Module 4: Evaluating The Web

Internet Detective

Website 2: http://www.vts.intute.ac.uk/detective/index.html

Annotation: I found this website as a great resource and tutorial as a student doing an Internet interactive course.

This website provides advice to any student who searches for information on the Internet to study. It gives guidelines on how to search, evaluate and validate and use material found on the Internet.

There are many concepts that this website illustrates and covers in detail. Firstly, it guides students on the skills required to do Internet search. Secondly, it explains how to search for quality information. Once information is found, it advises students on how to evaluate the validity and source of the information.

‘The Brief’ link summaries what this website is about.

The ‘Get On The Case’ section is an interactive tutorial and advise which every student (NET11 and other students) should try. It is user friendly and easy to navigate and teaches valuable lessons on what to look for when searching the ‘web’ for information.

The ‘Keep the Right Side of the Law’ explains about plagiarism and the consequences of it.

There is also a ‘For Tutors’ section which provides quiz downloads, pictures and publications.

This website was developed in the United Kingdom by Emma Place and Margret Keldell to “benefit the higher and further education community in the UK. It may be freely used for non-commercial academic and research purposes in the UK and elsewhere.” Ref - Internet Detective: Wise up to the Web. It was launched in June 2006 and is current with relevant and up to date information.

Reference: Place, E., Kendall, M., Hiom, D., Booth, H., Ayres, P., Manuel, A., Smith, P. (2006) "Internet Detective: Wise up to the Web", 3rd edition, Intute Virtual Training Suite, [online]. Available from: http://www.vts.intute.ac.uk/detective/

Module 4 – Tools for using the Web

Add-Ons

Website 1: https://addons.mozilla.org/

Annotation: The ‘Mozilla’ website is great for add-ons for the ‘Mozilla Firefox’ web browser. There are many add-ons that are recommended by the web browser that makes surfing the web easy and a lot of fun.

There are add-ons and extensions that web surfers can use to suit many purposes. Personally, I use the ‘Blue Organiser’ to store my bookmarks and the ‘Jet Eye’ to view web pages.

This website is a great tool for the NET11 students for some of the Module 4 tasks on ‘tools for using the web’.

The ‘Mozilla’ website is easy to navigate with detailed information and descriptions on the software that it provides for downloads. A lot of the software it provides is also small in byte size which makes it possible for ‘dial-up’ connections to use as well.

There are also links to a list of ‘search engines’ and ‘plug-ins’ which students need for NET11.

There is also a list of ‘extensions’ that can further enhance the web browser for greater usability and efficiency.

‘Mozilla’ also offers e-mail software called ‘Thunderbird’ as a free download with ‘spam’ and ‘junk e-mail’ filters.

Summary and evaluation: ‘Mozilla’ provides its users with a vast amount of resources to make using the ‘web’ fun and efficient. It provides users a choice of themes that can make the web browser look unique. This website can be stored as a resource even if the Internet users use another web browser because of the links that it provides to the ‘search engines’ and ‘plug-ins’.

Reference: Mozilla Corporation, (Copyright © 2005–2007 Mozilla). FireFox Add-ons. Retrieved January, 2004, from Mozilla Products Web site: https://addons.mozilla.org/

Module 3 – Web Standards

Web Standards & the Information Professional

Website 2: http://www.motive.co.nz/glossary/web-standards.php

Annotation: The ‘Motive Web Design Glossary’ page on ‘Web Standards (approach)’ is a very detailed bank of information and links that explains anything that anyone needs to get a website or web page up to the W3C standards.

The website defines, provides a checklist, lists specifications, gives a history and provides further reading links about web standards.

This website is a great source of resource for all NET11 students, especially for module 4 (Web Standards).

The websites main concept is to provide usable content that is easy to seek, read, understand and use on the topic of ‘web standards’. It does this by providing direct links to W3C specifications for specific topics. It also provides definitions of specific words that students may need to understand (for example ‘elements’ and ‘web browser’)

One of the many strengths of this website is that it provides relevant further links to other pages and websites on the topic of ‘web standards’.

Summary and evaluation: It is important to design websites that can be viewed by as many people as possible on all the web browsers. This website provides the resources and understanding that is needed for any website designer to design a website that complies to the W3C specifications.

This is a New Zealand based website which is managed my Motive (Ltd). It was established in 1999. The contents of the page were updated on the 14^th of September 2006, which makes it current and relevant. The designers of this website have done so with the philosophy of ‘informing, educating and entertaining’ the users, which they have done very well!

Reference: Kirkwood, Andy (1999). Web Standards (approach). Retrieved January 11, 2007, from Motive Net Communication With Intent Web site: http://www.motive.co.nz/glossary/web-standards.php

Module 3 - HTML

HTML

Website 1: http://www.tizag.com/htmlT/index.php

Annotation: The ‘Tizag.com’ is a very useful website for learning about how to mark up web page’s / websites.

The ‘HTML Tutorials’ section of the website is easy to navigate due to its simple set out. One of the main reasons why I like this website is because of its breakdown on different levels of HTML coding tutorials. It is set up in easy step by step lessons for the novice HTML learner.

It is a relevant website because the HTML lessons will help the students complete the Module 3 – HTML task.

The concept that this website uses is to presume that the person using the tutorial knows absolutely NOTHING about HTML. This can be seen in the ‘Beginners Web Site Creating Guide’ section of the web page. It goes through the very basics of web page creation. The creators of this website have really thought about how to teach the lessons in a simplistic way so that anyone interested in website creation will be able to follow the tutorials with ease. I used this website as a reference tool for my NED11 subject.

There is also more advanced and complex HTML, CSS, JavaScript, PHP etc lessons on this website.

Summary and evaluation:The HTML coding is a major part of the ‘Internet Studies’ course. It is very important that students learn the basics of HTML. They require it to upload files and folders into the ‘Student Presentations’ area of the NET11 course. This website can be used as a resource for students and anyone else interested in web page design.

Reference: Erack Network, (2003-2006). Tizag Tutorials. Retrieved August 4, 2006, from http://www.tizag.com/beginnerT/ Web site: http://www.tizag.com/htmlT/

Module 2 – Email

Spam

Website 2: http://www.acma.gov.au/ACMAINTER.:STANDARD::pc=PC_2008

Annotation: (ACMA = Australian Communications and Media Authority)

The ‘acma.gov.au’ website gives consumers an insight into email ‘spam’. The website details the legislation, codes of practice, obligations of the Internet Service Providers (Australian and International), prevention, solution, and how and where to report about spam.

The introduction page describes spam and the ‘Spam Act 2003’. The ‘More information about spam’ section of the page is a vast database on everything anyone needs to know about spam.

This website is useful in our NET11 studies because spam is ‘junk’ email. It is relevant that we understand the Australian laws relating to spam and how to combat it. We should also be aware that our ISP has to provide us with appropriate filters of spam.

The ‘ACMA’ website provides us with one of the best (I think) ‘consumer information’ and ‘business information’ brochures on spam. It is definitely worth reading for guidance.(PDF or RTF)

The ‘Other useful links’ section of the website has a very useful and extensive list of websites and contacts for Internet users.

The ACMA also provide software in the ‘SpamMATTERS’ section of the web page that can be used to help them fight spam (For Microsoft Outlook/Express)

The website is set up by the Australian Federal Government and the contents are reliable and relevant.

Summary and evaluation:This website is a great reference tool for anyone in Australia that receives emails and spam. It should be an important bookmark on any Internet browser. The ‘SpamMATTERS’ software should be part of NET11 software download to help students’ combat spam.

Reference: Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), Spam: The Introduction. Retrieved January 06, 2007, from http://www.acma.gov.au/ACMAINTER.1507598:HOMEPAGE::pc=HOME,tlp=HOME Web site: http://www.acma.gov.au/ACMAINTER.1507598:STANDARD::pc=PC_2008

Module 2 – Chat Rooms/Newsgroups

Chat Room/Newsgroups

Website 1: http://www.netalert.net.au/default.asp

Annotation: The ‘Australian Government Net Alert Limited’ website is a great resource website for all Internet users. It provides advice and outlines that are involved with using the Internet.

The website gives a thorough insight and advice to users about ‘Chatting Online’. It explains all about chat rooms and gives advice to children and parents on how to look for dangers in chat rooms. It also provides links to report Internet crimes and offensive websites to the appropriate authorities.

The website is very relevant because it also provides links and articles to ‘newsgroups’. It provides a simple explanation on what newsgroups are and information on the dangers of joining newsgroups. There are also links to newsgroups.

The main aim of the website is to teach people how to use the Internet safely. It identifies the dangers to look for and how to avoid the pitfalls when using the Internet. It also provides solutions and reporting facilities to make Internet users feel secure in the knowledge that they can report fraudulent activities to someone that will take action.

The ‘Australian Government Net Alert Limited’ is always current (last update was on 3^rd January, 2007) and is set up by the federal Australian government. This guarantees the contents are relevant and genuine.

Summary & Evaluation: I think that this website should be an important bookmark for all Internet users as a reference source. There are other important links on the homepage (besides chat rooms/newsgroups) that are very helpful. There are also links suited for age groups and various demographics.

Reference: NetAlert Limited, (last modified on Monday, 1 November 2004.). What is a Chat Room?. Retrieved January 05, 2007, from Australian Government Net Alert Limited Web site: http://www.netalert.net.au/01464-What-is-a-chat-room.asp

Module 1 - Internet Basics

Internet Basics

Website 2: http://usd.edu/trio/tut/start/index.shtml

Annotation: This is a great tutorial website for Internet users of all levels who want to learn about the intricate way that the Internet works. One of the best things about this website is the way that it is set up for navigation. It lists all the topics in a 'table' format which is easy to read and use.

Clicking or choosing a topic in the list takes the user into a detailed explanation about the topic. There is a basic explanation about the topic on top of the page which can be used as a quick reference.

A lot of the topics also have a basic ‘question’ and ‘answer’ list which may help a lot of people.

There is also a tutorial page link at the bottom of the page which is very useful for HTML explanations and tasks (which we cover in Module 3)

The master host of this website is the US Department of Education which was established in 1980.

The main aim of this website is to provide a simple and easy to read guide of the complex workings of the Internet. It lists the components that make the Internet work (hardware and software) and provides explanations and diagrams which the reader can decipher quite easily. (For example, 'gateway/router/TCP/IP')

Summary and Evaluation: I think that this website can be used for any part of NET11 because of the vast list of topics that it covers. There are further links to free software on some of the topics from the main list.

Reference: TRIO, (Last Modified: 01/31/05). Internet Basics 101. Retrieved January 2, 2007, Web site: http://usd.edu/trio/tut/start/index.shtml

Module 1 – Protocols

Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP)

Website 1: http://www.iec.org/online/tutorials/int_tele/index.html

What is VoIP? ‘VoIP’ or ‘Voice over Internet Protocol’ is a fairly new way of communicating using the Internet technology. Simply, it is a system where a person’s voice is converted into a digital signal when he/she is speaking into a normal telephone hand set, and converted back to a normal voice at the other end of the line.

Annotation: This website gives an easy definition about VoIP.

There is a ‘table of contents’ in this website which is easy to navigate to find out more about the technology.

The article listed above explains in simple terms how ‘Voice over Internet Protocols’ works, the equipment needed, the strengths and weaknesses of the technology.

It explains about how the ‘Internet Phone’ technology has revolutionized telephone communication all over the world. The articles in the website explain about how VoIP has helped in cost savings for telephone communications.

The explanation is easy to read and understand because it is written in a simple form which novice computer users can understand. The article explains about ‘packet switching’ and how efficient the technology is.

There are also a very easy to understand diagrams that explain how VoIP works.

It is a great website for people that want to learn the basics about VoIP. There is also a ‘Glossary’ page in the website.

The website is current and is written by the International Engineering Consortium (IEC). They are a non profit organisation who provides educational programs to universities in the electronics industry.

Summary & Evaluation: I chose to write about ‘Voice over Internet Protocol’ (VoIP) because I think that it should be an essential part of NET11. It is an important part of Internet communication via ‘IP’ which we should learn more about.

Reference: International Engineering Consortium, (Copyright © 2007 ). Voice over Internet Protocol. Retrieved January 1, 2007, Web site: http://www.iec.org/online/tutorials/int_tele/index.html