilities of a CIO"
Marshall Andrew: VP and CIO Station Casinos for past 14 years. VP of IT for Esprit De Corp, Europe. VP of Engineering, INGRES Technology, San Francisco. VP of IT, Hotel Information Systems, San Francisco. Advisory Board – Casino Enterprise Management & Gaming and Leisure Magazines.
- search terms:
PMO, SWAT, RFP, ITOs, CRM, ROI, SOX, IT Governance
November 18, 2008:
- lecture: "Introduction to Legal Issues and INFOSEC Policies in IT"
- search terms: due diligence, disclaimers, pretexting, California SB 1286, Gramm-Leach-Bliley, Sarbanes-Oxley, HIPAA, FISMA, COPPA, Card Systems Solutions, PCI Best Practices (aka Visa Dirty Dozen), Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, Federal Wiretap Act (aka, "Title III"), Patriot Act, Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA)
November 20, 2008:
- Guest Lecturers: Shannon DeArmond and Kelly Winquest: "Roles and Responsibilities of a Business Analyst"
Shannon DeArmond has been working in the field of Business Analysis and Information Technology for over 12 years and is past-president of the Las Vegas IIBA Chapter. Shannon received her Business Analysis certification from George Washington University and holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting and a Master’s in Computer Information Systems. Shannon is currently a Departmental Systems Administrator for Clark County Comprehensive Planning. Kelly Winquist is an IIBA-designated Certified Business Analysis Professional (CBAP) and the current president of the Las Vegas IIBA Chapter. She has over 10 years of experience in Information Technology, where she has provided leadership for many large-scale, multi-million dollar projects. Kelly currently works at the Clark County District Attorney’s Office as Business Systems Analyst.
- search terms:IIBA, CBAP, BABOK (list the knowledge areas), business analysis, business problem, SDLC methodologies, use cases, user stories, business requirements document, requirements elicitation, requirements management tools, gap analysis
- lecture slides: "The Business Analyst: the Career of the Future"
November 25, 2008:
November 27, 2008: no class - Thanksgiving Vacation
December 2, 2008:
- Student Assessment - please arrive on time!
- lecture: "HIPAA"
- lecture slides: "HIPAA"
December 4, 2008:
December 9, 2008, 1pm, TBE B-174: FINAL EXAM
- This test will cover all course material covered during the semester.