There is a message from Alpana mam (French) regarding the French paper. 1) Conversion of singular to pleural or pleural to singular,... any one or both can be asked. 2) In case of fill in the blanks, etre or avoir would not be written below the blank.example : I ____ a pen.  In such cases mam would not write below the blank whether to use etre or avoir....we have to find it out ourselves. Guys, if you need any help regarding slides or French ...fell free to call me...bye  

what is the meaning of Database management? Why is required in Business system? 

Ans : Database managements introduces the concepts, procedures, design, implementation and management issues of database systems.

        The database is the approach to the delivery of business-critical information. Consequently, a robust management system is required to ensure that data can be delivered as efficiently as possible, giving the enterprise every opportunity to be competitive. database management system, Object Store, provides an efficient and highly effective tool for managing data distribution.

It is required in the system to utilize the

Management of resource To reduce the time Human resource (internal entity)

A database management system (DBMS) is computer software that manages databases. DBMSes may use any of a variety of database models, such as the network model or relational model. In large systems, a DBMS allows users and other software to store and retrieve data in a structured way.

A DBMS is a set of software programs that controls the organization, storage, management, and retrieval of data in a database. DBMS are categorized according to their data structures or types. It is a set of prewritten programs that are used to store, update and retrieve a Database. The DBMS accepts requests for data from the application program and instructs the operating system to transfer the appropriate data. When a DBMS is used, information systems can be changed much more easily as the organization's information requirements change. New categories of data can be added to the database without disruption to the existing system.

Database servers are specially designed computers that hold the actual databases and run only the DBMS and related software. Database servers are usually multiprocessor computers, with RAID disk arrays used for stable storage. Connected to one or more servers via a high-speed channel, hardware database accelerators are also used in large volume transaction processing environments. DBMSs are found at the heart of most database applications. Sometimes DBMSs are built around a private multitasking kernel with built-in networking support although nowadays these functions are left to the operating system.

DBMS includes of four main parts: Modeling language, data structure, database query language, and transaction mechanism:

[edit] DBMS Features and capabilities

Features commonly offered by database management systems include:

Query ability  Querying is the process of requesting attribute information from various perspectives and combinations of factors. Example: "How many 2-door cars in Texas are green?" A database query language and report writer allow users to interactively interrogate the database, analyze its data and update it according to the users privileges on data.

Backup and replication  Copies of attributes need to be made regularly in case primary disks or other equipment fails. A periodic copy of attributes may also be created for a distant organization that cannot readily access the original. DBMS usually provide utilities to facilitate the process of extracting and disseminating attribute sets. When data is replicated between database servers, so that the information remains consistent throughout the database system and users cannot tell or even know which server in the DBMS they are using, the system is said to exhibit replication transparency.

Rule enforcement  Often one wants to apply rules to attributes so that the attributes are clean and reliable. For example, we may have a rule that says each car can have only one engine associated with it (identified by Engine Number). If somebody tries to associate a second engine with a given car, we want the DBMS to deny such a request and display an error message. However, with changes in the model specification such as, in this example, hybrid gas-electric cars, rules may need to change. Ideally such rules should be able to be added and removed as needed without significant data layout redesign.

Security  Often it is desirable to limit who can see or change which attributes or groups of attributes. This may be managed directly by individual, or by the assignment of individuals and privileges to groups, or (in the most elaborate models) through the assignment of individuals and groups to roles which are then granted entitlements.

Computation 

There are common computations requested on attributes such as counting, summing, averaging, sorting, grouping, cross-referencing, etc. Rather than have each computer application implement these from scratch, they can rely on the DBMS to supply such calculations.

Change and access logging  Often one wants to know who accessed what attributes, what was changed, and when it was changed. Logging services allow this by keeping a record of access occurrences and changes.

Automated optimization  If there are frequently occurring usage patterns or requests, some DBMS can adjust themselves to improve the speed of those interactions. In some cases the DBMS will merely provide tools to monitor performance, allowing a human expert to make the necessary adjustments after reviewing the statistics collected.

[edit] Meta-data repository

Metadata is data describing data. For example, a listing that describes what attributes are allowed to be in data sets is called "meta-information". The meta-data is also known as data about data.

[edit] Examples of Database Management Systems

Alpha Five DataEase Brilliant Database Oracle database IBM DB2 Adaptive Server Enterprise FileMaker Firebird Ingres Informix Microsoft Access

Microsoft SQL Server

Microsoft Visual FoxPro MySQL PostgreSQL Progress SQLite Teradata CSQL OpenLink Virtuoso

Daffodil DB

Q. 3) what is computer? 

Ans : computer system can be compared with Human resources like brain the computer is having a C.P.U.  

Ex.

Human brain controls each & every part likewise C.P.U. also control every part of the computer.

The Brain is divided into two parts right brain and left brain whose main function to control left part and right part of the body respectively. Similarly, C.P.U. is having A.L.U. (arithmetic logical unit) which handles the components of the computer and is helped by the system BUS. For eg. If there is a problem with keyboard the system BUS tells us about the problem.

The information from different parts of the body is send to brain through central nervous system. In the similar passion Operating System helps to communicate with system BUS and other function of operating system is to identify the configuration of computer. It identifies the all input and output devices which are

Keyboard, mouse, monitor, Hard Disk drive, printer, scanner, CD/DVD RW,

Floppy disk drive, pen drive, web cam, speaker and microphone.

Q1.WHAT IS SOFTWARE PROJECT MANAGEMENT?

ANS:- Software Project Management is a sub-discipline of Project management in which software projects are planned, monitored and controlled.

What is project management? “Project management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to project activities to meet project requirement.” Project management is the discipline of organizing and managing resources (e.g. people) in such a way that the project is completed within defined scope, quality, time and cost constraints. A project is a temporary and one-time endeavor

undertaken to create a unique product or service, which brings about beneficial change or added value. This property of being a temporary and one-time undertaking contrasts with processes, or operations, which are permanent or semi-permanent ongoing functional work to create the same product or service over and over again. The management of these two systems is often very different and requires varying technical skills and philosophy, hence requiring the development of project management.

The first challenge of project management is to make sure that a project is delivered within defined constraints. The second, more ambitious challenge is the optimized allocation and integration of inputs needed to meet pre-defined objectives. A project is a carefully defined set of activities that use resources (money, people, materials, energy, space, provisions, communication, etc.) to meet the pre-defined objectives.The purpose of Project Planning is to identify the scope of the project, estimate the work involved, and create a project schedule. Project planning begins with requirements that define the software to be developed. The project plan is then developed to describe the tasks that will lead to completion.

Why there is requirement of software management?

Requirements analysis is a term used to describe all the tasks that go into the instigation, scoping and definition of a new or altered computer system. Requirements analysis is an important part of the software engineering process; whereby business analysts or software developer identify the needs or requirements of a client; having identified these requirements they are then in a position to design a solution.

QUALITY ASSURANCE:-

Quality assurance covers all activities from design, development, production, installation, servicing and documentation. This introduced the rules: "fit for purpose" and "do it right the first time". It includes the regulation of the quality of raw materials, assemblies, products and components; services related to production; and management, production, and inspection processes. Quality assurance (QA) is the activity of providing evidence needed to establish confidence among all concerned, that quality-related activities are being performed effectively. All those planned or systematic actions necessary to provide adequate confidence that a product or service will satisfy given requirements for quality.

QUALITY CONTROL

Quality control is involved in developing systems to ensure products or services are designed and produced to meet or exceed customer requirements. These systems are often developed in conjunction with other business and engineering disciplines using a cross-functional approach.

Difference between software quality assurance and software quality control :

QUALITY ASSURANCE(QA) QUALITY CONTROL(QC)

Systematic activities which producer carries out to assure the satisfaction of quality required by customers

A system of means to practically produce product or service which satisfy customer requirements

Quality Assurance is an "objective" Quality Control is the activity to accomplish the objective

QA activities ensure that the process is defined and appropriate. Methodology and standards development are examples of QA activities. A QA review would focus on the process elements of a project - e.g., are requirements being defined at the proper level of detail.

QC activities focus on finding defects in specific deliverables - e.g., are the defined requirements the right requirements.

Quality assurance aims to assure that quality work and quality deliverables will be built in before work is done

Quality control aims to determine that quality work and quality deliverables did occur after work was done

QA is process oriented QC is product oriented.

Quality Assurance makes sure you are doing the right things, the right way.

Quality Control makes sure the results of what you've done are what you expected.

1.) What is DRP and BCP?

Ans.) DRP(Disaster recovery policy)is the process of regaining access to the data, hardware and software necessary to resume critical business operations after a natural or human-induced disaster.

BCP(Business continuity planning).The more your business relies on its IT systems, the more is need to consider how unexpected disruptions might affect your business. These disruptions come in many forms, from fire or floods to theft. BCP improves your business ability to react to such disruptions. It describes how you will restart the operations in order to meet your business critical requirements. Thus, BCP is the process of planning for the unexpected. An effective plan will provide you with procedures to minimize the effects pf unexpected disruptions.

2.) Why do we require DRP?

Ans.) We require DRP to provide us the security so that our business doesn’t suffer from financial losses during the period of disaster and even to avoid business failure.

3.) What are the advantages of DRP?

Ans.)The advantages of DRP are:a.)To come down to a simple risk assessmentb.) Faster, more efficient and less expensive recoveryc.)Reduced insurance costsd.)Investor confidence-Confidence that you can continue your

business even after the disaster. Improves the ability of manager e.)Provides you with back-up of information and documents if the original is destroyed

4.)How to implement DRP? Ans.)The various steps for the implementation of DRP are as follows: a.)Understand where gaps exist b.)Identify weak links in your Disaster recovery plan

c.)Optimize DRP in your existing environments. d.) Minimize configuration changes e.)Reduce hardware costs for your replica environments

Q3. What is Disaster Recovery Plan (DRP)?Why is it Required?

ANS. Disaster recovery is the process of regaining access to the data, hardware and software necessary to resume critical business operations after a natural or human-induced disaster. A disaster recovery plan (DRP) should also include plans for coping with the unexpected or sudden loss of key personnel, although this is not covered in this article, the focus of which is data protection.

Disaster recovery planning involves an analysis of business processes and continuity needs; it may also include a significant focus on disaster prevention. It is required because the primary objective of a business resumption plan is to enable an organization to survive a disaster and to re-establish normal business operations. In order to survive, an organization must ensure that critical operations can resume within a reasonable time frame. Therefore, the goals of a business resumption plan should be to identify weaknesses and implement a disaster prevention programmed, minimize the duration of a serious disruption to business operations, facilitate effective co-ordination of recovery tasks, and most importantly reduce complexity of the recovery effort.

Business continuity planning and its utility:

ANS. Business Continuity Planning (BCP) is an interdisciplinary peer mentoring methodology used to create and validate a practiced logistical plan for how an organization will recover and restore partially or completely interrupted critical

Function(s) within a predetermined time after a disaster or extended disruption. The logistical plan is called a Business Continuity Plan.BCP is required because of the following reasons

Some problems will be overlooked, ignored, or work will not be completed on time.

There will not be enough time or money to fix everything. Some solutions may not be available or work in time because they were

overlooked, too complex, too costly, or implemented incorrectly. It is impossible to ensure that other organizations and groups, both internal and

external, will have working systems.

Implementation of DRP and BCP:

ANS .DRP can be implemented in the following way .This plan applies to major, usually catastrophic, events that deny access to the normal facility for an extended period. Frequently, DRP refers to an IT-focused plan designed to restore operability of the target system, application, or computer facility an alternate site after an emergency. The DRP scope may overlap that of an IT contingency plan; however, the DRP is narrower in scope and does not address minor disruptions that do not require relocation. Dependent on the agency’s needs, several DRPs may be appended to the BCP.BCP can be implemented in the following wayIt focuses on sustaining an organization’s business functions during and after a disruption. An example of a business function may be a payroll or consumer information process. A BCP may be written for a specific business process or may address all key business processes. Information technology (IT) systems are considered in the BCP in terms of support to the business processes. In some cases, the BCP may not address long-term recovery of processes and return to normal operations, solely covering interim

business continuity requirements. A disaster recovery plan, business resumption plan, and occupant emergency plan may be appended to the BCP. Responsibilities and priorities set in the BCP should be coordinated with those in Continuity of Operations to eliminate possible conflicts.

Sarbanes- Oxley act in India (SoX)

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (often shortened to SOX) is legislation enacted in response to the high-profile Enron and WorldCom financial scandals to protect shareholders and the general public from accounting errors and fraudulent practices in the enterprise. The act is administered by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which sets deadlines for compliance and publishes rules on requirements. Sarbanes-Oxley is not a set of business practices and does not specify how a business should store records; rather, it defines which records are to be stored and for how long. The legislation not only affects the financial side of corporations, but also affects the IT departments whose job it is to store a corporation's electronic records. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act states that all business records, including electronic records and electronic messages, must be saved for "not less than five years." The consequences for non-compliance are fines, imprisonment, or both. IT departments are increasingly faced with the challenge of creating and maintaining a corporate records archive in a cost-effective fashion that satisfies the requirements put forth by the legislation.

Impact of SOX on the corporate IT departmentThe SEC identifies the COSO framework by name as a methodology for achieving compliance. The COSO framework defines five components of internal control, which can help support the requirements as set forth in the Sarbanes-Oxley legislation. These five areas and their impacts for the IT Department are as follows:

Risk Assessment. Before the necessary controls are implemented, IT management must assess and understand the areas of risk affecting the completeness and validity of the financial reports. They must examine how the company's systems are being used and the current level and accuracy of existing documentation. The areas of risk drive the definition of the other four components of the COSO framework.

Control Environment. The control environment sets the tone of an organization, influencing the control consciousness of its people. It is the foundation for all other components of internal control, providing discipline and structure. Control environment factors include the integrity, ethical values and competence of the entity's people; management's philosophy and operating style; the way management assigns authority and responsibility, and organizes and develops its people; and the attention and direction provided by the board of directors.

Control Activities. Control activities are the policies and procedures that help ensure management directives are carried out. They help ensure that necessary actions are taken

to address risks to achievement of the entity's objectives. Control activities occur throughout the organization, at all levels and in all functions. They include a range of activities as diverse as approvals, authorizations, verifications, reconciliations, reviews of operating performance, security of assets and segregation of duties. In an IT environment, control activities typically include IT general controls -- such as controls over program changes, access to programs, computer operations -- and application controls.

Monitoring. Auditing processes and schedules should be developed to address the high-risk areas within the IT organization. IT personnel should perform frequent internal audits. In addition, personnel from outside the IT organization should perform audits on a schedule that is appropriate to the level of risk. Management should clearly understand and be held responsible for the outcome of these audits.

Information and Communication. Without timely, accurate information, it will be difficult for IT management to proactively identify and address areas of risk. They will be unable to react to issues as they occur. IT management must demonstrate to company management an understanding of what needs to be done to comply with Sarbanes-Oxley and how to get there.

DISASTER RECOVERY PLAN (DRP)Disaster recovery is the process of regaining access to the data, hardware and software necessary to resume critical business operations after a natural or human-induced disaster. A disaster recovery plan (DRP) should also include plans for coping with the unexpected or sudden loss of key personnel, although this is not covered in this article, the focus of which is data protection. Disaster recovery planning involves an analysis of business processes and continuity needs; it may also include a significant focus on disaster prevention. It is required because the primary objective of a business resumption plan is to enable an organization to survive a disaster and to re-establish normal business operations. In order to survive, an organization must ensure that critical operations can resume within a reasonable time frame. Therefore, the goals of a business resumption plan should be to identify weaknesses and implement a disaster prevention programmed, minimize the duration of a serious disruption to business operations, facilitate effective co-ordination of recovery tasks, and most importantly reduce complexity of the recovery effort. HOW TO IMPLEMENT DRP?

There are following steps for the implementation of DRP:1.) Understand where gap may exist 2.) Identify weak links in your Disaster recovery plan3.) Optimize Disaster recovery in your existing environments 4.) Minimize configuration changes 5.) Reduce hardware costs for your replica environments. ADVANTAGES OF DRP.A.)To come down to a simple risk assessment.B.)Faster, more efficient and less expensive recoveryC.)Reduced insurance costs.

D.)Investor confidence-Gives confidence that you can continue your Business even after the disaster. Improves manager’s ability.E.)Provides you with back-up of information and documents if the Original one is destroyed.BUSINESS CONTINUITY PLANNING (BCP)AND ITS UTILITY. Business Continuity Planning (BCP) is an interdisciplinary peer mentoring methodology used to create and validate a practiced logistical plan for how an organization will recover and restore partially or completely interrupted critical.Function(s) within a predetermined time after a disaster or extended disruption. The logistical plan is called a Business Continuity Plan.BCP is required because of the following reasons

Some problems will be overlooked, ignored, or work will not be completed on time.

There will not be enough time or money to fix everything. Some solutions may not be available or work in time because they were

overlooked, too complex, too costly, or implemented incorrectly. It is impossible to ensure that other organizations and groups, both internal and

external, will have working systems.HOW TO IMPLEMENT BCP? BCP focuses on sustaining an organization’s business functions during and after a disruption. An example of a business function may be a payroll or consumer information process. A BCP may be written for a specific business process or may address all key business processes. Information technology (IT) systems are considered in the BCP in terms of support to the business processes. In some cases, the BCP may not address long-term recovery of processes and return to normal operations, solely covering interim business continuity requirements. A disaster recovery plan, business resumption plan, and occupant emergency plan may be appended to the BCP. Responsibilities and priorities set in the BCP should be coordinated with those in Continuity of Operations to eliminate possible conflicts.

1.) What are the necessities of server?

Ans.) Servers are necessary: 1.) When an application is launched for the first time and

doesn’t know anybody yet.2.) When an application cannot find satisfactory neighbours by

itself.3.) To update data of favourite users whose informations have

changed.4.) To hold chat rooms data, i.e. to create a room, to connect or

disconnect from it.

2.)What are the different types of servers?

Ans.) The simplest form of servers are: a.) Disk server: This server allows certain users to have access to specific data or be able to store or maintain data on the server.

b.)File server: In this type of server, the client requests for files or file records over a network to the file server.

The advanced form of servers are: a.)Database server: In this type of server, client passes SQL(Structured Query Language) requests as messages to the server and the results of the query are returned over the network.

b.)Transaction server: In transaction server, the clients invoke remote procedures that reside on servers which also contain an SQL database engine.

c.)Applicaton server: Application servers are not necessarily database centred but are used to serve user needs, such as downloading capabilities or regulating an electronic mail process

Server is an adjective in the term server operating system. A server operating system is intended, enabled, or better able to run server applications. The differences between the server version and the "workstation" version of an operating system vary. Sometimes (as in the case of Windows 2000 and Windows 2000 Server), the primary difference is the removal of arbitrary license-dependent limits on the number of network file share connections accepted. Some server editions include additional server applications bundled with the operating system. Some server applications (e.g. Microsoft IIS) impose arbitrary limits on the number of HTTP connections they will accept, depending on whether they are running under a server operating system or not.

A server computer (often called server for short) is a computer system that has been designated for running a specific server application or applications. A computer that is designated for only one server application is often named for that application. For example, when Apache HTTP Server (software) is a company's web server, the computer running it is also called the web server.

Server applications can be divided among server computers over an extreme range, depending upon the workload. Under light loading, every server application can run concurrently on a single computer. Under heavy loading, multiple server computers may be required for each application. Under medium loading, it is common to use one server computer per server application, in order to limit the amount of damage caused by failure of any single server computer or security breach of any single server application. Any server computer can also be used as a workstation, but it is avoided in practice, again to contain risk.

Server or server computer is also a designation for computer models intended for use running server applications, often under heavy workloads, unattended, for extended time. While any "workstation" computer can run server operating systems and server applications, a server computer usually has special features intended to make it more suitable. Distinctions often include faster processor and memory, more RAM, larger hard drives, higher reliability, redundant power supplies, redundant hard drives (RAID), compact size and shape, modular design (e.g., blade servers often used in server farms), rack or cabinet mountability, serial console redirection, etc.

The name server or server appliance also applies to network-connected computer appliances or "appliance hardware" that provides specific services onto the network. Though the appliance is a server computer, loaded with a server operating system and a server application, the user need not configure any of it. It is a black box that does a specific job. The simplest servers are most often sold as appliances, for example switches, routers, gateways, print servers, net modems.

A server is defined as a multi-user computer that provides a service (e.g. database access, file transfer, remote access) or resources (e.g. file space) over a network connection.

o Application server a server dedicated to running certain software applications

o Communications server , carrier-grade computing platform for communications networks

o Database server provides database services o Proxy server Provides database IT server in services o Fax server provides fax services for clients o File server provides file services

o Game server a server that video game clients connect to in order to play online together

o Standalone server an emulator for client-server (web-based) programs

o Web server a server that HTTP clients connect to in order to send commands and receive responses along with data contents

o Client-server a software architecture that separates "server" functions from "client" functions

o Peer-to-peer a network of computers running as both clients and servers.

The Client Server Architecture

The Internet revolves around the client-server architecture. Your computer runs software called the client and it interacts with another software known as the server located at a remote computer. The client is usually a browser such as Internet Explorer, Netscape Navigator or Mozilla. Browsers interact with the server using a set of instructions called protocols. These protocols help in the accurate transfer of data through requests from a browser and responses from the server. There are many protocols available on the Internet. The World Wide Web, which is a part of the Internet, brings all these protocols under one roof. You can, thus, use HTTP, FTP, Telnet, email etc. from one platform - your web browser

Client-server is a computing architecture which separates a client from a server, and is almost always implemented over a computer network. Each client or server connected to a network can also be referred to as a node. The most basic type of client-server architecture employs only two types of nodes: clients and servers. This type of architecture is sometimes referred to as two-tier. It allows devices to share files and resources.

Each instance of the client software can send data requests to one or more connected servers. In turn, the servers can accept these requests, process them, and return the requested information to the client. Although this concept can be applied for a variety of reasons to many different kinds of applications, the architecture remains fundamentally the same.

These days, clients are most often web browsers, although that has not always been the case. Servers typically include web servers, database servers and mail servers. Online gaming is usually client-server too. In the specific

case of MMORPG, the servers are typically operated by the company selling the game; for other games one of the players will act as the host by setting his game in server mode.

The interaction between client and server is often described using sequence diagrams. Sequence diagrams are standardized in the Unified Modeling Language.

Characteristics

Characteristics of a client Initiates requests Waits for and receives replies Usually connects to a small number of servers at one time Typically interacts directly with end-users using a graphical user interface

Characteristics of a server Passive (slave) Waits for requests from clients Upon receipt of requests, processes them and then serves replies Usually accepts connections from a large number of clients

Typically does not interact directly with end-users

Data warehouse is a repository of an organization's electronically stored data. Data warehouses are designed to facilitate reporting and analysis[1].

This classic definition of the data warehouse focuses on data storage. However, the means to retrieve and analyze data, to extract, transform and load data, and to manage the data dictionary are also considered essential components of a data warehousing system. Many references to data warehousing use this broader context. Thus, an expanded definition for data warehousing includes business intelligence tools, tools to extract, transform, and load data into the repository, and tools to manage and retrieve metadata.

In contrast to data warehouses are operational systems which perform day-to-day transaction processing.

"Datawarehousing"

The process of transforming data into information and making it available to the user in a timely enough manner to make a difference is known as data warehousing.

Benefits of data warehousing

Some of the benefits that a data warehouse provides are as follows: [9][10]

A data warehouse provides a common data model for all data of interest regardless of the data's source. This makes it easier to report and analyze information than it would be if multiple data models were used to retrieve information such as sales invoices, order receipts, general ledger charges, etc.

Prior to loading data into the data warehouse, inconsistencies are identified and resolved. This greatly simplifies reporting and analysis.

Information in the data warehouse is under the control of data warehouse users so that, even if the source system data is purged over time, the information in the warehouse can be stored safely for extended periods of time.

Because they are separate from operational systems, data warehouses provide retrieval of data without slowing down operational systems.

Data warehouses can work in conjunction with and, hence, enhance the value of operational business applications, notably customer relationship management (CRM) systems.

Data warehouses facilitate decision support system applications such as trend reports (e.g., the items with the most sales in a particular area within the last two years), exception reports, and reports that show actual performance versus goals.

<APPLICATIONS> 1. Finance -credit card analysis 2. Insurance- fraud analysis 3. Transport- logistic management 4. Telecommunications- call record analysis

Disadvantages of data warehouses

There are also disadvantages to using a data warehouse. Some of them are:

Over their life, data warehouses can have high costs. The data warehouse is usually not static. Maintenance costs are high.

Data warehouses can get outdated relatively quickly. There is a cost of delivering suboptimal information to the organization.

There is often a fine line between data warehouses and operational systems. Duplicate, expensive functionality may be developed. Or, functionality may be developed in the data warehouse that, in retrospect, should have been developed in the operational systems and vice versa..

Business intelligence (BI) refers to skills, knowledge, technologies, applications and practices used to help a business to acquire a better understanding of the market behavior

and business context. For this purpose it employs collection, integration, analysis, interpretation and presentation of business information. In simplified meaning it may refer to the collected information itself or the explicit knowledge developed from the information. The purpose of business intelligence--a term that dates at least to 1958--is to support better business decision making.[1] Thus, BI system is also described as a decision support system (DSS):[2]

BI is sometimes used interchangeably with briefing books, report and query tools and executive information systems. In general, business intelligence systems are data-driven DSS.

BI systems provide historical, current, and predictive views of business operations, most often using data that has been gathered into a data warehouse or a data mart and occasionally working from operational data. Software elements support the use of this information by assisting in the extraction, analysis, and reporting of information. Applications tackle sales, production, financial, and many other sources of business data for purposes that include, notably, business performance management. Information may be gathered on comparable companies to produce benchmarks.

Electronic commerce

Electronic commerce, commonly known as e-commerce or eCommerce, consists of the buying and selling of products or services over electronic systems such as the Internet and other computer networks. The amount of trade conducted electronically has grown extraordinarily since the spread of the Internet. A wide variety of commerce is conducted in this way, spurring and drawing on innovations in electronic funds transfer, supply chain management, Internet marketing, online transaction processing, electronic data interchange (EDI), inventory management systems, and automated data collection systems. Modern electronic commerce typically uses the World Wide Web at least at some point in the transaction's lifecycle, although it can encompass a wider range of technologies such as e-mail as well.

A large percentage of electronic commerce is conducted entirely electronically for virtual items such as access to premium content on a website, but most electronic commerce involves the transportation of physical items in some way. Online retailers are sometimes known as e-tailers and online retail is sometimes known as e-tail. Almost all big retailers have electronic commerce presence on the World Wide Web.

Electronic commerce that is conducted between businesses is referred to as business-to-business or B2B. B2B can be open to all interested parties (e.g. commodity exchange) or limited to specific, pre-qualified participants (private electronic market). Electronic commerce that is conducted between businesses and consumers, on the other hand, is referred to as business-to-consumer or B2C. This is the type of electronic commerce conducted by companies such as Amazon.com.

Electronic commerce is generally considered to be the sales aspect of e-business. It also consists of the exchange of data to facilitate the financing and payment aspects of the business transactions.

Business applications

Some common applications related to electronic commerce are the following:

E-mails and Messaging Content Management Systems Documents, spreadsheets, database Accounting and finance systems Orders and shipment information Enterprise and client information reporting Domestic and international payment systems Newsgroup On-line Shopping Messaging Conferencing Online Banking

Electronic Business, commonly referred to as "eBusiness" or "e-Business", may be defined as the utilization of information and communication technologies (ICT) in support of all the activities of business. Commerce constitutes the exchange of products and services between businesses, groups and individuals and hence can be seen as one of the essential activities of any business. Hence, electronic commerce or eCommerce focuses on the use of ICT to enable the external activities and relationships of the business with individuals, groups and other businesses [1].

Louis Gerstner, the former CEO of IBM, in his book, Who Says Elephants Can't Dance? attributes the term "e-Business" to IBM's marketing and Internet teams in 1996.

Electronic business methods enable companies to link their internal and external data processing systems more efficiently and flexibly, to work more closely with suppliers and partners, and to better satisfy the needs and expectations of their customers.

In practice, e-business is more than just e-commerce. While e-business refers to more strategic focus with an emphasis on the functions that occur using electronic capabilities, e-commerce is a subset of an overall e-business strategy. E-commerce seeks to add revenue streams using the World Wide Web or the Internet to build and enhance relationships with clients and partners and to improve efficiency using the Empty Vessel strategy. Often, e-commerce involves the application of knowledge management systems.

E-business involves business processes spanning the entire value chain: electronic purchasing and supply chain management, processing orders electronically, handling customer service, and cooperating with business partners. Special technical standards for

e-business facilitate the exchange of data between companies. E-business software solutions allow the integration of intra and inter firm business processes. E-business can be conducted using the Web, the Internet, intranets, extranets, or some combination of these.

Enterprise resource planning (ERP) is an enterprise-wide information system designed to coordinate all the resources, information, and activities needed to complete business processes such as order fulfillment or billing.[1]

An ERP system supports most of the business system that maintains in a single database the data needed for a variety of business functions such as Manufacturing, Supply Chain Management, Financials, Projects, Human Resources and Customer Relationship Management.

An ERP system is based on a common database and a modular software design. The common database can allow every department of a business to store and retrieve information in real-time. The information should be reliable, accessible, and easily shared. The modular software design should mean a business can select the modules they need, mix and match modules from different vendors, and add new modules of their own to improve business performance.

Ideally, the data for the various business functions are integrated. In practice the ERP system may comprise a set of discrete applications, each maintaining a discrete data store within one physical database.

Some organizations  — typically those with sufficient in-house IT skills to integrate multiple software products — choose to implement only portions of an ERP system and develop an external interface to other ERP or stand-alone systems for their other application needs. For example, one may choose to use human resource management system from one vendor, and the financial systems from another, and perform the integration between the systems themselves.

This is very common in the retail sector[citation needed], where even a mid-sized retailer will have a discrete Point-of-Sale (POS) product and financials application, then a series of specialized applications to handle business requirements such as warehouse management, staff rostering, merchandising and logistics.

Ideally, ERP delivers a single database that contains all data for the software modules, which would include:

Manufacturing  Engineering, Bills of Material, Scheduling, Capacity, Workflow Management, Quality Control, Cost Management, Manufacturing Process, Manufacturing Projects, Manufacturing Flow

Supply Chain Management 

Order to cash, Inventory, Order Entry, Purchasing, Product Configurator, Supply Chain Planning, Supplier Scheduling, Inspection of goods, Claim Processing, Commission Calculation

Financials  General Ledger, Cash Management, Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, Fixed Assets

Projects  Costing, Billing, Time and Expense, Activity Management

Human Resources  Human Resources, Payroll, Training, Time & Attendance, Rostering, Benefits

Customer Relationship Management  Sales and Marketing, Commissions, Service, Customer Contact and Call Center support

Data Warehouse  and various Self-Service interfaces for Customers, Suppliers, and Employees

Access control ; user privilege as per authority levels for process execution Customization; to meet the extension ,addition, change in process flow

Enterprise Resource Planning is a term originally derived from manufacturing resource planning (MRP II) that followed material requirements planning (MRP).[3] MRP evolved into ERP when "routings" became a major part of the software architecture and a company's capacity planning activity also became a part of the standard software activity.[citation needed] ERP systems typically handle the manufacturing, logistics, distribution, inventory, shipping, invoicing, and accounting for a company. Enterprise Resource Planning or ERP software can aid in the control of many business activities, like sales, marketing, delivery, billing, production, inventory management, quality management, and human resource management.

ERP systems saw a large boost in sales in the 1990s as companies faced the Y2K problem in their legacy systems. Many companies took this opportunity to replace their legacy information systems with ERP systems. This rapid growth in sales was followed by a slump in 1999, at which time most companies had already implemented their Y2K solution.[4]

ERPs are often incorrectly called back office systems indicating that customers and the general public are not directly involved. This is contrasted with front office systems like customer relationship management (CRM) systems that deal directly with the customers, or the eBusiness systems such as eCommerce, eGovernment, eTelecom, and eFinance, or supplier relationship management (SRM) systems.

ERPs are cross-functional and enterprise wide. All functional departments that are involved in operations or production are integrated in one system. In addition to manufacturing, warehousing, logistics, and information technology, this would include accounting, human resources, marketing, and strategic management.

ERP II means open ERP architecture of components. The older, monolithic ERP systems became component oriented.[citation needed]

EAS — Enterprise Application Suite is a new name for formerly developed ERP systems which include (almost) all segments of business, using ordinary Internet browsers as thin clients.[citation needed]

Supply chain management (SCM) is the management of a network of interconnected businesses involved in the ultimate provision of product and service packages required by end customers (Harland, 1996). Supply Chain Management spans all movement and storage of raw materials, work-in-process inventory, and finished goods from point-of-origin to point-of-consumption (supply chain).

Supply chain execution is managing and coordinating the movement of materials, information and funds across the supply chain. The flow is bi-directional.

[edit] Activities/functions

Supply chain management is a cross-functional approach to manage the movement of raw materials into an organization, certain aspects of the internal processing of materials into finished goods, and then the movement of finished goods out of the organization toward the end-consumer. As organizations strive to focus on core competencies and becoming more flexible, they have reduced their ownership of raw materials sources and distribution channels. These functions are increasingly being outsourced to other entities that can perform the activities better or more cost effectively. The effect is to increase the number of organizations involved in satisfying customer demand, while reducing management control of daily logistics operations. Less control and more supply chain partners led to the creation of supply chain management concepts. The purpose of supply chain management is to improve trust and collaboration among supply chain partners, thus improving inventory visibility and improving inventory velocity.

Several models have been proposed for understanding the activities required to manage material movements across organizational and functional boundaries. SCOR is a supply chain management model promoted by the Supply Chain Management Council. Another model is the SCM Model proposed by the Global Supply Chain Forum (GSCF). Supply chain activities can be grouped into strategic, tactical, and operational levels of activities.

[edit] Developments in Supply Chain Management

Six major movements can be observed in the evolution of supply chain management studies: Creation, Integration, and Globalization (Lavassani et al., 2008a), Specialization Phases One and Two, and SCM 2.0.

1. Creation Era

2. Integration Era

3. Globalization Era.

4. Specialization Era -- Phase One -- Outsourced Manufacturing and Distribution

5. Specialization Era -- Phase Two -- Supply Chain Management as a Service

6. Supply Chain Management 2.0 (SCM 2.0)

[edit] Supply chain business process integration

Successful SCM requires a change from managing individual functions to integrating activities into key supply chain processes. An example scenario: the purchasing department places orders as requirements become appropriate. Marketing, responding to customer demand, communicates with several distributors and retailers as it attempts to satisfy this demand. Shared information between supply chain partners can only be fully leveraged through process integration.

Supply chain business process integration involves collaborative work between buyers and suppliers, joint product development, common systems and shared information. ting a process approach to the business. The key supply chain processes stated by Lambert (2004) [5] are:

Customer relationship management Customer service management Demand management Order fulfillment Manufacturing flow management Supplier relationship management Product development and commercialization Returns management

One could suggest other key critical supply business processes combining these processes stated by Lambert such as:

a. Customer service management b. Procurement c. Product development and commercialization d. Manufacturing flow management/support e. Physical distribution f. Outsourcing/partnerships g. Performance measurement

a) Customer service management process

Customer Relationship Management concerns the relationship between the organization and its customers. Customer service provides the source of customer information. It also provides the customer with real-time information on promising dates and product availability through interfaces with the company's production and distribution operations. Successful organizations use following steps to build customer relationships:

determine mutually satisfying goals between organization and customers establish and maintain customer rapport produce positive feelings in the organization and the customers

b) Procurement process

Strategic plans are developed with suppliers to support the manufacturing flow management process and development of new products. In firms where operations extend globally, sourcing should be managed on a global basis. The desired outcome is a win-win relationship, where both parties benefit, and reduction times in the design cycle and product development are achieved. Also, the purchasing function develops rapid communication systems, such as electronic data interchange (EDI) and Internet linkages to transfer possible requirements more rapidly. Activities related to obtaining products and materials from outside suppliers requires performing resource planning, supply sourcing, negotiation, order placement, inbound transportation, storage, handling and quality assurance, many of which include the responsibility to coordinate with suppliers in scheduling, supply continuity, hedging, and research into new sources or programmes.

c) Product development and commercialization

Here, customers and suppliers must be united into the product development process, thus to reduce time to market. As product life cycles shorten, the appropriate products must be developed and successfully launched in ever shorter time-schedules to remain competitive. According to Lambert and Cooper (2000), managers of the product development and commercialization process must:

1. coordinate with customer relationship management to identify customer-articulated needs;

2. select materials and suppliers in conjunction with procurement, and 3. develop production technology in manufacturing flow to manufacture and

integrate into the best supply chain flow for the product/market combination.

d) Manufacturing flow management process

The manufacturing process is produced and supplies products to the distribution channels based on past forecasts. Manufacturing processes must be flexible to respond to market changes, and must accommodate mass customization. Orders are processes operating on a just-in-time (JIT) basis in minimum lot sizes. Also, changes in the manufacturing flow process lead to shorter cycle times, meaning improved responsiveness and efficiency of demand to customers. Activities related to planning, scheduling and supporting

manufacturing operations, such as work-in-process storage, handling, transportation, and time phasing of components, inventory at manufacturing sites and maximum flexibility in the coordination of geographic and final assemblies postponement of physical distribution operations.

e) Physical distribution

This concerns movement of a finished product/service to customers. In physical distribution, the customer is the final destination of a marketing channel, and the availability of the product/service is a vital part of each channel participant's marketing effort. It is also through the physical distribution process that the time and space of customer service become an integral part of marketing, thus it links a marketing channel with its customers (e.g. links manufacturers, wholesalers, retailers).

f) Outsourcing/partnerships

This is not just outsourcing the procurement of materials and components, but also outsourcing of services that traditionally have been provided in-house. The logic of this trend is that the company will increasingly focus on those activities in the value chain where it has a distinctive advantage and everything else it will outsource. This movement has been particularly evident in logistics where the provision of transport, warehousing and inventory control is increasingly subcontracted to specialists or logistics partners. Also, to manage and control this network of partners and suppliers requires a blend of both central and local involvement. Hence, strategic decisions need to be taken centrally with the monitoring and control of supplier performance and day-to-day liaison with logistics partners being best managed at a local level.

g) Performance measurement

Experts found a strong relationship from the largest arcs of supplier and customer integration to market share and profitability. By taking advantage of supplier capabilities and emphasizing a long-term supply chain perspective in customer relationships can be both correlated with firm performance. As logistics competency becomes a more critical factor in creating and maintaining competitive advantage, logistics measurement becomes increasingly important because the difference between profitable and unprofitable operations becomes more narrow. A.T. Kearney Consultants (1985) noted that firms engaging in comprehensive performance measurement realized improvements in overall productivity. According to experts internal measures are generally collected and analyzed by the firm including

1. Cost 2. Customer Service 3. Productivity measures 4. Asset measurement, and 5. Quality.

External performance measurement is examined through customer perception measures and "best practice" benchmarking, and includes 1) customer perception measurement, and 2) best practice benchmarking. Components of Supply Chain Management are 1. Standardization 2. Postponement 3. Customization

[edit] Theories of Supply Chain Management

Currently there exists a gap in the literature available in the area of supply chain management studies, on providing theoretical support for explaining the existence and the boundaries of supply chain management. Few authors such as Halldorsson, et al. (2003), Ketchen and Hult (2006) and Lavassani, et al. (2008b) had tried to provide theoretical foundations for different areas related to supply chain with employing organizational theories. These theories includes:

Resource-based view (RBV) Transaction Cost Analysis (TCA) Knowledge-based view (KBV) Strategic Choice Theory (SCT) Agency theory (AT) Institutional theory (InT) Systems Theory (ST) Network Perspective (NP)

[edit] Components of Supply Chain Management Integration

The management components of SCM

The SCM components are the third element of the four-square circulation framework. The level of integration and management of a business process link is a function of the number and level, ranging from low to high, of components added to the link (Ellram and Cooper, 1990; Houlihan, 1985). Consequently, adding more management components or increasing the level of each component can increase the level of integration of the business process link. The literature on business process reengineering,[6] buyer-supplier relationships,[7] and SCM[8] suggests various possible components that must receive managerial attention when managing supply relationships. Lambert and Cooper (2000) identified the following components which are:

Planning and control Work structure Organization structure Product flow facility structure Information flow facility structure Management methods Power and leadership structure

Risk and reward structure Culture and attitude

on.

Customer relationship management (CRM) is a term applied to processes implemented by a company to handle its contact with its customers. CRM software is used to support these processes, storing information on current and prospective customers. Information in the system can be accessed and entered by employees in different departments, such as sales, marketing, customer service, training, professional development, performance management, human resource development, and compensation. Details on any customer contacts can also be stored in the system. The rationale behind this approach is to improve services provided directly to customers and to use the information in the system for targeted marketing

While the term is generally used to refer to a software-based approach to handling customer relationships, most CRM software vendors stress that a successful CRM strategy requires a holistic approach. CRM initiatives often fail because implementation was limited to software installation without providing the appropriate motivations for employees to learn, provide input, and take full advantage of the information systems.[1]

A blog (a contraction of the term "Web log") is a Web site, usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in reverse-chronological order. "Blog" as a can also be used verb, meaning to maintain or add content to a blog.

Many blogs provide commentary or news on a particular subject; others function as more personal online diaries. A typical blog combines text, images, and links to other blogs, Web pages, and other media related to its topic. The ability for readers to leave comments in an interactive format is an important part of many blogs. Most blogs are primarily textual, although some focus on art (artlog), photographs (photoblog), sketches (sketchblog), videos (vlog), music (MP3 blog), audio (podcasting), which are part of a wider network of social media. Micro-blogging is another type of blogging, one which consists of blogs with very short posts. As of December 2007, blog search engine Technorati was tracking more than 112 million blogs.[1] With the advent of video blogging, the word blog has taken on an even looser meaning — that of any bit of media wherein the subject expresses his opinion or simply talks about something

Types

There are many different types of blogs, differing not only in the type of content, but also in the way that content is delivered or written.

Personal Blogs The personal blog, an ongoing diary or commentary by an individual, is the traditional, most common blog. Personal bloggers usually take pride in their blog posts, even if their blog is never read by anyone but them. Blogs often become more than a way to just communicate; they become a way to reflect on life or works of art. Blogging can have a sentimental quality. Few personal blogs rise to fame and the mainstream, but some personal blogs quickly garner an extensive following. A type of personal blog is referred to as "microblogging," which is extremely detailed blogging as it seeks to capture a moment in time. Sites, such as Twitter, allow bloggers to share thoughts and feelings instantaneously with friends and family and is much faster than e-mailing or writing. This form of social media lends to an online generation already too busy to keep in touch.[2]

Corporate Blogs A blog can be private, as in most cases, or it can be for business purposes. Blogs, either used internally to enhance the communication and culture in a corporation or externally for marketing, branding or public relations purposes are called corporate blogs.

Question Blogging is a type of blog that answers questions. Questions can be submitted in the form of a submittal form, or through email or other means such as telephone or VOIP. Qlogs can be used to display shownotes from podcasts[3] or the means of conveying information through the internet. Many question logs use syndication such as RSS as a means of conveying answers to questions.

By Media Type A blog comprising videos is called a vlog, one comprising links is called a linklog, a site containing a portfolio of sketches is called a sketchblog or one comprising photos is called a photoblog.[4] Blogs with shorter posts and mixed media types are called tumblelogs. A rare type of blog hosted on the Gopher Protocol is known as a Phlog.[citation needed]

By Device Blogs can also be defined by which type of device is used to compose it. A blog written by a mobile device like a mobile phone or PDA could be called a moblog.[5] One early blog was Wearable Wireless Webcam, an online shared diary of a person's personal life combining text, video, and pictures transmitted live from a wearable computer and EyeTap device to a web site. This practice of semi-automated blogging with live video together with text was referred to as sousveillance. Such journals have been used as evidence in legal matters.[citation

needed] By Genre

Some blogs focus on a particular subject, such as political blogs, travel blogs, house blogs,[6] [7] fashion blogs, project blogs, education blogs, niche blogs, classical music blogs, quizzing blogs and legal blogs (often referred to as a blawgs) or dreamlogs. While not a legitimate type of blog, one used for the sole purpose of spamming is known as a Splog.

Community and Cataloging

The Blogosphere The collective community of all blogs is known as the blogosphere. Since all blogs are on the internet by definition, they may be seen as interconnected and socially networked. Discussions "in the blogosphere" have been used by the media as a gauge of public opinion on various issues. A collection of local blogs is sometimes referred to as a bloghood.[8]

Blog Search Engines Several blog search engines are used to search blog contents, such as Bloglines, BlogScope, and Technorati. Technorati, which is among the most popular blog search engines, provides current information on both popular searches and tags used to categorize blog postings [9]. Research community is working on going beyond simple keyword search, by inventing new ways to navigate through huge amounts of information present in the blogosphere, as demonstrated by projects like BlogScope.[citation needed]

Blogging Communities and Directories Several online communities exist that connect people to blogs and bloggers to other bloggers, including BlogCatalog and MyBlogLog. [10]

Blogging and Advertising It is common for blogs to feature advertisements either to financially benefit the blogger or to promote the blogger's favorite causes. The popularity of blogs has also given rise to "fake blogs" in which a company will create a fictional blog as a marketing tool to promote a product. [11]

Popularity

Researchers have analyzed the dynamics of how blogs become popular. There are essentially two measures of this: popularity through citations, as well as popularity through affiliation (i.e. blogroll). The basic conclusion from studies of the structure of blogs is that while it takes time for a blog to become popular through blogrolls, permalinks can boost popularity more quickly, and are perhaps more indicative of popularity and authority than blogrolls, since they denote that people are actually reading the blog's content and deem it valuable or noteworthy in specific cases.[12]

The blogdex project was launched by researchers in the MIT Media Lab to crawl the Web and gather data from thousands of blogs in order to investigate their social properties. It gathered this information for over 4 years, and autonomously tracked the most contagious information spreading in the blog community, ranking it by recency and popularity. It can therefore be considered the first instantiation of a memetracker. The project is no longer active, but a similar function is now served by tailrank.com.

Blogs are given rankings by Technorati based on the number of incoming links and Alexa Internet based on the Web hits of Alexa Toolbar users. In August 2006, Technorati found that the most linked-to blog on the internet was that of Chinese actress Xu Jinglei.[13] Chinese media Xinhua reported that this blog received more than 50 million page views, claiming it to be the most popular blog in the world.[14] Technorati rated Boing Boing to be the most-read group-written blog.[13]

Gartner forecasts that blogging will peak in 2007, leveling off when the number of writers who maintain a personal Web site reaches 100 million. Gartner analysts expect that the novelty value of the medium will wear off as most people who are interested in the phenomenon have checked it out, and new bloggers will offset the number of writers who abandon their creation out of boredom. The firm estimates that there are more than 200 million former bloggers who have ceased posting to their online diaries, creating an exponential rise in the amount of "dotsam" and "netsam" — that is to say, unwanted objects on the Web (analogous to flotsam and jetsam).

Political Dangers

Blogging can sometimes have unforeseen consequences in politically sensitive areas. Blogs are much harder to control than broadcast or even print media. As a result, totalitarian and authoritarian regimes often seek to suppress blogs and/or to punish those who maintain them.

In Singapore, two ethnic Chinese were imprisoned under the country’s anti-sedition law for posting anti-Muslim remarks in their blogs.[43]

Egyptian blogger Kareem Amer was charged with insulting the Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak and an Islamic institution through his online blog. It is the first time in the history of Egypt that a blogger was prosecuted. After a brief trial session that took place in Alexandria, the blogger was found guilty and sentenced to prison terms of three years for insulting Islam and inciting sedition, and one year for insulting Mubarak.[44]

Egyptian blogger Abdel Monem Mahmoud was arrested in April 2007 for anti-government writings in his blog. Monem is a member of the banned Muslim Brotherhood.

After expressing opinions in his personal blog about the state of the Sudanese armed forces, Jan Pronk, United Nations Special Representative for the Sudan, was given three days notice to leave Sudan. The Sudanese army had demanded his deportation.[45][46][47]

Personal Safety

One consequence of blogging is the possibility of attacks or threats against the blogger, sometimes without apparent reason. Kathy Sierra, author of the innocuous blog Creating Passionate Users, was the target of such vicious threats and misogynistic insults that she canceled her keynote speech at a technology conference in San Diego, fearing for her safety.[48] While a blogger's anonymity is often tenuous, Internet trolls who would attack a blogger with threats or insults can be emboldened by anonymity. Sierra and supporters initiated an online discussion aimed at countering abusive online behavior[49] and developed a blogger's code of conduct.

Therapeutic Benefits

Scientists have long known the therapeutic benefits of writing about personal experiences. Blogs provide another convenient avenue for writing about personal experiences. Research shows that it improves memory and sleep, boosts immune cell activity and reduces viral load in AIDS patients and even speeds healing after surgery.[50]

[dubious – discuss]

Early blogs were simply manually updated components of common Web sites. However, the evolution of tools to facilitate the production and maintenance of Web articles posted in reverse chronological order made the publishing process feasible to a much larger, less technical, population. Ultimately, this resulted in the distinct class of online publishing that produces blogs we recognize today. For instance, the use of some sort of browser-based software is now a typical aspect of "blogging". Blogs can be hosted by dedicated blog hosting services, or they can be run using blog software, such as WordPress, Movable Type, Blogger or LiveJournal, or on regular web hosting services.