VoIP& IM

Instant messaging is a real-time conversation between two or more people using the internet. This involves sending messages though typing. This allows for quick and easy communication.

IM providers-

· MSN

· GTalk

· Skype

· AOL

· Yahoo

VoIP is similar to IM, except the only thing being sent is sound, just like making a phone call but through the internet. To use VoIP, you will need a headset/speakers and a microphone. You could also include a webcam to allow visual communication. Usually, this service is free for providers such as Skype, however some VoIP providers charge you every week/month/year. Special types of phone are available to communicate using VoIP.

VoIP Providers-

· Skype

· Voipbuster

· LiquidIT

4G Networks – What effects will it have?

The key feature and improvement that this new generation of wireless mobile internet service will provide is:

• Speed: This technology wouldn’t be much of advancement if it did not improve significantly on speed compared to its predecessor. When it finally arrives in the UK in 2013, 4G will be able to offer high quality data rates at around 100 Mbps which works out to between 4 and 6 times faster than 3G.

 

Task 1.26

·         Low income

·         Live in a rural area

·         Weak literacy skills

·         Have a disability

·         From an ethnic minority

·         Are elderly

These groups in society don’t have access to the latest technology as they either can’t afford them, aren’t ready for the technology or just simply because they don’t want it. The elderly, for instance, may not want to take a step forward in the technology as they may not be able to understand it. If you have a low income there is no need to spend money on luxuries where you need the essentials.

Task 2.3:

a)      https://passports.ips.gov.uk

b)      http://www.passport.uk.com

c)       http://www.passports-office.co.uk/

‘A’ is the real website as it has the ‘s’ after ‘http’ and it is a ‘.gov’ website, meaning it is directly from the government or local council.

Task 2.4:

As there is only one real website, it gets bogged down by all of the fake websites. There are also a few Forums discussing how to apply for a passport which come above the real website.

Skills Builder 2.2

a)      Where can they buy a pass?

b)      Can they get a cheap rate because they are 17?

c)       How much will a month’s pass cost?

d)      Can they get on any train in Europe, or do they have to book in advance?

e)      What are the rules about using the pass in Britain?

Answers-

a)      Online at http://www.interrailnet.com/passes/ordering-info/how-order

b)      You get a 35% discount if you are 25 or under

c)       Global Pass –

Youth	Adult	Senior	Child
2nd class €422	2nd class €638	2nd class €575	2nd class €319
1st class €977	1st class €977	1st class €880	1st class €489

One country pass – (Price varies depending on the country)

Youth	Adult	Child
2nd class €205	2nd class €311	2nd class €156
1st class €476	1st class €476	1st class €238

d)      They have to book in advance for that country otherwise they can’t get on the train, unless they already have a global pass.

e)      Available for 3, 4, 6 or 8 travel days within 1 month.

Take as many trains as you want on each travel day.

If you're under 26, you can buy the discounted pass for youth.

 

Pros and Cons of using a Mobile Phone in public

Pros

Safety – In planes and hospitals, phones can interfere with equipment. A 1997 ‘New England Journal of Medicine’ study found that talking on a phone while driving increased the risk of an accident by 4. This is almost equal to the danger from driving drunk.

Peace and quiet – Many people go to places such as libraries to focus and do work. People talking on the phone in places like this are distracting. Even when people go out to a restaurant, they feel entitled to a relaxed atmosphere, as some mobile phone users use language inappropriate for anyone to hear, especially young children.

Inconveniencing others – Mobile phone users will usually multitask, trying to carry on a conversation while using an ATM, driving or buying something from a shop. Their divided attention becomes an obstruction to the cashier and an inconvenience to those behind them who have to wait longer.

Cons

Safety – Some argue that having 999 at the touch of a button is critical to maintain personal security. Mobile phone bans impede drivers’ ability to report an accident, road rage incident, medical emergency or crime. Drivers assert the importance of calling for directions if lost or receive help if their car breaks down.

Emergencies – As genuine emergencies do occur, some calls can’t wait. People who have sick or elderly family members, parents expecting an important call from their child and those in the middle of a crisis believe it’s acceptable to leave their phones on in public.

Personal freedom – Cell phone bans may intrude on their personal freedom. As they pay high monthly price for this communication option, they believe they can use the devices wherever and whenever they choose.

Online Marketing

Online Marketing

Methods of shopping are switching to online methods department stores, mail order, telephone order are all doing this as most people start looking online before going anywhere else. We hardly see catalogues anymore, it costs way too much and is unnecessary as people didn’t seem to want catalogues anymore as there are easier and better methods. An online store is pretty much a catalogue as it has all of the products in one place and has more information than just the price, a picture and a small description. Online you get customer reviews, ratings, delivery; special offers may also become available through online purchase. An online is also more eco-friendly as it saves the overuse of paper.

Argos is one of the few companies that have scrapped using a catalogue. Companies such as Littlewoods, Ikea and Wickes still use catalogues.

Task 1.21

IMAP4 vs POP3

Internet message access protocol is one of the two most prevalent Internet standard protocols for getting e-mails, the other protocol is Post office protocol. Virtually all modern email clients and mail servers support both protocols as a means of transferring email messages from a server.

POP3	IMAP
Since email needs to be downloaded into desktop PC before being displayed, you may have the following problems for POP3 access: You need to download all email again when using another desktop PC to check your email. May get confused if you need to check email both in the office and at home. The downloaded email may be deleted from the server depending on the setting of your email client.	Since email is kept on server, it would gain the following benefits for IMAP access: No need to download all email when using other desktop PC to check your email. Easier to identify the unread email.
All messages as well as their attachments will be downloaded into desktop PC during the 'check new email' process.	A whole message will be downloaded only when it is opened for display from its content.
Mailboxes can only be created on desktop PC. There is only one mailbox (INBOX) exists on the server.	Multiple mailboxes can be created on the desktop PC as well as on the server.
Filters can transfer incoming/outgoing messages only to local mailboxes.	Filters can transfer incoming/outgoing messages to other mailboxes no matter where the mailboxes locate (on the server or the PC).
Outgoing email is stored only locally on the desktop PC.	Outgoing email can be filtered to a mailbox on server for accessibility from other machine.
Messages are deleted on the desktop PC. Comparatively, it is inconvenient to clean up your mailbox on the server.	Messages can be deleted directly on the server to make it more convenient to clean up your mailbox on the server.
Messages may be reloaded onto desktop PC several times due to the corruption of system files.	The occurrence of reloading messages from the server to PC is much less when compared to POP3.

POP3 maintains a collection of text files - one for each e-mail account. When a message arrives, the POP3 server simply appends it to the bottom of the recipient's file.

Using IMAP an email client program can not only retrieve email but can also manipulate message stored on the server, without having to actually retrieve the messages. So messages can be deleted, have their status changed, multiple mail boxes can be managed, etc. 

Task 1.11

Teacher – Laptop for on the go access for files and class work. Can work from home if needed and can easily move from classroom to classroom

News Reporter – A news reporter would use a Notebook as it has high mobility, and its main use is for writing up documents

Website Designer – Desktop, working in a stationary environment, working with something purely on the computer- a desktop would be the wisest choice.

Doctor – Desktop, high performance and with no real need to move from the office/room.

Traffic Warden – A PDA would be the easiest choice for a traffic warden as it doesn’t take long to start up and is easily mobile.

A cell phone has combined two technologies: telephone and radio. Cell phones work as two-way radios. They send electromagnetic microwaves from base station to base station. The waves are sent through antennas. This is called wireless communication.

There are two types of cell telephone networks:

· Analogue networks

· Digital networks

Most of the older cell phones use analog networks. All modern phones use digital networks.

As you talk on your phone, it converts your voice into an electrical signal, which is then transmitted as radio waves and converted back into sound by the phone on the other end. A basic mobile phone is therefore little more than a combined radio transmitter and a radio receiver, quite similar to a walkie-talkie or CB radio.

In order to remain portable, they need to have compact antennas and use a small amount of power. This means that mobile phones can send a signal over a very short range.

The cellular network enables you talk to your friends, however far away they are. This is done by dividing up land into hexagonal areas of land, each equipped with their own phone mast (base station.)

These massive phone masts pick up the weak signal from your phone and relay it onwards to another phone mast nearer to your friend on the other line. And if you’re on the move while you talk, your phone switches masts as you go without interrupting your call.

Source - Edexcel GCSE ICT Student book

Highest energy consumption	Watching Internet TV
	Using GPS when meeting friends
	Surfing the Internet
	Talking to friends
	Using the calculator
	Taking photos
Lowest energy consumption	Sending text messages

 

Fashion Phones
Fashion phones can be different shapes and have the ability to be customised. Buttons may be in odd places and may not be inconvenient to use. They can be bright colours and highly designed, appealing to the fashion-conscious person.
Features often include high-spec cameras, the ability to store large amounts of data like photos and videos, and speakers that allow music to be played out loud. The batteries are designed to last longer but can be bulky, often making the phone larger.

Business Phones
Business phones use a slim, sleek design, usually in black or metallic colours. They have large screens and an integrated, full QWERTY keyboard.
Features often include speaker phone, voice activated dialling, the ability to synchronise it with other devices like netbooks and laptops, large screens to enable work on data files, GPS to get the user to unfamiliar destinations with ease, camera, PDA, and 3G compatibility for internet access – allowing users to carry one device rather than many.

Multifunctional Phones
Multifunctional phones combine both style and business features, appealing to the mass market rather than a niche. They have the best of both worlds: high-spec features, large amounts of storage, high-speed processing, slim design with touch screens and access to the internet.

New audience - The elderly have not had phones to fit in with their needs; a lot of phones nowadays are too complicated for the elderly to understand as a whole. Although a minority do actually understand the new technology mobile phones have within them, they are more likely to use less advanced mobile phones. There are several factors which need to be altered in order to suit the elderly, Weight of phone, Interface, Screen resolution, Navigation or menu system, Number of features available, ‘Panic button’ to reach relatives easily, Volume capacity of speakers, Size of screen and buttons.

Concerns of a 10 year old having a mobile phone

·         Texting too much can lead to repetitive strain injury (RSI)

·         Mobile phones have not been around for long, so scientists are unsure of the risks associated with using them. As a precautionary measure, government health advisers recommend that children under 16 should not use mobile phones regularly.

·         Overuse of ‘text speak’ could have an impact on the ability to spell words correctly.

·         Young people can be the victims of bullying and crime if they are targeted for their phone.

·         If the mobile phone has Internet access, the child will be able to access almost every website there is, mobile phones lack the ability to block websites not suitable for children.

Image Types

Monochrome Bitmap -
A Monochrome bitmap is black and white bitmap file. A monochrome bitmap is a rectangular grid of pixels, but each pixel is represented by a single bit. Eight pixels are in each byte of the bitmap. Monochrome bitmaps are often used for bitmapped text or single-colored images.

16/24/256 Colour Bitmap -
A representation in which each item corresponds to one or more bits of information, esp. the information used to control the display of a computer screen. The more bits there are, the bigger the file size and the higher the definition of the image.

JPEG -
In computing, JPEG is a commonly used method of lossy compression for photographic images. The degree of compression can be adjusted, allowing a selectable tradeoff between storage size and image quality. JPEG typically achieves 10:1 compression with little perceptible loss in image quality.

GIF -
The Graphics Interchange Format (GIF) is a bitmap image format that was introduced by CompuServe in 1987 and has since come into widespread usage on the World Wide Web due to its wide support and portability. It is a popular format for image files, with built-in data compression.

TIFF -
Tagged Image File Format (abbreviated TIFF) is a file format for storing images, popular among Apple Macintosh owners, graphic artists, the publishing industry, and both amateur and professional photographers in general. As of 2009, it is under the control of Adobe Systems.

PNG -
Portable Network Graphics (PNG) is a bitmapped image format that employs lossless data compression. PNG was created to improve upon and replace GIF (Graphics Interchange Format) as an image-file format not requiring a patent license.

The table shown below shows all of the possible options of buying a 64GB iPhone 5 from certain Mobile Phone providers (Orange, TMobile, O2 and Vodafone) I have collected all the data from each of the four websites and sorted it out on this speadsheet. The spreadsheet shows the inital cost of a 64GB iPhone 5, the amount of calls (minutes) texts, Internet, Monthly cose and Plan length.

Network	64 GB iPhone 5	Calls	Texts	Internet	Monthly cost	Plan length
Orange	£ 269.99	Unlimited	Unlimited	1GB	£ 36.00	24 Months
Orange	£ 209.99	Unlimited	Unlimited	2GB	£ 41.00	24 Months
Orange	£ 179.99	Unlimited	Unlimited	3GB	£ 46.00	24 Months
Orange	£ 129.99	Unlimited	Unlimited	Unlimited	£ 51.00	24 Months
T-Mobile	£ 269.00	2000 + Unlimited TMobile calls	Unlimited	Unlimited	£ 36.00	24 Months
T-Mobile	£ 219.00	Unlimited	Unlimited	Unlimited	£ 41.00	24 Months
T-Mobile	£ 189.00	Unlimited	Unlimited	Unlimited	£ 46.00	24 Months
T-Mobile	£ 139.00	Unlimited	Unlimited	Unlimited	£ 61.00	24 Months
O2	£ 249.99	Unlimited	Unlimited	1GB	£ 26.00	24 Months
O2	£ 199.99	Unlimited	Unlimited	1GB	£ 31.00	24 Months
O2	£ 99.99	Unlimited	Unlimited	1GB	£ 36.00	24 Months
O2	£ 49.99	Unlimited	Unlimited	1GB	£ 41.00	24 Months
O2	Free	Unlimited	Unlimited	1GB	£ 46.00	24 Months
O2	Free	Unlimited	Unlimited	1GB	Free	24 Months
Vodafone	£ 169.00	Unlimited	Unlimited	2GB	£ 47.00	24 Months
Vodafone	£ 229.00	Unlimited	Unlimited	2GB	£ 42.00	24 Months
Vodafone	£ 289.00	Unlimited	Unlimited	1GB	£ 37.00	24 Months
Vodafone	£ 329.00	600 Minutes	Unlimited	500MB	£ 33.00	24 Months
Vodafone	£ 319.00	1200	Unlimited	1GB	£ 51.00	12 Months
Vodafone	£ 379.00	900	Unlimited	1GB	£ 46.00	12 Months
Vodafone	£ 439.00	600	Unlimited	1GB	£ 41.00	12 Months
Vodafone	£ 499.00	300	Unlimited	500MB	£ 36.00	12 Months