Electronic Communication Devices (Grade 10 NSC Matric Computer Application Technology): Revision Notes

Electronic Communication Devices

What are electronic communication devices?

Electronic communication devices are any type of computerised equipment with software that can create, read, or send electronic messages. These devices use radio waves, light signals, or other electromagnetic systems to transmit information. Electronic messages can include text messages, emails, instant messages like WhatsApp, video calls, social media posts, Skype calls, blogs, or even access to internet websites. The messages can contain text, images, sounds, or even artificial intelligence.

When people aren't online, they still communicate through traditional methods like phone calls, face-to-face conversations, and written letters, depending on what works best for each situation. Similarly, online communication offers different options - people choose between instant messaging, social networks, or email based on their specific needs and preferences.

E-communication using a PC or mobile device

There are numerous ways to communicate electronically when you have an internet connection. Email remains the most common type, but other popular forms include video chat, discussion forums, Skype, and instant messaging. Let's explore the different applications used to make electronic communication possible.

Email

Email is one of the oldest and most widely used forms of electronic communication. It allows users to send messages and files over the internet instantly. One of email's biggest advantages is that you don't need to wait weeks to receive a reply - messages arrive within moments of being sent.

Email serves many important purposes in both personal and professional settings:

• Communicating with clients or other employees in the workplace
• Keeping in touch with friends and family members
• Sending files as attachments to other people
• Sending marketing messages to potential customers

We'll explore email creation and management in more detail later in this chapter.

Mailing lists

A mailing list is a collection of names and email addresses used by a person or organisation to send information to multiple recipients at once. There are two main categories of mailing lists:

1. Response lists: These contain names and addresses of people who have responded to some kind of offer. Because these people have shown interest by responding, their contact details are generally more valuable than names collected through other methods.

2. Compiled lists: These lists contain names and addresses gathered from telephone directories, public records, direct mail campaigns, telemarketing efforts, and similar sources. Sometimes this information comes from list brokers who research, analyse, and evaluate many different individual lists.

Other useful types of mailing lists include:

• Team lists: Used by teammates to communicate within their groups
• Group lists: Used by specific groups of people, such as parents of learners in a school
• Event lists: Used to share information about specific events, like upcoming athletics competitions between schools

Instant messaging

The internet has revolutionised how we communicate, with email being the most popular electronic communication method. However, sometimes even email isn't fast enough for our needs. This is where instant messaging becomes extremely useful.

In today's smartphone-focused world, more people send messages through web-based applications such as WhatsApp, WeChat, Slack, LiveChat, Hangouts, Lync, Telegram, and Snapchat. These applications provide short messages that are sent and read in real time, allowing much faster communication than traditional emails.

Chat and instant messaging work best when both participants are online simultaneously, so everyone can read messages instantly - hence the name "instant messaging!" Unlike email, which might not be seen until the recipient checks their inbox, instant messaging provides immediate communication for quick conversations.

Instant messaging typically includes a contact list (often called a "Buddy List") that shows you which friends are currently online. This type of communication works perfectly for one-on-one conversations, but you can also send messages to several people simultaneously.

Web browsers

Different web browsers are available, including Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, and Internet Explorer. Without these browsers, it would be impossible to view web pages and websites. In the past, users had to download specific software applications to chat, listen to music, and watch videos. Nowadays, you can do all these activities simply by opening your web browser. All you need is to open a web browser to access websites for social networks, forums, emails, and popular instant messaging services.

Websites are also designed to communicate with users, whether it's a shopping site announcing a 70%-off sale or a personal blog where someone shares their favourite recipes.

Text and picture messaging

Text and picture messaging have become extremely popular and are typically sent from one smartphone to another. However, applications now exist that allow you to text and send pictures from your computer to a smartphone, or vice versa. Text and picture messages are fast, taking only seconds to reach the recipient. Texting is also useful when you can't call someone, for example if you're in a meeting or attending class.

It's easy to send text, pictures, or voice messages through various applications such as WhatsApp, SnapChat, Facebook, Hangouts, and many others.

People can instantly send these multimedia messages anywhere in the world, and it doesn't cost very much to do so.

Video messaging

Video messaging provides an easy way to make inexpensive phone calls anywhere in the world from your computer. It doesn't even require a very fast internet connection. Many instant messaging and chat services include voice chat functionality, allowing you to talk to friends who are online. Video chat lets you see and hear friends, family, or clients in real time. Whether you're talking to a friend or conducting a business meeting, video chat adds a personal touch to your conversations.

To reduce the cost of traditional voice calls, internet companies have developed technologies that allow voice calls over the internet. VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) services such as WhatsApp and Skype enable free voice calls to other WhatsApp and Skype users.

Weblog

Have you ever wanted to create your own website but never worked out how to do it? Well, you can, and it's free and quite easy! Today, it's possible to create a website by starting a blog (short for weblog). But what exactly is a blog?

Although blogs are usually run by individuals or small groups, they can also be operated by organisations to promote themselves and their products or services.

Fax to email

A fax (short for facsimile) is an exact copy of a document containing text or images that has been scanned and transmitted as data through a telecommunication link. This usually goes to a telephone number associated with a printer or other output device.

Fax-to-email (or email fax) is a system that allows users to send or receive faxes using email. This communication method is used when you want to send faxes via the internet. Essentially, the sender faxes the document using the recipient's fax-to-email number, and the recipient then receives the fax as an attachment in their email inbox.