Real - Time Media

Real time technology is one of the biggest forms of media technology to date. Why? easy,  real time technology can be used for the of  order tracking/navigation, also as a form of communication such as; RSS feeds + news, weather such as satellite imaging and web-cams, and, things in our everyday lives such as public transport. There are many things real time media can be used for. An example could be using a Tom-tom sat nav to find the most efficient/fastest way to get to Brighton from Royal Tunbridge Wells.

Rizzle Kicks Album Artwork 2011

Order Tracking

Many transactional websites like Apple and Amazon have a tracking device which allows their customers to check out where their products are. For example, if you brought the new Rizzle Kicks album from Amazon and hadn’t yet received it or just simply wanted to find out whereabouts it is then you could track it down by simply going on your Amazon account and search where your product was.

Advantages of order tracking would be:

• Better service as the customers/suppliers can check their progress of their products by themselves
• Cost efficient for companies as you can reduce stock wastage
• Defines trust, as it’s an honest form of technology creating a relationship between the customer and the supplier

Order Tracker (print screen, example)

Disadvantages:

• If the customer/supplies product is in a completely different place that could break down trust and reputation
• Streams are not always streaming properly and could lag, making confusion occur
• Products have been known to mix up, again creating confusion and loss of trust

In my own personal experience there was a time when I had brought a pair of shoes from the transactional website Asos, I ordered these shoes expecting to see them at my doorstep in three working days. After the three days I got a bit impatient and decided to order track my shoes, I found out that this shoes were in Preston!? I couldn’t believe it and sent an email to Asos complaining, and they gave me a 15% discount code to use on my next purchase with them, although they gave me a perk I was still a bit unhappy with them, but in the end I finally got my shoes in six working days. Just goes to show without that real time media technology, what would I have of done?

Satellite Imaging/Web-cams

Webcam photo from Earthcam

Weather satellite imaging is also used widely throughout real time media. Companies now  put webcams around their land for potential customers or for their customers to see what the weather will be like for them when they come to stay. I found a website online ‘Earthcam.com’ this website allows any user to view real time imaging from Hong Kong to the infamous San Francisco! A lot of people normally use web-cam imaging in places such as skiing resorts to see if the snow is any good for skiing/snowboarding. 

Advantages of satellite imaging:

• Satellite images can make forecasting weather conditions much more clearer – because they show exactly what is happening in that chosen location
• You can predict weather from seeing it yourself

Disadvantages:

• The cam could be faulty and not give us a clear perception of what is going on
• Your connection to the internet could always cut out
• The website has to be trustworthy as that webcam could be placed elsewhere...

I don't really have a personal experience of using real time satellite imaging, but my mum has used this to decide on where to go on a walking holiday. She actually searched both places and saw which of the two had better weather for our walking conditions. And in the end my mum did indeed come to a conclusion, with all thanks to satellite imaging.

RSS Feeds

RSS icon

The first ever version of RSS, was created by Ramanathan V. Guha and Dan Libby at Netscape in March 1999, since it has now become a big hit of technology and is used worldwide.

RRS news feeds are very rife in the world or real time technology. These RSS feeds are everywhere! Their aim is to frequently  post updated works such as: news, blog entries, statuses and audio/video etc... However, they do what they are supposed to do, they give a real time recollection of what is going on in a certain event/place/person etc. Sites such as BBC news use RRS feeds. They do this because it’s a simple and fast way to get information across.

Social network sites such as Twitter use RRS feeds to keep their social site working, without RRS there would really be no Twitter, meaning that the celebrities wouldn’t be able to junk mail you with what they are currently having for breakfast. They do this through a real time ‘tweet’. What happens is on the main homepage you can see a real time version of what all your contacts are ‘tweeting’ about through RSS feeds.

Advantages of RSS feeds:

• Can grab the latest updates of virtually if not everything as soon as it happens
• You can subscribe to a user to have a constant flow of their RSS feeds
• Can save time surfing the web to find out information
• Spam free – you do not use your e-mail address
• If you want to un-subscribe from someone you can – it’s no real hassle to do
• Can be used as an advertising/marketing tool

Disadvantages:

• Some users prefer using their e-mail address to receive updates rather than an RSS feed
• You get no graphics/photos in an RSS feed
• RSS feeds create higher traffic and demands on the server
• As its newish technology some people are a bit shy/afraid to use it

I happen to sometimes use RSS feeds to find out brief/quick information about what's happening in the news. I find it user friendly and so far I have had no real problems with it. I also use RSS feeds to find out the latest gossip/news of my football team Spurs. I can find out their latest signings and whereabouts they are on the table and if they have scored a goal! Brilliant stuff!

Spurs RRS news feed printscreen