CHAPTER 1
THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND
Introduction
Man as a social being needs to communicate. It is an essential part of his existence. Communication may take several forms but what is important is that a person has the freedom to express himself anytime, anywhere. Freedom of expression is one benefits of the Internet.
In many ways, computers in business go hand-in-hand with the advent of the industrial revolution and the subsequent advances in science and technology. With almost every advance in our knowledge of computer technology, the business world changed fundamentally, transforming the dusty old ledgers of New York trading companies, into modern networks connecting millions of businesses worldwide and moving billions of dollars across fiber optic cables. (http://www.ehow.com/about_5299598_history-computers-business.html).
With the advent and widespread use of the Internet in the late 1990s, business benefited from an explosion of efficiency gains including the ability to coordinate design, manufacturing, distribution, and sales, all through computer systems and the networks that connected them. Additionally, real time global trading was possible in a way never before seen, changing the way transactions were carried out, and weakening the relevance of nation states in the process.
As higher bandwidths became available, teleconferencing and commuting were both affordable and effective, allowing for outsourcing and other remote-work features of 21st century business.(http://www.ehow.com/about_5299598_history-computers-business.html)
Currently, the business environment is benefiting from the miniaturization and increased portability of computers. From the first laptops in the 1990s, to the net books, PDAs, and smart phones of today, it has increasingly become possible to work while on the move, something which appears to be blurring the line between people's work life and domestic experience....