Evaluation of my communications

This is an evaluation of my personal, social and college related uses of the other communication services. I feel that communication I vital in today’s society, especially now that you can communicate with people all over the world and they do not need to be stood in front of you. I feel that communicating using IT is very important especially because it is cheap and is easy for you to be able to do so. I feel that communicating in this manner has meant that I communicate with people when I would often not and allows me to communicate with a wide rang of people using a variety of methods, using the best one which suits my needs. My favourite method of communication, other than face-to-face is email, this is because it is free and I am able to check emails regularly as I check my emails several times a day, and when I have my computer on I am automatically alerted if I receive one and I able to reply back immediately which is a major advantage.

When do you use mobile phones?

The following is an evaluation of my personal, social and college related uses of mobile phone:
● The purposes I use my mobile phone for include communication with friends and family. This can be for a number of different reasons, for example it could be that I just want to talk to somebody, or I could be calling for a specific purpose e.g. asking about homework.
● I use my mobile phone in a number of different place, I use it wherever I need to or have the desire to communicate. This is an advantage of having a mobile phone, because as the name suggests, I am able to communicate anywhere, providing that there is a signal, I don’t have to be within my house to use the phone.
● The major benefits for me in using my mobile phone are that it is portable and can be used anywhere. A major advantage is that I am still able to use the phone even if my parents are on the home phone for ages as I can use my mobile. Another benefit, it that I can text people, this is useful I don’t really want to talk to the person, or are unable to contact them. In addition, all my contacts are stored in the phone book on my phone, this means that I don’t have to enter numbers every time I wish to text or make a phone call.
● The problems or disadvantages I have in using my mobile phone are that there is not always a signal, which can be a nuisance and that it is often more expensive to use a mobile than a landline and that if you are on pay-as-you-go, if you run out of credit you are unable to use your phone for communicating until you ‘top-up’.
● My mobile phone fulfils its intended purpose because it allows me to communicate anywhere, and I am able to both send text and voice messages using it. It stores all of my contacts and has a number of additional features which can be used at my disposal such as camera, games, radio, music player etc.

Discussion Digital Communication versus Voice Conversation

Communicating with SMS in text language has a social downside compared with having a proper voice conversation because the meaning is not always clear, as there is no set language to use; people use their own abbreviations which are not always understood by all. If you are intending to have a long conversation with somebody, it can sometimes be quicker to phone them instead of firing messages backwards and forwards.

There are also some social downsides to firing off a quick email rather than having a short conversation because you are often unable to tell the mood of the person you are communicating with, this is because you are unable to see their body language, which can give some important clues.

The Ambulance Service

"UK ambulance services have experienced a revolution in working styles as a result of technology. ICT has been used extensively in command and control centres to make the service more efficient and responsive. New secure digital communications systems have replaced crackly broadcast systems. Satellite tracking of resources (such as ambulances, helicopters, paramedic cars and bikes) and geographical information systems allow the optimal resource to be deployed at all times by centre staff. Technology is used to analyse patterns of usage to roster (call in) the exact number of staff required. It uses geographical analysis to decide where it is best to position ambulances and other resources so that they can be deployed to nearby locations very quickly. Ambulances are placed at points that are closed in travel time to places of peak demand and are tracked at all times to show where they are."

"The Staffordshire ambulance service says of the impact of new technology: “The adopting of this modern approach has resulted in remarkable results in the Trust performance in recorded response times. This has given the Trust the lead position in national ambulance table’s fir the last seven years. It has also seen dramatic improvements in the cardiac survival figures.”
The introduction of this system in London in the 1990s, however, was extremely problematic, not least because of the working practices that were brought about by the introduction of these measures."

The London Ambulance Service:
I have carried out some research on the London Ambulance Service’s Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) system which was implemented on 26October 1992 and have found that neither the CAD system itself, nor its users, were ready for full implementation. This was because the CAD software was not complete, not properly tuned, and not fully tested. The resilience of the hardware under a full load had not been tested. The fall back option to the second file server had certainly not been tested. There were outstanding problems with data transmission to and from the mobile data terminals. There was some scepticism over the accuracy record of the Automatic Vehicle Location System. In addition, staff, both within Central Ambulance Control and ambulance crews, had no confidence in the system and were not all fully trained. Also there were a number of physical changes to the layout of the control room on 26 which meant that Central Ambulance Control staff were working in unfamiliar positions, without paper backup, and were less able to work with colleagues with whom they had jointly solved problems before.

A number of ambulance workers have objected to being sited in their “resources” in the most efficient place rather than being sited in the ambulance station because they would rather use the technology in an ambulance station rather than in their ‘resources’. There are a number of drawback with the introduction of these new systems, but can be summarised: some staff at central control had no confidence with the system and were not all fully trained, the staff found themselves working in unfamiliar positions, and without paper backup, they found it harder to work with other colleagues they had previously worked with before. There have been a number of benefits to these new systems, for example response times have increased, which has made the system more efficient and reliable, which has led to dramatic improvements in the cardiac survival figures. In all the introductions of these new systems have improved the service provided and has saved time and a number of lives. I feel that whenever you introduce a new ICT system there are always teething problems which need to be addressed, and a lesson which could have been learned here is that on the first day of introducing a new system you need to have a back-up plan to refer to if necessary.

Tool Man

"John is a sales representative selling tools to garden centres and DIY stores. He travels over 1000 miles a week to see new and existing clients. For the past 20 years he has carried around a large diary, an address book, a large road atlas and numerous A-Zs as well as numerous small coins for phones. He prides himself on his punctuality, but even he is occasionally late as he struggles to find a new client or is delayed by traffic. He always takes along a calculator, and a bulky sales catalogue with the latest price lists and order forms. He is usually on the road four days a week, six hours a day and spends every Friday in the office ensuring all his administration and sales are handled properly. He has always said he quite likes the time spend in his car between appointments, as it is his time when he can listen to CDs undisturbed."

John could use a number of ICT technologies to change and hopefully improve his working style, these include: PDA, GPS, Laptop, software, Mobile phone, and the internet.

A PDA is a Personal Digital Assistant; this would be an extremely useful device for him because it could be used instead of his large diary and an address book. All the information contained within the books can be entered into this device which is relatively small and light compared with his books. In addition, a PDA allows the user to search for an address or an appointment in his diary, which means that this is more efficient than looking through a diary or address book looking for the correct details.

A GPS is a Global Positing System; this piece of equipment would be useful to John because this would replace his road atlas and his numerous A-Zs. This piece of equipment uses satellites and software to guide user to their destination. By using a GPS John will saving time searching for his destinations, in his A-Zs, as he will only be required to enter the postcode of his destination and then he will be guided there. As John prides himself on his punctuality, a GPS will give him accurate times for when he is going to arrive at his destination, this will help him to ensure that he arrives on time. May GPS systems today have IQ routes, which mean that they sent the user of different routes depending on what day and time they are travelling. In addition, you are able to avoid routes if you hear that one is blocked, and some GPS systems automatically change routes if it knows that there is a delay on yours. By using this piece of equipment John is likely to save himself a lot of time, which would be important to a busy many such as him.

A laptop again would be a useful piece of equipment for John as he would be able to store a wide and a large quantity of data onboard. He would be able to upload his product catalogues on the laptop, and will then be able to show clients the products onscreen. In order to ensure that his laptop in full working order, he will have to have a number of software applications already installed, this will allow him to carry out a range of tasks such as work processing. The internet would allow John to access a wide variety of infomation, and will also allow him to send emails to his clients.

John having access to a mobile phone would mean that he would not need to take coins with him so that he could use a payphone; he would be able to make a phone call whenever it was necessary and wherever he was, providing that there is a signal.

However, there are a number of possible implications for him in employing a lot of ICT, these include: loss of data, getting lost, no signal, losses a piece of equipment etc. To overcome these problems, I recomend that John has a back-up of all his data and may wish to have a hard copy of his data and maps in the boot of his car, because he will then be able to use them if there is a problem with any of his equipment.