Online Services

Here is a short video introduction to the main areas of online services:

This blog post will cover the seven key online services of the modern day information age, these are:

• Communication
•  E-commerce
• Education
• Entertainment
• Real-Time Information
• Downloading
• E-Government

Communication –

To begin with, the information age has seen a vast change in the ways people use to communicate with others. The three most common of these forms of communication are messaging text from one machine to another (e.g. Email, Sms, and forums), Video streaming (e.g. Skype and video conferences) and Social Networking (e.g. Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr).

Sending text messages is hugely popular as it allows people to almost instantly communicate with others no matter how far away they are from each other (providing that there is a network connection). This is basically the same as sending letters via post but without the hassle and long waiting times.

Video Steaming allows users to communicate face to face without needing to be next to each other. This is incredibly useful for businesses as it allows them to communicate with other companies around the world without having to travel the distances, for example a company based in London (England) could have a professional meeting with their partners in Tokyo (Japan) to discuss business plans without having to leave their offices thus saving both time and money. Another popular use of the software is the communication between members of families whom are located in different countries or parts of the country. For example a soldier in Afghanistan is now able to see and talk with his family despite him being located thousands of miles away from them, this helps troops overcome homesickness and maintain a close relationship with their loved ones.

Social Networking allows users to create personal profiles for themselves which display various features such as their interests, contact information (e.g. post code and email address) and photos of themselves. This is a massively popular trend nowadays and has had a large effect on culture. For example, Facebook (a social networking site) currently has over 800 million active users and it is common for radio stations to use ‘Tweets’ (Twitter messages) as well as text messages and phone calls as part of their shows. However, Social Networking doesn’t come without its disadvantages; these being the breach of privacy, cyber bullying and hacking, all of which can cause major issues with those affected.

E-commerce –

E-commerce is the buying or selling of products or services over electronic systems. Online shopping is a huge industry at present. Popular sites include Ebay (an online auction service), Amazon (a website which allows users to buy items from a vast range of products and have them delivered via post), ITunes (a service which allows users to buy music and video downloads which can then be placed onto various Apple products such as the Ipod and the Iphone) and many more. This form of shopping has become so popular due a variety of different reasons. The first reason being that the internet provides a far greater range of products than any local stores could offer; also it is far easier to find exactly what you are looking to buy due to search engines such as Google and Bing. Other reasons for its success include users not having to leave the comfort of their homes to purchase items (this is extremely useful for people whom are too busy or too shy to go shopping at real shops), that there is waiting in lines to buy products and that shopping online provides a more personal experience (allowing users to change website themes, suggesting items they may want to buy and sometimes even allowing them to personalise the product they wish to buy). In theory, due to online shopping a person could survive without ever having to leave their home.

Education –

The information age has provided us with exciting new advancements in education. Nowadays it is common for students to use the internet for research and help with homework and for teachers to include online resources in their presentations such as helpful videos or graphics. This allows for an improved educational experience as students can now see the topics they are learning spring to live on a computer screen via images, videos and vast quantities of additional information on their studies.

To add to this, it is common for school to use online education platforms such as ‘MyMaths’ and ‘Frog’ to set students homework and various other tasks, thus providing a more personal way of learning for pupils and lessening the amount of work needed by teachers.

Entertainment –

These days the internet is one of the largest sources of entertainment available. This is due to the sheer amount of content upload by people around the world on a daily basis. Entertainment can be split into five main groups: Art, Video, Music, Reading and Gaming.

Gaming has vastly benefitted from the internet. Now instead of playing by yourself, players can now join huge servers to play with thousands of others. A great example of this is mmo games (mmo standing for massively multiplayer online game) such as World of Warcraft and Guild Wars which allow users to play alongside complete strangers in order to progress through the game. The internet has also seen a huge growth in indie game developers, posting their work on sites such as Newgrounds and Kongregate; notable examples of such games include Minecraft, Counter Strike and Super Meat Boy.

In terms of art, video, music and reading there are thousands of websites which allow their users to upload their creations to be shared to the world and gain popularity. Notable websites include Youtube (video), Deviantart (art), Soundcloud (music) and Blogger (reading).

Real-Time Information –

Real-Time information is frequently updated information such as news, weather, sports and event information. The aim of this is to keep users up-to-date with current events. For example if there was a league football final (e.g. Manchester United Vs. Chelsea), news teams would post information about the current status of the game (e.g. goals, injuries and players being sent off)  in real-time information. It may look something like this:

(1:34) Manchester United have scored a goal against Chelsea, the score is now 2-1

(1:38) Wayne Rooney has been carried off the pitch due to spinal injuries

(1:46) Chelsea have just scored, the score is now 2-2

Downloading –

Downloading is copying data from one computer to another. Online people can download basically anything, such as music, games, art, software, films, and plugins. Notable examples of sites for downloads include Mediafire (a file sharing site), Steam (a platform which allows users to purchase and download games) and ITunes (a music platform for buying and downloading music). Whilst downloads are mainly safe and legal it is easy for illegal activity (e.g. free music, software cracks and keygens) and viruses to occur, viruses can break computers and lead to personal information and passwords being stolen whilst illegal downloads may result in fines and possibly even jail.

E-Government –

E-Government provides a link between citizens and the government. It allows citizens to check up and manage their taxes and insurance via the internet which can be convenient and efficient. Another service E-Government provides us with is crime statistics in local areas; this is incredibly useful as it allows members of a community to prepare themselves for common events in their area such as car theft and vandalism.