Using Electronic Mail: Round Robin

Module NA13h

Needed:

This handout
An email account and access to the Internet

Exercise: See instructions below

Turn in: Electronic mail to your instructor, as describedbelow. This is a paperless assignment.

Note: This is a team-based exercise. You will need to get in agroup with two other people - that is, each group is to consist of three(3) people.

Instructions:

Do this before starting on the computer:

Select team mates in consultation with your instructor.

Choose a "starter" in your group for each question. (Everyone in the group should be a "starter" on at least one item.) For clarity, write down here who is starting each topic, and what is their user login name:

Topic Person Login ID

a. ______________ ________

b. ______________ ________

c. ______________ ________

Your instructor will assign the class one or more topics for discussion and research. The topics may include one of the following:

Topic	Questions to Research
Electronic Mail 1	What are the advantages from the user's (your) point of view, of using electronic mail? What are the disadvantages, from the user's (your) point of view, of using electronic mail? What do you think would it be like if everybody in your organization used electronic mail? (Maybe they do already!) What changes would (or has) this made in your organization?
Electronic Mail 2	When you receive email, the header always says who it is from. How reliable is this header? How could it be "spoofed"? What steps can you take, if you receive electronic mail, to verify who the sender really is? What steps can be taken by the sender and receiver to make sure an email message is known to be from the person it says it's from?
Copyright on the Internet	Suppose you want to take pictures (graphic images) from a Web site and use them on your own Web pages. Find five sources of graphics on the Web and state the policy of those sources with regard to use of their images. ("Starter" find the first 3; other team members find one each.) Suppose you want a program to convert graphics from one format to another. Find five such programs and state the conditions for their use, according to their licence or "Read Me" file. ("Starter" find the first 3; other team members find one each.) Suppose you are doing research on current events and need to find five articles from recent newspapers or magazines to quote in your research paper. The paper will be posted on your class's public Web site. Find five different newpapers, magazines, or news services with articles available on the Web, and state their useage policies. ("Starter" find the first 3; other team members find one each.)
Privacy on the Internet	What aspects of the Internet make it possible for people to read email not intended for them? What steps can an individual take to maintain privacy when using email? What laws have been tried or proposed to make email private in your country?
Internet Ethical Issues	Spam: What is it? What is the origin of the term? Should it be allowed? How can people be prevented from intentionally spamming? What can you as an individual do to cut down on spam you receive? ("Starter" find the first 3; other team members find one each.) Netiquette: Explain five things you can do in email to abide by the rules of "netiquette". ("Starter" find the first 3; other team members find one each.)
Children using the Internet	Name three types of objectionable content that can be found on the World Wide Web. (Each team member briefly define or describe one type.) What legal steps have been taken (or have being proposed) to stop objectionable content from reaching children? How successful have they been? (Each team member find and briefly discuss one such legal step. Be sure to mention where you found the information.) What technical means can be used to prevent objectionable content from reaching children? How successful are they? How widely are they used?

Discuss the topics with your group. Jot down at least a few key words or ideas; if you like, write a statement giving your opinion.

Do this at the computer:

Using the Send Mail option, start a message to one of your team members. Ask what their email address is. In the message, write down your notes and ideas. Elegant formatting is not necessary, but a simple, neat arrangement is helpful. Be sure to put your name in the message so it can be easily identified. If you are doing this for credit, part of your grade will be based on your thoughtfulness and use of text sources and actual experience.

When you receive a message from a teammate, read it. Think about what they have said, and what you might be able to add to the discussion.

Forward the message to the team member who hasn't seen it, or if everyone has already seen it, send it back to the originator.

1 always sends to 2
2 always sends to 3
3 always sends to 1
After telling your mail program that you want to forward the message, add your own comments at the end. Put your initials or nickname at the beginning or end of your comment, to identify that you said it. (This is necessary if you expect to receive credit for this exercise!) Add a separator line (a row of dashes or some other symbol) to clearly separate your comment from the one above it.

When you receive back the discussion on an item you started, you may add further comments of your own to sum up the discussion. Be sure your names are in the file! Forward this to each of the team members, and to the instructor. Write the instructor's e-mail address here: ___________________________________

Find you INP instructor's email address on the INP Website.

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Audience:

This is for people who know how to use the computer and have access to a user account capabale of sending and receiving mail (either local area or internet). It assumes you are familiar with the concepts of electronic mail.

Objectives:

When you successfully complete this lesson, you will be able to...

Start and end an electronic mail program
Address, compose and send a message
Forward a message, with comments added, to another person
Use electronic mail as a vehicle for group document composition
Deal with problems that arise during the normal course of group mail work

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About this document...

Module NA13h: Round Robin Discussion

Author:: Laurence J. Krieg
Institution:: Department of Computer Information Systems, Washtenaw Community College
History:: Original: October, 1995; This version posted Wednesday, 07-Nov-2001 13:02:56 EST