TUTORIAL Two

1) Listen to the podcast on Navigation which can be found on the Digital Enterprise Page (Google - the digital enterprise). 

a) What are the four (4) main points Michael Rappa makes about search? Please write them on your blog page.

ANS.

• It allows users to find products and services online. This is the first point that Michael Rappa makes about search. This can mean that paying search engines like Google a small payment can allow the particular advertisement to be on the first page of a search. This is called paid placement which has already become a huge business in the advertising field. This also means that companies are required to advertise online. 

• Some users are not aware of methods to extract the exact information they are looking for from the search to their best advantage. As Rappa said, "They put a word, or a question, or a few words in a toolbar on a search engine, and hope for the best". (Rappa, 2008). Users are unaware of how to narrow their search sot hat it would result in the exact thing that they are looking for. Some people don't even know how a search engine works. What we must understand that databases only account for a very minuscule amount of information that its actually existing. Less is more. Key words, phases have to searched to get the results you were looking for.           

• What actually is a "search engine"? Rappa says that it is "simply a database of urls, and associated key words, and text and or images which get compiled through some kind of collection mechanism." (2008) Earlier there were two types of search engines: the automated approach and "others which automatically crawl around the web, using automated processes to visit websites, and to, in a sense, collect the web pages which they can collect, and database some or all of that information on a network of servers" (Rappa, 2008). However we mostly only rely on automatic search engine approach which collects and searches through information on the internet. 

• The ranking algorithm for listing results is the last point Michael Rappa makes. This is how the order for the list of results in a search are determined. 

b) Watch or read the Marissa Mayer interview. Write a paragraph or two, on four points made by Marissa Mayer, that you think were the most interesting or significant for business. There are no right or wrong answers here, I just want your opinion.

ANS

Marissa Mayer is the vice president of user experience and search products at the infamous, Google. She helps to decide which new ideas are presented to the founders of Google. She is 36 years old and one of the youngest members on the executive operating committee at Google. She is also the president and CEO of yahoo. 

Mayer said that Google takes note and interest in the opinions and feedback of the users. By developing prototypes, Google, is able to collect information in order to conceive if they are meeting the needs of their users. The prototype sees if there is a need for improvement. This information also helped developers improve their products.

Marissa also talks about  Businesses are willing to pay to advertise on search engines like Google. She mentioned the possibility of paying for searches by annual subscriptions, etc. Mayer also talked about Google in other countries and how their effect and it can be accessed from anywhere around the world. However, some products are more popular in some countries rather than others. Google is a engineering company, so it is very technologically driven, which according to her, is one of the reasons Google dominates 64% of the search market. Marissa also believes that Microsoft and Yahoo have lost their position in the market as they have focused more on marketing rather than technology. Mayer added the opportunities of global marketing as the ad put over the net goes all around the world. 

She also states that there aren't many female engineers and that she does set a role model to motivate more females to study engineering. 

Source: http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/03/06/marissa-mayer-on-charlie-rose-the-future-of-google

2) Please watch the Bill Joy video, and it will give you a good background to the Internet and particularly to the emergence of the World Wide Web.

From the video, please answer on your blog page -

a) So what are the 6 webs?
ANS

According to Bill Joy, the 6 webs are: 

1. The NEAR WEB is the PC internet
2. The HERE WEB is mobile internet 
3. The FAR WEB is internet via HD screens and games online
4. The WEIRD WEB is using internet via voice recognition
5. Business to Business (B2B) where business systems talk to each other without human interaction
6. Device to Device (D2D) is where devices talk to each other via data collected by sensors

b) Could there be more?
ANS

Of course there will be more, as the world develops further, and newer and newer mechanisms are being discovered, we might discover an entire new dimension and as a result there could be many more to come, for example, mental telepathy, etc. 

c) What does it mean for business?

ANS

Businesses must embrace the new technological advancements that come through if they want to continue being successful and continue existing as a matter of fact. Most businesses would want to be first to implement these new technologies to show their clients/customers that they are providing them with the best products and services available. By adapting to the dynamic, changing environment and keeping track of the new technologies that enter the market/industry, businesses are ensuring that they keep their competitive edge. 



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