Empowerment Technologies

ICT and It’s Current State

What is ICT?

- Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is an umbrella term referring to

- Hardware, ICT specifically encompasses radio, television, communication devices (smart and
non-smart phones), desktops computers, laptops and network hardware and technologies.

- Software, applications and platforms that allows information to be accessed, stored, transmitted
and manipulated.

- ICT is used across by many industries and disciplines and in some, it is a crucial element for
them.

- ICT is now a part of many people’s lives, for better or for worst. Ultimately, this technology
depends on your behavior as an end user, thus learning how to use ICT properly and responsibly
is a must.

Current State of ICT

- ICT is following certain trends as it is developing in this time and age. This trend dictates the idea
and design of how ICT delivers information to people. The following are emerging technologies,
principles or concepts in ICT.

1. Convergent Technologies - This is when multiple different devices combine into a single
gadget because of technological advancement. One example of this is smartphone, where it
is capable of doing the functions of a television, radio, computer, telephone, camera and GPS
as a single device.
2. Social Media – These are software, applications or platforms that allow users to
communicate in an online social communities or network. Social media allows people to
communicate faster through a larger number of people.
3. Mobile Technologies - This is a term for devices that are easily carried and allows fast means
of communication. These devices from the past were originally big and bulk, but due to the
technological advancement, they become smaller and more compact.

World Wide Web

World Wide Web (WWW) vs Internet

- People colloquially refer the world wide web (‘web’ for short) as the internet or vice versa

interchangeably, but there are key differences between the two.

the web refers to the system that enables people to access information over the internet.

- The internet is the hardware aspect because it relates to computer networks, connections and
infrastructures.
- The web on the other hand, refers to the software aspect as it relates to the Protocols or HTTP
(HyperText Transfer Protocol).
- HTTP are the system or procedures that enables the transfer of information in the internet web
services, applications, and platforms.

Web Versions

- The web has three distinctive versions namely: Web 1.0, Web 2.0 and Web 3.0. Some people
think that the indicated web versions are updates across a particular point of history. The
versions of the web are categorized based on functionality and features that it represents.
 Software Application Platforms

Different Types of Online Platforms

Communication Services

•These are outsourced enterprise communications solutions that can be leased from a single vendor or
provider.

Advertising Platforms

• It allows users to create and manage advertising campaigns, generate reports, and retrieve information
about the ads, campaigns, and organizations associated with an account.

Payment System

• It is any system used to settle financial transactions through the transfer of monetary value.
Different Social Applications and Platforms

Social Media

• It is a form of electronic communication (as Websites for social networking and microblogging) through
which users create online communities to share information, ideas, personal messages, and other
content (as videos).

TYPES OF SOCIAL MEDIA

1. Social Networks - Is a platform for communicating with one another. It allows you to connect
with people with the same interests and backgrounds. Once a user create his/her account
he/she can setup profile, add people, create groups and share content.
Example: Facebook and Google+

2. Bookmarking Sites – These are sites that allow you to store and manage links to various websites
and resources. Most of these sites allow you to create a tag that allow you and others to easily
search and share them.
Example: StumbleUpon and Pinterest

3. Social News - A social news website is a website that features user-posted stories. Such stories
are ranked based on popularity, as voted on by other users of the site or by website
administrators.
Example: reddit and Digg

4. Media Sharing - using websites where users post and share videos, audio files and/or photos as
well as tag them to enable searchability.
Example: YouTube, Flickr, Picasa, Instagram and Google Video

5. Microblogging - Microblogging is a combination of instant messaging and content production.

6. Blogs and Forum - Blogs are full of posts and comments, created by authors, organized into
categories. Forums are full of topics and comments created by members, organized into different
sub-forums.
Example: Blogger, Webpress and Tumblr

DIFFEERENT TYPES OF PLATFORMS

PLATFORM FOR ADVERTISING

Facebook

PLATFORM FOR HASHTAGGING

PLATFORM FOR GROUPING

LinkedIn

PLATFORM FOR TEACHING

Youtube

PLATFORM FOR ANALYZING BUSINESS

Pinterest

NETIQUETTES

Netiquette, or network etiquette, is concerned with the proper manner of communication in the online
environment.

Rule 1: Remember the Human

Rule 2: Adhere to the same standards or behavior online that you follow in real life.

Rule 3: Know where you are in cyberspace.

Rule 4: Respect other people’s time and bandwidth.

Rule 5: Make yourself look good online.

Rule 6: Share expert knowledge.

Rule 7: Help keep flame wars under control.

Rule 8: Respect other people’s privacy.

Rule 9: Don’t abuse your power.

Rule 10: Be forgiving of other people’s mistakes.

Internet Threats

1. MALWARE – Stands for malicious software.

a. Virus – A malicious program designed to replicate itself and transfer from one computer to
another either through the Internet and local networks or data storage like flash drives and
CDs.
 b. Worm – A malicious program that transfers from one computer to another by any type of
means. Often, it uses a computer network to spread itself.

For example: the ILOVEYOU worm (Love Bug Worm) created by a Filipino.

c. Trojan – A malicious program that is disguised as a useful program but once downloaded or
installed, leaves your PC unprotected and allows hackers to get your information.

Example: Rogue Security Software – tricks the user into posing that it is a security
software.

d. Spyware- A program that runs in the background without you knowing it (thus called “spy”).
It has the ability to monitor what you are currently doing and typing through keylogging.

Example: Keyloggers – used to record the keystroke done by the users.

e. Adware – A program designed to send you advertisements, mostly as pop ups.

2. SPAM – Unwanted email mostly from bots or advertisers. It can be used to send malware.
3. PHISHING – Its goal is to acquire sensitive personal information like passwords and credit card
details. This is done by sending you an email that will direct the user to visit a website and be
asked to update his/her username, password, credit card, or personal information.
Example: Pharming – a more complicated way of phishing where it exploits the DNS (Domain
Name Service) system.

Protecting your Reputation Online

In the past, doing something embarrassing was not much of a big deal. Once you post over the Internet,
search engines keep them in their archives for search results. This makes anything you post last forever
even if you delete it from your page.

Think before you click

1. Once you post something on the web, you have no control of who sees your posts.

2. Your friends depend on you to protect their reputation online.

3. Set your post to “private”.

4. Avoid using names.

5. If you feel that a post can affect you or other’s reputation, ask the one who posted it to pull it
down or report it as inappropriate.

ONLINE NAVIGATION

• The manner of collectively searching for and saving requested information through the
computer from databanks that are online is known as Online Navigation.
Years ago, the traditional way of obtaining certain information is through books, which is very
different from the online search on the internet. Online navigation is an attempt to be more precise in
providing information based on a certain word.

• Text Online navigation becomes a great match to the prevailing use and popularity of the
smartphone age. Search engines also provide a system of giving the best and most appropriate
results. Mobile phone application has been added to smartphones for quick, handy research
and quicker school assignments.

• Browser is a software use to access the internet.

• Search engines are website that helps people find web pages from other website. The search
results are generally presented in a line of results often referred to as search engine results
pages.

Examples of Search Engines are

• Handling more than 3.5 billion searches per day, it has a 92% share of the global search engine
market. It is also the most-visited website in the world. 2021

• Google holds first place in search with a stunning difference of 88.28% from second place Bing.
2022

STEPS IN ONLINE NAVIGATION

1. In your desktop, laptop or smartphones, open the browser and search Google and type the
word, phrase or thought you want to search.

2. On the right part of the window, click setting and the google search settings pop-up list will
appear.
3. Click Advanced search and the Advanced Search window will appear.

Then click
Advanced
Search

4. Type the keywords that you would like to search and click the Advanced Search button. You
can search through all the words that you’ve typed, or you can narrow it down to specific
words.
Research Skills

In order to achieve or access what you are looking for, you need to improve yourself. As the old saying
goes, “Practice Makes Perfect”. Good research is a product of multiple and continuous searches, here are
some skills you can improve or adapt to:

1. Critical Thinking – As you search through the web, you must think very carefully about the
information that you have gathered. Critical thinking involves the ability to reflect on the
information presented to you.
2. Data Organizing – A good researcher can organize his/her collected data. As you collect those
data, be sure to track where specific information is gathered.
3. Research Presenting – Part of your research is the actual writing, be creative and reflective in
writing your search, explain every detail and step into achieving your objective.

Remember that not all searches are good ones, some are considered as satirical or untrue. Here are some
tips in identifying good searches from satirical searches.

1. If the contents of the source are too impossible to happen, or too good to be true, then there
must be something wrong.
2. If the site started as a false site for public figures such as TV personalities or political figures, then
uploaded stories from different sources, it is a satirical one.
3. If the site is unfamiliar and continuously popping ads, then it is satirical.

Example of Satirical or Fake News

a. The 2 years in K-12 Curriculum for Senior High School has been removed.

b. President BBM resigned as the leader of the Philippine nation.

c. You can win 1 million pesos just by answering a given survey form.

d. A certain actress/actor is alleged as pregnant being in another country for a long time.

To ensure that information you are reading in the internet is true and reliable, here are some steps that
you can do to verify your information:

• Always check the source of the news and information. Ensure that the information came from a
reputable source like high rating websites and pages.

• Compare information to other pages. One page is not enough to say that your information is
legit and true. Try to find other sources and compare your finds to them. The more sources with
the same content has a possibility the news is true.

• Investigate further. Aside from verifying from several sources, you can develop a critical mindset
and perform more investigation regarding the information that you need. This will help you
spotted fake news and real news.
 Copyright Infringement

• If you create something- an idea, an invention, a form of literary work, or a research, you have
the right as to show it should be used by others. This is called Intellectual property.

• As a responsible user of the internet, you have to consider that not everything out there is free
for you to use.

Tips to avoid copyright infringement

• Understand. This means that you can express something using your own words, but you should
give credit to the source.

• Be responsible. Even if a material does not say that it is copyrighted, be responsible enough to
know if something has a copyright.

• Be creative. Ask yourself whether what you are making is something that came from you, or
something made from somebody else’s creativity.

• Know the law. An intellectual property may be used without a consent as long as it is used in
commentaries, criticisms, search engines, parodies, news reports, research, library archiving,
teaching, and education.

WORD PROCESSING SKILLS

A mail merge document is designed to be sent to many people. The document consists of two
components:

• Master Document / Master File

• Source file containing the data (Spreadsheet or Database)/ Data Source File

• Data from the source file (names and addresses) is combined with the Master document so that
key fields do not need to be typed one by one.

• This will save time and reduce the chance of errors in the document.
Simple Steps in Performing Mail Merge in Creating Certificate

1. Create Master File for the certificate template.