Introduction to Computers

forms of Electronic Communication The most frequently used form of electronic communication is e-mail, but others include: Instant messaging Online bulletin boards Social media web sites

Who can use e-mail? Anyone with: An e-mail account provides you with: An Internet connection An e-mail account An e-mail account provides you with: Access to a mailbox, a storage area for messages A unique e-mail address consisting of: A user name rvirgo for example A domain name haywood.edu for example Every user name within a domain must be unique Put them together and you get a unique email address such as rvirgo@haywood.edu

How do I get an e-mail Account? Usually get an e-mail account from your ISP Your ISP may provide you several e-mail accounts Many get e-mail accounts from other sources: Work School Major Internet portals provide free e-mail accounts: Google (Gmail) Yahoo Microsoft (Hotmail)

Viewing an E-mail Every e-mail has a sender An e-mail must have a recipient. This one was sent to a group of people (HCC-Everyone) Fill in subject line or your e-mail may be ignored Body of message

Sending a basic e-mail Supply the recipient’s e-mail address Can type the e-mail address Or choose recipient e-mail from an address book Provide a subject line Be sure your e-mail isn’t misjudged as “junk” Type your message Add any attachments Any type of file(s) can be attached to an e-mail Click Send

Replying and Forwarding Upon receiving a message you can forward it, reply to it, or both Forwarding Original message is copied to new e-mail Enter address of person(s) to receive this message Can add a note telling why you’re passing it along Replying Sends your message back to same person or group No need to specify recipients, just the message

E-mail attachments Can attach any type of file to an e-mail A picture, video, mp3 file, word document… anything Can attach as many files as you like Attachments travel with the e-mail Can be opened or saved by the recipient Always explain e-mail attachments Attached files can be used to spread viruses Explain purpose and reason to recipient when sending an attachment or it may not be opened

Attachments can spread viruses Take caution when opening attachments Any executable attachment such as a .exe, .zip or .vb file can potentially spread a virus Question every attachment before opening Do I know this person? Does it make sense to receive this type of file from this person? Did they explain the attachment? Does the e-mail exhibit any personal knowledge of me such as mentioning my name in the text?

address books Most e-mail systems supply an address book Holds contact information for people you e-mail Includes name and address Phone numbers, typically home, work, and cell As well as home and work e-mail addresses Can select address book name as e-mail recipient Can set up groups of contacts in address book Allows you to easily e-mail all contacts in the group Great for e-mailing all partners in a group project

Use of blind carbon copy Recipients of a group e-mail automatically get everyone else’s e-mail address This may not always be desirable Allows anyone to “pirate” your list Blind carbon copy (Bcc:) lets you hide recipients of a group e-mail from each other Add e-mail addresses to Bcc: list instead of To: For example, students in an academic program May not want them to see everyone else’s e-mail

Good e-mail practices Use both uppercase and lowercase All uppercase considered the equivalent of yelling Your e-mail may be ignored if you fail to: Explain all attachments Use a meaningful subject line Think before sending a huge attachment Dial-up can take an hour to receive the attachment your broadband connection sends in a minute. Notify others if you get an e-mail based virus

Be cautious about what you send Some don’t want their inbox filled with “jokes” Think before responding to pyramid schemes The “send this to 7 friends” sort of message Or the sad picture with “I hope I get one share” Don’t forward hoaxes Take a moment to investigate before sending Never send an e-mail when angry People often say things in an e-mail they would never say face-to-face If angry, wait a day before responding

Two basic types of e-mail systems POP – the type of e-mail you get from your ISP Incoming messages use Post Office Protocol (POP3) Outgoing uses Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) Message text located on your hard disk Need an e-mail program on your computer to receive, view, and respond to messages Web-based e-mail Used by Internet portals, employers, schools, etc. Message text located on a server Web browser used to view & respond to messages

Pop versus web-based e-mail Once received, user has total control over message Can view, edit & compose responses while offline Only need to be online to send and receive Must connect to your ISP to receive your messages Web-based e-mail More limited control, provider controls message Must be online when viewing or responding Work with your e-mail from any internet connection

Instant Messaging Similar to a phone call but uses a series of typed messages instead of voice conversation Messages are sent and received as they are typed Limited number of participants, not available to all Participants decide who can join the conversation Can be a one-to-one exchange or a larger group Often used to provide customer service Instead of a single phone call, 1 service rep can handle several instant message conversations Software is a free download from MSN, Yahoo, etc.

Bulletin Boards Put messages on public forums in order to: Exchange opinions Discuss topics Pose questions about difficult problems No immediate reply, not a real-time discussion A response could come in minutes or days Bulletin boards exist for every conceivable topic Great for solving problems Post a description of your issue to an appropriate forum Chances are someone has the answer you need

Social media Examples are Facebook, LinkedIn, & MySpace A form of online networking Users share info about themselves and others Consider carefully what you choose to share A CareerBuilder.com study shows 45% of employers use social media to screen candidates Avoid inapproriate photos, mention of drugs or alcohol, and insulting previous employers Many employees have been fired due to comments made in social media