P1 Glossary

Web server

A web server is the hardware part of the system that sends services to end users over the internet. This is where the copy of the web page is held and anyone with a browser can gain access to the information on the web server if it is publicly available and they have the ‘url’. (Techopedia, 2015) For example, when we type in ‘www.google.com’ on our search bar and we click enter the browser request information about google from the web server and the server delivers google to the client.

Mail server

A Mail server is what allows us to send e-mails to each other. The mail server makes sure that the e-mail gets sent to the correct recipient and to no one else. The mail server also allow us to send e-mails to different domains so e.g. yahoo.com can send an email to Hotmail.com. Without this server this would be impossible.

Proxy server

This is a server that acts as a connector to other servers, either for security and speed. Proxy server also have a firewall function where it acts as an intermediary between client network devices on the web so when a client request for information from another network the proxy server mirrors the request and receives the information in a way that stop the other network from knowing the location of the request, this is done to avoid intruders.

Protocol

Protocol is the agreed language that is used to communicate between systems. Protocol allows network devices to make connections with each other and to know when the connection is being made.

Browsers

Browsers is another important aspect of e-commerce, this technology is used to convert the information received from the web server in a visual display. Browsers such as Google chrome are used nowadays to buy and sell online. Features of browsers includes history list so a user can easily find a site they previously visited which had a product they wanted to buy. The layout of browsers also make it easy to navigate around e-commerce sites such as eBay. Browsers cache sites which means that webpages previously visited are stored in the RAM which makes it quicker to load up items that have been visited previously. This comes in handy when you are on eBay and you are switching through seller profiles and you want to go back to a certain one, you can just click on the back button instead of typing in a link for that seller.

TCP/IP addresses

Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol is a standard protocol used by the internet to transmit data over a network. It is important that the computers on the same network use the same protocol or else it will be impossible for data two be transmitted between both parties. The computers on the network are identified through their unique IP address, through this unique number the systems would be able to identify the correct system to send the data to. This means that when we type into our search bar www.argos.com what the browser is actually looking for is an IP address – particular computer on the internet where the Argos site information is saved so that it can be retrieved.

 

 

 Application layer

Application layer which is the highest layer that contains the following protocols:

HTTP – This is used to send out a request to the client in order for data to be transferred. So when you type in google.com this sends a request to the server in order for data to be received by the browser.

HTTPS – This does the same thing as HTTP but the S stands for secure so when you see HTTPS on banking and e-commerce sites it means that the site verified and secure to use.

SMTP – This is the main protocol for transferring of e-mail, this is what most mail domains use to transfer data between them.  Other protocol used regarding receiving and sending of e-mails would include Post Office Protocol 3 (POP3) and Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP).

References

Amazon.com, (2015). Amazon.com General Help Forum. [online] Available at: http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/forums?ie=UTF8&cdForum=Fx2NFGOONPZEXIP&cdThread=Tx36UD4X84IF3P6 [Accessed 9 Oct. 2015].

Darrow, B. (2012). How Oracle (yes Oracle!) helped Amazon suck the cost out of database backup. [online] Gigaom.com. Available at: https://gigaom.com/2012/10/10/how-oracle-yes-oracle-helped-amazon-suck-the-cost-out-of-database-backup/ [Accessed 9 Oct. 2015].

Pew Research Center: Internet, Science & Tech, (2013). Mobile Technology Fact Sheet. [online] Available at: http://www.pewinternet.org/fact-sheets/mobile-technology-fact-sheet/ [Accessed 9 Oct. 2015].

Techopedia.com, (2015). What is a Web Server? - Definition from Techopedia. [online] Available at: https://www.techopedia.com/definition/4928/web-server [Accessed 9 Oct. 2015].

 

M2 - Notepad vs Komodo Edit - Task 1/6

Introduction

Notepad and komodo edit are both software that can be used to develop webpages. They both have their good and bad aspect. For this reason, this document would be based on the advantages and disadvantages of both komodo and notepad, then based on the pros and cons a conclusion can be derived at which software is most suitable.

Notepad

Notepad is plain text editor that come pre-installed with the operating system Windows. The program can be used for different activities on the computer e.g. you can run batch files on them through command prompt and the fact that it has no format tags means it can be used to develop web pages by adding .html extension when saved.

Advantages of notepad	Disadvantages of notepad
An advantage of notepad is that there is no training needed since the layout is so simple to use. This means that web developers don’t have to spend money on training themselves on how to use the software as it is straightforward. The Microsoft interface that most people are familiar with is another reason why it is easy to use.	A major disadvantage when it comes to notepad is that it is very easy to make errors in the webpage since there is no auto correct and there is no support given in terms of auto complete of html references compared to komodo where it closes the tags for you. Another disadvantage is that you have to already have a browser installed before you can execute the html coding.
Notepad is a free application that comes with your operating system so it helps you save money and it means that you can gain access to it anytime.	Another problem of notepad is that it is only compatible with windows which means that if you tried to open your html on an iMac this would be difficult to do.
The fact that notepad is a pre-installed application means that it is quick to load up and the coding for webpages is executed quickly.	There is not any support given in terms of finding out where you’ve have made a mistake in your html coding if it is not working. This can be difficult for amateur website developers because they wouldn’t be able to find where their mistakes are if the html does not work properly.
Due to the fact that notepad has being available since the earlier version of Windows means that it is a trusted application and it is unlikely to see glitches or viruses run with the program.	Notepad doesn’t give user the opportunity to preview the output webpage of the script while coding. This is a problem because it means that user would not be able to spot mistakes as soon as they make it. So you could be writing a 50 line html and make a mistake halfway and not realise.

 

 

 

 

Komodo Edit

Komodo edit is a program vended by Active State and it is a multi-language editor which makes it compatible with different writing style such as HTML, Python and JavaScript. It is tailored to make webpage development as easy and efficient as possible. It has lots of features to help developers create a good webpage.

Advantages of komodo edit	Disadvantages of komodo edit
Ease of use is strong advantage that komodo edit has due to its formatting where the statements are colour coded, this makes it easy for the user to understand the different part of the scripts . Komodo edit is also an application that is available on most operating system unlike notepad. This makes it easier to use when working in an organisation because you can work on different operating system at work compared to home.	A major disadvantage when it comes to Komodo edit is that the application takes long. This is a problem because when you have a huge html script it is very likely to crash due to the slow speed that the information is being processed.
Auto correct is an available feature so html scripts don’t get executed with mistakes in them. Also suggestion means that tags are used properly and the ones that need a close tag have a close tag i.e <body> </body>	The complexity of the software application makes another disadvantage. The user interface is not simple enough for anyone to just start using the software, you might to go through some tutorials or use the help support.
This software has a good support system that is available in different languages. There are questions and answers so common problems that come up can be resolved by just going to the support area of the software.	Another disadvantage of the software is that before you can use it you’re going to have to install it which can be a problem because it is very easy to download it from an untrusted source which can come with a virus and damage your system.
There is also internal preview of html script available which means that you don’t have to install a browser like chrome before you preview your webpage, also with this feature it is easier to spot mistakes since you can see where you are going wrong as you are developing the page.	The fact that there is also a lot of tabs on the application makes it quite confusing for a beginner. The setting up of template is not easy to understand as well and the wrong template would lead to error being created in the script.

 

Conclusion

It can be concluded that they are both good software applications to use when developing webpages but as a first hand user I believe that komodo edit is better because the application is tailored to developing webpages while notepad can be used for any sort of word processing. Another reason why I think komodo edit is better to use is because of the support that is given and you can learn more about developing webpages from using it because the support pages explain the use of tags and when to use them. Notepad on the other hand doesn’t have this feature.

 

References

Komodoide.com, (2015). Komodo IDE -- One Cross-Platform IDE, All Your Languages. [online] Available at: http://komodoide.com/ [Accessed 8 Oct. 2015].

Notepad-plus-plus.org, (2015). Notepad++ Home. [online] Available at: https://notepad-plus-plus.org/ [Accessed 5 Oct. 2015].

Wikipedia, (2015). Komodo Edit. [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Komodo_Edit [Accessed 6 Oct. 2015].

Wikipedia, (2015). Notepad (software). [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Notepad_(software) [Accessed 6 Oct. 2015].