Final Post

My entrepreneurial idea, the “SU Got Mail” application, will make it easier for Syracuse students to check the status of their mailboxes located in each living facility.  The application will be hooked up to a student’s account and notify the student when they have mail waiting for them in their box.  Each mailbox will have a small sensor installed in it and would send a message to the phone of the student. This will make it easier for both students and Resident Advisers through the mailing process.

When I first came up with the idea for this application, it was not very well thought out and I did not really have a solid idea as to how it would work.  Over the course of the semester, I have been able to think out how it should work in order for it to be most beneficial to the users.  To start, all of the information of the students would have to be stored on a computer or database of some sort.  The information that would be stored includes the students’ name, their SUID number, cell phone number, and their Syracuse email.  Inside each mailbox in the dorm would be hooked up to a sensor that would be able to detect when there was something waiting for them.  The sensors would then be hooked up to a computer and send a notification to the students’ phone. 

Over the course of the semester, my idea has evolved in several ways and has begun to incorporate different aspects of technology we discussed in class.  One of the aspects I incorporated was the use of social media.  Social media would help to make this application gain a wider audience and allow users of the application to publicize their ideas about how the application works.  Several other aspects that we discussed include the use of cloud computing to ensure that all of the information of the students who use the application is backed-up to a safe place, the cloud.  The other aspect that I found to be the most important was the use of computer security to make sure that the information that was being stored is safe and not able to be accessed by outside users.  The use of technology in this application is very important to make it run successfully.

The use of all the technology described above will help to make this a much more successful project.  Without the use of technology, the application would not be able to run efficiently.  If technology was not incorporated in this, we would not be able to hook up a sensor to the mailbox and even have it connected to a main computer with all of the information necessary to get in contact with the students.

Based off the comments that I had received on my blog, this seems to be an application that students of Syracuse would actually find to be helpful and convenient.  It would make the lives of students much easier and keep them from having to constantly check their mailboxes.  It would benefit everyone involved such as the students and the resident advisers.  Rather than having to write out package slips every day, all they would have to do is simply send a notification to the student letting them know that they have mail waiting for them.

In order to make this project a reality, I would need:

-         -Sensors inside the mailboxes

-          -A main computer that can be hooked up to the sensors

Lecture Post: Computer Security

Entrepreneurial Post

My entrepreneurial idea, the “SU Got Mail” application, will make it easier for Syracuse students to check the status of their mailboxes located in each living facility.  The application will be hooked up to a student’s account and notify the student when they have mail waiting for them in their box.  Each mailbox will have a small sensor installed in it and would send a message to the phone of the student. This will make it easier for both students and Resident Advisers through the mailing process.

Lecture Post

                Computer security is very important in our society and helps to protect us and the information that we store electronically.  This information security can be applied to computers and computer networks in order to provide for more secure networks.  It helps to protect the user from any kind of property theft or corruption from outside users other than the intended users.

                For the intent of the SU Got Mail application, the protection of information would be vital.   Each student that would be involved in the application would have their personal information stored on a central computer with their names, addresses, and their SUID numbers.  If someone gets a hold of this information who it is not intended for and gets into the wrong hands, their security could be compromised.  They could have their information stolen and even have someone pose as an impostor.

                It is easy to see the importance of computer security and the role that it plays in today’s technology era.  Our security is always compromised whenever something is published is online.  We need to invest in means to protect what is available about ourselves online. 

Lecture Post: Operating Systems

Entrepreneurial Post:

My entrepreneurial idea, the “SU Got Mail” application, will make it easier for Syracuse students to check the status of their mailboxes located in each living facility. The application will be hooked up to a student’s account and notify the student when they have mail waiting for them in their box. Each mailbox will have a small sensor installed in it and would send a message to the phone of the student. This will make it easier for both students and Resident Advisers through the mailing process.

Lecture Post:

                We use Operating Systems to manage computer hardware.  This is a necessary component for all computers to function.  The operating systems use input and output and acts as an intermediary with system hardware.  There are several different types of operating systems that we can look at when it comes to the SU Got Mail application.

                The OS type that I think would be most effective to use for this would be multitasking that way two different programs could simultaneously.  For this, the program that would be used for the sensors in the mailboxes could be used at the same time as the database with all the students’ information on it.  By having both of these, the efficiency of the multitasking operating system can be used to its full potential.

                Using an operating system is necessary in order to make the computer run different programs to help make the application run.  If the two different programs are running at the same time, the computer and system will be much more efficient.  The use of operating systems is necessary for the production of this application.

Professional Critique

Entrepreneurial Idea:

My entrepreneurial idea, the “SU Got Mail” application, will make it easier for Syracuse students to check the status of their mailboxes located in each living facility. The application will be hooked up to a student’s account and notify the student when they have mail waiting for them in their box. Each mailbox will have a small sensor installed in it and would send a message to the phone of the student. This will make it easier for both students and Resident Advisers through the mailing process.

Blogger URL: http://googleblog.blogspot.com/

Professional Critique:

                The professional Blogger that I chose to look at that is involved in the technology industry is Google.  The famous website has millions of searches daily and is easily one of the most recognized web browsers.  They create different means for people to use their technology such as their search engine, Internet server (Google Chrome), and the products that they help to create.

                The topic of the blog seems to be primarily new stories that promote the website.  The blog also does self-promotions of new ideas that they want to take part in and even ask users about their performance as a search engine.  A more recent article that I stumbled across discusses how Google is now investing in greener ways to run their business.

                The blogging style of this blog is very professional sounding and very descriptive.  They have a lot of media incorporated into their blogs that they relate to their articles.  The layout of the blog is very well planned and makes it easy for the reader to follow along with the layout.    

                

Lecture Post: Cloud Computing

Entrepreneurial Post:

My entrepreneurial idea, the “SU Got Mail” application, will make it easier for Syracuse students to check the status of their mailboxes located in each living facility. The application will be hooked up to a student’s account and notify the student when they have mail waiting for them in their box. Each mailbox will have a small sensor installed in it and would send a message to the phone of the student. This will make it easier for both students and Resident Advisers through the mailing process.

Lecture Post:

                In class, we have discussed the basics of the Cloud and Cloud computing.  When we use cloud computing, we are simply renting out space within the Cloud (or Internet) to save our own files, pictures, or other forms of media.  Cloud Computing is a safe way to ensure that the files we are working on are safely backed up to the Cloud.

                For the SU Got Mail application, the Cloud could be utilized to store the students’ information.  If all of the information was to be stored on the Cloud, all of the necessary information would be located in one central location.  The Cloud could also be used to keep records of packages and mail received and sent by students and even keeps their records updated.  Utilizing the Cloud for this application would be useful to make sure that there will always be permanent records as to where and when a student got mail in case of a system failure or crash.

                We use the Cloud today for many things.  However, one potential downside to using the Cloud for this application is that if someone were to hack into the information that the school has stored on the Cloud, several thousand students’ information would be potential circulating around the web.  Although the Cloud may not be completely secure, it provides as a backup source if something should happen to the files saved on a personal computer. 

                

Competitive Analysis

Entrepreneurial Post

                 My entrepreneurial idea, the “SU Got Mail” application, will make it easier for Syracuse students to check the status of their mailboxes located in each living facility. The application will be hooked up to a student’s account and notify the student when they have mail waiting for them in their box. Each mailbox will have a small sensor installed in it and would send a message to the phone of the student. This will make it easier for both students and Resident Advisers through the mailing process. 

 

Competitive Analysis

 

URL: http://www.leveldevil.com/

For my entrepreneurial idea, each student’s mailbox will need to be hooked up to an electronic sensor that will be able to alert students when they have mail waiting for them.  A competitor for this kind of design would be one that produces these sensors.  One of the companies that I researched that does this kind of production is Electronic Sensors, Inc.  This company does mass production of electronic sensors that are activated by any kind of pressure being applied to the sensor.  This product would be similar to what I would want to use because it has the capability of sensing when something is touching the sensor.  However, because the only thing that might be in the mailboxes is envelopes or paper, the sensor might not be reliable enough to pick up the weight of the paper materials.   

URL: http://www.filemaker.com/

                Another important aspect of the design is the use of database to store student’s information within a single device.  Although Syracuse has its own database system I’m sure, there are still other database competitors out there.  One of the database programs that I researched was FileMaker.  One of the major accomplishments of this database program is that it is capable of creating and managing business applications for iPhones and other kinds of communication devices such as smart phones.  This program seemed to be one that could have a lot of use for my application design.  This software is probably similar to the Syracuse database, although I do not know exactly how the program currently used is.  This software seems to be more current and up to date with technology of today in that it has connections to electronic devices, such as smartphones.

                For every possible design for anything, whether it is a physical or electronic device, there will always be competition amongst markets.  Different companies try to make their products the best and most known in order to promote business.   

Lecture Post: Hardware

Entrepreneurial Post
     My entrepreneurial idea, the “SU Got Mail” application, will make it easier for Syracuse students to check the status of their mailboxes located in each living facility. The application will be hooked up to a student’s account and notify the student when they have mail waiting for them in their box. Each mailbox will have a small sensor installed in it and would send a message to the phone of the student. This will make it easier for both students and Resident Advisers through the mailing process.

Lecture
     In order to properly set up a means of communication between the students and the mailing center within the dorms, some kind of master computer will need to be utilized.  This computer would be located in the front office within the lobby of each building and have every students' information stored on its hard drive, such as the students' name, room number, SUID, phone number and SU e-mail. 
     When mail comes through the dorms for a certain student, all the RA would have to do is simply look at the name on the package or letter and simply type the name into a server that has the information of all the students within the dorm.  When the pull the student's name up, the RA will be given an option as to what sort of mail it is i.e, package, letter, laundry, etc.
     Once the RA has the name and type of mail the student has waiting for them, the RA can view whether or not the student has access to the SU Got Mail application.  If they do, the student will immediately be sent a notification and given a certain package number that will be shown at the front desk.  However, even if the student does not have the application downloaded to a smartphone, they can still recieve a notification via SU mail.  When the student gets to the front desk, they show the package or letter nubmer and the RA punches it into the computer with all of their information.