BMSK4003 Digital Skills and Research Methods Assignment Report

This report, prepared for the BMSK4003 Digital Skills and Research Methods module, explores various digital skills and resources. It begins with an introduction to cloud computing, discussing its advantages and the concept of cloud providers. The report then compares Google Drive and Skype, evaluating their pros and cons to determine which is the better option. A significant portion of the report focuses on Facebook, examining its role in marketing and data gathering, including how businesses can leverage Facebook to reach their target customers, collect user data, and enhance communication. The report concludes with a discussion of the author's online presence, including their Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn accounts, providing a comprehensive overview of digital skills and their practical applications in the context of social media and cloud computing.

Running head: DIGITAL SKILLS RESOURCE METHODS
DIGITAL SKILLS RESOURCE METHODS
Name of Student
Name of University
Author’s Note

1DIGITAL SKILLS RESOURCE METHODS
Table of Contents
Introduction..........................................................................................................................2
Discussion............................................................................................................................2
Cloud................................................................................................................................2
2 Cloud providers............................................................................................................3
Which one is better..........................................................................................................4
Facebook..........................................................................................................................5
Facebook for the purpose of marketing...........................................................................5
Facebook for gathering data and communication............................................................6
My online presence..............................................................................................................8
My Facebook account......................................................................................................8
My Twitter account..........................................................................................................8
My LinkedIn account.......................................................................................................8
References............................................................................................................................9

2DIGITAL SKILLS RESOURCE METHODS
Introduction
Cloud is utilized by most of the individuals as well as a huge amount of organizations for
the purpose of storing their data. The data stored in the cloud cannot be removed even if the
device where it was stored is stolen by any means (Chang 2017). Google cloud storage is the
most commonly used one. Cloud usually helps in integrating storage into various applications
with the use of just one API. With the usage of cloud the price as well as performance can be
optimized across some storage classes with the management of object lifecycle. Cloud has
numerous advantages that help a user or an organization to manage their data in an effective
manner (Laureano, Fernandes and Hassamo 2018). There are various cloud providers, this
assignment discusses regarding the providers and selects one that is considered as the best.
Discussion
Cloud
Cloud can be referred to a term that means accessing computer, various software
applications and information technology with the help of a network connection. This is done by
accessing the data centers with the use of wide area networking (WAN) or particular internet
connectivity. Almost all the IT resources can exist in cloud; a specific application or software
program, a complete infrastructure or a service (Lev-On 2019). Suppose a business wants to
develop an IT infrastructure, it would require installing the servers, networking resources and
software that would be required for that purpose (Benson, Gleich and Leskovec 2016). All the
services as well as resources would be accessible with the help of approaching to third parties
which offer them the services of cloud. Using cloud provides numerous advantages to an

3DIGITAL SKILLS RESOURCE METHODS
organization as well as an individual (Huang and Lu 2017). It is usually easy to provision the
cloud services, in numerous cases, people are allowed to get access to data instantly without
consuming much time. Various remote users are allowed to access the resources of cloud from
any source of their choice and have a connection instead of staying limited to their geographical
location.
2 Cloud providers
The services of cloud are generally provided to organization by various cloud providers.
There are numerous cloud service providers. The cloud providers that have been selected for this
particular assignment include Google drive and Skype (Cox 2016). These providers have
numerous ways by which they provide cloud to numerous organizations. Google Drive is usually
a service that has been developed by Google for the purpose of synchronization and storage. This
has been developed by Google. Google Drive permits various users for storing files in their
servers, synchronize those files across various devices and then share these files (Einwiller and
Steilen 2015). This particular cloud company offers various applications that have offline
capabilities for macOS, Androind OS, iOS and many more. There are numerous pros and cons of
using Google Drive. Some pros and cons that affect the usage of Google drive (Ji, Li and North
2017). Some pros of Google Drive include manageability; Google Drive is easy to manage even
though considering the fact that Google Drive is a platform that is completely online based. This
provider does not provide any complexity related to maneuvering with the help of documents.
One more pros includes cost, it is affordable as compared to many more providers (Ye and Ki
2017). Cons of Google Drive include acceptability, locked, plugins, version control, no logins,
poor interface, multiple user, lag in the updates at the peak hours and many more.

4DIGITAL SKILLS RESOURCE METHODS
One more cloud provider that has been selected includes Skype. This provider provided
higher rate of performance as well as providing more freedom for Microsoft in order to add
various new features and provide less addition of latency in aspects such as getting notifications,
sending files in Microsoft cloud (Gonsalves and McGannon 2018). This optimized for running
various applications that require internet to function. With the help of Skype users are able to
optimize the applications that are presently running at huge scales. There are certain pros and
cons of the Skype cloud provider, some pros include free communication with people across the
world. Using the Skype provides cheap rate for subscription, it offers the benefits of screen
sharing to the users. Some cons of Skype cloud providers include the fact that access to internet
is a mandatory part for using it, it has the capability to affect the real world interaction, it does
have the option for language, and most importantly it lacks business tools.
Which one is better
Among the two cloud providers that have been mentioned above, Google Drive is better
because it provides a better usability. The Google Drive is easier to use for the users. The activity
of file management and organization is also very easy for the organizations. The activity of
sharing is comparatively easier than many more storage platforms. The users just needs the
access of a link and they would be allowed to access a drive and have the file.
Facebook
Facebook can be said as an unquestionable giant of the social media, this network
consists of around 2 billion active users who use this platform every month. Apart from just
status updates and sharing posts this platform is a hub for various businesses (Sias 2017).
Businesses of various sizes and belonging to numerous backgrounds use this platform for
cultivating their followers, build their respective brands, engaging with their audience as well as

5DIGITAL SKILLS RESOURCE METHODS
manage their employees (Kent 2018). Facebook is a very powerful tool that is used for
marketing, attract their target customers and maintain a continuous communication with them in
order to understand their requirements and fulfill them, this helps an organization in maintaining
a certain level of customer satisfaction.
Facebook for the purpose of marketing
Facebook is used for the purpose of marketing by various organizations. Facebook is a
site that helps an organization to reach up to its target customers without investing much amount
of resources (Ye and Ki 2018). It just needs to update its Facebook site regarding their
whereabouts. This part of the assignment concentrates on using Facebook for the purpose of
marketing (Farina 2018). Weather a small or a big corporation, Facebook can prove to be a
powerful tool for marketing. Various ways that can be used by various organizations for utilizing
Facebook in an effective manner are as follows.
Extracting the most of the Facebook business page: every Facebook page is considered as
a good a s well as free marketing tool for every business (Platt, Platt and Thiel 2016). The pages
allow the business to identify their brand with the help of listing product offerings as well as
services, besides this sharing links, posts and images on a particular customizable page for giving
a better sense of the personality of the character and personality of the business.
Facebook for gathering data and communication
Facebook is utilized by various organizations in order to gather data of their users. They
gather this data in order to know the actual requirements of their customers and attract their
target customers; they also gather data regarding the ways that could help customers to use their
products or services and ways that could help the organization in improving the level of

6DIGITAL SKILLS RESOURCE METHODS
customer satisfaction (Nitschke, Donges and Schade 2016). There are numerous reasons for
which organizations use Facebook for gathering data include
Understand the real time behavior of customers: in order to understand the customers
in a better way, the organizations get a greater insight into the way they behave (Laureano,
Fernandes and Hassamo 2018). They carry out surveys and generalizations help them in drawing
from a basic demography is very important, businesses also require data related to the ways
customers behave. Some questions that help them in gathering this sort of data includes how long
do they stay on an organization’s site? What are the links that they click? What are they
downloading or uploading and at what time are they doing it? and many more.
There are various by which Facebook is used for the purpose of communications.
Facebook can be used in order to create groups as well as messaging for allowing the employees
to communicate within a particular known interface (Huang and Lu 2017). Some ways by which
Facebook is used for the purpose of communication include
Groups: Facebook groups prove to be valuable for collaborating and elaborate
communication with the business, this allows employees in sharing data, questionnaires and
images in an environment which looks like a message board (Benson, Gleich and Leskovec
2016). A business might setup a particular Facebook group for the company and create small
groups for a particular department or a project. Facebook provides two types of private groups,
secret and closed. In case a closed group is created, anyone on the Facebook can notice that the
group is present and who are its members, but could never see the contents of this group page.
Facebook is also used by organizations in order to maintain a decent and regular
communication with their customers. This helps them to register the queries or complaints of
their customers and act accordingly in order to understand the concerns of the customers (Kent

7DIGITAL SKILLS RESOURCE METHODS
2018). They can also use this media for maintaining a level of customer satisfaction within the
customers.
My online presence
My Facebook account
My Twitter account
My LinkedIn account

8DIGITAL SKILLS RESOURCE METHODS
References
Benson, A.R., Gleich, D.F. and Leskovec, J., 2016. Higher-order organization of complex
networks. Science, 353(6295), pp.163-166.
Chang, H.J., 2017. 24 Facebook Interruptions in the Workplace from A Longitudinal
Analysis. Digital Transformation in Journalism and News Media: Media Management, Media
Convergence and Globalization, p.319.
Cox, J.B., 2016. News orgs post more often on Twitter than on Facebook. Newspaper Research
Journal, 37(3), pp.220-234.
Einwiller, S.A. and Steilen, S., 2015. Handling complaints on social network sites–An analysis
of complaints and complaint responses on Facebook and Twitter pages of large US
companies. Public Relations Review, 41(2), pp.195-204.
Farina, M., 2018. Facebook and Conversation Analysis: The Structure and Organization of
Comment Threads. Bloomsbury Publishing.
Gonsalves, C.A. and McGannon, K.R., 2018. Constructing women’s heart health and risk: A
critical discourse analysis of cardiovascular disease portrayals on Facebook by a US non-profit
organization. Journal of health psychology, p.1359105318796187.
Huang, L.T. and Lu, M.Y., 2017, July. Do Members Share Knowledge in Facebook Knowledge
Groups?. In International Conference on Social Computing and Social Media (pp. 58-70).
Springer, Cham.
Ji, Y.G., Li, C., North, M. and Liu, J., 2017. Staking reputation on stakeholders: How does
stakeholders’ Facebook engagement help or ruin a company’s reputation?. Public Relations
Review, 43(1), pp.201-210.

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Kent, D., 2018. Analysis of Timeline Posts to a Language Teacher Organization Public
Facebook Group. Turkish Online Journal of Educational Technology-TOJET, 17(1), pp.1-10.
Laureano, R.M., Fernandes, A.L., Hassamo, S. and Alturas, B., 2018. Facebook satisfaction and
its impacts on fundraising: a case study at a Portuguese non-profit organization. Journal of
Information Systems Engineering and Management, (1).
Lev-On, A., 2019. Facebook framed. Journal of Language and Politics, 18(1), pp.40-60.
Nitschke, P., Donges, P. and Schade, H., 2016. Political organizations’ use of websites and
Facebook. New Media & Society, 18(5), pp.744-764.
Platt, T., Platt, J., Thiel, D.B. and Kardia, S.L., 2016. Facebook advertising across an
engagement spectrum: a case example for public health communication. JMIR public health and
surveillance, 2(1), p.e27.
Sias, P.M., 2017. Company Facebook and organizational identification. Communication
Research Reports, 34(4), pp.335-343.
Ye, L. and Ki, E.J., 2017. Organizational crisis communication on Facebook: A study of BP’s
Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Corporate Communications: An International Journal, 22(1),
pp.80-92.
Ye, L. and Ki, E.J., 2018. Impact of Message Convergence on Organizational Reputation: An
Examination of Organizational Crisis Communication on Facebook. Corporate Reputation
Review, 21(1), pp.1-8.