1. The Internet and Office Technologies
Outcome 4
The Internet and Office Technologies

2. Advertise their products to reach potential customers
Advertise vacant positions to reach potential applicants
Find out about competitors’ products, prices and special offers

3. Organisations use the Internet to
Find out about developments eg new machinery to increase productivity
To send s to customers or suppliers
Retrieving up-to-date information from anywhere at any time
Set up discussion groups to allow people with a common interest to communicate with each other

4. Connection may be slower at certain times of the day
Equipment failure may be experienced
Length of time to download information can be frustrating
Finding information can take a long time even with search engines
No guarantee information is of good quality and up-to- date

5. Provides a vast amount of information on practically any subject
Many organisations use a web site to access more customers than they could otherwise have
Convenient access from home, office and on the move
Finding what you want is speeded up by using search engines eg Google, Yahoo, Ask Jeeves
The quality of information is better on the more reputable sits
Sound and graphics can be included with the information

6. Searching for information online can be costly
Telephone calls may not be possible while on Internet unless you have broadband
Second telephone may be needed at home
Staff need good training
Cost of designing and maintaining web page can be expensive
Difficult to monitor staff use of internet

7. How does a fax machine work?
The paper-based information is scanned by the machine
Information is converted into code
The encoded data is sent over the telephone lines to its destination
On arrival at the recipient’s fax machine the data is decoded
An exact paper copy of the original is printed

8. Cheap and easy to use
Does not need expensive cabling installed
Text and graphics can be transmitted
Information is received almost immediately
Cost is the same as a telephone call

9. This should be sent as the first page of each fax and should include:
Name, title, phone no of sender
Fax no of receiving machine
Name and details of person receiving fax
Date & no of pages being sent

10. Prepare a Fax Cover Sheet
Place the document to be sent in the fax machine (correct way up)
Enter the recipient’s fax number
Press the start button to send the fax

11. Equipment error eg paper jam or no toner
Problems contacting the destination fax machine eg number engaged, machine switched off
Anyone can see and read the fax – confidential information must not be sent by fax

12. Provides a paper copy
Can be received without anyone being present
Most companies have them
Can send/receive hand-written or keyed data and drawings
Most computers have fax software already installed

13. Must make sure that there is a good supply of paper, toner
Fax machine may be engaged so re-dialling may be necessary
Quality of reproduction may be poor especially drawings

14. E-mail is a form of electronic conversation
Popular method for internal and external business use
Allows messages to be sent and received from computers
Users are given own address
Efficient way of sending and receiving information particularly using distribution lists

15. You can create and send messages and mark as urgent
Receive and read messages
Reply to messages
Send documents as an attachment
Store messages
Forward messages you receive to other people
Set up automatic reply messages eg ‘out of office’
Set up distribution lists so that the same message is sent to multiple recipients, saving time and money

16. Delivery is quick
Replies can be sent immediately
s can be read wherever there is a computer
Messages can be sent at any time
Same message can be copied to many people
ing is cheaper than telephoning

17. For customers requesting information
Requests for catalogues, product information
Requests for job application forms
Placing orders with suppliers
Requests for quotes from suppliers
Getting fast feedback on a document attachment

18. Each user must have an address where all messages will be sent
User name
Domain name
The user name and domain
name are separated
The last part indicates the
type of organisation

19. Messages can be sent to the wrong person
Equipment can fail
Messages can be deleted accidentally
File attachments can take time to download
Staff may require training on how to use an system
SPAM or junk mail can contain viruses which bring down networks
People can choose to ignore s holding up workflow

20. Sending and receiving an e-mail is much quicker than traditional mail
Most of the features of are easy to use and understand
Now accessible while ‘on the move’ as you can receive s on mobile phones
Data can be sent throughout the world for the cost of a local telephone call

21. Not every business has an e-mail address
Problems can arise if your ISP is not working
If an attachment was prepared using different software you may not be able open it
Some people still prefer to receive paper copies
The nature of the wording on s means they can be misunderstood

22. The choice of method depends on:
Equipment available – both the sender and receiver must have the equipment available to communicate electronically
Ability of employees to use the equipment – training will be needed
Type of information being searched for – sending a fax or to a competitor about their product or prices is unlikely to receive a reply – visiting their web site may however help

23. Instant Messaging Also known as chat rooms
Allows users to communicate in real time
It is an electronic conversation between multiple users on-line
Has the disadvantage of not knowing if a fellow users is really who they make out to be ie security concerns

24. Networks What are Networks?
a series of computers link together using the telephone network
allows for the sharing of software, data files and printers
the computers are run by a ‘server’ which is a much more
powerful computer than those it serves
can be local area networks (LANs) eg the GSN you use
can be wide area networks (WANs) eg UK wide

25. Advantages of Networks
sharing software and printers means costs can be reduced
data files can be accessed by multiple users at the same time
ing across the network is faster and more efficient
security measures can be put in place to limit access to the
network itself and to files within the network
files are easier backed up as all the data is stored on the server
management of the system is done centrally giving greater
control

26. Disadvantages of Networks
initial set up costs can be high
management of the network requires high level knowledge
the whole network can fail when the server goes down
viruses can spread quickly through the network so constant upgrading of anti-virus software is essential
expensive security measures are required to prevent ‘hacking’

27. Legislation
The laws that cover the use of information and technology are:
The Data Protection Act 1998
The Copyright, Designs & Patents Act 1988
The Computer Misuse Act 1990

28. The Data Protection Act 1998
sets out how personal information is collected, used, stored
and destroyed
information must be collected fairly and honestly
must only be used for the original purpose it was collected
must be kept up-to-date and accurate
individuals must have the right to have corrections made

29. Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988
controls the copying of ‘protected’ material
protected material is books, newspapers, music and computer programs
the owner’s permission must be sought when copying large proportions of a writer’s work
otherwise, a fee is paid to the Copyright Licensing Agency
any work bearing the © symbol means you are not free to copy it

30. The Computer Misuse Act 1990
designed to prevent unauthorized access to computer systems
ie hacking
also covers using computers to commit a crime, so you are not
permitted to:
break through password protected files
make unauthorized changes to computer material
illegally copy software