Tutorial 4: How to Create Secure Emails

For my final tutorial of ISM3004 I will discuss how to secure vital information that you send through emails. First thing you need to know is what are the most popular Email Clients that allow you to secure your emails. The most popular email clients are Thunderbird, Endora 5.1, Outlook, and Outlook Express.(http://webnet77.com/secure-email.html)  For the purpose of this discussion will use Mozilla Thunderbird. There are several ways to secure an email like popping which allows  "the user name and password are sent in the clear over the internet." (http://webnet77.com/secure-email.html) The way we are going to secure our email is by getting a certificate from Comodo. Here are the steps in how to secure your email:

• Visit Comodo's Website and click on Free Download. 

  

• Next type in the required information into the text fields. 
• Next Submit the information and look in your Thunderbird inbox for a message from Comodo.   
• You will click on the link which will allow you to download the certificate (make sure it opens with Mozilla Firefox)
• Once the certificate is downloaded you must import it into Thunderbird by going to the tools menu on the Firefox window that opened from clicking the link, click "options", than click "advanced" icon,  click "view certificates".

• Click your certificate than click "backup"
• Save to a location you can find easily and return to Thunderbird.(may be required to create a user name and password)
• Once in Thunderbird, Click the tools menu and select "Account Settings"
• Click "View Certificates",  and while in the certificate manager select import and locate the file containing the certificate you downloaded.
• After selecting to import this certificate it may ask you for the user name and password you created for the certificate.
• Now return to the "Account Settings" Menu and choose the "Security" Tab. There should be a sections titled "Digital Signing". Click the "Select" button in that section and choose the newly imported certificate in the drop down menu and click "OK"

 Now you have successfully installed a certificate into Thunderbird which allows you to sign your messages, by choosing the security drop down menu while composing a message and choosing "digitally sign."  This is the first level of security you can give your emails.The next step in security is to encrypt the email. To send an encrypted email to somebody they must first send you an email containing their public key which allows you to encrypt an email that only they can read. Once this has been done you just compose a message and in the security tab choose "encrypt this message."
 

References:

• http://www.comodo.com/
• http://webnet77.com/secure-email.html
• http://kb.mozillazine.org/Installing_an_SMIME_certificate

Secure Email Project

For this project we were required to use Thunderbird to send a secure email and an encrypted email. The following are the screen shots of my professors return email for both the secure and encrypted email.

I found an article about how the Boston Medical Center chose Voltage Security to increase their level of security for emails. Here is a link to the article. To summarize, the article explains how the busy hospital staff would need a secure email system so that no sensitive information could leave and violate any government mandates. Also it would need to be simple and not add any unnecessary steps to the hectic days of the staff. Brad Blake, the director of  the IT department,  chose Voltage Security SecureMail  because it was customizable, little training needed, no support desk, and was simple enough for all the staff. The program scans outgoing messages for keywords like MRN(medical record number) or SSN(social security number) and if any keywords are found it encrypts the message automatically. Another reason Blake chose this program was that he could make emails received and sent on the hospital's Blackberry to make them just as secure as if they were connected to a hospital computer. After the program was rolled out, Blake saw very few problems and most people barely noticed the change which made the change a great success.

What is System Development Life Cycle (SDLC)?

So what is the system development life cycle? It is a collection of system development activities called phases. According to Shelly Cashman's "discovering Computers 2010 most SDLC's contain five phases which are planning, analysis, design, implementation, and Operation (pg 620). To further explain this I have used Cashman's four main activities performed for each phase below.

• Planning

1. Review and approve the project requests
2. Prioritize the project requests
3. Allocate resources such as money
4. Form a project development team for each approved project

http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/Business_Concepts_An_g200-Online_Training__p33812.html

The planning phase of the SDLC is used to create a high level view of the projects and decide what it's goals should be regarding those projects (http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/71151/System_Development_Life_Cycle). the main activities for the planning phase are fairly self explanatory, they are mostly the same steps any business would take in planning any type of project not just a system development project.

• Analysis

1. Conduct a preliminary investigation
2. Perform detailed analysis

 According to Cashman the "main purpose of the preliminary phase, sometimes called the feasibility study, is to determine the exact nature of the problem or improvement and decide whether it is worth pursuing. After this decision is made the detailed analysis should begin. This involves "three major activities (1) study how the current system works; (2) determine the user's wants, needs, and requirements; and (3) recommend a solution." (pg 631) These two steps of the Analysis phase are just information gathering to ultimately decide if the project should continue and if so how should it continue.

• Design

1. If necessary acquire hardware and software
2. Develop all of the details of the new or modified information system

http://www.photos8.com/search/page/3?q=computer

The first step of the design phase is to acquire any software or hardware that might be needed to complete the project. This step can be skipped if the hardware or software needed is already present at the organization. The next step is to make detailed plan of the new or modified system in order to "develop designs for  the databases, inputs, outputs, and programs."(Cashman Discovering Computers 2010, pg 640

• Implementation

1. Develop programs
2. Install and test the new system
3. Train users
4. Convert to the new system

http://www.photos8.com/working_on_apple_laptop-wallpapers.html

The implementation phase's purpose is to build a new or modified system and then deliver it to the users (Cashman, Discovering Computers 2010, pg 643) This phase consists of creating the program, the trail and error testing, training users, and finally installing or updating the software for users to use.

• Operation, Support, Security

1. Perform maintenance activities
2. Monitor system performance
3. Assess system security

According to Cashman the final phase is to "provide ongoing assistance for an information system and its users after the system is implemented." (pg645) In other words the final phase is basically tech support for the program.  This phase is there to assure users that any problems will be fixed and that security of the program and the information inside of it will not be compromised.

http://www.photos8.com/barbed_wire_fence-wallpapers.html

In other words the system development life cycle or SDLC is the entire process of formal, logical steps taken to develop a software product.(http://www.mks.com/resources/resource-pages/software-development-life-cycle-sdlc-system-development) These steps help ensure the program is implemented on time with minimal errors and support for the users. I hope after reading this blog you can now understand the steps it takes to create a program and the life cycle a program takes.

My Experience with Microsoft Access

This project was very informative and interesting. I had never even heard of Microsoft Access before so the experience using the program was quite difficult at first. Access allows users to create tables, reports, queries, and forms using a data set. I found the most useful aspect of this program was that you could import a data set from Excel and Access would turn the data set into a table. As well you could then turn this table into a variety of things helpful to many business's day to day operations. After the first hour of using the program it became fairly easy to use the basic options and I can see the great value it will hold for me in the future.

There are several ways you could enhance this database, but to me the most important way to improve it would be to separate the current members from the past members that had already left. I think that if you created two more queries, one being current members and the other being any members that have left the gym, it would greatly enhance the ability to perhaps find a member to cancel their membership or to even find a departed member to send out direct mailers to try to gain their membership again. I just think that keeping them separate would cut down in the amount of searching through the members to find certain people especially if the members forget their ID number. The last way that I know how to enhance the database is perhaps to make more data fields read only such as birth date, gender, name, and joined date. I would suggest this because these are fields that should never change after the creation of a membership. This would help stop someone from accidentally changing information while trying to add a new member or canceling a membership.

Tutorial 2: How to Create an Exciting Presentation.

Have you ever been assigned a presentation and feel that you are stuck using something boring and unoriginal? Fear no more, because of the technology of Web 2.0 allows you to create exciting presentations that are sure to be the crowds favorite. With websites such as prezi.com and programs such as Jing you never have to make a boring slide show again.

Prezi is a  unique way to create presentations. Instead of a sideshow it uses a large whiteboard where the creator can edit any part of the board and zoom in, zoom out. As well you can create a path that the camera follows giving it a more organic feel rather than a computerized  If you click the above link there is a tutorial video of some of the features of Prezi feel more than welcome to view this video as I found it quite interesting. As well as prezi.com there is a program called Jing, which allows you capture both screen shots as well as video with audio) right off of your computer screen. This is very helpful for creating an online presentation that you can not physically give.Below is a sped up video of a user creating a presentation using prezi.com

Now that we know a few of the programs we can use to create a presentation lets focus on how to make it an effective presentation. According to http://www.theegglestongroup.com/writing/keystep1.php the keys to a great presentation are:

1. "Know Your Subject Matter"
2. "Know Your Audience"
3. "Know Yourself"
4. "Develop a Theme"
5. "Prepare Your Script"
6. "Select the Proper Visual Aides"
7. "Prepare a Storyboard"
8. "Produce the Visuals"

Most of these are self explanatory; however' let us focus on the visuals of the presentation. It is very important to pick visuals that compliment your presentation and at the same time do not clutter it or distract the audience from the message. One the the most important things is to make sure the visual belongs in the presentation. The visual must convey the same message you are trying to send to your audience. Nothing inappropriate should be used and also do not overwhelm the audience with tons of pictures that end up causing them to become lost in the visuals.

Another important subject in creating an effective presentation is the text used within it. The text needs to be short and straight to the point. Lengthy sentences tend to be lost in a presentation. Stick to the facts and keep it short. This is so that while giving the presentation you do not end up reading straight off the slide and instead you have room to generate extra input to connect all the dots of your presentation.

The next step to having an effective presentation is having an effective speaker. You must not read straight off the slide but instead generate new facts and information not given on the slide to show that you actually understand what is on the slide instead of just reading a script of information you found. Appearance is an important factor for physical presentations. Be well dressed, and groomed as well as having good posture during the presentation to show your audience that you are confident in the information on the slides. Maintain eye contact through out the presentation to ensure the audience of your confidence.

Th last step in giving an effective presentation is how you speak to the audience. You want to speak clearly and loud enough so that everyone can understand you. As well, memorize your script so to avoid mumbling and awkward silences. This is especially important in online presentations where the audience does not see you physically. The only thing they have to go on is your voice. This makes your voice very impressionable to their opinions on both you and your presentation.

With this knowledge on effective presentations anyone can turn a boring mundane presentation into one that screams of excitement and confidence.

References: 

• http://www.1000ventures.com/business_guide/crosscuttings/presentations_main.html
•  http://www.theegglestongroup.com/writing/keystep1.php
• http://prezi.com/
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=anF9K50W0j8&feature=related

Presntation

This project on creating a presentation that I could share online was quite fun. I used a program called Prezi and it turned a boring power point into a new and unique presentation. I have never used any program besides power point to create my presentations; but now that I know about way more exciting and interesting ways to present I doubt I will return. Here is the URL to my Prezi presentation http://prezi.com/skm6gt56enpi/resturant/. As well as creating this I was required to capture my voice and present it as if I were actually giving the presentation. For this I used Jing and captured my voice over the video of the presentation. To get to this presentation just use this URL http://www.screencast.com/t/rGJRy7Yl.

Now it is time to do some self critique using the evaluation rubric. Overall I believe that the presentation was very interesting, especially how it was presented. However, After using the rubric and after evaluating somebody's presentation I discovered several wrongdoings of my own. The first thing I discovered wrong was that the mouse pointer was all over the screen and was quite distracting from what the speaker was saying. I believe however that the presentation would grab most peoples attention within the first 30 seconds just because of the uniqueness that Prezi offers to the presenter.

I did not ask any questions in the presentation which is a negative on the rubric and did not seem to discuss anything outside of the slides too much. The readability of the presentation was excellent in my opinion. Anytime white words are on black I find it extremely easy to read.

Finally I believe that perhaps some questions were overlooked in the presentation. This is a major drawback because this was an online presentation where the audience can not simply raise a hand and ask the question but must take time to send a question through email or by comments which is not as efficient as being able to physically ask the question.

I learned a great deal during this project about how to capture voice and use it to create an online presentation that is available to anyone to watch. As well I learned a great deal about all the different web 2.0 tools that you can use to enhance your presentation. I believe that all of these tools will help greatly in acquiring new clients or investors in any future business transactions where a presentation is needed.

Excel Project

        I have to say that the Excel Project for ISM 3004 had me running for the hills at first. After watching the videos I thought it would be just like any other computer classes' excel project and just be the mundane salvo of copy and paste. This project was a bit more complicated and made you think critically to create the correct formulas to acquire the data needed. The project was to take a set of raw data and manipulate it using formulas and tables to show specific information found in the data. This included averages of the data, pivot tables, functions to determine whether or not the people in the data reached a certain heart rate, and specific demographic information about the data.
        Out of the entire project the formula to find if the target heart rate was achieved was the most difficult for myself. I was trying all types of combination of formulas to achieve this. They included vlookup, if, find, search, and max all to no avail. No matter what combination I tried I was getting an error come up for my formula. Finally when I was ready to throw my keyboard and smash my printer in a field, I realized I needed to just use the value of a formula I found earlier in the project. I was so happy to be done with the formula =if(logical_test, [value_if_true], [value_if_false]).
       The learned a few things during this project especially about the uses of formulas to find certain data in workbooks. As well as the formulas, I also learned how to create Pivot Tables in Excel. Before the lectures and this project I did not even know there was such a thing as a pivot table. However; now that I know of their existence, I believe they can be extremely useful for any business owner trying to analyze a set of data. Posted below is the screen shot of my "Avg Increase" pivot table.

Tutorial 1: Etiquette for the Modern Age

INTRO:

This is not your grandmother's old etiquette class, this is the modernized version meant for any user of the World Wide Web. The term that describes this type of etiquette is netiquette, and it does not explain the proper way to eat or drink your tea. This version of etiquette is focused on how you, as a user of the web, interact with others in the online environment. Whether it be online classes, video games, social networking, or many of the other uses of the Internet you should always follow the simple netiquette rules. Using netiquette allows the receiver of your messages and yourself to be able to benefit the most from your online experiences. Even though you cannot physically see the person receiving your messages, you must always remember there is a person on the other end. The proper use of netiquette can greatly enhance anyone's experience reading your messages. This act will be returned the next time they send you a message.

Basic Rules:

Golden Rule- "Do unto others as you would have done done to you." (http://www.networketiquette.net/) This is the principle behind every rule in netiquette. This is a very simple concept; however, it is very easy to forget or to disregard this rule because of emotions or acts done in haste. Also, according to the textbook "Discovering Computers 2010" by Shelly and Vermaat there are some other rules of netiquette to follow besides the golden rule. They are as follows:

1. Keep messages brief (check spelling and grammar)
2. Sarcasm and humor can be misinterpreted so use caution when using these
3. Always be polite and avoid the use of offensive or derogatory language
4. Proofread everything before you send
5. Use meaningful subject lines to alert the reader of what is contained in the message
6. Do not send "flames" which are abusive or insulting messages
7. Do not send spam mail (junk mail)
8. Use emoticons to express emotions. =] smile, =[ frown, ext...
9. Use abbreviations and acronyms for common phrases. lol- laugh out loud, ttyl- talk to you later, ext...
10. Before posting questions try to search for the answer first (most of the time they are easily found). If you still can not find the answer than you may ask the question
11. Never assume a website or the material on any website is up-to-date.
12. Never read someone's private email.
13. Do not use all capital letters as it is seen as shouting

"All Capital Letters=Yelling" By: Daniel Rifa

The rules of netiquette are fairly simple and easy to abide by. As long as you remember the golden rule the rest will be the result of treating others how you wish to be treated. For some other takes on the rules of netiquette you can click  here. Now lets go through a couple different scenarios to see if you can spot what the person is doing wrong and what netiquette rules they are breaking. The answers will be posted at the end of the scenarios.

Scenario 1:

Bob just received ten emails from his mother. Four of the emails are about Bob's acceptance to the University of Florida, three are from Bob's family members with pictures of his family, and the rest are emails about financial aide that his mother wanted him to look at. After going through the emails Bob decides to forward the photos to everyone in his contacts list in turn sending them to family, friends, and employees.

1)Who is in violation of the netiquette rules and engaging in spam mail, Bob or his mother and why?

Scenario 2:

Tim likes to play online games and sometimes gets in a rush when typing to other players. While typing to a fellow player Tim forgot to take caps lock off and the resulting message was in all capital letters. Tim sends the message anyways without even noticing that it was in all capital letters.

2) What rule(s) of netiquette are Tim breaking?

A. sending spam mail                 

B. shouting through caps locks.

C. not proofreading                   

D. both B and C

Answers:

1) Bob is in violation of the netiquette rules because he sent the family photos to many people who were not related to the members of the photos as well as perhaps did not even know them. This would of resulted in them having to delete the spam mail, wasting their time. On the other hand Bob's mother was following the rule perfectly because everything she sent had some significance to Bob.

2) Tim is shouting at the fellow player by using all capital letters, and he forgot to proofread his message before he sent it which could have prevented the shouting that resulted in the capital letters. The answer was "D. both B and C"

Conclusion:

Now that you are familiar with what the rules of netiquette it is time to go out into the web and practice what you have learned and share with others how to make the web a more enjoyable experience for us all.

"Netiquette Gold Medal" by: Daniel Rifa

Resources:

1.  http://www.albion.com/netiquette/corerules.html
2. http://www.networketiquette.net/ 
3. "Discovering Computers 2010"  by Gary B. Shelly & Misty E. Vermaat.