BIT RATE, BANDWIDTH, AND BAUD

Assignment Title: Defining Bit Rate, Bandwidth, and Baud Using Web Base Search Techniques

Participation: Individual with group discussion of search engines.

Due date: 31 January 2001.

Format: Formal two page essay in APA final manuscript format.

Submission Method: Email to the course emailbox with the essay attached as a MSWord document.

Maximum points: 5.

Introduction: Often information professionals are asked questions that require quicker response than is normally possible using traditional reference sources. This assignment provides students experience using Web-based sources as to define three terms used in information technology.

Goals: The goals of this assignment are:

• To acquaint you with the meaning of important technical terms in computer networking, as well as to acquaint you with some of the (often implicit) controversy and misunderstanding that surround the terms.
  
  
• To provide you experience in identifying resources which are more authoritative than others.
  
  
• To provide you experience in using and evaluating Web-based resources and understanding the performance of the particular Web engines that you may use.
  
  
• To provide you experience in learning from each other through the use of the discussion board.
  

Tasks: For this assignment, you will write a paper of 2 double-spaced pp. in MSWord that addresses the following concerns. Submission requirements are specified below.

1. Discuss the merits of various search engines on the discussion board.
   
   
2. Choose at least two different Web search engines and use them to identify sources that provide definitions of the three networking terms "bit rate," "bandwidth," and "baud."
   
   
3. Write an essay about the definitions you have found and your experience in using them. Your essay should address:
   
   • What the three IT terms mean.
     
   • How they are similar and different.
     
   • What controversy surrounds them.
     
   • Why you chose the resources you did.
   • What makes one resource more authoritative than another.
   • Why you chose the search engines you did.
     
   • What the strengths and weakness of each of the engines are.
     
   
   
4. Send the essay as an attachment to an email addressed to the course emailbox.