Computer capabilities and limitations

NAME: OPESEMOWO OLUWASEYI AINAREG. NO: EDP13/14/H/1266DEPARTMENT: EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATION AND COUNSELLINGSPECIALISATION: TEST AND MEASUREMENTCOURSE TITLE: COMPUTER APPLICATION IN EDUCATIONCOURSE CODE: EFC 685CLASS PRESENTATION

ONCOMPUTER APPLICATION IN PERSONNEL RECORD KEEPING AND RETREIVING PROGRAMCOURSE LECTURER

PROF. S.O. BANDELE

INTRODUCTIONThe general policies governing personnel record keeping is the creation, maintenance, and disposition of records used to document human resource management programs established by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM).

The Guide to Personnel Recordkeeping will state that agencies will recognize the format of the official personnel folder as the official record. That format will be either paper or for those agencies that have converted to an electronic format and that format has gone through the appropriate verification and validation process, the record is recognized as the electronic official personnel folder.

Regulation

Personnel recordkeeping regulations are found in part 293 of title 5, Code of Federal Regulations. These regulations establish policies and minimum requirements governing the creation, development, maintenance, processing, use, dissemination and safeguarding of the personnel records OPM requires agencies maintain.

General Records Management These instructions refer to storing Official Personnel Folders (OPFs), whether in paper or electronic format, the permanent records that follow an employee throughout his or her career. The Official Personnel Folders are under OPMs control although they are in the physical custody of the employing agencies and virtual custody of those agencies that recognize the electronic official personnel folder (eOPF) as the official record. These instructions do not apply to agency personnel processing systems. These systems are designed to support personnel operations, feed payroll systems, and meet managers, personnelists, and employees needs for information necessary to manage day-to-day operations. Agencies may create and store their internal, operational information as they choose, subject to general National Archives and Record Administration (NARA) recordkeeping guidance. These internal records are not a substitute for the official, permanent documentation that constitutes the Official Personnel Folder.

Definition: Records

Records include all papers, maps, photographs, machine-readable materials or other documentation, regardless of physical form/virtual form (electronic), made or received by the Government in connection with the transaction of public business and preserved as evidence of decisions, operations, or other activities of the Government.Understanding Computers: An Overview for Records and Archives Staff should be read before the other computer-related modules in this programme, Automating Records Services and Managing Electronic Records, as much of the basic information important to those modules is introduced here and so is not explained in those modules.Personnel Record Keeping

Personnel records are the property of the university and should be inventoried and managed like any other university asset. As a manager, it is your responsibility to maintain a personnel record for each of your employees. Use the Personnel Record Checklist to ensure that each individual who reports to you has a complete personnel record.What to Keep in a Personnel Record

The following documents should be a part of an employees personnel record:

Signed and dated offer letter

Wage or salary information

Notices of commendation, warning or discipline

Performance evaluations and reviews

Attendance and Paid Time Off records

Changes in job title, job description, job classification or supervisor

The following documents should not be a part of an employees personnel record and must be maintained separately by the universitys Benefits and Payroll departments respectively:

Benefits information

Medical information or doctor's notes

Authorization for deduction or withholding of pay

I-9 Form and supporting documentation. W-4 Form or other tax forms. Internal or external investigations/claims of any kind.Creating Personnel Records

Personnel records may be created because they are required by:

statute or Executive Order

regulation

operational guidance from central management agencies

agency records management programs.Each Office program that requires agencies to create personnel records, which may be used in making any determination about an individual, is responsible for establishing minimum standards of accuracy, relevancy, necessity, timeliness, and completeness of the record that would promote fairness to the individual in the determination, 5 U.S.C. 552a (e)(5). An agency holding an OPF concerning one of its employees is the custodian of the OPF during the period the person to whom it pertains is an employee of the agency and is responsible for the maintenance of that record regardless of format or media employed. Retention of Personnel Records The NARA regulations in Title 36, Code of Federal Regulations, include procedures for determining how long agencies must keep records and when they may dispose of records. NARA issues General Records Schedules that provide authority to dispose of such records, generally on a Government-wide basis. To cover records common to a number of agencies, General Records Schedule 1 covers civilian personnel records and General Records Schedule 20, Electronic Records.Government-wide Systems of Records

Agency must publish a notice in the Federal Register when it establishes or revises a system of records. 5 U.S.C. 552a (e) (4). OPM publishes systems of records for a number of Government wide human resource management functions. These are:

OPM/GOVT-1 General Personnel Records

OPM/GOVT-2 Employee Performance File System Records

OPM/GOVT-3 Records of Adverse Actions, Performance Based

Reduction in Grade and Removal Actions, and

Termination of Probationers

OPM/GOVT-5 Recruiting, Examining, and Placement Records

OPM/GOVT-6 Personnel Research and Test Validation Records

OPM/GOVT-7 Applicant Race, Sex, National Origin, and Disability Status Records

OPM/GOVT-9 File on Position Classification Appeals, Job Grading Appeals, and Retained Grade or Pay Appeals

OPM/GOVT-10 Employee Medical File System Records. These are OPMs records, although they are in the physical custody of other agencies. OPMs regulations implementing the Privacy Act are in part 297 of title 5, Code of Federal Regulations. The notices that describe the Offices systems of records, including the Government wide systems of records, are published in the Federal Register.

Previous practices

Before the advent of the computer information for personnel record keeping were being done using pen on paper, stored in a file or fold and retrievals of such information were done manually as to what is done electronically today. Furthermore, so many challenges such as slow pace of work, loss of vital personnel record, high cost of material and waste of resources. Eventually, these were some challenges faced in the past.CAPABILITY OF THE COMPUTER

The computer has the capacity and ability to store or retrieve date for future use unlike what is done in pervious practices where data or information are kept in a manual file without any form of back up of such data. However, it is very important to distinguish between memory, which refers to the circuitry that has a direct link to the computer processor, and the storage, which refers to media such as disks that are not directly linked to the processor. Remember, a storage device is anything that is used to store computer data such as Floppy disks, hard disks, optical disks, CDs and magnetic tapes are all types of storage device. Physical storage refers to how data are actually kept on the storage disk. The most commonly used medium for storage is magnetic storage. With magnetic storage the computer stores data on disks and tape by magnetising selected particles of an oxide-based surface coating. The particles retain their magnetic orientation until that orientation is changed. Thus magnetic disks and tapes are modifiable storage media. The two most popular types of magnetic storage media are hard disks and diskettes. Magnetic tape provides a third type of magnetic storage, and optical disk is a new storage medium. Following is a discussion of each; the definitions included earlier are repeated.Hard drive: The storage area within the computer itself, where megabytes of space are available to store bits of information. Also known as a hard disk.

A hard disk platter is a flat, rigid disk made of aluminium or glass and coated with a magnetic oxide. A hard disk consists of one or more platters and their read-write heads. A read-write head is the device that reads the data from the disk platter into the computer. It also records (or writes) data onto the platters. Hard disk platters in microcomputers are typically 3 inches (about 10 centimetres) in diameter: the same size as the circular mylar disk in a diskette. However, the storage capacity of a hard disk far exceeds that of a floppy disk. Also, the access time of a hard disk is

Significantly faster than a diskette. Unlike diskettes, which begin to rotate when one requests data, hard disks are continually in motion, so there is no delay as the diskspins up to speed. Like diskettes, hard disks provide random access to files by positioning the read-write head over the sector that contains the requested data.

Magnetic tape: A continuous plastic strip covered with magnetic oxide; the tape is divided into parallel tracks onto which data may be recorded by selectively magnetising parts of the surface, or spots, in each of the tracks. The data can then be stored and reused.

When IBM introduced its first microcomputer in 1981, the legacy of tape storage continued in the form of a cassette tape drive, similar to those used for audio recording and playback. Using tape as a primary storage device, however, instead of a hard disk is slow and inconvenient because tape requires sequential access rather than random access. Sequential access means that data is stored and read as a sequence of bytes along the length of the tape. To find a file stored on a microcomputer tape storage device, one has to advance the tape to the appropriate location of the file, and then wait for the computer to slowly read each byte until it finds the beginning of the file. Like an audio cassette, for example, a user must go through the tape in sequence to find the part he or she wants. Microcomputer users quickly abandoned tape storage for the convenience and speed of random access disk drives. Recently, however, tape storage for microcomputers has experienced a revival, not as a principal storage device but for making backup copies of the data stored on hard disks. The data on magnetic storage can be easily destroyed, erased, or otherwise lost. Protecting the data on the hard disk is of particular concern to users because it contains so much data, which could be difficult and time consuming to reconstruct. This is why backups are so important.

Back up: To copy a computer file or collection of files to a second medium, usually on a diskette or magnetic tape, so that the data are safe in case the original file is damaged or lost. Backups are usually copied to storage devices that can be removed from the computer and kept separately from the original. In addition to magnetic storage, there is also optical storage.

With optical storage, data is burned into the storage medium using beams of laser light. The burns form patterns of small pits in the disk surface to represent data. The pits on optical media are permanent, so the data cannot be changed. Optical media are very durable, but they do not provide the flexibility of magnetic media for changing the data once they are stored.

There are three types of optical disks.

CD-ROMs are the most popular type of optical storage. CD-ROM stands for

Compact Disc Read Only Memory. A computer CD-ROM disk, like its audio counterpart, contains data that has been stamped on the disk surface as a series of pits. To read the data on a CD-ROM an optical read head distinguishes the patterns of pits that represent bytes. CD-ROM disks provide tremendous storage capacity. CD-ROMs usually come with data already written onto them. These days most applications software is provided on CD-ROM.

It is now possible for computer users to write data to an optical disk. These are known as WORM disks, which stands for Write Once Read Many. A single CD holds up to 680 megabytes, equivalent to over 300,000 pages of text in character format, and these disks are quite durable. These CDs are known as CD re-recordable (CD-R). There are other types of WORM disks, although there is no standard for these.

There is a third type of optical disk which can be erased and use to rewrite new information. These are sometimes known as EO (erasable optical) disks and CD-RW (CD rewritable). Magneto-optical disks combine magnetic disk and CD-ROM technologies. Like magnetic media they can read and written to and like floppy disks they are removable. They can store over 200 MB of data, and speed of access to this data is faster than a floppy but slower than a hard drive. There is no universal standard for these yet. CD-ROMs and magnet-optical disks are very useful for storing images. These take up much more storage space than data in character format, such as in word-processed files. Also, the computer as the capability to store personnel record in its memory. Memory refers to the temporary internal storage areas within a computer. The term memory is usually used as shorthand for physical memory, which refers to the actual chips capable of holding data. Some computers also use virtual memory, which expands physical memory onto a hard drive. The main type of memory and the most familiar to users is random access memory (RAM). RAM is the same as main memory. A computer can both write data into RAM and read data from RAM. Every time a user turns on his or her computer, a set of operating instructions is copied from the hard disk into RAM. These instructions, which help control basic computer functions, remain in RAM until the computer is turned off. Most RAM is volatile, which means that it requires a steady flow of electricity to maintain its contents. As soon as the power is turned off, whatever data was in RAM disappears. The contents of RAM are necessary for the computer to process data. The results of the processing are kept temporarily in RAM until they are needed again or until they are saved onto the hard disk or other storage device.

Today the storage capacity of RAM is measured in megabytes (MB). PCs (microcomputers) typically have between 16 and 64 MB of RAM, which means they can hold between 16 and 64 million bytes of data (a standard A4 page of text typically holds about 2,000 bytes or characters of text).

Other types of memory include

ROM (read only memory): unlike RAM, ROM is non-volatile and only permits the user to read data. Computers almost always contain a small amount of read-only memory that holds instructions for starting up the computer.

PROM (programmable read-only memory): a PROM is a memory chip on which you can store a program. Once the PROM has been used, you cannot wipe it clean and use it to store something else. Like ROMs, PROMs are non-volatile.

EPROM (erasable programmable read-only memory): an EPROM is a special type of PROM that can be erased by exposing it to ultraviolet light.

EEPROM (electrically erasable programmable read-only memory): an EEPROM is a special type of PROM that can be erased by exposing it to an electrical charge.TECHNICAL PRESENTATION OF THE COMPUTER PERSONNEL RECORD KEEPING AND RETREIVING PROGRAMData can be stored so that it is readable again only using the software with which it was created, or it can be stored in other formats, so that it may be transferred or used by other software programs. There is a standard character code used to store data so that it may be used by other software programs; this code is called ASCII- American Standard Code for Information Interchange. The ASCII code assigns a specific pattern of bits to each character, as described above. Another code that may be found, especially in IBM-brand mainframe computers, is EBCDIC- Extended Binary Coded Decimal Interchange Code. The important point to remember about these codes is that their main value is to store information so that it is readable by other computers. By using ASCII or EBCDIC, it is possible for people to retrieve and use someone elses data using a different type of hardware or software. The main disadvantage of using ASCII or EBCDIC is that the formatting or other special qualities of computerised information may be lost. ADVANTAGES OF THE COMPUTERLike all machines, a computer needs to be directed and controlled in order to perform a task successfully. Until such time as a program is prepared and stored in the computers memory, the computer knows absolutely nothing, not even how to accept or reject data. Even the most sophisticated computer, no matter how capable it is, must be told what to do. Until the capabilities and the limitations of a computer are recognized, its usefulness cannot be thoroughly understood.

In the first place, it should be recognized that computers are capable of doing repetitive operations. A computer can perform similar operations thousands of times, without becoming bored, tired, or even careless.

Secondly, computers can process information at extremely rapid rates. For example, modern computers can solve certain classes of arithmetic problems millions of times faster than a skilled mathematician. Speeds for performing decision-making operations are comparable to those for arithmetic operations but input-output operations, however, involve mechanical motion and hence require more time. On a typical computer system, cards are read at an average speed of 1000 cards per minute and as many as 1000 lines can be printed at the same rate.

Thirdly, computers may be programmed to calculate answers to whatever level of accuracy is specified by the programmer. In spite of newspaper headlines such as Computer Fails, these machines are very accurate and reliable especially when the number of operations they can perform every second is considered. Because they are man-made machines, they sometimes malfunction or break down and have to be repaired. However, in most instances when the computer fails, it is due to human error and is not the fault of the computer at all.

In the fourth place, general-purpose computers can be programmed to solve various types of problems because of their flexibility. One of the most important reasons why computers are so widely use today is that almost every big problem can be solved by solving a number of little problemsone after another.Conclusion The application of computer in personnel recordkeeping and retrieval program is made possible with the help of the memory of the computer. The memory of the computer stores data in BITS (Binary Digits). However, the small unit of the modern computer is the byte (8 BITS).Data stored on the computer memory and the results of analysis can be retrieved with ease from the computer.Recommendation

Base on the technicalities in the application of computer in the personnel record keeping, it is worthwhile to recommend that computer should be applied in the personnel record keeping because of the following reasons.

i. It saves time.

ii. It reduces waste of resourcesiii. It makes work easier and faster

iv. The retrieval of information can easily be reached.

References Bandele S.O. (2006): Computer Application in Education Derfler, Frank and Les Freed. (1998): How Networks Work. How it Works Series.

Emeryville, CA: QUE Corp.Gralla, Preston and Mina Reimer (1996): How Intranets Work. How it Works Series. Emeryville, CA: QUE Corp. IDG Books. For Dummies. Computer Book Series. Chicago, IL: IDG Books, various years. This series of introductory books, called Word for Dummies, Windows 95 for Dummies, PCs for Dummies and The Internet for Dummies, explain computers in clear language, with practical examples and valuable illustrations. More information is available at http://www.dummies.comParsons, June Jamrich and Dan Oja. Computer Concepts. Cambridge, MA(1999): Course Technology.White Ron (1998): How Computers Work. How It Works Series. Emeryville, CA QUE Corp.13