Modern means of communication

1. FAX (Facsimile Telegraphy) – Facsimile telegraphy deals with the

transmission of typewritten or handwritten message , drawings ,
graphics , pictures or any matter which cannot be sent through
telegraphs , telephones or teleprinters.This machine operates by
converting the variances of light reflected from the image of the
original matter into electrical impulses which can be reconverted onto
the image from on reception . Connections can be made over very long
distances using the public telephone networks or radio links.

Fax is perhaps the speediest system presently available and

transmitting and receiving a standard letter size document takes
approximately four minutes, irrespective of the amount of matter on it.
In this system there is no scope for copying errors and so high order
skills required at high skills. Even typed matter can be transmitted
more effectively through fax than through the teleprinter since the
former completely does away with the element of checking for errors
inadvertently incorporated during transmittal of the matter.

2. ELECTRONIC MAIL (E-Mail

) – This , too is a progeny of computer technology. It facilities the transmittal

of messages through the use of computer storage and computer inter-
links , thus eliminating postal delays. The message is simply keyed into
the system. The signals, converted into digital pulses are stored in the
computer’s memory for retrieval. The message can be retrieved at the
recipient’s convenience. Thus apart from being time saving , electronic
mail is a more convenient and unobtrusive method of sending a
message as the sender can be sure of not disturbing the recipient. In
close inhouse communication, links are established either by the CPU
of computer network internet workstations. In distant communication
between offices at different locations , an extensive network of
microwave or satellite technology is used for the transmission of
electronic mail.

Usually group communication takes place in person , in the same

room but the new technology provides a facility for discussion with the
group of persons on the internet . You can conduct a meeting , hold a
group discussion or brief people scattered across the country or around
the world. You can consult a number of experts through computers
using decision support systems for their views before making a
decision or for finalizing a plan of action. In teleconferencing , the
attention is focused on the idea or concept that is being
communicated. This is an advantage of the method but sometimes this
overemphasis on the message with a corresponding neglect of the
person communicating it, may not be fully in tune with the corporate
culture , which needs dynamic medium of communication.

3. SMS is an acronym standing for Short Message Service. It is

commonly referred to as text messaging or "texting" as well. SMS is a
method by which messages can be sent to a cell phone via another cell
phone, a computer connected to the Internet, a regular land line, or a
handheld device such as a Blackberry. The original specifications for
SMS were developed in 1985, though real implementation and
popularity took nearly a decade to achieve.

SMS messages may be sent either from one point to another point, or
may be sent to all devices within a specific geographical region. The
former, known as SMS-PP, is used primarily between individuals
communicating with one another, while the latter, known as SMS-CB,
may be used to broadcast public announcements such as road or
weather conditions, region-specific advertising messages, or messages
from a cell provider regarding the new coverage area.

SMS use for personal communication is rapidly increasing in popularity.

In 2000, less than 20 billion SMS messages were sent; by 2004 that
number had grown to in excess of 500 billion messages. The largest
market for SMS is Southeast Asia, with Europe just behind. The United
States has seemed to be a slow adopter for the early years of the 21st
century, but the pace of texting appears to be increasing in the United
States as service providers make its use, particularly between
networks, easier.

With this surge in popularity and use, particularly among younger

users, new shorthands have developed to communicate more rapidly
through the medium. This shorthand mirrors in many way the writing
style of online chat, dropping vowels and superfluous letters, and
replacing words and entire sounds with representative numbers or
single letters. An example might read something like, "how r u?" to
mean, "How are you?" or, "did u c wut he askd me 2 do? 4 shme!" to
mean, "Did you see what he asked me to do? For shame!" Given the
limitations of a smaller keypad, with multiple clicks required for many
letters, such shorthand saves large amounts of time over the course of
multiple SMS messages.

In addition to person-to-person communication via SMS, a number of

television shows have begun accepting text messages for various
purposes. Shows which have a voting system, such as American Idol,
have begun integrating SMS voting, allowing viewers to easily make
their choices using only their cell phone. In Europe, the idea has been
pushed even further, with shows that allow viewers to control
characters on screen using their cell phone's SMS capabilities.

4. Voice over Internet Protocol (Voice over IP, VoIP) is any of a

family of methodologies, communication protocols, and transmission
technologies for delivery of voice communications and multimedia
sessions over Internet Protocol (IP) networks, such as the Internet.
Other terms frequently encountered and often used synonymously
with VoIP are IP telephony, Internet telephony, voice over broadband
(VoBB), broadband telephony, and broadband phone.

Internet telephony refers to communications services — voice, fax,

SMS, and/or voice-messaging applications — that are transported via
the Internet, rather than the public switched telephone network
(PSTN). The steps involved in originating a VoIP telephone call are
signaling and media channel setup, digitization of the analog voice
signal, optionally compression, packetization, and transmission as
Internet Protocol (IP) packets over a packet-switched network. On the
receiving side similar steps reproduce the original voice stream.[1]

VoIP systems employ session control protocols to control the set-up

and tear-down of calls as well as audio codecs which encode speech
allowing transmission over an IP network as digital audio via an audio
stream. The codec used is varied between different implementations of
VoIP (and often a range of codecs are used); some implementations
rely on narrowband and compressed speech, while others support high
fidelity stereo codecs.

5. A videoconference or video conference (also known as a

videoteleconference) is a set of interactive telecommunication
technologies which allow two or more locations to interact via two-way
video and audio transmissions simultaneously. It has also been called
'visual collaboration' and is a type of groupware.

Videoconferencing differs from videophone calls in that it's designed to

serve a conference rather than individuals. It is an intermediate form of
videotelephony, first deployed commercially by AT&T during the early
1970s using their Picturephone technology.

Email, also sometimes written as e-mail, is simply the shortened form

of electronic mail, a protocol for receiving, sending, and storing
electronic messages. Email has gained popularity with the spread of
the Internet. In many cases, email has become the preferred method
of communication.
Though there is some degree of uncertainty as to when email was
invented, the father of the modern version is generally regarded to be
American Ray Tomlinson. Before Tomlinson, messages could be sent
between users, but only when they were connected to the same
computer. Even once computers were networked, messages could not
be targeted to a particular individual. Tomlinson devised a way to
address email to certain users, and thus was credited for one of the
most important communication inventions in the 20th century.

Video conferencing is a powerful tool and provides a virtual meeting

environment that gives the benefit of real meeting. There are various
kinds of conferences,such as toll free conference call, held using a
video conferencing information system. Depending on the nature of
the conference it becomes important to plan the video conferencing
information system schedule. It becomes very important to check the
requirements for smooth progress of the meeting. Back when video
conferencing was a new trend, the quality and consistency of the feed
was generally less than perfect. However, videoconferencing future is
very bright.