CHSWebDesign2020

by Ava Turner and Lynne Walenjus [Directions from Instructor: Please read the blog post below. If you did not write this post, you must respond at least once directly to the post, and then respond at least once to someone else's response. If you did write the post, you need only respond at least once to the initial responses from your peers.] The Initial iPod and iTunes Was the failure of the physical music industry worth a new generation of online music downloads? Apple had a rough start before Steve Jobs came back to save the day. Apple established its trademark as beautifully crafted computers that were innovative and individualized devices. Jobs wanted the iMac to be the central machine to a variety of other Apple products to create a digital hub. Jobs knew that music download was the key connector of the digital hub, but needed a way to unite this system. After purchasing Toshiba’s idea for a 1.8 inch 5 gigabyte hard drive, Jobs developed the iPod: a stainless s...

by Hannah Arbeitel and Erin Burke [Directions from Instructor: Please read the blog post below. If you did not write this post, you must respond at least once directly to the post, and then respond at least once to someone else's response. If you did write the post, you need only respond at least once to the initial responses from your peers.] Origins of Google Irony can sometimes be the best cultivator of a situation. This stands out more than ever when the founding of Google is examined. Two men who seemingly had nothing in common coming together to create the biggest internet company ever is not the everyday tale of an internet startup. Larry Page and Sergey Brin did have one thing in common: their thought process, which would allow them to turn their startup into a global phenomenon.  The homepage of Google when the company first was available to the public in 1997. Both forward thinkers who looked to challenge why things should be done, they were able to ...

On Monday, there will be two blog posts written by your peers. You must comment on both (and hopefully converse). You do not have to comment on your own if you are posting, but I do hope this is true engagement not just a bunch of unrelated comments. If you are posting Monday, please send me your post by 7 a.m. that day. I have faith it will work - have a good weekend!!

(This image is my answer to this question. The domain pets.com is now owned by Petsmart. I spent a lot of money on pets.com back in the day and still buy a lot of pet products online.) How many businesses have you seen failed that you thought were ahead of their time? What do you think of companies being before their time? Did these failures eventually lead to the right time?

In the court case with Microsoft and the US government, why do you think Microsoft didn't have to follow through with the court's verdict and get broken up? Do you agree with the argument that Microsoft used throughout the case “the technology industry is so competitive, that no player can truly be monopolistic”?

Many companies in the dot-com era (like Pets.com) suffered from losing money with each sale in the hopes of making a profit in the future. Was this a smart business plan for these new companies? Is that a risk that you would take if you started an online business?

There were many events and changes in the market that led to the creation of the Dot Com Bubble, which do you think played the biggest role? And why do you think investors were so willing to throw their money into internet stocks?

Below is a quote from the book found on p. 176: "A lot has been made in the last several years about income inequality and how gains made in the overall economy tend increasingly to go to the top 1%, while the rest are left with scraps. At the time of this writing, there is a lot of talk about how the American public, especially the middle and working classes, have come to believe the economic structure of America is rigged against them, and everything is tilted in favor of the insider, the moneyed, the elite. An argument can be made that this was a belief that first took hold when the dot-com bubble burst, especially to a generation of investors who came to the stock market for the first time in those years. Baby boomers did what society told them: they invested in stocks; they bought and held. And for a time, they did well, seeing their nest eggs go up by five, even six, figures (or more if they were lucky). And then they watched it all evaporate. they watched the insiders an...

Seeing how Omidyar’s own libertarian philosophy impacted his company policy, what role do you feel personal beliefs play in an expansive business? Here's a link to his wikipedia page if you'd like more info about the man.

Why do you think sellers willingly paid Omidyar his percentage of the final sale price, without enforcement of this rule? Would you give him his share?

Why was the use of recommendations beneficial to Amazon? Why was it controversial? ( Pg. 100-101)

Amazon's original homepage What do you think of Amazon's decision to start with books? What differences might have occurred had Amazon tried to start out of the gate with another market?

Here's a link to the wikipedia page about iVillage. I realize that this was a brief mention in the book, but at the time, just about every woman I knew used iVillage, and I had a number of friends who worked there.  For the young women in the class: If this website were launched today, do you think you would use it? Do you think other women you know would use it? do you think we need a website like this today? For the young men in the class: Are there niche websites out there for men? If you don't know, that's ok, but open to your input! (NOTE: I will publish the four questions throughout our hour when I think conversation on a previous post has slowed. Feel from to "move along" when your ready.)

Which do you prefer for our discussions? I think there are pros and cons to each, and this was a good way to mimic chat rooms. Let me know with a comment.

What would have happened if Yahoo did not include advertisements on their website? Would they still have been successful?

(Watch this - really! These commercials were made 25 years ago!) What played a role in advertising on the web? How was it similar or different to today? Here's a link if this doesn't play.

AOL eventually turned to a flat fee for unlimited access. Do you think AOL should have turned to unlimited access to the web? Did this lead to their success?

How much did you know about AOL? What programs or services do you think could have been inspired by chat rooms? What are your thoughts on the usage of the chat rooms? 

I will post questions over the course of the class. You must comment once on this post and multiple times on the posts with today's questions. I will join the discussion as well. Let's see how it works on this platform! Do you know anyone who still uses AOL? Truth, my 80 year old parents do! They were both my current age when they joined AOL... and they both still think that's the internet. Listen to the video above to hear the original sound of the internet. (I bet an adult in your house comes running when you play it!)