[Year 12 IT Apps] Hi Maggie, and a general Unit 2 Planning request

[Charmaine Taylor]

Hi Kent,
Re unit 2 outcome 2, the IT study design states that "One tool must be a 
programming or scripting language that enables students to manipulate 
data, for example,
Javascript, Actionscript, Visual Basic, Java, php."
Your choice of JavaScript or VB6 would be fine but HTML is neither a 
programming nor a scripting language and so would not be appropriate.
For newcomers, HTML is a markup (or formatting) language.

Regards,
Charmaine Taylor
Sunbury Downs College

Kent Beveridge wrote:

>Hi Maggie,
>Netbus and Backoriface, I havent heard about them for 5 years until you just mentioned them again, ahhh the good old days....(NO, I'm not OLD!, just a bit wiser...well most times anyway)...
> 
>On the topic of Unit 2 stuff, I wonder if anyone has a plan of their teaching routine for this second semester that they might share? I'm in the throes of developing one presently and would be interested to compare notes.
>I plan to do outcome 2, 1, 3 in that order to give me time for a learning curve with some of the programming stuff.
>Still contemplating over JavaScript vs HTML vs VB6 for the programming bit...using the Nelson text here...
>The RussellBoyle stuff looks attractive..I used the HTML beginner course and it went well....The w3schools.com site looks like it might get a look in too. TOO many choices, better than not enough!
>AAHHHH I think I'm about to explode!!
>hmmm
>KB.
>              Kent Beveridge,
>I.T. co-ordinator
>St. Brigids Catholic Sec. College
>Horsham
>email.. kbeveridge at stbc.vic.edu.au
> 
>Wishes and Eggs, one you make and one you break!  A bit like promises.....
> 
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>________________________________
>
>From: itapps-bounces at edulists.com.au on behalf of Maggie Iaquinto
>Sent: Tue 7/17/2007 10:43 AM
>To: IT Apps
>Subject: [Year 12 IT Apps] Netbus Back Orifice - textbook concern
>
>
>
>
>On p 238 of the Potts and Keane textbook, a paragraph contains a
>discussion of desktop monitoring systems.
>
>"Two popular and easily obtainable desktop monitoring packages are
>Netbus and BackOrrifice [sic]."
>
>Now, these two apps are viruses. They will be picked up on most systems
>by virus detection software.
>
>Are they popular? Most likely, with hackers.
>Are they easily obtainable? You bet. Just use a search engine and
>download them.
>
>
>My concern lies with the lack of discussion that these tools are
>viruses. No system administrator will use these tools because they are
>not fully documented so we don't know exactly what is compiled in them.
>Basically, they are backdoors --- and to where?
>
>When I read that paragraph, it seemed that these tools are acceptable.
>IMHO, they are not acceptable and would harm the system.
>
>So, let's say there is a question on the final exam about desktop
>monitoring and the ethics etc of using such tools. And the students
>write that system administrators can easily download the popular Netbus
>or Back Orifice programs. And let's say that an exam assessor, who feels
>as I do that the use of such programs is harmful, marks it as wrong.
>
>The Potts and Keane textbook has much which is laudable and commendable.
>But, I think that this one section needs clarification.
>
>I may have misread the paragraph and have drawn the wrong conclusions.
>In the spirit of helpful, positive debate, what do others think?
>
>Maggie
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