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The internet doesn't byte: from
virtual reality to practicality
A rollercoaster history
As millions heard during the 2012 Olympics’ opening ceremony, the inventor of the World Wide
Web is Sir Tim Berners-Lee - very jolly for the Brits, but the internet has been around for longer:
1950-60 ARPA & packet-switching network
1973 First intercontinental connection between US universities and UCL
1975 Bill Gates creates Microsoft
1976 Apple computer is designed and demonstrated
1985 AOL is launched
1990s Sir Tim Berners-Lee develops the internet’s computer language & address system
1991 Sir Tim’s research group makes the world wide web available to all for FREE
1994 First internet ordering system created by Pizza Hut and First Virtual
1995 Amazon, Yahoo and eBay
1996 Google debuts as a research project
By the early 2000s, the web has had a huge impact on culture and business – think email,
messenger, Skype, discussion forums, social networking and online shopping. By 2007 more than
97% of all telecommunicated information was carried over the internet. The internet has become
portable thanks to smartphones and tablet computers. Then there’s wifi (wireless fidelity), which
allows you to surf the net at public places like cafes, hotels and libraries around the world.
A web infographic: 2002-2012
http://mashable.com/2012/
08/22/the-internet-a-
decade-later/
Making the most of IT
If the internet were a political regime, it would be a successful
anarchy. It belongs to everybody and no-one. It’s not policed or
regulated, although legislation deals with crime and intellectual
property theft.
Yes, there are businesses using it to sell goods and services, but the
spirit of collaboration (think Wikipedia) is alive and well. The sheer
number of websites, applications and tools is mind-boggling.
However, many people only use its five basic functions:
research, email, groups, long-distance computing and file
transfers.
• Internet research and email are part of our daily lives – they need no
introduction.
• Discussion groups are a world of their own. They cover
news, hobbies, learning, niche interests, basically anything you can
think of.
• Long-distance computing allows remote working. It is used by
employees accessing their work computers from home or other
locations.
• File transfers include downloads too - think of all the free software
available and e-books. I’d like to mention a free resource called
project Gutenberg (www.gutenberg.org). You can download their e-
books to your PC or Kindle. The internet has also revolutionised
self-publishing – you can write a book in Word and upload it to
Amazon, which will sell it for you.
Project Gutenberg
What else can the internet do?
It can make your everyday life easier - think internet banking, paying bills and shopping. You can
do your tax return, contact authorities and get information on anything from renewing your
driving licence and passport to medical knowhow. Prodigy or Clinical Knowledge Summaries
(http://www.cks.nhs.uk/home) is a wonderful research tool on medical conditions.
Then there are plenty of websites offering free newsletters in all sort of subjects. I receive local-
interest e-newsletters from Transition Cambridge, Kettle Yard and the University of Cambridge.
E-learning: file transfers and interactive tools make distance learning an attractive proposition –
you can study for recognized professional diplomas and even get a degree with the Open
University. If you are self taught, you can read journals, e-books, register for webinairs (free
online presentations) and download educational material.
Or you might want to start an online community - Yahoo and Google offer free hosting for
groups. If you have an interest, however niche, you are bound to find a group – these
can be national, international and often cross-generational.
You can purchase almost anything online, from goods to services. If you still want to use
a shop, fine, the internet is handy to research products by accessing information and
customers’ reviews. Plus you can also sell unwanted stuff through eBay and Gumtree.
You can watch TV. Recent research discovered that most young Britons don’t own a TV
but use their computer to watch TV programmes and films. They are using subscription
film sites but also free catch-up TV services like BBC iplayer – all main TV channels offer
free On Demand services.
The net is also great for gaming at any age. Cbeebies and Poisson Rouge are fantastic
for young children, it keeps them happy while teaching them art, numeracy or literacy.
Then there are chat rooms and instant messaging. They are not only populated by
teenagers – think professional users who want to network. Instant messaging is
increasingly used by companies to provide after-sale services – such as help
customers to set up software.
Last but not least, there’s music downloading. Apple is dominant with its iPod and
music website iTunes. As high-street music and video rental shops can’t offer a
comprehensive stock, the web has stepped in as the main provider of music and
films. Same goes for computer games and software.
And let’s not forget services. In future it will become less easy to buy holidays from
the high street as many travel agent shops are closing down. All airlines incentivize
internet purchases by offering better deals. Plus the internet is also useful to
gather information on locations you want to visit. One of the most popular websites
is Trip Advisor, where you can check resorts and hotels before booking
(www.tripadvisor.com).
To quote a song, the internet has not killed the radio star - there are plenty of digital radios that are
alive and well, but it has mortally wounded the fax machine. I use my scanner to upload any paper
document onto my PC then use email to send it. There are fax services you can subscribe to
online, some are even free – but even if you pay a small subscription, it’s a cheaper option
compared to the costs of a fax line, machine maintenance, paper & ink.
The internet is a fab people finder – dead or alive, nothing gruesome, think genealogy and family
history. You can locate friends and ex-colleagues through Facebook and LinkedIn.
Social media – addictive but full of goodness
As Wikipedia puts it: “Social media includes web- and mobile-based technologies that are used
to turn communication into interactive dialogue among organizations, communities, and
individuals”. I’m only scratching the surface here, social media could be the subject of several
talks. There are lots of social media tools with catchy names but the main ones are Linked-
In, Facebook, Twitter and newcomer Pinterest. Twitter is defined as a microblogging site, so if
you are interested in fully-fledged blogging, you can choose between Blogger and Wordpress.
Blogs started like online journals, where you could muse about something and get the odd
comment. They have been increasingly used by organisations as marketing tools, to
generate interest in products, services and good causes. Blogging is also a way to engage
with customers and users. As with groups, there are all sorts of blogs covering a huge
variety of interests. Some blogs have become so popular they attracted book deals – think
Belle du Jour, the diary of a London call girl, which was also made into a TV series.
I have used Blogger since 2005, it’s free and makes blogging easy. If you blog for
business it’s best to buy your own domain name and use Wordpress – it needs a bit more
effort but there are free guides online. Plenty of articles claim you can make a fortune
blogging, but the reality is that advertising revenue is minimal unless you use your blog to
display and aggressively push links or ads, which can annoy your readers. You can also
join an affiliated marketing scheme, but it’s still hard work.
Once you start a blog, you enter a new world, there are bloggers’ collectives where you can
make your blog known, interact with other bloggers and get all sort of opportunities.
Companies have realized that bloggers represent a cheap marketing tool – think of the
exposure a brand can get by giving away a few free products to test to well-connected
bloggers. Popular travel bloggers are given free holidays to review, which is quite a nice
freebie. Of course you need to have some integrity as a reviewer…
Most of you will be familiar with Facebook, which is increasingly used by companies targeting
consumers to showcase competitions, find out what their customers think of their products
and get their brand out at an international level – basically B2C marketing.
LinkedIn is the professional equivalent of Facebook and a very popular tool for companies
selling to businesses (B2B) to promote their products and services. It’s also used by recruiters
and companies to find staff – temporary and permanent. I got a few freelance jobs through
LinkedIn - having a profile there is also boosting my website.
In a nutshell, that’s what social media does, it boosts your business brand, your website, it
markets your services, it introduces you to potential customers and interesting people that can
help your business grow or your career take off.
Twitter might be defined as a microblogging site but its real value is news and information
gathering/diffusion. Nearly everybody is on it, celebrities included. Tweets are limited in
characters, so all tweets have to be brief. Journalists are there too, as stories often break on
Twitter. I tweet about internet marketing and search engine optimization. It’s a wide and fast-
moving sector and Twitter allows me to find out about the newest technological developments
and read interesting articles.
Then there is Pinterest, which was launched in 2010 and dismissed as a hobbyist’s photo-
sharing website. Then e-books started to appear on how to use Pinterest for business. Now
most businesses have their own pinboards. As each photo is linked to a website or blog, it’s
easy to see how it can be worthwhile for a business, blogger or organization to join in. This
strategy cashes in on the fact that image searches are extremely popular.
Social media is also used to promote good causes and share ideas. There are groups on
Twitter attempting all sorts of stunts, such as crowdsourcing books for charity.
Weird web & the dark side
Gambling and gaming are quite prominent. Self-publishing has really taken off and lost its
stigma, the same goes for online dating.
There are some dubious offerings like pornography and unsavoury users groups, so the internet
has a dark side. There are nasties, such spam, the electronic version of junk mail; hackers who
try to access your computer to steal information and collectives that enjoy hacking websites of
banks, governments and multinationals just for the heck of it. Not all activism belongs to the dark
side, think of online petitions and websites like Justgiving.
Back to the dark side, if you have an email account, you will be aware that there are criminals
who strike through fake lotteries, bogus charities, impersonating dictators who need your urgent
help to recover money... Do not click any link in an email, no matter how well designed the email
is and remember that friends’ and relatives’ emails can be hacked. Clicking an unsafe link puts
you at risk of getting junk mail, a vicious virus that will infect your computer or spyware, which
reports your actions to a third party. The net offers plenty of information on scams – in most
cases other users will have probably posted information about your dubious email. Be safe!
Jolly jumble
Aside evergreen applications like Google Maps, Google Earth, Blogger, YouTube. G+ and
Googledocs, I recommend the Moneysaving forum (http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/)
for a variety of topics and queries. I have seen posts on personal finance, internet scams, where
to sell unwanted books, how to make jam... Other fave websites include:
• www.admin.cam.ac.uk/whatson/ to find out about events happening in Cambridge museums
• www.cyclestreets.net: plan your cycle journey and save the itineraries
• walkit.com: covers several UK cities. It offers very comprehensive directions
• www.wordreference.com: dictionaries in several languages
• www.flickr.com/creativecommons/: for free photos (but credit the photographer)
• www.learn2knit.co.uk : knitting and crochet
• www.eventbrite.co.uk : if you need ticketing for an event and great reference for local events
• Paid survey sites: I have used Valued Opinions and http://uk.mysurvey.com - they are not
paying huge amounts, but you can exchange points accrued for shopping vouchers.
This is an edited version. If
you’d like to read the whole
talk, download it for free at
www.simonecastello.co.uk
Accessing the internet & search tips
So how do you access all this free bounty? You need a computer/smartphone and a connection –
the packages are mind-boggling, though. You can just buy an internet package, do aim for fast
broadband if you want to download software, view images, TV programmes and films. Packages
start from as low as £2.50. Free internet access has been in the news recently with a company
providing a free service. That is if you don’t mind watching ads to gain credits. I suppose you
don’t have to, click on the ad and put the kettle on. If you haven’t got a computer or smartphone,
head to your local library. Just type google.com or bing.com in the browser and off you go
searching away. There are guides online to teach you how to use internet tools, even videos and
podcasts.
There are inexpensive, even free courses if you want to acquire internet skills. Silver surfers
comes to mind for the over 50s, you can find out if they are active locally by contacting Age
Concern. In Cambridge, Cambridge Online (www.colc.co.uk/) is a good place to start with. They
run tutorial sessions at several locations across Cambridge, and they also cover computer basics.
Call 01223 300407 for more information. If you have internet access at home, you can try their
online tutorial.
But how do you search? Type what you need - it doesn’t have to be grammatically correct or
100% accurate - into Google or Bing then go through the results. You can use the advanced
search function and choose different languages.
Thanks for reading! This is an edited version. If you’d like to read the whole
talk, download it for free at www.simonecastello.co.uk

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Making the most of the internet

  • 1. The internet doesn't byte: from virtual reality to practicality
  • 2. A rollercoaster history As millions heard during the 2012 Olympics’ opening ceremony, the inventor of the World Wide Web is Sir Tim Berners-Lee - very jolly for the Brits, but the internet has been around for longer: 1950-60 ARPA & packet-switching network 1973 First intercontinental connection between US universities and UCL 1975 Bill Gates creates Microsoft 1976 Apple computer is designed and demonstrated 1985 AOL is launched 1990s Sir Tim Berners-Lee develops the internet’s computer language & address system 1991 Sir Tim’s research group makes the world wide web available to all for FREE 1994 First internet ordering system created by Pizza Hut and First Virtual 1995 Amazon, Yahoo and eBay 1996 Google debuts as a research project By the early 2000s, the web has had a huge impact on culture and business – think email, messenger, Skype, discussion forums, social networking and online shopping. By 2007 more than 97% of all telecommunicated information was carried over the internet. The internet has become portable thanks to smartphones and tablet computers. Then there’s wifi (wireless fidelity), which allows you to surf the net at public places like cafes, hotels and libraries around the world.
  • 3. A web infographic: 2002-2012 http://mashable.com/2012/ 08/22/the-internet-a- decade-later/ Making the most of IT If the internet were a political regime, it would be a successful anarchy. It belongs to everybody and no-one. It’s not policed or regulated, although legislation deals with crime and intellectual property theft. Yes, there are businesses using it to sell goods and services, but the spirit of collaboration (think Wikipedia) is alive and well. The sheer number of websites, applications and tools is mind-boggling. However, many people only use its five basic functions: research, email, groups, long-distance computing and file transfers. • Internet research and email are part of our daily lives – they need no introduction. • Discussion groups are a world of their own. They cover news, hobbies, learning, niche interests, basically anything you can think of. • Long-distance computing allows remote working. It is used by employees accessing their work computers from home or other locations. • File transfers include downloads too - think of all the free software available and e-books. I’d like to mention a free resource called project Gutenberg (www.gutenberg.org). You can download their e- books to your PC or Kindle. The internet has also revolutionised self-publishing – you can write a book in Word and upload it to Amazon, which will sell it for you. Project Gutenberg
  • 4. What else can the internet do? It can make your everyday life easier - think internet banking, paying bills and shopping. You can do your tax return, contact authorities and get information on anything from renewing your driving licence and passport to medical knowhow. Prodigy or Clinical Knowledge Summaries (http://www.cks.nhs.uk/home) is a wonderful research tool on medical conditions. Then there are plenty of websites offering free newsletters in all sort of subjects. I receive local- interest e-newsletters from Transition Cambridge, Kettle Yard and the University of Cambridge. E-learning: file transfers and interactive tools make distance learning an attractive proposition – you can study for recognized professional diplomas and even get a degree with the Open University. If you are self taught, you can read journals, e-books, register for webinairs (free online presentations) and download educational material.
  • 5. Or you might want to start an online community - Yahoo and Google offer free hosting for groups. If you have an interest, however niche, you are bound to find a group – these can be national, international and often cross-generational. You can purchase almost anything online, from goods to services. If you still want to use a shop, fine, the internet is handy to research products by accessing information and customers’ reviews. Plus you can also sell unwanted stuff through eBay and Gumtree. You can watch TV. Recent research discovered that most young Britons don’t own a TV but use their computer to watch TV programmes and films. They are using subscription film sites but also free catch-up TV services like BBC iplayer – all main TV channels offer free On Demand services. The net is also great for gaming at any age. Cbeebies and Poisson Rouge are fantastic for young children, it keeps them happy while teaching them art, numeracy or literacy.
  • 6. Then there are chat rooms and instant messaging. They are not only populated by teenagers – think professional users who want to network. Instant messaging is increasingly used by companies to provide after-sale services – such as help customers to set up software. Last but not least, there’s music downloading. Apple is dominant with its iPod and music website iTunes. As high-street music and video rental shops can’t offer a comprehensive stock, the web has stepped in as the main provider of music and films. Same goes for computer games and software. And let’s not forget services. In future it will become less easy to buy holidays from the high street as many travel agent shops are closing down. All airlines incentivize internet purchases by offering better deals. Plus the internet is also useful to gather information on locations you want to visit. One of the most popular websites is Trip Advisor, where you can check resorts and hotels before booking (www.tripadvisor.com).
  • 7. To quote a song, the internet has not killed the radio star - there are plenty of digital radios that are alive and well, but it has mortally wounded the fax machine. I use my scanner to upload any paper document onto my PC then use email to send it. There are fax services you can subscribe to online, some are even free – but even if you pay a small subscription, it’s a cheaper option compared to the costs of a fax line, machine maintenance, paper & ink. The internet is a fab people finder – dead or alive, nothing gruesome, think genealogy and family history. You can locate friends and ex-colleagues through Facebook and LinkedIn. Social media – addictive but full of goodness As Wikipedia puts it: “Social media includes web- and mobile-based technologies that are used to turn communication into interactive dialogue among organizations, communities, and individuals”. I’m only scratching the surface here, social media could be the subject of several talks. There are lots of social media tools with catchy names but the main ones are Linked- In, Facebook, Twitter and newcomer Pinterest. Twitter is defined as a microblogging site, so if you are interested in fully-fledged blogging, you can choose between Blogger and Wordpress.
  • 8. Blogs started like online journals, where you could muse about something and get the odd comment. They have been increasingly used by organisations as marketing tools, to generate interest in products, services and good causes. Blogging is also a way to engage with customers and users. As with groups, there are all sorts of blogs covering a huge variety of interests. Some blogs have become so popular they attracted book deals – think Belle du Jour, the diary of a London call girl, which was also made into a TV series. I have used Blogger since 2005, it’s free and makes blogging easy. If you blog for business it’s best to buy your own domain name and use Wordpress – it needs a bit more effort but there are free guides online. Plenty of articles claim you can make a fortune blogging, but the reality is that advertising revenue is minimal unless you use your blog to display and aggressively push links or ads, which can annoy your readers. You can also join an affiliated marketing scheme, but it’s still hard work. Once you start a blog, you enter a new world, there are bloggers’ collectives where you can make your blog known, interact with other bloggers and get all sort of opportunities.
  • 9. Companies have realized that bloggers represent a cheap marketing tool – think of the exposure a brand can get by giving away a few free products to test to well-connected bloggers. Popular travel bloggers are given free holidays to review, which is quite a nice freebie. Of course you need to have some integrity as a reviewer… Most of you will be familiar with Facebook, which is increasingly used by companies targeting consumers to showcase competitions, find out what their customers think of their products and get their brand out at an international level – basically B2C marketing. LinkedIn is the professional equivalent of Facebook and a very popular tool for companies selling to businesses (B2B) to promote their products and services. It’s also used by recruiters and companies to find staff – temporary and permanent. I got a few freelance jobs through LinkedIn - having a profile there is also boosting my website. In a nutshell, that’s what social media does, it boosts your business brand, your website, it markets your services, it introduces you to potential customers and interesting people that can help your business grow or your career take off.
  • 10. Twitter might be defined as a microblogging site but its real value is news and information gathering/diffusion. Nearly everybody is on it, celebrities included. Tweets are limited in characters, so all tweets have to be brief. Journalists are there too, as stories often break on Twitter. I tweet about internet marketing and search engine optimization. It’s a wide and fast- moving sector and Twitter allows me to find out about the newest technological developments and read interesting articles. Then there is Pinterest, which was launched in 2010 and dismissed as a hobbyist’s photo- sharing website. Then e-books started to appear on how to use Pinterest for business. Now most businesses have their own pinboards. As each photo is linked to a website or blog, it’s easy to see how it can be worthwhile for a business, blogger or organization to join in. This strategy cashes in on the fact that image searches are extremely popular. Social media is also used to promote good causes and share ideas. There are groups on Twitter attempting all sorts of stunts, such as crowdsourcing books for charity.
  • 11. Weird web & the dark side Gambling and gaming are quite prominent. Self-publishing has really taken off and lost its stigma, the same goes for online dating. There are some dubious offerings like pornography and unsavoury users groups, so the internet has a dark side. There are nasties, such spam, the electronic version of junk mail; hackers who try to access your computer to steal information and collectives that enjoy hacking websites of banks, governments and multinationals just for the heck of it. Not all activism belongs to the dark side, think of online petitions and websites like Justgiving. Back to the dark side, if you have an email account, you will be aware that there are criminals who strike through fake lotteries, bogus charities, impersonating dictators who need your urgent help to recover money... Do not click any link in an email, no matter how well designed the email is and remember that friends’ and relatives’ emails can be hacked. Clicking an unsafe link puts you at risk of getting junk mail, a vicious virus that will infect your computer or spyware, which reports your actions to a third party. The net offers plenty of information on scams – in most cases other users will have probably posted information about your dubious email. Be safe!
  • 12. Jolly jumble Aside evergreen applications like Google Maps, Google Earth, Blogger, YouTube. G+ and Googledocs, I recommend the Moneysaving forum (http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/) for a variety of topics and queries. I have seen posts on personal finance, internet scams, where to sell unwanted books, how to make jam... Other fave websites include: • www.admin.cam.ac.uk/whatson/ to find out about events happening in Cambridge museums • www.cyclestreets.net: plan your cycle journey and save the itineraries • walkit.com: covers several UK cities. It offers very comprehensive directions • www.wordreference.com: dictionaries in several languages • www.flickr.com/creativecommons/: for free photos (but credit the photographer) • www.learn2knit.co.uk : knitting and crochet • www.eventbrite.co.uk : if you need ticketing for an event and great reference for local events • Paid survey sites: I have used Valued Opinions and http://uk.mysurvey.com - they are not paying huge amounts, but you can exchange points accrued for shopping vouchers.
  • 13. This is an edited version. If you’d like to read the whole talk, download it for free at www.simonecastello.co.uk
  • 14. Accessing the internet & search tips So how do you access all this free bounty? You need a computer/smartphone and a connection – the packages are mind-boggling, though. You can just buy an internet package, do aim for fast broadband if you want to download software, view images, TV programmes and films. Packages start from as low as £2.50. Free internet access has been in the news recently with a company providing a free service. That is if you don’t mind watching ads to gain credits. I suppose you don’t have to, click on the ad and put the kettle on. If you haven’t got a computer or smartphone, head to your local library. Just type google.com or bing.com in the browser and off you go searching away. There are guides online to teach you how to use internet tools, even videos and podcasts. There are inexpensive, even free courses if you want to acquire internet skills. Silver surfers comes to mind for the over 50s, you can find out if they are active locally by contacting Age Concern. In Cambridge, Cambridge Online (www.colc.co.uk/) is a good place to start with. They run tutorial sessions at several locations across Cambridge, and they also cover computer basics. Call 01223 300407 for more information. If you have internet access at home, you can try their online tutorial. But how do you search? Type what you need - it doesn’t have to be grammatically correct or 100% accurate - into Google or Bing then go through the results. You can use the advanced search function and choose different languages. Thanks for reading! This is an edited version. If you’d like to read the whole talk, download it for free at www.simonecastello.co.uk