Often the term Information Technology (IT) is used instead of Information Systems (IS), and
more recently Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is also used with some confusion.
Technologies are the tools, machines and techniques that help to solve a problem, achieve a goal or
perform some function. Information Technology are those tools which facilitate Information Systems,
with Communication Systems being closely related and hence ICT.Early technologies come from when humans first started writing (i.e. recording data in primitive
information systems). Many technologies have been created to assist with information systems,
including paper & pencils (hardware) and filing cabinets (data resource), although clearly the advances
in computer based technology have had the biggest impact on Information Systems.
The computer (simply) consists of Input Devices (such as keyboards, mice and microphones),
Output Devices (such as monitors, printers and speakers), a Processor (i.e. the CPU) and Storage
Capabilities (both the main memory, or RAM, and secondary memory such as hard disks). Notice how
closely this maps onto the “Input -> Process -> Output” model discussed for Information Systems. The
storage capability is reflected in the original quote by Laudon.