My best ‘source’ or site was “Academy Awards The Oscars” (Dirks, T, www.filmsite.org). This site provided a comprehensive description of the history of the Academy Awards or Oscars, from the first ceremony in May 1929 to outlining the criteria required in the early years for winning an Oscar. The article then moves on to comments about the awards themselves. It then moves on to the various categories of awards and lists the winners in award categories 1927/28-39, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s and award summaries.
The site does state that it is not affiliated with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. However, when compared to the Academy site, the history outlined on this site appears to be correct and in line with the history outlined on the Academy site.
The filmsite provides a clearly indexed outline to search for Academy Award winners over previous years and I believe was written with the intention of providing clear and accessible information to its readers.
In terms of your own future use, which ‘body’ of information (ie the original ‘snapshot” of the site, or your own, annotated analytical version) would be most useful to refer back to?
In terms of external users (ie if you included this site as a hyperlink or resource on a website) which body of information would best help them judge if the site was useful or of interest to them?
The original ‘snapshot’ of the site provides the reader with only a very brief outline of the information with more comprehensive information being available on the website. The ‘snapshot’ generally only displays the key words entered in the original search with some additional information from the website. For future use, an annotated, analytical version would provide a more comprehensive resource to be used in any work assignment. In the annotated version a summary of the website content, author, date can be provided which would not be available on the snapshot.
In terms of external users possibly the ‘snapshot’ may be more useful as the contents would not be as long as the annotated version. An external user searching for the topic would the ‘snapshot’ more appealing. Additionally, a ‘snapshot’ allows more results to appear on a search page compared to a more lengthy annotated version.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Module 4 - Organising search information task
When searching for my sources for the Academy Awards History, I saved my information on to Word. I know that we have covered a number of other software in this course but for me Word is one that I am most familiar with and find very useful to remember where I have saved information. With time I would like to become more familiar with some of the other software that we have learnt about but did not feel comfortable to do this at this stage. So Word it was!
Site 1
URL: http://www.filmsite.org/oscars.html
Author: Tim Dirks
Institution: Filmsite
Summary: The Academy Awards®, affectionately known as the Oscars®, are the oldest, best known, most influential, most prestigious, and famous of film awards. The awards (and gold-plated statuettes) have been presented annually (the first awards ceremony was held in May of 1929) by a non-profit professional organization - the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), based in Beverly Hills, California, and founded in 1927. Pricewaterhouse (now PricewaterhouseCoopers) has managed the Academy Awards balloting process since 1935 - all but the first six years of the Oscars. Ever since 1941, when their now-famous confidential envelope system was introduced, marking the first year of complete secrecy, "the Envelope Please" has become a familiar phrase that evokes the thought of the Academy Awards® ceremony (http://www.filmsite.org/oscars.html,
Site 2
URL: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academy_Award
Author: Wikipedia
Summary: The Academy Awards, popularly known as the Oscars, are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS)[1] to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers. The formal ceremony at which the awards are presented is one of the most prominent film award ceremonies in the world. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences itself was conceived by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studio boss Louis B. Mayer.
Site 3
URL: http://www.oscars.org/awards/academyawards/about/history.html
Institution: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
Summary: There was little suspense when the awards were presented that night: the recipients had already been announced three months earlier. That all changed the following year, however, when the Academy decided to keep the results secret until the ceremony but gave a list in advance to newspapers for publication at 11 p.m. on the night of the Awards. This policy continued until 1940 when, much to the Academy’s consternation, the Los Angeles Times broke the embargo and published the names of the winners in its evening edition – which was readily available to guests arriving for the ceremony. That prompted the Academy in 1941 to adopt the sealed-envelope system still in use today.
Fifteen statuettes were awarded at the first ceremony for cinematic achievements in 1927 and 1928. The first Best Actor winner was acclaimed German tragedian Emil Jannings, who had to return to Europe before the ceremony. The Academy granted his request to receive the trophy early, making his statuette the very first Academy Award ever presented.
Site 1
URL: http://www.filmsite.org/oscars.html
Author: Tim Dirks
Institution: Filmsite
Summary: The Academy Awards®, affectionately known as the Oscars®, are the oldest, best known, most influential, most prestigious, and famous of film awards. The awards (and gold-plated statuettes) have been presented annually (the first awards ceremony was held in May of 1929) by a non-profit professional organization - the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), based in Beverly Hills, California, and founded in 1927. Pricewaterhouse (now PricewaterhouseCoopers) has managed the Academy Awards balloting process since 1935 - all but the first six years of the Oscars. Ever since 1941, when their now-famous confidential envelope system was introduced, marking the first year of complete secrecy, "the Envelope Please" has become a familiar phrase that evokes the thought of the Academy Awards® ceremony (http://www.filmsite.org/oscars.html,
Site 2
URL: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academy_Award
Author: Wikipedia
Summary: The Academy Awards, popularly known as the Oscars, are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS)[1] to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers. The formal ceremony at which the awards are presented is one of the most prominent film award ceremonies in the world. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences itself was conceived by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studio boss Louis B. Mayer.
Site 3
URL: http://www.oscars.org/awards/academyawards/about/history.html
Institution: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
Summary: There was little suspense when the awards were presented that night: the recipients had already been announced three months earlier. That all changed the following year, however, when the Academy decided to keep the results secret until the ceremony but gave a list in advance to newspapers for publication at 11 p.m. on the night of the Awards. This policy continued until 1940 when, much to the Academy’s consternation, the Los Angeles Times broke the embargo and published the names of the winners in its evening edition – which was readily available to guests arriving for the ceremony. That prompted the Academy in 1941 to adopt the sealed-envelope system still in use today.
Fifteen statuettes were awarded at the first ceremony for cinematic achievements in 1927 and 1928. The first Best Actor winner was acclaimed German tragedian Emil Jannings, who had to return to Europe before the ceremony. The Academy granted his request to receive the trophy early, making his statuette the very first Academy Award ever presented.
Module 4 - Boolean Searching Task
To use the same key words of my last search in Searching the Web, I used Academy Awards History to search and perform the following Boolean searching on the Internet task:
1. The biggest number of hits relating to these key words
To search: Academy OR Awards OR History
In this search the addition of OR between Academy, Awards and History is using the full Boolean search option and enables more records to be able to be searched as there is a combination of words in the search. The results however may not provide the exact information being search due to the combination of words.
2. Information most relevant to what you ACTUALLY wanted to look for!
To search: Academy AND Awards AND History NOT Oscars NOT 2009
In this search the reference to Oscars and to the current year are not what is being searched and therefore should be excluded from the results. Using the word AND should provide results specific to the search whilst the NOT should eliminate reference to Oscars and 2009 from the results.
3. Information coming only from university sources
To search: +Academy+Awards+History+edu
When searching the above words, 186,000,000 websites were provided in 0.26 seconds. The first website did provide a “full and complete history and commentary on the Academy Awards from its early beginnings to the present…by decade and by individual year” www.filmsite.org/oscars.html.
A search on Google Scholar through a university site provided results in 0.12 seconds of which there were 87,000 websites. Certainly a search through a university source narrowed the number of results to be found. In the search through the university, the domain ‘edu’ was not used.
Overall, the more specific the request for the search, the greater the chance of receiving results which are tailored to the request.
1. The biggest number of hits relating to these key words
To search: Academy OR Awards OR History
In this search the addition of OR between Academy, Awards and History is using the full Boolean search option and enables more records to be able to be searched as there is a combination of words in the search. The results however may not provide the exact information being search due to the combination of words.
2. Information most relevant to what you ACTUALLY wanted to look for!
To search: Academy AND Awards AND History NOT Oscars NOT 2009
In this search the reference to Oscars and to the current year are not what is being searched and therefore should be excluded from the results. Using the word AND should provide results specific to the search whilst the NOT should eliminate reference to Oscars and 2009 from the results.
3. Information coming only from university sources
To search: +Academy+Awards+History+edu
When searching the above words, 186,000,000 websites were provided in 0.26 seconds. The first website did provide a “full and complete history and commentary on the Academy Awards from its early beginnings to the present…by decade and by individual year” www.filmsite.org/oscars.html.
A search on Google Scholar through a university site provided results in 0.12 seconds of which there were 87,000 websites. Certainly a search through a university source narrowed the number of results to be found. In the search through the university, the domain ‘edu’ was not used.
Overall, the more specific the request for the search, the greater the chance of receiving results which are tailored to the request.
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Module 4 - Searching the Web
The search engine that I have used predominantly is Google and have always found it to be fast and useful. On occasions I have found that unless I am quite specific in my search, I am presented with a large number of sites which were not really related to the topic I was searching for.
After undertaking the tutorials I was actually unaware of the different tools that are available to assist in searching for information and how the various tools are able to search more specifically for particular content. This has certainly assisted me in understanding search engines a bit more but I have a great deal further to go.
After undertaking the tutorials I was actually unaware of the different tools that are available to assist in searching for information and how the various tools are able to search more specifically for particular content. This has certainly assisted me in understanding search engines a bit more but I have a great deal further to go.
In this task I searched for “Academy Awards History” on Google. The search took 0.16 seconds and displayed 21,800,000 websites. The first site took me to “Academy Awards – The Oscars”.
I then searched on Copernicus, again used “Academy Awards History” and whilst the search did not reveal the number of seconds it took to display the websites, it was very fast. However, the site took me to only 74 websites. The first site again looked at the “2009 Oscars”. The following sites were the same as the Google search.
A further search on Yahoo Advanced Search, again looking at “Academy Awards History” took 0.7 seconds to find 64,800,000 websites, a further three times more websites than Google. Again the first site took me to the same website as the Google search.
Interestingly in all three searches the fact that the history was not listed as the first area for the search gave results in the current Oscars for this year before listing details about the history of the Academy Awards. Therefore searching quite word specific information is important as is being able to search and find the information you are seeking.
I then searched on Copernicus, again used “Academy Awards History” and whilst the search did not reveal the number of seconds it took to display the websites, it was very fast. However, the site took me to only 74 websites. The first site again looked at the “2009 Oscars”. The following sites were the same as the Google search.
A further search on Yahoo Advanced Search, again looking at “Academy Awards History” took 0.7 seconds to find 64,800,000 websites, a further three times more websites than Google. Again the first site took me to the same website as the Google search.
Interestingly in all three searches the fact that the history was not listed as the first area for the search gave results in the current Oscars for this year before listing details about the history of the Academy Awards. Therefore searching quite word specific information is important as is being able to search and find the information you are seeking.
Module 4 - Tools for Using the Web
In your learning log record which programs you downloaded and note which (if any) facets you think might prove useful.
As I do not use the majority of the programs listed in this task, I chose the Search Manager/Combiners “Copernic Meta for PC” and the Bookmark Manager, “Bookmark Buddy for Windows” to explore a greater understanding in both areas.
The download Copernic Meta for PC was quite easy to install (30 day free trial). I downloaded Copernic Desktop Search and it was installed in a very short period of time. I also downloaded Copernic mobile which allows you to search and acces your computer’s content from any location, using a mobile device. Following the download, a message box appeared asking whether I wanted Copernic as my default websearch engine.
Copernic Desktop Search I found to be very similar to Google Search however when conducting a search for a topic, I found that it provided less websites than other search engines and would not be my choice of search engine.
The download for “Bookmark Buddy for Windows” was also easy to install and did not take very long to do so. However, I was unsure as to its use and effectiveness even though its aim was to manage, sort and categorise favourites/bookmarks. Further investigation will need to occur to gather the benefits of this program.
As I do not use the majority of the programs listed in this task, I chose the Search Manager/Combiners “Copernic Meta for PC” and the Bookmark Manager, “Bookmark Buddy for Windows” to explore a greater understanding in both areas.
The download Copernic Meta for PC was quite easy to install (30 day free trial). I downloaded Copernic Desktop Search and it was installed in a very short period of time. I also downloaded Copernic mobile which allows you to search and acces your computer’s content from any location, using a mobile device. Following the download, a message box appeared asking whether I wanted Copernic as my default websearch engine.
Copernic Desktop Search I found to be very similar to Google Search however when conducting a search for a topic, I found that it provided less websites than other search engines and would not be my choice of search engine.
The download for “Bookmark Buddy for Windows” was also easy to install and did not take very long to do so. However, I was unsure as to its use and effectiveness even though its aim was to manage, sort and categorise favourites/bookmarks. Further investigation will need to occur to gather the benefits of this program.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Module 3 - Web 2.0
What’s the difference between Internet Communications Blinklist compared to html list? What are the benefits? Which format do you think you would like better and why?
Internet Communications Blinklist website compares favourably against the html version. The web design invites the user to explore the site and offers ease of use in exploring your way around. The index on this site also assist the user to search further and is a structured format for investigating and searching areas of interest.
The html version is not designed to enticed the user to explore further into the site. The content of the html version is difficult and cumbersome to follow compared to the Internet Communications Blinklist.
The benefits of the Blinklist compared to the html version is ease of use and a much more structured and logical format.
Internet Communications Blinklist website compares favourably against the html version. The web design invites the user to explore the site and offers ease of use in exploring your way around. The index on this site also assist the user to search further and is a structured format for investigating and searching areas of interest.
The html version is not designed to enticed the user to explore further into the site. The content of the html version is difficult and cumbersome to follow compared to the Internet Communications Blinklist.
The benefits of the Blinklist compared to the html version is ease of use and a much more structured and logical format.
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Module 3 - Blogs
In your learning log, record your thoughts. Consider various uses for blogs such as citizen journalism and personal blogging. Have you seen in your net travels any interesting uses for blogs? This blog entry is an opportunity to tell us what you really think of blogging!
This course has introduced me to writing my first blog and whilst at first apprehensive about what to write, the course outline has certainly directed me towards what needs to be recorded. When reading about blogs at first, the literature discussed that blogs can be used to record your thoughts, used as a reflective record, or used simply as an online diary. Reading other students blogs has been a very educational experience in seeing and understanding how other students interpret information and record their experiences, frustrations, joys. In this course, blogs have enabled students’ personalities to come through in the comments and it has been good to see that as an external student, there are similarities in personality with some of the other external students.
The other point of interest that I have found with blogs is that unless you record your thoughts at the time of doing an exercise, it is often quite difficult to recall the exercise a few days later, when you think you might continue with the blog. Blogs enable the experience to be recorded in actual time and there is no threat that what you have recorded is incorrect as it can be changed at a later time. You do not need to try to recall the exercise.
Overall I have enjoyed doing and reading blogs in this course and will continue to do so after the course has finished.
This course has introduced me to writing my first blog and whilst at first apprehensive about what to write, the course outline has certainly directed me towards what needs to be recorded. When reading about blogs at first, the literature discussed that blogs can be used to record your thoughts, used as a reflective record, or used simply as an online diary. Reading other students blogs has been a very educational experience in seeing and understanding how other students interpret information and record their experiences, frustrations, joys. In this course, blogs have enabled students’ personalities to come through in the comments and it has been good to see that as an external student, there are similarities in personality with some of the other external students.
The other point of interest that I have found with blogs is that unless you record your thoughts at the time of doing an exercise, it is often quite difficult to recall the exercise a few days later, when you think you might continue with the blog. Blogs enable the experience to be recorded in actual time and there is no threat that what you have recorded is incorrect as it can be changed at a later time. You do not need to try to recall the exercise.
Overall I have enjoyed doing and reading blogs in this course and will continue to do so after the course has finished.
Saturday, February 7, 2009
Module 3 - Legal Issues
1. Have you used images or words on your web page or website that contravene copyright laws?
I don’t believe I have used images or words on my web page or website that have contravened copyright laws. The images and words used were part of the educational context of this course and therefore would not be considered in breach of copyright. The instruction method used to learn to develop the web page directed the students to specific word content and images, similarly to direction used in a non electronic format, with such instructions directing the students to transfer the words or images on to their own website. In this context I do not think copyright laws have been breached.
2. Would you be in breach of copyright if you put the Curtin logo at the top of your web page for an assignment?
I do not believe I would be in breach of copyright if I use the Curtin logo on the top of my web page for an assignment as this would be considered part of the teaching and learning this is being conducted by Curtin University with the expectation that students construct a web page. As the direction is coming from Curtin University, the logo would be permitted as it would be considered an extension of the direction that had been given. I have looked at the Copyright Policy and Procedures for Curtin University and could not find any reference that the use of the logo by students would be in breach of any copyright laws. I belive this is supported as the work being conducted is in an educational context.
I don’t believe I have used images or words on my web page or website that have contravened copyright laws. The images and words used were part of the educational context of this course and therefore would not be considered in breach of copyright. The instruction method used to learn to develop the web page directed the students to specific word content and images, similarly to direction used in a non electronic format, with such instructions directing the students to transfer the words or images on to their own website. In this context I do not think copyright laws have been breached.
2. Would you be in breach of copyright if you put the Curtin logo at the top of your web page for an assignment?
I do not believe I would be in breach of copyright if I use the Curtin logo on the top of my web page for an assignment as this would be considered part of the teaching and learning this is being conducted by Curtin University with the expectation that students construct a web page. As the direction is coming from Curtin University, the logo would be permitted as it would be considered an extension of the direction that had been given. I have looked at the Copyright Policy and Procedures for Curtin University and could not find any reference that the use of the logo by students would be in breach of any copyright laws. I belive this is supported as the work being conducted is in an educational context.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Module 2 - Chat
I finally succeeded last night to get on to an ICQ chat (thanks Tess and Ausi1). Up until last night I have been struggling to get on to ICQ to connect with the NET 11 SP4 group. There was obviously a problem with my computer as I was being invited into the chat by other students but I was not seeing the file allowing me to accept the invitation. Finally, however, it worked last night and it was great to chat to other students about how they are going with the course.
As I am a novice to chat sites, it was interesting to see how fast the chat moves with everyone typing in their comments as quickly as one is posted. My only experience with chats has been observing my daughter chatting on Facebook. As I had such difficulty in getting on to the chat site, I had an opportunity in the previous week to look over the ICQ program and familiarise myself with the site. I think the ICQ site was easy to work around, once I was able to get on.
I enjoyed the chat experience and think it would be great fun to be involved in a chat group and can understand how people can get quite involved in various chat sites.
As I am a novice to chat sites, it was interesting to see how fast the chat moves with everyone typing in their comments as quickly as one is posted. My only experience with chats has been observing my daughter chatting on Facebook. As I had such difficulty in getting on to the chat site, I had an opportunity in the previous week to look over the ICQ program and familiarise myself with the site. I think the ICQ site was easy to work around, once I was able to get on.
I enjoyed the chat experience and think it would be great fun to be involved in a chat group and can understand how people can get quite involved in various chat sites.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Module 3 - HTML Tags
I'm having great problems upload my webpage on to the presentations page. I have had a number of attempts and each time the file appears as if it will be uploaded but is not listed against my group number. Have asked other students for help and hopefully will get some more insight. I have read the discussion threads and they're great, but still no success for me. I'll keep trying and keep you posted.
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Module 2 - Email Lists
What are the pros and cons of email lists versus discussion boards?
My experience with emails lists is solely through my work in a school where I manage and am part of a number of emails lists. These emails lists are based on specific groups of staff who meet regularly to discuss particular aspects of the delivery of education in a school environment.
The pros for the email lists are:
· Members of the list constantly check their emails
· The information is sent to all members at the same time
· Using the ‘reply all’ function allows response information to be received by all members at the same time
· Information is readily available in the Inbox
The cons for the email lists are:
· When the servers are down, we are not able to access emails
· When responses are given, the threads that need to be followed to have an understanding of the response can be very long and tedious to follow
· Large number of emails can be received
· Unless managed appropriately, with relevant folders, emails can be overlooked when receiving large numbers of emails on a daily basis
· In managing an email list it is necessary to ensure that appropriate members and their addresses are accurate and regularly updated
Discussion Boards
My experience with discussion boards has been with the University of South Australia discussion board and with the Curtin’s webct discussion board.
The pros for the discussion board are:
· Discussion board is sorted by a topic
· Threads can be easily started and followed
· Ideas and help can be easily obtained through discussion boards with threads providing alternative viewpoints
· Selection of topic to be followed is able to be done easily
The cons for the discussion board are:
· Following threads can often be long and repetitive
· Comments can move off the topic
· Need to search for relevant topic
My experience with emails lists is solely through my work in a school where I manage and am part of a number of emails lists. These emails lists are based on specific groups of staff who meet regularly to discuss particular aspects of the delivery of education in a school environment.
The pros for the email lists are:
· Members of the list constantly check their emails
· The information is sent to all members at the same time
· Using the ‘reply all’ function allows response information to be received by all members at the same time
· Information is readily available in the Inbox
The cons for the email lists are:
· When the servers are down, we are not able to access emails
· When responses are given, the threads that need to be followed to have an understanding of the response can be very long and tedious to follow
· Large number of emails can be received
· Unless managed appropriately, with relevant folders, emails can be overlooked when receiving large numbers of emails on a daily basis
· In managing an email list it is necessary to ensure that appropriate members and their addresses are accurate and regularly updated
Discussion Boards
My experience with discussion boards has been with the University of South Australia discussion board and with the Curtin’s webct discussion board.
The pros for the discussion board are:
· Discussion board is sorted by a topic
· Threads can be easily started and followed
· Ideas and help can be easily obtained through discussion boards with threads providing alternative viewpoints
· Selection of topic to be followed is able to be done easily
The cons for the discussion board are:
· Following threads can often be long and repetitive
· Comments can move off the topic
· Need to search for relevant topic
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Module 2 - Email Tasks
1. What information about a user’s email, the origin of a message, and the path it took, can you glean from an email message?
A user’s email message displays the sender’s name, their domain, who the email is intended for, the date and time the email is sent, whether a copy of the email has been sent to other people and the subject heading. Using an email message received through Outlook at my work and through checking the properties of the email message, the following information can be gleaned:
Protocol:` HyperText Transfer Protocol
Connection: Not encrypted
URL:
http://mail/exchange/FITZPAN/Inbox/February%20training%20update%20-%20Business%20SA.EML?
Size: Not available
Created: Not available
Modified: Not available
2. In what cases would you find it useful to use the ‘cc’, ‘bcc’ and ‘reply all’ functions of email?
The ‘cc’ function of email can be used when the information that is being sent to a person or group of people needs to also be available to another person or persons, for information purposes only and not for actioning. The ‘cc’ refers to a presumed ‘carbon copy’ being available to an interested party. In a school environment, this can be used when a memo is being sent regarding changes to teaching loads and another member of staff needs to be aware of such changes.
The ‘bcc’ function of email can be used, similarly to the ‘cc’ function, only this time the person or persons receiving the copy is not known to the recipient. The ‘bcc’ refers to a ‘blind carbon copy’ being available to an interested party. This can be particularly useful in situations where information that may be sensitive and is emailed to a particular person or person needs to be shared at an executive level in order that appropriate care can be taken taking into account sensitivities.
The ‘reply all’ function of an email is used when a response is sent to both the sender and to all the recipients in the ‘To’ section of the email. In this way the subject heading is automatically inserted from the original email and all parties are privy to the response. This can occur when a meeting is set up, where the agenda items, date and time of meeting is circulated to a group of people. When difficulties may arise in all members being able to attend the meeting and alternative day/time needs to be worked out, all members are reading the thread of information being circulated at the same time rather than individual messages being sent.
3. In what ways can you ensure that an attachment you send will be easily opened by the receiver?
To ensure that an attachment can be easily opened by the receiver requires that the attachment is sent in a format that can be opened by the receiver. This can be done by enquiring what format the attachment should be sent in or alternatively, the attachment is sent as a PDF document. With the easy availability of the PDF free reader downloads, accessibility to attachments should not be a problem. Alternative ways of sending attachments could include sending them in plain text or RTF however my preference is sending attachments externally is as a PDF. Internal attachments at my work are sent in word, excel or publisher formats.
4. What sorts of filters or rules to you have set up, and for what purpose?
In my work environment I currently have the rule that any email message that is sent to me sends a message back to the sender stating that “I am out of the office currently and will return on … Any enquiries are to be directed to …” This ensures that the sender is aware that I am not disregarding their email and have offered an alternative should the situation require immediate attention. Spam filters are also used at my work to ensure that junk emails do not reach my inbox and only acceptable email addresses are allowed in my inbox.
5. How have you organised the folder structure of your email and why?
My folder structure is set up in specific subject areas that I am currently working on. For example, any emails I receive that apply to changes to the handbook for staff are filed in that specific folder for later reference. I use this approach to the majority of my emails where action is not needed immediately but the information will need to be referred to at a later time. Emails that require immediate action remain in my inbox as I then know that I need to work on this promptly.
Reflection: - even though I use emails constantly throughout my work day, reflecting on the above topics has highlighted more efficient processes I can undertake to make managing my emails more efficient such as setting up rules to redirect my emails to specific folders rather than going to my inbox.
A user’s email message displays the sender’s name, their domain, who the email is intended for, the date and time the email is sent, whether a copy of the email has been sent to other people and the subject heading. Using an email message received through Outlook at my work and through checking the properties of the email message, the following information can be gleaned:
Protocol:` HyperText Transfer Protocol
Connection: Not encrypted
URL:
http://mail/exchange/FITZPAN/Inbox/February%20training%20update%20-%20Business%20SA.EML?
Size: Not available
Created: Not available
Modified: Not available
2. In what cases would you find it useful to use the ‘cc’, ‘bcc’ and ‘reply all’ functions of email?
The ‘cc’ function of email can be used when the information that is being sent to a person or group of people needs to also be available to another person or persons, for information purposes only and not for actioning. The ‘cc’ refers to a presumed ‘carbon copy’ being available to an interested party. In a school environment, this can be used when a memo is being sent regarding changes to teaching loads and another member of staff needs to be aware of such changes.
The ‘bcc’ function of email can be used, similarly to the ‘cc’ function, only this time the person or persons receiving the copy is not known to the recipient. The ‘bcc’ refers to a ‘blind carbon copy’ being available to an interested party. This can be particularly useful in situations where information that may be sensitive and is emailed to a particular person or person needs to be shared at an executive level in order that appropriate care can be taken taking into account sensitivities.
The ‘reply all’ function of an email is used when a response is sent to both the sender and to all the recipients in the ‘To’ section of the email. In this way the subject heading is automatically inserted from the original email and all parties are privy to the response. This can occur when a meeting is set up, where the agenda items, date and time of meeting is circulated to a group of people. When difficulties may arise in all members being able to attend the meeting and alternative day/time needs to be worked out, all members are reading the thread of information being circulated at the same time rather than individual messages being sent.
3. In what ways can you ensure that an attachment you send will be easily opened by the receiver?
To ensure that an attachment can be easily opened by the receiver requires that the attachment is sent in a format that can be opened by the receiver. This can be done by enquiring what format the attachment should be sent in or alternatively, the attachment is sent as a PDF document. With the easy availability of the PDF free reader downloads, accessibility to attachments should not be a problem. Alternative ways of sending attachments could include sending them in plain text or RTF however my preference is sending attachments externally is as a PDF. Internal attachments at my work are sent in word, excel or publisher formats.
4. What sorts of filters or rules to you have set up, and for what purpose?
In my work environment I currently have the rule that any email message that is sent to me sends a message back to the sender stating that “I am out of the office currently and will return on … Any enquiries are to be directed to …” This ensures that the sender is aware that I am not disregarding their email and have offered an alternative should the situation require immediate attention. Spam filters are also used at my work to ensure that junk emails do not reach my inbox and only acceptable email addresses are allowed in my inbox.
5. How have you organised the folder structure of your email and why?
My folder structure is set up in specific subject areas that I am currently working on. For example, any emails I receive that apply to changes to the handbook for staff are filed in that specific folder for later reference. I use this approach to the majority of my emails where action is not needed immediately but the information will need to be referred to at a later time. Emails that require immediate action remain in my inbox as I then know that I need to work on this promptly.
Reflection: - even though I use emails constantly throughout my work day, reflecting on the above topics has highlighted more efficient processes I can undertake to make managing my emails more efficient such as setting up rules to redirect my emails to specific folders rather than going to my inbox.
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Internet Tools
I have often wondered how information is able to
reach from one computer to another on the Internet. Reading "How Routers Work" and understanding how to trace a message has given me a better insight into how much internet traffic exists, the process involved in moving from one router to the next and the speed with which the information can be received.
I used the site http://centralops.net/co/ to do a traceroute to the site curtin.edu.au using the IP address 134.7.32.100. There were 21 hops and the average time took 253 milliseconds from the centralops site to the curtin server.
I enjoyed understanding how traceroute worked and being able to work out the answers!
Saturday, January 3, 2009
File Transfer Protocol (FTP)
After downloading FileZilla easily enough, I had
great difficulty in working out what and where I needed to enter any information to be able to get to the file "README". After a number of attempts and following the helpful hints on the discussion board, I was realised that I needed to enter the host name (recall.curtin.edu.au) with the username as "anonymous" and then go to Quickconnect. To find the file called "README" was not so complicated. However, my difficulty came in not being able to download the file. Each time I tried to download the file the message
Error: Failed to open "C:\readme.txt" for writing appeared.
Reading other student's blogs has shown that the answer to the question is "According to the readme file, 'capitalization matters' is the response. However, I was not able to find this myself.
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