Internet advertising & Security
Security concerns
For both companies and consumers that participate in online business, security concerns are very important. Many consumers are hesitant to buy items over the Internet because they do not trust that their personal information will remain private. Recently, some companies that do business online have been caught giving away or selling information about their customers. Several of these companies have guarantees on their websites, claiming customer information will be private. Some companies that buy customer information offer the option for individuals to have their information removed from the database (known as opting out). However, many customers are unaware that their information is being shared and are unable to stop the transfer of their information between companies.
Security concerns are of great importance and online companies have been working hard to create solutions. Encryption is one of the main methods for dealing with privacy and security concerns on the Internet. Encryption is defined as the conversion of data into a form called a cipher. This cipher cannot be easily intercepted unless an individual is authorized by the program or company that completed the encryption. In general, the stronger the cipher, the better protected the data is. However, the stronger the cipher, the more expensive encryption becomes.
Another major security concern that consumers have with ecommerce merchants is whether or not they will receive exactly what they purchase. Trustworthy, reliable merchant performance has been a consumer concern since the inception of ecommerce, and to date, merchants have attempted to address these concerns by investing in and building strong consumer brands (Amazon, eBay, Overstock.com), and by leveraging merchant / feedback rating systems and ecommerce bonding solutions. All of these solutions attempt to assure consumers that their transactions will be free of problems because the merchants can be trusted to provide reliable products and services. In addition, the major online payment mechanisms (credit cards, PayPal, Google Checkout, etc.) have also provided back-end buyer protection systems to address problems after they actually do occur.
Types of security
IT realm
Computing security Data security
Application security
Information security
Network security
Physical realm
Physical security Shopping centre security
Airport security
Food security
Home security
Political
International security National security
Human security
Monetary
Financial security
Security management in organizations
In the corporate world, various aspects of security were historically addressed separately -
notably by distinct and often non communicating departments for IT security, physical
security, and fraud prevention. Today there is a greater recognition of the interconnected
nature of security requirements, an approach variously known as holistic security, "all
hazards" management, and other terms. Inciting factors in the convergence of security
disciplines include the development of digital video surveillance technologies (see
Professional video over IP) and the digitization and networking of physical control systems
(see SCADA). Greater interdisciplinary cooperation is further evidenced by the February
2005 creation of the Alliance for Enterprise Security Risk Management, a joint venture
including leading associations in security (ASIS), information security (ISSA, the
Information Systems Security Association), and IT audit (ISACA, the Information Systems
Audit and Control Association).
INTERNET SECURITY
The internet is a world wide collection of networks that can be accessed by individual
computers in a variety of ways including gateways, routers, dialup connections and internet
services providers (ISPs). However the convenient access to information comes with certain
risks: the possibility of valuable information being lost, stolen corrupted or misused. With the
introduction of e-commerce many people have been skeptical about releasing their personal
identification information, such as credit card numbers, over the internet.
While corporate presence on the internet has soared many companies are simply providing
information about themselves- annual reports, product documentation, service information. In
general security concerns in electronic commerce can be divided into concerns about user
authorization and concerns about the data and transaction security. Authorization schemes
such as password protection, encryption smart card, biometrics and firewalls ensure that only
valid user and programs have access to information resources such as user accounts, files and
databases. Network security and data security must be addressed simultaneously. In much the
same way as it is pointless to use an armored truck to transport cash from one bank to another
bank and then leave the cash in middle of the bank lobby, online business information that is
protected en route needs to be securely.
Risks of using internet:
Sited offering pornographic images are increasing at a phenomenal rate on the
internet. Perhaps adults, who desire access to these sites, should be given such
access, when required, but there is no means to verify the age of a site’s
visitor.
Innocent and well intentioned surfing can also lead to less than desirable
results.
Hackers attempt to break into networks to view, alter to destroy private files.
More disturbing is the fact that hackers no longer need to be skilled in
attacking a network as there are “hacker’s helper” programs readily available
to any user with an internet connection.
Attacks can be launched from anywhere in the world and the location of the
attacker can be easily hidden.
Many sites place unwarranted trust in the internet. As technology is constantly
changing and intruders are constantly developing new tools and techniques,
security solutions do not remain indefinitely effective.
Traffic on the internet is not encrypted, making confidentiality and integrity
difficult to achieve.
The rapid deployment of network services involving complex applications
often compromises on security of design, configurations and maintenance.
Operating system security is often compromised by customer demand for
performance, price, and ease of use, maintenance and support. Sites sometimes
run on this operating system and are not fully configured form a security
perspective.
METHODS OF INTERNET SECURITY
Content filter
Firewall security
Encryption and Transaction security
1. Content filter:
A content filter allows schools, business and other organizations to set and enforce the
standard of what is and what is not appropriate material. Content filtering can be
accomplished by varying methods:-
Text screening
Proxy or allow only lists
Web rating systems
URL blocking
Text screening:
Text screening is the oldest method of content filters. Text screening stops
internet pages from loading when the filter encounters a word on its list. The key
disadvantages of this method are that many useful sites will block out breast cancer sites
and sex will block out middle sex. Text screening is also ineffective if content does not
contain any words on the block list.
Proxy or allow only list:-
With a proxy or allow only list only sites that have been screened and approved
are allowed. This method is useful in education institution. The proxy lists blocks access
to unwanted sites. There are two methods of implementing this. First is by use of software
that only allows access to approved sites. The second is by use of a centralized proxy
server that pre-loads all approved content: all client access is to the proxy server and
never directly to the internet.
This, method is very effective to block pornography and other objectionable material. But his
method is also blocking many useful sites
Web rating system:-
In this method the person running the web site assign a rating to each page on the
site. There are several rating systems: the ages rating services, recreational software
advisory council rating service and the safe surf rating service. This method had two main
drawbacks:-
If the site’s web controller has not rated the site or page, the web browser is unable to
enforce any restriction. This can lead to restricting access to sites that would
otherwise be acceptable.
Second, it is still dependent on the webmaster’s honesty when assigning a valid rating
to the content.
URL blocking:-
In URL blocking members of a committee continuously search the internet
looking for offensive sites. Sites are selected and placed in one or more categories such as
full nudity, drug use. And editor reviews the selections before the site is added to the filter
list. Blocking is the preferred method of content filtering because of its ability to block
offensive or inappropriate content while preserving access to other internet sites.
2. Firewall security:-
A firewall is one of the most popular tools used by organizations for network security and
is very beneficial for organizations that provide internet access to their employees. A
firewall controls the network traffic flow with in internal network of an organization. It
also controls the network traffic flow between the internal and external networks.
A firewall is defined as software or hardware that allows only those external users with
specific characteristics to access a protected network. A firewall allows insiders to have
full access to services on the outside while granting access from the outside on a selective
basis based on user name and passwords, internet IP address or domain name.
A fire works by establishing a barrier between the corporate network and the external
internet. This barrier shields vulnerable corporate networks from prying eyes in the public
network. A firewall is not simply hardware or software; it is an approach to implementing
a security policy that defines the services and access to be permitted to various users.
A firewall tracks all the details of the user request on the network. Every firewall policy
states that the details of every request made by the user must pass through the firewall and
the firewall must list and track all the details. The details should include:
The user’s request time
The internet protocol address and the port number of the host and its destination
Whether the user is authorized or not
Whether the request is by an internal or external user
Categories of firewall:
There is various type of firewall which offers various level of security. the most widely
used methods of fire walling is to place a computer or a router between the network and
the internet, which will control and monitor all traffic between the outside world and the
local network.
Packet filter
Application level proxy servers
Stateful inspection
Simple traffic logging system
IP Packet screening router
Hardened firewall hosts
Proxy application gateways
Packet filter:
Packet filters were the first generation of firewalls and are typically implemented on
routers- device used to connect two or more computers networks together. A packet
firewall examines and filters every IP packet, as it passes through the router, based on the
IP addresses of the source and destination hosts and the transmission control protocols.
Packet filters are faster than any other firewall because they ignore the data inside the
packets and work only on the IP addresses and TCP ports.
Application level proxy server:
A proxy application gateway is a special server that typically runs on a firewall machine.
Their primary use is access to applications such as the World Wide Web from within a
secure perimeter.
It blocks access to services you do not want should be used by user.
It hides the real identity of the user.
It provides logging and statistics on network utilization.
It is easy to configure and manage.
It does not require the use of valid internet IP addresses.
It does not provide packet filtering
It does not support al TCP application protocols
Stateful inspection:
This method is considered by internet experts to be the most advanced and secure firewall
technology. It examines all OSI layers to either accept or reject the requested
communication. Because of this, stateful inspection is visible to user on the LAN and
requires no client configuration.
Stateful inspection is also known as packet inspection. It supports numerous internet
protocols, including TCP used by application such as HTTP, FTP, POP3, and Telnet.
Simple traffic logging system:
Traffic logging systems are the predominant firewall method used in web servers. Such
systems record all network traffic flowing through the firewall in a file or database for
auditing purposes. On most web servers an HTTPD log also called audit log file, lists
every access of files on a given web site. It records the name of the file accessed, the
domain name that the user came in on, on exact second of the access and number of bytes
transmitted. By analyzing the audit log of a web site, mangers can answer the following
questions: what are the peak demand hours? What directories and pages most frequently
requested? How many times was the home page requested? By asking these questions and
analyzing their answers, managers can understand traffic patterns and more importantly
customer behavior at a particular site.
IP Packet screening routers:
The screening routers also called packet filtering gateway is the simplest firewall. The
screening router operates by filtering information packets that pass through the firewall.
The firewall router filters incoming packets and permits or denies IP packets based on
several screening rules that are programmed into the router and performed automatically.
Most frequently screening rules includes:
Incoming packet protocol: control filtering of network traffic base on protocol (TCP)
Destination application to which the packet is routed: restrict access to certain
applications; target TCP port 80 usually reserved for the web server application.
Known source IP address: block access to packet coming from certain IP address. For
instance, everything coming from a non corporate site could be secured and thrown
away.
Hardened firewall host:
A hardened firewall host is a stripped down computer that has been configured for increased
security. A hardened firewall host requires inside or outside users to connect to the trusted
applications on the firewall machine before connecting further. These firewall machines are
configured to protect against unauthenticated interactive log-ins from the external world. In
order to create a hardened host system must:
Remove all user accounts except those necessary for operation of the firewall.
Remove all non crucial files and executable especially network server program and
client programs like FTP
Extend traffic logging and monitoring to check remote access.
Disable IP forwarding to prevent the firewall from forwarding unauthorized packets
between the internet and the enterprise network
Hardened firewall hosts offer specific security advantages:
Concentration of security: all modified software and logging is located on the firewall
system rather than distributed on many hosts.
Information hiding: a firewall can “hide” names of internal systems or e-mail
addresses, thereby protecting information from outside hosts.
Centralized and simplified network services management: services such as FTP, e-mail and
other service are located on the firewall system rather than being maintained on many
systems.
There are some contingent problems in the design of current hardened host firewall. Because
of hardened hosts concentrate security in one spot as opposed to distributing it among
systems, a compromise of the firewall could be disastrous to other less-protected system on
the network.
Proxy application gateway:
Firewall can also be created through software called a proxy service. The host computer
running the proxy service sis referred to as an application gateway. Application gateways sit
between the internet and a company’s internal networks and provide middleman services to
users on either side. If a computer user on one company’s network wants to talk to a user at
another organization, the first user actually talks to the proxy application on the firewall, and
the proxy then talk to the remote computer. Similarly, outside hosts talks to internal
computers through the proxy on the firewall. The firewall thus serves as a proxy for traffic in
both directions and can support a number of internet navigation software programs such as
World Wide Web.
Proxy server often used for caching documents. Caching is the act of storing a document on a
local server, enabling it to be presented faster than if it is accessed from the document’s
original server. The disadvantage of caching from a marketing measurement perspective is
that when a document is copied from its original server and stored locally the user data is
blocked from the advertiser.
3. Encryption and Transaction security:
Sensitive information that must travel over public channels can be defended by encryption, or
secret codes. Although it may sound like the stuff of spy novels, electronic commerce relies
heavily on encryption. The goal of encryption is to make it impossible for a hacker who
obtains the cipher text as it passes on the network to recover the original message. Encryption
is the mutation of information in any form into a form of readable only with a decryption key.
There are two main kinds of encryption in common use today. The older and simpler one is
called single key or secret key encryption. The more recent method is called public key
encryption.
Secret key encryption:
It is also known as symmetric encryption, involves the use of a shared key for both
encryption by the transmitter and decryption by the receiver. Although secret key encryption
is useful in many cases, it has significant limitations. All parties must know and trust each
other completely, and have in their possession a protected copy of the key. If the transmitter
and receiver are in separate site, they must trust not being overheard during face to face
meeting or a over a public messaging system when the secret key is being exchanged. Secret
key encryption suffers from the problem of key distribution- generation, transmission and
storage of keys. Secure key distribution is cumbersome in large networks and does not scale
well to a business environment where a company deals with thousand of online customers.
Public key encryption:
Public key encryption also known as asymmetric encryption uses two keys: one key to
encrypt the message and a different key to decrypt the message. The two keys are
mathematically related so that data encrypted with one key can only be decrypted using the
other.
Internet marketing
Internet marketing also referred to as web marketing, online marketing, or e-marketing,
is the marketing of products or services over the Internet.
The Internet has brought many unique benefits to marketing, one of which being lower costs
for the distribution of information and media to a global audience. The interactive nature of
Internet marketing, both in terms of providing instant response and eliciting responses, is a
unique quality of the medium. Internet marketing is sometimes considered to have a broader
scope because it refers to digital media such as the Internet, e-mail, and wireless media;
however, Internet marketing also includes management of digital customer data and
electronic customer relationship management (ECRM) systems.
Internet marketing ties together creative and technical aspects of the Internet, including
design, development, advertising, and sales. Internet marketing does not simply entail
building or promoting a website, nor does it mean placing a banner ad on another website.
Effective Internet marketing requires a comprehensive strategy that synergizes a given
company's business model and sales goals with its website function and appearance, focusing
on its target market through proper choice of advertising type, media, and design.
Internet marketing also refers to the placement of media along different stages of the
customer engagement cycle through search engine marketing (SEM), search engine
optimization (SEO), banner ads on specific websites, e-mail marketing, and Web 2.0
strategies. In 2008 The New York Times working with com Score published an initial estimate
to quantify the user data collected by large Internet-based companies. Counting four types of
interactions with company websites in addition to the hits from advertisements served from
advertising networks, the authors found the potential for collecting data upward of 2,500
times on average per user per month.[
Internet marketing, also referred to as online marketing or E marketing, is the marketing of
products or services over the Internet. The Internet has brought many unique benefits to
marketing including low costs in distributing information and media to a global audience.
The interactive nature of Internet marketing, both in terms of instant response and in eliciting
response, are unique qualities of the medium.
Internet marketing ties together creative and technical aspects of the internet, including
design, development, advertising and sales. Internet marketing methods include search engine
marketing, display advertising, e-mail marketing, affiliate marketing, interactive advertising,
online reputation management and also Social Media Marketing Methods such as blog
marketing, and viral marketing.
Internet marketing is the process of growing and promoting an organization using online
media. Internet marketing does not simply mean 'building a website' or 'promoting a website'.
Somewhere behind that website is a real organization with real goals.
An Internet marketing strategy includes all aspects of online advertising online activity that
promotes a company online, including websites, blog sites, article and press releases, online
market research, email marketing, and advertising, as appropriate for the promotion of one’s'
business.
Advantages
Internet marketing is relatively inexpensive. Companies can reach a wide audience for a
small fraction of traditional advertising budgets. The nature of the medium allows consumers
to research and purchase products and services at their own convenience: An internet
marketing campaign puts an organization's message in front of consumers precisely when
they want it.
However, internet marketing isn't a panacea. It still requires intelligent planning and careful
execution. Emphasize business goals and use methods such as CVP analysis when
determining strategy and the overall effectiveness of marketing campaigns.
There are a few important characteristics that differentiate Internet marketing from "off-line
marketing":
- One-to-one vs. one-to-many approach: The targeted user is typically browsing the Internet
on their own, and the marketing messages reach them personally. This can be very clearly
seen in search marketing, where the users find advertisements targeted to specific keywords
that the users asked for (1).
- Demographics targeting vs. behavioral targeting: off-line marketers typically segment their
markets according to age group, sex, geography, and other general factors. Online marketers
have the luxury of targeting by activity. This is a deeper form of targeting, since the
advertiser knows that the target audience are people who do a certain activity (upload
pictures, have blogs, etc.) instead of just expecting that a certain group of people will like
their new product or service.
- Measurability: Almost all aspects of an online campaign can be traced, measured, and
tested. The advertisers either pays per banner impression (CPM), pay per click (PPC), or pay
per action accomplished. Therefore, it is easy to understand which messages or offering are
more appealing to the audience.
- Response and immediate results: Since the online marketing initiatives usually require users
to click on the message, go to a website, and perform a targeted action, the results of
campaigns are immediately measured and tracked. On the other hand, someone driving a car
who sees a billboard, will at best be interested and might decide to get more information at
some time.
Internet marketing, as of 2007, is growing faster than other types of media. [citation needed]Since
exposure, response and overall efficiency of Internet media is easier to track than traditional
"off-line" media, through the use of web analytics for instance, Internet marketing can offer a
greater sense of accountability for advertisers. Increasingly, however, marketers and their
clients are becoming aware of the need to measure the collaborative effects of marketing, i.e.
how the Internet affects in-store sales, etc., instead of siloing each medium. The effects of
Multi-Channel Marketing can be difficult to determine, but are an important part of
ascertaining the value of media campaigns.
Limitations
Because Internet marketing requires customers to use newer technologies than traditional
media, not all people may get the message. Low speed Internet connections are one barrier. If
companies build overly large or complicated web pages, some Internet users struggle to
download the information on dial up connections or mobile devices.
From the buyer's perspective, another limitation is the inability of shoppers to touch, smell,
taste or try-on tangible goods before making an online purchase. However, it is an industry
standard for e-commerce vendors to have liberal return policies and in store pick up services
to reassure customers.
A survey of 410 marketing executives listed insufficient ability to measure impact, a lack of
internal capability, and difficulty convincing senior management as the top three barriers to
entry for large companies looking to market online.
E- MARKETING
Email marketing is a form of direct marketing which uses electronic mail as a means of
communicating commercial or fundraising messages to an audience. In its broadest sense,
every email sent to a potential or current customer could be considered email marketing.
However, the term is usually used to refer to:
Sending emails with the purpose of enhancing the relationship of a merchant with its current
or old customers and to encourage customer loyalty and repeat business.
Sending emails with the purpose of acquiring new customers or convincing old customers to
buy something immediately.
Adding advertisements in emails sent by other companies to their customers.
Emails that are being sent on the Internet.
Advantage
Email marketing is popular with companies because:
The advantage of a mailing list is clearly the ability to distribute information to a wide range
of specific, potential customers at a relatively low cost.
Compared to other media investments such as direct mail or printed newsletters, it is less
expensive.
An exact Return on investment can be tracked and has proven to be high when done properly.
Email marketing is often reported as second only to search marketing as the most effective
online marketing tactic.
It is instant, as opposed to a mailed advertisement; an email arrives in a few seconds or
minutes.
It lets the advertiser "push" the message to its audience, as opposed to a website that waits for
customers to come in.
It is easy to track. An advertiser can track users via web bugs, bounce messages, unsubscribe,
read-receipts, click-through, etc. These can be used to measure open rates, positive or
negative responses, correlate sales with marketing.
Advertisers generate repeat business affordably and automatically
Advertisers can reach substantial numbers of email subscribers who have opted in (consented)
to receive email communications on subjects of interest to them
Over half of Internet users check or send email on a typical day.[3]
Specific types of interaction with messages can trigger other messages to be automatically
delivered.
Specific types of interaction with messages can trigger other events such as updating the
profile of the recipient to indicate a specific interest category.
Green - email marketing is paper-free
Disadvantages
Many companies use email marketing to communicate with existing customers, but many
other companies send unsolicited bulk email, also known as spam.
Illicit email marketing antedates legitimate email marketing, since on the early Internet. It
was not permitted to use the medium for commercial purposes. As a result, marketers
attempting to establish themselves as legitimate businesses in email marketing have had an
uphill battle, hampered also by criminal spam operations billing themselves as legitimate.
It is frequently difficult for observers to distinguish between legitimate and spam email
marketing. First off, spammers attempt to represent themselves as legitimate operators,
obfuscating the issue. Second, direct-marketing political groups such as the U.S. Direct
Marketing Association (DMA) have pressured legislatures to legalize activities which many
Internet operators consider to be spamming, such as the sending of "opt-out" unsolicited
commercial email. Third, the sheer volume of spam email has led some users to mistake
legitimate commercial email for spam — especially when the two have a similar appearance,
as when messages include HTML and flashy graphics.
Due to the volume of spam email on the Internet, spam filters are essential to most users.
Some marketers report that legitimate commercial emails frequently get caught by filters, and
hidden; however, it is somewhat less common for email users to complain that spam filters
block legitimate mail.
Companies considering an email marketing program must make sure that their program does
not violate spam laws such as the United States' CAN-SPAM Act (Controlling the Assault of
Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act), the European Privacy & Electronic
Communications Regulations 2003 or their Internet provider's acceptable use policy. Even if
a company follows the law, if Internet mail administrators find that it is sending spam it is
likely to be listed in blacklists such as SPEWS.
E- ADVERTISING
The issue of how to advertise just like many others remains unresolved due to the lack of a specific
policy and an authoritative body to enforce it. In their absence the business community will need to be
sensitive to the internet user and vice versa. Considering the kind of dialogue the internet make
possible, there is no reason why internet advertising could not peacefully cost with any other aspect of
doing business and not degenerate into the mass mails out that everyone hates.
The topic of internet advertising provokes extreme opinions in many. One of the questions
still discussed on some internet forums is whether advertising should be allowed on the internet at all.
Some who are not comfortable with other commercial activity in cyberspace have stated adjusters and
other organization threat spread posting claiming that the internet should not be soiled by advertising.
This view presumes that the internet is a haven from commercialization. It ignores the fact that
business is already being conducted on the internet and that advertising usually goes hand in hand
with business. Everyone acknowledges either publicly or privately hand with at advertising is a
necessary evil profits from which can subsidize other activities such as network improvement and
cheaper access.
Equating all advertising with junk mail is not fair to advertising in general. Advertising also
serves many other purposes such as educating customers about what’s out there introducing new
products or alternatives to existing products and stimulating a desire to buy by increasing consumer
confidence. There are two very reasons for embracing the inevitability of a growing amount of
commercial advertising on the internet:
Advertising conveys much needed information: appropriate ways and means for
conveying product or service information need to be devised, much as we already
have for conveying the same through print and other media.
Advertising generates significant revenue and defrays the costs of infrastructure and
some existing research and education publications.
In addition a host of key questions must be resolved before the internet can compete effectively with
commercial advertising:
Advertising process:
How can advertising be offered in a way that meets the needs of both advertisers and potential
buyers without becoming the digital analog of junk mail?
Core content: what kind of advertising content is most useful to both advertisers and potential
buyers?
Supporting contents: what additional services can meet the information needs of advertisers?
Market and consumer research: how can the needs of advertisers are met with out either
interfering with or invading the privacy of other online consumers?
Repeat customers: how can viable sustainable and mutually beneficial relationships are
created between information publishers, advertisers and consumers?
Online advertising paradigms:
Despite these unresolved issues, advertising on the internet is inevitable. The next question logically
becomes what is the right paradigm for online advertising? Two different advertising paradigms are
emerging in the online world; active or push based advertising and passive or pull based advertising.
Active or passive refer to the activity on the company’s side. Push based advertising’s prime example
is infamous broadcast or spamming. Pull based advertising is more discourse oriented and content
driven and as such promotes interactivity between customers and firms.
(A) Active or push based advertising:
In the context of most media today, advertising is inherently intrusive, even invasive. Print and TV
ads are constant in your face reminders of who’s paying the lions share for information services. On
the internet overt sometimes evensybtle advertising advertising often results in the unmerciful flaming
of the perpetrator.
Push based advertising is of two types:
Broadcast model
Junk email
Broadcast model:
Broadcasting messages provides a means for reaching a great number of people in a short
period of time. The broadcast model basically mimics the traditional model, in which the
customer is exposed to the advertisement during TV programming. Broadcast model typically use
direct mail spot television or cable television. A spot television ad runs on one station in one
market. The number of viewers who see, the ad depends on how many viewers are tuned into the
television station at a specific time. The number of people reached by advertising depends on the
penetration and channel viewer ship in a given market. Text based broadcast messages can be
seen in advertising posted in Usenet news groups. Although frowned upon in most serious groups
it is becoming commonplace as more people come online. People do get flamed even when asking
for names and addresses of businesses or information about pricing of a product or service.
Junk mail model:
Direct mail advertisers use targeted mailing lists to reach highly specialized audiences. In
addition to low waste in ad exposure direct mail provides an advertiser with great flexibility in the
message presentation. Disadvantage of direct mail include relatively high cost per contact the
need to obtain updated and accurate mailing lists the difficulty in getting the audience attention
and the possible cost to customers who pay for email plus of course the noise factor. As an old
marketing joke goes, junk mail is just poorly targeted direct mail. Junk mail is the most intrusive
of all forms of internet advertising because it is easily implemented using electronic mail.
Junk mail creates an unwanted expense as well as an annoyance. Some people pay usage
fees based on time online or storage charges for mail boxes and probably would not want to
receive unsolicited junk mail. Even the post office charges the mailer not the recipient for direct
mail. Even so advertiser will try sending junk mail to lists of email addresses gathered openly or
covertly. These advertisers believes that even if most of the recipients throw away the message,
those few users who are induced to buy will more than make up for papering the net with
unwanted mail.
(B)Passive or pull based advertising:
Apart from the negative response it evokes, push base advertising simply misses the
fundamental point of interactive marketing- adaptability, flexibility and responsiveness. Effective
marketing requires a feedback loop leading back into the organization. It is this element that is
missing from the monologue of advertising but that is built into the dialogue of pull bases marketing.
The internet offers more than the same old paradigm of advertisers bludgeoning passive consumers.
The main difference is discourse a word not much used in the business world but the sums up much of
the internet core value. Discourse simply means people talking to other people. Many companies
today are fielding questions, providing detailed answers and pointers to additional information even
engaging in useful debates on industry wide issues. Online pull based advertising includes:
Billboards:
Billboard model refers to information places where it will come to the attention of
customers in the course of other activities and does not require active research. Billboard
advertising is often used to reinforce or remind the consumer of the advertising messages
communicated through other media.
Catalogs or yellow pages directories:
Catalog model is the least intrusive model but requires active search on the part of the
customer. Catalog services are becoming an essential tool for organizing information on computer
networks as the ability to interact with a company is only possible if one locate the people or
organizations with whom they need to work. In fact it is widely acknowledged that one of the
limitations imposed on the effective use of the network will be determined by the quality and
coverage of directory services available.
Customer endorsements:
Endorsements, where people tell of their experience with products and services-both
positive and negative- represent on unique aspect of advertising on the internet. Endorsements
might be exempted from the advertising category because they often come in the context of a
question answered or an experience shared.
Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
What is CRM?
CRM stands for Customer Relationship Management. It is a process or methodology used
to learn more about customers' needs and behaviors in order to develop stronger relationships
with them. There are many technological components to CRM, but thinking about CRM in
primarily technological terms is a mistake. The more useful way to think about CRM is as a
process that will help bring together lots of pieces of information about customers, sales,
marketing effectiveness, responsiveness and market trends.
CRM helps businesses use technology and human resources to gain insight into the behavior
of customers and the value of those customers.
CRM Software
Sales Force Automation
Contact managementContact management software stores, tracks and manages contacts, leads of an enterprise.
Lead managementEnterprise Lead management software enables an organization to manage, track and forecast sales leads. Also helps understand and improve conversion rates.
E CRM or Web based CRM
Self Service CRMSelf service CRM (e CRM) software Enables web based customer interaction, automation of email, call logs, web site analytics, campaign management.
Survey Management SoftwareSurvey Software automates an enterprise's Electronic Surveys, Polls, Questionnaires and enables understand customer preferences.
Customer Service
Call Center Software
Help Desk Software
Partner Relationship Management
Contract Management SoftwareContract Management Software enables an enterprise to create, track and manage
partnerships, contracts, agreements. Example: Upside Software, Accruent Software, diCarta, I-Many.
Distribution management Software
Advantages of CRM
Using CRM, a business can:
Provide better customer service
Increase customer revenues
Discover new customers
Cross sell/Up sell products more effectively
Help sales staff close deals faster
Make call centers more efficient
Simplify marketing and sales processes
Consumer search & resource discovery
Consumer Search
Consumer Search is an English-language search engine for consumer product reviews, plus
a database of reports on consumer products and services, published and updated only online.
(Thus it's an example of online journalism.) Consumer Search does not review products and
services directly, nor does the site publish reviews from users. Rather, Consumer Search
writers review the print and online reviews of products and services, using a set of objective,
published ratings criteria.
From the reviews judged most credible, information and product recommendations are then
analyzed and summarized in the product report. This report also identifies the best products
for specific uses or prices ranges, again based on the most credible reviews. Although the
Fast Answers section that presents these products is published at the top of the report, this
section is actually the culmination of the reporting process.
Scope and organization of content
The 235 Consumer Search report categories are organized into 13 meta-categories:
• Automotive
• Computers
• Electronics
• Family
• Health & Fitness
• House & Home
• Internet
• Kitchen
• Lawn & Garden
• Office
• Photo & Video
• Software
• Sports & Leisure
As of May 4, 2006, there are 235 product and service categories covered by reports. In 2005,
reports on 27 new products or services were added. In order for a product or service category
to be covered in a Consumer Search report, at least one comparative review must already
exist, based on objective testing.
Computer based education & training
Electronic learning
Electronic learning or eLearning is a general term used to refer to computer-enhanced
learning. It is used interchangeably in so many contexts that it is critical to be clear what one
means when one speaks of 'eLearning'. In many respects, it is commonly associated with the
field of advanced learning technology (ALT), which deals with both the technologies and
associated methodologies in learning using networked and/or multimedia technologies.
Market
The worldwide e-learning industry is estimated to be worth over 38 billion euros according to
conservative estimates, although in the European Union only about 20% of e-learning
products are produced within the common market [1]. Developments in internet and
multimedia technologies are the basic enabler of e-learning, with content, technologies and
services being identified as the three key sectors of the e-learning industry. [2]
Growth of e-learning
By 2006, nearly 3.5 million students were participating in on-line learning at institutions of
higher education in the United States.[3] Many higher education, for-profit institutions, now
offer on-line classes. By contrast, only about half of private, non-profit schools offer them.
The Sloan report, based on a poll of academic leaders, says that students generally appear to
be at least as satisfied with their on-line classes as they are with traditional ones. Private
Institutions may become more involved with on-line presentations as the cost of instituting
such a system decreases. Properly trained staff must also be hired to work with students on-
line. These staff members must be able to not only understand the content area, but also be
highly trained in the use of the computer and Internet. Online education is rapidly increasing,
and online doctoral programs have even developed at leading research universities. [4] .
Technology
Many technologies can be, and are, used in eLearning, including:
blogs
classroom response system
collaborative software
computer aided assessment
discussion boards
educational animation
electronic performance support system
ePortfolios
games
hypermedia in general
learning management systems
PDA's
podcasts
MP3 Players with multimedia capabilities
multimedia CD-ROMs
screencasts
simulations
text chat
virtual classrooms
web-based teaching materials
web sites and web 2.0 communities
wiki
E-learning is naturally suited to distance learning and flexible learning, but can also be used
in conjunction with face-to-face teaching, in which case the term Blended learning is
commonly used.
In higher education especially, the increasing tendency is to create a Virtual Learning
Environment (VLE) (which is sometimes combined with a Management Information System
(MIS) to create a Managed Learning Environment) in which all aspects of a course are
handled through a consistent user interface standard throughout the institution. A growing
number of physical universities, as well as newer online-only colleges, have begun to offer a
select set of academic degree and certificate programs via the Internet at a wide range of
levels and in a wide range of disciplines. While some programs require students to attend
some campus classes or orientations, many are delivered completely online. In addition,
several universities offer online student support services, such as online advising and
registration, e-counseling, online textbook purchase, student governments and student
newspapers.
e-Learning can also refer to educational web sites such as those offering learning scenarios,
worksheets and interactive exercises for children. The term is also used extensively in the
business sector where it generally refers to cost-effective online training.
Services
E-learning services have evolved since computers were first used in education. There is a
trend to move toward blended learning services, where computer-based activities are
integrated with practical or classroom-based situations.
Goals of e-learning
E-Learning lessons are generally designed to guide students through information or to help
students perform in specific tasks. Information based e-Learning content communicates
information to the student. Examples include content that distributes the history or facts
related to a service, company, or product. In information-based content, there is no specific
skill to be learned. In performance-based content, the lessons build off of a procedural skill in
which the student is expected to increase proficiency.
Computer-based learning
Computer Based Learning, sometimes abbreviated to CBL, refers to the use of computers as a
key component of the educational environment. While this can refer to the use of computers
in a classroom, the term more broadly refers to a structured environment in which computers
are used for teaching purposes. The concept is generally seen as being distinct from the use of
computers in ways where learning is at least a peripheral element of the experience (e.g.
computer games and web browsing).
Computer-based training
Computer-based training (CBT) services are where a student learns by executing special
training programs on a computer relating to their occupation. CBT is especially effective for
training people to use computer applications because the CBT program can be integrated with
the applications so that students can practice using the application as they learn. Historically,
CBTs growth has been hampered by the enormous resources required: human resources to
create a CBT program, and hardware resources needed to run it. However, the increase in PC
computing power, and especially the growing prevalence of computers equipped with CD-
ROMs, is making CBT a more viable option for corporations and individuals alike. Many PC
applications now come with some modest form of CBT, often called a tutorial. Web-based
training (WBT) is a type of training that is similar to CBT; however, it is delivered over the
Internet using a web browser. Web-based training frequently includes interactive methods,
such as bulletin boards, chat rooms, instant messaging, videoconferencing, and discussion
threads. Web based training is usually a self-paced learning medium though some systems
allow for online testing and evaluation at specific times.
Computer-aided assessment and learning design
Computer-aided Assessment (also but less commonly referred to as E-assessment), ranging
from automated multiple-choice tests to more sophisticated systems is becoming increasingly
common. With some systems, feedback can be geared towards a student's specific mistakes
or the computer can navigate the student through a series of questions adapting to what the
student appears to have learned or not learned. Most software for this is still very primitive
however.
The term learning design has sometimes come to refer to the type of activity enabled by
software such as the open-source system LAMS[citation needed] which supports sequences of
activities that can be both adaptive and collaborative. The IMS Learning Design specification
is intended as a standard format for learning designs, and IMS LD Level A is supported in
LAMS V2.
Digital Copyright Act
The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) is a United States copyright law which
implements two 1996 WIPO treaties. It criminalizes production and dissemination of
technology, devices, or services that are used to circumvent measures that control access to
copyrighted works (commonly known as DRM) and criminalizes the act of circumventing an
access control, even when there is no infringement of copyright itself. It also heightens the
penalties for copyright infringement on the Internet. Passed on October 12, 1998 by a
unanimous vote in the United States Senate and signed into law by President Bill Clinton on
October 28, 1998, the DMCA amended title 17 of the U.S. Code to extend the reach of
copyright, while limiting the liability of Online Providers from copyright infringement by
their users.
On May 22, 2001, the European Union passed the EU Copyright Directive or EUCD, which
addresses some of the same issues as the DMCA. But the DMCA's principal innovation in the
field of copyright, the exemption from direct and indirect liabilty of internet service providers
and other intermediaries (Title II of the DMCA), was separately addressed, and largely
followed, in Europe by means of the separate Electronic Commerce Directive.
DMCA Title I: WIPO Copyright and Performances and Phonograms Treaties
Implementation Act
DMCA Title I, the WIPO Copyright and Performances and Phonograms Treaties
Implementation Act has two major portions. One portion includes works covered by several
treaties in US copy prevention laws and gave the title its name. For further analysis of this
portion of the Act and of cases under it, see WIPO Copyright and Performances and
Phonograms Treaties Implementation Act.
The second portion is often known as the DMCA anti-circumvention provisions. These
provisions changed the remedies for the circumvention of copy prevention systems (also
called "technical protection measures") and required that all analog video recorders have
support for a specific form of copy prevention commonly known as Macro vision built in,
effectively giving Macro vision a monopoly on the analog video recording copy prevention
market. However, section 1201(c) of the title clarified that the title does not change the
underlying substantive copyright infringement rights, remedies, or defenses. The title
contains other limitations and exemptions, including for research and reverse engineering in
specified situations.
DMCA Title II: Online Copyright Infringement Liability Limitation Act
DMCA Title II, the Online Copyright Infringement Liability Limitation Act ("OCILLA")
creates a safe harbor for online service providers (OSPs, including ISPs) against copyright
liability if they adhere to and qualify for certain prescribed safe harbor guidelines and
promptly block access to allegedly infringing material (or remove such material from their
systems) if they receive a notification claiming infringement from a copyright holder or the
copyright holder's agent. OCILLA also includes a counter-notification provision that offers
OSPs a safe harbor from liability to their users, if the material upon notice from such users
claiming that the material in question is not, in fact, infringing. OCILLA also provides for
subpoenas to OSPs to provide their users' identity.
DMCA Title III: Computer Maintenance Competition Assurance Act
DMCA Title III modified section 117 of the copyright title so that those repairing computers
could make certain temporary, limited copies while working on a computer.
DMCA Title IV: Miscellaneous Provisions
DMCA Title IV contains an assortment of provisions:
Clarified and added to the duties of the Copyright Office.
Added ephemeral copy for broadcasters provisions, including certain statutory licenses.
Added provisions to facilitate distance education.
Added provisions to assist libraries with keeping copies of sound recordings.
Added provisions relating to collective bargaining and the transfer of movie rights.
DMCA Title V: Vessel Hull Design Protection Act
DMCA Title V added sections 1301 through 1332 to add a sui generis protection for boat hull
designs. Boat hull designs were not considered covered under copyright law because they are
useful articles whose form cannot be cleanly separated from their function.
Search engines
Web search engine
A Web search engine is a search engine designed to search for information on the World
Wide Web. Information may consist of web pages, images and other types of files.
Some search engines also mine data available in newsgroups, databases, or open directories.
Unlike Web directories, which are maintained by human editors, search engines operate
algorithmically or are a mixture of algorithmic and human input.
History
Timeline
Note: "Launch" refers only to web
availability of original crawl-based
web search engine results.
Year Engine Event
1993 Aliweb Launch
1994
WebCrawler Launch
Infoseek Launch
Lycos Launch
1995AltaVista Launch (part of DEC)
Excite Launch
1996
Dogpile Launch
Inktomi Founded
HotBot Founded
Ask Jeeves Founded
1997 Northern Light Launch
1998 Google Launch
1999
AlltheWeb Launch
Naver Launch
Teoma Founded
Vivisimo Founded
2000 Baidu Founded
2003 Info.com Launch
2004Yahoo! Search Final launch
A9.com Launch
2005
MSN Search Final launch
Ask.com Launch
GoodSearch Launch
2006
wikiseek Founded
Quaero Founded
Ask.com Launch
Live Search Launch
ChaCha Beta Launch
Guruji.com Beta Launch
2007wikiseek Launched
AskWiki Launched
The very first tool used for searching on the Internet was Archie.[1] The name stands for
"archive" without the "vee". It was created in 1990 by Alan Emtage, a student at McGill
University in Montreal. The program downloaded the directory listings of all the files located
on public anonymous FTP (File Transfer Protocol) sites, creating a searchable database of file
names; however, Archie did not index the contents of these files.
The rise of Gopher (created in 1991 by Mark McCahill at the University of Minnesota) led to
two new search programs, Veronica and Jughead. Like Archie, they searched the file names
and titles stored in Gopher index systems. Veronica (Very Easy Rodent-Oriented Net-wide
Index to Computerized Archives) provided a keyword search of most Gopher menu titles in
the entire Gopher listings. Jughead (Jonzy's Universal Gopher Hierarchy Excavation And
Display) was a tool for obtaining menu information from specific Gopher servers. While the
name of the search engine "Archie" was not a reference to the Archie comic book series,
"Veronica" and "Jughead" are characters in the series, thus referencing their predecessor.
The first Web search engine was Wandex, a now-defunct index collected by the World Wide
Web Wanderer, a web crawler developed by Matthew Gray at MIT in 1993. Another very
early search engine, Aliweb, also appeared in 1993, and still runs today. JumpStation
(released in early 1994) used a crawler to find web pages for searching, but search was
limited to the title of web pages only. One of the first "full text" crawler-based search engines
was WebCrawler, which came out in 1994. Unlike its predecessors, it let users search for any
word in any webpage, which became the standard for all major search engines since. It was
also the first one to be widely known by the public. Also in 1994 Lycos (which started at
Carnegie Mellon University) was launched, and became a major commercial endeavor.
Soon after, many search engines appeared and vied for popularity. These included Excite,
Infoseek, Inktomi, Northern Light, and AltaVista. Yahoo! was among the most popular ways
for people to find web pages of interest, but its search function operated on its web directory,
rather than full-text copies of web pages. Information seekers could also browse the directory
instead of doing a keyword-based search.
Search engines were also known as some of the brightest stars in the Internet investing frenzy
that occurred in the late 1990s. Several companies entered the market spectacularly, receiving
record gains during their initial public offerings. Some have taken down their public search
engine, and are marketing enterprise-only editions, such as Northern Light. Many search
engine companies were caught up in the dot-com bubble, a speculation-driven market boom
that peaked in 1999 and ended in 2001.
Around 2000, the Google search engine rose to prominence.[citation needed] The company achieved
better results for many searches with an innovation called PageRank. This iterative algorithm
ranks web pages based on the number and PageRank of other web sites and pages that link
there, on the premise that good or desirable pages are linked to more than others. Google also
maintained a minimalist interface to its search engine. In contrast, many of its competitors
embedded a search engine in a web portal.
By 2000, Yahoo was providing search services based on Inktomi's search engine. Yahoo!
acquired Inktomi in 2002, and Overture (which owned AlltheWeb and AltaVista) in 2003.
Yahoo! switched to using Google's search engine until 2004, when it launched its own search
engine based on the combined technologies of its acquisitions.
Microsoft first launched MSN Search (since re-branded Live Search) in the fall of 1998 using
search results from Inktomi. In early 1999 the site began to display listings from Looksmart
blended with results from Inktomi except for a short time in 1999 when results from
AltaVista were used instead. In 2004, Microsoft began a transition to its own search
technology, powered by its own web crawler (called msnbot).
As of late 2007, Google was by far the most popular Web search engine worldwide. A
number of country-specific search engine companies have become prominent; for example
Baidu is the most popular search engine in the People's Republic of China.
Current market share
Most popular search engines worldwide, Dec. 2007[5][not in citation given]
Company Millions of searches Relative market share
Google 28,454 46.47%
Yahoo! 10,505 17.16%
Baidu 8,428 13.76%
Microsoft 7,880 12.87%
NHN 2,882 4.71%
eBay 2,428 3.9%
Time Warner (includes AOL) 1,062 1.6%
Ask.com and related 728 1.1%
Yandex 566 0.9%
Alibaba.com 531 0.8%
Total 61,221 100.0%
How Web search engines work
This section does not cite any references or sources. (November 2007)
Please improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may
be challenged and removed.
A search engine operates, in the following order
1. Web crawling
2. Indexing
3. Searching
Web search engines work by storing information about many web pages, which they retrieve
from the WWW itself. These pages are retrieved by a Web crawler (sometimes also known as
a spider) — an automated Web browser which follows every link it sees. Exclusions can be
made by the use of robots.txt. The contents of each page are then analyzed to determine how
it should be indexed (for example, words are extracted from the titles, headings, or special
fields called meta tags). Data about web pages are stored in an index database for use in later
queries. Some search engines, such as Google, store all or part of the source page (referred to
as a cache) as well as information about the web pages, whereas others, such as AltaVista,
store every word of every page they find. This cached page always holds the actual search
text since it is the one that was actually indexed, so it can be very useful when the content of
the current page has been updated and the search terms are no longer in it. This problem
might be considered to be a mild form of linkrot, and Google's handling of it increases
usability by satisfying user expectations that the search terms will be on the returned
webpage. This satisfies the principle of least astonishment since the user normally expects the
search terms to be on the returned pages. Increased search relevance makes these cached
pages very useful, even beyond the fact that they may contain data that may no longer be
available elsewhere.
When a user enters a query into a search engine (typically by using key words), the engine
examines its index and provides a listing of best-matching web pages according to its criteria,
usually with a short summary containing the document's title and sometimes parts of the text.
Most search engines support the use of the boolean operators AND, OR and NOT to further
specify the search query. Some search engines provide an advanced feature called proximity
search which allows users to define the distance between keywords.
what order the results should be shown in, varies widely from one engine to another. The
methods also change over time as Internet usage changes and new techniques evolve.
SEARCH ENGINES
A Search Engine is an information retrieval system designed to help find information stored
on a computer system. Search engines help to minimize the time required to find information
and the amount of information which must be consulted, akin to other techniques for
managing information overload.
The most public, visible form of a search engine is a Web search engine which searches for
information on the World Wide Web.
How search engines work:
Search engines provide an interface to a group of items that enables users to specify criteria
about an item of interest and have the engine find the matching items. The criteria are
referred to as a search query. In the case of text search engines, the search query is typically
expressed as a set of words that identify the desired concept that one or more documents may
contain.
There are several styles of search query syntax that vary in strictness. Where as some text
search engines require users to enter two or three words separated by white space, other
search engines may enable users to specify entire documents, pictures, sounds, and various
forms of natural language. Some search engines apply improvements to search queries to
increase the likelihood of providing a quality set of items through a process known as query
expansion.
Index-based search engine:
The list of items that meet the criteria specified by the query is typically sorted, or ranked, in
some regard so as to place the most relevant items first. Ranking items by relevance (from
highest to lowest) reduces the time required to find the desired information. Probabilistic
search engines rank items based on measures of similarity and sometimes popularity or
authority. Boolean search engines typically only return items which match exactly without
regard to order.
To provide a set of matching items quickly, a search engine will typically collect metadata
about the group of items under consideration beforehand through a process referred to as
indexing. The index typically requires a smaller amount of computer storage, and provides a
basis for the search engine to calculate item relevance. The search engine may store a copy of
each item in a cache so that users can see the state of the item at the time it was indexed or for
archive purposes or to make repetitive processes work more efficiently and quickly.
Notably, some search engines do not store an index. Crawler or spider type search engines
may collect and assess items at the time of the search query. Meta search engines simply
reuse the index or results of one or more other search engines.
VARIUOS SEARCH ENGINES
Google:
http://www.google.com
Voted four times Most Outstanding Search Engine by Search Engine Watch readers, Google
has a well-deserved reputation as the top choice for those searching the web. The crawler-
based service provides both comprehensive coverage of the web along with great relevancy.
It's highly recommended as a first stop in your hunt for whatever you are looking for. Google
provides the option to find more than web pages, however. Using on the top of the search box
on the Google home page, you can easily seek out images from across the web; discussions
that are taking place on Usenet newsgroups, locate news information or perform product
searching. Using the More links provides access to human-compiled information from the
Open Directory (see below), catalog searching and other services.
Google is also known for the wide range of features it offers, such as cached links that let you
"resurrect" dead pages or see older versions of recently changed ones. It offers excellent spell
checking, easy access to dictionary definitions, integration of stock quotes, street maps,
telephone numbers and more. See Google's help page for an entire rundown on some of these
features. The Google Toolbar has also won a popular following for the easy access it provides
to Google and its features directly from the Internet Explorer browser. In addition to Google's
unpaid editorial results, the company also operates its own advertising programs. The cost-
per-click Ad Words program places ads on Google as well as some of Google's partners.
Similarly, Google is also a provider of unpaid editorial results to some other search engines.
For a list of major partnerships, see the Search Providers Chart. Google was originally a
Stanford University project by students Larry Page and Sergey Brin called Backrub. By 1998,
the name had been changed to Google, and the project jumped off campus and became the
private company Google. It remains privately held today.
Yahoo:
http://www.yahoo.com
Launched in 1994, Yahoo is the web's oldest "directory," a place where human editors
organize web sites into categories. However, in October 2002, Yahoo made a giant shift to
crawler-based listings for its main results. These came from Google until February 2004.
Now, Yahoo uses its own search technology. Learn more in this recent review from our
Search Day newsletter, which also provides some updated submission details.
In addition to excellent search results, you can use tabs above the search box on the Yahoo
home page to seek images, Yellow Page listings or use Yahoo's excellent shopping search
engine. Or visit the Yahoo Search home page, where even more specialized search options
are offered.
The Yahoo Directory still survives. You'll notice "category" links below some of the sites
lists in response to a keyword search. When offered, these will take you to a list of web sites
that have been reviewed and approved by a human editor. It's also possible to do a pure
search of just the human-compiled Yahoo Directory, which is how the old or "classic" Yahoo
used to work. To do this, search from the Yahoo Directory home page, as opposed to the
regular Yahoo.com home page. Then you'll get both directory category links ("Related
Directory Categories") and "Directory Results," which are the top web site matches drawn
from all categories of the Yahoo Directory. Sites pay a fee to be included in the Yahoo
Directory's commercial listings, though they must meet editor approval before being
accepted. Non-commercial content is accepted for free. Yahoo's content acquisition program
also offers paid inclusion, where sites can also pay to be included in Yahoo's crawler-based
results. This doesn't guarantee ranking, Yahoo promises. The CAP program also brings in
content from non-profit organizations for free.
Like Google, Yahoo sells paid placement advertising links that appear on its own site and
which are distributed to others. Yahoo purchased Overture in October 2003. Overture was
formerly called Go To until late 2001. More about it can be found on the Paid Listings Search
Engines page. Overture purchased all the web in March 03 and Alta vista in April 03. Now
Yahoo owns these, gained as from its purchase of Overture. Technology AltaVista and
AllTheWeb was combined with that of Inktomi, a crawler-based search engine that grew out
UC Berkeley and then launched as its own company in 1996, to make the current Yahoo
crawler. Yahoo purchased Inktomi in March 2003.
Ask:
http://www.ask.com
Ask Jeeves initially gained fame in 1998 and 1999 as being the "natural language" search
engine that let you search by asking questions and responded with what seemed to be the
right answer to everything.
In reality, technology wasn't what made Ask Jeeves perform so well. Behind the scenes, the
company at one point had about 100 editors who monitored search logs. They then went out
onto the web and located what seemed to be the best sites to match the most popular queries.
In 1999, Ask acquired Direct Hit, which had developed the world's first "click popularity"
search technology. Then, in 2001, Ask acquired Teoma's unique index and search relevancy
technology. Teoma was based upon the clustering concept of subject-specific popularity.
Today, Ask depends on crawler-based technology to provide results to its users. These results
come from the Teoma algorithm, now known as Expert Rank.
AllTheWeb.com
http://www.alltheweb.com
Powered by Yahoo, you may find All The Web a lighter, more customizable and pleasant
"pure search" experience than you get at Yahoo itself. The focus is on web search, but news,
picture, video, MP3 and FTP search are also offered. All TheWeb.com was previously owned
by a company called FAST and used as a showcase for that company's web search
technology. That's why you sometimes may sometimes hear AllTheWeb.com also referred to
as FAST or FAST Search. However, the search engine was purchased by search provider
Overture (see below) in late April 2003, then later become Yahoo's property when Yahoo
bought Overture. It no longer has a connection with FAST.
AOL Search
http://aolsearch.aol.com(internal)
http://search.aol.com/(external)
AOL Search provides users with editorial listings that comes Google's crawler-based index.
Indeed, the same search on Google and AOL Search will come up with very similar matches.
So, why would you use AOL Search? Primarily because you are an AOL user. The "internal"
version of AOL Search provides links to content only available within the AOL online
service. In this way, you can search AOL and the entire web at the same time. The "external"
version lacks these links. Why wouldn't you use AOL Search? If you like Google, many of
Google's features such as "cached" pages are not offered by AOL Search.
HotBot
http://www.hotbot.com
HotBot provides easy access to the web's three major crawler-based search engines: Yahoo,
Google and Teoma. Unlike a Meta search engine, it cannot blend the results from all of these
crawlers together. Nevertheless, it's a fast, easy way to get different web search "opinions" in
one place. HotBot's "choose a search engine" interface was introduced in December 2002.
However, HotBot has a long history as a search brand before this date. HotBot debuted in
May 1996; it gained a strong following among serious searchers for the quality and
comprehensiveness of its crawler-based results, which were provided by Inktomi, at the time.
It also caught the attention of experienced web users and techies, especially for the unusual
colors and interface it continues to sport today. HotBot gained more notoriety when it
switched over to using Direct Hit's "click through" results for its main listings in 1999. Direct
Hit was then one of the "hot" search engines that had recently appeared. Unfortunately, the
quality of Direct Hit's results couldn't match those of another "hot" player that had debuted at
the same time, Google. HotBot's popularity began to drop. Even worse, HotBot also suffered
by being owned by Lycos (now Terra Lycos). Lycos had acquired HotBot when it purchased
Wired Digital in October 1998. Lycos failed to make search a priority on its flagship Lycos
site as well as HotBot through much of 1999 and 2000, as it focused instead on adding
"portal" features. The company refocused on search in late 2001, making significant
improvements to the Lycos site and, as noted, reworked the HotBot site at the end of 2002.
AltaVista
http://www.altavista.com
AltaVista opened in December 1995 and for several years was the "Google" of its day, in
terms of providing relevant results and having a loyal group of users that loved the service.
Sadly, an attempt to turn AltaVista into a portal site in 1998 saw the company lose track of
the importance of search. Over time, relevancy dropped, as did the freshness of AltaVista's
listings and the crawler's coverage of the web. Today, AltaVista is once again focused on
search. Results come from Yahoo, and tabs above the search box let you go beyond web
search to find images, MP3/Audio, Video, human category listings and news results. If you
want a lighter-feel than Yahoo but to still have Yahoo's results, AltaVista is worth
considering. AltaVista was originally owned by Digital, and then taken over by Compaq,
when that company purchased Digital in 1998. AltaVista was later spun off into a private
company, controlled by CMGI. Overture purchasing the search engine in April 2003, then it
later became part of Yahoo when Yahoo bought Overture.
Live Search
http://www.live.com/
Live Search (formerly Windows Live Search) is the name of Microsoft's web search engine,
successor to MSN Search, designed to compete with the industry leaders Google and Yahoo.
The search engine offers some innovative features, such as the ability to view additional
search results on the same web page (instead of needing to click through to subsequent search
result pages) and the ability to adjust the amount of information displayed for each search-
result. It also allows the user to save searches and see them updated automatically on
Live.com. The service was previously powered by Look Smart results and gained top marks
for having its own team of editors that monitored the most popular searches being performed
to hand-pick sites believed to be the most relevant. The system worked well.
Look Smart
http://www.looksmart.com
Look Smart is primarily a human-compiled directory of web sites. It gathers its listings in two
ways. Commercial sites pay to be listed in its commercial categories, making the service very
much like an electronic "Yellow Pages." However, volunteer editors at the Look Smart-
owned Zeal directory also catalog sites into non-commercial categories for free. Though Zeal
is a separate web site, its listings are integrated into Look Smarts results. Look Smart
launched independently in October 1996 was backed by Reader's Digest for about a year, and
then company executives bought back control of the service.
Look Smart also bought the Wise Nut crawler-based search engine in April 2002. Wise Nut's
are offered through the Look Smart via its Web tab above the search box. Unlike its
competitors, the Wise Nut crawler has often been out of date, sometimes for months at a
time. Finally, the real gem at Look Smart can be found via its Articles tab. That provides
access to content from thousands of periodicals.
Netscape Search
http://search.netscape.com
Owned by AOL Time Warner, Netscape Search uses Google for its main listings, just as does
AOL's other major search site, AOL Search. So why use Netscape Search rather than
Google? Unlike with AOL Search, there's no compelling reason to consider it. The main
difference between Netscape Search and Google is that Netscape Search will list some of
Netscape's own content at the top of its results. Netscape also has a completely different look
and feel than Google. If you like either of these reasons then tries Netscape Search.
Otherwise, you're probably better off just searching at Google.
SOFTWARE AGENTS
The competitive business environment and the growing complexity of work and personal
lives create demands to perform many tasks efficiently and promptly. To support these
imperatives, new computing tools are needed. One such emerging tool is the notion of an
intelligent autonomous software agent. The underlying vision behind the development of
software agents involves a paradigm shift from the traditional software as tool to software as
assistant.
In the existing tool base model a user initiates various actions that are passively
facilitated by the software. This is a do what I say model. For instance a user instructs a
software program to download files from the internet, browse the www or compute a
spreadsheet column in a more efficient fashion but the commands themselves issue directly
from the user’s mouse clicks or keyboard input.
In the new agent base model, the user informs an agent about the various actions to be
performed or tasks to be accomplished. This is a do what I imply model. The agent takes
these requests and actively performs tasks on behalf of the user, such as comparing prices in
online shopping malls or monitoring incoming electronic mail message and organizing an
agenda even when the user is on vacation.
In many ways software agents mimic real world roles of a highly competent secretary,
reference librarian, personal and relentless world events watcher, news clip agency office and
personal assistant, personal online shopper, personal investment adviser or decision making
counselor. These capabilities or indisputable value will bring about a service model shift in
the software world that will touch and shape all of our lives significantly.
Recently the term software agent has become a marketing buzzword to describe
everything from a spreadsheet’s macro function to complex mobile code that can roam
networks to do our bidding.
Characteristics of software agents:
Software agent technology is relatively new on the computing scene, so there is no
firm consensus on what constitutes an intelligent agent. Following capabilities are often
associated with the notion of an intelligent agent.
Independent agency:
Agency independence is the ability to handle user defined tasks autonomous of the
user and often without the user’s guidance or presence. The user does not become directly
involved in executing the task. Independent agents are usually created via scripting languages
like Apples Script, Tele script.
Agent learning:
Agency learning is the ability to mimic the user’s steps when normally performing a
task. The simplest form of this type of agent is a user interface agent that records the user’s
actions as he or she opens files. Agent learning usually occurs through observation, user
feedback or training.
Agent reasoning capability:
This is the ability to operate in a decision making capacity in complex changing
condition. This property is usually associated with making inferences, having the competence
to choose among different strategies or being capable of planning a task. Three approaches
are: the rule based approach, the knowledge based approach, and the learning approach.
Agent interface:
The notion of a software agent that can effectively help humans perform daily task is
even more powerful when users think of the agents as some sort of humanoids. Some
researchers believe that computer users will be more likely to trust and feel comfortable with
a system that present a humanlike interface.
Types of Software agents:
Two type of human agents function in the workplace: office bound workers and
mobile field workers. Similarly, two type of software agent’s function: static and mobile. The
static software agent simply sits on the server or PC and actively monitors the environment.
For instance, a user mail agent executes in the background and is activated when there is an
incoming mail message. After processing the mail, the mail agent becomes dormant again
until another event requires processing. In short, stationary agents do not roam around the
online world but use embedded knowledge to assist in filtering and a processing the volume
of incoming information.
Advanced forms of agents incorporate the mobility that allows a software agent to
execute commands while living on a remote server only reporting back to its home base when
the given task is accomplished. Mobile or roaming agents promise to create a new computing
environment in which software assistants perform a plethora of tasks for consumers. The
consumer will be able to use his client to give the agent instructions find the cheapest flight to
Bermuda, or all news stories on the internet, and to launch it also can be programmed to
make purchase decisions.
Agents can also cooperate with other agents to accomplish a common activity such as
meeting scheduling. Imagine a scenario where the agent travels to an online travel agency in
search of the cheapest wound trip ticket to Hawaii. The agent buys the most economic fare
and returns to user’s computer, entering the flight itinerary and checking the monthly planner
for any potential conflicts.
To accomplish complex tasks static agents and mobile agents may actually work
together. Software agent technology has the potential to affect peoples’ lives in many ways.
And the agent technology looks set to radically alter not only the way in which we interact
with computers but also the way we conceptualize and build complex systems.
BENEFITS OF SOFTWARE AGENTS
Here are some typical reasons why we need software agents. The basic premise is that
software agents are autonomous, background software processes that execute on behalf of the
user:
Managing the information overload:
Users are overwhelmed by the huge amount of information available and the
effort time and cost required finding the specific information they need. Agent support is
needed to sort and filter an incoming data stream automatically into a manageable amount of
high value information.
Decision support:
There is a need for increased support for tasks performed by knowledge workers,
especially in the decision making area. Timely and knowledgeable decisions made by these
professionals greatly impact their effectiveness and success of their businesses in the
marketplace.
Repetitive office activity:
There is a pressing need to automate tasks performed by administrative and clerical
personnel in functions such as sales or customer support to reduce labor cost and increase
productivity.
Search and retrieval:
Because it is not possible to manipulate directly a distributed database system in an
electronic commerce setting with millions of data objects, user will have to relegate the task
of searching and cost comparison to agents.
Domain experts:
We need to model costly expertise and make it widely available. Example of expert
software agents could be models of real world agents such as translators, lawyers.
In short, software agents can improve the productivity of the end user by performing
various tasks, the most important being gathering information, filtering information and using
it for decision making.
DRAWBACKS OF SOFTWARE AGENTS
The various limitations of software agents are:
No overall system controller:
Agent technology may not be appropriate for the system:
In which globe constraints have to be maintained.
Where a real time response must be guaranteed.
In which deadlock or live lock must be avoided.
No global perspective:
Agents may make sub optimal decisition because of the agents’ tunnel vision. Multi
agent system will need to work on co corporation and negotiation technique to promote more
optimal global decision.
Trust and delegation:
Individual must trust underlying technology of agents and actual knowledge base of
agent in order for them to comfortable delegate task to an agent. Agent must strike a balance
need lessly consulting the user and exceeding its authority by not consulting the user enough.
Directory services & Agents in electronic commerce
Intelligent Agents for Electronic Commerce
In recent years, many researchers and practitioners have focused on the design of market
architectures for electronic commerce, and on protocols governing the interaction of self-
interested agents engaged in such transactions. While providing support for direct agent
negotiation, the existing architectures for multi-agent virtual markets usually lack explicit
facilities and infrastructure for handling multiple and varied negotiation protocols. Since
existing market architectures do not provide such protocols as an integrated part of the
framework, they will have to be extended in order to provide such support.
We have developed MAGNET (Multi AGent Negotiation Testbed), and architecture that
provides support for complex agent interactions, such as in automated contracting, as well as
other types of negotiation protocols. In particular, we are interested in business-to-business
situations in which a company outsources production to outside contractors and needs to
automate as much as possible the management of the supply-chain.
Agents in MAGNET negotiate and monitor the execution of contracts among multiple
suppliers. Each agent is an independent entity, with its own structure, goals, and resources. In
general, the resources under ``control'' of an individual agent are not sufficient to satisfy that
agent's goals, and so the agent must negotiate with other agents in its environment in order to
meet its goals.
We distinguish between two agent roles, the Customer and the Supplier. A Customer is an
agent who needs resources outside its direct control in order to carry out his plans. In
response to a Request for Quotes, some set of Supplier agents may offer to provide the
requested resources or services, for specified prices, over specified time periods. Once the
Customer agent receives bids, it evaluates them based on cost, risk, and time constraints, and
selects the optimal set of bids which can satisfy its goals. Suppliers are then notified of their
commitments, and the Execution Manager is called to oversee completion of the plan. Plan
maintenance includes re-negotiating existing commitments, re-bidding portions of the plan,
re-planning, and abandoning the goal.
Here is a screen shot of the Plan/RFQ generation screen. The current TaskPlan is represented
by a Table view (in the upper left-hand corner) and a Gantt chart view (in the upper right-
hand corner.) The thin line trailing each Gantt object depicts the amount of schedule slack
each task has allotted to it. The lower half of the screen allows for editing of the TaskPlan, as
well as specifying RFQ-related parameters before submitting an RFQ.
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