team+magnificent+G-8

the research is well done, nicely presented and collected, the text still seems a bit too much copied from the web - but all together good work i must admit lor

Fredy Burch:308256 Erin Shiu: 307112 Kylie Suen: 307612 Monica Ji: 307584 Valerie Zelger: 308420 Samir Tweshe: 306661 Maggie Teoh: 308442 Sophia Toh: 307624

Nowadays, social networking sites like Facebook, YouTube, Google and Twitter give customers a bigger role as market players capable of reaching and being reached by almost everyone, anywhere and anytime. Armed with the tools of the Internet, consumers serve as retailers on eBay, producers on YouTube, on Wikipedia and critics on Amazon.com.

A personal computer is no longer the base from which customers make decisions. Instead, smart phones, laptops and far-reaching personal portals like Twitter and Facebook have made real-time information exchange an integral element of consumer behavior without restriction to time of day or location.

Although we continue to see the success stories of web 2.0 grow. Like social networking, mashups, user generated content, etc- now is time to innovation. For examples like
 * E-readers:** While most of the buzz around e-readers is centered around consumers readings books and newspapers, there are also a new set of e-readers that hit the marke tthat are aimed at helping businesses streamline the meetings that require huge stacks of paper and bring more multimedia capabilities to business documents.

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Nowadays, the need for technological advanced products especially in the hospitality sector is high in demand. To work effectively and to display flexibility is a key element in the success of a business.

In this case the issue of dealing with quality service and the need for the right equipment has been tackled by introducing a simple but effective and innovative way of solving the problem of uneven surfaces for tables. Back in the day, a common way of solving the issue was by putting beer caps under the tables in order to stabilize the table. However, this looks very unprofessional. The new technology introduced involves no complication what so ever apart from having to place the table to the desired location where it automatically adjust to the surface. Hence, non turbulent dinning got introduced.

New Trends:

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Augmented Reality: media type="youtube" key="QoZRHLmUKtM" height="390" width="640" AR offers countless possibilities for the hospitality and tourism industry. Since AR combines realtime images withdigital information, we can add to existing experience. For example, the New York Subway in combination with an iphone will be a lot less confusing. an AR application on the smartphone will give you directions to your subway-trains and destination. Also it can give you additional information about the timetables, and what ever other informations you might want to include. To think about the possibilities AR is offering, might seem like Science Fiction - But it is becoming reality NOW! The term Augmented Reality was first coined in 1990 by a Boeing researcher, when talking about digital displays that blended virtual graphics onto a physical reality. released this summer and following slew set to appear this fall.

Cloud:

Until now cloud computing is not a very familiar word. But without a single doubt, it will be one of the most important technological changes in the coming years. Basically it is an outsourcing of computing power and/or data. Instead of keeping all your files on your local Harddrive, you can keep it in the “cloud”, a webspace on a server, and therefore you can access your data from anywhere in the world, as long as you are connected to the web. Furthermore it will make it possible to have your “virtual computer”, because all your settings and data are store din the cloud, where ever you will sign in, it will be YOUR computer, everything will be like your home or work computer. Clouding will eventually safe businesses alot of money, since it will not be required anymore to keep your systems updated and make heavy investments on new computers on a regular basis, since the computing power will be handled by huge datacenters around the world. Fast Physical Computers won’t be required anymore, as all the computing tasks will be outsourced into the cloud.

__What comes after Web2.0__ could be Semantic Web which is not only link documents each other but also recognizes the meaning of the information in those documents. "The Semantic Web is really data that is processable by machine," says Berners-Lee, who is director of the MIT-based World Wide Web Consortium. "That's what the fuss is about." For example, in the Semantic Web calendar, it will not only know the owner‘s name but also lots of personal details and act like a human secretary. “If I were trying to set up the next Stonewall Democrats meeting, it could sift through the calendars of other members and find a time when we're all free. Or if I asked the calendar to find me a companionable lunch date, it could scan public metadata about the friends, and friends of friends, in my social network, looking for someone who lives nearby, is of a similar age, and appreciates Asian food and sci-fi.” says Berners-Lee. Four ways that social media could make that impact on the hotel industry: 1. Extending Concierge Services Concierge with Twitter makes convenience for customers instead of stopping at the concierge desk to collect brochures. Besides, customers could ask any questions via online to clear their doubts before they get to the hotel. 2. Customer service and recovery Hotels interact with customer by using Facebook and Twitter can improve customer service. For example like feedbacks and comments from customers. This strategy has successfully recovered previously dissatisfied customers. 3. Facilities Guest Communities Reward members of the hotel via social media. For example like Marriot launched a beta version of an online community for its reward members called Marriot Rewards Insiders. 4. Emphasizing Unique Properties Hotels use social media to tell their stories. For example like Caribbean hotel post videos about their hotel on YouTube. media type="youtube" key="PSFh-ME83Bk" height="510" width="640"