LO2. Understand The Styles, Classification And The Management Of Global Information Flashcards
2.1 Information Styles - Text (e.g and uses)
Different character sets e.g. Western, Cyrillic, Arabic etc.
Used for: [Written communication]
* Business Letters - used for internal/external communication.
* Reports - detailed documents about a particular problem that can be sent to managers to read before a meeting to discuss the problem.
* Memos - written message for internal use only.
2.1 Information Styles - Text (advantages)
+ Provides detailed summarises and explanations.
+ The format of text can be changed to suit its purpose (e.g bullet points or different colours).
+ Can be written in different languages - so that all literate people can understand.
2.1 Information Styles - Text (disadvantages)
- Large amounts of text can be difficult and time-consuming to read -> generally less engaging than most of the other methods.
- May include spelling errors or be factually incorrect -> so not entirely reliable/accurate without error checking.
2.1 Information Styles - Graphics (e.g and uses)
Pictures and illustrations (visual form of information) - both real and computer generated.
Used for:
* Logos, diagrams, maps and photographs
2.1 Information Styles - Graphics (advantages)
+ Are multilingual - can be understood by anyone regardless of the language they speak (Companies like IKEA have the same graphics globally).
+ Can present an idea or message immediately and can use association (the colour red is associated with anger).
+ More engaging method of presenting information than text.
2.1 Information Styles - Graphics (disadvantages)
- Images may take longer to load e.g Images in email may not be automatically downloaded.
2.1 Information Styles - Animated Graphics (e.g and uses)
Moving pictures and illustrations/Images with multiple frames e.g animation.
Used for:
*Animation of the operation of the heart
2.1 Information Styles - Animated Graphics (advantages and disadvantages)
+ Be used to show a process and is easier to understand than eedkng text.
+ Can be understood by all ages and language speakers.
- Creating it takes time (especially educational resources with multiple frames and annotations).
2.1 Information Styles - Video (e.g and uses)
A recording of visual images, often with audio
Used for:
* Visual instructions - how to do something
* Demonstrations - show how something works
* Marketing products
* Promotional videos on websites (to advertise a sale or special event)
* To stand out from the competition
* Virtual tours
* Used to earn money (selling sponsorship, etc)
2.1 Information Styles - Video (advantages and disadvantages)
+ More engaging and easier to follow than reading large amounts of texts.
+ Can be used to convey a message in a short space of time e.g TV adverts.
+ Audio can be added to videos e.g music for entertainment, narration to explain a process.
- Takes up a relatively large amount of storage space, longer videos may take time to upload/download/transfer along a network.
- Takes a long time to create, including filming, editing and narration.
2.1 Information Styles - Audio (e.g, uses and disadvantages)
Information type using sound waves. E.g music track
Used:
*Podcasts, Video conferencing, Spoken instructions.
- Audio may not be suitable in some environments e.g. noisy areas.
- Words may be misheard and misunderstandings made, possibly due to pronunciations or accents.
2.1 Information Styles - Audio (advantages)
+ Users can listen to information when they are otherwise busy and cannot read, such as when walking or driving.
+ Visually impaired users who are unable to read can still hear audio and interact with voice recognition software.
+ Some users prefer listening to instructions rather than reading text.
2.1 Information Styles - Numerical (e.g and uses)
Information represented by numbers (quantitative data). E.g. date, time, ages and distances.
Used:
*Sales - profit and loss
* Statistics and financial data
2.1 Information Styles - Numerical (advantages)
+ Statistical data is easier to understand and manage in a numerical format than standard text - 234,567 is simpler to work with than “two hundred and thirty-four thousand, five hundred and sixty-seven”.
+ Numerical data can be exported into spreadsheets and presented as graphs to visualise the data.
2.1 Information Styles - Numerical (disadvantages)
- Long numbers can be entered incorrectly and lead to incorrect results.
- Formatted data like telephone numbers can’t be stored as numerical because numerical doesn’t allow spaces and doesn’t allow the number to start with 0.
2.1 Information Styles - Tactile Images (e.g and uses)
Raised lines on paper that represent images through touch.
E.g NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope Images are converted into tactile images for people who cannot explore the images by sight.
Helps businesses to create an inclusive society e.g. enables blind or partially sighted people to use maps and explore space.
Used:
*In medical diagnostics
2.1 Information Styles {Accessibility} - Tactile Images (advantages)
+ Users can better understand a physical environment or prospective design if it is physically built.
+ Visually impaired users can feel the object instead of being able to see it.
+ The tactile images can be used as a prototype for a target audience to feel and comment on.
2.1 Information Styles - Tactile Images (disadvantages)
- It is difficult to share a tactile image without physically moving it, unlike digital or paper information styles.
- Creating a tactile image requires specialist equipment like a 3D printer.
2.1 Information Styles - Subtitles (uses)
Textual form of info. shown along with visual data.
Used:
*To transcribe audio(speech) into words.
*To show the translation of dialogue/audio from a foreign language into the native language of the audience.
2.1 Information Styles - Subtitle (advantages)
+ Hearing-impaired users can access audio information formats such as video by reading the subtitles.
+ Subtitles can be used for translated speech {in promotional videos, television programmes}
+ Subtitles can be used in noisy environments or when sound cannot be played.
2.1 Information Styles - Subtitles (disadvantages)
- Auto-generated subtitles are often incorrect.
- Subtitles written by a human take a long time to type up and sync in time with the audio.
2.1 Information Styles - Boolean
A data type that can only have one of two specified values. {‘True’ and ‘False’ or ‘Yes’ and ‘False’}.
2.1 Information Styles - Braille (uses)
Raised dots used to represent characters that can be ‘read’ by touch.
Used: *In all types of physical documents and public places by the visually impaired.
* To add text to tactile images e.g maps.
2.1 Information Styles - Braille (advantages and disadvantages)
+ Allows visually impaired users to interact with a computer system using a braille terminal.
+ A braille printer can print documents written using braille to be given to blind people to ‘read’.
- Braille terminals can only display a limited amount of information at a time.
- Braille is not used by many people except visually impaired people so few resources are written using braille.
2.1 Information Styles - Tables & Spreadsheets (about)
Tables and spreadsheets can store both numerical data and textual data ready for analysis.
E.g. Database tables {Microsoft Access} and financial spreadsheets {Microsoft Excel}.
2.1 Information Styles - Tables & Spreadsheets (use 1)
Using spreadsheets, records can be locked (‘record locking’) so that only one person can make edits at any one time. Edits will be saved before unlocking the file. This will stop data from being overwritten incorrectly and will ensure the data is up-to-date, accurate and fit for purpose.
2.1 Information Styles - Tables & Spreadsheets (use 2)
Spreadsheets can be linked to other documents such as forms to directly import data from. This data can be ordered into diff groups and conditional formatting can be used to automatically organise and style the data.
