WEEKLY QUESTIONS FOR CHAPTER SEVEN- Networks & Telecommunications

 Q1.  Explain the business benefits of using wireless technology. 
a. Ubiquity- available at any location at any time (without having to be plugged in). Ubiquity creates easier information access in a real time environment which is highly valued in today’s business and consumer markets (Turban, King, Lang 2008). 
b. Convenience- its more convenient to be able to connect wirelessly rather than having to connect to a network using wires (Turban, King, Lang 2008). 
c.  Can Support of Mobile Employees- the Mobile workers are those who work outside the concrete premises (sales team, travelling executives) and they need the same corporate data available to those employee’s working inside the offices (Turban, King, Lang 2008). 
d.  Mobile Office- Ability to work from car, airport, hotel (Turban, King, Lang 2008).
 e. Sales Force Mobilisation and Automation- Many employees who sell must travel (sales pitches, demonstrating new product to existing customer, inventory checks in customer’s stores, maintaining close working relationships).Wireless technology can keep these employees better informed of new product launches, product info, pricing schedules, order status, manufacturing status, inventory levels, and delivery schedules. This creates improved manufacturing and delivery scheduling, fewer data entry errors, less clerical and administrative costs and better decision making (Turban, King, Lang 2008).
         Reference:

    Turban, E., King, D. and Lang, J. 2008. Introduction to Electronic Commerce 2E (International Edition) Pearson Prentice Hall, New Jersey.


  Q2.   Describe the business benefits associated with VoIP

•      It provides voice and data telecommunication requirements between its headquarters in order to reduce cost and complexity associated with delivering these services and improve response/restoration times. 
•  With new and improved technologies, internet phone calls offer a similar quality to traditional landline calls. 
• Has produced more choices, lower prices (low per minute charge),  and new applications. 
• VoIP uses existing network and internet infrastructure to route telephone calls more efficiently and inexpensively than traditional telephone service offering cost savings, productivity gains and service enhancements. 
•  File transfer makes it easy to collaborate with colleagues over the phone; users can send copies of reports, pictures and files 
• Can to face to face time with web cameras to co-workers or clients which reduces hassle and expenses of traveling. 
• Easy to use 
• Mobility- users can work from anywhere  
• Three way calling capabilities

To Learn more about VoIP; go to: http://www.voip.com.au/



 Q3. Compare LANs and WANs


A Local Area Network (LAN) is designed to connect  group of computers in close proximity to each other such as an office building/school/home. A LAN is useful for sharing resources like files, printers, games and other applications and connects to other LANs, internet and other WANs. A Wide Area Network (WAN) spans a large geographic area (state, province, or country) and often connect to multiple smaller networks (eg: LANs).



Q4. Describe RFID and how it can be used to help make a supply chain more effective.


RFID uses active or passive tags in the from of chips or smart labels that can store unique identifiers and relay information to electronic readers. The components of an RFID system include a tag, an antenna, and a reader connected to a software system that collects and manages the data collected (Beggs 2010). The tag is sewn onto a garment and as the article passes by a reader, the tag is read and the information relayed to the computer; which can hold much more information than the traditional bar code (Beggs 2010).The RFID can implement their solutions throughout the whole supply chain from the originating the material, the storage, packaging, logistics, cross-border and container transportation, to inventory control and retail works (MSC 2006).Throughout each stage in the manufacturing processes the tag is automatically scanned which would send real time information to the  headquarters which informs the company were in the processes the garment is and when it will be delivered to the store. This leads to effective Supply chain visibility which is very important to effective supply chain management and can lead to a firm’s competitive advantage (Beggs 2010).
A  benefit of RFID is being able to receive goods accurately without even opening a box (Beggs 2010). When a box of garments is shipped to the warehouse or store it can be scanned and its contents confirmed which is 22 times faster than before (Beggs 2010). With  RFID technology  it is not necessary to have a physical or visual connection between the tag and the tag reader (Beggs 2010) .  This system is more accurate than if you take inventory manually which is exposes to human error. 






Sources:

Beggs, B 2010, ‘Do you know were your textiles are tonight?’ American Laundry News, Vol. 36. No 1. pp 43-53.
MSC, 2006, A breakthrough in traditional Garment Industry, Available: http://www.zymmetry.com/news/tc/17-4/rfid_eng.pdf Accessed 15 March 2010.

Q5.  Identify the advantages and disadvantage of deploying mobile technology
Benefits-

•  Ubiquity- available at any location at any time. A wireless mobile device such as a smart phone can deliver info when it is needed, regardless of users location which creates easier information access in a real time environment which is highly valued in today’s business and consumer markets.

•  Convenience- mobile devices are increasing functionality and usability while remaining the same size or smaller. Mobile devices are portable, there is no need to wait for the device to start up which enable users to connect easily/ quickly to the internet.

•  Interactivity- immediate and highly interactive.

•  Personalisation- always owned and operated by the same indv (rather than a computer shared by many) which enables personalisation- delivery of info, products and services designed to meet the needs of indv consumers. Although personalisation is still limited- they become a primary E-Comerce tool for delivering personalization info/ products/ services due to availability/ feasibility.

•   Localisation or Location Based Services- knowing where a user is physically located at any particular movement is key to offering relevant mobile services in real time. Such services are known as location based m-commerce. Localisation can be general (eg: to everyone in a certain mall) or can combine personalisation & localisation. EG: if they know a person likes Italian food and they are in a mall with Italian food- then they could send a text message.

•  They have become cheaper and more versatile- allowing everyone to own a mobile device.
•   Mobile Social Networks- EG: Facebook now on Iphones.
•   Mobile Advertising- using GPS location services to target customers
•  The mobile workforce- increasingly more business people are working away from the office and going mobile. This is driven by work trends such as telecommunicating, workers concerns about security, employees desires for a work and life balance and a general questioning about where workers need to be located to conduct their work. 

Disadvantages-

•  Accuracy of devices-  cheaper GPSs can only be accurate to 500 meters
•   Cost- benefit justification- for most users the benefits do not justify the costs to the inconvenience and time it takes to utilise the service (can easily do it old fashioned way.)
•  Invasion of privacy- people hesitant to have their whereabouts tracked
•  High cost
•  Inadequate security
•   Inadequate mobile applications development
•   Not an IT priority
•  Short battery life
•  Small screens
•  Inadequate device memory
•  Trojan horses that affect mobile phones running in Java- delivered via internet or blue tooth
•  Malicious codes
• Open air transmission of signals across multiple networks opens up new opportunities for compromising security
• Small devices are easily lost or stolen- steals valuable info
•  Dropped/ crushed/ damaged- loss of stored data
•  Technological barriers
• Small storage and speed- impossible to have massive downloads
•  Limited battery life
• Transmission interferences with appliance
• Ethical, Legal & Health Issues in M Commerce
•  Can impose isolation on a work force- no social interaction
•   Reduction in organisational transparency, difficulty in knowing what other employees do, how the org is evolving, how they fit into it- powerful implications
•   Hard to separate company/personal life on a cell phone- unless they carry 2 phones
• Health damage from cellular radio frequency- not proven
• Addiction effects of not having phone with you
•  Repetitive stress injury from texting
• Ethics of monitoring staff movement, maintaining appropriate work/ life balance 

Reference:

     Turban, E., King, D. and Lang, J. 2008. Introduction to Electronic Commerce 2E (International Edition) Pearson Prentice Hall, New Jersey.


To learn more about mobile technology; see this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kM4oOBtLY2c