Book excerpt: The only IT guide you need You're busy-very busy. You need reliable, practical answers to yourIT questions, and you need them now. The Vest Pocket Guide toInformation Technology, Second Edition is a handy pocketproblem-solver designed to provide you with the quickest route to asolution. Practical, reader-friendly, and thoroughly illustrated,this updated handbook provides complete guidance for the complex,ever-changing world of IT to help you quickly pinpoint what youneed to look for, what to watch out for, what to do, and how to doit. Written by two all-time bestselling accounting and finance authors,Jae Shim and Joel Siegel, this thoroughly updated Second Editionincludes tables, forms, checklists, questionnaires, practical tips,and sample reports to help you avoid and resolve any and all ITdilemmas. A must-read for business professionals, financialmanagers and consultants, production and operation managers,accountants, COOs, CFOs, and CEOs, this handy guide helpsyou: * Select the best hardware for particular applicationneedsStrategically use IT systems * Use the best software in planning and control * Select Sarbanes-Oxley compliance software * Prevent fraud through computerized security * Effectively apply Management Information Systems (MIS) * Use online databases to make business decisions * Use a decision support system (DSS) and an executive informationsystem (EIS) to improve the quality of analysis, evaluation, anddecision making * Understand emerging trends and developments in informationtechnology * Harness marketing information systems to improve sales planning,sales forecasting, market research, and advertising * Evaluate and manage an IT project Your professional success depends on keeping abreast of the latestthinking and applications in information technology. The VestPocket Guide to Information Technology, Second Edition gives youall the information you need to make optimum decisions now and planahead for later.