"Database Project"

The database project taught me many different things. I learned how to create queries, forms, and reports using microsoft access 2007. I didn't realize how difficult access is to use. This being my first time using access, it took me a while to figure everything out. I was able to take adavantage of the form and report wizards beforehand thus not having to do so much altering in the design view. The form and report activities gave me the most trouble. I might have used the query as my data source for the form activity instead of the member's table. However, knowing this, I was still uanble to denote whether the two new members I created in my form were an Individual or Family Member. The report was no walk in the park either. The grouping and sorting portions were complicated. However, I feel I was able to figure it out in the wizard.

Overall there is not much I would change as far as the fucntionality of this database. I would, however, alter the ease of manipulation and input. I personally found the layout view much more helpful and less complicated than the design view. Microsoft Access is hard to master in a couple weeks but even with the amount of time I spent on this project I still feel unfamiliar and uncomfortable using access. The lectures were helpful but only to a certain extent.

Tutorial 3: E-Commerce/ Types of Online Shopping

E-commerce or electronic commerce, is the selling and buying of goods, products, or services over the internet. With the expansion of the interent and its integration into everday life, more goods and services are being purchased over the internet. The term e-commerce is used interchangeably with e-business. Also websites that take part in online retail selling are said to be conducting e-tailing. Just about anyone can take part in e-commerce. The only necessities are a computer or mobile device, internet access, and the desire to purchase services or goods over the internet. Just about any good or service can be purchased over the internet. Books, flowers, groceries, music, and movies are only a few of the products and services that are available to individuals through e-commerce.

Th three main types of e-commerce are business to business, business to consumer, and consumer to consumer. Business to consumer consists of the sale of services and goods to the general public. Amazon.com is the perfect example of business to consumer e-commerce. The potential customer visits an electronic storefront which includes product descriptions, images, and a shopping cart. Most online stores allow customers to have shopping carts in order to allow them to view their selected products and easily prompt them to check out. Amazon.com is also considered an e-retail site due to the fact that this particular business uses the web to sell products.

Consumer to consumer is another form of e-commerce. This form of e-commerce takes place when one consumer sells directly to another. This ususally happens through online auctions where users bid on items sold by others. The product or service being sold goes to the highest bidder. Ebay.com is the most prevalent and well know website that takes part in consumer to consumer  e-commerce. However the site in this instance only serves as an intermediary. Checking products for quality is not a responsibility of most consumer to consumer sites. Still many consumer to consumer sites charge a flat fee or receive a commission off of the sale or auction of items, goods, or services.

Of the three main types of e-commerce the most prevalent is business to business. The reason for this is that there will be many business to business transactions involving sub-components or raw materials throughout a supply chain. In the end there's only one business to consumer transaction.  Businesses provide services and goods to other businesses such as research, technical support, marketing, advertising, online recruiting, financing and credit services. These services are offered online and businesses alll over the world can take advanatge of them. Business to business transactions ususally take place between a manufacturer and a wholesaler or between a wholesaler and a retailer. Accenture is a company that takes part in business to business transactions. This company provides a plethora of services for other businesses.

Sources: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_commerce
              http://searchcio.techtarget.com/definition/e-commerce
              Discovering Computers 2010 "Living in a Digital Age" pgs. 98-100

Images: Screenshots of Amazon, Ebay, and Accenture. These were taken by me personally, in order to illustrate the different examples of electronic commerce sites.

"Presentation and Web 2.0 Project

For my presentation project I chose scenario one, which was to pitch an entrepreneurial idea to a venture capital company. I brainstormed a few ideas until I came up with a plan to acquire an avocado production facility in Peru and export avocados into the U.S. I figured this would be a straightforward business opportunity to present to either some angel investors or a venture capital company. I put together a power point that I believe would be able to persuade a few investors.

My power point presentation followed a logical flow. I started with an executive summary, provided a mission statement, presented my course of action, a SWOT analysis, and various other aspects that I would've included if I was presenting an entrepreneurial idea. I also tried to include and cover as much information as possible during the presentation so that the feasibility of my venture idea would not be questioned. I feel that my presentation is visually appealing as well as to the point and thorough. I avoided clutter as much as possible and tried to avoid inconsistencies, errors, and unbelievable claims. My slides are readable and contained bullet points that I used to help elaborate my speaking portions.

Critiquing one of my peer's presentations helped me make sure that my presentation was correctly put together. I learned that power point seems to be the most effective tool for this project. I also realized that YouTube was not the only means of sharing my presentation over the web. Lastly, I learned that following the grading rubric is harder depending on the topic of the presentation.

Overall this project was a learning experience for me in many ways. This was my first time uploading a presentation video on the internet. The power point project was more time consuming than I expected. I had to make sure all my images and animations were "free".  I also had to make sure that the music I included in my presentation was authentic and paid for. This project will definitely help me in the business world. Considering the fact I chose scenario one, this project was definitely something I hope to be doing again in my future.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cf0Oshy-Ylk