Test #2 Review Sheet
The second exam will cover the following material:
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Artificial Intelligence
Spreadsheets and Microsoft Excel
RFID and IT for Supply Chain Management (SCM)
Decision Making/Decision Support Systems (including ESS)
Data Communications for Business Students
Other items to be added later
Review items/topics that were frequently missed on the first exam.
Please note the review items/topics that were frequently missed on the first exam. Each
of those items seen below is eligible to appear on this exam as well.
There will be multiple choice and True/False questions. The questions will cover the
following topics:
You will need to know the systems listed below in quite a bit of depth. You should be
able to compare/contrast the systems, knowing the characteristics of each system
and how it is typically used. On the exam, you will see LOTS of situational
questions, where I will describe something that is happening, and then you will need
to select the system from the 5 choices on the exam that will BEST meet the needs of
that situation. KNOW AND UNDERSTAND THE EXAMPLES GIVEN FOR
EACH ONE.
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Decision Support Systems
Executive Information Systems
Geospatial Information System
Transaction Processing System
Expert Systems
Neural Networks
Genetic Algorithms
Intelligent Agents
You must THOROUGHLY UNDERSTAND the systems listed above. Over 50% of
your exam questions will cover the systems listed above.
Other areas to study are listed below.
While it is ok to read chapter 9 in the text, it is ESSENTIAL that you read and
review the pdf file that forms that basis of the classroom presentations for Decision
Support Systems and Artificial Intelligence. You can access the pdf file by clicking
on this highlighted link.
Decision Support Systems
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Describe
 What types of problems can best be solved with a decision support system?
 What is the basic difference between programmed/structured decisions and
nonprogrammed/unstructured decisions? Know examples of each type of
decision/situation.
 What is the difference between optimization and satisficing?
 What is the basic difference between a decision support system and artificial intelligence
systems?
 What is the basic purpose of an executive information system and what are its
features/characteristics? What is a digital dashboard?
 What are the characteristics of a geospatial information system? Know several examples
of how it is used, or how it can be used. Please review the Geospatial Information
Systems (Geographical Information Systems) pages in your text and in the pdf file.
 Command Post of the Future (CPOF) is an example of what?
Evaluate
 What are the characteristics of a decision support system? Under what circumstances
would someone use a DSS versus using some form of artificial intelligence?
Artificial Intelligence
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Describe
 What is the basic difference between a decision support system and artificial intelligence
systems?
 Know the different forms of artificial intelligence and when each one is typically used
 How are rules and IF statements used in expert systems?
 When talking about artificial intelligence, what is the role of fuzzy logic?
 Know the 4 different types of intelligent agents (definition and examples of what they
do). How is one form different from other forms?
 Know what data-mining is and how data warehouses are considered to be
multidimensional. What is a cube? It would be a good idea to understand the different
aspects of a cube and how it can be “sliced and diced”. This was mentioned in class and
it can also be seen in the PowerPoint slide where cubes A, B and C are seen.
 For each of the artificial intelligence systems, what human ability is being “mimicked”
and how does that particular system go about solving business problems? Know specific
business examples for each.
 How does an expert system function? What happens when you use it?
 Be able to distinguish between the following types of agents: data-mining agent vs
information agent vs monitoring & surveillance agent vs user agent. Know examples of
each.
 What form of artificial intelligence is able to learn and modify itself as a result of its
learning?
 What form of artificial intelligence is able to apply reasoning capabilities to solve a
problem?
 What form of artificial intelligence compares and searches for matches?
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Evaluate
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Know the difference between a DSS vs expert system vs genetic algorithm vs neural
network vs intelligent agent. Know the characteristics of each and applications of where
each could be used.
Know the difference between the following systems: TPS, DSS, Executive Support
Systems, Geospatial Information Systems, and artificial intelligence.
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Make sure that you are able to distinguish between when a neural network should be used
versus when an expert system should be used versus when a genetic algorithm should be
used versus when someone should use a DSS. Expect situational questions where I will
present a situation and then ask you what type of system should be used to solve the
problem.
You will see LOTS of scenario questions where I will ask that you indicate which system
would BEST solve the problem. Expect 4-5 of these types of questions for each system
mentioned above.
Spreadsheets and Microsoft Excel. Although you won’t have to create anything in
Excel, being able to apply the Excel skills that you learned will be crucial for success on
the exam.
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Describe
 What is the difference between absolute, mixed and relative cell references? How do you
create each type of reference?
Apply
 Be able to create an absolute and mixed cell reference.
 Know how to create interactive cell references that refer to other locations.
 In the PMT function, why did you divide something by 12? Why did you multiply
something by 12? Why did you enter the loan amount into the 3 rd function argument box
as a negative number?
 What do each of the arguments used in the PMT function (what does each box
represent)?
 PivotTables: make sure that you know what a PivotTable is and how it can be used.
Make sure that you are familiar with how to create one. Know the different parts of the
PivotTable wizard (drop data fields here, drop row fields here, drop column fields here,
drop page fields here). What is the purpose of the page fields/report filters?
 Subtotals: Make sure you know how to apply subtotals in Excel, and what you must
actually do before specifying the subtotals command.
 You will be given a problem statement. Given that problem statement, create the BY
statement prior to creating a pivot table and then be able to create the required pivot table
using that information.
 When doing the “Move Values to Rows” operation, know what does and does not get
“moved.” How can you tell which fields get moved?
 NEW: For each of the following, know what it is, how it is used and be able to compare
and contrast: Solver, Goal Seek, What-If Analysis, One Variable data tables, Two
Variable data tables, Scenario Manager.
 NEW: For each of the items listed in the prior bullet, know what you created in prelab #2
and how you used that particular feature.
Excel Macros.
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What is the difference between a recorded macro and a written macro?
What are the benefits and weaknesses of using a recorded macro?
How do you record a macro?
Which Excel tab/menu is used to access Excel’s macro functionality?
Make sure that you study the PowerPoint slides seen in class.
RFID and Supply Chain Management (SCM)
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Identify
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 Who are the players in a supply chain?
 Is the return of defective products part of the supply chain?
Describe
 Be able to describe how RFID works.
 What are the goals of supply chain management?
 How is the upstream different from the downstream?
 Explain ITs role in the supply chain.
 Why is it important to have a global inventory management system? Describe the role of
RFID in global inventory management.
 Is supply chain management a business philosophy or a technology? Explain.
 What is the upstream and downstream as it relates to SCM?
Evaluate
 How is Radio Frequency Identification used and how might it be used in the future?
How does it compare to other input devices?
Networks and Telecommunications
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Identify
 What are protocols?
 Know what an IP address looks like. I may show you a number and ask you if it is an IP
address (or not).
 What is a network?
 What is a VPN?
Describe
 Know the difference between the different elements of the Client/Server model: Data
Management vs Presentation vs Business Logic.
 Be able to define or explain the following terms or concepts: modem, LAN, WAN,
Ethernet, router, peer-to-peer network, and client/server network. Know examples of
each.
 What is the difference between telecommunications and a network? What are the
benefits of a network and what are you able to use a network for?
 What are the roles of the network operating system, packet switching and routers?
 Make sure that you review the network data transfer process slide.
 What are the purpose of Ethernet, its characteristics, and what is it trying to do?
 What is a VPN? How is it used? What are its characteristics?
Evaluate
 Know the characteristics, advantages, and disadvantages of both the peer-to-peer network
and the client/server model.
 What characteristics make a local area network different from a wide area network?
 Make sure that you know the differences between TCP and IP. Know how each one is
used and/or what it does. How does packet switching work? How is the IP address used?
What is the difference between an IP address in a LAN environment vs a dial-up
environment?
 Make sure that you review the TCP/IP four-layer reference model. Know what each
layer is called, its components and what those components each do. This information can
be found in the Haag Telecom pdf reading file linked from the lecture schedule, which is
also found at: http://online.ksu.edu/COMS/player/content?id=YBH3i74twBR
You will see several questions regarding the four layers and their various components.
 One of the things that traditionally gives students problems on the exam deals with how
the Internet actually works. The following link is a direct link to the source of the
information that I presented in class. Link to how the Internet actually works.
 Link to Easier to Understand Information Covering Networks
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Make sure that you know the details about, and differences between, each layer in the
TCP/IP four- layer reference model. EXPECT TO SEE 5-6 QUESTIONS related to the
specific components of this model (maybe even 1 question per layer).
Compare and contrast TCP/IP. What are the characteristics of each and when/where is it
used?
Make sure that you review the TCP/IP four-layer reference model. Know what each
layer is called, its components and what those components each do. You will see several
questions regarding the four layers and their various components.
Know the characteristics, advantages, and disadvantages of both the peer-to-peer network
and the client/server model.
Wireless LANs: All of these items will be tested at the Describe and Evaluate levels.
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What are some of the characteristics of wireless LANs? What is needed, how are they created, and
how do communications occur?
What is Bluetooth? What are the characteristics of Bluetooth and why is it used?
What are the characteristics of a PAN? (Personal Area Network)
How are wireless LANs different than wired LANs?
Link to wireless LAN info at KSU (forms the basis of our class presentation)
Know the differences between the various 802.11 standards (a vs b vs g vs n). What are the
characteristics of each 802.11 standard?
Review items from the first exam
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Be able to distinguish between data, information and business intelligence. Know
examples of each.
What is cloud computing? How is it accomplished? What are its characteristics? What
is the “software as a service model?”
Know the characteristics of a DSS and when it would be used.
Make sure that you receive the following functions and understand what goes where (and
why) in the function wizard (IF, VLOOKUP, PMT)
What is the difference between a structured decision and a nonstructured decision?
Know examples of each type and what is used to solve each type of problem.
What is the role of the TPS and how is it used to automate business processes.
Be able to distinguish between automation, streamlining, bottleneck and business process
reengineering.
How is Clustering different than Classification, and how are both different from
Association Detection?
Make sure that you review the PowerPoint presentations. You may also see
exam questions that cover material covered in class that may not be in
your actual texts. At the same time, please make sure that you have read
the material in the text for the topics that will appear on the exam.