Final Project CIS 4549

The link below is to my final project site. Enjoy!

https://sites.google.com/site/web20jonathanthomasgriffin/

280Slides Presentation - "WordPress"

Below is my 280Slides presentation entitled "WordPress". Enjoy!

Thoughts on Alibaba

Sourcing products from other countries outside of the U.S. can be a great move for small businesses, especially when you can get things at a fraction of the cost. The lady at Blue Rock BBQ seemed to be very pleased with the sourcing opportunities she received through Alibaba.

If I were in her shoes, I would have gone to visit my suppliers too. I simply would be putting too much reputation at risk if I was not completely sure that my sourcing partners were producing at the level that I expect. If I were to start a business of that kind, I would look at sourcing through Alibaba as well. There are just too many great opportunities through the website to pass up.

In regards to success stories, it seems the Trophy Skin company has found great success when using Alibaba. The blue light medical treatment is an expensive treatment at many dermatologist clinics, but with the help of Alibaba, Trophy Skin has found a way to produce the blue light treatment from the comfort of home and for a much cheaper price. The odds of Trophy Skin being able to offer this low of a price is not likely possible without the help of Alibaba.

I didn't realize all the resources available to learn how to start your own business. While I already own my own small business, the Toolbox has given me more resources to view for the future expansion and growth of my business. The most beneficial resources are the ones dealing with the IRS. This will help me know exactly what I can and cannot do and know how/when to pay my taxes.

Alibaba has a lot of great resources that I look forward to using in the future!

New WIX Website Created

My new WIX website has been created for my assignment. You can view it at the link below:

http://www.wix.com/jthomasgriffin/cis4549

Enjoy!

Thomas Griffin

Reflections on the Web 2.0 Summit 2010 Videos

The first video I watched from the web 2.0 conference is entitled "Internet Trends". In this video, the speaker engages the audience with 10 topics that businesses should focus on in the coming years. One of the main highlights of the presentation was mobile usage. Mobile kept coming up over and over again. Mobile will continue to be an important part of the evolution of the internet and business world, so companies need to start paying attention now. Mobile app development has grown tremendously. Another intriguing fact was that the revenue growth for the top 15 internet companies has been staggering in the past year. The internet is finally beginning to mature and is ready to bust open new, untapped markets. You can watch the video from the link above or the link below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7yL9yrttESI&p=2737D508F656CCF8

The second video I watched from the web 2.0 conference is entitled "Internet Culture". The main speaker for this clip is Ben Huh, CEO of the massively popular Cheezburger networks (FailBlog, etc.). He analyzes the reasons why internet culture has become prevalent. One of the ways is the fact that no can dictate internet culture. Unline TV and music where much of the culture is dictated by the media, internet culture is completely dictated by the user himself. Internet culture is generally created by passive consumers of general culture who wish to express themselves to the masses. It is quite an interesting video, and I would recommend watching it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9JRRvf3CaUI&p=2737D508F656CCF8

Google Earth and Business

Google Earth is such an amazing program. The whole world is literally at your fingertips. You are able to pinpoint locations with an aerial view. You are able to get up to date information on current events around the world. You can even watch YouTube videos from Google Earth!

Google Earth can assist businesses by giving them the ability to track down the locations of future markets. They can view the surrounding areas to get an idea of the success rate of a potential market. They can find competitors in potential markets and even map out strategic locations for business operations. They can do this all from the convenience of their office, which saves them money on travel expenses.

One current event going on in Egypt is the political crisis. Protesters have revolted against the current regime and are forcing the President of Egypt out of his office. This has caused much civil unrest and has made travel to and from the area extremely dangerous.

Another crazy thing that happened in Egypt as a result of the protests was a country-wide blackout. The government completely shut down the internet for everyone who lived in Egypt. It was incredible to see the graphs where it showed internet usage. It dropped to zero and stayed at zero for a long period of time. It was the first country-wide blackout of our time.

On Microsoft Lync 2010 and Cisco Webex

Both Microsoft Lync 2010 and Cisco Webex are pushing the limits in terms of collaboration. Because of the rise of globalization and the decentralization of the workforce, collaboration has become a key element in the infrastructure of many companies. It often plays out like this:

better collaboration = better efficiency = better productivity = higher profit margins

I believe that both products have enormous potential in the corporate workplace. Lync is geared towards integrating an entire workspace around the flagship Microsoft products such as Word, Excel and PowerPoint. Webex is geared towards integrating and connecting teams that are scattered across the world. Whatever the case, both aim at giving better, more compact solutions to work and communication.

I would only find these products useful in a business environment. Both of the products are too robust for any one person to take full advantage of it, and as such they would be a waste of money. However, businesses with numerous employees may find these products to be beneficial and even cost effective. Integrating the essentials into one package with Lync and Webex can reduce time spent traditionally on phone calls, physical meetings and document revisions which in turn yields higher productivity and profits for businesses.