Presentation software
What is it?
Presentation software is a tool used to create visual presentations. These presentations are usually delivered in a slide show format, and can be created with a variety of programs. The programs make it possible to combine text and graphic elements to convey important information to a group of people all at once.
Advantages
Presentation software is incredibly easy to learn how to use
It is supplied with a large library of background templates and custom layouts
Multimedia can easily be added to the presentation
They are very easy to edit
Presentations can be easily output to different formats e.g. interactive whiteboard sheets and hand-outs They are excellent for summarising facts Great for showing graphs/ charts and diagrams to an audience Can create a set of hand outs for people to write on whilst the presentation is being given Allows you to make eye contact with your audience instead of constantly looking at the screen Disadvantages It is difficult for the audience to take notes while the presentation is taking place otherwise they lose concentration Audiences are often happy to sit placidly and not interact with the presenter It’s not good for presenting certain kinds of information such as complex maths equations It is all too easy to make a very bad presentation with too many animations and too much goi9ng on at one time Presenters generally just read from the presentation and don’t interact with the audience which can make it very boring for the audience

Word processing: What is it? Advantages: Most people can type faster than they can write Word-processed documents are always legible Documents can easily be sent electronically Can use certain features like hyperlinks Spell check Easy to erase and fix mistakes and edit text

Disadvantages Requires a computer (and electrical power) to write Data can be lost by a computer malfunction
Requires a computer or printer to view document
Certain languages (esp. Asian languages) require hundreds of symbols not easily accessed on a keyboard Symbols and equations are easier to write than create on a computer.
If the power goes off you can't do it anymore.

Email

Advantages

Emails are delivered extremely fast when compared to traditional post.
Emails can be sent 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Webmail means emails can be sent and received from any computer, anywhere in the world, that has an Internet connection.
Cheap - when using broadband, each email sent is effectively free. Dial-up users are charged at local call rates but it only takes a few seconds (for conventional email, eg text only) to send an email.
Emails can be sent to one person or several people.

Disadvantages

The recipient needs access to the Internet to receive email.
Viruses are easily spread via email attachments (most email providers scan emails for viruses on your behalf).
Phishing - sending an email to a user falsely claiming to be a legitimate company to scam the user into providing information, such as personal information and bank account numbers on a bogus website. The details will then be used for identity theft.
No guarantee the mail will be read until the user logs on and checks their email.
Spam - unsolicited email, ie junk mail.

Blogs
Advantages of Blogs Blog sites can be developed with the help of simple procedures. A blog post goes public, in other words, it can be accessed and read by almost everyone who have an access to internet. The usage of blogs are very convenient, hence people tend to use them more frequently. Students tend to improve their writing skills as blog articles should be reasonably good enough and free grammatical mistakes. Students get into the habit of writing, which helps them in all their future endeavors. Blog sites used as online class forums enables students with various personalities to participate in a discussion far more effectively than they can otherwise. Individuals learn to express their opinions and exchange their views on topics of common interest, which not only keeps them updated but also effective contributors of new ideas. Individuals get a chance to read other blogs, which indirectly helps them to improve upon their skill of writing.

Disadvantages of Blogs It involves a lot of time to update and post an entry on the blog site Regular writing may give rise to slangs and sloppy way of writing spoiling the quality of proper usage of language. One major drawback is that not all information can be shared on blog sites. Hence may not be useful for everyone. The need to have a computer may not be feasible for everyone. Individuals and students may have reluctance is getting used to the technological advancements. Blogging cannot be thrusted upon students who are hardly interested in reading and replying to the post. Blogging on day to day issues is different from writing on the subject. Hence it may not be a practical idea to force them to do it. We were talking individual blogs linked to the group’s website; while it is good for students to have their own blog sites, remember not all may be able to participate, unless, all the comments are seen in one common blogging site.

Vlogs
Instant messaging
Video conferencing and podcasting