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Friday, November 16, 2007
Week 4: Practical 4 & 5
For this week's UIR lab lesson, we did some groundwork for our assignment, which is due in 2 weeks. Choosing from the list of assignment topics, we did research using three search facilities, namely search engines, meta-search engines and subject directories. My chosen topic for the week is "Discuss the impact of terrorism on the world economy".

I picked to use the following search facilities:

Search Engines:
http://www.google.com/

Meta-search Engines:
http://www.metacrawler.com/

Subject Directories:
http://www.galaxy.com/

For the purposes of my research, I used the key phrase "economic impact of terrorism". While all three search facilities produced largely relevant results, there were interesting points of consideration. The search engine returned the most number of hits, 32,000 hits, and did so using only the exact key phrase. In comparison, the meta-search engine produced a mere 42 results, while using individual key words from the key phrase! Using the subject directory yielded even fewer results, just 1, and this was when certain key words were used, instead of the exact key phrase!

From the research conducted, I can conclude that search engines, when compared to meta-search engines and subject directories, offer the most number of relevant hits, while using only the exact key words given. As such, I would recommend search engines to people who need to do voluminous research on any topic.

~ { 1:28 AM }
Leaving the CITY;

Thursday, November 8, 2007
Week 3: Practical 2
For Practical 2, we were required to conduct research on a a topic chosen from a list of given topics. I chose "Discuss the usage of 2-Factor Authentication in the banking industry". Here are my links:

Personal/Subject-based:
http://2factor.blogspot.com/

Personal/Subject-based:
http://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2005/10/us_regulators_r.html

Organisational/Subject-based:
http://www.dsssasia.com/htmdocs/products/a_server/a_server_overview.htm

Subject-based:
http://searchsecurity.techtarget.com/tip/0,289483,sid14_gci1168308,00.html

Each of these websites have security in general as the chief topic. However, the way that the information is presented in is slightly different by the different "owners". Personal websites are usually written in the manner in which the writer is most comfortable in, sometimes including emotions. Organisational websites are more objective, with neutral words preferred over emotional words. However, this is not true in the case of companies promoting their products.

Last but not least, there are the subject-based websites, Such websites are usually concerned with specific areas of focus. These websites can also overlap with personal and organisational websites.

Through this exercise, it is clear that websites may vary sharply. Prior to this, I had no idea that websites could be categorized in this manner, and indeed, I have gained much from this exercise. By knowing the category a website belongs to, Internet users can make a more informed choice about the accuracy of the information that they are viewing.


With all of the differences, it can sometimes be difficult to pick out which categories a website might belong to. However, with a keen eye for detail, anyone can soon tell one website from another. And this is the lesson to be learnt from this week's lab session.

~ { 6:56 PM }
Leaving the CITY;
Week 3: Practical 1
As required, I will include a summary on my work for Practical 1.

In Practical 1, we were required to research on a topic, and an aspect related to that topic in four areas, namely Newsgroups & Discussion Lists, Electronic Journals & Magazines, Multimedia Sources and WWW Sites. Working with Leonard, I picked Sports as my topic, and football as the aspect in question. Then, I found the following websites:

Newsgroups & Discussion Lists:
http://www.redcafe.net/forumdisplay.php?s=6ab45cdbf4bc40bffee28eabb0234568&f=9

Electronic Journals & Magazines:
http://www.worldsoccer.com/

Multimedia Sources:
http://www.fanbase-links.co.uk/football_image_links.html

WWW Sites:
www.sleague.com

The first link is from RedCafe, an unofficial Manchester United fan club. It offers United fans an outlet to talk about the club's actions and plans. I think this site, like other newsgroups and discussion forums, offers people with an interest in discussing topics of the day an outlet to talk (or vent) as much as they want. In turn, people can respond to them, and offer suggestions, criticisms or just their personal take on those issues. This is quite a unique platform that has no parellel at the moment.

The second link is from WorldSoccer. This site is the online extension of WorldSoccer magazine, which offers news about the football scene, covering factual match reports to personal commentaries. As with all online magazines or journals, I feel that this site offers people a chance to view publications they wouldn't otherwise have a chance to. Best of all, this can be done in a form that is easily available to people.

The third link is from Fanbase Links. This site offers a wide variety of pictures, wallpapers, cartoons and other images about football. I think that such sites are useful for people who want a one-stop site for all images about topics close to their hearts, which in this case is football for me.

The fourth, last, but not the least link is from the S-League. This site offers information and news about Singapore football, especially about the S-League. Such sites are widely used, and in my belief, are very useful for people who seek information quickly and easily off the Web.

Through this exercise, I have found that there exists plenty of options for a person to conduct research in any field. This proves yet again, the flexibility of the Internet.


~ { 6:38 PM }
Leaving the CITY;

Thursday, November 1, 2007
Week 2: Links
I have been trying to do something about the links section of this blog, but to no avail as of yet. In the meantime, I'll share the two links I intended to here.

The first link is http://www.soccernet.com/. Part of the ESPN group of websites, this site has a treasure trove of important news pertaining to the world of football. As the the site's administrators are based in England, much of the news and views are on issues within the English game, and to a lesser extent, the rest of the Home Nations. However, the site also has contributors from many correspondents and columnists from all over the world, including the United States, Argentina, Germany and Japan, to name but a few.

The second link that I will share today is from http://www.skysports.com/. Affiliated to the Sky TV network in Britain, this site also provides British-centric sports news. This can be seen from the extensive coverage of the most popular sports in Britain, like football, Rugby Union, Rugby League and tennis. This site also serves as an important counterpoint to Soccernet, and allows sports lovers like myself to get my daily fix of the sporting world.

And thats it for now. Again, do check back as I get about sprucing up this blog. Till then!

~ { 7:34 PM }
Leaving the CITY;
Week 2: An Introduction
As my blog title states, this is my blog for UIR, short for using the Using The Internet As A Resource Tool. But first off, let me start with a short introduction about myself.

My name is Benny, and I'm a second year student in the Diploma in Financial Business Informatics in the School of Informatics and Information Technology. I'm just three months away from my nineteenth birthday, which brings me yet a year closer to the end of teenhood.

My interests include a wide variety of sports, chief of which is football. I'm a diehard fan of Manchester United, the reigning champions of the Premiership, and to satisfy my addiction for the Beautiful Game, I spend countless hours everyday watching, reading and playing the game. Aside from football, I get my sports fixes from other hard-hitting contact sports such as Rugby Union and basketball.

Another interest of mine is in movies. To me, films represent the epitome of art at its finest, where the actors bring forth stories in vivid colour, tone and life. Among my favourite films are the likes of the Infernal Affairs trilogy, the Lord of the Rings trilogy, Flags of Our Fathers and The Prestige. These films have, at certain points of my life, brought forth emotions in me I never knew I existed, while at the same time, taught me something new. Such is the magic of the movies, where one can learn new things from appreciating films, be it the first or twenty-seventh time the person watches that movie.

Life of course, isn't all about sports and movies. Music takes a special place in my life too. My preferred genres of music include rock and Chinese pop, although some artistes outside of this realm have caught my attention too. My favourite artistes are My Chemical Romance, Snow Patrol, Matchbox Twenty, Electrico and David Tao, just to name a few.

Hmmm. Well, thats about me. Do check this space over the next four months for more updates about me and my progress in UIR. Ciao!

~ { 6:32 PM }
Leaving the CITY;