Wednesday 29 September 2010

The effects of ICT on our social and personal lives

 Mobile Phones

Mobile phones are the most popular means of mobile communication in the world; there are more than 5 billion mobile subscriptions globally. This way of communicating is so vastly popular that there are estimated three times more mobile phones used in the world than personal computers. This is far higher than the first UK phone companies ever predicted; during their launch in 1987 an industry insider predicted a maximum of 10,000 phones sold. Now it seems that almost everyone owns a mobile phone; often more than one. The average age of a child receiving their first phone is now 8 in the UK, meaning that even younger children are believing that communicating this way is the norm and is quickly becoming part of children's lifestyles.


A mobile phone has many functions; it eradicates the need to meet somebody to communicate with them as you can call them at the touch of a button from wherever you are, even across international borders. There are now thousands of mobile phone tariffs to choose from which offer a variety of different features such as minutes, texts, Internet usage allowance and voicemail. These tariffs are tailored to different people's needs and often unlimited options are available so young people especially can text thousands of times a months for one set price. However there are still pay-as-you-go options available, although these are becoming less popular as the value offered in monthly contracts becomes more worthwhile. We often see mobile phones used as the medium of communication between friends, often planning events via text messaging or voice calling, and this method of communication is by far the most popular in the world. In the UK alone in 2009 a total of 96.8 billion text messages were sent.

SMS allows the user to send short messages to another mobile phone user, this message can contain anything from information to a question. However there is also an option to send an MMS message- this is an extension of the SMS services allowing text and multimedia such as videos and pictures to be sent between a group of people. This feature often comes at an extra charge but allows large data sharing from across the globe; if you want to send your family or friends a picture of what you're doing on holiday for example all you require is a picture phone and the phone number of who you wish to send it to. This method of communication is not nearly as popular as SMSing, only 1.6 million sent per day in the UK compared to the 265 million texts, however the numbers are rapidly growing.

Now mobile phone technology is so advanced that not only can we voice call others, but we can conduct video calls from the touch of a button. There is often a camera built in to the face of the phone that projects your image to the recipitant whilst you can see their face at the same time. You can also access the whole Internet via your phone; sites such as Facebook, Youtube and Google are among the most popular mobile sites accessed in the world. This feature not only eradicates the need for a computer to be connected to broadband to access the web, but now unlimited streams of information can be accessed whenever, and wherever you want.

Teenagers in particular have been affected by the growth of mobile phone usage; this study in America showed
  • 47% of teens say their social life would be worsened without their mobile
  • 4/5 teens (17 million) owned and used a mobile phone
  • 57% see their phone as the key to their social life
  • 52% agree that mobile phones are a new source of entertainment
  • 80% say it provides a sense of security on the go, and if they forget or lose their mobile they feel a sense of incompleteness (they are so used to having the device on them they feel uncomfortable without it)
  • astonishingly 52% of teens can text blindfolded.

This study shows how much mobile phones have affected our personal and social lives, they have rapidly become one of the most important items to own by the younger generations and they have become so dependant on this mobile form of communication that they feel 'lost' without it. The study indicates that as technology is advancing it is fast becoming an invaluable addition to the way we communicate; it is fast, on the go and private and is everything our society wants in modern times. Compared to the initial creation of mobile phones in the early 1980s nothing could have predicted the sheer popularity and dependence our society has formed on this mode of communication, allowing it to become one of the most important methods of social and personal organization in the world today.

Advantages:

  • Quick and easy methods of communications
  • It connects the whole world at the touch of a button
  • Cheap and effective
  • Allows people to talk wherever they are
  • Eliminates the need for landlines
Disadvantages:

  • Could have effects on the use of English language
  • Makes people's social skills decrease as they are reducing the frequency of personal communication
  • Scientists argue that the excessive use of mobile phones increases our exposure to radiation and increases the risks of cancer
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1286665/Mobile-phone-users-times-likely-develop-brain-tumour.html

Social Networking

Social networking sites such as Facebook, Myspace and Twitter are fast becoming the most subscribed and used sites on the Internet. A social network is described as a variety of people grouped together in a small virtual community; in this community you can talk to whoever you like from the web, talk to friends and meet new people. It is an online way of socialising both with old and new friends, and allows an easy method of communication to be established so people do not lose touch with each other.

Facebook is the most popular social networking site in the world; there are over 500 million subscribers over the globe amounting to roughly 1 in every 14 people (including young children) are subscribed to Facebook. This is a substantial number of our population that is part of this reveloution of social networking; and the cliche opinion that the majority of users are youths is not nessasserily correct as research shows that 3 in 4 parents are signed up to the site often to keep an eye on their children. This proves that Facebook is an personal site for all types of people, regardless of age and gender.

  • More than 50% of facebook acounts are used each day
  • The average person has 130 friends.
  • Users spend more than 500 billion minutes per month on Facebook.
  • Average user is connected to over 60 pages, groups or events.
  • The Average user create 70 prices of content each month.
  • More than 25 billion pieces of content (web links, news stories, blog posts, notes, photo albums, etc.) shared each month.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1313014/Big-Mother-watching-Three-parents-use-Facebook-check-childrens-university-antics.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

Blogging (Web logging) is also an extremely popular form of socialising online. It allows bloggers to post their thoughts and ideas on various blogging sites such as Blogger and Tumblr- you can also post pictures and videos about subjects of your choice. On these sites you can often add 'followers' and you can read recent blog posts and keep up to date with their personal lives via what the Blog; it's a fast and mobile way of updating people about what you're up to. By adding followers you are effectively building up a network of people who share similar ideas and values as you do, and you can begin building friendships with them.

Advantages:

  • Allows you to meet a wide range of people
  • Enables you to join interest related groups which allows you to talk freely about the subjects you are interested in
  • The majority of sites are free
  • Allows you to keep in touch with friends and family who live a long distance away
  • Is easy to share photos and videos with hundreds of people all at the same time
Disadvantages:

  • Privacy is always an issue; people may find our personal things such as your address or phone number
  • Can often cause a lot of viruses that spread easily
  • Scientists argue it effects your 'social health' making you less adapted to social situations because of the time you spend socializing via a computer rather than in real life
  • Social networking sites often take a lot of time and effort to keep interesting; it can be very time consuming keeping up to date with everything

Laptops

The very first computer was invented in the 1940s and were the size of a large room, each machine consuming the same amount of power equivalent to a few hundred modern laptops. However the first laptop wasn't invented until 1984; it weighed 30 pounds and had a memory of 64kb. It cost £1500 which is in stark contrast to the cost of laptops today where prices range from around £300. In the 1980s laptops seemed items of complete luxury; only the richest and most affluent people could own them due to their cost and complexity. However in this day and age owning three or more laptops in one household is considered the norm; 190 million were sold worldwide last year alone, showing just how popular they are today. 


Owning a laptop opens a whole new world of possibilities; now you can take you computer to work or school with you and access all your files you've been working on at home wherever you are. It is especially popular amongst young people who have a larger sense of freedom as they can communicate with their friends online without having to be in the family room where the computer is often situated. Laptops are also wireless; they can connect to the internet via wifi wherever there are as long as there is a wifi hotspot near you, or you can purchase a USB stick that allows for permanent connection to the internet all over the country. This means you can take you laptop anywhere in the house and you can still access the web.


Laptops are a big part of the world's social life today; it's estimated that 43% of the UKs population own a laptop. Studies showed that in 1992 18.60% of households owned at least one computer and in 2002 59.30% of households owned at least one computer. This shows how much laptops have become a part of our lives; they connect us in seconds to the world wide web and store immense amounts of data that can be accessed wherever you need it to be. It's allowed millions of

Results of a survey I conducted asking people how many
computers they had in their households.

people to meet online via 
chat rooms and online dating services and has started a social aspect of its own- online gaming and chatting.


Advantages:



  • Allow for mobile connection to the internet and access to your personal files
  • can be used anywhere
  • battery life means they can be used without being plugged into the mains
  • more privacy
  • Lower power requirements
  • Can enhance learning opportunities and gives students their own space to work on 

Disadvantages 

  • Up to date models can be extremely expensive
  • Difficult to repair and upgrade
  • Some software is incompatible with laptops
  • As they are portable they are more likely to be stolen
  • Can have adverse affects on your health, for example your fertility in men (see link two)
  • Hard to monitor your child's behaviour and what sites they are accessing (see link three)



Other

There are millions of other examples of ICT in our daily lives that effect our personal and social lives; these can be in many forms;
  •  Such as the self service ticket machine at train stations that allow us transport to go out to meet friends. 
  • Those who go to the gym after work encounter all sorts of ICT; from the barriers in which they swipe their gym card, to the treadmills that record your calorie loss and the drinks machines they can purchase liquids from
  • iPods and other personal music players with in built speakers are good examples of technological advance in our society; music has evolved from the walkman, to the mp3 and now to the 3G which not only allows music, videos, files and games to be stored, but also connect to the internet
  • Games consoles, in particular for young males, can be played so consistently they can be considered pastimes and shape someone's social life around the gameplay

How does it affect the economy?
The development of all the new technology in the market today to ehance our social and personal lives has caused economy to boom and billions of pounds to be made in profit in companies all over the world. The mobile phone companies in particular have made revenue in excess of $500 billion since it's development in the 1990s; the fact that in developed countries such as the UK and the China there is more than one mobile phone perscription per person indicates that more phones that necessary have been bought and activated across the nation. The combination of all the various companies have caused extortianate amounts of profits to be developed worldwide due to their success; in particular the company Apple. The creators and reailers of iPods, Macs, iPads and several other advanced pieces of technology means they are one of the most economically rich companies in the technology market today behind the Giants such as Google and Microsoft who are involved in almost every coputer sold in the developed world.

How does it affect society?
These advances have allowed us to arrange our social and personal lives around the developments such as mobile phones, laptops and iPods. People are now spending more time online meaning that more people are meeting over the Web; this is a far cry from society decades ago where friendships and relationships were initiated in person and there was no such technology to keep you occupied. The development of technology has also altered society's pastimes; many years ago young boy's would favour sports over any other form of entertainment however in a 2009 census young boys in the UK voted for video games as their favourite activity. In turn girl's have also put television as their favourite activity to participate in in their free time meaning that our society has become completely technology centered. No longer are we a society that relies on tradtional activites to pass the time as we are now relying on devices such as computers and televisions to create enjoyment in our spare time. There are millions of oppurtunites to find online activites to participate in such as games and online forums that allow people to form relationships and meet people they would never have had the chance to meet in real life, for example those from other countries. In some extreme cases the only social interaction people have may be through the computer to those on the other side of the web allowing technology to completely take over their social and personal lives.

How does it affect the individual?
ICT can affect an individual in many ways depending on the attitudes of the person in question- for example there are some types of people who choose not to engage fully with technology and choose not to use it for entertainment purposes and only use it for work related purposes. However for the general population advances in ICT mean that people can now chat instantly with their friends over various programmes meaning that social events can be planned quickly and of little effort. For myself I believe that having such variations of technology available for my use means that my social life can be arranged quickly over text, facebook or email and is a much more efficient method of communication than word of mouth; this enables plans to be made quickly and made certain in minutes. It has also altered my personal life as when at home I have a computer which gives me access to endless amounts of information, a television with hundreds of channels, an iPod with hundreds of tracks and applications and various games consoles to keep me occupied and can shape my personal life as much as I wish them to. Although depending on what country someone lives in and what life chances they have can change the ways in which ICT affect an individual's personal and social life as those in developing countries will not have these items at their disposal to keep them entertained and as a means of communication to organise events with their friends.

5 chosen topics 1.2

1. The effect of ICT on personal and social life
2. The effect of ICT on school life
3. The effect of ICT on the way we communicate
4. The effect of ICT on entertainment
5. The effect of ICT on the way people work

Thursday 16 September 2010

Tesco Direct


Tesco direct is the online shopping service set up by Supermarket Giants Tesco- it was first available to the public via an offline download service from 1998-2005 however as broadband was now widely available they created Tesco Direct on the Net. Due to Tesco's 300 local stores all around the country, it's delivery services are able to serve 98% of the country and is currently the world's largest on line grocery delivery service.


The main site, Tesco.com, is solely dedicated to providing groceries and general day-to-day shopping that may be needed by members of the public. There are thousands of food produces to choose from, and also other home furnishings. There is a link at the side of the page that directs the user to Tesco Direct; the partner site that is compatible with the Tesco catalogue that is distributed to local houses and in-store. The Tesco Direct store is more focused on electrical items and does not sell groceries; it is more entertainment based. The items on the website are then split into twelve main categories depending on what genre they fit in to, this makes finding the item you need easier. The orders are depending on how many items can be found in each section; PC Photo & Gaming has the most products and therefore features first in the list. Clicking on these sections opens up a whole inventory of items that can purchased on the site; often at a reduced price than what can be found in store- also double Clubcard points are often offered to on line customers as an incentive to use the Net based facility. Clubcards can be held by frequent shoppers at both Tesco instore and Tesco Online; every time you make purchases points are added to your account; accumulating points allows you to transfer them for vouchers to be spent in many stores, restaurants and airlines nationally.


When you are viewing the list of iPods for example, you have to option to change in which order you view them- for example by price or title. The price option is especially handy to those who may be shopping in a price range and can't afford the more pricier versions of a product. To expand on this point, there is also a feature on the side that allows you to select your price range so nothing that is more expensive than your selected top price is shown. Also, you can read reviews that have been left by other buyers; this may influence your purchase as you would not wish to buy something that has been faulty or not worth the price tag. Reviewers also score the product on a series of tests which varies for each product that is reviewed; for iPod features such as battery life and sound quality are evaluated and the average results are posted on the website.


Tesco also relies on their customers opinions and constructive criticism to enhance their site and to make it more suited to the people that use it most. At the top of the page there is a link that says 'Rate This Page'; clicking on this causes a short quiz to appear. Customers are here able to rate things about the site such as content, design and ease of use- they can also add their own personal comments to make sure their opinion is heard. Getting reliable feedback from the customers allows Tesco to improve their features based on the demands of the public, making it more user friendly and popular.






When the goods are purchased by the buyer can either collect them in store for free or choose the option of door to door delivery. The cost of delivery varies from £5.00 (small package next day delivery) to £19.50 (large kitchen appliance purchase under £200, pre-selected delivery time). Next to the prices list is a comparison to Tesco Direct's main competitors Argos; all the prices are reduced which would be a selling point of the company- they're cheaper than the other main brand. 





Advantages:

  • You can save a lot of money though offers that are often only available for online customers
  • If you have a reward card, you can get double the amounts of points for buying online
  • Organised and sorted in terms of price so you can see all the items in your price range
  • Saves you having to go all the way to the store to purchase items
  • Can be fitted in to a busy daily schedule
Disadvantages:
  • It takes days for delivery to occur; it would be more practical to go out and purchase the item so you can take it home with you
  • Doesn't necessarily save you money; added card handling fees and delivery costs could rack up your price

News Stories:


Tesco is trialling the UKs first Drive Through store
http://topnews.net.nz/content/27562-uk-s-first-drive-thru-store-be-opened-baldock


Tesco has designed an iPhone app that allows you to do your weekly grocery shopping and send it off to be ordered
http://topnews.net.nz/content/27562-uk-s-first-drive-thru-store-be-opened-baldock

Amazon.com

Amazon.com is an American based online shopping site that allows users to buy products from various retailers all around the country; versions that are adapted to the individual countries have been created, such as amazon.co.uk. It was launched in 1994 and originally sold only books; however due to popular demand it branched out it's stock and sold DVDs, music, games and other electronic goods. A 2009 survey stated that Amazon was the UK's top retailer for music and video purchases and third top overall.

The layout of the website is very user friendly, the main screen holds host to many advertisements that help fund the running of the site. The main focus of the homepage is the 'What other customers are looking at right now' section; it shows various items that are popular and what other online users were searching for at the time. Also, once you set up an account with Amazon, it tailors this section based on previous transactions. This is a good way of advertising their goods as they know what the user will want to purchase and may promote sales. All the items in this section also show price cuts; these may be exaggerated or possibly made up to try and influence people to buy their products at a good value price.

There are hundreds of thousands of items that are sold on Amazon, so a good categorization method is needed so that users will know where to find them if they do not know the name of the product they are looking for. The search bar at the top of the screen is 'live'; this means that as you are typing what you want, a list of suggestions pop up asking if that product is what you're looking for. This can be useful to those who do not know the exact name of the product they want and saves time when searching. There are eleven sections that the site is split into; most of these are electronics or accessories however there is now a small section devoted to toys and furniture- this greater diversity of goods will attract a wider range of buyers. When you hover your mouse over each section a pop up menu appears showing examples of what you could expect to find in the section which is useful if you are not one hundred percent certain as to which item you are looking for is in which section.

When searching for you goods you can use a 'basket'; this hypothetical basket allows you to store items that you intend to buy without you having to individually purchase each thing you want. You can add as many items into this basket as needed, and when you come to the end of your purchase you are asked to pay for all items simultaneously. There is also a feature called 'Wish List'; this allows a user (who is signed in) to make a list of products that they want to purchase in the future so they don't forget. These may also be a list of expensive products that one wishes to save for- these wishes can also be seen by other users so it's useful if you have a birthday coming up; this ensures that you get gifts you really want. This feature is also really flexible; you don't have to add only amazon products into the list, items from any website you like can be added.

Amazon also has a section devoted to Mp3 downloads; they have almost 15 million songs on record- almost as many as iTunes. These songs are often priced at either 89p or 69p however there are a large number of free tracks that can be downloaded- these may be older songs, or songs that have been requested to be downloaded free by the artist to raise the popularity of the song and to allow it to be heard by lots of people. There is also the option to purchase whole albums; these may appeal to people who are too busy to actively go and purchase an album from the store or for those who only wish to use the CD on their music device or computer. Songs can be arranged in order of price, time, bestselling, letter or length so it is easy to find any song you want. This feature of downloading songs may also appeal to those who do not have an iPod or another Apple product and therefore do not use iTunes or have an iTunes store account.

Advantages:

  • Offer millions of products for cheaper prices
  • Secure buying- if you do not receive what you were under the impression you were buying you can contact the sender and receive a full refund
  • Fast delivery- you can often choose for free (or at a small cost) next day delivery
  • Allows you to create a basket and pay for all your items together at the end of you purchases instead of one by one
  • Can create a wish list so others can see what you want to buy and perhaps use this information to buy you gifts, and also for you to know what you want to buy in the future
  • Not only can you purchase physical items, but Amazon now offer almost the same number of songs as iTunes and often for lower prices
Disadvantages:
  • Users can be sold dodgy items and the sellers can provide false contact information so it is easy to scam
  • There is such a wide variety of items and qualities that you may be unsure of which is the best value of money


News Stories:

Amazon removes all Macmillan ebooks from their site over a row involving prices

Tens of thousands of books fell drastically in the ranks on Amazon after an error; in particular many books themed around gay romances and causing outrage online, particularly on Twitter.

Wednesday 15 September 2010

Yahoo Mail vs. GMail

Miniclip



Miniclip was founded in 2001 on a budget of only £400,000; it's headquarters are situated in Switzerland and has had turnovers of £20,000,000 for the last two years. The first game that was added was called 'Dancing Bush' which enabled gamers to make then current President Bush perform certain dance moves, the character was created by the face of Bush being superimposed onto a pre-recorded dancer; this game created a lot of traffic and put the website on the world stage encouraging further games to be added over time.

The layout of Miniclip is very user friendly and categorises games into sections depending on their genre, popularity and release date. The main focus of the page is on the 'Latest Games' section; this shows latest popular releases that are new to Miniclip, and by advertising them it raises their Play Hits and ensures they are given a chance to be reviewed. Next to this there is also a 'Hot Games' list; this provides the 6 most played games at that time, showing the gamer what games are popular at the moment and are worth playing. Underneath this feature there is a Top Ten Games list showing the ten most popular games on Miniclip; this shows quickly and effectively what games are well rated. Under each genre the top played/rated games are shown in quick-links; however to view all lower rated games in that section you must click a link and are redirected to an inventory of games.

Miniclip is a free website; all games that are played here do not cost the user anything. However as Miniclip needs funding to keep the site running they advertise companies to generate revenue; companies will be eager to advertise there as Miniclip is a popular site that gets millions of views each day. The adverts are chosen based on your location (only UK companies will be advertised in the UK) and are often directed at the younger generation who are most likely to use the site; such as phone companies and computer games. Advertisements are situated on the home page, all game inventories and on the actual game page itself; by placing ads everywhere this enables more people to see them.

Users can sign up for a free account if they are regular users; this allows them to save their high scores and earn rewards- this process is also free and only requires a User name and password to be entered. Some games, such as Club Penguin, require a user name and password. This service is also restricted for younger children, not allowing them to converse freely (only using set phrases pre-built into the game); this is to ensure Internet safety. Club Penguin has become extremely popular since it's debut on Miniclip in 2005; it has now been bought by Disney and cakes and toys dedicated to the series have been produced and sold all over the world. It generates a lot of traffic on the Miniclip website and pushes almost one million plays every day worldwide.




Advantages:

  • Free to play
  • There are a wide variety of games available, not only on Miniclip, but on hundreds of other gaming sites that can keep you entertained for hours
  • Appeals to a wide range of people and suits for lots of interests
  • Now available via the iPhone
Disadvantages:
  • Frequent ads all over the sites
  • Addictive to play and can become time consuming
  • May slow down your computer with various add ons needed to play the games
  • Viruses are sometimes disguised as games and infect unsuspecting users' laptops

News Stories:


Miniclip is now playable on mobile phones and on the iPod touch via an app;
http://whatisthetrend.net/miniclip-enters-mobile-gaming-industry-20103179.html



Tuesday 14 September 2010

Youtube work- Charlie bit me

Charlie Bit Me- with over 230 million views it is the most viewed non-music video on Youtube.

Youtube


Youtube was founded in 2005 by three former PayPal employees and is based in San Bruno, California. The website allows users to sign up for a free account and post videos they have created themselves for the world to see, they can also rate, like and comment on other's videos. Youtube is now the third most visited site on the web, trailing behind Yahoo and Google respectively. It accumulates over 500,000,000 hits per day and there are over 20 billion videos uploaded; it would take over 1000 years for a person to watch each video on Youtube (but by the time you'd finish they'd be a billion new ones).

Signing up to Youtube takes only a few minutes; registration is necessary to view videos online however it gives the user extra privileges such as uploading videos, commenting and if they are over 18 they can watch restricted content videos; signing up is also free. When Google took over Youtube in 2006, and as Google accounts became more popular, users were required in 2010 to use their Google password if they were signed up to both Youtube and Google with the same email address. Once connected to your Youtube account you can update your profile with information such as 'interests', 'music preferences' and 'about me'. This makes your profile seem a little more personal and allows you to find and subscribe to people with similar interests as you. There are over 500,000,000 registered accounts on Youtube today.


Youtube is the biggest and most used entertainment site in the world; it is worth over 315 billion pounds and uses the same amount of bandwidth as the whole Internet did in 2000. It has the biggest collection of videos on the net, and allows people to become famous in their own right via posting videos on there; for example Charlie bit me, The evolution of dance and The laughing baby (aka hahahaha) are all well known videos all around the globe, accumulating over 500,000,000 views. Youtube is also a good place to start for aspiring musicians and recording artists who want to be seen online, and the comments section allows for constructive criticism and praise, and is also a good place for music companies to look for fresh talent that's already proved popular with the public. A good example of a Youtube celebrity is Justin Bieber; only 12 years old when he began posting videos of himself singing so that his family could see him perform. He was later signed by Usher and given a recording deal, all thanks to his videos on Youtube becoming huge. Now the 16 year old pop star is not only one of the most recognised faces in the music industry, but holds the record for the most views of a video on Youtube, ever. An astounding 323,497,084 views (as of 14/09/10). 


Youtube is by far the most popular video sharing site in the world; this popularity means that you are almost certain to find any video you need somewhere on the site. If you are interested in a particular hobby or want to keep up to date with the latest news then you can find everything you need on this one site. Often 'channels' can be created; these can be for a band or a News station, if you subscribe to this channel then you can be notified every time they post a new video so you are also kept up to date with the latest videos. Video news is one of the fastest growing examples of video viewing online as the most popular news stories are released on to the site to ensure the widest audience possible can view them. Not only are news stories available on Youtube now, but popular TV stations have created channels on the site (such as Channel 4) that allow people to watch TV shows legally and for free via Youtube; this minimises the risk of people breaching copyright to post the show on the site. 


However Youtube has had issues in the past with it's copyright policy, although when uploading a video you are prompted to agree that the video contains no footage of music concerts, companies, TV shows or films etc, almost 16% of all videos on Youtube are violating copyright terms. Youtube does not check each video before it is uploaded so the footage may not be found (unless reported by many users) or it may take a while for the Youtube team to take down the offending videos. As Youtube videos can generally not exceed 10 minutes in length, movies that are illegally posted on the site are often split into many parts; allowing viewers to watch for free, something which they should have purchased. Also, songs that are used in videos must be mentioned by the poster, and often a link to purchasing the song on iTunes appears to ensure the artist receives full recognition for their song and to encourage legal music downloading. As you are watching the video advertisements often appear; these are featured and often relate either to the subject of the video or similar content that may appeal to the general audience. These advertisements are one of the main reasons that the website remains free; Youtube would prove popular with companies wishing to advertise as their popularity worldwide would place them top of the list due to page views and the variety of users found there. 


























































Advantages:

  • Good chances of finding the video you want due to the variety available
  • Quick streaming
  • Makes it easy to see things such as music videos whenever you want and new videos
  • News stories and TV shows are now available to be viewed legally via Youtube
  • Allows you to comment and like to spread your opinion on the videos
  • Allows people to connect from all over the world
Disadvantages:
  • Copyright is frequently breached in millions of videos posted on the site
  • Traffic is extremely high, sometimes causing the site to crash or take a long time to load videos
  • If watching on a bad connection it can take a long time for a video to buffer, or else the video is constantly stopped and started
  • Excessive advertisements 
  • a 10.59 time limit on videos unless you're an official partner of Youtube

News Stories:


19 year old American college student creates 'Youtube Instant' which allows users to search Youtube in real time, getting immediate results.
http://edition.cnn.com/2010/TECH/web/09/14/cnet.youtube.instant.creator/




17 year old Finnish student posted threatening videos saying: "I am prepared to fight and die for my cause. I, as a natural selector, will eliminate all who I see unfit, disgraces of the human race and failures of natural selection,"
He went on to massacre 7 students and the headmistress of a school in Helsinki.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/11/08/2084826.htm?section=justin

Monday 13 September 2010

Skype



Skype was founded in 2003 initially as an instant messaging site; was bought by Ebay in 2005 and video chat was added by the end of that year. By the April of 2006 Skype had already accumulated 100 million registered users; the unique selling point of Skype being the ability to make free calls to other Skype users, all around the world. This meant that even international calls were free, as long as both users were using Skype.

One of the most appealing features of Skype is the video chat; users can use webcam or the camera on their mobile phone to project images to each other, accompanying live audio chat via microphones. Video calling is also free, no matter where you are in the world, and enables you to talk with loved ones from the comfort of your own home, without having to pay a penny. Also the clarity of the picture when using video chat is very high, images are not blurred and lagging is very uncommon, making Skype a reliable choice for regular users. This video feature is extremely popular among all users as it not only allows them to talk face to face with people far away but it's also available wherever you are via Skype Mobile.

Skype offers extremely reasonable rates for your mobile for overseas calling; for under £10 a month you can make unlimited calls to landlines and/or mobiles all over the world. And for only £5 a month you can make calls to all of Europe. Also you can send SMSs at a much lower rate- texting as far as the USA will cost you less than a penny, whilst using other mobile tariffs can cost up to 50p per text. You can also buy 'Skype Credit', this credit can be used to call landlines and mobiles, send text messages or even to purchase a Skype mobile number so that non Skype users can ring your Skype number. This credit remains in your account for 180 days after the last action on your account, then it is wiped- therefore you should ensure to send an SMS or make a phone call at least every 6 months to keep their balance untouched.

The text instant messaging system that accompanies the video chat feature is also very useful bother on it's own and in conjunction with the video calling. It is especially useful when you want to share things such as a URL or send files to the person you are talking to.  There is also a tool that shows you when the other person is typing to ensure you don't both speak at the same time and end up in a confusing conversation. The text IM feature is useful in situations where it just isn't convenient to talk out loud; such as on public transport or in a quiet office; the use of text only chat eradicates the need for noise, and allows silent communication.

However there have been some negative comments about Skype on the Internet; the main source of a problem seems to be Skype's lack of a contact telephone number, or any other means of official direct communication, to report any malfunctions with the site or any personal problems that may occur. For example many errors with billing have been mentioned, customers have been overcharged or charged for incorrect transactions and have had no means of reporting the problem and to receive refunds.

Advantages:

  • Calls are free from Skype to Skype and extremely less expensive from Skype to phone
  • You can hold conference calls with up to five people all across the world
  • You can send files and photos whilst conducting a video call at the same time
  • Allows you to purchase credit so you can use this when calling phones
  • Skype has made communication easier breaking down the usual problems as time, distance and money.
Disadvantages:
  • If using Skype on a bad connection, the images sent are often slow and out of sync with the voice call
  • Need equipment; such as a web cam and microphone, to use the programme
  • No good Skype customer service
Skype news stories:

Man sees the birth of his first child in the USA all the way from the army barracks where he is stationed in Iraq via Skype.