Group+9+Script+and+Research

Clement: I have put the script on a separate page for our convenience: You can access it from the G9 Home page  

**__Research Links__:**

COLLABORATION LINKS: (I'm thinking about doing how the setting up of Intranet can bring a lot of dissatisfactioN: http://www.intrack.com/intranet/iarchi.shtml

GOOD IDEA FOR CLEMENT: intranet traffic, like public-facing web site traffic, is better understood by using web metrics software to track overall activity, as well as through surveys of users. Like use of routers (serious privacy issues involved with tracking workers' online activities. website on how routers work


 * When you sit down at your computer on an intranet and send or receive data, that information generally must first go through at least one router, and often more than one router before it reaches its final destination. Routers can be simple or quite sophisticated. Factors that determine the required complexity of a router include the size of the intranet, the type and quantity of traffic on segments, and security concerns of the intranet. The more complex the intranet, and, in particular, the greater number of possible destinations for data, the greater the need for sophisticated router hardware and software.**

http://www.doktertomi.com/2008/03/24/chapter-4-how-intranet-routers-work/

Here is some statistics from primary sources: perhaps you can incorporate these into your presentation: heres the website: [|http://www.numotion.net/news/blog/market-statistics-intranet-usage
 * [|Intranet] ROI (return on investment) well beyond 1,000 percent. || IDC technology forecaster ||
 * Companies recover the cost of their [|intranet]s within six to 12 weeks, the highest return of any technology expense. || IDC technology forecaster ||
 * It is estimated that more than 90 percent of U.S. enterprises - including quite small ones - now have an [|intranet] up and in some stage of evolution. || John Gerstner ||
 * Corporations spent nearly $64 billion on [|intranet] hardware, software and related services worldwide in 2000. This number is expected to grow to $200 billion per year by the end of the decade. || Gartner Group, Forrester and other technology forecasters ||
 * In a 2001 survey of small and medium sized enterprises and government and non-profits, almost three-quarters of those polled said having an [|intranet] allows their staff to work more efficiently and more productively. || Modalis, a technology information provider ||
 * Seventy-two percent said an [|intranet] improves collaboration and knowledge sharing. The other major perceived benefits of having an [|intranet] were: reducing stress and confusion, improving the quality of work, enabling better decision-making, improving communications with suppliers and customers, enabling speedier production, and reducing costs. || Modalis, a technology information provider ||
 * More than 75 percent of all web servers currently being installed are for [|intranet] purposes, and the market for [|intranet] applications, platforms and related technology is substantially outstripping that for the public [|Internet] and indeed all other IT areas. || Gartner Group, Forrester and other technology forecasters ||
 * Migrating human-resources information to the Web can save companies up to 40%. || E-PeopleServe, a joint venture of British Telecom and consulting firm Accenture ||
 * Eliminating paper for travel and expense reporting, can save as much as 93% in administration and processing costs. || Accenture, consulting firm ||
 * Real power of [|intranet]s lies, not in simply giving employees 24x7 access to key information inside an organization, but in fundamentally changing the way employees work "...turning doers into thinkers." || Research Foundation of the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) ||
 * "E' was big. 'C' is bigger." Suddenly every software vendor is jockeying to become a collaborative commerce play. || Gartner Group technology forecaster ||
 * More than 85 percent of businesses will have [|portal]s in development by 2003. || Meta Group technology forecaster ||
 * "Collaborative commerce is much bigger than buying and selling.... The [|Internet] will be even more momentous as a medium for business-to-business collaboration." || Chuck Phillips and Mary Meeker, analysts at Morgan Stanley Dean Witter ||

NEW LINKS!!! http://www.eto.org.uk/faq/faqintra.htm http://www.tech-faq.com/intranet.shtml

[|intranet Journal]-Talks about what an intranet is and why international businesses use them http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtual_private_network http://www.intranetjournal.com/foundation/vpn-1.shtml [|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intranet_strategies (doesn't work for me) [|http://www.web-conferencing-zone.com/intranet-teleconferencing-software.htm](good website there)    <span style="color: rgb(99, 34, 211)"><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0)">(doesn't work for me) <span style="background-color: rgb(241, 238, 238)"><span style="background-color: rgb(134, 9, 9)"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255)"><span style="color: rgb(78, 17, 228)"><span style="color: rgb(99, 34, 211)"> Victoria's note: with links that don't work. use a proxy. a good proxy would be www.webevader.com (although you have to put up with alot of pop up ads) For Clement: firewalls are employed in intranet so people from outside networks cannot access it.

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-an-intranet.htm (this website provides some basic ideas of different social/ethical implications)

<span style="background-color: rgb(241, 238, 238)"><span style="background-color: rgb(134, 9, 9)">

**What is an Intranet?**[|intranet Journal]
An Intranet is a private site that is run on private servers and only available to the workers within that organization. Intranets are usually used to connect the different departments inside an office and link all the databases and other vital information together on one system. It works just like the normal internet and runs on the same technologies. Employees access the intranet site the same way they go on the World Wide Web, which is usually via a web browser.

**Privacy/Security Issues**
Security issues might be another disadvantage with an intranet. For instance, an employee might have posted sensitive information for all employees to see. Another issue might be the fact that there is too much information. Information overload does exist and can take place when too much data is up on the intranet. This makes it very difficult for employees to navigate and find data that is meaningful or that they need.
 * Employees leaking sensitive info[|:http://www.tech-faq.com/intranet.shtml]**

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica"> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica">Intranets and extranets are often constructed using Web servers to deliver information to users in a now-familiar form. **Username/password authentication** has long been used as a mechanism for restricting access to web sites. But because these character strings are themselves passed as clear text, capable of being intercepted and read with simple network management tools, basic passwords do not adequately secure communications. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica"> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica">A significant improvement can be achieved by encrypting communications between a browser and server. The most common way of doing this is to establish a secure connection using a variation on HTTP (the standard web protocol) called the **Secure Sockets Layer** (SSL). Increasingly, commercial web sites are using SSL to guarantee the authenticity of the server and integrity of the data delivered to web site users, and to protect visitors' responses to interactive elements on the site. Whenever you point your browser to a URL that begins with https://, you are using SSL.//
 * Login security:** http://www.intranetjournal.com/features/isecurity.shtml

//Hierarchies//
//The bottom line is that an intranet, like any corporate venture, is a reflection of the business that runs it. A company that is well organized (and therefore usually successful) will be able to design an intranet in such a way to best suit their needs. As Schneider and Davis state, "<span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0)">As the intranet creates new forms of collaboration, it will challenge traditional ways of doing work and obtaining information. For the intranet to be successful, it must provide ways of empowering all employees, offering concrete incentives for employees to use, and encourage the use, of the intranet. The process-oriented intranet, then, is 'in [|sync]' with the company it works for. And this is where graphic design, tone, and standards emerge as vital to the intranet's success. Like it or not, intranets have personalities, which are amalgams of visual style, tone, and content. <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0)">An intranet that reflects the culture of its company will make employees feel more at home, will help [|dispersed] employees feel that they share the same space, and will encourage collaboration and communication around the processes they support ."//

//Disadvantages:Cost and maintenance//
Initially, a business that wishes to set up an intranet has to consider the following costs: hardware (including the server and network adapter), software and utilities, and installation. This can all be done rather quickly since a simple intranet only requires an existing TCP/IP network and an extra machine to act as the server. This extra machine will have to have the proper Web server software and network card installed and may require a memory upgrade and added disk space. After everything is up and running, upgrades to the hardware will have to made from time to time to handle increasing traffic. New software like multimedia applications and interactive forums as well as upgrades to existing applications are all essential. The labor of employees who maintain the intranet is an ongoing cost, as are the costs to publish and archive data.

As the cost to maintain an intranet grows over time, so does the time and effort to maintain it. Managers often spend considerable energy trying to keep up with increased traffic and other forms of growth. Proper planning (including having the best Web and network tools available) is one way to cut down on the [|manpower] required to run an intranet. Employees who maintain the intranet must be experts in the area of Web publishing. Managing the server, developing applications, and converting documents and databases to html format are just some of the duties found in this area. Many companies decide to hire an outside firm to run their intranet rather than do so themselves. This cuts down on the number of internal problems and potential disasters and gives management peace of mind to know that trained professionals are handling this often delicate situation. If this route is taken, it is important for management to keep some employees dedicated to intranet issues in case the relationship with the outside supplier does not end up working out.

Once the intranet is set up, it is important to keep its content current in order to keep employees using it in the manner for which it was intended. Regular updates regarding company news and the promotion of the intranet from upper management are just two ways to keep it from growing obsolete before its time. Large corporations like **IBM, Ford Motor Company, and the Turner Entertainment Grou**p (POSSIBLE CASE STUDY COMPANIES FOR YOU) have all had success implementing intranets into their corporate structure. But these giant companies are not the only ones who have been able to exploit the benefits of intranets to their fullest advantage. Small businesses have taken notice as to how intranets help cut down on costs and increase productivity. Since small businesses often also have less red tape to deal with than larger corporations, a full-fledged intranet or even a test version can often be set up quickly and easily. Once management and employees become familiar with how the intranet works, the possibilities for success are [|limitless].

REALLY GOOD IDEAS FOR IMPLICATIONS FOR BOTH OF US! MUST READ!

Advantages Of Intranets http://www.answers.com/intranet?cat=technology//////

 * 1) http://www.answers.com/intranet?cat=technology////////////Workforce productivity: Intranets can help users to locate and view information faster and use applications relevant to their roles and responsibilities. With the help of a web browser interface such as [|Internet Explorer] or Firefox, users can access data held in any database the organization wants to make available, anytime and - subject to security provisions - from anywhere within the company workstations, increasing employees' ability to perform their jobs faster, more accurately, and with confidence that they have the right information. It also helps to improve the services provided to the users.
 * 2) Time: With intranets, organizations can make more information available to employees on a "pull" basis (ie: employees can link to relevant information at a time which suits them) rather than being deluged indiscriminately by emails.
 * 3) Communication: Intranets can serve as powerful tools for communication within an organization, vertically and horizontally. From a communications standpoint, intranets are useful to communicate strategic initiatives that have a global reach throughout the organization. The type of information that can easily be conveyed is the purpose of the initiative and what the initiative is aiming to achieve, who is driving the initiative, results achieved to date, and who to speak to for more information. By providing this information on the intranet, staff have the opportunity to keep up-to-date with the strategic focus of the organization.
 * 4) Web publishing allows '//**cumbersome'**// corporate knowledge to be maintained and easily accessed throughout the company using [|hypermedia] and Web technologies. Examples include: employee manuals, benefits documents, company policies, business standards, newsfeeds, and even training, can be accessed using common Internet standards (Acrobat files, Flash files, CGI applications). Because each business unit can update the online copy of a document, the most recent version is always available to employees using the intranet.
 * 5) Business operations and management: Intranets are also being used as a platform for developing and deploying applications to support business operations and decisions across the internetworked enterprise.
 * 6) Cost-effective: Users can view information and data via web-browser rather than maintaining physical documents such as procedure manuals, internal phone list and requistion forms.
 * 7) Promote common corporate culture: Every user is viewing the same information within the Intranet.
 * 8) Enhance Collaboration: With information easily accessible by all authorised users, teamwork is enabled.
 * 9) Cross-platform Capability: Standards-compliant web browsers are available for Windows, Mac, and *NIX.

http://www.tech-faq.com/intranet.shtml
Intranets can enhance the productivity at an organization. They can be used for many things dealing with communication. For instance, intranets can be helpful to organizations large and small, by giving it the ability to use intranets as delivery mechanisms for applications, drivers and collaborative projects. An intranet can also help associates find data quickly and easy through a browser interface. For instance, your organization might have medical insurance information on the intranet, which workers can easily navigate and access. This can reduce the amount of time that it takes to contact an individual at the HR Dept.. Instead, information is at the fingertips of all associates. Another great way intranets can enhance productivity is that information is available when a worker needs it, not just when people with the information send it out via email.