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(BQ) Part 1 book Information systems today Managing in the digital world has contents Managing in the digital world, gaining competitive advantage through information systems, managing the information systems infrastructure and services, enabling commerce using the internet, enhancing collaboration using web 2.0.
Could you increase your knowledge— and raise your grade—if you… …used an online tutorial that assisted you with Access and Excel skills mapped to this book? …learned to use Microsoft’s SharePoint, the number organizational tool for file sharing and collaboration? …had flash cards and student PowerPoints to prepare for lectures? Visit , a valuable tool for your student success and your business career www.myMISlab.com Information Systems Today Managing in the Digital World This page intentionally left blank Information Systems Today FIFTH EDITION Managing in the Digital World Joe Valacich Washington State University Christoph Schneider City University of Hong Kong Prentice Hall Boston Columbus Indianapolis New York San Francisco Upper Saddle River Amsterdam Cape Town Dubai London Madrid Milan Munich Paris Montreal Toronto Delhi Mexico City Sa˜o Paulo Sydney Hong Kong Seoul Singapore Taipei Tokyo Editorial Director: Sally Yagan Editor in Chief: Eric Svendsen Executive Editor: Bob Horan Editorial Project Manager: Kelly Loftus Director of Marketing: Patrice Lumumba Jones Senior Marketing Manager: Anne Fahlgren Marketing Assistant: Melinda Jensen Senior Managing Editor: Judy Leale Production Project Manager: Kelly Warsak Senior Operations Supervisor: Arnold Vila Operations Specialist: Cathleen Petersen Creative Director: Christy Mahon Senior Art Director/Design Supervisor: Janet Slowik Interior and Cover Designer: Michael Fruhbeis Cover Art: Michael Fruhbeis Manager, Rights and Permissions: Hessa Albader Media Project Manager: Lisa Rinaldi Media Editor: Denise Vaughn Full-Service Project Management: Tiffany Timmerman/S4Carlisle Publishing Services Composition: S4Carlisle Publishing Services Printer/Binder: R.R Donnelley/Roanoke Cover Printer: Lehigh-Phoenix Color/Hagerstown Text Font: 9/11 Times Credits and acknowledgments borrowed from other sources and reproduced, with permission, in this textbook appear on appropriate page within text Microsoft® and Windows® are registered trademarks of the Microsoft Corporation in the U.S.A and other countries Screen shots and icons reprinted with permission from the Microsoft Corporation This book is not sponsored or endorsed by or affiliated with the Microsoft Corporation Copyright © 2012, 2010, 2008, 2006, 2003 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Prentice Hall, One Lake Street, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 All rights reserved Manufactured in the United States of America This publication is protected by Copyright, and permission should be obtained from the publisher prior to any prohibited reproduction, storage in a retrieval system, or transmission in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or likewise To obtain permission(s) to use material from this work, please submit a written request to Pearson Education, Inc., Permissions Department, One Lake Street, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 Many of the designations by manufacturers and seller to distinguish their products are claimed as trademarks Where those designations appear in this book, and the publisher was aware of a trademark claim, the designations have been printed in initial caps or all caps Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Valacich, Joseph S Information systems today: managing in the digital world/Joe Valacich, Christoph Schneider.—5th ed p cm Includes bibliographical references and indexes ISBN-13: 978-0-13-706699-5 ISBN-10: 0-13-706699-6 Information technology Information storage and retrieval systems—Business I Schneider, Christoph II Title T58.5.J47 2012 658.4’038011—dc22 2010043082 10 ISBN 10: 0-13-706699-6 ISBN 13: 978-0-13-706699-5 Dedication To Jackie, Jordan, and James for your sacrifices, love, and support —Joe To Birgit for your love and support —Christoph This page intentionally left blank About the Authors Joe Valacich is the George and Carolyn Hubman Distinguished Professor of MIS and was the inaugural Marian E Smith Presidential Endowed Chair at Washington State University He has had visiting faculty appointments at the University of Arizona, City University of Hong Kong, Buskerud College (Norway), and the Helsinki School of Economics and Business He currently teaches in summer programs for the Norwegian University of Life Sciences and Riga Technical University (Latvia) He received the PhD degree from the University of Arizona (MIS) and the MBA and BS (computer science) degrees from the University of Montana Prior to his academic career, Dr Valacich worked in the software industry in Seattle in both large and startup organizations Dr Valacich has served on various national task forces designing model curricula for the information systems discipline, including IS ’97, IS 2002, and IS 2010: The Model Curriculum and Guidelines for Undergraduate Degree Programs in Information Systems, where he was cochairperson He also served on task force that designed MSIS 2000 and 2006: The Master of Science in Information Systems Model Curriculum He served on the executive committee, funded by the National Science Foundation, to define the IS Program Accreditation Standards and served on the board of directors for CSAB (formally, the Computing Sciences Accreditation Board) representing the Association for Information Systems (AIS) He was the general conference cochair for the 2003 International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS) in Seattle, and was the vice chair of ICIS 1999 in Charlotte, North Carolina He is the general conference cochair for the 2012 Americas Conference on Information Systems (AMCIS) in Seattle Dr Valacich has conducted numerous corporate training and executive development programs for organizations, including AT&T, Boeing, Dow Chemical, EDS, Exxon, FedEx, General Motors, Microsoft, and Xerox He is currently a senior editor at MIS Quarterly and is on the editorial boards at Decision Sciences and Small Group Research He was previously an associate editor (two terms) at Information Systems Research His primary research interests include human–computer interaction, technology-mediated collaboration, mobile and emerging technologies, e-business, and distance education He has published more than 80 scholarly articles in numerous prestigious journals, including MIS Quarterly, Information Systems Research, Management Science, Academy of Management Journal, Journal of MIS, Decision Sciences, Journal of the AIS, Communications of the ACM, Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, and Journal of Applied Psychology He is a coauthor of the best-selling textbooks Modern Systems Analysis and Design (6th ed.), Essentials of Systems Analysis and Design (4th ed.), Object-Oriented Systems Analysis and Design (2nd ed.), and Information Systems Project Management (1st ed.); all are published by Prentice Hall Dr Valacich was awarded the 2009 Outstanding Alumnus Award by the School of Business Administration, University of Montana Also, in 2009, MIS Quarterly selected his 2008 paper “Media, Tasks, and Communication Processes: A Theory of Media Synchronicity” as its Paper of the Year, and he was ranked as one of 25 most prolific scholars in the history of MIS Quarterly over the 32-year life of the journal (1977–2008) Also in 2009, he was named a Fellow of the Association for Information Systems He has won the Outstanding Researcher Award in 2006 and again in 2008 by the College of Business, Washington State University Christoph Schneider is an assistant professor in the Department of Information Systems at City University of Hong Kong and previously held a visiting faculty appointment at Boise State University He earned a Swiss Higher Diploma in hotel management at the University Centre César Ritz in Brig, Switzerland, and a BA in hotel and restaurant administration at Washington State University Following extensive experience in the international hospitality industry, he studied information systems at the Martin Luther University in Halle, Germany, before joining the vii viii ABOUT THE AUTHORS information systems department at Washington State University to earn his PhD degree His teaching interests include the management of information systems, business intelligence, and enterprise-wide information systems Dr Schneider is an active researcher His primary research interests include human–computer interaction, electronic commerce, and computer-mediated collaboration His research has appeared in peer-reviewed journals, such as Information Systems Research, Management Information Systems Quarterly, Management Science, and IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication; further, he has presented his research at various national and international conferences, such as the International Conference on Information Systems, the European Conference on Information Systems, and the Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences He is a member of the International Advisory Committee of the International Conference on Information Systems Development CHAPTER • ENHANCING COLLABORATION USING WEB 2.0 219 FIGURE 5.20 RSS feeds can be displayed by most Web browsers Source: Courtesy Washington State University Syndication Real Simple Syndication (RSS) is a family of syndication feeds used to publish the most current blogs, podcasts, videos, and news stories RSS feeds are offered by organizations so that the users can view the most current information, and users can subscribe to RSS feeds from different sources Rather than users actively having to check multiple sources for the latest news, RSS readers automatically check the feeds for updated content RSS feeds typically contain a synopsis of a document or the full text For example, CNN.com publishes RSS feeds for each of its areas, such as world news, sports news, and entertainment news, and NBC uses RSS feeds to allow viewers to download the most current version of shows such as Meet the Press and the Nightly News RSS feeds can be read by most Web browsers (see Figure 5.20) and even e-mail clients such as Microsoft’s Outlook, allowing users to browse different feeds as they would browse different bookmarks Similarly, iGoogle, Google’s personalized home page, allows users to add multiple RSS feeds to a single page Finally, there are several stand-alone applications that can aggregate RSS feeds such as NewsBreak for Windows Mobile users, Liferea for Linux users, and Attensa for Mac users Web Services, Widgets, and Mashups Web Services For companies operating in the digital world, online collaboration with suppliers, business partners, and customers is crucial to being successful To enable seamless collaboration, organizations need to allow outsiders to connect to their data, typically using the Internet However, the Internet was originally designed to enable human-to-computer interaction, with Web pages being a collection of text that hyperlinked to other Web pages A computer could not use data from other computers without explicit knowledge of the physical location and the security configuration of the remote computer network Today, Web services are one of the critical components of sharing data Web services allow data to be accessed without intimate knowledge of other organizations’ systems, enabling machine-to-machine interaction over the Internet The central idea behind Web services is that any device can use any network to access any service (see Figure 5.21) A Web service can offer several benefits for organizations, including the following: Utilizing the existing Internet infrastructure (i.e., no new technologies are needed) Accessing remote or local data without having to know the complexities of this access Creating unique and dynamic applications quickly and easily Many organizations have recognized the power and benefits from offering free Web services to the public, with an increasing number of organizations offering free access to parts of their databases Why are companies doing this? By providing access to useful Web services, organizations build and strengthen customer relationships, providing a base for revenue-generating 220 CHAPTER • ENHANCING COLLABORATION USING WEB 2.0 FIGURE 5.21 4477 4743 4359 1700 Web services allow any device to use any network to access any service Any Devices Web Services Any Network Any Service services For example, Facebook.com has been using this idea to gain market share in the competitive social networking market space Likewise, Google is offering a host of Web services to the public, including the following: ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ Android A Web service used for building mobile phone applications Search A Web service allowing users to create customized search features in Google Calendar A Web service for managing personal calendars Maps A Web service used to integrate Google’s mapping system into Web sites OpenSocial A Web service designed to allow users to build applications that work with multiple social communities, such as Friendster and LinkedIn Widgets Widgets provide a clear example of how Web 2.0 technology has changed the look and feel of Web pages Specifically, widgets are small interactive tools used for a single purpose such as taking notes, viewing pictures, or simply displaying a clock Widgets can either be placed on a desktop or be integrated into a Web page (see Figure 5.22) Apple pioneered the concept of FIGURE 5.22 Robnroll\Shutterstock Users can choose among a variety of widgets performing different tasks CHAPTER • ENHANCING COLLABORATION USING WEB 2.0 221 widgets in its early version of the Mac operating system, and Microsoft followed by developing its active desktop environment Widgets have now moved to the Web platform, where they can access data from Web sites to more complicated things, such as translate languages, provide weather forecasts, display stock prices, and stream music Often, widgets use Web services to pull their information from a remote source, such as Weather.com for weather information or Marketwatch.com for stock market information Widgets currently have no standard format For example, a Google-developed widget can run only on a Google Web page or a Google desktop widget engine; a Yahoo!-developed widget can run only on Yahoo!’s platforms The World Wide Web Consortium is currently working toward a standard so that all widgets will run on any platform or Web page Together, Web services and widgets enable the creation of mashups The idea of mashups came from popular music where many songs are produced by mixing two or more existing songs together; in Web 2.0 terminology, a mashup is a new application (or Web site) that integrates one or more Web services One Web service frequently used to display geospatial information in mashups is Google Maps For instance, Craigslist developed a dynamic map of all available apartments in the United States (www.housingmaps.com) Similarly, during the 2007 wildfires in southern California, KPBS, San Diego’s local public television station, created a mashup displaying the locations of the fires, evacuation zones, and emergency shelters such that residents and friends and family members could easily get the latest information on the situation Likewise, users and companies can create mashups using Microsoft’s Bing maps The mashup “what’s nearby” aggregates content from various sources on the Web so as to display information, reviews, or driving directions about businesses, restaurants, or medical facilities near a given location (see Figure 5.23) For a list of useful mashups, visit www programmableweb.com There are several large organizations that see value in end users creating unique applications using others’ data Yahoo! and Microsoft have specialized Web editors that allow users to create mashups from several data sources Yahoo! was one of the first to offer this service (called “Yahoo! Pipes”), providing a graphical user interface that can aggregate RSS feeds, Web services, or Web pages The software works by connecting “pipes” of information together to create a single Web page that fits the user’s needs The goal of this project is to allow a typical nonprogrammer Web user to create unique Web sites from existing Web content FIGURE 5.23 The mashup “what’s nearby” aggregates content from various sources on the Web so as to display information, reviews, or driving directions about businesses, restaurants, or medical facilities near a given location Source: Bing.com 222 CHAPTER • ENHANCING COLLABORATION USING WEB 2.0 Future Web Capabilities Web technologies and collaboration are ever-evolving topics, and many developments have yet to be fully realized This section briefly forecasts future capabilities of the Web, in particular, focusing on efforts to create the semantic Web and characteristics of Web 3.0 Semantic Web Since the Web opened up for public use, the number of Web pages and sites has grown exponentially Although this increase in Web pages should mean that we have ever more information at our fingertips, it also means that the information is increasingly harder to find What if the information on the Web was organized in a way that users could more easily find information or related media? At present, search engines cannot help to solve this formidable task, as Web pages can be understood by people but not by computers For example, when you now go to Google.com and search for “what eats penguins,” it returns Web sites that may have this information, but it is more likely that the sites just have the words or key terms “what” and “eats” and “penguins.” For Larry Page, cofounder of Google, the perfect search engine would return only one result, namely, the one page that provides the best answer to the user’s query Currently, however, search engines are not sophisticated enough to be able to find, understand, and integrate information presented on Web pages The semantic Web, originally envisioned by one of the founders of the Internet, Tim Berners-Lee, is a set of design principles that will allow computers to be able to better index Web sites, topics, and subjects When Web pages are designed using semantic principles, computers will be able to read the pages, and search engines will be able to give richer and more accurate answers Google Sets (http://labs.google.com/sets) provides an example of an attempt at using a search engine to categorize data using semantic Web principles For example, when entering key words such as “Ford,” “Audi,” “GMC,” and “Volvo” into the Google Sets engine, Google Sets predicts other items belonging to the set (in this case, this would be other car brands, such as Mercedes, Fiat, Honda, and so on) Although the semantic Web is largely unrealized, Google’s efforts show that the semantic Web experience is getting closer Web 3.0 In many ways, Web 2.0 has already replaced Web 1.0, and the question is, What will replace Web 2.0? For some, Web 2.0 is just a short transitional period before the next wave of Internet technologies, which is predicted to last from 2010 to 2020 There are several ideas on what this next wave, Web 3.0, will entail Eric Schmidt, CEO of Google, views Web 3.0 as technologies providing for ubiquitous data access where all data is viewed as being in a “cloud,” and applications that access this data can run on any device, PC, or mobile phone Although there are different points of view on what will dominate Web 3.0, there are certain topics that are universally accepted as coming trends These topics include the following: The World Wide Database The ability for databases to be distributed and accessed from anywhere Open Technologies The design of Web sites and other software so that they can be easily integrated Open ID The provision of an online identity that can easily be ported to mobile devices, PCs, and more, allowing for easy authentication across different Web sites Integration of Legacy Devices The ability to use current mobile devices, such as iPhones, laptops, and so on, as credit cards, tickets, and reservations Intelligent Applications The use of agents (discussed in Chapter 6, “Enhancing Business Intelligence Using Information Systems”), machine learning, and semantic Web concepts to complete intelligent tasks for users Although you may have already seen some of these emerging technologies in practice, the coming trends involve true integration of the devices and connectivity to create powerful socially aware Internet appliances Stay tuned to see what the future holds Managing the Enterprise 2.0 Strategy As you have seen, there are various tools that organizations can use for communicating with external stakeholders as well as for enhancing collaboration and connection of employees within the enterprise In the following sections, we discuss factors to be examined when considering the use of Enterprise 2.0 tools within an organization Then we highlight potential pitfalls brought about by these tools, when used by people within and outside an organization CHAPTER • ENHANCING COLLABORATION USING WEB 2.0 223 Organizational Issues In the previous chapters, you have learned that in many cases, technology can be an important enabler of strategic advantage Similarly, with internal Enterprise 2.0 tools, the technology is a critical success factor, but it is not the only component Given that Web 2.0 tools are based on close social interaction, information sharing, and network effects, corporate culture is key in successful Enterprise 2.0 implementations Specifically, a corporate culture of knowledge sharing, trust, and honest feedback is conducive to Enterprise 2.0 implementations In addition to culture, various other caveats have to be taken into consideration for any Enterprise 2.0 application (Khan, 2008) (see Figure 5.24) Enterprise Web While reading this chapter, you have learned about many technologies you are familiar with from your daily life Although many of those technologies are hugely successful in a consumer environment, this success does not always translate to success in a corporate environment On the Web, sites such as YouTube, Wikipedia, or Facebook have evolved over years to become as successful as they are today, and examples such as MySpace show that success at one point in time is not guaranteed to continue Further, what appears as seamless, “magic” collaboration is sometimes based on intricate processes For example, good articles in Wikipedia are based on the contributions of many editors but also on many behindthe-scenes discussions over controversial issues or over how to improve an article In contrast, many open source software projects closely guard changes to the software’s programming code such that only a limited number of “committers” can actually implement suggested changes Culture As highlighted earlier, organizational culture is a critical Enterprise 2.0 success factor, and many proposed projects face strong cultural resistance Enterprise 2.0 applications, based on the premise of open communication, not always well within traditional top-down organizational structures based on rigid hierarchies and control Further, Web 2.0 sites base their success on user-driven self-expression (if no one were willing to update his or her status on Facebook, people would eventually stop visiting the site); on the Web, people participate by choice, but people in organizations cannot be forced to participate Hence, organizations have to understand the multiple stakeholders, personalities, and perspectives of the future users and ensure that any Enterprise 2.0 initiative will appeal to the organizational members Organizational Context Any implementation of Enterprise 2.0 applications should be driven by a specific usage context Just as users choose popular Web 2.0 applications such as YouTube or Wikipedia to fulfill a particular need, the work-related context should drive the choice of Enterprise 2.0 tools In other words, organizations should always ask what objective is to be accomplished with FIGURE 5.24 Technology Integration Various factors have to be taken into account for successful Enterprise 2.0 applications Culture Critical Mass Technological Inertia Organizational Context Factors Shaping the Deployment of an Enterprise 2.0 Strategy Generation Gap Hierarchies Enterprise Web Security 224 CHAPTER • ENHANCING COLLABORATION USING WEB 2.0 the tool and only then decide which type of tool to implement Merely setting up a wiki site and hoping that the employees will use it for the “right” purpose most likely will not lead to the intended results Organizational Hierarchies Often, Enterprise 2.0 initiatives are driven by user departments, and small-scale pilot implementations appear to work quite well However, organization-wide Enterprise 2.0 implementations typically need changes in terms of organizational culture and processes and often the flattening of organizational hierarchies Therefore, to be successful, Enterprise 2.0 implementations need the support and active involvement of senior management so as to cope with the large magnitude of changes Network Effects and Critical Mass Successful Web 2.0 phenomena such as Wikipedia base their success on network effects and the Long Tail (see Chapter 4) and have needed some time to achieve a critical mass For example, although Wikipedia enjoys millions of page views per day, there is only a small number of people who choose to actively participate in the creation of content Within organizations, achieving the critical mass needed for an Enterprise 2.0 application is often difficult and takes considerable time and patience Although for many smaller organizations collaborative Enterprise 2.0 tools can be beneficial, they will most likely not be able to harness the network effects that can be achieved with a larger user base Generation Gap The success of an Enterprise 2.0 initiative is also heavily dependent on the composition of the organization’s workforce In organizations with high numbers of millennials, who have grown accustomed to highly interactive and communicative online social environments, Enterprise 2.0 initiatives have a higher likelihood of success; in contrast, many baby boomers are used to rigid hierarchies and organizational structures and are less likely to fully embrace the capabilities of Enterprise 2.0 tools Further, senior organizational members may not fully grasp the potential and implications of Web 2.0 applications in organizational settings Technological Inertia One factor hindering the adoption of many new technologies is technolog- ical inertia In many cases, people are not willing to switch to new applications unless they see real, tangible benefits This can be especially a hindrance with Web 2.0 applications, many of which incorporate a variety of other tools (such as chat or message interfaces within social networking sites) Technological Integration Organizations will have to ensure that any Enterprise 2.0 applications are integrated well with the organization’s existing information systems infrastructure so as to reap the greatest benefits from connecting people and connecting people with information Typically, organizations choose systems provided by outside vendors such as Ning, which allows the organization to create its own social network However, organizational users will use the tools they are used to as a benchmark, and public domain tools such as Facebook often create high expectations of usability for any internal tool Security A final issue is related to security and intellectual property For organizations, securing their information systems infrastructure is of paramount concern (see Chapter 10, “Securing Information Systems”) Any application that allows closer collaboration by increasing data sharing will necessarily incur greater risks of security breaches Companies thus have to balance their desire for enhancing collaboration with the need to protect intellectual property and comply with rules and regulations such as the Sarbanes-Oxley Act Pitfalls of Web 2.0 Marketing Many organizations (and individuals) have learned painful lessons from public relations blunders and from not considering the fundamental rule: That the Internet never forgets Another fundamental rule brought about by Web 2.0 applications is to constantly monitor social media and quickly and appropriately react to emerging issues In this section, we highlight potential pitfalls of marketing using Web 2.0 applications Online Product Reviews Online as well as offline consumers increasingly consult the Web before making a purchase decision When making a purchase on Amazon.com, many potential buyers first consult the user reviews; relatedly, people read other travelers’ reviews of hotels or restaurants on Tripadvisor.com, or consult Websites dedicated to providing expert reviews Unfortunately, such reviews are not always as unbiased as they seem; and sometimes, companies hire people to deliberately spread positive word-of-mouth across a variety of sites Needless to say, the act of posting fake product reviews is unethical, to say the least For companies operating globally, this is becoming even CHAPTER • ENHANCING COLLABORATION USING WEB 2.0 more problematic For example, in China, where reviews are often posted by the millions, consulting the Web for advice is even more common, especially among online shoppers As with other products, fakes are a problem with product reviews as well In fact, Chinese Internet marketing companies employ legions of people who nothing but post positive comments about a client—and negative comments about competitors To make matters even worse, a number of Internet marketing companies specialize on removing negative posts about their clients, usually by bribing forum managers or administrators Fees for removing a negative post can be as high as $1,500, depending on how urgent the request is or how popular the Web site or post is; for the companies paying for having negative posts removed, this is considered a regular advertising expense (Jiao, 2010) Companies operating globally should certainly be aware of such practices, and adjust their strategies accordingly Microblogging Whereas microblogging tools can be very valuable for corporate communications, they have to be used carefully and are not without controversy For example, in mid-2010, Utah’s attorney general announced an impending execution on Twitter with the post, “I just gave the go ahead to Corrections Director to proceed with Gardner’s execution May God grant him the mercy he denied his victims,” which was seen as distasteful by many observers and quickly made worldwide news In the aftermath of BP’s Gulf of Mexico oil spill disaster, a person frustrated with the oil giant’s response to the spill set up a satirical Twitter account named “BP Public Relations (BPGlobalPR),” posting tweets such as “Cleaning up oil spills is expensive Buying judges so we can keep drilling? Relatively cheap.” BPGlobalPR became immensely popular, with over 178,000 followers, dwarfing BP’s official account with 16,000 followers Needless to say, BP soon found out about this account and asked the account holder to modify the account so as to make it clearer that the account was satirical However, by that time, the satirical site had already gained much attention from the press, and the oil giant’s attempt to deal with the mock account further tarnished its image For individuals, posting the wrong “tweets” can also have serious consequences, as they are more likely than not to reach the wrong readers—sooner or later A Chicago woman was recently sued by her landlord for posting a tweet complaining about the management company’s reaction to mold in her apartment The management company sued her for defamation, arguing that the tweet was published on a global scale Whereas the lady had a mere 22 followers on Twitter, the landlord’s lawsuit was covered in major news outlets, online and offline, including the Chicago Tribune, the Associated Press, and the New York Times Social Networks While free to host, having a page on a social network is not free for organizations—the company should take great care to monitor what is happening on the page and take appropriate action For example, Starbucks lets its customers upload their favorite Starbucksrelated pictures to its Facebook page However, people frequently post unrelated pictures, play pranks with the company logo, or post otherwise inappropriate content A company then has to walk the fine line of removing inappropriate content to preserve the company’s image while not alienating its fans Starbucks chooses to liberally allow unrelated content As with most social software, posting the “wrong” content can quickly get you in trouble Companies routinely check social networking sites before making hiring decisions, and many applicants have lost a job offer they almost had secured Similarly, your posts may make it farther than you think; in late 2009, a British woman got laid off after ranting about her job and her boss in a Facebook status update—unfortunately, her boss was in her contacts list and could immediately see the post Further, many people never bother to adjust their accounts’ privacy settings and inadvertently shout things out for the whole world to read To see the extent of what people post on Facebook, try a search on http://openfacebooksearch.com; you’d be surprised by what you find out Viral Marketing As with other social media, viral marketing can be a blessing or a nightmare (see also “When Things go Wrong: Nestlé’s Social Media Meltdown” earlier in this chapter) In 2008, a musician on a tour witnessed from his airplane window how baggage handlers mishandled—and broke—his $3,500 guitar After not getting a satisfying response from the airline, the musician decided to write a song and post it on YouTube in 2009 The video quickly went viral, and the airline rushed to “make things right” for the musician For the airline, however, the damage was done, and as of mid-2010, the video had over million views Domino’s Pizza faced a similar disaster in 2009, when two employees played not-so-harmless pranks and filmed each other preparing sandwiches with disgusting ingredients After the videos were posted on YouTube, they quickly went viral and attracted more than a million viewers in just a few days Domino’s was initially slow in responding and decided not to respond to the crisis, 225 226 CHAPTER • ENHANCING COLLABORATION USING WEB 2.0 fearing that a reaction may draw even more interest After 48 hours, however, Domino’s changed its strategy, opened a Twitter account to interact with concerned customers, and posted a video response by the president of Domino’s on YouTube assuring that the culprits had been found, that the entire store had been closed and sanitized, and that everything would be done to avoid hiring the “wrong” people in the future A nationwide survey by a media research company has found the response to be fairly successful, with over 90 percent of the respondents indicating that the response video was effective in restoring trust in the brand Lessons Learned As you probably know from you own experience and have seen from these stories, news travel fast in social media For the companies in question, this is an enormous threat, as negative publicity can quickly reach millions of people At the same time, the company’s reaction is equally critical, as it can reach people just as fast and thus has to be carefully crafted Richard Levick, president of Levick Strategic Communications, has provided some tips on how prepare for and deal with such crisis: Identify a crisis team including members from within your organization (e.g., public relations or executive team) and from the outside (e.g., lawyers) Identify your worst social media nightmare (and make sure to know the signs to look for, such as search engine key words your opposition could use) Monitor your social media environment (such as YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter) and be connected and responsive Act fast The first 24 hours count As in the offline world, companies should try to avoid such crises in the first place, but being prepared for a public relations disaster is crucial in today’s fast-paced world INDUSTRY ANALYSIS Online Travel S pring break is coming, and you’ve decided to go to Puerto Vallarta this year Chances are that your first step will be to check the Web sites of Expedia, Travelocity, and Orbitz for flights to and hotels in your chosen destination (Expedia’s 2010 first-quarter report showed that it accounted for 38 percent of worldwide bookings.) We all know the big three online travel agencies (OTAs) In today’s digital world, they dominate the travel industry They took the old brick-and-mortar travel industry and turned it into an online service where you can click to book flights and hotel reservations, change or cancel flights, reserve rental cars—even plan a vacation In Internet terms, you can think of the big three as still being in Online Travel 1.0 But technology marches relentlessly on, and Online Travel 2.0 is in the works Travel service providers—airlines, hotels, and car rental companies—and travel customers pay fees to online travel agencies And travel service providers selling through OTAs not have the opportunity to build customer relationships Therefore, some providers, including JetBlue and InterContinental Hotels, would rather have customers book directly from them That way, they (and their customers) avoid OTA fees, and they are better able to satisfy customers since they can provide up-to-theminute information Enter Online Travel 2.0—the travel search engines They don’t book travel services for you, but they locate and list URLs for hundreds of suppliers, and when you choose one, you can then click the link to the supplier’s Web site Travel search engines becoming increasingly popular with online consumers include Kayak, Vayama, Mobissimo, and Yahoo!’s FareChase If you want to book a travel package, especially to an international destination, OTAs may be the best choice But if you can navigate travel services yourself or want to deal directly with travel service providers, travel search engines can fill the bill More recently, a new trend is emerging Following the retail industry, the travel sector is turning to mobile Research firm The Nielsen Co found that consumers increasingly choose mobile travel sites and applications so as to be able to book flights or hotel rooms, rent cars, or access information from anywhere at any time According to Nielsen, the top five mobile sites and applications are Travelocity, Expedia, Priceline, Orbitz, and Delta Air Lines, with a combined total of 5.8 million unique visitors in October 2009 CHAPTER • ENHANCING COLLABORATION USING WEB 2.0 227 Questions Do you use online travel agencies for assisting you with travel plans? If so, which service provider you use, and why did you make this choice? If not, why not? Forecast the future of traditional travel agencies How can travel agencies use social media to attract and retain customers? Based on: Anonymous (2010, April 29) Expedia, Inc reports first quarter 2010 results Retrieved June 22, 2010, from http://phx.corporate-ir.net/ External.File?itemϭUGFyZW50SUQ9NDM2NTJ8Q2hpbGRJRD0tMXxUeXB lPTMϭ&tϭ1 Smith, B (2006, April 27) Yahoo’s FareChase: The stealth disruptor? SearchEngineWatch Retrieved April 24, 2010, from http://searchenginewatch.com/searchday/article.php/3601971 Stambor, Z (2010, January 11) Mobile flying high in the online travel industry Internet Retailer Retrieved April 24, 2010, from http://www.internetretailer.com/2010/01/11/mobile-is-flying-high-in -the-online-travel-industry Key Points Review Describe Web 2.0 and the key enablers of Enterprise 2.0 Web 2.0 refers to dynamic Web applications that allow people to collaborate and share information online One of the basic concepts associated with Web 2.0 is a shift in the users’ role from passive consumer of content to creator Web 2.0 applications have spawned the emergence of social software that people widely use for communicating and socializing Increasingly, organizations are using social software to connect with customers and internal or external stakeholders in order to become more innovative or productive Social software can help to harness the wisdom of the crowd by leveraging the collective intelligence of large groups of people For organizations, using Web 2.0 applications can be an important factor in being able to attract or retain employees as younger generations (who grew up using social software) are joining the workforce Explain how organizations can enhance communication using Web 2.0 applications Social software can enhance communication within organizations as well as between an organization and its stakeholders Blogs, made up of chronological entries that comment on virtually any topic of interest to the author, are widely used by individuals and organizations to communicate with internal and external stakeholders Social presence (or microblogging) tools allow sending relatively short status updates to one’s followers Instant messaging (or online chat) is used mainly for synchronous internal communication as well as for sales and customer support functions Virtual worlds can be used to showcase products or hold rich interactive communication Explain how organizations can enhance cooperation using Web 2.0 applications Web 2.0 applications facilitating cooperation depend on the network effect to provide the greatest benefit to users Media sharing applications allow people and organizations to share images, videos, slide shows, or podcasts with others Social bookmarking allows users to share and categorize Internet bookmarks, which can be helpful in organizational knowledge management efforts Similarly, social cataloging helps to categorize and share academic citations, information about books, music, and so on Tagging refers to manually adding metadata to a piece of information such as a map, picture, or Web page, thus describing the piece of information for others and making it searchable Explain how organizations can enhance collaboration using Web 2.0 applications Web 2.0 technologies have enabled new forms of collaboration for organizations and individuals With increasing globalization, virtual teams and virtual meetings have become more important for organizations These and other technologies have enabled Web-based collaboration tools such as Google Apps or Microsoft SharePoint as well as content management systems The users are central to the new Web environment and are no longer passive viewers of information As the Web has evolved, individuals can now generate content using several methods, such as wikis, which are Web sites in which people can post, edit, comment, and access information The idea behind wikis is that they allow anyone to contribute information or edit prior contributions Another emerging topic in the Web 2.0 environment is crowdsourcing, or the use of everyday people as a cheap labor force Explain how organizations can enhance connection using Web 2.0 applications For individuals, social networking has become an important way to meet new friends, connect with family members, or meet new colleagues and business partners Similarly, organizations use social networks for internal connection as well as to connect with their customers The reach of social networks is also used by business organizations to market their products or services through viral marketing Viral marketing resembles offline word-of-mouth communication, in which advertising messages are spread like viruses through 228 CHAPTER • ENHANCING COLLABORATION USING WEB 2.0 social networks Social search incorporates blog posts, status updates, and other information from people within and outside a person’s social network so as to supplement generic search results and enhance the quality Syndication helps to connect people with the most current blog posts, podcasts, videos, and news stories Further, Web 2.0 technologies enable a rich user experience through Web services, widgets, and mashups However, many see Web 2.0 only as a transitional period and regard the semantic Web and Web 3.0 trends, such as the World Wide Database, open technologies, open ID, integration of legacy devices, and intelligent applications, as the future of the Web Describe how companies can manage their Web 2.0 strategy and deal with potential pitfalls associated with Web 2.0 Web 2.0 applications can be an important enabler for organizations However, organizations have to take into account that success in a consumer environment does not necessarily translate into corporate environments Further, organizations have to take into account issues associated with culture, organizational context, and organizational hierarchies; further, lack of critical mass, the generation gap, and technological inertia can hinder the success of Enterprise 2.0 initiatives Finally, in organizational contexts, integration with existing technologies and security are of primary concern As organizations can use social software for communicating with customers and viral marketing, an organization’s opponents can use the same tools to spread damaging content or information to people all over the world within a very short time Organizations should therefore plan for such incidents by identifying a crisis team, identifying crisis scenarios, monitoring the social media environment, and acting fast in case a crisis surfaces in the Web 2.0 environment Key Terms “amateurization” of journalism 198 asynchronous 207 blog 197 blogging 197 blogosphere 199 collaboration 207 collective intelligence 196 content management system 210 crowdsourcing 213 discussion forum 197 e-lancing 214 Enterprise 2.0 195 folksonomy 204 geotagging 207 instant messaging 201 mashup 221 metadata 204 microblogging 199 netcast 203 netcaster 203 netcasting 203 network effect 202 peer production 211 podcast 203 podcasting 203 Real Simple Syndication (RSS) 219 semantic Web 222 social bookmarking 204 social cataloging 204 social media 195 social networking 215 social online community 215 social presence tool 199 social search 218 social software 195 synchronous 207 tag cloud 207 tagging 204 viral marketing 216 virtual meeting 207 virtual team 208 virtual world 201 Web 2.0 195 Web 3.0 222 Web service 219 Web-based collaboration tool 209 widget 220 Wikipedia 212 Review Questions What is Web 2.0? Give some examples of Web 2.0 capabilities How can social software help harness the wisdom of the crowd? Why is using Web 2.0 applications an important factor for attracting and retaining employees? How can social software enhance communication? What is blogging, and why are blogs sometimes controversial? Explain the difference between blogging and microblogging tools What is the network effect? How can social bookmarking and social cataloging help in an organization’s knowledge management efforts? What is tagging, and how are organizations using it in their Web sites? 10 What are virtual teams, and how they help to improve an organization’s capabilities? 11 What is a wiki? Why would an organization want to implement a wiki? 12 Explain what is meant by crowdsourcing and how the Web is enabling this form of collaboration 13 How can organizations use social networking to connect with their customers? 14 What is viral marketing? What capabilities of the Web help to spread the virus? CHAPTER • ENHANCING COLLABORATION USING WEB 2.0 15 What capabilities will define the Web of the future? 16 Why is organizational culture an important factor in Enterprise 2.0 initiatives? 229 17 Why can social media be both a blessing and a threat for organizations? 18 How can organizations plan for social media disasters? Self-Study Questions Collective intelligence is based on the notion that distributed groups of people with a divergent range of information and expertise will be able to outperform the capabilities of _ A crowds C individual experts B customers D virtual teams Social presence tools are used for _ A creating an online text diary B providing location information C short status updates D customer support functions Tagging is adding _ to a piece of information such as a map, picture, or Web page A metadata C blogs B comments D knowledge The process of adding information such as latitude and longitude to pictures, videos, or other information is called _ A flagging C geotagging B posting D podcasting Successful Enterprise 2.0 initiatives consider _ A organizational culture B the organization’s customers C the latest social software applications D all of the above _ is the process of creating an online diary made up of chronological entries A Wikiing C Blogging B Tagging D None of the above Netcasts are also known as _ A podcasts C radiocasts B blogcasts D blogging RSS allows you to all of the following except _ A publish a video blog B publish current news stories C receive current news stories D edit a netcast Wikis are a type of Web site where people can _ A post information B comment on information C access information D all of the above 10 _ communication is when people are all meeting at the same time or in real time A Synchronous C Collaboration B Asynchronous D None of the above Answers are on page 231 Problems and Exercises Match the following terms with the appropriate definitions: i Social presence tools ii Asynchronous iii Metadata iv Social networking v Peer production vi Social software vii Netcasts viii Folksonomy ix Network effect x Blogging a Web 2.0 applications allowing people to communicate, interact, and collaborate in various ways b Digital media streams that can be distributed to and played by digital audio players c The creation of goods or services by self-organizing communities d The notion that the value of a network (or tool or application based on a network) is dependent on the number of other users e User-created categorization system f The process of creating an online text diary made up of chronological entries g Data about data h Tools enabling people to voice their thoughts using relatively short “status updates” i Using Web-based services to link friends or colleagues j Not coordinated in time 230 CHAPTER • ENHANCING COLLABORATION USING WEB 2.0 Visit popular social online communities (such as Facebook or Bebo) What features would entice you to visit such sites over and over again? Do you have an account in an online community? If yes, why? If no, what is keeping you from having such account? Is there any content you definitely would or would not post on such page? Go to the Web site Programmable Web (www programmableweb.com) List some interesting mashups you find What factors you think make a good mashup Web site? Go to Amazon’s Mechanical Turk Web site (www.mturk.com) Which of the HITs you think could be completed using a computer, and which could not? Why? Search the Web for a social networking site that you have not heard about before Describe the users of this social online community Are the features of this site different from those you are familiar with? If so, describe those features If not, describe common features Visit Google Page Creator (pages.google.com) and Microsoft Live Office (Officelive.com) Compare and contrast the features for each Web site Which Web site would you choose to use, and why? Have you ever blogged or read someone’s blog? If so, what did you like or dislike about the experience? What you see for the future in blogs? Find an article you can contribute to on a wiki page What you like or dislike about this process? What would encourage you to contribute more to the wiki? Why? Envision and describe general features of Web 3.0 applications Describe a feature you would like to see in the next version of the Web 10 Describe an application or service you would like to be able to use on the Web today that is not yet available Describe the potential market for this application or service Forecast how long you believe it will take before this will occur 11 Search the Web for public relations blunders involving social software How did the companies in question react? In your opinion, were the reactions effective? Why or why not? 12 Have you listened to or watched a netcast (or podcast)? If so, describe your experience If not, why? 13 Describe the pros and cons of collaborating with colleagues over the Web What is useful about this form of collaboration? What is difficult? 14 Describe an example of viral marketing that you have experienced Application Exercises Note: The existing data files referenced in these exercises are available on the Student Companion Web site: www.pearsonhighered.com/valacich Spreadsheet Application: Online Versus Traditional Spreadsheets Campus Travel is currently evaluating the possibility of using an online spreadsheet as opposed to the traditional locally installed spreadsheet There are a variety of issues involved in this decision The company wants you to investigate the possibilities that are currently available while also paying special attention to the company requirements Campus Travel has the following requirements: (1) the ability to share spreadsheets easily, (2) the ability to secure this information, (3) the ability to save the spreadsheets into other forms (i.e., CSV files), and (4) the ability to work from anywhere in the world Prepare the following information: On the Internet, find different options for online and traditional spreadsheets and list the available options Using the company requirements, list the pros and cons for each spreadsheet option Using an online spreadsheet, summarize the findings and provide a recommendation to the company Present your findings with tables and/or graphs, if available Database Application: Tracking Web Site Visits As Campus Travel expands its Web presence, the importance of tracking what the competitors are doing has become very important This includes making sure Campus Travel tracks the prices of packages and services that its closest competitor offers To so, a database must be created to track this information Follow these steps to create the database: Create a database called “tracking.” Create a table called “company_info.” In this table, create fields for company_name and company_URL Create a table called “products.” In this table, create fields for the company_name, product_name, product_description, product_price, and date_retrieved Create a table called “services.” In this table, create fields for company_name, service_name, service description, service_price, and date_retrieved Once these tables are created, go to the relationship view (select “Relationships” under the “Database Tools” tab) and connect the company_info (one side) and products (many side) tables and the company_info (one side) and service (many side) tables Make sure that when you create the relationships, the referential integrity option is selected (This will make sure that when you delete a company, the products associated with the company are also deleted.) Test the referential integrity by adding data to the tables and make sure that when a company is deleted in the company table, the products table is updated too CHAPTER • ENHANCING COLLABORATION USING WEB 2.0 231 Team Work Exercise: Online Social Communities Do you use social networks to communicate with your friends and family? Are you a member of multiple social networks? Compare and contrast your experiences in social networking with your classmates Which Web sites you use, and why you use these Web sites? Can you see yourself changing to another social network Web site? What would make you change? Discuss strategies that these social networks are using to keep you active in the Web site Visit LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com), Classmates (www.classmates.com), and Facebook (www.facebook.com) What are the similarities in these Web sites? What are the main differences in these three social networks? Answers to the Self-Study Questions C, p 196 C, p 197 Case C, p 199 A, p 203 A, p 204 D, p 219 C, p 207 D, p 211 10 A, p 223 A, p 207 Digg.com: Changing How News Is Delivered S ubmit a news story or link to Digg.com, and if site users like it (i.e., “dig” it), the story moves to the front page If the story proves unpopular, site users vote to “bury” it, and it disappears In October 2004, Kevin Rose, a former regular on the TechTV show The Screen Savers and his friends Owen Byrne, Ron Gorodetzky, and Jay Adelson began playing around with the idea of a user-controlled, community-based news Web site They launched the site on December 5, 2004, and it immediately began drawing visitors The original design was advertisement free, but that has changed since Google AdSense was added to the site Digg has so many users that “digging” a news story or Web link posting can sometimes cause a phenomenon called the “Digg effect,” whereby increased traffic to a linked Web site can cause it to either slow considerably or even crash According to Compete.com, Digg’s home page attracted over 500 million unique visitors in 2009 While Digg remains popular, critics argue the following: • The site gives users too much control over content, resulting in misinformation and sensationalism • Companies paying for submissions have skewed the site’s original purpose • The site’s operators, which are its founders, exert too much control over front-page and forum content • The “bury” option is undemocratic because those who vote to bury an item are allowed to remain anonymous • The site is too susceptible to “gaming”—to groups or Web site operators who deliberately try to dictate content In May 2007, when the Advanced Access Content System Consortium objected to Digg posts containing encryptionbreaking code for HD-DVD and Blu-ray disks, management heeded advice from attorneys and took the offending articles and posts down A user revolt followed that prompted Digg’s Kevin Rose to post a comment that reversed direction: “We hear you, and effective immediately we won’t delete stories or comments containing the code and will deal with whatever the consequences might be If we lose, then what the hell, at least we died trying.” In 2009, Digg.com introduced the “DiggBar” to its Web site The DiggBar was a toolbar that appeared at the top of the Digg home page that acted as a URL shortener When a link was submitted to Digg, its URL was automatically shortened and prefixed with “www.digg.com.” When a link was clicked by a user, instead of going to the corresponding Web site, the page appeared inside a framed Digg.com window Using the DiggBar, users had immediate access to features such as sharing Digg links via e-mail or social media sites like Facebook or Twitter In addition, users could instantly see what other Digg users had commented about on the story, check out related stories, and see the analytics surrounding the number of people that visited the link However, not long after the DiggBar’s introduction, backlash from the Web community began to make news Criticism of the toolbar centered on the way shortened URLs started with a Digg domain prefix Links that normally opened a page at another domain (thereby giving that Web site a “hit” to statistics counters) opened in a frame and stayed within the Digg environment Since the use of DiggBar was not optional, millions of potential lost “hits” were at stake Web site owners and operators made an outpouring of negative feedback to Digg Within a month of launch, Digg changed the way the toolbar operated and made it an opt-in for all unregistered users, disabling the URL shortening and framing features The year 2009 also marked the year that cybercriminals used Digg to try to turn a profit To set their trap, scammers loaded 232 CHAPTER • ENHANCING COLLABORATION USING WEB 2.0 Digg with headlines promising readers a view of leaked personal celebrity videos Once the reader followed the headline link, they were presented with a software download for viewing the videos What actually installed on the unknowing user’s computer was a program that supposedly scanned for malicious software The bogus program, a type of malware, reported back serious problems found on the computer and offered to fix the issues for a small fee To make the deception more realistic, the malware prevented the user’s computer from operating correctly Although it was unknown how many people fell into this trap, at least 50 user accounts were determined to be participating in the scam Digg has since terminated over 300 user accounts suspected of spreading malicious software With a major redesign and update of the Digg.com home page planned in late 2010, the company’s future looks vibrant as it continues to exemplify the spirit of user-provided-content and communitybased Web 2.0 start-ups Questions What effect does the “Digg effect” have on Web sites that are featured on Digg.com? What are the positives and negatives to a news site that organizes its stories using user input? How you think Digg.com generates revenue? How you think Digg.com will in the future? What are main threats to its current business? Based on: Anonymous (2009, February 12) Crooks setting cyber traps on Digg Global Saskatoon Retrieved June 28, 2010, from http://www.globalsaskatoon com/technology/CrooksϩsettingϩcyberϩtrapsϩDigg/ 1277319/story.html Case Anonymous (2009, April 4) Digg launches the DiggBar Techtree.com Retrieved June 28, 2010, from http://www.techtree.com/India/News/Digg _launches_the_DiggBar/551-100776-643.html Arrington, M (2006, March 18) The power of Digg Techcrunch.com Retrieved June 28, 2010, from http://www.techcrunch.com/2006/03/18/the-power-of-digg Dhaliwal, A (2010, January 23) Digg founder Kevin Rose: Digg’s “drastic” overhaul could “shock” users Topnews.us Retrieved June 28, 2010, from http:// topnews.us/content/210231-digg-founder-kevin-rose-digg-s-drastic-overhaul -could-shock-users Digg (2010, June 24) In Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Retrieved June 28, 2010, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?titleϭDigg&oldidϭ369970137 Rose, K (2007, May 1) Digg this: 09-f9-11-02-9d-74-e3-5b-d8-41-56-c5-6356-88-c0 Retrieved June 28, 2010, from http://blog.digg.com/?pϭ74 Wikipedia: Who Is Editing? R esearch almost any topic on the Web, and a URL for a Wikipedia entry will likely appear on the list of resources Wikipedia is a free, online encyclopedia that gets its entries from users—be they amateurs, professionals, or pranksters with nothing better to (“Wiki wiki” is the Hawaiian term for “quick.”) As of 2010, Wikipedia had over 15 million article pages in over 270 languages and 22 million registered users It is the world’s fifth most popular Web site, with over 320 million monthly visitors looking to read and edit its pages Since Wikipedia’s start in January 2001, there have been over 880 million edits of content entries Users who are logged in are able to edit entries, but the Wikipedia site keeps detailed logs of the sources (IP addresses) of all changes Users/editors are anonymous in that only their user names are known, but IP addresses can be traced back to the source Cal Tech computation and neural systems graduate student Virgil Griffith got curious about Wikipedia’s anonymous editors in 2007 when he read that congressional aides had been editing entries about their employers—the senators and representatives of the U.S Congress Griffith wondered if other companies and organizations were doing the same thing, so he created a program to find out Griffith created a database of all Wikipedia entries and changes, including the information logged each time an anonymous editor made a change Griffith isolated the XML-based records of changes and IP addresses, then identified the owners of the IP addresses using public net-address lookup services, such as ARIN, as well as private domain name data obtained through http:// IP2location.com Griffith’s system revealed the following information about the editors: • Someone on a computer at votingmachine maker Diebold Election Systems deleted 15 paragraphs from a Wikipedia article about electronic voting that were critical of Diebold’s machines • Wal-Mart made changes to improve its image • Politicians are frequent editors For instance, a former U.S senator from Montana made changes to indicate that he was a voice for farmers in his state • Dave Winer, a famous blogger and developer of RSS, notes that his Wikipedia entry has been edited several times, removing all mention of his contributions to RSS, blogging, and podcasting • ExxonMobil deleted information about its nonpayment of damages to 32,000 Alaska fishermen after the Exxon Valdez oil spill • A computer registered to Disney deleted information critical of the company’s digital rights management software Griffith emphasizes that his system, WikiScanner, cannot identify Wikipedia editors as agents of certain companies or organizations It can only identify IP addresses that come from networks registered to a company or organization Since Wikipedia entries can be written and edited by any user registered at the site, its accuracy should obviously not be completely trusted If one uses other CHAPTER • ENHANCING COLLABORATION USING WEB 2.0 reputable sources in addition to Wikipedia, however, it can often be a starting point for further research on a topic Just don’t depend on it exclusively when researching a topic, and be sure to verify content read there before quoting it as fact Dave Winer, for instance, writes in March 2008 that he finds Wikipedia “a useful personal resource.” He was “working his way” through all episodes of Battlestar Galactica and found it helpful to read a synopsis of each episode on Wikipedia after he had watched the episode Inaccuracies aside, the ability for anyone to contribute and edit entries has been seen as the main strength of Wikipedia, allowing knowledge to be built on, refined, and policed By the end of 2009, however, there had been a steep dropoff in the number of volunteers editing Wikipedia’s pages According to Spanish researcher Felipe Ortega, who analyzed the site’s editing activities, Wikipedia’s English-language pages lost over 49,000 editors compared to around 5,000 only a year earlier What is causing the plunge in editor activity? Some observers think that the perception that most of the relevant information is now on the site, leaving little to be done but maintain what is there, is driving down the number of those willing to contribute and edit Others point to the inaccuracies that plague the site and the amount of time it takes to police the information Although editors try to maintain factual articles, anyone is free to go in and change the information At times, a backand-forth battle begins between two legitimate editors over what the article contains At other times, mischievous pranksters revert legitimate edits to their original format, insert offensive content, or otherwise deface the article, forcing editors to go back in and make fixes Still other explanations focus on the rules and protocols surrounding the actual editing of 233 the content Making changes to content requires navigating a complex interface and coding scheme Hoping to stop the exodus of volunteers from the site, Wikipedia got its first facelift in the spring of 2010 Besides some cosmetic and layout updates to the site, site navigation has been improved, making it easier for users to find essential functions more easily In addition, the editing system has gotten a major overhaul Users can now make changes to data in tables and information boxes through simple forms The edit page has been “decluttered” and rewritten in simpler language An outline tool has also been added, making it easy to navigate longer articles Clearly, Wikipedia has plenty to offer when you need some quick information on a subject Although editors have been in decline, Wikipedia clearly is aware of the problem and has made strides to correct the issue Questions Do you use Wikipedia for your research? Why or why not? Have you ever made a change to a Wikipedia entry? If you were to see an obvious mistake (in your opinion), would you take the time to change it? Why or why not? Anyone can edit entries on Wikipedia Do you see this as a curse or as a blessing? Explain Crum, C (2010, March 29) Will Wikipedia’s new changes boost editing? WebProNews Retrieved June 28, 2010, from http://www.webpronews.com/ topnews/2010/03/29/will-wikipedias-new-changes-boost-editing Jones, M W (2010, March 27) Wikipedia user interface getting first overhaul Tech.Blorge Retrieved June 28, 2010, from http://tech blorge.com/Structure:%20/2010/03/27/wikipedia-user-interface-getting-first -overhaul Based on: Angwin, J., and Fowler, G A (2009, November 27) Volunteers log off as Wikipedia ages Wall Street Journal Retrieved June 28, 2010, from http://online wsj.com/article/SB125893981183759969.html Blakely, R (2007, August 16) Wal-Mart, CIA, and ExxonMobil changed Wikipedia entries Foxnews.com Retrieved June 28, 2010, from http://www foxnews.com/story/0,2933,293389,00.html Borland, J (2007, August 14) See who’s editing Wikipedia—Diebold, the CIA, a campaign Wired.com Retrieved June 28, 2010, from http://www.wired.com/ politics/onlinerights/news/2007/08/wiki_tracker List of Wikipedias (2010, June 25) In Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Retrieved June 28, 2010, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?titleϭList _of_Wikipedias&oldidϭ370160770 Risley, D (2008, March 21) Wikipedia accuracy: Dave Winer’s criticism PCMech.com Retrieved June 28, 2010, from http://www.pcmech.com/article/ wikipedia-accuracy-dave-winers-criticism Winer, D (2008, March 10) What’s wrong with Wikipedia Scripting News Retrieved June 8, 2008, from http://www.scripting.com/stories/2008/03/20/ whatsWrongWithWikipedia.html ... MANAGING IN THE DIGITAL WORLD: Facebook.com 19 2 19 3 Defining Web 2.0 19 5 Social Software 19 5 Enterprise 2.0 19 5 Collective Intelligence 19 6 The Facebook/LinkedIn/Twitter Workspace 19 7 Enhancing... Schneider.—5th ed p cm Includes bibliographical references and indexes ISBN -1 3 : 97 8-0 -1 3-7 0669 9-5 ISBN -1 0 : 0 -1 3-7 0669 9-6 Information technology Information storage and retrieval systems Business I Schneider,... E-Commerce, Consumer-to-Consumer E-Commerce, and Internet Marketing 16 5 Stages of B2C EC 16 6 E-Tailing: Selling Goods and Services in the Digital World 16 6 EC Web Sites: Attracting and Retaining