Commerce and the Internet :: Internet E-Commerce Business Essays

Commerce and the Internet Introduction The company I work with wants to 'get on the web.' Few of the staff are experienced computer users, but they know how to make the machines spit out invoices, purchase orders, reports, letters and pretty packaging designs. They know that 'everyone' is on the web nowadays, they want to 'do it,' but they're tardy in undertaking the project, and the subject has ignited a series of internal power struggles among the staff. This paper is a broad exploration of communication issues related to a small business's desire to utilize the internet . As a speech communications major, I am interested in studying all facets of communication. What I have learned in four short weeks is that the subject of commerce on the internet is complex and widely misunderstood -- even feared -- by many members of our community. Thomas Sebeok, in his paper Communication states that "because the concept of communication is so central to our contemporary civilization, and because of the intensive social shaping of technology by governments and commercial interests, our age has increasingly come to be characterized as 'the information society'. (11). I posit that this intensive social shaping of technology, and the multiplicity of information communicated therein, is straining our human ability to accurately decode messages due to entropy (the measure of disorder in the system) created by a 'blind' rush for profits. Yet, i f "the power of money does not lie in the coin, nor that of justice in the buildings that house our courts or the people that operate the system," (Plotkin) where do they lie? This presentation will tell my story, humbly state an opinion, and possibly raise further questions for readers. Fear and Loathing in Canoga Park My employer's company has experienced meteoric growth over the past year. In the scramble to keep up with the demands of a burgeoning business, I was employed as an administrative assistant and given the task of researching for, designing and purchasing a sophisticated infranet and automated voice mail system for the workers to use. The telephones and computers had to be compatible, to accommodate a planned telemarketing department. The system was designed with 'security' in mind -- a simple DOS based accounting package was provided via diskless workstations to the sales staff, while the administrative staff received WIN 95 'executive' workstations, but could drop into the DOS loop when necessary.