Chapter 10 Communication

Exercise 1 Spam and copyright

1. Define the term spam.

A:

An email categorised as spam usually contains unwanted messages such as

advertisements and promotions. It is possible that these messages may contain
unethical and dangerous information, links, or attachments (phishing).

2. Explain 2 reasons that spam needs to be prevented.

A:

• When your inbox is loaded with spam emails, the storage space provided by
the email service provider gets filled up. The network may slow down due to
the data traffic.
• If the email contains any malicious links or attachments, your sensitive
information may become available to others.
• Deleting the spam emails can be an annoying and time-consuming process.

3. Describe 2 methods of how spam can be prevented.

A:

• Enable the spam filters in your email application.

• Report the unwanted emails as spam or block the unknown senders.
• Unsubscribe to email lists you do not want to be a part of.
• Do not fill in your email ID on websites, online forums, or online forms unless
absolutely necessary.

4. Explain 2 constraints of email, in terms of the laws, within a country.

A:

• Emails should have appropriate and well-defined subjects. These should not
be deceptive.
• Companies or organisations must use the correct names of brands and
include contact details.
• Emails from an organisation should be sent only to the subscribed individuals
who have given permission to receive the emails.
• Organisations must not store email addresses or purchase these from
external sources.
• If an individual is subscribed to an email list, they should have a clear option
to unsubscribe.
 • An organisation must have clear and well-defined privacy policies that are
easily available to the subscribed individuals

5. Identify 3 rules you should follow regarding acceptable language.

A:

If someone has sent a private email, you cannot post or use that content in public
forums. Under the fair usage of copyrighted content, you must not forward or
repost any messages without the author’s permission. Sometimes organisations
also add disclaimers about copyright confidentiality in their email signature
footers.

• Use a concise and specific subject line

• Use appropriate language (no disrespectful, defamatory or slang language)
• Be polite: use the correct tone (formal, informal or casual)
• Always check your message before sending
• Be brief, clear, and provide relevant details only

6. Describe how copyright affects emails.

A:
If someone has sent a private email, you cannot post or use that content in public
forums. Under the fair usage of copyrighted content, you must not forward or
repost any messages without the author’s permission. Sometimes organisations
also add disclaimers about copyright confidentiality in their email signature
footers.

7. Describe 4 rules of netiquette that apply to emails.

A: (any 4 of these answers is sufficient)

• Do not use all capital letters as it appears like you are SHOUTING.
• Always start an email by greeting the recipient and close it by signing your
name.
• Avoid fancy or flashy backgrounds and graphics. This is unnecessary and
may make the message slow to open.
• Do not send very large attachments. This may be inconvenient for the person
downloading them due to limited network speed or storage, or your email
might not send at all.
• Do not forget to attach files mentioned in your email.
• Check the email addresses of all recipients before sending the email.
• Do not leave the subject line blank. Include an appropriate subject line about
the content.
• Be responsive by replying to an email.
• Always check the spelling and grammar of the message you are sending.
 8. Explain why it’s better to use an email group for people you regularly
email together.

A:

• You only needs to type in the name of the group which saves time rather than
typing out all the email addresses.
• Less likely that someone is missed out.
• Fewer errors.
• You don’t have to remember individual email addresses.
• Less likely to send the same email twice to one person.

Exercise 2 Internet and intranet

1. What is the internet?

A:

The Internet refers to an international network. It is a global network of networks

that contains billions of computers and other electronic devices.

2. Define an intranet.

A:
Sometimes organisations may require a separate network for their internal
communications rather than using the Internet. This private network is called an
intranet, which refers to an internal restricted access network. The intranet is a
closed network in which the technology used is the same as the Internet but it
is controlled internally rather than being public.

3. How is the internet different to the world wide web?

A:
The web is a part of the internet and is basically a way to access or exchange
information with the internet as a medium. However, the internet is used for the
web and also other services such as email, chatting, audio/video conferencing,
mobile apps, and more.

4. Describe the process of saving files into cloud storage.

A:
You can save files like documents, music & photos in the cloud. This means
they’re stored on a server somewhere in the world, and you access the files via
the internet. You can use any device to access your files from anywhere as long
as you have internet access.
 5. Complete the table.

Acronym Name Description

HTTP/HTTPS HyperText Hypertext Transfer Protocol (Secure)
Transfer A method of accessing data over the
Protocol/Secure internet
Sets the rules of formatting and
transmitting messages
Used by the World Wide Web
FTP File Transfer File transfer protocol
Protocol Used when transferring files from one
computer to another over the internet
ISP Internet Service Internet Service Provider
Provider Allows users to access the internet
Provides services such as domain
name registration and web hosting
URL Uniform Uniform Resource Locator
Resource Locator Resource/website address
Used by web browsers
To access/link web pages/retrieve files
- Hyperlink A hyperlink is a text or a graphic link
that, on clicking, takes you to a new
document or a new section within the
current document. On a web page, a
hyperlink allows the user to navigate
from page to page or within the page.

6. Name the 3 sections of a web address.

A:
Protocol, domain name/ hostname, path.

7. Describe what a web browser is.

A:
A web browser is a software application used to access the web. The browser
connects to a website’s server on the internet and restores web pages for the user to view.
Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, and Mozilla Firefox are examples of web browsers

8. Explain how a search engine is used.

A:
To find information, type the keywords (search terms) in the Search bar then press
Enter on your keyboard to start the search. Although it is easy to find information on any
topic, you may get multiple results. It may be then difficult to find the exact link that you are
looking for, which in turn reduces the speed of your search. So, it is important to always try
to refine your search by selecting the right set of keywords
 9. Define the following terms:

A:

a. Blog:
• Short for weblog
• Personal internet journal / online diary
• Owners’ observations / opinions on a topic / single author
• Frequently updated by owner
• Blog is a website

b. Wiki:
• Allows users to create / edit web pages using a web browser
• Many people can contribute / edit / update entries / collaborative
• Members of the group can contribute
• Holds information on many topics which can be searched
• Structure is determined by content / users
• Wiki is a website or software
• Wiki is usually objective

c. Social networking: Social networking is the use of Internet-based social

media sites to stay connected with friends, family, colleagues, customers, or
clients. Social networking can have a social purpose, a business purpose, or
both, through sites such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram,
among others. Social networking has become a significant base for marketers
seeking to engage customers.

10. Explain why the internet is so popular.

A:
The internet contains so many different forms of entertainment including
images and videos as well as many ways to communicate with others. There are
many different reasons people like to use the internet besides entertainment &
communication including online shopping, online banking & booking events.

11. Explain why an internet search to find relevant information is not always
fast.
A:
Although it is easy to find information on any topic, you may get multiple
results. Search engines algorithms rank the results so that the most likely match is at
the top. However, it may still be difficult to find the exact link that you are looking for,
which in turn reduces the speed of your search.

12. Explain why it is not always easy to find reliable information on the
internet.
A:
Anyone can post information on the internet without it being checked by
anyone so it’s difficult to tell what is reliable.
 13. There is so much information on the internet, so how can you evaluate
the reliability of the information you find?

A:

• Check the website you are accessing. For instance, government registered
websites are more reliable (these will end with.gov).
• Read reviews, testimonials, feedback, and comments from other users on the
internet.
• Look for the information about the author or publisher.
• Where sites are used for transmitting personal information and account
details, check that the URL includes HTTP.

Exam style questions

1. Email accounts need strong passwords to ensure no one other than the
owner can access them. Describe what makes a strong password.

A:
• Avoid using your personal details such as name and date of birth in a
password.
• Your password should contain around 6–12 characters.
• Include at least one capital letter, one number, and one symbol.
• Avoid words that appear in a dictionary.

2. Compare the differences between the internet and an intranet.

A:

3. Explain what makes the internet so popular.

A:
 • Can communicate instantly with anyone across the world using email, social
networking, blogging, instant messaging and other forms of exchanging
information.
• There is access to unlimited information about almost everything, which can
also be updated easily.
• Downloading and uploading files and applications is relatively simple and fast.
• The speed of communication or accessing information is faster than any other
process.
• Online research, teaching and learning has become easy and effective.
• Can be used for entertainment such as movies, songs and games.
• Can also store files using the online storage called the cloud.

4. Many students choose to use the internet rather than a library when
doing research for homework. Compare these methods and explain the
differences.

A:

Disadvantages of the internet:

• Danger of accessing inappropriate information
• Have to worry about having to have internet connectivity
• Likely to be information overload compared to the library

Advantages of the internet:

• Can be quicker to find relevant information than using a library
• There is multimedia to help explain information
• Data can be copied and pasted.
• Less errors in transferring the data from the internet
• Access is unlimited

Advantages of a library:
• Relevant information can be found quite quickly, if the information you need is
local to the area and held in the historical records at the library
• Librarian can recommend what and how to search in the historical records
• Index makes searching more efficient

Disadvantages of a library:
• Historical records have limited amounts of information
• Historical records only contain one type of information whereas the internet
contains records from other places
• Can be slower to find relevant information than using a search engine
• The census contains handwritten data that is scanned therefore could be
difficult to read
• Manual records don’t have multimedia to help explain information
• Data in the historical records is not in digital form therefore cannot be copied
and pasted.
• More errors in transferring the data than from the internet
Access is limited to library opening hours
Historical records cannot find information from around the world quicklyIt can be
slower to search for information compared to the internet