Summary

Finally, it’s the last post for our blog!!! It’s been an exhausting semester dealing with so many modules. It really started off pretty boring for me as I was already aware and in the know of everything being taught in class during the first half of the semester. Like really, everything. I can’t remember if there actually is even something that I did not know about; not to be haughty or anything but I really was a computer nerd when I was younger haha.

I think one of the coolest chapters of the course was Internet of Things as we learnt how the future of the physical and digital world might turn out; by integrating technology into everyday objects and routines to make our life simpler.

Initially I was really wondering why I even had to take the module. Mainly because, my generation was the last to have been born into the world without technology, and also considered the first to have been exposed to it. We took to technology like how moths are drawn to a flame, and yet a module called Introduction to the Internet was a compulsory module for us. Seemed really weird. But I guess learning about the potential future we have was interesting as people from different eras always envision the future to be vastly different, but it never is. Just 1.5 decades ago, everyone was predicting that by 2020 or so we would have flying cars and whatnot, but the only thing we have close to a flying car is a driverless car.

What I’m not looking forward to as of right now is just our finals due to the fact that it is cumulative. Although I did mention that I know mainly everything that was tested in the first exam, it’s still pretty daunting to have an exam that tests EVERYTHING covered in a semester. Definitely not used to such a thing as the last time we had such a thing was probably in.. Polytechnic or JC, which for me is roughly 6 years ago or something. THAT’S MORE THAN HALF A DECADE. Army really has messed with my brain 😦

Also, I really appreciate the effort that Mr Choy has taken into making the module as enjoyable as possible by telling us all his lame jokes like “who invented the web? – spiderman” OH MAN.

But yes, haha, thank you so much Mr Choy for making the lesson as light-hearted as you could, especially when a lot of students don’t show up to class. BUT DO NOTE; the main reason why majority of the class skips together is because we have a big deadline coming up or there is an exam the next day.

Oh yes another cool thing we learnt in class was VR/AR. Because my group did the presentation on VR, I learnt many things about VR that I did not know before like how there is a scientific reason as to why things we place on our heads must follow a weight requirement.

OH YES AND ANOTHER THING. SNAPCHAT GLASSES. PROBABLY ONE OF THE COOLEST THINGS I DISCOVERED HAHA.

Of course, honourable mention goes to… The vaginal alarm clock. Unfortunately, there is no GIF of it but I’m sure it was a memorable presentation for everyone present. So this gif will have to do.

Well anyway, it’s been a great time in your class and I hope to see you around the school Mr Choy! Although I do think you need to find more lame jokes :’) Seniors have told us some of the jokes you told them, seems like you’e been repeating them hehe. I’ll give you one!

19 and 20 had a fight.

21.

I hope you get it HAHA. See you around!!!

Yes, I am a huge fan of High School Musical. NO GENDER STEREOTYPES.

 

Future of Internet

The future of the internet is very closely tied to the Internet of Things (IoT) and web 3.0. Web 3.0 is what we refer to as the new generation web.

It is

• More connected, open, and intelligent
• Consists of semantic web technologies
• Has distributed databases, natural language processing
• Machine learning, machine reasoning
• Autonomous agents

Semantic web is defined as something that is a web of data where everything is linked, allowing applications to “talk” to one another to reuse and share data. Some of the devices that make use of the semantic web were covered in the previous post such as the blood sugar monitor. Hence the fact that the future of internet is closely tied to IoT.

Web 3.0 has a few characteristics;

• Ubiquitous connectivity
• Network computing
• Open technologies
• Open identity

It showcases its ubiquitous connectivity by having internet access and mobile devices in almost every corner of developed countries. Singapore, for instance, provides mobile coverage and internet access island-wide, except for a few areas where the SAF uses for training, namely, the forests and Pulau Tekong. One can rest assured that no matter where one goes in Singapore in his or her daily life that you are able to access a either free wifi, 3G network or the 4G network. In the rare occasions where we lose our cellphone signal, it is due to the way buildings are constructed and not the fact that we do not have coverage in that area.

Network Computing is something that is still relatively new to us. It is a software-as-a-service business model that provides web services with interoperability and distributed computing. One of the most relatable, and perhaps, the best example of this is the cloud storage provided by Apple. It works by having multiple servers in various locations whereby users are able to access them no matter where they are. There are several advantages of companies using cloud storage.

• They only need to pay for the storage they use
• They can cut down their energy consumption by up to 70% as the providers of the cloud servers will be more adept at managing mass levels of energy and have the equipment to lower costs while still maintaining quality
• Companies can choose between off-premise and on-premise cloud storage options

In the past, the web was mainly used for reading, information sharing, searching for information, and one way communication to the user. When it evolved to web 2.0, it became a read and write web, focusing more on interaction, igniting the passions of users, and encouraging two-way communication with users and web pages. However, web 3.0 has done so much more since it was introduced in 2006. Not only does it allow users to read and write, it allows users to execute the web. It focuses on people connecting knowledge from source to source, building a collective database of sorts. It also branches out a lot more and allows more freedom for users. Additionally, it also encourages the value of immersion as it moves towards improving every day objects, and integrating other technologies like AR and VR.

Mainly, the future of the internet will integrate together with IoT for dynamic control of industry and daily life, improving resource utilization ratio, better relationships between human and nature, and forming an intellectual entity by integrating human society and physical systems.

Although technology and the internet is advancing at a great pace every day, it is important that we keep in mind the potential dangers that they pose as well. For example, regarding cloud storage, since users are able to access it almost everyday, it means that hackers will be able to access it everywhere as well and hack it for personal gain or defamation. The most publicized cloud storage leaks are always celebrity nudes and user sensitive information. Companies who provide cloud storage must ensure that they have a dedicated team of security professionals, both physical and digitally, to protect the information of their customers.

Internet of Things

The Internet of Things (IoT) is defined as the network of physical devices, vehicles, home appliances, and other items embedded with electronics, software, sensors, actuators, and network connectivity which enable these objects to connect and exchange data.

As technology steadily improves over the years, more and more devices can be interconnected using a device that is connected, and uses, the internet. The current development of IoT devices are centered on creating products for simplifying how we live at home. The base concepts that many companies are going for is that each and every home has one central controller to control the various things in the house ranging from porch lights to the house heating system to security systems.

One of the main attractions of IoT for consumer use it the ease of usage. Due to the way the devices work, it is possible for consumers to access their devices at home even when they are located somewhere far away, as long as they have an active internet connection. Consumers could be leaving their office and yet connect to a controller in their home to turn the air-conditioning on. However, a downside to this that in the event someone hacks into the system, the burglar or robber will be able to access the home’s security system, disable it and proceed to break in; tying in with the issue of internet security as previously discussed.

IoT also has a huge potential in the “business” of life-saving. As discussed in class, should someone meet with an accident in a remote area, the amount of time taken for someone to discover the accident, report it to the authorities and for the authorities to arrive may very well cost the victim his or her life. However, if the victim were to be wearing a piece of technology that can monitor his heart rate and other health conditions, it could send out a signal to the relevant authorities and their devices the moment he or she met with the accident, and pinpointing the exact location where he or she requires assistance automatically. In addition, authorities will also be able to use their devices to quickly calculate what is the fastest way to the victim and to a hospital. Google Maps is already doing a good job providing as up to date information as possible regarding a certain aspect of this. It can estimate time taken to travel from point to point and even include information as to whether or not there is a traffic jam.

Another device that IoT has helped developed is the blood sugar monitor/tester. It’s quite amazing to see how such a small device is able to measure one’s blood sugar level by merely putting a drop of blood on a small piece of paper that the device then reads. Another version of a blood monitor device is something that can be inserted into a smart phone albeit another device has to be purchased to read the blood sample.

There are so many possibilities that IoT can achieve, and it is split into 4 categories; monitor, control, optimize, and automate.

As aforementioned, IoT devices are able to monitor, as shown in the example of monitoring a person’s heart rate and control the house appliances. Additionally, the example of how Google Maps can estimate the time required to get from point to point can be classified under optimization as it provides the best possible route to users, hence optimizing their travel time. An example of how automation can be done for house appliances could be a programmable code or a motion sensor that turns on the garage lights and opens the shutter when the car drives past it.

I think that in the near-distant future, IoT will play a huge role in our lives. When we envision the future in movies and cartoons, may things are centered on IoT although it does not explicitly use the term. Many things are automated, and there are many more smart devices to help us keep track of things.

Augmented & Virtual Reality

Augmented reality (VR) is defined as a live direct or indirect view of a physical, real-world environment whose elements are “augmented” by computer-generated or extracted real-world sensory input such as sound, video, graphics, haptics or GPS data.

Virtual Reality (VR) is defined as a computer technology that uses virtual reality headsets or multi-projected environments, sometimes in combination with physical environments or props, to generate realistic images, sounds and other sensations that simulate a user’s physical presence in a virtual or imaginary environment.

In the recent years, there have been many advances in AR and VR. One of the most significant developments of AR to date is none other than Pokemon GO.

Pokemon GO is a free-to-play, location-based augmented reality game developed by Niantic for iOS and Android devices. The game was the result of a collaboration between Niantic and Nintendo, by way of The Pokémon Company, and was initially released in selected countries in July 2016. The game utilizes the player’s mobile device’s GPS ability to locate, capture, battle, and train virtual creatures, called Pokémon, which appear on the screen as if they were at the same real-world location as the player. The game features a freemium business model and supports in-app purchases for additional in-game items.

It hit the world by storm as instead of having people cooped up in their rooms all day, it was refreshing to see so many people gathering in different locations all over the world catching Pokemon on their mobile app, and interacting with one another to look for the next one, or even do battle. It was definitely a sight in Singapore as it repopulated parks albeit not for their intended purposes but it was still funny to see people from all walks of life and different ages gathered in the same location. When you see a decent sized group of people converging at one location, you know that there is a rare Pokemon nearby, or that they are fighting over control of the Pokemon gym.

However, it also brought on a few criticisms and negative side effects. It saw some people breaking into restricted areas to catch a Pokemon or collect their free Pokemon supplies. Not only that, some people played Pokemon whilst driving and caused accidents on the road, endangering the lives of both the driver(s) and civilians. As the game uses popular landmarks and tourist attractions to place their Pokestops (for free supplies) and other important uses, government agencies and private companies worldwide had to put in measures to prevent players from entering such places unwelcomed or without permission.

Despite all the negativity it has received, the fact that the companies involved managed to produce something of this magnitude on a mobile app shows the huge potential for AR. For instance, it could be used in healthcare where trainees can use AR to further their understanding of the human body or even see the minute details of the human body that textbooks would be bad at illustrating.

In fact, Microsoft has already developed their version of AR headset known as Hololens. The video below explains more about how it works, and the potential it can bring to humanity. If Microsoft or their partners are able to adapt Hololens to something more lightweight and portable, or even move it to a computer system, we could very well be looking at something that humans have imagined for a long time. Just like J.A.R.V.I.S. in Iron Man, who knows, humans may soon be able to achieve that level of AR.

 

Internet Security

With the ever increasing presence of technology, companies and organizations seek to protect their digital data and integrity by using firewalls and other various forms of internet security.

A cyberattack is defined by Google as “an attempt by hackers to damage or destroy a computer network or system”. This includes distributed denial of service, denial of service, and computer viruses.

Over the past few years, there have been numerous cyber attacks. In 2016 alone,  an average of 200,000 new malware samples were detected every day, based on the information just one company. If the data were to include data from other companies and organizations, it is possible to extend that number into the millions. This company itself registered over 18 million new malware samples captured in the 3rd quarter of 2016 alone.

According to the FBI, more than 4,000 ransomware attacks have occurred every day since the beginning of 2016. The rate at which ransomware attacks businesses has increased from once every 2 minutes to once every 40 seconds. The amount of phishing emails containing a form of ransomware grew almost 5% to 97.25% in the 3rd quarter of 2016 as well. Unfortunately, users claim to be aware of the existence of phishing links but yet they still click on the links, which is kind of ironic because of their overconfidence.

One of the most renowned groups of hackers is Anonymous. Anonymous is a loosely associated international network of activist and hacktivist entities. A website that is nominally associated with the group describes it as “an internet gathering” with “a very loose and decentralized command structure that operates on ideas rather than directives”. They are best known for their series of well-publicized DDoS attacks on government, religious, and corporate websites.

One of the most infamous deeds Anonymous has committed occurred in 2012 when they shut down the DOJ’s and FBI’s website as a retaliation for them shutting down the popular file-sharing site, Megaupload. In 2011, an affiliated group named Lulzsec managed to shutdown the CIA’s website for several hours  and leaked some classified information to the public.

The FBI and DOJ’s websites are supposedly one of the most secure websites in the entire world. If a group of hackers with no real hierarchy of leadership can bring it down, what does this show about the security we have on our own personal computers? Of course, we are not in the limelight of doing anything life-changing or life-altering so we won’t be targeted by real hackers. The only types of hackers out to get us are those low-cost, lowly hackers practicing their “craft”.

How safe are we really when it comes to the security of our networks and computers? It’s a really tough question since anything and everything technological can be hacked, even the webcams on our laptops, which has spurred many teens now to place an opaque sticker over their webcam and inbuilt microphone of their laptops for prevention. After all, prevention is better than cure.

Some of the things I do to ensure my laptop’s security is to obviously install a trustworthy anti-virus program and do weekly scans to ensure that I don’t have any virus. In addition, I use my laptop only for school-work so that my gaming hobbies don’t hinder how my laptop performs. I also ensure that I click only academic links and trustworthy and verified links; not that I don’t do so on my gaming PC but I am able to be a little lax since I do more regular scans on my PC than my laptop.

If a hacker really is out to get someone, there is really not much one can do to protect his or her system against the hacker unless we go offline. Then again, if a virus managed to get into the hardware, it’s pretty much a gone game.

Korean Spicy Noodle Challenge

Filming the video was actually more fun that I had anticipated. The planning of the minor details and random ideas we had together for the transitions and edits made the process really fun.

The original idea was by me, and I pitched the idea to 2 of my friends; Afiq and Xinya/Rachel. I asked Rachel as she had a similar spicy tolerance as I do and I thought it would be interesting to see who could complete the challenge. Afiq had the most experience in terms of editing so it was great to have him onboard!

The original idea was to

1. Eat the x2 version
2. Film it in school

However, not everything in life turns out the way we want it to. When we met up on Sunday, there was no more x2 spicy noodles in stock and we had to settle for the regular one. I was actually okay with it since I was more used to eating spicy food by now. Secondly, when we met up in school, there was no hot water to cook our noodles so.. we were toasted. We ended up going to a friend’s place to film where she was kind enough to lend us a room and give us some hot water!

To give you an example of how spicy it is (to me), I can’t eat a packet of it without dripping sweat, even in an air-conditioned room. When I saw other YouTubers doing the challenge for the x2 version, many of them actually cried and were screaming in pain. I was actually really terrified and nervous about the x2 version so I guess it was a blessing in disguise that we did the regular version considering our level of tolerance.

I got the idea from watching videos on YouTube when I was really into watching food videos. The main source of inspiration for this type of shoot including the background and angle of filming comes from TheSmartLocal (TSL). They upload regular content almost everyday and some of the more popular ones are Singaporeans Try, PrettySmart and travel vlogs. As the digital age continues to evolve, YouTube is becoming more prominent and many viral challenges are all uploaded there.

I hope that future modules will allow me to film more videos like this. It really was an enjoyable and enriching experience.

Internet Tools

When one googles the definition of Internet Tools, this is what they may find

Utilities available on the Internet to help you find information among the millions of documents on the Web

Although, it is not a false definition, what we learnt in class goes beyond this definition. Some of the things I learnt that classified under internet tools are AdWords, Google Drive/Docs, Gmail, and YouTube. Based on the examples we were given in class, I think a slightly more accurate definition of internet tools could be something like “a plugin, or add-on, on the internet that improves the internet experience”.

One of the questions I have always wondered was how on earth Google and other search engines make money by being a search engine – as it seems on the surface that the only thing they do is provide search results. However, after learning about AdWords, everything seemed to fall into place. Or rather, all the questions I had about how search engines make money did. Before the lesson I had a sense that perhaps the paid ads for 1-2 links per search made was a method of generating income (I mean technically, it does generate income). Little did I know that the order in which results appear are also based on the amount of money paid (is it? seems rather generalized though). Then again, this only applies to companies who are looking to make money or other commercial-related things. What about the order of results for things academic related? For example when we search for educational articles, or blogs that are not profiting, what then determines the order in which they appear. All we know is that search engines have designed an automatic way to order the results, but what are the factors involved?

I think Google Drive is perhaps one of the best inventions Google has ever made to improve the life of students. Before Google Drive was invented, assuming a group of students wanted to use Word or Powerpoint for a project, everyone had to gather at a friend’s house and dedicate one computer to the use of word and powerpoint, while everyone’s job was to scour the internet for data and information with regards to the project. However, with the invention of Google Drive, it provides a lot more flexibility for students and perhaps even working adults alike. In a student case, it allows us to work from all over the world at any time. Members of the entire group can access the document at the same time and make changes where they see fit. In addition, you are able to view a history of the document, allowing you to see who made changes to what. We also tend to forget to regularly save our work and Google Drive does a great job by auto-saving every time a change is made to the document.

Perhaps one of the most famous websites in the entire world. The main purpose of this particular internet tool is for people to upload and share videos they capture around the world – although it did become more commercialized and welcomed many industries such as music, gaming, and technology. YouTube started off with homemade videos that people made for entertainment or to share things like cooking recipes. However, I would like to take this unique opportunity to talk about my favourite YouTuber. I should have done this in the Social Media post but I forgot about it.

My favourite YouTuber is a girl named Christina Grimmie. She is best known for doing song covers, with the most popular ones being “Just a Dream”, “Titanium”, and “I Will Always Love You”. Another one of my favourites that she’s done is “In Christ Alone”. In addition to song covers, she also has a few originals that she wrote herself such as “Tell My Mama”, “With Love”, and “Advice”. She started YouTube in 2009, and slowly grew in subscribers. It was only when she did the cover of “Just A Dream” with KHS that she got really famous online. Christina was a devout Christian who used her music to reach people and there was honestly not many people with that much passion and dedication towards her followers and fans like her. She called us her frans, which is a combination of friends and fans. She also used a unique sign that differentiated her fans from the others which she called “rawk fingers” which is basically 3 fingers up like this \|/

Her popularity continued to grow over the years as word spread. She was one of the only musicians in the world that I was actually really a fan of and would support live in concert if she had came to Singapore. So far, only one other musician/band has made the list: Against The Current. That aside, Christina decided to further her potential by auditioning for The Voice in which she had all 4 judges fighting over to coach her amazing voice.

Unfortunately, in 2016, during her tours, she was shot by a crazed fan and passed away the following morning. It was the first ever time I had shed tears for someone I did not even know and up to this day, when I watch her covers, my eyes still water.

• In Christ Alone
• Just A Dream
• The Voice Audition – Wrecking Ball

I apologize for going off-track but I felt that I should let someone who may not know of her talent, know her in wake of her death.

To conclude, I think that Internet Tools are a very essential addition to the way we use the internet for our various activities and without them, we would have to take extra steps to accomplish things, some of the extra steps may even be extremely troublesome.

Education

Technology has played a very significant role in education. Us millennials managed to experience the birth of how technology was implemented into education ever since primary school. Before the first forms of technology were introduced to the classroom, teachers had to use the conventional method of using the whiteboard and blackboard/chalkboard to teach us the things we needed to learn. Simply things such as filling in the blanks for a vocabulary exercise, or math problem, took slightly more time as writing on the board requires the teacher to write in a bigger font than what he or she is used to, and also spread it across the board to ensure that everyone in the class is able to read it. Thereafter, the teacher would have to “waste” additional time to erase the content that is on the board and it is usually followed by a few seconds of awkward silence between the students and teacher. Perhaps not really awkward for primary school kids who are enthusiastic about learning though… But in secondary school where everyone seems so tired, the students usually take the opportunity to shut their eyes for the precious seconds.

The first form of technology that many of us experienced in primary school is definitely the overhead projector, also known as OHP. It definitely saved the teachers a lot of time teaching a class as the only thing the teacher would have to do is turn the lights off and set up the OHP. Then again, each class usually has an AV rep that will learn how to set up the OHP and will be tasked to set it up before the teacher arrives in class, or at the start of the lesson. The teacher won’t have to waste a lot of time writing in bigger fonts and erasing an entire board’s length as the projection will be magnified on a screen. The only other tools that is required to use the OHP for teaching is a non-permanent marker, OHP sheets and a tissue to wipe the ink off.

The next piece of technology that we were introduced to are the visualizer and the projector. It pretty much works the exact same way as the OHP, but it is much less bulky and allows the teacher to sit at the desk to teach. The OHP usually had to be wheeled from a corner of the class the the center before everyone can see it. With the introduction of the visualizer and projector, it gave teachers a lot more freedom on how to use their materials. In addition to being able to project things onto the screen, there was an option to freeze the image as well, which works similarly to a camera capturing a photo. This meant that if the teacher had a quiz to give out but didn’t intend to print a copy for the entire class, he could just use his copy and freeze it on the screen before asking the students to take out a piece of paper to answer the questions.

Another piece of technology that we used in education was the computer. To the best of my knowledge, most primary schools and secondary schools were equipped with a computer lab. As we were the first generation to be have exposed to technology (in a manner of speaking), it was crucial that the teachers teach us what they could when the computers were introduced to the world. What quick crash courses they had in their teaching academy had to be matched with the ever-growing technology of that time. It was thanks to these computer lab sessions did we pick up basic skills of how to use a browser, use Microsoft Word, etc. Fun fact, I actually learnt how to animate short… films during primary school. Although I would not really call them films since the longest once I ever made was only about a minute or so.

As we transitioned further into secondary school and other various institutions, technology grew at an extremely fast pace. Soon we had laptops and iPads. A minority of classes over the country were given the opportunity to have an iPad in class for interactive learning. I feel that giving students our age a piece of technology and using interactive learning as a platform, it allows shy students to express their opinions online where the teacher can further take note of, or even use the suggestions or whatsoever. Unfortunately, it seems that majority of the schools in Singapore still don’t use such a method. Individual professors are trying though! Like you Mr Choy, you’ve provided us with an online forum where we can voice our opinions and whatnot. However, the one factor that prevents us from doing so, I feel, is the lack of anonymity. When we post something up our names are linked and we may, at times, feel threatened or afraid to post something. Perhaps you could consider using a different platform for anonymity in the future to provide a better learning environment should students have any questions 🙂

Another professor in UB that has embraced technology into teaching methods is Professor Heather, our UGC professor. It is very obvious she is a huge Macintosh supporter as she owns a Mac, iWatch, iPhone… I have no idea what else but she is basically a walking Apple ambassador haha. She also includes weekly blog posts as part of our grades which serve as a platform for her to see how well we understand the material and for her to understand how we view certain matters as history is merely a compilation of different viewpoints and speculations. Her slides are also extremely engaging. Up to now, I have yet to see any of her topics use a similar layout or theme which is really impressive!

 

In conclusion, I think technology has greatly improved the way we learn things. With information at our fingertips, education becomes more of a two-way thing when we are learning, especially in university. In primary school to JC/poly, most of the things we learn are concrete and there is not much argument to be done regarding most subjects. However, in university, where the professors are also continuously learning things in their area of expertise, access to such information to both parties can spur insightful conversations and interactions between student and teacher.

 

E-Commerce

This week’s blog post is going to be on e-commerce! Firstly, we learnt the definition of e-commerce in class which is basically the process of buying and selling goods and services electronically. It also refers to any electronic means, not just the internet – which is quite cool I think cause whenever I think of online shopping/e-commerce, it already involves the internet or rather, an internet connection?

Also, there’s quite a few type of e-commerce that I wasn’t really aware of. Perhaps I was aware of them, but not their specific terms;

Classified by nature of market relationship

1. Business-to-Consumer (B2C)
2. Business-to-Business (B2B)
3. Consumer-to-Consumer (C2C)

Classified by type of technology used

1. Peer-to-Peer (P2P)
2. Mobile commerce (M-commerce)

After hearing professor Abel discuss it in class, I realized that I have actually used 2 out of the 3 market relationships before. Ok, maybe “used” isn’t the right word but I think you will get what I mean.

An example of B2C could be companies such as Apple or TaoBao/EzBuy. I will write more on EzBuy since it’s the one I use more regularly. Many people in Singapore, perhaps around the Asia-Pacific region, use EzBuy to shop online for many reasons. Some of which include it’s extremely cheap prices, ridiculous sales, and relatively cheap shipping. We are buying almost directly from the manufacturer with only 1 middle-man in most cases. However, many people will wait for the sale periods whereby there is no agent fee and/or shipping fee before splurging on clothes. I actually did wonder in class – when they remove the need for us to pay agent fee, essentially removing the need to pay the middle-man, does it mean that the middle-man earns next to nothing during this period of sales?

People are already paid poorly in China and many of them work in factories with pays up to $2 per hour or even less. It’s actually worse pay than a recruit in NS, only rival to that of a lowly intern in the engineering field. I would know that because I did intern as an engineering student for $2 per hour and I had to work for 12 hours a day, sometimes more.

Negative points aside, it’s really great to see that there are many B2C options available. In Ezbuy, we simply download the app in our phones then browse through it and add it to our cart. When we are done, we can check out the cart and opt to pay via credit card or other payment options. It even includes the option of express shipping, regular shipping, or the slow but extremely cheap shipping. Express shipping usually takes 1-3 days before it arrives in Singapore ready for collection, or for it to be delivered to your house. Regular can take up to a week or a week and a half. As for the last option, if I recall correctly, it can take up to a month but you get a ridiculous cheap shipping fee. Which brings me to my next point. Ezbuy also offers the option of having the item(s) delivered to your doorstep for an additional $5 (in my experience) or self-collection at the nearest delivery point. Pretty cool eh!

C2C should be quite easy to recognize in Singapore as well. None other than our beloved Carousell! It’s the e-bay of Singapore and Singaporeans from all walks of life use it to sell hand-crafted goods, brand-new but unwanted items, or pre-loved items. It’s a great way to get rid of things you don’t want in the house anymore but are still in decent condition. However, the downside to this is that there have been an increasing number of scammers on the website/application. The company can only do so much when there is a scammer because there is no actual way for them to track down the seller/buyer if a scam happens. It is also a lot of hassle for them to go through the process of vetting everyone before making them eligible to buy/sell goods online.

However, they do have a feedback system for each user whereby users can rate each other after a transaction as to whether or not they have had a pleasant experience or not. The downside is that one must remember to press the “make offer” button as a buyer before you are able to leave feedback. If you forget to “make offer” and get scammed, you cannot leave a negative feedback on the scammer’s profile.

 

Well, that’s all from me for now about e-commerce!

Social Networking for Business

Social Media can be a great way to keep track of consumer behavior. Companies can use social media to formulate marketing strategies to better reach out to their customers. Additionally, they can use certain applications for analytics, metrics, and measurements.

The tools that were introduced to us in class were completely unknown to me and it was pretty fun to learn about them and find out about their uses. Some of the social media tools we were introduced to were Hootsuite, socialmention, Facebook analytics, and Keyhole.

There are also various uses for Social Media when it comes to marketing and advertising. One can use it to target different audiences; such as those who listen on the radio, short promotions on platforms such as Twitter, posts and polls on websites like Facebook to promote participation, publish content on reading websites or blog pages, and even foster community bonding. However, we learnt that each of the various methods take up different amounts of times ranging from 15 mins a day up to 10 hours a week.

It is also important for companies to know which social media platform is best for each function and what their company is best renowned for. Some of the various functions the platforms can perform are customer care, analytics, curation, promotions, social selling, listening, and publishing and engagement.

The marketing strategy that we learnt in class is similar to that of how one determines how best to launch an advertising campaign. Starting with setting goals, determining target audience, choosing a platform, creating content, implementation, tracking and measuring progress, and adjusting how they use the platform accordingly.

Currently, the most widely used social media platform is Facebook. All the big named companies and brands use it to advertise; such as Coca-Cola, Red Bull, Starbucks, and many more. The fact that people of all ages use Facebook either as a way to socialize and share information, makes it a top choice as a platform for advertising. Not only that, Facebook provides an analysis tool to see how the advertisement is doing based on the number of views, clicks, and more. Companies can use the data provided by the analytic tool to further determine how they should either tailor their advertisements to their target audience, or simply think of other methods on how to sell their product.

Another reason why Facebook is a top choice for a platform is that it is able to provide the tools for the best forms of advertising; static visuals, gifs, videos, and words. Although other platforms such as Snapchat, Instagram, and Google+ may provide similar services, they are restricted in certain ways. For example, Instagram only allows up to 1 minute videos, Snapchat allows 10 seconds, etc. However, the good thing about the limits on other platforms is that it allows companies to have a more creative way to introduce or advertise their products within a shorter time length.

However, it isn’t all butterflies and rainbows. There are some risks involved when it comes to using social media for business as we have learnt in class.

• Lack of social media strategy
• Intellectual property issues
• Inappropriate disclosure of information
• Compliance with applicable laws
• Liability issues
• Human resources issues
• Lack of, or ineffective, key performance management
• Not having the right social media “evangelists”
• Not incorporating social media as part of the crisis communications plan

Some of the problems and risks posed by social media can be easily solved. The more difficult ones, if solved, will bring about positive changes to the company who can do so. Something the company can consider doing would be to consider the 4 steps of social media strategy;

1. Define goals
2. Define metrics
3. Decide tactics
4. Execute  strategy

One of the most important takeaways from the lesson is that 92% of all small businesses lose money every month because they ignore marketing automation. Instead of using a social media tool to analyze their data, they choose to manually analyze their data as they assume that being a small company, it won’t affect their losses and precious time.

Social Media definitely has great potential for social commerce and marketing but it is in need of a stable business growth model. It is also an essential communication tool for personal, professional, social, political work, relationship and business development.