The Role of Communication Systems www.ICT-Teacher.com

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The Role of Communication Systems

• www.ICT-Teacher.com

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• Explain the use of global communications between
  single or multiple sources and recipients,
  including public networks such as the Internet.
• Describe the hardware, software and services
  required to access the Internet.
• Describe the facilities offered and the relative
  merits of telephone, fax, e-mail,
  teleconferencing, view-data, teletext, remote
  databases and other relevant communication
  systems.
• Explain the use of the Internet for a range of
  activities including communication, information
  searching and information publication.
• Candidates should be aware of the recent
  developments in the area of communication
  systems.

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The Internet

• The largest wide area network in the world. It is
  made up of thousands of linked networks.
• What is a Network?
• Two types of networks WAN, LAN what is the
  difference?
• How many people globally are connected to the
  Internet?
• What are the hardware requirements for accessing
  the Internet?
• A computer, a modem, a telephone line, Internet
  browser software.

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Costs

• Hardware, Software.
• Subscription to an Internet Service Provider
  (ISP), and free calls.
• A call charge for every call at a local call
  charge for any web-site anywhere in the world.
• A quarterly rental charge with a company such as
  British Telecom.

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Speed

• Speed is determined by
• Modem speed, standard is 56kbps, but the
  effective transfer is much lower.
• The bandwidth of the communication line,
  telephone is standard, much faster speeds are
  achieved by using cable and ISDN.
• The amount of other users on the network
  (communication lines).
• The type of data being accessed, text is fast as
  it uses little memory, graphics use greater
  amounts of memory and are slower.

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World Wide Web

• What is the world wide web?
• What is a hypertext link?
• What is an example of a web browsing software?
• How does it assist in finding a particular web
  page?
• What are the different purposes of the world wide
  web (why do people use the web)?

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On-Line Information Services

• Information Service provided by e.g. BT.
• Subscribers gain access to the latest news,
  weather, sports, fashion etc.

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Electronic Bulletin Boards

• An Internet site for groups with similar
  interests for information exchange.
• Used for thousands of special interest groups, it
  can be open to misuse, why?

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Intranet

• What is an Intranet?
• Why is it so useful to organisations including
  schools?

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E-mail

• What is e-mail?
• What types of documents can be sent using e-mail?
• What are the advantages to ordinary mail?
• What could be a problem with e-mail?

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Telephone Technology

• Why are the old telephone networks still so
  important?
• What are some of the facilities that BT provide?
• Consider caller identifier, ring back, directory
  services, automatic call logging, digital remote
  handsets, three way etc.
• What is a Fax machine?
• How do they work?

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Mobile Telephones

• How widespread are mobile phones in this country
  and globally?
• What are some of the new features of mobile
  phones?
• What is Voice mail, and some of the services it
  delivers?

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Teleconferencing

• What is teleconferencing?
• What is videoconferencing?
• What devices are necessary for videoconferencing?
• Why is ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network)
  used to transmit video?

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ISDN
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An essential tool for correspondence, marketing,
feedback and support.

• What are the opening hours for business on the
  web?
• What are the procedures for purchasing a music CD
  on the Internet?
• Why is it normally beneficial for a customer to
  use the Internet for making a purchase?
• What are the advantages for the business?
• What could be the disadvantages for the business?
• Some customers may be worried about purchasing
  goods on the Internet, why?

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Business to Business

• Why would businesses use the Internet to trade
  between each other?
• How can the Internet be used to find new
  suppliers?
• If you were a web developer for a small business
  what are the main features you would include on
  the web-site?
• What would the benefits be and for whom?