Hey there! My name is Lauren Hunter. I am 21 years old and a senior at the University of Florida. I plan on graduating this spring with a Bachelors degree in Business and attending grad school in the fall. I love going to the beach, swimming, biking, eating, traveling and football. I am currently working at Leonardo’s 706 as a server. I was born in Canada and moved to Florida when I was eight. I return every summer to visit family and friends.
Here is a quick link to my resume.
Webpage Project
Why do you think a Web presence (site) is an "essential" for businesses of all sizes?
A website is “essential” for any new and upcoming company or organization, as well as previously established, lucrative businesses. A website allows for people to become familiar with the company and have a better understanding of their overall mission. People are able to familiarize themselves with products or services and possibly contact the company or purchase products through a website. With the increase in technological developments, the internet can be accessed though many sources, such as a cell phone. People are likely to spend more time on the internet. The more information a business can supply to its potential customers through a website, the more business they are likely to get. They are also easy and affordable for a business of any size to create. Websites can also be a great form of advertising.
Podcast http://crayonhunter.podOmatic.com/entry/2008-02-10T19_04_39-08_00
Podcasting is a new and innovative technology with countless benefits. Businesses can promote their products by podcasting. It is an inexpensive and fast way for a company to advertise. If a company has a website, it allows them to describe certain products on a personal level. More people are purchasing portable electronics, such as i-pods and i-phones and are able to access the internet with these tools. People can listen to podcasting though these sources. Podcasting is a unique form of digital media because it can be syndicated and downloaded instantaneously when new content is added. A business can keep their customers informed on a daily basis.
As a student, podcasting provides for a new source of learning. Telecommunications students can practice broadcasting through this media source. Teachers can record their lessons through podcasting and it is easily associable for students to access these lessons. If there is ever a serious alert on campus that needs to be communicated to students in a quick manner, it can be done though podcasting. It is a great tool for swift communication.
Secure E-mail
In today’s technology driven society, digitally signed and encrypted emails are extremely beneficial. With the influx of Spam, viruses and other inappropriate content, digitally signed emails allows for a timely and cost saving filtering system. This outsourcing system is useful because it allows an email recipient to verify the identity of the person sending the email. The secure email providers have messaging features such as webmail, which is great for students who receive all school related messages through webmail.
The setup for these security systems is straightforward. It took me less then twenty minutes to set up a security certificate from Verisign. This provider offers a free 60 day trial, which is cost efficient and allows the user to test out the service before purchasing. Providers almost always supply their users with a step by step instructional on how to set up a security certificate. Once set up, email messages are encrypted or signed automatically, so employees need no additional training. A public key and a private key are provided, but only you can access the private key. For this encryption experience, I made use of the public key for sending a message that was intended for a specific person for only them to see. I used my private key to send my classmates a digitally signed message so they could be sure it was from me. All good email service providers should offer anytime, reliable access to email.
Encrypting an email message prevents other people from reading it when it is in transit. Encrypted emails protect a customers account, identity and health information. Businesses benefit from this system because it provides assurance to their clients. It is convenient for a business to use this system because an outside source is responsible for managing the messaging process. For protection from identity theft and other crucial scams, personal and confidential information should be sent and encrypted through a secure email system.
Collaborative Computing
Collaborative computing is
a necessity within the field of business. As technology advances, more companies
begin to rely on the internet as a form of communication. The importance for
gaining knowledge about server programs is becoming increasingly vital in
regards to acquiring employment. When using these programs, large companies are
able to work together and efficiently complete tasks, without having to be face
to face.Surveys and discussions allow for open communication and input, allowing
issues to be easily resolved.
Programs, such as
Sharepoint, allow people to communicate and collaboratively work together on
business projects. I really enjoyed working with my teammates using Sharepoint.
We were able to make surveys, post discussions, post pictures, and create
documents. When using Sharepoint, we were instructed to create an alert that
notifies your email account whenever a teammate posted a comment. I found this
to be extremely effective and an
informative way of communication.
Organizations can use Server programs such as Sharepoint to collaborate and implement business processes. They are essential for providing information for executing organizational goals and processes. Companies can create specific Sharepoint sites that are relevant to their current issues. Users can conduct effective searches, participate in discussions, and access large amounts of business data.
Link to Advertisement
Excel 2003/2007 Skills
For this project, I was taught how to perform text manipulation in the 2003 Excel application. I learned how to insert columns and perform specific text functions in order to extract information from already existing columns. I also learned how to look up data by using the VLookup function. I created a pivot table to summarize the DVD rental information, and goal seeking tools to look up unit prices and total units sold. I found this excel project to be very insightful. I know I will be using these tools in the future.
Database
I found this project to be somewhat of a challenge, mostly because I was unfamiliar with Microsoft Access. Although I watched all of the lectures and followed the directions, I often found myself making mistakes with the relationships. Making these mistakes permitted me to learn a lot about this program.
Microsoft Access is essential in this world of ever increasing commerce. Creating OutID’s and Primary Keys allows you to identify specific fields of related information. Once this is done, you can create relationships to other tables if the data is coded correctly. In this particular instance, we were able to tell which video outlets were sent specific DVDs. This database system is very useful and can be beneficial if coded correctly.
Microsoft Access speeds up searching for items which creates easy inventory assessment. With this program, we are also able to see which items are available and in stock and at which location. I found creating a query to be one of the most helpful functions because I was able to search for specific information. In this case, I searched for PG movies only and organized them alphabetically. Although it is time consuming to set up, Microsoft Access can allow a business to run smoothly.
Prior to this experience with Microsoft Access, I had very little familiarity with creating and manipulating a database. Among the several tasks that we have executed, I found this experience to be the most challenging. Despite its difficulty, I felt that this feature really tied the entire portfolio project together.
