Emoticons
Emoticons are symbols of facial expressions, such as :) (representing a smiley face), formed by various combinations of keyboard characters and used in communication.
They can be used in scenarios such as communication through text or email, they can be used to make a subject less serious or formal, and they also help to communicate what mood you’re in by showing a happy emoticon or unhappy emoticon. It can also help something come out in a better way, so limiting the problem of miscommunication.
Examples of Emoticons:
:-) - Smile :-( - Frown ;-) - Wink :-* - Kiss :-D - Laugh :-P - Raspberry :-O - Surprise :-/ - Bored :-S- Confused B-)- Cool
<3- Love (Heart) :’-( - Crying
Advantages of Emoticons:
- Quick and easy to use
- Most commonly already synced into phones and computers (so you don’t have to remember every symbol).
- Easily accessible on most phones
Disadvantages of Emoticons:
- If you are trying to look professional or write a formal text, emoticons can look very unprofessional and improper.
- You can sometimes mistakenly send the wrong emoticon via text/email.
Note Taking
This is where you record information by writing only the key bits of a sentence down that are of most importance. It is a much quicker way or writing something down, freeing someone’s mind of having to remember everything they are trying to document.
- Notes help to aid and jog the memory of a person (i.e. Taking notes down in class can help you remember the task set or what you have learnt in the lesson). An example of note taking which reporters normally use is called short hand, which saves them a lot of time and minimises any information missed.
Advantages of Note Taking:
- Quick and easier
- Saves time
- Helps jog the memory
Disadvantages of Note Taking:
- Sometimes, if you are in a rush, the notes you write down may not make sense
- When reporters use short hand, (refer to the above picture) other people may not be able to read and understand it, becoming a become a barrier to communication.
Reports
A report is a story in a newspaper, on the radio or television that gives a written or spoken description of a situation/event. Reports are an easy way to display and give out information easily, as many people read newspapers, listen to the radio and watch television.
There are many different types of reports:
- Lab Reports
- Field Study Reports
- Proposals
- Financial Reports
- Research Reports
- Progress Reports.
Advantages of using Reports:
- Puts all the relevant and important information into one article/place
- Quite simple and easy to find.
Disadvantages of using Reports:
- Some reports can be written from a very bias view point, so sometimes what you are reading is not always factual but slightly exaggerated.
Letters
Letters are still used commonly around the world today, which can be of a short length or long length. Letters are a written, typed, or printed type of communication and they can often be received by hand or through the post.
Advantages of using Letters:
- Doesn’t use any electronic means so is a lot cheaper.
- A written record of the message will be kept.
- Enables long distance communication to take place.
- Can be very personal and traditional.
Disadvantages of using Letters:
- Can take time to deliver.
- Can easily be lost.
- Not 100% sure of security, can sometimes be opened and read or sent to the wrong address.
Faxes
Faxing is a printed page or image transmitted or received by a fax machine. Using faxes are not as common as they were many years ago, being one of the limited ways to communicate back then. To send a fax a telephone number is normally connected to a printer or other output device.
Advantages of using Faxes:
- Can get your information in writing to someone right away without sending by regular mail.
- You can also send documents directly from your computer
- Faxing uses a delivery report system and you will know it has been received
Disadvantages of using Faxes:
- If you have a regular fax you need a phone line.
- Faxing will only allow you to use A4 sized documents but with emails/post the page size is unlimited
- Most fax machines only print black and white
Emailing are messages distributed by electronic means from one computer user to one or
more recipients via a network. Email is widely used all over the world and is very easy and quick to use and send information.
Advantages of using Email:
- Emails are fast and are delivered at once around the world.
- The language used in emails is simple and informal
- Emails do not use paper to communicate therefore, they are environment friendly and save a lot of trees from being cut down.
- Emails can also have pictures in them. You can send birthday cards or newsletters as emails.
Disadvantages of using Email:
- Emails may carry viruses. These are small programs that can harm your computer system.
- Many people send unwanted emails to others. These are called spam mails and can take a long time to filter out the unwanted emails.
- Your mailbox may get flooded with emails after a certain time so you have to empty it from time to time.