An analysis of president muhammadu buhari’s

inauguration speech on may 29 2015 Audience An audience is a group of people within hearing specifically a group of people listening to a performance, speech etc. The president Mahammadu Buhari’s speech was delivered on may 29 2015 with a heterogenous audience consisting of men and women, youth, dignitaries, military sector, various government organization or bodies, friends and civil servants being present. Importance of the speech 1. The speech brought to attention the plans of the president in promoting the economy of the country. 2. The speech gave courage to Nigerians and also created the spirit of oneness 3. The speech established a mutual relationship between the president Buhari and the former president Goodluck Jonathan and also the masses. 4. The speech incited trust by Nigerians towards president Mohammadu Buhari’s administration 5. The speech also helped other economics states to imbibe the spirit of good leadership and governance. 6. The speech helped to reassure those who have voiced fears that the president will come after them, that he will not this he said thus “there will be no paying off old scores”

PROPERTIES OF BUILDING MATERIAL

CHINEDU’S WORK ON BUILDING,WWW.E-GLOING.BLOGSPOT.COM, WWW.READNA.BLOGSPOT.COM The Basic Properties of Building Materials This chapter discusses the components, the structures of materials and the influence of their compositions on the properties; it emphasizes on the physical properties and the mechanical properties of materials; and also it introduces the decorativeness and the durability of materials. In the civil engineering, building materials plays different roles, so they should possess corresponding properties. For example, structural materials should have good mechanical characteristics; waterproof materials should be impermeable and water-resistant; wall materials should be heat-insulating and sound-absorbing. In addition, building materials should be durable because they oAen affected by various external factors, such as wind, rain, sun and frost. The basic properties of building materials include physical property, mechanical property, durability and decorativeness. 2.1 the Influence of Their Constructions on the Properties Compositions and Structures of Materials and 2.1.1 The Compositions of Materials The compositions of materials include chemical compositions and mineral compositions which are the key factors for the properties of materials. 1. Chemical Composition The chemical composition refers to the chemical constituents. Various chemical compositions result in different properties. For example, with the increase of carbon content, the strength, hardness and toughness of carbon Building materials in civil engineeringsteel will change; carbon steel is easy to rust, so stainless steel comes into being by adding chromium, nickel and other chemical components into steel. 2. Mineral Composition Many inorganic non-metallic materials consist of a variety of mineral compositions. Minerals are monomers and compounds with a certain chemical components and structures. The mineral compositions are the key factors for the properties of some building materials (such as natural stone, inorganic gel and other materials). Cement reveals different characteristics because of different clinkers. For example, in Portland cement clinkers, the condensation hardening is fast and the strength is high when the content of tricalcium silicate-the clinker mineral-is high. 2.1.2 Structures and Constructions of Materials The structures of materials can be divided into macro-structure, mesostructure and micro-structure, which are the key factors related to the properties of materials. 1. Macro-structure The thick structure above millimeter that can be identified with magnifying glass or naked eyes is called as macro-structure. It can be classified into the following types: (1) Dense Structure Basically, the inner side of the material is non-porous, such as steel, (2) Porous Structure The inside of this material has macro-pores, such as aerated concrete, foam (3) Micro-porous Structure The inner side of this material is micro-porous which is formed by mixing plenty of water into the micro-pores, such as common fired brick, and architectural gypsum products. nonferrous metals, glass, plastic and dense natural stone. concrete, foam plastics and artificial light materials. . (4) Fibrous Structure This material has the internal organization with direction, such as wood, bamboo, glass reinforced plastic, and asbestos products. 2 The Basic Propcrtics of Building Materials 9 ( 5 ) Laminated or Layered Structure This material has composite structure which is layered structure formed (6) Granular Structure This is a kind of loose granular material, such as sand, gravel, and expanded agglutinated by different sheets or anisotropic sheets pearlite. 2. Meso-structure The micro-level structure that can be observed by optical microscope is called meso-structure or sub-microstructure. What is mainly studied in this structure are the size, shape and interface of grains and particles, and the size, shape and distribution of pores and micro-cracks. For example, the size and the metallographic structure of metal grains can be analyzed; the thickness of concrete, cement and the porous organization can be distinguished; and the wood fiber of timber, catheter, line, resin and other structures can be observed. The micro-structure has a great influence on the mechanical properties and durability of materials. The grain refinement can improve the strength. For example, steel is mixed with titanium, vanadium, niobium and other alloying elements which can refine grains and significantly increase intensity. 3. Microstructure The atomic and molecular structures of materials that can be studied by electron microscopy, X-ray diffractometer and other means are called microstructure. This structure can be divided into crystal and non-crystal. (1) Crystal The solid whose particles (atoms, molecules or ions) are packed in a regularly ordered, repeating pattern extending in all three spatial dimensions is known as crystal. It is characterized by a fixed geometric shape and anisotropy. The various mechanical properties of crystal materials are related to the arrangement pattern of particles and their bonding force (chemical bond). Crystal can be divided into the following types by chemical bonds: 1) Atomic Crystal is formed by neutral atoms which are connected with each other by covalent bonds. The bonding force is strong. The strength, hardness, melting point and density of atomic crystal are high, such as diamond, quartz and silicon carbide. 10 Building materials in civil engineering 2) Ionic Crystal is formed by cations and anions. The ions are related with each other by electrostatic attraction (Coulomb attraction) which is generally stable. The strength, hardness and melting point are high but volatile; some are soluble and density is medium. There is calcium chloride, gypsum, limestone and so on. 3) Molecular Crystal is formed by molecules which are tied to each other by molecular force (Van der Waals attraction). The bonding force is weak. The strength, hardness and melting point are low; most of them are soluble and the density is low. There is wax and some organic compounds. 4) Metal Crystal is formed by metal cations which are connected with each other by metal bonds (Coulomb attraction). The strength and hardness are volatile and the density is high. Because metal ions have free ions, the metal materials such as iron, steel, aluminum, copper and their alloys have good thermal conductivity and electrical conductivity. Of crystal materials such as asbestos, quartz and talc, only a few ones have one combination bond, and others are complex crystal materials with more than two types of combination bonds. (2) Non-Crystal The fuse mass with a certain chemical constituents is cooled so rapidly that the particles cannot be packed in a regular ordered pattern, and thus it is solidified into a solid, known as non-crystal or vitreous body or amorphous body. Non-crystal is characterized by no fixed geometry shape and isotropy. A large number of chemicals cannot be released because of the rapid cooling, so non-crystal materials have chemical instability, easily reacting with other substances. For example, granulated blast furnace slag, volcanic ash and fly ash can react with lime under water for hardening, which are used as building materials. Non-crystal plays the role of adhesive in products of burned clay and some natural rocks. 2.2 Physical Properties of Materials 2.2.1 Density, Apparent Density and Bulk Density 1. Density Density is the dry mass per unit volume of a substance under absolute compact conditions. It is defined by: m/P = v In this formula: p is the density (dcm3); rn is the mass under dry conditions (6); V is the volume under absolute compact conditions (cm3). The volume under absolute compact conditions refers to the solid volume without the volume of inner pores. Except steel, glass, asphalt and a few other materials, most materials contain some pores in natural state. In the measurement of the density of a porous material, the material is ground into powder at first; the powder is dried to fixed mass; and then the solid volume is measured by Lee's density bottle; finally the density is calculated by the above formula. The finer the powder is ground, the more real the size will be. Thus the density value is more correct. 2. Apparent Density Apparent density is the dry mass per unit volume of a substance under natural conditions. It is defined by: M P"'v, In this formula: p,, is the apparent density (kg/m3); m is the mass under dry conditions (kg); V, is the volume under natural conditions (m3). The volume of a substance under natural conditions refers to the solid volume and the volume of inner pores. If it is a regular shape, the volume can be directly measured; if it is in an irregular shape, the volume can be measured by the liquid drainage method after sealing pores with wax; the liquid drainage method can be directly used to measure the volume of sandstone aggregate utilized in concrete but the volume here is the solid volume plus the volume of closed pores-without the volume of the pores open to the outside. Because the sandstone is compact with only a few pores, the volume of the pores open to the outside is little. Thus the volume measured by the liquid drainage method can be called apparent density which is called virtual density in the past. The quality and volume change with the water content. Generally, apparent density refers to the density of a substance under dry conditions. Other moisture conditions should be specified. 3. Bulk Density Bulk density refers to the per unit volume of a substance under the conditions that powdery or granular materials are packed. It is defined by: Po ‘=m 7/VO In this formula: po’ is the bulk density (kg/m3); m is the mass under dry conditions (kg); Vo’ is the volume under packing conditions (m3) . Bulk density is measure by volumetric container. The size of volumetric container depends on the size of particles. For example, 1L volumetric container is used to measure sand and IOL, 20L, 30L volumetric containers are used in the measurement of stone. Bulk density is the packing density of a substance under dry conditions and others should be marked. The density, apparent density and bulk density of common building materials are listed in Table 2.1. Table 2.1 Density, Apparent Density, Bulk Density and Porosity of Common Building Materials Limestone 2.2.2 The Solidity and Porosity 1. Solidity Solidity refers to the degree how the volume of a material is packed with solid substances, which is the ratio of the solid volume to the total volume. It is defined by: D=-xV1 00% or D= -PO~ 1 0 0% v o P 2. Porosity Porosity (P) is the percentage of the pores volume to the total volume with the volume of a substance. It is defined by: P=- v 0 - x loo%=( 1 - -V ) x loo%=( 1- -PO ) x 100% vo v o P The relationship between solidity and porosity can be expressed as: D+P=l Both solidity and porosity reflect the compactness of materials. Porosity and characteristics of pores (including size, connectivity, distribution, etc.) affect the properties of materials greatly. Generally, for the same material, the lower the porosity is, the less the connected pores are. Thus the strength will be higher, the water absorption will be smaller, and the permeability and frost resistance will be better, but the thermal conductivity will be greater. Porosity of some common materials is listed in Table 2.1. 2.2.3 Fill Rate and Voidage 1. Fill Rate Fill Rate (D')is the degree how granules pack the granular materials in the bulk volume. It is defined by: VO VO PO ? D'=- ~100% or D'= ~100% (2.6) 2. Voidage Voidage (P')is the percentage of the void volume among granules to the bulk volume in the bulk volume of granular materials. It is defined by: ? (2.7) Voidage reflects the compactness among granules of the granular materials. The relationship between fill rate and voidage can be expressed as: p'=- vo - vo x loo%=( 1 - "P) I x 100% VO PO D'+P'= 1 14 Building materials in civil enginecring 2.2.4 Hydro-properties of Materials 1. Hydrophilicity and Hydrophobicity When the material is exposed to water in the air, it will be hydrophilic or hydrophobic according to whether it can be wetted by water or not. If it can be wetted by water, it is the hydrophilic material; if not, it is the hydrophobic material. When materials are exposed to water droplets in the air, there will be two cases, shown as Figure 2.1. In the intersection of the material, water and air, a tangent is drown along the surface of the water droplet, and the angle between the surface and the tangent is angle 8, known as wetting angle. When angle 0 is smaller than or equals to 90" (O<90°), the material is hydrophilic, such as wood, brick, concrete and stone. The atttactive force between materials molecules and water molecules is stronger than the cohesive force between water molecules, so the materials can be wetted by water. solid solid (a) Iiydroplulic rilalcrials (b) hydrophobic miiterials Figure 2.1 The Wetting Schematic Diagram of Materials When angle 0 is bigger than 90" (R>9Oo), the material is hydrophobic, such as asphalt, wax, and plastic. The attractive force between material molecules and water molecules is weaker than the cohesive force between water molecules, so the material cannot be wetted by water. The hydrophobic materials are moisture-proof and waterproof, usually used for water-resistant materials or the surface treatment for the hydrophilic materials in order to reduce water absorption and improve impermeability. 2. The Water Absorption and Hygroscopicity (1) Water Absorption Water absorption refers to the property of absorbing water when materials are exposed to water. It is expressed by the water-absorption ratio. And there are two types of expression: 1) Specific Absorption of Quality Specific absorption of quality refers to the percentage of the absorbed water to the dry mass when the material absorbs water to saturation. It is defined by: In this formula: W, is the specific absorption of quality(%); m,, is the mass when the material absorbs water to saturation(g); m, is the mass when the material is dry (6). 2) Specific Absorption of Volume The specific absorption of volume refers to the percentage of the absorbed water's volume to the material's natural volume when the material absorbs water to saturation. It is defined by: In this formula: W, is the specific absorption of volume(%); 4 is the volume of the dry material in natural state(cm3); p, is the density of water(g/cm3), usually l.0g/cm3 at the The relationship between specific absorption of quality and that of volume room temperature. is as follows: W" =wm -Po . (2.10) In this formula: p,, is the apparent density of the material in dry state (simply called dry apparent density)(g/cm3). ' The water absorption depends on not only hydrophilicity and hydrophobicity of the material but also the porosity and characteristics of the pores. For normal materials, the higher the porosity is, the stronger the water absorption is. The more the open and connected tiny pores are, the stronger the water absorption is; it is not easy for water to be absorbed if the pores are closed; if they are large and open, water is easy to be absorbed but is hard to be hold, and thus the water absorption is weak. The water-absorption ratios of various materials vary greatly. For example, the specific absorption of quality of granite rock is 0.2%-0.7%, that of ordinary concrete is 2%-3%, that of, ordinary clay brick is 8%-20%' and that of wood or other light materials is often above 100%. The water absorption will have a negative impact on materials’ nature. If a material absorbs water, its quality will increase, its volume will expand, its thermal conductivity will increase and its strength and durability will decrease. . (2) Hygroscopicity Hygroscopicity is the property of materials to absorb water in the air. It can Moisture content is the percentage of the water quality contained in a be expressed by moisture content. material to its dry mass, expressed by Wh. It is defined by: In this formula: Wh is the moisture content(%); m, is the mass when the material contains water(g); mg is the mass when the material is dry(g). The hygroscopic effect is reversible. Dry materials can absorb moisture in the air and wet materials can release moisture to the air. The moisture content is called equilibrium moisture content if the content of a material equals to air humidity. The hygroscopicity of materials is related to air temperature and air humidity. The higher humility is and the lower the temperature is, the higher hygroscopicity will be; contrarily, the hygroscopicity will be low. Both the factors affecting hygroscopicity and the influence on materials’ properties after absorbing water are the same to the water absorption of materials. 3. Water Resistance Water resistance is the ability to maintain its original properties when the material is affected by water in a long-term. The water-resistant ability of different materials varies in expressing ways. For example, the water resistance of structural materials mainly refers to the changes in intensity, and with sotlening coefficient it is defined by: KR=-A (2.12) L In this formula: KR is the softening coefficient of a material; f, is the compressive strength of a material in water saturation state (MPa); fg is the compressive strength of a material in dry state(MPa). The softening coefficient of a material KR varies between 0 (clay) -1 (steel). The value of KR reveals the decreasing degree of the strength after the material absorbs water to saturation. The bigger KR is, the stronger the water resistance is, which indicates that the decreasing degree of the strength in saturation state is low; contrarily, the water resistance is weak. Generally, the material whose KR is bigger than or equals to 0.85 is known as water-resistant material. KR is an important basis for selecting building materials. If the major structures are often in water or wetted seriously, the materials whose KR is bigger than or equals to 0.85 (K~ b 0 . 8 5s)h ould be chosen; ifthey are the minor structures or wetted lightly, the materials whose KR is bigger than or equals to 0.75 (K~ 2 0 . 7 5s)h ould be chosen. 4. Impermeability Impermeability is the ability of a material to resist the pressure water or the infiltration of other liquids. It is expressed by permeability coefficient which is defined by: (2.13) In this formula: K is the permeability coefficient (cm/s); Q is the volume of water seepage(cm3); d is the thickness of a specimen(cm); A is the seepage area(cm2); t is the seepage time(s); His the water head(cm). Permeability coefficient K reflects the rate of water flowing in a material. The bigger K is, the faster the flow rate of water is and the weaker the impermeability is. The impermeability of some materials (such as concrete and mortar) can be expressed by impermeable level which is represented by the maximum water pressure resisted by materials. For example, P6, P8, PI0 and P12 reveal that the materials can resist 0.6MPa, 0.8MPa, 1 .OMPa, and 1.2MPa water pressure without water seepage. The impermeability of a material is related not only to its own hydrophilicity and hydrophobicity but also to its porosity and the characters of pores. The smaller the porosity is and the more the closed pores are, the stronger the impermeability is. Impermeable materials should be used in water conservancy projects and the underground projects usually affected by pressure water. Waterproof materials should be impermeable. 5. Frost Resistance Frost resistance is the property that a material can withstand several freeze-thaw cycles without being destroyed and its strength does not decrease seriously when the material absorbs water to saturation. It is expressed by frost-resistant level. Frost-resistant level is indicated by the biggest freeze-thaw-cycle times of a specimen that both its quality loss and strength reduction are within provisions when it is affected by freeze-thaw cycles in water saturation state, such as F25, F50, FlOO and F150. The reason for the freeze damage is a volume expansion (about 9%) caused by freeze of the water within the material’s pores. If a material’s’pores are full of water, its volume will expand and there will be a great tensile stress to pore walls when water is frozen into ice. If this stress exceeds the tensile strength, the pore walls will crack, the porosity will increase and the strength will decrease. The more the freeze-thaw cycles are, the greater damages there will be. And it will even cause the complete destruction of a material. There are internal and external factors affecting frost resistance of a material. The internal factors are the composition, structures, construction, porosity, the characteristics of pores, strength, water resistance, and so on. The external factors are the water filling degree within a material’s pores, freezing temperature, freezing speed, freeze-thaw frequency, and so on. 2.2.5 Thermal Properties 1. Thermal Conductivity The property of a material that indicates its ability to conduct heat is known as thermal conductivity. It is expressed by the coefficient of thermal conductivity A, which is defined by: (2.14) In this formula: A is the coeficient of thermal conductivity [ W/(m K)]; Q is the conducted heat quantity (J); d is the thickness of a material (m); A is the heat-transfer area (m2); t it the time for the heat transfer (s); r, - q is the temperature difference of the two materials (K). The smaller the value of A is, the better insulation the material has. The thermal conductivity of a material is related to its composition and structure, the porosity and the characteristics of its pores, the water content, temperature and other conditions. The coefficient of thermal conductivity of metallic materials is bigger than that of non-metallic materials. The bigger the porosity is, the higher the coefficient will be. Tiny and closed pores indicate low coefficient; big and open pores are easy to create convection heat, which indicates that the coefficient is high. The thermal conductivity coefficient of a material containing water or ice increases dramatically because the coefficient of water and ice is bigger than that of air. 2. Thermal Capacity Thermal capacity is the property of a material to absorb heat when it is heated and to release heat when it is cooled. It is defined by: Q=mxC(T, -q) (2.15) Or (2.16) In this formula: Q is the heat absorbed or released by a material (J); m is the mass of a material (g); C is the specific heat of a material [J/(g.K)]; r, - is the temperature difference before and after heating or cooling (K). The specific heat, also called specific heat capacity, is the measure of the heat energy that a substance in a unit quality absorbs or releases when the temperature increases or decreases 1K. The bigger the specific heat is, the better the stability of the indoor temperature will be. Thermal conductivity coefficient and specific heat should be known when thermal calculations are conducted to buildings. There are thermal conductivity coefficients and specific heat capacities of several common materials are listed in Table 2.2. 3. Thermal Deformation Thermal deformation is the property of a substance to expand with heat and contract with cold, customarily called temperature deformation. It is expressed by linear expansion coefficient a, which is defined by: AL LxAt a=- (2.17) The thermal deformation is detrimental to the civil engineering. For example, in a large-area or large-volume concrete project, temperature cracks can be caused if the expansion tensile stress is beyond the tensile strength of concrete; in a large-volume construction work, expansion joints are set to prevent the cracks caused by thermal deformation; and Petroleum asphalt will have brittle factures when temperature drops to a certain extent. 4. Flame Resistance Flame resistance is the property of a substance not to flame in case of contacting with fire in the air. Materials can be divided into non-flammable materials, fire-retardant materials and flammable materials according to their reaction to fire. (1) Non-flammable Materials Non-flammable materials are the ones that cannot be fired, carbonized or slightly burned when contacting with fire or high temperature in the air, such as brick, natural stone, concrete, mortar and metal. (2) Fire-retardant Materials Fire-retardant materials are the ones that are hard to be burned or carbonized when contacting with fire or high temperature in the air and stop burning or slightly flaming immediately when leaving fire, such as gypsum board, cement asbestos board, and lath and plaster. (3) Flammable Materials Flammable materials are the ones that are ignited or flame immediately when contacting with fire or high temperature in the air and continue to burn or slightly flame when leaving fire, such as plywood, fiberboard, wood and foil. In construction, the selection of non-flammable materials or fire-retardant materials depends on fire-resistant levels of buildings and the parts where materials are used. Fire prevention should be dealt with when flammable materials are used. 2.3 Mechanical Properties of Materials 2.3.1 Strength and Strength Grade of Materials 1. Strength of Materials Strength is the greatest stress that a substance can bear under external forces (loads) without destruction. According to different forms of external forces, the strength includes tensile strength, compressive strength, bend strength, shear strength and others. These kinds of strength are all determined by static test, known as the static strength. The static strength is tested by destructive experiments based on standard methods The strength of a material is related to its composition and structure. The strength will be different if the compositions of materials are the same but the structures are different. The bigger the porosity is, the smaller the strength will be. The strength is also concerned with testing conditions, such as the sample’s size, shape, surface and water content, loading speed, temperature of the test environment, the accuracy of test equipment, and the skill level of the operators. China has provided various standard test methods of material strength in order to make the results more accurate and comparable. These methods should be strictly followed when the strength is tested. 2. Strength Grade The strength can be divided into a number of different grades in accordance with the ultimate strength of most building materials, known as strength grade. The grades of brittle materials are mainly divided based on their compressive strength, such ordinary clay brick, stone, cement and concrete; and those of plastic materials and ductile materials depcnd on their tensile strength, such as steel. It is significant to classify the strength grades for mastering functions and choosing proper materials. 3. Specific Strength The specific strength is a material strength divided by its apparent density. It is an important index for measuring the high-strength and lightweight materials. The specific strength of ordinary concrete, low-carbon steel, and pine (along the grain) is respectively 0.012,0.053 and 0.069. The higher specific strength is, the higher strength and lighter weight the material is. It is important to select materials with high specific strength or improve the specific strength in order to lift buildings’ height, reduce structural weight and lower project costs. 2.3.2 Elasticity and Plasticity 1. Elasticity The elasticity is the property of a substance to deform with external forces and return to its original shape when the stress is removed. The deformation fully capable of restoration is called elastic deformation. Within the range of the elastic deformation, the ratio of the stress ( 0)to the strain ( E ) i s a constant (E) which is known as elastic modulus, namely, E= O/ E . The elastic modulus is a measure of the ability to resist deformation. The bigger E is, the more difficultly the material deforms. 2. Plasticity The plasticity describes the deformation of a material undergoing non-reversible changes of shape in response to external forces. This non-reversible deformation is called plastic deformation. Among building materials, there are no pure elastic materials. Some materials only have elastic deformation if the stress is not large, but plastic deformation will happen to them when the stress is beyond a limit, such as low-carbon steel. Under external forces, some materials will have elastic deformation and plastic deformation at the same time, but elastic deformation will disappear and plastic deformation still maintains when the stress is removed, such as concrete. 2.3.3 Brittleness and Toughness 1. Brittleness Brittleness describes the property of a material that fractures when subjected to stress but has a little tendency to deform before rupture. Brittle materials are characterized by little deformation, poor capacity to resist impact and vibration of load, high compressive strength, and low tensile strength. Most of inorganic non-metallic materials are brittle materials. 2. Toughness Impacted or vibrated by stress, a material is able to absorb much energy and deform greatly without rupture, which is known as toughness, also called impact toughness. Tough materials are characterized by great deformation, high tensile strength, and high compressive strength, such as construction steel, wood and rubber. Tough materials should be used in the structures bearing impact and vibration, such as roads, bridges, cranes and beams. 2.3.4 Hardness and Abrasive Resistance 1. Hardness Hardness refers to the property of a material to resist pressing-in or scratch of a sharp object. The materials of different kinds of hardness need various testing methods. The hardness of steel, wood and concrete is tested by pressing-in method. 2.4 Decorativeness of Materials Decorative materials are mainly used as facing for the inside and outside walls of buildings, columns, floors, and ceilings. They play decorative, protective, and other specific roles (such as insulation, moisture-resistance, fireproofing, sound-absorption, and sound-insulation). And decorative effects primarily depend on colors, textures and linetypes of the decorative materials. 1. Color Color is an important factor for the appearance of buildings, even impacting on the environment. All the buildings are ornamented by colors. Generally, white or light-colored elevation hue often gives people a clean and fresh feeling; dark-colored elevation appears dignified and stable; people usually feel enthusiastic, excited and warm when see red, orange, yellow and other warm colors indoors; and green, blue, violet and other cold colors can enable people to be peaceful, elegant and cool. As living conditions, climates, traditions, and customs are different, people have various feelings and evaluations on colors. 2. Texture Texture is a comprehensive impression given by the appearance of a material, such as roughness, unevenness, grain, patterns, and color differences. For example, the rugged surface of concrete or brick appears relatively massy and rough; and the surface of glass or aluminum alloy is smooth and delicate which seems light and vivid. Texture is connected with characteristics, 26 Building matcrials in civil engineering processing degrees, construction methods, and the types and elevation styles of buildings. 3. Linetype Linetype mainly refers to the decorative effect of the dividing joints and the convex lines ornamented on elevations. For example, plastering, granitic plaster, pebble dash, natural stone, and aerated concrete should be all latticed or divided, which will create various elevation effects and also prevent cracking. The size of dividing joints should be suitable for materials. Generally, the width should be 10-30mm, and the blocks of different sizes will create different decorative effects. 2.5 Durability of Materials In the process of usage, materials are able to resist the erosion from various media around and maintain their original properties, known as durability. In this process, materials are subjected to physical, chemical, biological and other natural factors besides various kinds of stress. Physical actions include wet-and-dry, temperature, and freeze-and-thaw changes, all of which will cause expansion and contraction of materials. And materials will be destroyed gradually by the long-term and repeated actions. Chemical actions are the erosion of acid, alkali and salt aqueous solution which can change the compositions of materials and destroy them, such as the chemical erosion of cement and the corrosion of steel. Biological action includes the destruction of fungi and insects which can molder or rot materials, such as the decomposition of wood and plant fiber. Durability is a comprehensive property of materials. Materials of different compositions and structures have different kinds of durability. For example, steel is easy to be corroded; stone, concrete, mortar, sintering ordinary clay brick, and other inorganic non-metallic materials mainly resist frost, wind, carbonization, wet-and-dry change, and other kinds of physical action; when contacting with water, some materials can be destroyed by chemical changes; and asphalt, plastic, rubber and other organic materials will be damaged due to aging. SOME OF THE MOST IMPORTANT PROPERTIES OF BUILDING MATERIALS ARE GROUPED AS FOLLOWS. Group Properties Physical Shape, Size, Density, Specific Gravity etc., Mechanical Strength, Elasticity, Plasticity, Hardness, Toughness, Ductility, Brittleness, Creep, Stiffness, Fatigue, Impact Strength etc., Thermal Thermal conductivity, Thermal resistivity, Thermal capacity etc., Chemical Corrosion resistance, Chemical composition, Acidity, Alkalinity etc., Optical Colour, Light reflection, Light transmission etc., Acoustical Sound absorption, Transmission and Reflection. Physiochemical Hygroscopicity, Shrinkage and Swell due to moisture changes Definitions • Density: It is defined as mass per unit volume. It is expressed as kg/m3. • Specific gravity: It is the ratio of density of a material to density of water. • Porosity: The term porosity is used to indicate the degree by which the volume of a material is occupied by pores. It is expressed as a ratio of volume of pores to that of the specimen. • Strength: Strength of a material has been defined as its ability to resist the action of an external force without breaking. • Elasticity: It is the property of a material which enables it to regain its original shape and size after the removal of external load. • Plasticity: It is the property of the material which enables the formation of permanent deformation. • Hardness: It is the property of the material which enables it to resist abrasion, indentation, machining and scratching. • Ductility: It is the property of a material which enables it to be drawn out or elongated to an appreciable extent before rupture occurs. • Brittleness: It is the property of a material, which is opposite to ductility. Material, having very little property of deformation, either elastic or plastic is called Brittle. • Creep: It is the property of the material which enables it under constant load to deform slowly but progressively over a certain period. • Stiffness: It is the property of a material which enables it to resist deformation. • Fatigue: The term fatigue is generally referred to the effect of cyclically repeated stress. A material has a tendency to fail at lesser stress level when subjected to repeated loading. • Impact strength: The impact strength of a material is the quantity of work required to cause its failure per its unit volume. It thus indicates the toughness of a material. • Toughness: It is the property of a material which enables it to be twisted, bent or stretched under a high stress before rupture. • Thermal Conductivity: It is the property of a material which allows conduction of heat through its body. It is defined as the amount of heat in kilocalories that will flow through unit area of the material with unit thickness in unit time when difference of temperature on its faces is also unity. • Corrosion Resistance: It is the property of a material to withstand the action of acids, alkalis gases etc., which tend to corrode (or oxidize).

THE ROLES OF OFFICE MANAGERS IN RECORD MANAGEMENT (A CASE STUDY OF FEDERAL UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY, OWERRI AND FEDERAL POLYTECHNIC NEKEDE OWERRI) CHINEDU J.

TITLE PAGE THE ROLES OF OFFICE MANAGERS IN RECORD MANAGEMENT (A CASE STUDY OF FEDERAL UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY, OWERRI AND FEDERAL POLYTECHNIC NEKEDE OWERRI) BY ONYINYECHI UKACHI 2006/1176/SA TO THE DEPARTMENT OF OFFICE TECHNOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT, FEDERAL POLYTECHNIC NEKEDE OWERRI, IMO STATE. IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENT FOR THE AWARD OF NATIONAL DIPLOMA (ND) IN OFFICE TECHNOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT. AUGUST 2008. APPROVAL PAGE This is to certify that this research work on “the role of office managers in record management, a case study of first bank Plc owerri was carried out by Okpani Onyinyechi Gift of the department of office technology and management. ………………………. …………… Mrs. P. C. Nwaogwugwu Date Project Supervisor ………………………. …………… Dr (Mrs.) C. C. Iwuoha Date HOD ………………………… …………… External Supervisor Date. DEDICATION This project is dedicated firstly to the Almighty God, the owner, the giver of wisdom, understanding and knowledge. And also seeing me through in all my endeavors and to my lovely parents; brothers and sisters and also to my friends. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I wish to give God Glory, and to express my profound gratitude an appreciation to those whom God has used to contribute tremendously in different ways to the success of this research work. My unreserved thanks go to my lovely brother and his wife Mr. and Mrs. Okpani Olu for supporting me in the area of finance. And to my parents Mr. and Mrs. olu Okpani and my sisters and brothers, favour, Christy, , Miracle, Venus, Asiegbu Opkani and my elder sisters Mrs. Nnenna Okpani, they backed me up with their prayers. I also give appreciation to my friends Mr. Job Onyemere, Nwafor Onyinyechi, Mrs. Nwoke Cynthia, Okeoma Obioma, Obioha Ijeoma and so many others for supporting me in my studies. I am also grateful to my head of Department Dr (Mrs.) C.C Iwuoha and also to my good supervisor Mrs. P. C. Nwaogwugwu for her contributions in this work. ABTRACT The study examined the impact of records keeping on office managers in tertiary institutions in Nigeria. Two research questions and two hypotheses guided the study. A descriptive survey research design was used for the study.The study was carried out in Ebonyi and Enugu States of Nigeria. The entire population comprising of 100 office managers was studied. A four point response item questionnaire was used as the instrument for data collection. Two experts in the department of business education and one expert in educational measurement and evaluation were given the drafted copies of the questionnaire for face and content validity. Cronbach Alpha was used to ascertain the reliability of the instrument. The data collected were analyzed using mean, standard deviation and t-test statistics. The findings of the study showed that records’ keeping is very important for effective planning of the office. Despite the importance of records keeping on office management, it has been constrained by lack of funds, insufficient skills, poor storage, and lack of infrastructure etc. Furthermore, the null hypotheses were accepted. Based on these findings, the researcher recommended that government and school authorities should provide adequate funds and sufficient skills for the effective management of office records, there should be adequate training and retraining of office managers, also there should be adequate infrastructure in the school. TABLE OF CONTENTS Title page Approval page Dedication Acknowledgement Abstract Table of contents CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background of the study-------------------- 1 1.2 Statement of the Problem-------------------- 5 1.3 Objectives of the study-------------------------- 8 1.4 Research Question---------------------------- 9 1.5 Significance of the Study--------------------- 9 1.6 Scope & Limitation of the study--------------- 10 1.7 Definition of terms - - - - - 11 CHAPTER TWO: REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE 2.1 introduction other literature relevant to the topic CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 3.1 Research design--------------------------- 22 3.2 Area of the study------------------------------ 23 3.3 Population and sample size------------------------ 23 3.4 sampling Techniques------------ 23 3.5 Description of Instrument--------------------- 24 3.6 Method of data collection---------------------- 25 3.7 reliability and validity of measuring instrument 3.8 Method of data Analysis----------------------- 25 CHAPTER FOUR: PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS OF DATA 4.1 Research Question 1--------------------------- 26 4.2 Research Question 2--------------------------- 28 4.3 Research Question 3-------------------------- 29 4.4 Research Question 4-------------------------- 32 4.5 Research Question 5-------------------------- 33 4.6 Discussions of Findings----------------------- 34 CHAPTER FIVE: SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION REFERENCE 5.1 Summary of Findings----------------------------- 37 5.2 Conclusion------------------------------------- 38 5.3 Recommendations----------------------------- 39 5.4 Area of further Research---------------------- 41 Appendix 1 Letter------------------------------------------------ 44 Appendix 2 Questionnaire--------------------------------- 45 CHAPTER ONE 1.0 INTRODUCTION As you know in every office, a large volume of information in form of letters, circulars, and telegrams are sent to outsiders or received from them. Inside the organization also written materials are exchanged between different departments. All this items when received need to be documented by an office manager for future reference. A planned and efficient handling of these records is essential for the success of any business organization. It is described as the backbone and an integral part of an office. Hicks (1964) described that In the course of doing business, records are created through a variety of government activities such as vehicle registration, professional licensing, procurement contract transactions, general correspondence, and other external and internal business processes. Records may be created and transmitted in a variety of ways: • Handwritten. • Typewritten. • Audio/video recording. • Computer generated (including e-mail and databases). These records support, document, and provide evidence of a variety of organizations activities including: • Business processes. • Program evaluation. • Information policy making processes. • Accountability ensurance. • Facilities planning. This paper addresses the role of office managers in re4cord management, real world dilemmas of what a record is and the task of its lifecycle management by proposing a working definition of a record, discussing the challenges of managing records by office managers, and identifying a set of best practice recommendations. 1.1 Background of the Study Due to continuous technological changes in all facets of human endeavour, there have been drastic changes in the methods of records-keeping in Nigerian Universities. Records keeping is essential in all organized offices. This is because all organizations, including the Universities and polytechnics depend on information for their decision making and service delivery. The records of an organization such as the university and poltechnics system constitutes her corporate memory which supplement human memory as well as guide the effective planning, and decision making (Fasasi, 2004). Accurate and good records keeping are the bedrock of planning in the University setting (Popoola, 2000). According to him, if there is no information, the office management will be crippled in its ability to plan and make decision. Furthermore, Durosaro (2002) noted that records keeping helps in the effective planning and administration of a university. This is because records keeping plays an important role in effective and efficient management of universities and polytechnics. It helps in the planning and implementation of appropriate course of actions, allowing proper monitoring of activities or tasks. Akube (1991) in his contribution noted that records keeping is meant to enhance the performance of tertiary institutions’ administration. Adequate records management coordinates and protects institutions records, sharpens the effectiveness of the records and helps to simplify intra organizational and communication problems. Asogwa (2004) opined that records of data generated in the course of execution of legitimate function of an intsitution should be kept and managed properly. Despite the importance record keeping in office management, it has been observed that these records as noted by Ugwunze (1992) to be poorly kept and managed by office managers, hence, he opined that school records should be properly kept and managed for proper utilization and retrieval when needed. A well organized records keeping saves a lot of money for the management. It helps to control the quality and quantity of information that is created. This is important because information can be maintained in way that effectively serves the need of the organization and any information that are no longer necessary can be disposed of efficiently. Furthermore, Egwunyenga (2005) noted that proper record keeping by office managers are constrained due to insufficient skills by office managers, lack of infrastructure, problem of storage, poor supervision and poor records management programme in Nigerian Universities. Thus, management of school records becomes an issue of great concern to stakeholders in education. Thus, in the face of the aforementioned challenges it is pertinent to determine 1.2 Statement of the Problems Although the main purpose of managing office records properly is to keep information safe and readily available to the office managers and the organizations as when needed. Improper handling of records can pose or may involve an element of risk to the office managers and the entire organization as well as affecting her performance. The office managers has to be aware and prepared for these. Ahukannah (2000) stated that the cause of the problems militating against handling of office records properly by the secretaries are lack of training, inadequate knowledge of the computer in storing information in the company’s database, lack of office record and filing equipments, management attitude, lack of technical know-how by the office managers in storing these records, etc.. Inadequate training and skills requirement is another problem associated with bad record management. 1.3 Objective of the Study The main objective of this study is to identify the various roles of office managers in record management using federal polytechnic nekede and federal university of technology owerri as a reference or case study. Specifically, the study attempt to: 1 ) The role of records keeping on effective planning of the office by office managers in Nigerian Universities and polytechnics. 2) The impact of record keeping on efficient control of information in the office in Nigerian Universities. 3) Identify the various kinds of office records available in the organization. 4) Determine the skills needed by office managers in handling these office records. 5) Evaluate the extent to which the office managers can operate some record processing or storage equipments such as computer system. 6) Identify the problems which the office managers encounters in the handling of these office records. 7) To make suggestions on how these problems can be resolved. 1.4 Research Questions The following research questions guided the study: 1. What is the role of record keeping on effective planning of the office by office managers? 2. What is the impact of records keeping on efficient control of information in the office in Nigerian Universities?1. What are the various kinds of office records office managers handled? 3. What are the skills that office managers need to handle all these records? 4. What are the adequacies of these skills? 5. what are the benefits of handling office records properly? 6) What are the problems encountered by office managers in handling office records? 1.5 Significance of the Study The result of this study will help office managers to identify some problems facing them in handling records. It will also explain how important office managers are in an organization or the universities and polytechnics and to know many unique things about office managers (i.e.) their strong ability to handle records effectively. It is strongly believe that after going through this study, it will serve as a useful tools as it will be informative and educative to prospective student’s secretaries who wants to carry on further research on the subject matter. 1.6 Scope and limitations of the Study The scope of this study is limited to look at the “Roles of office managers in record management. This work is limited to universities and polytechnics Owerri alone. In the course of the research work, the researcher encountered some constraints, which affected the final output of the study. There limitations amongst others include: a. Time: The time available for the completion of the research study was not adequate. This was because the researcher was mandated to report her findings within a fixed time limit during the academic session. b. Cost: For a maximum fulfillment of the objective of this study, the researcher needed to visit all the office of university and polytechnic secretaries to obtain first-hand information. This, she could not achieve due to the huge expenses that would be incurred in the process. c. Attitudes of Respondents: The negative attitude of some respondents to the researcher’s request for audience in answering questions or filling the questionnaires also constituted a constraint to the assignment. CHAPTER TWO 2.0 REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE 2.1 INTRODUCTION This chapter reviews literature that is related to the role of office managers in record management. Books, Journal, magazines and other materials used to determine the views of authorities on topic of this study. The information was organized and is arranged under the following subheadings: 1) Meaning of records and record management 2) Record content, context and structure 3) The importance of records management in an organization. 4) The skill required by Office managers in handling office records. 5) The role of office managers in record management 5) Problems encountered by Office managers in handling these records., etc 2.2 MEANING OF DOCUMENT, RECORD AND RECORD MANAGEMENT According to Ahukannah (2002), In records management it is important to be clear about the difference between a document and a record. According to him, A document is any piece of written information in any form, produced or received by an organisation or person. It can include databases, website, email messages, word and excel files, letters, and memos. Some of these documents will be ephemeral or of very short-term value and should never end up in a records management system (such as invitations to lunch). Some documents will need to be kept as evidence of business transactions, routine activities or as a result of legal obligations, such as policy documents. These should be placed into an official filing system and at this point, they become official records. In other words, all records start off as documents, but not all documents will ultimately become records. (Azuka, 1991). What is a record? According to Denyer (1978), By law, records are any papers, books, photographs, tapes, films, recordings, or other documentary materials, or any copies thereof, regardless of physical form or characteristics, made, produced, executed, or received by any department or office of the University or by any academic or administrative staff member in connection with the transaction of University business, and retained by that agency or its successor as evidence of its activities or functions because of the information contained therein. Elendu (1983) stated that records include the data generated via automated information systems. If your office has developed a computer application to manage some particular facet of its operations, the information in that system is considered a University record, whether or not you generate any actual paper or hard copy from it. You are not, however, responsible for information systems such as the accounting information system for which your office does not bear major responsibility. Although your office may access and/or input data into the accounting system, the responsibility for the system and its contents belongs to the business services-accounting office. According to Fries (1974), certain categories of materials are not considered records: • Stocks of printed or reproduced documents kept for supply purposes when file copies have been retained for records purposes; for example, handbooks or manuals prepared for the instruction of a particular course. • Books, periodicals, newspapers, and other library and museum materials made or acquired and preserved solely for reference or exhibition purposes. • Duplicate microfilm. • Preliminary drafts of letters, memoranda, reports, worksheets, and informal notes which do not represent significant basic steps in the preparation of the record document. • Convenience copies of reports, memoranda, etc., for which your office was not the originator or the office of record, and which have not been annotated by your office. • Materials not filed as evidence for department operations that have no informational value, such as telephone call slips, letters of transmittal, route slips, etc. What is records management? According to Ohakwe et al (2002), Records management is a "field of management responsible for the efficient and systematic control of the creation, receipt, maintenance, use, and disposition of records, including the processes for capturing and maintaining evidence of and information about business activities and transactions in the form of records". He stated that the goals of records management are to: • Comply with Federal and State laws and regulations • Develop and implement sound record keeping practices • Identify, appraise, locate, and manage organiztaion information resources during a record's lifecycle • Maintain consistent record keeping practices • Generate fewer records but better records According to Nwosu (1997), Records management is a globally recognized requirement. In 2001, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) issued ISO 15489, a standard for developing a records management program. Requirements for records management programs are also outlined in both Wisconsin Statutes and the Board of Regents Policies. Records management is the systematic control of an organisation's records, throughout their life cycle, in order to meet operational business needs, statutory and fiscal requirements, and community expectations. Effective management of corporate information allows fast, accurate and reliable access to records, ensuring the timely destruction of redundant information and the identification and protection of vital and historically important records. (Ohakwe, et al 2002). 2.3 RECORD CONTENT, CONTEXT AND STRUCTURE Record Content According to Hamson (1977), Content is the text, data, metadata, symbols, numerals, images, and sound that make up the substance of the record. A record’s ability to fix information so that it can be repeated, recited, or recalled at a later date functions as an extension of memory and is at the heart of the concept of record. A record may be created specifically to preserve information over time or to prevent future misinterpretation of that information, although a record cannot be presumed to be reliable without authentication. However, any item – no matter how ephemeral it was intended to be – may serve as a record if it is later used as evidence of the thing to which it refers. Record Structure Hicks (2002), Structure refers to a record's physical characteristics and internal organization of the contents. A record’s structure is the form that makes the content tangible and intelligible. Physical characteristics include components and methods of assembly, such as paper, ink, seals, and font families, or character sets, encoding, and formats. Structure also includes the intellectual organization of a document. A record’s structure may be very simple, such as plain text on a page; it may be organized into an outline or sections with headings; or it may be highly complex, including a preamble, the body, and the signatures of witnesses. Ibekwe (1994) stated that a document’s structure is contained within boundaries, which define the record as a unit and give it identity by distinguishing it from other information and may be identified/outlined in the records metadata. A record may consist of many physically or logically discrete parts that function together as unit, such as several pages or data values from many tables. However, those parts must be bound together in some fashion. Record Context According to Ahukannah (2002), Context is the organizational, functional, and operational circumstances surrounding a record’s creation, receipt, storage, or use. Context includes a record’s date and place of creation, compilation, or issue, and its relationship to other records. Context explains the “why” of the record and may be contained within the record’s metadata. A single record derives its trustworthiness and usefulness from its association with other records that collectively tell the story of an event or activity. A letter from a constituent, for example, may be filed with the letter of response so that anyone viewing the response in the future can see it in the context of the request. Without the request, the response may be taken out of context and misconstrued. Record context is very important for agency accountability as it establishes the chain of events, business activities, information gathered, etc. that led to a business decisions or outcome. 2.4 The Importance of Records Management in an organization According to Azuka (1991), Records management is a highly important part of a business. It may not be as glamorous or exciting as many of the other facets, but depending on the type of information a business deals in, the loss of records held by the business could mean a potential data protection breach, which could end up very financially damaging to a business. Therefore records management is important in the smooth-running of a company. According to Elendu (1983) Records management can present a number of problems; should a business move all records on to computers to be stored? But what if the computers are destroyed in an accident such as a fire? Many companies offer online records management for situations like this, this means if anything goes wrong at your end; your networks fall foul of a virus, or the premises suffers fire damage or something similar, everything will be backed up and safe. This kind of service you will need to pay a fee for. Another kind of service for records management is that if you already have information and data recorded onto tapes or video, or any other kind of media, yet have limited space in which to store these, or are not confident in the security of the premises you have, you can employ the services of a records management company which will store these records for you. (Nwosu (1997). According to OIhakwe et al (12002), This is beneficial in circumstances such as if there were to be a disaster which damaged your premises and all of your records were destroyed. A records management company can take all of your highly important recordings and secure them somewhere for you. According to Hamson (1977), A good, secure company will typically have all of the latest security technology in place including secure vaults that are fire and heat resistant for a number of hours, early smoke-detection systems, full CCTV monitoring, good alarm systems as well as gas suppression systems which protect against fire. Most firms will let businesses access their records within the same day of them requesting to do so, and ease of access importance will of course be dependent on the nature of the business you run. It's possible to employ the services of such a company for managing your paper records too. Many businesses have literally decades' worth of paper documents which take up valuable space within a business premises, and a lot of the time it is economically viable to have these kept safe elsewhere, freeing up space for other use, and protected from any damage that could occur in your own building Good records management is essential for any corporate body to function effectively. The National Archives of Scotland (NAS) is regularly asked for advice on records management by all sorts of bodies. (Frontman ,1979). 2.5 The principles of good records management According to Elendu (2002), The guiding principle of records management is to ensure that information is available when and where it is needed, in an organized and efficient manner, and in a well maintained environment. Organizations must ensure that their records are: Authentic It must be possible to prove that records are what they purport to be and who created them, by keeping a record of their management through time. Where information is later added to an existing document within a record, the added information must be signed and dated. With electronic records, changes and additions must be identifiable through audit trails. Accurate Records must accurately reflect the transactions that they document. Accessible Records must be readily available when needed. Complete Records must be sufficient in content, context and structure to reconstruct the relevant activities and transactions that they document. Comprehensive Records must document the complete range of an organisation's business. Compliant Records must comply with any record keeping requirements resulting from legislation, audit rules and other relevant regulations. Effective Records must be maintained for specific purposes and the information contained in them must meet those purposes. Records will be identified and linked to the business process to which they are related. Secure Records must be securely maintained to prevent unauthorised access, alteration, damage or removal. They must be stored in a secure environment, the degree of security reflecting the sensitivity and importance of the contents. Where records are migrated across changes in technology, the evidence preserved must remain authentic and accurate. 2.6 Role of office manager in record management in an organization According to Fries (2000), Office managers organise and supervise all of the administrative activities including record management to facilitate the smooth running of an office. An office manager carries out a range of record administrative and IT-related tasks, depending on the employing organization, and the work may vary from running the record administrative side of a small employer’s business as a record keeper to overseeing the office work of numerous staff records and office duties. Nwosu (2000). Although the work of an office manager differs greatly across organizations, they all have the responsibility for ensuring that their office records runs efficiently. Job titles vary and office managers are often called office administrators, especially at more junior levels. Azuka (1991) stated that The role varies according to the type of employer, the size of the organisation and the management structure, but activities typically include: • using a range of office software, including email, spreadsheets and databases ; • managing filing systems; • developing and implementing new administrative systems, such as record management; • recording office expenditure and managing the budget via keeping appropriate records; • organising the office records and maintaining supplies of stationery and equipment; • maintaining the condition of the office and arranging for necessary repairs; • overseeing the documents for recruitment of new staff, sometimes including training and induction; • keeping records of staff appraisals, managing performance and disciplining staff; • recording and storing customer enquiries and complaints; 2.7 Management of physical records According to Denyer (1983),Managing physical records involves different disciplines and may draw on a variety of forms of expertise. Records must be identified and authenticated. This is usually a matter of filing and retrieval; in some circumstances, more careful handling is required. Identifying records If an item is presented as an office record, it needs to be authenticated. Forensic experts may need to examine a document or artifact to determine that it is not a forgery, and that any damage, alteration, or missing content is documented. In extreme cases, items may be subjected to a microscope, x-ray, radiocarbon dating or chemical analysis. This level of authentication is rare, but requires that special care be taken in the creation and retention of the records of an organization. Storing records Records must be stored in such a way that they are accessible and safeguarded against environmental damage. A typical paper document may be stored in a filing cabinet in an office. However, some organisations employ file rooms with specialized environmental controls including temperature and humidity. Vital records may need to be stored in a disaster-resistant safe or vault to protect against fire, flood, earthquakes and conflict. In extreme cases, the item may require both disaster-proofing and public access, such as the original, signed Nigeria Constitution. Civil engineers may need to be consulted to determine that the file room can effectively withstand the weight of shelves and file cabinets filled with paper; historically, some military vessels were designed to take into account the weight of their operating procedures on paper as part of their ballast equation (modern record-keeping technologies have transferred much of that information to electronic storage). In addition to on-site storage of records, many organizations operate their own off-site records centers or contract with commercial records centres. Circulating records Tracking the record while it is away from the normal storage area is referred to as circulation. Often this is handled by simple written recording procedures. However, many modern records environments use a computerized system involving bar code scanners, or radio-frequency identification technology (RFID) to track movement of the records. These can also be used for periodic auditing to identify unauthorized movement of the record. Disposal of records Disposal of records does not always mean destruction. It can also include transfer to a historical archive, museum, or private individual. Destruction of records ought to be authorized by law, statute, regulation, or operating procedure, and the records should be disposed of with care to avoid inadvertent disclosure of information. The process needs to be well-documented, starting with a records retention schedule and policies and procedures that have been approved at the highest level. An inventory of the records disposed of should be maintained, including certification that they have been destroyed. Records should never simply be discarded as refuse. Most organizations use processes including pulverization, paper shredding or incineration. Nwosu (1997), said that Commercially available products can manage records through all processes active, inactive, archival, retention scheduling and disposal. Some also utilizes RFID technology for the tracking of the physical file. 2.8 Management of electronic records According to Ohakwe et al (2002), The general principles of records management apply to records in any format. Digital records (almost always referred to as electronic records), however, raise specific issues. It is more difficult to ensure that the content, context and structure of records is preserved and protected when the records do not have a physical existence. This has important implications for the authenticity, reliability, and trustworthiness of records. According to Elendu (2000), Much research is being conducted on the management of electronic records. The International Research on Permanent Authentic Records in Electronic Systems (InterPARES) Project is one example of such an initiative. Based at the School of Library, Archival and Information Studies at the University of British Columbia, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, the InterPARES Project is a collaborative project between researchers all across the world committed to developing theories and methodologies to ensure the reliability, accuracy, and authenticity of electronic records. Frontman (1979) stated that Functional requirements for computer systems to manage electronic records have been produced by the US Department of Defense, the National Archives of England & Wales and the European Commission,] whose MoReq (Model Requirements for the Management of Electronic Records) specification has been translated into at least twelve languages and is used beyond the borders of Europe. Development of MoReq was initiated by the DLM Forum, funded by the European Commission. According to Denyer (1978), Particular concerns exist about the ability to access and read electronic records over time, since the rapid pace of change in technology can make the software used to create the records obsolete, leaving the records unreadable. A considerable amount of research is being undertaken to address this, under the heading of digital preservation. The Public Record Office Victoria (PROV) located in Melbourne, Australia published the Victorian Electronic Records Strategy (VERS) which includes a standard for the preservation, long-term storage and access to permanent electronic records. The VERS standard has been adopted by all Victorian Government departments. A digital archive has been established by PROV to enable the general public to access permanent records. Archives New Zealand is also setting up a digital archive. (Hamson ,1977). 2.9 Impact of good record management to office managers According to Nwosu (2002), Good record management is important to both office managers and the organization at large. Systematic management of records allows organization and office managers to: • know what records they have, and locate them easily • increase efficiency and effectiveness • make savings in administration costs, both in staff time and storage • support decision making • be accountable • achieve business objectives and targets • provide continuity in the event of a disaster • meet legislative and regulatory requirements, particularly as laid down by the Freedom of Information Act. • protect the interests of employees, clients and stakeholders Ohakwe (2000) stated that Records management offers tangible benefits to organizations and office managers, from economic good practice in reducing storage costs of documents, to enabling legislative requirements to be met. An unmanaged record system makes the performance of duties more difficult, costs organisations time, money and resources, and makes them vulnerable to security breaches, prosecution and embarrassment. In an unmanaged records environment, up to 10% of staff time is spent looking for information. according to him, The dangers of corrupted records management have been illustrated in recent years through scandal, which involved the destruction of vital records. Poor records management, with the unintentional loss of documents, has caused embarrassment to organisations from government departments to small businesses. 2.10 Common Problems Faced by office managers in Record Management According to Hamson (1999), The office managers encountered so many problems in the handling office emails. she encounters problems in: i) Getting used to different kind of records in an office and ways to handle them. ii) Sorting and marking the records with appropriate notations iii) They also encounter some problems in having the knowledge of controlling some of insects that attacks records. iv) Preserving the records v) Retrieving the records very fast vi) Using computer programs in record keeping in the company’s data base In the other hand, Ibwkwe (1994) opined that Record-keeping or management is an essential part of many business types today. Whether you work in a medical office, university, legal firm or other institution, managing the forms that keep these businesses running is often a full-time job in itself. At times, the amount of paperwork generated by the organization can appear overwhelming. Common problems faced by office managers in record management may be alleviated by having systems in place to handle them. 1. Lost Records o Lost records can range from a minor inconvenience for businesses to an enormous hassle that takes months, or even years, to resolve. For instance, if clients request documents from the company on a regular basis and you are unable to provide them in a timely manner (or at all), you risk the loss of their business in the future. If important records are needed for a legal matter, such as defending the company against a lawsuit, not supplying the appropriate documents can cost huge sums of money, or even mean the dissolution of the business entirely. One way to avoid losing records is to have a detailed organization and storage process. Record Organization o Proper file organization is one of the cornerstones of good record management. Typically, companies organize files chronologically by year and then alphabetically by name of client. In addition to hard copies of your company's records, electronic storage is a viable option that saves both space and time that your business can put to other uses. However, even if you elect to save the majority of valuable files on your organization's computers, hard copies have their place in record storage and organization. Original documents, such as those with notarized signatures, often need to be kept for a certain number of years or, sometimes, indefinitely. o Record Storage o Depending upon the type of business for which you keep records, as well as how long the company has operated, you may find yourself running out of space for all of the file cabinets worth of forms you must keep. A potential solution to this problem is not to keep any extraneous records. Consider how long your business really needs to have these forms on hand. For federal tax purposes, the majority of documents can be disposed of after a specified period of time, as directed by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), depending on the type of return filed (see the Resources section). Different businesses, such as legal and medical offices, are required to keep client information for only a set number of years, depending upon the state in which they operate. Another solution is to store records at a separate facility, such as a rental storage unit. This way, they do not take up valuable space on the premises of your business that you could use to run the organization. Keep in mind, however, that such units can be costly depending upon the number of records you need to store. (Ahukannah (2002). CHAPTER THREE 3.0 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY This chapter dealt with the procedure the research adopted in carrying out the study. This comprised: 1) Research Design 2) Area of the study 3) Population of the study 4) Sample and sampling techniques 5) Description of instrument 6) Validity and reliability of measuring instrument 7) Method of data analysis. 3.1 Research Design The survey method was used as it involves studying a variety of items in the field by selecting samples from them. The survey method is very effective where the opinion of a group of persons are been sought. 3.2 Area of the Study This study was carried out in first bank Plc Owerri 3.3 Population of the Study The population of the study comprised of all office managers under first bank Plc Owerri metropolis. In general the total number of the office managers is 50. 3.4 Sample and Sampling Techniques The sample size was made up of forty office managers from the above mentioned bank. To arrive at the sample size, the simple random sampling techniques by balloting without replacement were use. 3.5 Description of the Instrument The data for the study was collected through the use of questionnaire. A total number of 50 questionnaires were sent to the respondents in federal university of technology owerri and federal polytechnic nekede Owerri. The questionnaire was framed in a way that will enable the respondents to give the required information or data. The questionnaire was divided into five (5) sections, which ranged from section A-E Section A: The various kinds of office records Section B: The benefits of good record keeping. SectionC: The skills required by office managers in handling the office records. Section D: The role of office managers in record management. Section E: Problems encountered by secretaries in handling various office records. 3.6 Method of data Collection The data was collected through the use of questionnaires and oral interview. This was so because the subjects are literates, hence they are able to read, understand and supply the required information that are relevance for the study. 3.7 Method of data Analysis The researcher used tables, percentages and figures to analyze the data collected from section A-C Using X x 100 N 1 Where x is the number of respondents for each category. N is the total number of respondents. While data collected from section D and E were ranked. CHAPTER FOUR 4.0 PRESENTATION AND ANLYZISING OF DATA 4.1 INTRODUCTION this chapter dealt with the presentation and analysis of data collected with the aid of questionnaire. A total number of 40 questionnaires was administered at the organization and was collected. For each question in section A-C any category of response that is up to 55% and above is significant while the response that is below 55% is non significant. And questions D and E any category of response that is up to 50% and above are ranked according to the position. 4.1 RESEARCH QUESTION 1 What are the various kinds of records you keep? The respondent was asked to indicate the various kinds of office records. TABLE 1 LIST OF VARIOUS KINDS OF MAILS mails No of Respondents Percentages letter 35 87 e-mail 22 55 repositional note 30 75 postcard 28 70 postal card 25 62 hybrid mail 20 50 newspapers & magazines 27 67 circulars 23 57 journals 26 65 other documents 30 75 The result of the table showed the list of various kinds of office records used by the respondents. Letter rated 35 representing 87% followed by e-mail which rated 22 representing 55%, repositional note and postcard rated 30 representing 75%, postal card rated 28 representing 70, hybrid mail rated 25 representing 62% followed by newspapers which rated 20 representing 50%, shredding machines rated 27 representing 67%, circulars rated 23 representing 57% and journals rated 26 representing 65%, respectively. 4.2 RESEARCH QUESTION 2 What is the functionality of the office records? To answer this question the respondents were asked to state the functions of the records. TABLE II THE FUNCTIONS OF THE RECORD HANDLING EQUIPEMENT IN THE ORGANIZATION No. of Functions Respondent Percentage Remark It stores information 30 75 S It is used to access information 25 62 S It is used processed data 24 60 S For typing of documents 23 57 S For controlling financial Problems 28 70 S For up keeping of documents 35 87 S The result of the above table showed that record functions very well in the organization. 4.3 RESEARCH QUESTION 3 What are the adequacies of these record handling process? To answer this question the respondents were asked to tick on their opinion if these records are adequate in their organization. TABLE III Respondents No of Opinion Respondents Percentage Remark Very Adequate (VA) 4 18 45 NS Adequate (A) 3 20 50 NS Fairly Adequate 2 25 62 S Not Adequate 1 30 75 S The result above showed that these records handling process are available but are not adequate for the respondents. If not adequate what are the reasons (s)? Reason(s) No of respondent Percentage Remarks Lack of fund 35 87 S Ignorance of executives 30 75 S Lack of space 15 37 NS If adequate what is the total Number of each from a -j. From the result in Table III, it showed that these handling records are not adequate. The inadequacy of these office records. Does adequate and good record keeping has any effect on you? To answer this question the respondents were asked to state whether or not the inadequacy of these records management affect them and the ways it affect them. TABLE IV Effect No of Respondents Percentage Remark Yes 35 87 S No 15 37 NS Delays work 22 55 S Demoralizes one 23 57 S Calls for movement 25 62 S Give room for leakages 30 75 s Makes one ineffective 20 50 Ns Causes conflict 33 82 s The result above showed that the inadequacy of the records hanlding affects the respondents by delaying of works that should be done. 4.4 RESEARCH QUESTION 4 What are the skills required by secretaries in handling office records? TABLE V No of Skills Required Respondents Percentage Remark Preservation skill 30 75 s computer skill 27 67 s Organizing skills 32 80 s Ethics 28 70 s The result of the above table showed that there is enough skills required by secretary. Does the secretary require any skills in record management? TABLE VI No of Skills required Respondent Percentage Remark Yes 35 87 s No 15 37 Ns Booting of computer 23 57 s Editing of text 30 75 s The above result showed that there is much skills required by secretary. 4.5 RESEARCH QUESTION 5 What are the problems encountered by secretaries in handling office records? TABLE VII PROBLEMS ENCOUNTERED BY SECRETARIES IN HANDLING THE MAILS. No of Problems Respondents Percentage Remarks Lack of the Required Skills 20 50 Ns Lack of ability 27 67 s Inadequate of SKILLS 30 75 s Not well enlightened 28 70 s The result of the above table showed that most of the respondents find it difficult to handle records. 4.6 DISCUSSIONS OF FINDINGS Various kinds of office mails keeps by office managers. The result of table 1 showed the various kinds of office records are kept by office managers. The major records includes, letter which is 87%, email 55%,repositional note and postcard 75%, post card 67%, circulars 57% and newspapers which rated 65% respectively. The functions of the good record keeping in the organization. The result of table II showed that effective record keeping promote and functions very well in the organization. The adequate of the record handling processes in the organization. The result of table III showed that the record handling techniques are available but they are not adequate enough. The inadequacy of the record handling process The result of table IV showed that the inadequacy of the record management affects the organization. Skills required by secretaries in record management The result of table V. showed that enough skills are being required by secretary for proper managements of records. Does the secretary require any skills in handling the records? The result in table VI showed that there is much skills that the secretary required in carrying out their record handling job. Problems encountered by secretaries in handling the records. The result of table VII showed that most of the respondents finds it difficult in handling these records. CHAPTER FIVE 5.0 SUMMARY CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION INTRODUCTION This chapter showed the summary, conclusion and recommendations. It also looked at the areas of further research. 5.1 SUMMARY OF FINDINGS The aim of this study was to carefully, analyzed; the role of office managers in record management with reference to federal university of technology and federal polytechnic nekede Owerri. Based on the analysis of responses on research questions the following find were drawn. It was observed that there are various kinds of office records managed by an office manager. Although the mails were available to the office managers but they are not properly handled or managed which causes inefficiency, delay at work, movement from one place to another. 5.2 CONCLUSIONS Based on the above findings on the impact of records keeping on office manager in tertiary institutions, it clear that records’ are meant to enhance the performance of management. When records are kept and utilized appropriately, execution of management functions is likely to be easy and effective. Records keeping also enables office managers and administrators to be alive to their responsibilities and work conscientiously towards the achievement of educational objectives. Furthermore, the researcher concludes that there exist no significant differences in the effective management of records by office managers with regards to experiences. Based on the analysis drawn, the following conclusions were made. There are many difficulties encountered by secretaries in handling office records which includes lack of training and retraining of secretaries, inadequate working equipments, and inadequate record handling techniques. These problems made office managers to be unable to handle office records and made them to be inefficient in their job. It is also educative as it reveals some difficulties that the secretary experience in managing records in an organizations. 5.3 RECOMMENDATION Considering the findings of the study, the following recommendations were made: -Office managers should develop a positive attitude towards records keeping. -There should be adequate fund by the management and government to maintain records in tertiary institutions. -School authorities should employ office managers who possess adequate skills for records keeping. 1) From the conclusions drawn, the following recommendations are therefore made: The secretaries should be trained on how to handle some of these records effectively and efficiently. The training could take form of on-the-job. The – job training or through the grant of study leave. Also Seminars and workshops should be organized for secretaries. This would go a long way boast the skill of the works and the enhancement of productivity. 2) It is also recommended that private and public establishments should commit fund for the acquisition of the necessary techniques needed for handling records. 3) Trained and experienced secretaries should be employed to handle these records. 4) The office machines should be maintained to avoid frequent breakdown because thus necessitate delay in record processing. 5) These are the need to provide modern machine in processing records regularly for greater efficiency of the secretaries. 6) Lastly, more experienced secretaries should be employed and inexperienced secretaries should be sent back to well equipped industries to acquire knowledge and skill on how to handle office records. REFERENCE Ahukannah L.I (2002), office practice Today, Polytechnic Publishers Ltd. Azuka E.B. (1991), Office Practice for Tertiary Institution, Onitsha, fortune printing Industrial Ltd. Denyer J.C (1978) O and M and Management services Buying suffolk Richard clay (the chancier press Ltd). Elendu E.O (1983) Office practice for colleges Owerri, Luton press Ltd. Fries A.C (1974) Applied Secretarial Procedures, New York McGraw-Hill book Company. Front man K.M (1979) Modern Secretarial procedures, England, McGraw – Hill Inc. Nwosu, B.O. (1997) Secretarial Duties, Owerri Cannon Publishers Nigeria Ltd. Ohakwe S.N, Oguoma O.D.N and Chukwumezie F.U. (2002), Contemporary office practice. Owerri, centre for research and manpower development. Hamson J. (1977) Secretarial Duties, London Pitman publishing Ltd. Hicks. S. (1964), College secretarial Administration, Great main the pitman. Ibekwe U.O (1994) Modern Business management Owerri New African publishing country (Nig) Ltd. Achilike, A. N & Okwuanaso, S.I (2001). Competencies expected of National Diploma Accounting Graduates of Polytechnics as Perceived by employers of labour. Journal of Business and Office Education, (1) 44 – 48. Akube, A.U (1991) . Classroom Organization and Management: A.5 point strategy. Ibadan: Wisdom Publishers Ltd. Asogwa, G.E (2004), Library records and Maintenance. Journal of Library Information Science, (2): 88 – 98. Durosaro, F. O (2002) Management of Schools Records. Ilorin: Indemac Publisher. Egwunyenga, E.J (2005). Essentials of School Administration. Benin City: Jestice Jeco Publishers. Fasasi, Y.A (2004). Management Concepts and application . Lagos. Concept Publishions Ltd. Popoola, S.O (2000). A cost model approach to records management system. Ibadan: University of Ibadan Ugwunze, V.I (1992). An Examination of records management in the University of Lagos Registry. Lagos; University of Lagos Press APPENDIX Department of Secretarial Administration Federal Polytechnic Nekede P.M.B. 1036 Owerri. 29th Juky, 2008. Dear Respondent. QUESTIONNAIRE I am a final year student of the above mentioned institution undertaking a research on the topic the roles of office managers in recpord management ( A case study of first bank nigeria plc, Owerri). The questionnaire is therefore designed to help in gathering relevant data for the research study. Kindly supply the information below. Your responses will assist the researcher and I assure you that your response shall be treated with the utmost confidentiality it deserves. Thanks Your faithfully ukachu . Researcher. QUESTIONNAIRE SECTION A. PERSONAL DATA 1. What sex are you? (a) (b) 2. How old are you? (a) 18-25 (b) 25-35 (c) 35-45 (d) 45-55 (e) 55-above 3. Religions background? (a) Christianity (b) Traditional religion (c) Muslim (d) Non 4. What is your educational qualification? (a) SSCE/GCE (b) BSC (c) HND 5. Marital status? (a) Single (b) Married (c) Divorced (d) Widower (e) Separated 6. Year of services? (a) 1-5 years (b) 6-10 years (c) 11 years above SECTION B 1) What are the various kinds of records you keep? mails letter ( ) e-mail ( ) repositional note ( ) postcard ( ) postal card ( ) hybrid mail ( ) newspapers & magazines ( ) circulars ( ) journals ( ) other documents ( ) 2) Please state the functionality of these office records.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3) Which Are The Most Functions Of The Record Handling Equipement In The Organization a) It stores information b) It is used to access information c) It is used processed data d) typing of documents e) controlling financial Problems f) up keeping of documents 4) what are the adequacies of these record handling process? Very Adequate Adequate Fairly Adequate Not Adequate 5) If not adequate what are the reasons (s)? Lack of fund Ignorance of executives Lack of space 6) Does adequate and good record keeping has any effect on you? Yes No 7) which of the skills listed below are the most skills required by secretaries in handling office records? Preservation skill computer skill Organizing skills Ethics 8) Do the secretary require any skills in record management? Yes ( ) No ( ) 9) What are the problems encountered by secretaries in handling office records? Lack of the Required Skills Lack of ability Inadequate of SKILLS Not well enlightened

mataince and softwares operating system

SearchSecurity How antivirus software works: Virus detection techniques Software maintenance in software engineering is the modification of a software product after delivery to correct faults, to improve performance or other attributes.[1] A common perception of maintenance is that it merely involves fixing defects. However, one study indicated that over 80% of maintenance effort is used for non-corrective actions.[2] This perception is perpetuated by users submitting problem reports that in reality are functionality enhancements to the system.[citation needed] More recent studies put the bug-fixing proportion closer to 21%.[3] Software maintenance processes This section describes the six software maintenance processes as: 1. The implementation process contains software preparation and transition activities, such as the conception and creation of the maintenance plan; the preparation for handling problems identified during development; and the follow-up on product configuration management. 2. The problem and modification analysis process, which is executed once the application has become the responsibility of the maintenance group. The maintenance programmer must analyze each request, confirm it (by reproducing the situation) and check its validity, investigate it and propose a solution, document the request and the solution proposal, and finally, obtain all the required authorizations to apply the modifications. 3. The process considering the implementation of the modification itself. 4. The process acceptance of the modification, by confirming the modified work with the individual who submitted the request in order to make sure the modification provided a solution. 5. The migration process (platform migration, for example) is exceptional, and is not part of daily maintenance tasks. If the software must be ported to another platform without any change in functionality, this process will be used and a maintenance project team is likely to be assigned to this task. 6. Finally, the last maintenance process, also an event which does not occur on a daily basis, is the retirement of a piece of software. There are a number of processes, activities and practices that are unique to maintainers, for example: • Transition: a controlled and coordinated sequence of activities during which a system is transferred progressively from the developer to the maintainer; • Service Level Agreements (SLAs) and specialized (domain-specific) maintenance contracts negotiated by maintainers; • Modification Request and Problem Report Help Desk: a problem-handling process used by maintainers to prioritize, documents and route the requests they receive; when you launch a setup/installer all it does is plonk files in various locations on your P.C, and add keys to the registry? So in theory, if an uninstaller wasn't supplied with a program, would deleting all traces and keys I could find relating to the program have the same effect? Or does an uninstaller/installer do something special and is not as simple as I think? Is there a way to look into the code of an installer/uninstaller file to see what it does? It's just i've got some stupid programs like "packard bell info centre", "iwf presentation", which have no uninstaller and I want them gone!! So basically installers and uninstallers are sort of like a zipped file. So theoratically if somebody placed the files in the right locations and created the same registry keys (assuming they knew where) they could install a program without an installer? Is there a way to read the code inside an installer and uninstaller, so I could understand better how they work? Like say open in notepad.. Hm so how does this sound for removing a program where an uninstaller is not present: - Delete the folder, and do a search for the product to see if it has files in other locations. - Look for registry keys in Software folders relating to the product. Where are other common places for a piece of software to create registry keys in the registry or could it be anywhere? Adaptive Maintenance Adaptive maintenance is the implementation of changes in a part of the system, which has been affected by a change that occurred in some other part of the system. Adaptive maintenance consists of adapting software to changes in the environment such as the hardware or the operating system. The term environment in this context refers to the conditions and the influences which act (from outside) on the system. For example, business rules, work patterns, and government policies have a significant impact on the software system. For instance, a government policy to use a single 'European currency' will have a significant effect on the software system. An acceptance of this change will require banks in various member countries to make significant changes in their software systems to accommodate this currency. Adaptive maintenance accounts for 25% of all the maintenance activities. Perfective Maintenance Perfective maintenance mainly deals with implementing new or changed user requirements. Perfective maintenance involves making functional enhancements to the system in addition to the activities to increase the system's performance even when the changes have not been suggested by faults. This includes enhancing both the function and efficiency of the code and changing the functionalities of the system as per the users' changing needs. Examples of perfective maintenance include modifying the payroll program to incorporate a new union settlement and adding a new report in the sales analysis system. Perfective maintenance accounts for 50%, that is, the largest of all the maintenance activities. Preventive Maintenance Preventive maintenance involves performing activities to prevent the occurrence of errors. It tends to reduce the software complexity thereby improving program understandability and increasing software maintainability. It comprises documentation updating, code optimization, and code restructuring. Documentation updating involves modifying the documents affected by the changes in order to correspond to the present state of the system. Code optimization involves modifying the programs for faster execution or efficient use of storage space. Code restructuring involves transforming the program structure for reducing the complexity in source code and making it easier to understand. Preventive maintenance is limited to the maintenance organization only and no external requests are acquired for this type of maintenance. Preventive maintenance accounts for only 5% of all the maintenance activities. TechRepublic Membership Menu Microsoft 10 things you should do before, during, and after reinstalling Windows There are some very good reasons why you might want to reinstall Microsoft Windows. Alan Norton documents the steps needed to properly reinstall Windows. By Alan Norton in Windows and Office, October 15, 2008, 4:19 AM PST • RSS • Comments • Save • Facebook 0 • Twitter 0 • Linkedin 0 • • More There are some very good reasons why you might want to reinstall Microsoft Windows. Whether it is 2000, XP, or Vista, the registry can become corrupted or it can accumulate settings for programs long-since forgotten, leading to sluggish performance. Or you can find yourself with a stubborn Trojan Horse. The only way to be 100 percent sure that you have rid yourself of some particularly nasty viruses is to reload Windows. I have wanted to document the steps needed to properly reinstall Windows for a long time now. I always end up missing something after the reload and find myself scrambling to find IDs, passwords, configuration settings, or favorite Web sites lost in the reinstall. Be sure to set aside a large block of time to do the reinstall. Don't do it before a term paper is due or your business presentation slide show. A weekend is a good time. An OS reinstall is also a good time to decide to upgrade. If you want to upgrade to Vista, there are a lot of options available to you. For more information about these options and the pros and cons of Vista, please read Vista Confusion. This article focuses on Vista but the concepts apply to all versions of Window. This blog post is also available in PDF format in a TechRepublic download. When you run the Windows Vista set-up program, you will see a window with two options: Update and Custom (Advanced). The Update option is not available when reinstalling Windows Vista. Under the Custom option, you will be doing what is known as a Clean Install. Follow these 10 steps and you will, hopefully, not find yourself having to scramble for files or information that you need after the reinstall. Please Note: I have gone to great care to test and retest this documentation. It is still possible that there are errors or missing information or that I have not covered your specific reinstallation configuration. Please provide feedback in the forum if you find any issues. Before reinstallation 1. Document your login IDs, passwords, and settings. If you are using your browser to store the passwords for Web sites, you will be in for a rude awakening after reinstalling Windows — they will be gone. Your browser is a poor place to keep your Web site IDs and passwords. One possible option is to store your information in a spreadsheet. However, if you keep your IDs and passwords in a password-protected Excel or OpenOffice Calc spreadsheet, be aware that there are programs that can recover/discover the password for most .xls files. I suggest you use stronger encryption techniques to better protect Excel 2002, 2003, and 2007 spreadsheets. If you do have Excel 2002 or later, secure your spreadsheet from hackers and then make sure you don't lose your password! Next, add your IDs and passwords. Create a row in your spreadsheet for your ISP, e-mail, Web hosting company, personal Web sites, and any other password-protected logins. This file is also a good place to keep your e-mail POP3, SMTP, and newsserver name. If you don't have Excel you can keep the IDs and passwords on a piece of paper securely locked away in a safe place or you can choose one of the software alternatives available. RoboForm is a popular way to secure your browser login user name and password but is not freeware. GuardID Systems offers a product called ID Vault that is supposed to be a secure way to store your IDs and passwords — for a small price. Do not keep your IDs and passwords in a Notepad or Word document unsecured and "in the clear," readable by anyone with access to your computer or to a hacker. 2. Export your e-mail and address book, bookmarks/favorites, and cookies. You can export your e-mail and contacts from Outlook Express, Outlook, MS Mail, and most third-party e-mail programs. I have a folder called Mail Exports under my Archive folder where I export my e-mail. You can export from the various mailboxes. Select the Inbox, Outbox, Sent Items, and Drafts. Unless you have a special reason otherwise, you can exclude the Deleted and Junk mail boxes. I don't bother exporting my contacts. If I need a contact, I pull it up from an archived e-mail. You might want to export your contacts though, especially if you have a large number. I used to always forget about bookmarks for my favorite Web sites. I had to spend time searching for a favorite site after Windows was reinstalled. I made a promise that I would export my IE Favorites and Firefox Bookmarks the next time I did a Windows reinstall. You can also export feeds and cookies. 3. Download the latest applications and drivers. There is a core set of applications that you know you will be using. One good way to identify these core apps is to take a look at your desktop and Start menu. You can save an image of your desktop to a non-system folder and use that as a guide to reinstalling your core apps. You can also look at your installed programs in Programs and Features located in the Control Panel. I have a logical drive named Documents and on that drive a folder called Downloads. I keep all my apps and drivers downloaded from the Internet there. These add up in a hurry. To keep it organized, I have a lot of subfolders including one for Apps and one for Drivers. Once you have a list of your core apps, download the latest versions from the Internet and save them to your \Downloads\Apps folder or a non-system folder of your choice. Some of your core apps may be on DVD, CD, or even floppy. Pull out your media and set it in a stack ready for reinstallation later. Download the latest version of your favorite anti-virus software. I like Alwil Software's Avast! The free home version includes real-time protection for e-mail, instant message, Web browser, Outlook Exchange, and four other types of real-time protection. If you can, download a file containing the latest virus definitions. How do you know what drivers you will need? There are two basic types of drivers. I separate them here because updating them is usually handled differently: Motherboard Specific Drivers - Auto Update • System and Chipset (usually Intel) • Onboard Sound • Onboard Video (some motherboards) • Onboard LAN Many motherboard manufactures and computer vendors have an application that will check all the motherboard-related drivers to see if they are current. If your manufacturer or vendor provides this type of application, go to their Web site and download the latest version now. If you don't have access to an update utility, you have to manually identify the motherboard-related drivers that you will need: Other drivers - Manual Update • Sound Card (if your computer has a sound card) • Video Card (if your computer has a video card) • Modem • RAID (Intel Matrix RAID, JMicron RAID, or other if you have a RAID-controller card) • Other Unique Devices If you do not already know the type of video card, sound card, modem, RAID, or other unique devices in your system, you can identify them by opening the Device Manager (Figure A). Figure A The expanded items in the Device Manager show the devices installed on my computer requiring a manual driver download and install. If you aren't running RAID, you should not need to identify any Storage controllers. If you are running RAID, you will need to have the driver file available on a floppy disk or CD if installing XP or previous versions of Windows. You also need to know the exact driver/controller name — Intel 82801 GR/GH SATA RAID for my system. Unlike previous versions of Windows, Vista recognizes your hard drives during setup and you can get your RAID drivers from there. I don't have a sound card in my system, but if you do, expand the Sound, video and game controllers item to determine the sound card installed in your computer. Mike Smith has put together a handy Windows Reinstall Checklist (PDF) that you might want to print and use. After identifying the drivers you need to install, download them and save them to a non-system logical drive. Do not pull them from old floppies or CDs unless you are sure that new drivers are not available. 4. Housecleaning and backing up your data. Now is the time to clean up your hard drive by deleting unneeded or unwanted files. Cleaning up years of accumulated files that you no longer need or want is no fun. If you want to make it less of a chore, you can start a week or more in advance of the reinstall. Spend one or two hours each day deleting the files you are sure that you want to send to the great bit-bucket in the sky. This is also an excellent time to do a thorough anti-virus scan of all your drives. You don't want to back up infected files. Then do a full backup, which is easy for me to say, right? You can spend hours doing a full backup, but this is a good investment of your time. Back up anything that you don't want to lose. It is especially important if you are one of the unfortunate ones without a Windows OEM disc or a vendor reinstall disc. Many computer vendors put the Windows setup and installation files on a separate partition or folder on the hard drive. If you have a vendor built computer, Windows Reinstall - OEM Computers is a must-read. If you will be reinstalling Vista on a different partition, you will need almost 15GB of free space minimum on a logical drive/partition to load Vista. I like to create a partition of 30-40GB for the 32-bit version of Vista and 40-50GB for the 64 bit version. Do a full format of the logical drive/partition that will be your new system partition so that you will have a clean Vista-ready partition. Warning! If you will be dual booting using XP and Vista, do not use XP to create the partition that you will install Vista on. For a very helpful guide to issues dual booting XP and Vista please read Dual Booting Windows Vista & Windows XP by Bert Kinney. 5. Service packs As of October 2008, the latest service packs are SP3 for XP and SP1 for Vista. There are five ways to retrieve and install the latest service packs. Some of these methods reduce or eliminate your risk to security vulnerabilities. Some are alternative methods you can use if you are having problems installing the service pack from Windows Update. If you are not concerned about either of these two issues, you can skip this section entirely and move on to item 6. There are five ways to get the latest Windows service pack: • Download it via Windows Update • Download it from the Microsoft Web site • Order it on CD/DVD disc • Order the latest copy of Windows that includes the latest service pack (should be noted in the product description) • Install Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) or the System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM) if available and if the computer is networked on a local Intranet The update is much smaller when done through the Update utility found in the Control Panel. I planned to recommend that it is best to download the latest service pack and install it manually. Doing this would install important security updates in the service pack before connecting to the Internet. After a request for information from Microsoft I received the following response as to why that is not recommended: "Microsoft strongly recommends using Windows Update to download and install Windows Vista SP1 on single PCs. If a customer prefers to install Windows Vista SP1 from a DVD and has Internet access, they should first visit Windows Update and install all recommended and optional drivers and updates (the SP1 DVDs will have this advice on their packaging). Customers should know that the install program on the DVD does not include the same logic that Windows Update uses to check for device drivers prior to SP1 installation. To make this change, the installer would need to be substantially modified, which would take a significant amount of time. Additionally, one of the benefits of Windows Update is that it can dynamically add or remove filtered devices over time, as is necessary. If the DVD were to ship with the set of filters included, they could not be added or modified as the driver landscape changed over time. We also want customers to know that if they have any problems during or after installing SP1, they can call Microsoft Customer Support Services (CSS) free of charge with questions or for help." Note the emphasis added. Both options require connecting to the Internet before installing SP1. I spoke with a Microsoft technician specializing in Windows Update. He informed me that there are two primary reasons why you might want to manually install SP1. I added reason three as my reason for a manual install. 1. You cannot download SP1 from Windows Update or it will not install properly. 2. During high demand times SP1 may not be available to some users for up to a week or possibly longer due to a limitation placed on the number of downloads. 3. You want the security updates included in SP1 installed before connecting to the Internet. The technical representative understood why I might want to install SP1 so that my system would be more secure before connecting to the Internet. He said it was possible to do this. However, SP1 does not include all the security patches since its release, even if you download it today. You will still have to start Windows Update to get these security updates. In case you were wondering, SP1 installs 23 important security updates and 551 hot fixes, and some of those security updates are cumulative. If you want a closer look at the details, you can review Hotfixes and Security Updates Included in Windows Vista Service Pack 1. The service packs for Vista are large — 434.5 MB for the 32-bit version and 726.5 MB for the 64-bit version. If you are still using dial-up you might be able to download the 32-bit version, but it would be easier to have a friend with broadband download the 64-bit version for you. Read the knowledge base article KB936330 carefully before installing the service pack. I downloaded the Vista 64 bit SP1, and it took approximately 42 hours over four days. Oh the sacrifices I make for you, my patient reader! Use a download manager if you want to download the Vista service pack. I don't recommend you do this over dial-up. At $3.50, just order the SP1 CD or DVD. During reinstallation 6. Load Windows. Tip: When installing Vista in Windows, the installer takes over the entire screen. But you can still have access to Windows and features like Disk Manager by clicking on the [Windows] key. I have not had problems doing this when stuck and needed information or wanted to delete files on the target partition or format the target partition, but it might be dangerous to do while the installer is busy. Don't forget to have your product key handy. If you have a RAID setup you will need to load the RAID drivers (be sure to get the right driver — 32 bit or 64 bit) and know the RAID controller name. For more information about installing Windows on a RAID system see Want Speed and Data Safety? Consider RAID. Rarely, you may have to have drivers for a device where Windows will be installed. As an example, some older motherboards require that you load SATA drivers in order to recognize SATA drives. Perhaps the best way to reinstall Windows is the simple and straightforward "insert Windows disc into optical drive, format target partition and install to target partition" method. You should, if you can, start with a nice clean partition to install Windows on. You can reinstall Vista from within your current Vista installation in addition to the traditional CD/DVD bootup install. If reinstalling from within Windows, connect to the Internet so the installer can check online for the latest installer updates. You can replace your existing installation, even from within the existing installation, or you can load Windows onto a different partition that you prepared in item four. If you do reinstall Windows in a different partition, the original installation must be removed per the EULA. You cannot format the target partition if it is the same as the one with the current Windows installation. Starting with Vista, the system boot files and boot manager are located in a folder called Boot. Gone is boot.ini, and replacing it is something called a Boot Configuration Data store(BCD). If you are running a dual-boot system the Boot folder may not be located on logical drive C:\. The boot files are system files and will be hidden unless you have unchecked Hide protected operating system files when configuring Explorer. If you want to load Windows onto a different logical drive, be careful that you do not delete the Boot folder when removing the original Windows installation. You also do not want to format the logical drive where the Boot folder is located. Tip: Microsoft includes a comprehensive help file called Installing Windows. It is a good idea to read this before reinstalling Windows. After reinstallation 7. Reconfigure personal settings. I have a routine that I follow — one that I developed over the years. Personal settings are, well personal. I have a list of my personal settings that I like to make immediately upon Windows startup. I offer these changes as suggestions and not recommendations. Read How to Personalize Windows Vista for a step-by-step how-to guide or click on the specific topic below: • Gadgets • Display resolution • Desktop background • Power settings • Explorer settings • Cookies handling • Defrag schedule • Indexing options • Desktop shortcuts For those of you who are Vista experts, you might notice that there is something conspicuously missing from my list. I do not recommend changing the default settings that leave User Account Control (UAC) turned on, but this is how to turn it off if you must. If the Windows personalization aren't enough for you, there is a freeware version of TweakVI for Vista. You can easily spend the better part of a day going through all the tweaks available, and some of them are even useful. If you have kids and they have a computer, there are some tweaks that are useful for hiding administrative tools that you don't want them to access. Lo and behold, you can even get your Vista product key plus lots of other detailed information about your system. You no doubt have a list of your own, many of which have long-since been forgotten that you suddenly remember after reloading Windows. You might want to keep a list of these personalized setting so that you will have it the next time you have to reinstall Windows. 8. Enable previous versions and create a "clean install" restore point. You will need to enable Previous Versions if you are using this feature in Vista Business, Ultimate, or Enterprise for a specific logical drive or folder. If you aren't using Previous Versions, you should be, especially if you are a programmer. For information about how to turn this feature on in Vista, see Previous Versions in Vista Business, Ultimate, and Enterprise in the #2 Give examples section. I always like to immediately create a restore point once Windows is installed and personalized. You can create a restore point in the same Window that Previous Versions is enabled. Warning! If you are dual booting XP or Server 2003 and Vista or Server 2008, XP / Server 2003 will delete the Vista / Server 2008 restore points. If Previous Versions is enabled, the shadow copies of your files will also be gone. There is no simple solution for this. Be sure that Vista is installed properly before booting into XP in case you need to use a system restore point. XP users with SP1 or greater and Server 2003 users need not feel left out. They have a similar feature called Shadow Copies. 9. Configure network, install service packs, patches, and security updates. There are other security updates and patches that may be required. For example, I had a Micron Millenium PC that had an atapi.sys patch that had to be installed immediately after installing Windows. Install all security updates, patches, and fixes before connecting to the Internet. How you install SP1, your modem drivers, anti-virus, malware, firewall etc. (items 9.a - 9.e below) depends on which method you choose. Please use the instructions column of Table A to get the right order for the method you have chosen. If you skipped item 5, use the instructions for method one. Table A — The Five Vista SP1 Installation Methods Method Instructions Notes Method One Windows Update 9.a Install anti-virus, anti-virus definitions, malware 9.b Install modem drivers and set up network connection 9.c Run Windows Update 9.e Create Restore Point The Windows Update installer will have to download files to update itself, and then it will have to restart. Method Two Firewall Application Blocking Windows Update 9.a Install anti-virus, anti-virus definitions, malware, and firewall9.b Install modem drivers and set up network connection9.c Run Windows Update 9.e Create Restore Point Comodo Firewall ProThe Windows Update installer will have to download files to update itself, and then it will have to restart. Method Three Windows Update Manual Install 9.a Install anti-virus, anti-virus definitions, malware9.b Install modem drivers and set up network connection9.c Run Windows Update 9.d Install SP1 manually 9.e Create Restore Point The Windows Update installer will have to download files to update itself, and then it will have to restart. Method Four Manual Install Windows Update 9.d Install SP1 manually9.e Create Restore Point9.a Install anti-virus, anti-virus definitions, malware 9.b Install modem drivers and set up network connection 9.c Run Windows Update Method Five (Stand-alone) Manual Install 9.d Install SP1 manually9.e Create Restore Point 9.a Install anti-virus, malware, and firewall (optional) Install your anti-virus, spyware, and adware. Restart the computer if prompted before connecting to the Internet. Don't forget to configure the anti-virus app to set the scan sensitivity. Set it to High or maximum for a thorough scan and set the real-time protection to High. If you have a file containing virus definitions, load these now. If you have a third-party firewall you want to use instead of Windows Firewall, install it now. 9.b Setup and configure network connection. Install your modem/network drivers. Create and configure your network connection(s). 9.c Run Window Update to scan for new drivers and updates. Next, connect to the Internet and use Windows Update to scan for drivers and updates. Use Windows Server Update Services or the System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM) if available and if the computer is networked on a local Intranet. The discussion below is centered on those using Windows Update. It had been so long since I started Windows Update manually that I had completely forgotten about its strange behavior. The Windows Update Window will show that it is looking for updates, and then it will close. It took me awhile to remember that although it appears that Windows Update has died a look at the notification icons on the taskbar shows that Windows Update is busy downloading updates (Figure B). Figure B Task Manager shows Windows Update process wuaudt.exe running. When I ran Windows Update after installing SP1, there were 28 important updates (Figure C) and thirteen of those were security updates (Figure D). I asked if there was a way to get the security updates created after SP1 in a downloadable cumulative security update file and was told that they are available only via Windows Update. Figure C Windows Update Window shows 28 important updates, totaling 159.4 MB after manually installing Vista SP1. Figure D Clicking View Available Updates reveals the 28 important updates since the release of SP1 — already marked for update. 9.d Install SP1 manually (optional). Install the service pack from either a disc or a file. A manual install of Vista SP1 (Figure E) requires about 7GB of free space for the 32-bit version and 13GB for the 64-bit version. Figure E These updates are installed after manually installing Vista SP1. 9.e Create a new Restore Point. After SP1 is successfully loaded, I immediately create another restore point manually and call it Clean Install with SP1 or a similar identifiable name. I do this before installing any drivers and apps. I know I will be installing a lot of drivers and apps and some of those, like video card drivers and apps, may be problematic. If I begin to have problems after loading numerous apps and drivers, it is nice to be able to go back to the Clean Install with SP1 point and restart loading the apps and drivers. Please read Remove All Remnants of the Windows Vista SP1 Installation by Greg Shultz for instructions about how you can recover disk space gobbled up by the SP1 installer. 10. Reload your drivers and apps. One thing is almost certain now that Windows has been reinstalled — some of the generic drivers that Windows has installed are not optimal. If you are lucky enough to have an auto-update utility from your motherboard manufacturer, install the latest version that you downloaded earlier, connect to the Internet, and fire up the update app. Do NOT update the BIOS. This option may be available in your motherboard update app and it may be called a BIOS update, but it is more commonly known as a BIOS flash. A BIOS flash is not a driver update. You also want to avoid any option labeled Update All. Next, pull out your list of drivers requiring manual installation and install them now. I keep my apps on a separate logical drive labeled Vista x64 Apps. It is a good idea to now go to the logical drive/folder where you keep your app files and wipe it clean. This is the fastest way to clean out the deadwood files that you will never use again. If you have all your apps on one logical drive and nothing else is stored there, it is best to format the logical drive before reloading your apps. Some programs like your newsreader usually store information like group messages on this logical drive. Export this information to your \Archive folder if you don't want to lose it before formatting the logical drive. If you are running Intel's Matrix RAID, install the Intel Matrix Storage Manager. It is finally time to reload all your applications. Take a peek at the desktop JPEG you created earlier or use a list of your core apps to determine what apps you want to install. Install to a fully formatted non-system logical drive. There are two basic strategies when reloading your apps. You can reload the apps you use the most and load additional apps when needed or load a full list of apps up front. I prefer to load the core apps and load additional apps only when needed. Take it from experience — it is not a good idea to load a lot of apps requiring a system restart and postpone the restart. Install a few at a time, restart the computer, and see if all is still well. If you do find a problem, you can return to the last known good restore point or uninstall the offending app. If you find no problems, consider manually creating a new restore point. Don't forget to reload your e-mail messages, e-mail contacts, browser favorites, and other data that you exported earlier back into your newly reloaded apps. The final word Even a casual glance at this list reveals that loading Windows is the easy part of your reinstall project. The prep work and configuration will occupy most of your time; plan the actual date and time of the install accordingly. There is one more final bit of housekeeping to do. If you reinstalled Windows in a folder with an existing installation of Windows, you should decide what to do with the Windows.old folder. You will not find this folder if there was insufficient space on your system partition during the Windows setup. If you are reinstalling Vista, the Windows.old folder will be too large for a single-layer DVD but may fit on a dual-layer DVD. You can archive it to a backup drive, or if you have followed the steps carefully in this article and are satisfied that you have all your Windows-specific data, simply zap it into oblivion. Congratulations! By completing the 10 steps outlined here, you have prepared your computer for years of maintenance-free service. You have also protected yourself from data loss due to a hard drive failure.