Lab Exercise 18

I reviewed the privacy policies and the personal account settings for five online services that I use every day. They are howdy.tamu.edu, facebook.com, mydish.redlobster.com, neo.tamu.edu, and bbvacompass.com. Below are the privacy policies, and specifically which information the service claims to own and reserves the right to use.


On Howdy.tamu.edu the website states that “it is a violation of University Regulations, State Laws, and Federal Laws if you gain or help others gain unauthorized access to any Texas A&M University Enterprise Information System (EIS) application including Howdy and Compass” and that if you violate these regulations “you will be subject to University Disciplinary Action and Criminal Prosecution to the fullest extent of the law”. By simply logging in to the computer, you admit responsibility and that you understand what the rules are. I had a hard time finding what information is specifically able to be used by TAMU, but the privacy statement said that any personal information will not be made public without consent, but emails with personal information may be directed to other people that can better assist the student in question. On Howdy I am using the default setting, so I give TAMU all the rights listed above.


On Facebook.com, Facebook allows for a lot of privacy control on the users part. You can customize your account to be as private or public as you like. However, Facebook reserves the right to use you information to customize your experience. They do not sell your information to third-party companies, but they allow advertising companies to target audiences that suit their company. Further, they may use the information to memorialize your account in the event that you decease, to supplement your profile, make suggestions, or present downloading opportunities to you. Overall, their privacy policy is very detailed and transparent, and you do have a lot of control over what information is used. On Facebook I am on the most restricted privacy policy. I withhold information by having to give my consent for any information to be used, and I no longer receive emails from Facebook.


Mydish.redlobster.com is the website that I use for my job at Red Lobster. The privacy settings are very strict, and access “is designated for use by authorized individuals only”. All information is ”privileged, proprietary, confidential and exempt from disclosure under applicable law” and “any unauthorized use, review, application, revelation, disclosure, dissemination, distribution or copying of information contained in this site is strictly prohibited”, and violators will be prosecuted by law. Further, DISH recently became a more personalized and secure website, so there are lots of reminders on the website to “log out” when you are not using the website, and to be aware of your surroundings. DISH does not involve third parties. On MYDish I am using the default setting, so I give Darden all the rights listed above.


Neo.tamu.edu claims to use “server logs to collect information concerning your Internet connection and general information about your visit to our Web site” in order to “create summary statistics, which are used to determine technical design specifications and identify system performance or problem areas”. Further, they can release information “when legally required, to help law enforcement investigations, legal proceedings or internal investigations of TAMU rule and regulation violations”. Then these groups would use the information to track the electronic interactions back to the source computer(s) or account(s).” Also, like howdy,tamu.edu they may redirect your personal information to others via email for better assistance. On the neo portal I am using the default setting, so I give TAMU all the rights listed above.


Bbvacompass.com is the online banking company that I use. They urge its users to create strict privacy settings on their account. However, they do note that “from time to time, [they] will use your information to provide you with improved services and information about additional products, as well as to comply with applicable laws and regulations – but [they] will always use that information responsibly”. They provide customers with the links to third party research, but claim that they are not responsible for those third-party site’s privacy settings, so users should be careful. On the BBVACompass website I am using the default setting, so I give BBVACompass all the rights listed above.


All of the sites reviewd have their own privacy policies, but for the most part they offer their users the ability to customize their policy settings, and if the user is concerned enough to actually read the privacy settings, they are filled with useful information.

Lab Exercise 16

Group Findings

Chemistry Building
Did it work? Yes
Signal Strength? 4 to 5 out of 5 bars

Blocker
Did it work? Yes
Signal Strength? 4 out of 5

Rec Center
Did it work? Yes
Signal Strength? 5 out of 5

Reed McDonald Building
Did it work? Yes
Signal Strength? 3 to 4 out of 5

Koldus
Did it work? Yes
Signal Strength? (3-4, medium strength. It went in and out and was slow if a lot of people were online.)

Evans
Did it work? Yes
Signal Strength? 5 (No problems, easy access to internet.)

Annex
Did it work? Yes
Signal Strength? 4 (Was a little bit slower in the study room I was in, but overall still went quickly and maintained signal strength.)

Anthropology Building
Did it work? Yes
Signal Strength? (3-4, went in and out when I was in my professor's office)

Commons Lobby
Did it work? Yes
Signal Strength? 5

Studio 12
Did it work? Yes
Signal Strength? 3-4

The Quad
Did it work? No
Signal Strength? 0

Heldenfelds
Did it work? Yes
Signal Strength? 4-5

Zachary
Did it work? Yes
Signal Strength? 4-5

Bolton
Did it work? Yes
Signal Strength? 4

Academic Plaza
Did it work? Yes
Signal Strength? 3

Trigon
Did it work? No
Signal Strength? 0

H20 Fountain
Did it work? Yes
Signal Strength? 4

Herrington
Did it work? Yes
Signal Strength? 4

West Campus Tennis Center
Did it work? Yes
Signal Strength? 3

Rudder
Did it work? Yes
Signal Strength? 4

map stuff!

Koldus
Did it work? Yes
Signal Strength? (3-4, medium strength. It went in and out and was slow if a lot of people were online.)

Evans
Did it work? Yes
Signal Strength? 5 (No problems, easy access to internet.)

Annex
Did it work? Yes
Signal Strength? 4 (Was a little bit slower in the study room I was in, but overall still went quickly and maintained signal strength.)

Anthropology Building
Did it work? Yes
Signal Strength? (3-4, went in and out when I was in my professor's office)

Lab Exercise 15

Proposal For “In Bloom Florists”

Opening a new company can be tricky, especially in today’s economy. However, it is my goal to put your mind at ease by presenting you with the research that I have conducted on how to make your internet business a success. By utilizing the internet, as well as your permanent location, I believe that we can at least double your business! Consumers are drawn to the ease of access in purchasing goods online, so I will aim to help you make your online site as effective and marketable as possible.


One of the most essential aspects to your online business will be the eCommerce software that you choose. I have researched numerous types, and have narrowed in on three that I think will be most conducive to your business. They are as follows: Zen Cart, Magento, and osCMAX. It is important to acknowledge that each software company has its pros and cons, which we will explore today. By presenting you with this information, I hope that you will have a clear indicator of which company is right for you.


Zen Cart appealed to me because it is very user friendly in its features which are important to a new online business owner. This would be good for your business because it not only keeps products and catalogues updated easily without HTML coding, keeping the website looking clean and appealing, but it also allows you to control all of the editing in the Administration area. These possibilities would be ideal for changing the website’s look during different seasons. Further, this website is free and usable with only the most basic computer skills. However, if you do decide later on that you want to upgrade from the basic features, the instillation is tricky and time consuming. Also, one of the main detracts of Zen Cart is that the email system is slightly unreliable according to previous users.


I decided to use Magento as another options because it offers easy order management and catalogue management that would be beneficial to a flower shop with lots of items to present to its consumers. Magento is very aesthetically appealing and looks modern and sleek. Further, for the consumers, it allows many possible payment options for convenience, and at the time of check out it can offer up sales to increase your merchandise exposure and purchasing. However, while it offers a lot of features, the page times can be rather slow, and you may have to outsource someone to track and monitor your finances depending on what type of accounting system you are currently using. Previous Magento users has trouble in this area if they used MYOB or Quicken.


I began researching osCommerce initially, and then I realized that they had come out with a newer version called oscMAX that has solved the most common problems and requests from users of osCommerce. This software is very admin friendly, there are no licensing fees, and the updates that are installed periodically are very useful. Many of the disadvantages and consumer complaints were solved in the process of transitioning from osCommerce to oscMAX, and the only negative feedback I have received thus far concerns small issues such as moptics image module forcing you to upload small and large pictures separately, which can be time consuming initially. However buyer-beware, since this is still a relatively new product, there may be kinks that haven’t been worked out just yet.


I think that all of these software choices are good to take into consideration, and if you would like some further comparison, I have inserted a chart that compares these three along with other popular options for eCommerce software.

**Click on image to enlarge.





I researched a few different analytics software for your flower shop to use in conjunction with the eCommerce software that you choose. I deduced that Webtrends analytic software would be great for your company because it seems to be the most progressive, innovative, and easy to understand of the three. I did not care for the presentation offered by Google Analytics or Clicktale, and the features that the offered did not seem as easy to use or innovative as Webtrends’. Webtrends describes their services as powerful, elegant, and open because they are a world wide company that prides themselves on remaining competitive and coming up with ideas to make the business owner’s process easier to manage. The only downfall that I foresee is that their headquarters are based in Portland, Oregon so meeting on a one-on-one basis would be highly unlikely and all questions would have to be done by phone or email.


Overall, I think that these are a lot of great options to consider for your new business. Right now is a very interesting time for the internet business market, and eCommerce is growing at a faster rate than our economy. I encourage you to consider all of the pros and cons that I have presented, and if you have any further questions in deciding on what software best suites In Bloom Florists, I would be happy to schedule another meeting with you.

Some helpful tips for exercise 15

Step One-Choosing the 3 ecommerce sites

1)Zen Cart: Pros and Cons website http://www.internetbusinesspath.com/reviews/zencart-review

2) Magento: Pros and Cons website http://www.internetbusinesspath.com/reviews/magento-commerce-review

3) oscMAX: Pros and Cons (as well as some general comparisons) http://www.itwebexperts.com/oscommerce_zencart_xcart_comparison.php#oscmax-shopping-cart-review

Hope this helps, good luck!

-Kelly