Week 14 - Till we meet again...

At the beginning when I know that I have to take a module called Introduction to the Internet, I was thinking to myself, "You mean I am not good enough at it?". I was already spending the bulk of my time online and I didn't think I would learn anything much more than I already knew about the Internet.

But I was very wrong. There are so many different aspects to the Internet, and every single day there are new content created online for all of us to explore. The COM125 lessons introduced various up and coming features and uses of the Internet and make me understand more about the new improvements made to it. Through the lessons, I got to see the creativity and intelligence in the people who created new Internet content that has benefit many people in the process. Take the digital classroom for example, without someone who had came up with this idea, people would not be able to gain knowledge through online classrooms which provided people the opportunities to travel through the virtual world to "see" things for themselves.


In conclusion, I am glad that this module has changed and broaden my perspectives and gave me a lot of knowledge that would be useful to me in future. Thank you for the wonderful learning experience, Mr Choy. Hope to see you around in school again! :)

Week 13 - The Future of the Internet

You know, talking about the future of the Internet often make me relate it to artificial intelligence. I always think that artificial intelligence would be so much more powerful if it is combined with the abilities of the Internet.
Having done my project on Web 3.0 and StumbleUpon, I realized that Web 3.0 might be the answer to the combination between artificial intelligence and the Internet. The Web 3.0 is able to understand and provide us with what we need and what we want and that made web surfing to be easier and convenient as ever.

Maybe next time, we can even literally employ artificial intelligence such as online robots to deal with our online activities for us, like helping us deal with online business (i.e. e-commerce) and our web transactions with others. Maybe all of that would be fully automated and we will just be waiting for money to be rolling in. Ok, that's a lazy thought and if that really comes true, all of us would be lazy bums and those robots would probably revolt and take over the world, if they are indeed that smart. Anyway, that has always been a possible outcome and a on-going controversy for the creation and usage of artificial intelligence in our life.

Think we will always have to weigh the pros and cons carefully and not to just dump all our work to the robots. This is the only way for the future of the Internet to look optimistic if we are really working towards goal of merging artificial intelligence with the Internet.

Week 12 - Apple

Week 11 - Citizen Journalism

Week 10 - Internet and Politics

With the Singapore General Election coming up, I foresee that there will be a lot of online activity generated by people's political interests and concerns. The social media was not as developed during the previous election period five years ago, and citizen journalism was still a rather new concept then. We are talking about different times now. With the use of Facebook and blogs, it is easier for people to discuss and share their political views and opinions (as long as they do not cross the boundaries of attacking any political parties online). It is also easier for people to bring to attention the political issues that has been on their hearts and minds.

The Internet is a revolution by itself. We have seen how the Internet has brought about political change in several countries. Even Obama made used of the Internet (like Facebook and Youtube) to gain support and popularity for his presidential election in 2008. With the Internet campaign launched by Obama and his team, he won the election. The Internet also sped up the process of the Egyptian Revolution earlier on this year.

We have already seen the online video on PAP's youngest candidate Tin Pei Ling in class, and the same video is becoming viral on the Internet. I am sure more attention will be focused on her in time to come, and the social media would be the place where many voice out their thoughts about her and the election. This is just the start.

With the availability of Youtube, I think rallies will be videoed and uploaded online, and the reach of each political parties, especially of the opposition's (because of limited exposure), will be much extended. Singaporeans living or working overseas will be able to get recent and frequent updates on the political scene and social situations in Singapore and cast their votes wisely even though they are not physically here.

Change has been the big word since Obama's 2008 presidential campaign. And now, in Singapore, many are crying for change as well. No matter which party wins the majority of the seats, all Singaporeans hope is for the country to become a better nation for its people, not only economically, but as a whole.

Week 9 - Multimedia

Week 8 - Virtual Viruses and Bugs

Just recently, I kind of fell into the trap of an online security threat. I opened a web page that seems totally innocent; it is actually the web page of a food blog. Then there was a pop-up that looks like it was from my operating system instead of the web browser, saying that it is experiencing some high online traffic that might be due to an unknown virus, and urged me to perform a scan. Some weird points,

1. It looks like a prompt from Windows and I was using Mac (with the exception of Windows for Mac software)
2. I don't remember having an antivirus software on my Mac, so why is there a prompt?
3. There wasn't a cross on the top left hand corner that allows me to ignore the prompt.
Thus, I had no choice but to start the "scan". Then I was brought to a web page that looks like WINDOWS was performing the scan for me and that was when I realized I was fooled and that it might be an online security threat, a virus or a bug or spyware, or worse a Trojan. I was worried, then I remember people telling me that Mac doesn't get viruses or malware in general because malware are usually invented to target Windows users. So immediately, I went to Google to see if that was true.

To my disappointment, I found out that Windows users are indeed more targeted, but Mac users are susceptible to malware too. I went to search for a free antivirus software for Mac and read up a few online reviews before downloading one. Installed it and performed the security scan on my computer. Thankfully, nothing out of the ordinary was found.

Anyway, lesson learnt. Always trust your common sense NOT to follow any instructions or prompts that seem fishy. And always install an antivirus software, no matter whether you are a Windows user or not.

Week 7 - Google

I've briefly touched on the usefulness and importance of Internet and Google previously, but I think that writing a post purely dedicated to Google would do more justice to it.Google is more than just a search engine. It has since developed into so much more. With countless of features that it has, Google now not only provides you with search results for images and web pages, it also translates for you, provides top news stories for you, gives you directions with maps, suggest videos, books and scholarly articles that you might be interested in, and connects you with others through the use of Google Mail and Google Groups (like how Mr. Choy connects and share documents with us students through the COM125 Google group). That is not all; there are so much more Google provides for Internet users that totally revolutionized the whole web navigation idea.

Google had even developed and launched an independent web browser Google Chrome that has a minimalistic graphical user interface (merging of address bar and search bar), aiming to be a secure, fast, simple and stable web browser around. It has since gained popularity among Internet surfers, being the third most widely used browser and passed the 10% worldwide usage share of web browsers, as of January 2011. Here is a video showing 10 features of Google Chrome.



So now you see why people like using Google. It's like a one-stop station where many of your online needs are served. For both work and entertainment purposes, Google has indeed made our lives better. Still not persuaded? Google on the usefulness of Google. :)

Week 6 - E-Learning

Week 5 - Key Factors Why Some E-commerce Succeeded

1. Marketing
Marketing is easy through the Internet and online businesses can increase brand awareness through online campaigns or advertising spaces or banners. A successful online campaign can become viral on the Internet and create a lot of buzz for the product or business. Online social media have proved to be effective tools for online marketing too.

2. Reaching consumers in different regions easily
You can do business with someone even if he/she might be located at the other side of the globe. An online business's customer reach is world-wide and in turn, its business opportunities are endless.
3. Efficiency in dealing with customers' demands, requests, feedback and suggestions
Customers can transact or feedback anytime and by using the Internet, online businesses can efficiently deal with the matters promptly too, no matter where they are located. This means greater convenience, better customer service and increased customer satisfaction.

4. No entry barriers
Anyone can easily start an online business eg. through a blog or through ebay. It is a great platform for young and aspiring entrepreneurs can try and build their businesses. There are no restrictions in starting up an online business (assuming you are not out to cheat or scam others).


5. 24/7, mobile, not being physically present
An online business means that you can keep it running without being physically present. It can generate profits for you even when you are sleeping. Also, with many electronic gadgets available to keep you online, you can tend to your business even when you are on the go. And as mentioned earlier, your business can be available 24/7, hence you would not lose customers just because of time differences and unsuitable operating hours.

6. Lower operating costs; lower prices for consumers
Some online platforms or spaces that are used for online businesses require little or no cost at all. In addition, without needing staff to tend to the business all the time while it is running, it means lower operating costs for the business too. Lower operating costs essentially means lower prices for their customers, and that translates to having more competitive prices.
7. Easy payment
Online businesses often provide online payment options to their customers, which makes the whole transaction process more convenient for both parties. It speeds up the whole transaction process too.

8. Healthy competition
It is easy for consumers to make price comparisons through the Internet. That makes online businesses try to keep their prices low and competitive, which is a win-win situation for both the businesses and the consumers. Also, businesses will seek to provide good and prompt service so as to keep and attract customers. This healthy competition ensures the survival of the fittest.

Week 4 - Social Network

Firstly, if you are expecting a post on a lesser known social networking site, I am sorry to say that I'm going to disappoint you. I am here to write about Facebook. Why am I writing about a topic that probably millions of people have already written about? Because I am going to write everything entirely from my own perspective.


Before Facebook even exists in my life, everyone around me was using Friendster. Classmates were asking people around them to leave testimonials on their profile pages, upload photos and more. Basically Friendster was the social networking site that was popular among Singaporeans. But why did Friendster lose out eventually when it shares many similar functions as Facebook?Applications. Facebook won the competition because it allows third-party applications to be used on the site itself. Personality quizzes were the craze then. After that, game applications on Facebook became popular. From cafes to restaurants to farms to virtual pets, from boardgames to mind games to card games, there are now a great variety of game applications to choose from. Some game companies like Zynga and Playfish created many different game applications on Facebook that earned them millions of players and with that, possibly lots of profits too, given that there is always a special currency in each game that could only be bought with real money (i.e using credit cards or PayPal). The special currency would allow players to buy better or prettier virtual items in the games.
Many of these games have their own online forums as well, forming online communities of their own and encouraging players to interact. This is a form of social networking that Facebook has indirectly brought about as well.

Take myself for example, I have gotten to know some people over a Facebook game application's online forum. I am not at all embarrassed to say and admit that I have become friends with some of the very nice players even though we have not met each other in real life before. They are from the other side of the world, far away in the US, Australia and New Zealand. Our friendships have progressed to the point that even if we do not play the particular game application anymore, we still chat on a secret Facebook group everyday, keeping each other updated on our lives. And how long have this been going on? Years. It has been 3 years going 4. We have even exchanged Christmas cards for 2 years :) We know each other probably even better than the friends whom we have met or known in real life.

Back on the topic on Facebook, I would say that Facebook encourages social interaction much more than the old Friendster, with the "Share" function, "Like" button, "Notes" section, "Wall" on profile pages, news feed and comments enabled for every single feed. There are many more opportunities for people to share their likes, thoughts and opinions. Friendster, on the other hand, had tried to incorporate similar functions into the site too, but it is like a lost cause now as many ex-Friendster users have already left for Facebook with no intention to return.

So long, Friendster.

Edited: Here's an online article about someone who has shared his interesting views about deactivating his Facebook account. Enjoy! :)
http://eastprovidence.patch.com/articles/so-long-facebook-its-been-real

Week 2 - Social Media

The social media has made it possible for anyone to share what they think and what they like. People are able to post up their works online for others to see, even if they are not professionals in the area.

For example, Tumblr is an online microblogging platform commonly used by many budding and aspiring photographers to upload and share their photography, creating an online portfolio for themselves and at the same time, gathering “followers” who are their fans. People create blogs to write on different matters, very frequently on their live experiences, as well as their views and opinions on a certain topic (like how I’m writing on the social media now). Some popular bloggers even make earnings through serving advertisements on their blogs (eg. through Nuffnang). Even trivial matters can be brought up and posted on an online platform like Twitter for all to see. This vibrant environment has encouraged an abundance of online content being created, with people being both the producer and the consumer (also known as the prosumer).

Like this. You like this. XXX like this.

This is what i keep seeing under my friends' Facebook photos, comments and statuses. When I like what someone posts on Facebook, I will "like" it. It has sort of become a voting system that is within Facebook. The post that has gotten many "likes" will be shown under the "Top News" news feed tab on you and your friends' Facebook news feed, making it easily visible. "Liking" is what is happening within Facebook itself. So, what if I like something that is outside of Facebook? Now, many of the websites offer the Facebook "Share" button. That is, when you like something on a particular website, you "share" it on your Facebook Wall, which will in turn be shown on you and your friends' Facebook news feed. From there, your friends will "like" it if they find what you have shared nice or interesting. This applies to the sharing of videos too, like those from Youtube, but Youtube has got its own voting or "liking" system as well. This easy-sharing feature encourages people to share their likings and thereby making Facebook a very interactive and engaging social media.

Maybe one day, people will profess their love like this.Which is not really a smart move I would say.

Week 1- The Internet and its importance... to me.

Without the Internet, I would not be able to do my assignment here. Without the Internet, I would not be able to search for the necessary information I need for my countless assignments and projects at the comfort of my home. Without the Internet, there would not be much indoor entertainment for me. This is just how important the Internet is to me. I believe there are many people who share similar thoughts as me, thankful for the invention and the existence of the Internet which helped us in many different ways.

Ever since the Internet existed, my life sort of revolves around it. Instant online messaging is a way of communication when my project mates and I have to discuss about our projects. The Internet provides us the flexibility and convenience to do so without having to meet up in person.

E-mail enables us to send documents to each other instantly too, increasing work efficiency. When we need to have more content for our project assignments, we do research over the Internet using online tools like the Google search engine and online library catalogues to find the information we need. We no longer need to travel to the nearby brick and mortar library to pore through countless of thick and heavy books to search for relevant information.


My indoor entertainment involves a lot of online activities over the Internet. I use Facebook to connect with my friends everyday and find out from their photos and statuses what they have been up to recently. Of course, it does not replace the usual gatherings i have with my friends. Facebook supplements our usual communication with each other and gives us a platform to share our favourite moments, music, stories, videos, photos, interests and etc. with our loved ones. I play the game applications on Facebook too but will always make sure that i do not get too hooked on them. (above is the photo of my virtual pet on Pet Society. Yes, I'm extremely proud of this pet made out of pixels :D )Like all other young adults, I like to watch Youtube videos too.

The Internet has become so ubiquitous and important in our lives that some people are already addicted to it. Yet i think we should always remind ourselves not to be overly dependent and obsessed with what it offers.