1.4.3 The Internet …for Work and Home. 1.4.3 Specification 1 2 3 4 5

1.4.3The Internet

…for Work and Home

1.4.3 Specification

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The Internetas a Business Tool

Be able to discuss the advantages and disadvantages to the organisation, and to the

consumer, of using the Internet as a business tool

Internet: Business UsesUse of Browsers for Business

• To keep up-to-date with the cultural world of their field• To see what competitors are doing• Staff could visit related websites• Staff could perform detailed searches using a search engine

Online ordering from suppliers• Checking the status of orders/accounts

Online management of customer orders (a database)• … progress reports via e-mail• … mail shots of special offers• … confirmation of orders via e-mail

Internet: Business UsesUse of Email for Business

To communicate by email• ... using a shared address book• ... using contact groups• ... to multiple recipients• ... using attachments

Internet: Business UsesAdvantages of Email for Business

• The same emails can be sent to all participants at the same time using an address book/contacts list

• The sender of an email can get confirmation that the message was opened by each recipient by requesting automatic notification

• Relevant attachments can be sent with an email such as the agenda

• The meeting date can be added automatically to each recipient’s calendar

• The recipient can be notified of new mail automatically/on the desktop

Internet: Business UsesUse of Forums for Business

Using an Internet forum or message board:• Managers could register as members• ... and submit/contribute to topics (threads)• ... or communicate via messages visible to all

members (posts)

Internet: Business UseUse of Videoconferencing

Videoconferencing:• Each manager would need a webcam• ... and a microphone

Internet: Business UseAdvantages of Videoconferencing• The participants do not have to travel to one

location, thereby saving travel/accommodation expenses

• The participants do not have to travel, so travelling time is eliminated/the meeting can be set up at short notice

• The meeting can be saved in digital form and replayed/used for staff who could not attend/kept as a record of the meeting

Internet: Business UseSearch Techniques

• The customer could use a search box• The customer would enter key words • . . . about the product being searched for• . . . and follow the links in the list of results• Alternatively, the customer could use

hyperlinks• . . . or tabs on the website• . . . to navigate to the appropriate page

Advantages of the Internetto Businesses (1 of 3)

• Increased customer base through access to global market as any buyers with Internet access can purchase products

• Sales 24/7 as buyers can purchase products unrestricted by shop opening hours

• Greater e-communication with customers via e-mail, pop ups, online surveys, search engine referrals

• More effective use of multimedia/interactive navigation


• Can search more competitive prices from wholesalers globally

• Can respond to market forces faster by updating the web site, rather than updating prices manually in a shop

• Increased chance of “accidental” visitors due to search engine matches and multimedia advertisements/reviews

• Can build up a substantial database to spot market trends


• Stock efficiencies/increased range of goods because it is a virtual store, minimising storage requirements and allowing the use of drop shippers

• Reduction in overheads as goods get stored in single/cheaper locations

Disadvantages of the Internetto Businesses

• Added competition from international businesses

• More difficult to build up customer loyalty• Harder for local retailers to survive due on the

rise of online selling• Sophisticated precautions need to be put in

place to combat hackers, fraud, corruption, viruses etc, and these require regular updates

• Initial setup costs may be high

Advantages of the Internetto Consumers

• Access to global market place – can search for a competitive price (Note the growing number of websites that compare prices for you)

• 24/7 access to goods and services – not restricted to shop opening hours

• Can buy whilst in any geographical location• Can buy goods and services from home,

saving expenses e.g. travelling, parking• Can buy goods that are not available locally

Disadvantages of the Internetto Consumers

• Fraud, identity theft and hoax websites arise

• Time delay before you receive your goods

• Additional delivery charges can apply• Cannot judge the quality of the goods

you are buying

Disadvantages of the Internetto Consumers

• People can become isolated (housebound) – there is no human interaction online like there is in a shop

• Requires hardware/software you may not have• Requires a level of ICT literacy for accurate use• Businesses may stop stocking products locally,

or the service you require may only be possible in-store

The Internet At Home

Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of using the Internet

at home

Uses of home Internet

• Entertainment: Games, movies, sounds etc.• News: feed, browse, push notifications• Social networking and instant messaging• Shopping: buy locally or worldwide• Teleworking: work from home• Smart homes: adjust settings while abroad• Backups and archiving: personal/professional• VLEs: School, University• 3G mobile phone app usage: Wi-Fi

Advantages of home Internet

• Greater access to information without have to leave your home

• Can work form home (teleworkers)• Greater access to different types of

entertainment (download programmes, films, music, game systems)

• Online shopping (helps some people to cope)• Communication is global – social networking,

instant messaging, Skype, email, mobile etc.

Disadvantages of home Internet

• Online information is hard to verify (sources)• Greater access to unsuitable material• Phishing websites (impersonate genuine retailers)• Closure of local retailers, banks and Post Offices• Reduction of social interaction – rise in isolation• Privacy can be compromised – videos broadcast

against your will, difficult to verify who you are speaking to

Teleworking

How ICT enables teleworking• Teleworking = working from home• Telecommunication links (such as broadband)

enable staff to access the company’s computer system/website from home

• They can access the same customer data and provide the same help that they could if they were actually working at the company’s site

TeleworkingHow ICT enables teleworking• Advances in telecommunications• . . . such as broadband and satellite networks• . . . enable employees to access the company’s

database remotely/from anywhere in the world• . . . in exactly the same way as if they were working

on the company’s premises• Electronic bulletin to keep staff informed• Electronic forums to keep staff in contact with one

another/the company • Company intranet to provide policy

documents/commonly used forums

Teleworking

Advantages to the Business• Reduced staffing costs• They do not have to provide working space,

dining/toilet facilities etc. (heat/light cheaper)• They can access a wider employee base• They can employ staff in areas of high

unemployment, or in areas where people already have the required ICT skills

• They can work across many time zones

Teleworking

Disadvantages to the Business• They have less management control over their

employees• It may be difficult to monitor each employee’s

standard/rate of work• Employers may find it more difficult to meet their

legal obligations to their employees• . . . e.g. the physical working conditions• . . . e.g. health and safety issues• It is difficult to maintain a corporate ethos

Teleworking

Advantages to the Employee• They do not have to travel to work, saving costs in

terms of both time and stress• They can arrange their own working hours• They can look after young children while working• They save the costs of paying a crèche/childcare• They can be more actively involved in the children’s

development• Enables people in certain circumstances to manage

home and working life, providing an income in difficult home circumstances

Teleworking

Disadvantages to the Employee• Less favourable employment conditions• Inferior working conditions• Part-time contract/reduced pension rights/no

access to trade unions• No direct personal supervision/feedback• No quiet workspace may be available• No contact with other employees

Internet Issues

Be able to describe issues surrounding the Internet such as security,

plagiarism and censorship

Internet Security: Issues

• Identity fraud: Personal details keyed in during a transaction may be intercepted (via keystroke logging) and used for unauthorised purchases

• Phishing/fraudulent emails: User asked to supply personal/banking details via a bogus email. ISPs offer phishing reporting services

• Viruses: these may be downloaded while using online services, damaging your data/PC

Internet Security: Issues• Spyware: attached to programs, they hide and

record passwords etc of the user and used for illegal purposes

• Spam/junk mail: nuisance, block e-mail accounts. Can be blocked using ISP filters only partially successful

• Pirated software: that looks legitimate but is a copy often containing viruses that damage computer systems

• File sharing: legitimate file sharing software is often used most only work efficiently if the firewall is de-activated open the computer to attack

Internet Security: Advice

• Use anti-virus software, updated regularly• Do not open suspicious emails• Do not visit dubious websites• Use passwords on wireless networks• Block pop-ups• Always log off interactive websites• Delete Internet cookies• Set browser security levels

• Install spyware removal programs (ad-Aware, spybot)

• Only install licensed software• Regularly check for security updates• Do not post personal details onto web pages• Report phishing to your ISP

Internet Security: Advice

Plagiarism

• The vast amount of material on the Internet has greatly increased the incidence of plagiarism

• Information about almost any topic can be obtained with a few clicks of the mouse via search engines

• Most of the information is free

Plagiarism

• Many people are tempted to “cut and paste” material and pass it off as their own

• This is difficult to detect as this involves tracking down the source of the plagiarised material

• It is such a problem that universities use special software to detect plagiarism

• The Copyright, Designs and Patents Act makes plagiarism illegal

Plagiarism

Read: A Cut and Paste Generation

Using plagiarism detection programs, all coursework gets scanned so that they can identify information that as been copied or paraphrased, before submitted for marking

Methods of detecting it can be very clever and complex; it is difficult to bypass them

Censorship

• Censorship is the suppression of speech or writing considered to have an undesired influence on society

• It has become more difficult for governments to control/suppress information as national borders are difficult or impossible to enforce

• Some websites publish information that some governments would like to censor

• Residents in a country banning certain information may be able to access it on websites hosted outside the country

Censorship

• Some countries have resorted to a complete ban on citizens using the Internet

• Some countries (e.g. China) use sophisticated techniques to block specific websites/portals/forums/blogs

• . . . by blocking or re-directing their IP addresses

• . . . or by monitoring data packets for words such as “democracy”

Censorship

• File blocking is achieved by routing all network traffic via a proxy server that filters any requests for blocked files

• Blocked e-mails will be re-directed and sent to the network administrator for filtering

Censorship

Censorship is used for various reasons:• Political – China: http://tinyurl.com/283znb• Commercial – ISP controlling access• Crime – governments are beginning to realise that

full access to the internet is causing legal, political social and moral problems for society. Therefore a discussion about types of censorship are opening up.

• Could use blanket filters like “China”• Restrict access to bandwidth – AOL• Read this: Global net censorship

Online Transactions

Be able to compare security methods available with regard to online

transactions – https, Paypal

https

• A protocol used to encrypt sensitive data sent between client and server

• Indicated by a padlock/key symbol on the toolbar

https

• Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure• A protocol providing secure/safe Internet

transactions/via a secure web site• It is used when the information being

communicated is sensitive or confidential, such as credit/debit card details

• It uses encryption so that the information being transferred back and forth is encoded

• . . . and will be meaningless to any unauthorised parties who intercept the data

https• https is a protocol• When a user connects to a website via https a secure

session is created• The website uses encryption• … for sensitive data such as bank details• … using a digital certificate• … which has a private key restricted to the owner• … and a public key given to the user• The website must have a Secure Socket Layer (SSL)

Certificate, which must be verified/trusted

PayPal• Secure financial service• Holds payment until goods delivered and quality

has been verified• Money is transferred through PayPal accounts,

not ordinary bank accounts• Acts as a third party, so a fee may be charged• Keeps bank details confidential from multiple

sellers if you always go through PayPal• It is embedded in many commercial websites such

as eBay

PayPal

PayPal• PayPal safeguards the buyer’s and seller’s

bank details• The buyer and seller must each have a PayPal

account (…it is set up using an email address and a password)

• PayPal transfers money from the buyer’s account to the seller’s account

• … so that the buyer’s confidential details are withheld from the seller and vice-versa

• Fees are charged depending to whom you are sending funds

Central Authority

• Central verification authority• Produce digital certificates• Verifies that a web site is who it claims to be• Examples:

– VeriSign– GoDaddy

HTML

Be able to explain how Internet pages are created with HTML

HTML• HTML is a programming language• … which controls the appearance of a web page/tells

the browser how to display a web page• It uses special tags• … to specify the structure of the web

page/header/body• … to specify the content/multimedia

elements/text/images/tables• … to set attributes such as fonts/background colour• … and hyperlinks/navigation buttons• Style sheets can be created to control sections/pages

HTML• HTML can be used to create and edit web pages • . . . set the properties of the web page • . . . using tags• . . . insert multimedia elements (text, images, sounds, moving • video clips)• . . . edit the layout of a page• . . . using tags • . . . create style sheets for consistency of style on a number of • web pages • . . . insert hyperlinks to navigate from one page to another • . . . insert frames to a page to split it into different areas • . . . include sections of program code to provide

animation/interactivity

A Web Page• A web page is just a file full

of plain text

• It uses the extension:.htm.html.shtml

• More advanced sites may use .asp or .php, but these just generate the HTML behind-the-scenes

.html

Website Content

VIDEO

INTERACTIVE ANIMATION

SOUND

Web Page Structure

<html>

<head></head>

<body></body>

</html>

Tags

<html></body>

<title>}These are called TAGS

They use < and >

Closing tags have a / after the <

Open the Intranet home page. Right-click and select View source. Locate the <html> <head> and <title> tags at the top

Tags

• <html>• <head>• <title>• <body>• • <img />• • <table>

• <ol>• <ul>• <li>• <hr />• • • • <div>

Nesting

• It is incorrect to write:<head><title>Victoria College</head></title>

• Look at your notes. How do you fix this?

Read the remainder of the first page of your notes and attempt the questions on the second page.

A Basic Web Page

<html><head><title>Smarties</title></head>

<body>I love Smarties.They are crunchy and bright.</body>

</html>

Draw a sketch diagram of this

website on a piece of paper to show how it

will look in a web browser.

Cascading Style Sheets (CSS)

• CSS = Cascading Style Sheets• This is ALSO a plain text file• It controls how web pages look in a web

browser• 1 style sheet held anywhere online can be

used for millions of web pages, saving hours of time in the design process

• A Bebo skin is CSS in action: changing the appearance by linking a web page to a new style sheet

Cascading Style Sheets (CSS)body

{background-color:yellow;}

h1{color:orange;text-align:center;}

p{font-family:"Arial";font-size:20px;}

Any web page which is linked to this style sheet will end up with a yellow background, orange headings that are centred, and the text will be in Arial size 20px.

1.4.3 Specification

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1.4.3 TASKS

The Internet for Work and Home

TASKS #1The Internet for Business

1. Describe how the Internet gets used as a business tool

2. Outline the key advantages of using the Internet from the perspective of the business and its employees

3. Outline the consequences for a business if its Internet connection failed

TASKS #2The Internet at Home

1. How has the use of the Internet affected domestic lifestyles?

2. What are the main drawbacks of having an Internet connection in the home?

TASKS #3Internet Issues

1. Explain what is meant by plagiarism and outline its consequences

2. Explain how censors go about censoring material

3. Outline 4 security issues that exist on the Internet and describe 1 safeguard for each risk

TASKS #4Online Transactions

1. Describe the key features of https2. Name 3 advantages to a purchaser of

using PayPal as a means of online payment3. Explain the steps involved in the use of

PayPal

TASKS #5HTML

1. Write the HTML that a web browser could use to render a web page that looks very like this slide

2. Explain how HTML is structured

Documents

1.4.3 The Internet …for Work and Home. 1.4.3 Specification 1 2 3 4 5