E-commerce 2014

business. technology. society.

tenth edition

Kenneth C. Laudon
Carol Guercio Traver

Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall

Chapter 3
E-commerce Infrastructure: The Internet,
Web, and Mobile Platform

Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall

The Internet: Technology Background
 Internet
 Interconnected network of thousands of
networks and millions of computers
 Links businesses, educational institutions,
government agencies, and individuals
 World Wide Web (Web)
 One of the Internet’s most popular services
 Provides access to billions, possibly trillions, of
Web pages

Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall Slide 3-3
 The Internet:
Key Technology Concepts
 Internet defined as network that:
 Uses IP addressing
 Supports TCP/IP
 Provides services to users, in manner similar to
telephone system
 Three important concepts:
 Client/server computing

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 Internet (IP) Addresses
 IPv4
 32-bitnumber
 Four sets of numbers marked off by periods:
201.61.186.227
 Class C address: Network identified by first three
sets, computer identified by last set
 IPv6
 128-bit addresses, able to handle up to 1
quadrillion addresses (IPv4 can handle only 4
billion)
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 Domain Names, DNS, and URLs
 Domain name
 IP address expressed in natural language
 Domain name system (DNS)
 Allows numeric IP addresses to be expressed in natural
language
 Uniform resource locator (URL)
 Address used by Web browser to identify location of
content on the Web
 For example: http://www.azimuth-interactive.com/flash_test

Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall Slide 3-6
 Client/Server Computing
 Powerful personal computers (clients)
connected in network with one or more
servers
 Servers perform common functions for
the clients
 Storing files
 Software applications
 Access to printers, and so on

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 The New Client:
The Mobile Platform
 In a few years, primary Internet access
will be through:
 Tablets
 Supplementing PCs for mobile situations

 Smartphones
 Disruptive technology:
 Shift in processors, operating systems

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 Cloud Computing
 Firms and individuals obtain computing
power and software over Internet
 Example: Google Apps
 Fastest growing form of computing
 Radically reduces costs of:
 Building and operating Web sites
 Infrastructure, IT support
 Hardware, software

Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall Slide 3-9
 Other Internet Protocols and
Utility Programs
 Internet protocols
 HTTP
 E-mail:SMTP, POP3, IMAP
 FTP, Telnet, SSL/TLS

 Utility programs
 Ping
 Tracert

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 Internet Service Providers (ISPs)
 Provide lowest level of service to
individuals, small businesses, some
institutions
 Types of service
 Narrowband (dial-up)
 Broadband
 Digital Subscriber Line (DSL)
 Cable modem
 T1 and T3
 Satellite

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 Intranets
 Intranet
 TCP/IP network located within a single
organization for communications and
processing
 Used by private and government organizations
for internal networks
 All Internet applications can be used in private
intranets

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 Hypertext
 Text formatted with embedded links
 Links connect documents to one another, and to other
objects such as sound, video, or animation files
 Uses Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP)
and URLs to locate resources on the
Web
 Example URL:
http://megacorp.com/content/features/082602.html

Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall Slide 3-13
 Markup Languages
 Hypertext Markup Language (HTML)
 Fixed set of pre-defined markup “tags” used to
format text
 Controls look and feel of Web pages
 HTML5 the newest version

 eXtensible Markup Language (XML)

 Designed to describe data and information
 Tags used are defined by user

Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall Slide 3-14
 Web Servers and Web Clients
 Web server software
 Enables a computer to deliver Web pages to clients on a network
that request this service by sending an HTTP request
 Apache, Microsoft IIS
 Basic capabilities: Security services, FTP, search engine, data
capture
 Web server
 May refer to either Web server software or physical server
 Specialized servers: Database servers, ad servers, and so on
 Web client
 Any computing device attached to the Internet that is capable of
making HTTP requests and displaying HTML pages

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 Web Browsers
 Primary purpose to display Web pages
 Internet Explorer / Edge
 Mozilla Firefox
 Google Chrome
 Apple’s Safari

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 The Internet and Web: Features
 Features on which the foundations of
e-commerce are built:
 E-mail
 Instant messaging
 Search engines
 Online forums and chat
 Streaming media
 Cookies

Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall Slide 3-17
 E-mail
 Most used application of the Internet
 Uses series of protocols for transferring
messages with text and attachments from
one Internet user to another
Instant Messaging
 Displays words typed on a computer almost
instantly, and recipients can respond
immediately in the same way

Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall Slide 3-18
 Search Engines
 Identify Web pages that match queries based
on one or more techniques
 Keyword indexes, page ranking

 Also serve as:

 Shopping tools
 Advertising vehicles (search
engine marketing)
 Tool within e-commerce sites

 Outside of e-mail, most commonly used

Internet activity

Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall Slide 3-19
 How Google Works

Figure 3.20, Page 161

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 Online Forums and Chat
 Online forum
 Also known as a message board, bulletin board,
discussion board, discussion group, board, or forum
 Web application that enables Internet users to
communicate with one another, although not in real
time
 Members visit online forum to check for new posts

 Online chat
 Similar to IM, but for multiple users
 Typically, users log into chat room

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 Cookies
 Small text files deposited by Web site
on user’s computer to store
information about user, accessed when
user next visits Web site
 Can help personalize Web site
experience
 Can pose privacy threat

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 Web 2.0 Features and Services
 Online Social Networks
 Services that support communication among
networks of friends, peers
 Blogs
 Personal Web page of chronological entries
 Really Simple Syndication (RSS)
 Program that allows users to have digital
content automatically sent to their computers
over the Internet

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 Web 2.0 Features and Services
 Podcasting
 Audio presentation stored as an audio file and
available for download from Web
 Wikis
 Allows user to easily add and edit content on
Web page
 Music and video services
 Online video viewing
 Digital video on demand

Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall Slide 3-24
 Web 2.0 Features and Services
 Internet telephony (VoIP)
 Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) uses
Internet to transmit voice communication
 Video conferencing, video chatting, and
telepresence
 Online software and Web services
 Web apps, widgets, and gadgets

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 Intelligent Personal Assistants
 Software that interacts
with the user
through voice commands
 Features
 Natural language; conversational interface
 Situational awareness
 Interpret voice commands to interact with
various Web services
 Examples: Siri, Google Now

Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall Slide 3-26
 Mobile Apps
 Use of mobile apps has exploded
 More than 60% of online shoppers are mobile shoppers
as well
 Increased use/purchasing from tablets
 Platforms
 iPhone/iPad (iOS), Android, Blackberry

 App marketplaces
 Google Play, Apple’s App Store, RIM’s App World,
Windows Phone Marketplace

Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall Slide 3-27
 Insight on Technology: Class Discussion

Apps for Everything: The App Ecosystem

 What are apps and why are they so popular?
 Do you use any apps regularly? Which ones,
and what are their functions?
 What are the benefits of apps? The
disadvantages?
 Are there any benefits/disadvantages to the
proprietary nature of the Apple platform?

Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall Slide 3-28
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