For the digital home to work, Intel's Whiteside says the consumer must have enough rights to acquire and use digital media content. Like other Intel Corp. executives, Don Whiteside is enthusiastic about pursuing the company's vision of the digital home.
"The essence of the digital home is flexibility and portability of content," said Whiteside. "This means that any content can be played on any machine, whether it's a PC, TV or [mobile] phone."
But Whiteside isn't focusing on Intel's Viiv technology to make this happen. That's because Whiteside, Intel's vice president of technology and policy standards, isn't a technologist. He works with national regulators and policy-makers on issues of digital copyrights.
To achieve "flexibility and portability," Whiteside believes the consumer must have enough rights to acquire and use digital media content.
The problem is that the ability for consumers to use digital content freely on multiple devices is at odds with the need for content creators to prevent pirating. This has created disagreements between the entertainment industry, cable providers and consumer electronics interests.
"We fought tooth and nail with the FCC [Federal Communications Commission] on the cable plug-and-play agreement," said Whiteside, referring to the 2003 FCC decision that allowed digital TVs to receive cable signals without the need for a set-top box. The decision still required set-top boxes for content on demand. At that time, the entertainment industry wanted tighter control over how consumers could access digital content.
Whiteside thinks that in order for the digital home concept to work, consumers can't be too restricted in the use of digital content.
"In this country we have the concept of fair use. We own a private copy," said Whiteside. "You have to let consumers do some copying for their own use."
At the same time, copyright owners need a fair compensation mechanism for the use of their digital media content. Whiteside believes that such balance of interests can be achieved by having consumers pay upfront for the number of copies they want, similar to the way businesses buy software licenses.
"You could buy a version that lets you make one personal copy," Whiteside said. "Another would let you make five copies."
Whiteside was critical of levies on the sale of playback devices such as DVD players, digital content, and blank CD and DVD media. Some countries use levies as a means of compensating copyright holders. Whiteside believes that levies raise the cost of products for all consumers regardless of how individuals are using the products.
"If you buy a CD in Canada, 65 percent of the retail price is a levy."
Rights owners don't like levies because they don't fairly distribute proceeds to the copyright holders, Whiteside said.
"Business models are being disrupted," he said.
Under copy licensing systems, consumers pay only for what they use, and content creators are paid for what the consumer buys, without the tax-collecting body getting in between.
Service Providers and Bandwidth
With the digital home's potential to create new types of digital entertainment services, Whiteside thinks the model of cable TV needs to change. Technology is needed to bring in significantly more bandwidth, but Whiteside believes that consumers need control over the use of their bandwidth, which they currently don't get from cable companies.
"Consumers should be able to portion out their bandwidth. They should be able to say, 'I want 25 percent for a media server, 25 percent for security services,'" said Whiteside. "Right now the service provider decides what the bandwidth is used for."
As the digital home expands from a single digital TV to a network of entertainment devices, the home will need a network. One way this could happen is for cable companies to expand the wire that comes into the home so that it doesn't stop at the wall. Whiteside believes that it is in the interest of the cable industry to do so.
"Service providers want to control the home network," said Whiteside. But such control many not be in the best interests of consumers.
"The consumer should own the product, not the service provider.
"In the past Ma Bell owned everything," said Whiteside, referring to telephone service. "It brought in content on its wires. If you wanted a phone in every room, Ma Bell was the only provider. Look at all the options we have in buying a phone now."
Whiteside also believes that cable companies want to be the entities that install the home network.
"Consumers will set up their own networking," said Whiteside, just as consumers hire their own contractors to install other home furnishings.
Another challenge is the issue of which consumer devices will be allowed to display which content. Currently, set-top boxes are designed to restrict the viewing of content to permitted TV sets under permitted circumstances. Whiteside said that entertainment devices in the digital home should be all-purpose players, able to handle any media. The differences would be in form factor and in primary focus of the device. Just as digital music can now be played on a 5.1 surround sound audio system and an iPod, movies should be able to be viewed on a big-screen TV, a PC and a mobile phone.
Sunday, December 03, 2006
Saturday, December 02, 2006
Network Magic
Network Magic, from Pure Networks, manages and repairs home networks. It runs on each system in the network and displays a visual map of the network configuration. Many common problems can be fixed simply by clicking the Repair button. The product handles initial network setup, configuring file and printer sharing, and notification of unexpected visitors to the network. You can also use it to notify other users of new files available for sharing, or to monitor their network usage.
Friday, December 01, 2006
Building A Home Network: Wires Rule
Wireless networking is the current hot topic. It's no surprise, because Wi-Fi promises wonderful benefits. Be connected anywhere! No pesky wires needed! It's certainly useful when you have a mobile PC, and are moving from meeting to meeting, or wanting to grab a latte' at your local Starbucks.
Wireless, however, is not problem-free. First, there's the whole poorly-understood security issue. Put up an unsecured access point in your home, and suddenly the entire neighborhood is sharing your cable modem connection. Or, as Dave Salvator discovered recently, you can encounter some interesting conflicts with your neighbors. But to me, the most pressing matter is one of performance.
Now, this isn't really a diatribe against wireless. I think the various flavors of 802.11 certainly have their place. But in my own case, wireless networking is a less-than-perfect solution. First, I move a lot of big files and directories around, because of the kind of work I do. Just moving the standard benchmarks around my network takes a good ten minutes over 100 mb/sec Ethernet.
Wireless Performance Problems Then there's my house. The way my house is laid out turns out to be something of a nightmare for wireless.
The problem is that my office, which is where the cable modem connection lives, is in the daylight basement. An 802.11b or 802.11a router or access point located there is actually invisible to any wirelessly enabled system in my upstairs bedroom. I could place a bunch of repeaters around the house, I suppose, but that gets expensive and still wouldn't solve my performance problem. So my solution was to wire the house.
As it turned out, wiring up the house was an opportunistic event, brought about by bugs. I'm not talking software bugs, but literal ones: termites had invaded the front wood siding. I was forced to replace the front siding – which meant the entire front wall of the house was removed temporarily. That offered a golden opportunity to wire the rest of the house.
In fact, I'd had a crude 100mb/sec network in my basement office for years, but it mostly consisted of CAT5e wiring strung along the baseboards. In fact, that's still the case down there, because of the flexibility it offers me, particularly when testing products. On the other hand, my wife's office was adjacent to mine, and she was quite clear about the whole issue of wiring her office: no visible wires.
Additionally, I have two daughters with bedrooms upstairs. Eventually, they'll have PCs in their rooms, and I wanted to make sure that they had easy connectivity to the Internet. At some point, as they approached the dreaded teenage years, they'd also need their own phones. My wife expressed a desire to occasionally work in the dining room as well, through her company-provided DSL link. Finally, I wanted a clean way to manage all that wiring.
In the end, the parameters looked like this: CAT5e connections to each of the kids room, the dining room and the office POTS (plain old telephone service) dial-tone to those locations Some type of wire/cable management system Easy connections to multiple Internet connections (one cable modem and one private DSL connection) Co-ax cable support for video (satellite or cable TV)
The key to all this was the independent contractor who was replacing the siding on my house. Cameron was just the right guy -- one of the most flexible and knowledgeable contractors I'd ever met. He was pretty familiar with the issues of wiring a house, having done quite a few, and came up with some great ideas.
The first one was the use of a pre-built wiring bundle, designed specifically for home use. The wiring bundle consists of a phone, fiber, dual coax cable (RG6, offering 2.2GHz bandwidth) and Cat5e Ethernet in a single bundle wrapped with orange insulation. It's made by General Cable and goes under the HomeLinx brand. At roughly $1 - $1.50 per foot, it seems expensive, until you realize you're getting five different cables in one bundled price. We needed about 200 feet for our project.
The next piece of the puzzle was the cable management system. Leviton makes a line of cable management products for wired home applications. We chose the Leviton SMC-280 Structured Media Center as the main management box. In addition to having multiple punch-outs for cable runs, a number of mounting holes are drilled into the back of the box, which allow you to either mount Leviton patch panels or other gear.
Leviton makes a host of accessories for the box, and sorting through the various patch panels would have been tedious at best. The good news is that Leviton has some pre-built modules, making the choices much easier. We chose their Advanced Small Office Unit (part number A7603-ASO), which sports a pair of combination CAT5e voice/data modules, a POTS distribution panel and a six-way coax video splitter.
Wireless, however, is not problem-free. First, there's the whole poorly-understood security issue. Put up an unsecured access point in your home, and suddenly the entire neighborhood is sharing your cable modem connection. Or, as Dave Salvator discovered recently, you can encounter some interesting conflicts with your neighbors. But to me, the most pressing matter is one of performance.
Now, this isn't really a diatribe against wireless. I think the various flavors of 802.11 certainly have their place. But in my own case, wireless networking is a less-than-perfect solution. First, I move a lot of big files and directories around, because of the kind of work I do. Just moving the standard benchmarks around my network takes a good ten minutes over 100 mb/sec Ethernet.
Wireless Performance Problems Then there's my house. The way my house is laid out turns out to be something of a nightmare for wireless.
The problem is that my office, which is where the cable modem connection lives, is in the daylight basement. An 802.11b or 802.11a router or access point located there is actually invisible to any wirelessly enabled system in my upstairs bedroom. I could place a bunch of repeaters around the house, I suppose, but that gets expensive and still wouldn't solve my performance problem. So my solution was to wire the house.
As it turned out, wiring up the house was an opportunistic event, brought about by bugs. I'm not talking software bugs, but literal ones: termites had invaded the front wood siding. I was forced to replace the front siding – which meant the entire front wall of the house was removed temporarily. That offered a golden opportunity to wire the rest of the house.
In fact, I'd had a crude 100mb/sec network in my basement office for years, but it mostly consisted of CAT5e wiring strung along the baseboards. In fact, that's still the case down there, because of the flexibility it offers me, particularly when testing products. On the other hand, my wife's office was adjacent to mine, and she was quite clear about the whole issue of wiring her office: no visible wires.
Additionally, I have two daughters with bedrooms upstairs. Eventually, they'll have PCs in their rooms, and I wanted to make sure that they had easy connectivity to the Internet. At some point, as they approached the dreaded teenage years, they'd also need their own phones. My wife expressed a desire to occasionally work in the dining room as well, through her company-provided DSL link. Finally, I wanted a clean way to manage all that wiring.
In the end, the parameters looked like this: CAT5e connections to each of the kids room, the dining room and the office POTS (plain old telephone service) dial-tone to those locations Some type of wire/cable management system Easy connections to multiple Internet connections (one cable modem and one private DSL connection) Co-ax cable support for video (satellite or cable TV)
The key to all this was the independent contractor who was replacing the siding on my house. Cameron was just the right guy -- one of the most flexible and knowledgeable contractors I'd ever met. He was pretty familiar with the issues of wiring a house, having done quite a few, and came up with some great ideas.
The first one was the use of a pre-built wiring bundle, designed specifically for home use. The wiring bundle consists of a phone, fiber, dual coax cable (RG6, offering 2.2GHz bandwidth) and Cat5e Ethernet in a single bundle wrapped with orange insulation. It's made by General Cable and goes under the HomeLinx brand. At roughly $1 - $1.50 per foot, it seems expensive, until you realize you're getting five different cables in one bundled price. We needed about 200 feet for our project.
The next piece of the puzzle was the cable management system. Leviton makes a line of cable management products for wired home applications. We chose the Leviton SMC-280 Structured Media Center as the main management box. In addition to having multiple punch-outs for cable runs, a number of mounting holes are drilled into the back of the box, which allow you to either mount Leviton patch panels or other gear.
Leviton makes a host of accessories for the box, and sorting through the various patch panels would have been tedious at best. The good news is that Leviton has some pre-built modules, making the choices much easier. We chose their Advanced Small Office Unit (part number A7603-ASO), which sports a pair of combination CAT5e voice/data modules, a POTS distribution panel and a six-way coax video splitter.
Thursday, November 30, 2006
Overcoming Small Business Networks Sales Objections
Do you need help overcoming sales objections?
Do you sell computer networks, or other IT-related products and services to small businesses?
This article provides tips and hints so you can be overcoming the most common sales objections heard when selling networks to small business prospects, customers, and clients.
The problem generally begins when you start talking about a network upgrade. Around the time, many small business prospects, customers and clients will dwell on cost.
These small business prospects, customers and clients often neglect to consider the soft costs of not properly investing in a network… such as lost employee productivity when imprudent corners are cut, downtime when fault-tolerance is an afterthought, and service costs from computer consultants when difficult-to-support or "dead-end" solutions are selected primarily because of their low price tag.
No matter how thorough your initial consultation, IT audit, site survey and network design reports, some unforeseen client objections may pop up just before you get the client's authorization to proceed (generally a signed contract and retainer or deposit check).
Why Overcoming Sales Objections is SO Crucial
Because one relatively minor concern might threaten to derail the entire sale, you need to gain the critical business development skills for overcoming sales objections, with some of the biggest small business network deal-closing obstacles.
Empowered with these strategies for overcoming sales objections, you'll be much less apt to get emotional, defensive or just plain annoyed. You can then stay focused on keeping your eye on the ball and figuring out the best way to solve the prospect's or future client's problems …and of course, close the sale. Remember, your company isn't in business to solve prospects' problems; only those of paying clients.
Overcoming Sales Objections: Apathy
I hope you get a good night's sleep before this sales objection rears its ugly head. You need a powerful force to overcome apathy.
If small business decision-makers have an apathetic outlook toward the prospect of implementing a network, your decision-makers might take weeks, months, or perhaps even years before feeling a sense of urgency about your proposed network project.
However, once you discover the roots of this apathy, you'll be better able to push (or at least nudge) the approval process along.
Here's a typical example you'll find in the field: The small business owner sees no problem with their existing peer-to-peer network. One or two seemingly innocuous foul-ups, however, can cause the small business owner to see the "light".
With a Microsoft Windows peer-to-peer network, for example, the "server" seems perfectly reliable until the person working on the PC functioning as the server inadvertently hits the reset button with his or her knee.
If you need to be overcoming more of the common sales objections, you must be very adept and recounting these kinds of cautionary tales with the right timing, delivery and empathy.
Using Network Reliability to Overcoming Sales Objections
PC/LAN network reliability can also get called into question when the user of the peer-to-peer server inadvertently performs an unannounced, unscheduled shutdown and restart because a software setup program prompted a reboot.
With peer-to-peer networks, protecting data is usually also an afterthought. If the peer-to-peer server isn't protected with fault tolerant hard drives, a reliable tape backup drive, a server-class UPS, and updated antivirus software, a peer-to-peer server becomes an accident waiting to happen.
So while any of these factors can turn apathy into your opportunity, sometimes a little divine intervention steps in to help you in overcoming sales objections.
One day a lightning storm and blackout pushes your client's "server" over the edge. When power's restored, the server cannot even boot up to its welcome or logon screen. So now, the small business owner is scrambling with the internal guru at 2 a.m. trying to restore the company's corrupted contact management database, which contains 25,000 records and three years of data.
Do you sell computer networks, or other IT-related products and services to small businesses?
This article provides tips and hints so you can be overcoming the most common sales objections heard when selling networks to small business prospects, customers, and clients.
The problem generally begins when you start talking about a network upgrade. Around the time, many small business prospects, customers and clients will dwell on cost.
These small business prospects, customers and clients often neglect to consider the soft costs of not properly investing in a network… such as lost employee productivity when imprudent corners are cut, downtime when fault-tolerance is an afterthought, and service costs from computer consultants when difficult-to-support or "dead-end" solutions are selected primarily because of their low price tag.
No matter how thorough your initial consultation, IT audit, site survey and network design reports, some unforeseen client objections may pop up just before you get the client's authorization to proceed (generally a signed contract and retainer or deposit check).
Why Overcoming Sales Objections is SO Crucial
Because one relatively minor concern might threaten to derail the entire sale, you need to gain the critical business development skills for overcoming sales objections, with some of the biggest small business network deal-closing obstacles.
Empowered with these strategies for overcoming sales objections, you'll be much less apt to get emotional, defensive or just plain annoyed. You can then stay focused on keeping your eye on the ball and figuring out the best way to solve the prospect's or future client's problems …and of course, close the sale. Remember, your company isn't in business to solve prospects' problems; only those of paying clients.
Overcoming Sales Objections: Apathy
I hope you get a good night's sleep before this sales objection rears its ugly head. You need a powerful force to overcome apathy.
If small business decision-makers have an apathetic outlook toward the prospect of implementing a network, your decision-makers might take weeks, months, or perhaps even years before feeling a sense of urgency about your proposed network project.
However, once you discover the roots of this apathy, you'll be better able to push (or at least nudge) the approval process along.
Here's a typical example you'll find in the field: The small business owner sees no problem with their existing peer-to-peer network. One or two seemingly innocuous foul-ups, however, can cause the small business owner to see the "light".
With a Microsoft Windows peer-to-peer network, for example, the "server" seems perfectly reliable until the person working on the PC functioning as the server inadvertently hits the reset button with his or her knee.
If you need to be overcoming more of the common sales objections, you must be very adept and recounting these kinds of cautionary tales with the right timing, delivery and empathy.
Using Network Reliability to Overcoming Sales Objections
PC/LAN network reliability can also get called into question when the user of the peer-to-peer server inadvertently performs an unannounced, unscheduled shutdown and restart because a software setup program prompted a reboot.
With peer-to-peer networks, protecting data is usually also an afterthought. If the peer-to-peer server isn't protected with fault tolerant hard drives, a reliable tape backup drive, a server-class UPS, and updated antivirus software, a peer-to-peer server becomes an accident waiting to happen.
So while any of these factors can turn apathy into your opportunity, sometimes a little divine intervention steps in to help you in overcoming sales objections.
One day a lightning storm and blackout pushes your client's "server" over the edge. When power's restored, the server cannot even boot up to its welcome or logon screen. So now, the small business owner is scrambling with the internal guru at 2 a.m. trying to restore the company's corrupted contact management database, which contains 25,000 records and three years of data.
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Cabling your home for computer network - still a requirement?
With proliferation of wireless networking and communication equipment it is oh-so-tempting to cut the cord and save a significant sum of money in the process. But is everything that a regular computer networking user needs can be done using just wireless network? Let’s take a look at some pros and contras:
1. One important advantage of having a cabled network is the available bandwidth or simply speed. At the present point in time the speed of connection via a simple and inexpensive CAT5E cable can be 1000Mbit/sec, whereas the best that IEEE802.11g (one of the many flavors of Wi-Fi) can offer is only 54Mbit/sec. It may not seem so significant if you think you are only browsing Internet, and the DSL speed available to you is 1.5Mbit/sec. However, if you need to print via your network connection on a remote printer, you should realize that the print jobs, depending on the amount of graphic data in them, can easily reach dozens and even hundreds megabytes. Since 1Byte=8bit one 100MByte print job will take 15 seconds (and in reality this time can be much longer) to transmit via a Wi-Fi wireless connection, and this time shrinks to mere 1 sec or less on wired 1000MBit/s Ethernet connection. Same principal applies to transferring files, backing up files on other computers in the network etc.
2. It is not possible today and with all probability will not be possible in the future to transmit power needed for your networking device via the wireless link. Unless, of course, you would be willing to be subjected to very high levels of microwave radiation. Thus a device that was marketed to you as “un-tethered” will in fact be very much tethered via the power cord or will have to be re-charged every so often. The power requirements are increasingly important for devices that are expected to be always online, such as phone sets. Therefore it is best to have it connected via a cable that can deliver both power and the communication signal at the same time.
3. Wireless communications are very much proprietary and require whole gamut of conversion equipment to transmit multi-media signals. The same CAT5E cable can without any modification support phone, computer network, balanced line level audio signal, baseband video signal as well as host of other, more specialized, control applications’ signals. With inexpensive adapters called “baluns” the same cable can carry significant number of channels of broadband television or carry a baseband video, such as security camera output, through great distances. All of those applications, except the computer network of course, will require specialized expensive conversion equipment if they needed to be transmitted via a Wi-Fi link.
4. The cost benefit of not running wires around the house is not as simple as issue as it seems. Having installed a wireless network at home you have only eliminated the need to wire for a single application – computer network. A modern home, however, requires all kinds of wiring to run even without regard to computers. The power and phones are obvious examples, as well as thermostats and security systems. Pre-wired speakers are common and most homes today have intercom systems as a desirable option, and those also require extensive wiring. It is very likely that the same contractor running the intercom or security cables is qualified to run computer cables – CAT5E or better. If you are building a home, you should definitely check if computer cabling option is available in your new home, and our advice is to go ahead and purchase it before the walls close. It is going to be a pretty involved and expensive procedure to install the cables later. As an added cost benefit of a wired computer network you will find that all modern computers ship with wired Ethernet network interface card included, and the latest models ship with 1000MBit/sec cards that are essentially free for the computer’s owner.
There are multiple sources of information available on proper planning and design of a residential cabling for voice, data, audio, video and other applications. One of the best sources is the TIA/EIA-570B standard, most resent release of which has been published in 2004. The standard outlines recommended types of the cables, principals of cable distribution in a single- and multi-dwelling units as well as recommended amount of cables to be installed based on the size of the house.
In conclusion, cutting the wire seems like a step forward, some sort of liberation of computer from the bonds of the infrastructure. I would caution the reader, however, to take a more balanced and informed approach before joining the wireless revolution. There are still (and will remain in foreseen future) sound reasons to include properly designed cabling system into the list of your dream home options.
Cabling your home for computer network - still a requirement?
With proliferation of wireless networking and communication equipment it is oh-so-tempting to cut the cord and save a significant sum of money in the process. But is everything that a regular computer networking user needs can be done using just wireless network? Let’s take a look at some pros and contras:
1. One important advantage of having a cabled network is the available bandwidth or simply speed. At the present point in time the speed of connection via a simple and inexpensive CAT5E cable can be 1000Mbit/sec, whereas the best that IEEE802.11g (one of the many flavors of Wi-Fi) can offer is only 54Mbit/sec. It may not seem so significant if you think you are only browsing Internet, and the DSL speed available to you is 1.5Mbit/sec. However, if you need to print via your network connection on a remote printer, you should realize that the print jobs, depending on the amount of graphic data in them, can easily reach dozens and even hundreds megabytes. Since 1Byte=8bit one 100MByte print job will take 15 seconds (and in reality this time can be much longer) to transmit via a Wi-Fi wireless connection, and this time shrinks to mere 1 sec or less on wired 1000MBit/s Ethernet connection. Same principal applies to transferring files, backing up files on other computers in the network etc.
2. It is not possible today and with all probability will not be possible in the future to transmit power needed for your networking device via the wireless link. Unless, of course, you would be willing to be subjected to very high levels of microwave radiation. Thus a device that was marketed to you as “un-tethered” will in fact be very much tethered via the power cord or will have to be re-charged every so often. The power requirements are increasingly important for devices that are expected to be always online, such as phone sets. Therefore it is best to have it connected via a cable that can deliver both power and the communication signal at the same time.
3. Wireless communications are very much proprietary and require whole gamut of conversion equipment to transmit multi-media signals. The same CAT5E cable can without any modification support phone, computer network, balanced line level audio signal, baseband video signal as well as host of other, more specialized, control applications’ signals. With inexpensive adapters called “baluns” the same cable can carry significant number of channels of broadband television or carry a baseband video, such as security camera output, through great distances. All of those applications, except the computer network of course, will require specialized expensive conversion equipment if they needed to be transmitted via a Wi-Fi link.
4. The cost benefit of not running wires around the house is not as simple as issue as it seems. Having installed a wireless network at home you have only eliminated the need to wire for a single application – computer network. A modern home, however, requires all kinds of wiring to run even without regard to computers. The power and phones are obvious examples, as well as thermostats and security systems. Pre-wired speakers are common and most homes today have intercom systems as a desirable option, and those also require extensive wiring. It is very likely that the same contractor running the intercom or security cables is qualified to run computer cables – CAT5E or better. If you are building a home, you should definitely check if computer cabling option is available in your new home, and our advice is to go ahead and purchase it before the walls close. It is going to be a pretty involved and expensive procedure to install the cables later. As an added cost benefit of a wired computer network you will find that all modern computers ship with wired Ethernet network interface card included, and the latest models ship with 1000MBit/sec cards that are essentially free for the computer’s owner.
1. One important advantage of having a cabled network is the available bandwidth or simply speed. At the present point in time the speed of connection via a simple and inexpensive CAT5E cable can be 1000Mbit/sec, whereas the best that IEEE802.11g (one of the many flavors of Wi-Fi) can offer is only 54Mbit/sec. It may not seem so significant if you think you are only browsing Internet, and the DSL speed available to you is 1.5Mbit/sec. However, if you need to print via your network connection on a remote printer, you should realize that the print jobs, depending on the amount of graphic data in them, can easily reach dozens and even hundreds megabytes. Since 1Byte=8bit one 100MByte print job will take 15 seconds (and in reality this time can be much longer) to transmit via a Wi-Fi wireless connection, and this time shrinks to mere 1 sec or less on wired 1000MBit/s Ethernet connection. Same principal applies to transferring files, backing up files on other computers in the network etc.
2. It is not possible today and with all probability will not be possible in the future to transmit power needed for your networking device via the wireless link. Unless, of course, you would be willing to be subjected to very high levels of microwave radiation. Thus a device that was marketed to you as “un-tethered” will in fact be very much tethered via the power cord or will have to be re-charged every so often. The power requirements are increasingly important for devices that are expected to be always online, such as phone sets. Therefore it is best to have it connected via a cable that can deliver both power and the communication signal at the same time.
3. Wireless communications are very much proprietary and require whole gamut of conversion equipment to transmit multi-media signals. The same CAT5E cable can without any modification support phone, computer network, balanced line level audio signal, baseband video signal as well as host of other, more specialized, control applications’ signals. With inexpensive adapters called “baluns” the same cable can carry significant number of channels of broadband television or carry a baseband video, such as security camera output, through great distances. All of those applications, except the computer network of course, will require specialized expensive conversion equipment if they needed to be transmitted via a Wi-Fi link.
4. The cost benefit of not running wires around the house is not as simple as issue as it seems. Having installed a wireless network at home you have only eliminated the need to wire for a single application – computer network. A modern home, however, requires all kinds of wiring to run even without regard to computers. The power and phones are obvious examples, as well as thermostats and security systems. Pre-wired speakers are common and most homes today have intercom systems as a desirable option, and those also require extensive wiring. It is very likely that the same contractor running the intercom or security cables is qualified to run computer cables – CAT5E or better. If you are building a home, you should definitely check if computer cabling option is available in your new home, and our advice is to go ahead and purchase it before the walls close. It is going to be a pretty involved and expensive procedure to install the cables later. As an added cost benefit of a wired computer network you will find that all modern computers ship with wired Ethernet network interface card included, and the latest models ship with 1000MBit/sec cards that are essentially free for the computer’s owner.
There are multiple sources of information available on proper planning and design of a residential cabling for voice, data, audio, video and other applications. One of the best sources is the TIA/EIA-570B standard, most resent release of which has been published in 2004. The standard outlines recommended types of the cables, principals of cable distribution in a single- and multi-dwelling units as well as recommended amount of cables to be installed based on the size of the house.
In conclusion, cutting the wire seems like a step forward, some sort of liberation of computer from the bonds of the infrastructure. I would caution the reader, however, to take a more balanced and informed approach before joining the wireless revolution. There are still (and will remain in foreseen future) sound reasons to include properly designed cabling system into the list of your dream home options.
Cabling your home for computer network - still a requirement?
With proliferation of wireless networking and communication equipment it is oh-so-tempting to cut the cord and save a significant sum of money in the process. But is everything that a regular computer networking user needs can be done using just wireless network? Let’s take a look at some pros and contras:
1. One important advantage of having a cabled network is the available bandwidth or simply speed. At the present point in time the speed of connection via a simple and inexpensive CAT5E cable can be 1000Mbit/sec, whereas the best that IEEE802.11g (one of the many flavors of Wi-Fi) can offer is only 54Mbit/sec. It may not seem so significant if you think you are only browsing Internet, and the DSL speed available to you is 1.5Mbit/sec. However, if you need to print via your network connection on a remote printer, you should realize that the print jobs, depending on the amount of graphic data in them, can easily reach dozens and even hundreds megabytes. Since 1Byte=8bit one 100MByte print job will take 15 seconds (and in reality this time can be much longer) to transmit via a Wi-Fi wireless connection, and this time shrinks to mere 1 sec or less on wired 1000MBit/s Ethernet connection. Same principal applies to transferring files, backing up files on other computers in the network etc.
2. It is not possible today and with all probability will not be possible in the future to transmit power needed for your networking device via the wireless link. Unless, of course, you would be willing to be subjected to very high levels of microwave radiation. Thus a device that was marketed to you as “un-tethered” will in fact be very much tethered via the power cord or will have to be re-charged every so often. The power requirements are increasingly important for devices that are expected to be always online, such as phone sets. Therefore it is best to have it connected via a cable that can deliver both power and the communication signal at the same time.
3. Wireless communications are very much proprietary and require whole gamut of conversion equipment to transmit multi-media signals. The same CAT5E cable can without any modification support phone, computer network, balanced line level audio signal, baseband video signal as well as host of other, more specialized, control applications’ signals. With inexpensive adapters called “baluns” the same cable can carry significant number of channels of broadband television or carry a baseband video, such as security camera output, through great distances. All of those applications, except the computer network of course, will require specialized expensive conversion equipment if they needed to be transmitted via a Wi-Fi link.
4. The cost benefit of not running wires around the house is not as simple as issue as it seems. Having installed a wireless network at home you have only eliminated the need to wire for a single application – computer network. A modern home, however, requires all kinds of wiring to run even without regard to computers. The power and phones are obvious examples, as well as thermostats and security systems. Pre-wired speakers are common and most homes today have intercom systems as a desirable option, and those also require extensive wiring. It is very likely that the same contractor running the intercom or security cables is qualified to run computer cables – CAT5E or better. If you are building a home, you should definitely check if computer cabling option is available in your new home, and our advice is to go ahead and purchase it before the walls close. It is going to be a pretty involved and expensive procedure to install the cables later. As an added cost benefit of a wired computer network you will find that all modern computers ship with wired Ethernet network interface card included, and the latest models ship with 1000MBit/sec cards that are essentially free for the computer’s owner.
Sunday, November 26, 2006
Crime Fighting Computer Systems and Databases
As crime globalizes, so does crime fighting. Mobsters, serial killers, and terrorists cross state lines and borders effortlessly, making use of the latest advances in mass media, public transportation, telecommunications, and computer networks. The police - there are 16,000 law enforcement agencies in the Unites States alone - is never very far behind.
Quotes from the official Web pages of some of these databases:
National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime (NCAVC)
Its mission is to combine investigative and operational support functions, research, and training in order to provide assistance, without charge, to federal, state, local, and foreign law enforcement agencies investigating unusual or repetitive violent crimes. The NCAVC also provides support through expertise and consultation in non-violent matters such as national security, corruption, and white-collar crime investigations.
It comprises the Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU), Child Abduction and Serial Murder Investigative Resources Center (CASMIRC), and Violent Criminal Apprehension Program (VICAP).
VICAP is a nationwide data information center designed to collect, collate, and analyze crimes of violence - specifically murder. It collates and analyzes the significant characteristics of all murders, and other violent offenses.
Homicide Investigation Tracking System (HITS)
A program within the Washington state's Attorney General's Office that tracks and investigates homicides and rapes.
Violent Crime Linkage System (ViCLAS)
Canada-wide computer system that assists specially trained investigators to identify serial crimes and criminals by focusing on the linkages that exist among crimes by the same offender. This system was developed by the RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) in the early 1990s.
UTAP, stands for The Utah Criminal Tracking and Analysis Project
Gathers experts from forensic science, crime scene analysis, psychiatry and other fields to screen unsolved cases for local law enforcement agencies.
International Criminal Police Organization (ICPO) - Interpol's DNA Gateway
Provides for the transfer of profile data between two or more countries and for the comparison of profiles that conform to Interpol standards in a centralized database. Investigators can access the database via their Interpol National Central Bureau (NCB) using Interpol's secure global police communications system, I-24/7.
Interpol's I-24/7
Global communication system to connect its member countries and provide them with user-friendly access to police information. Using this system, Interpol National Central Bureaus (NCBs) can search and cross-check data in a matter of seconds, with direct and immediate access to databases containing critical information (ASF Nominal database of international criminals, electronic notices, stolen motor vehicles, stolen/lost/counterfeit travel and ID documents, stolen works of art, payment cards, fingerprints and photographs, a terrorism watch list, a DNA database, disaster victim identification, international weapons tracking and trafficking in human beings-related information, etc).
Interpol Fingerprints
Provides information on the development and implementation of fingerprinting systems for the general public and international law enforcement entities.
Europol (European Union's criminal intelligence agency) Computer System (TECS)
Member States can directly input data into the information system in compliance with their national procedures, and Europol can directly input data supplied by non EU Member States and third bodies. Also provides analyses and indexing services.
As crime globalizes, so does crime fighting. Mobsters, serial killers, and terrorists cross state lines and borders effortlessly, making use of the latest advances in mass media, public transportation, telecommunications, and computer networks. The police - there are 16,000 law enforcement agencies in the Unites States alone - is never very far behind.
Quotes from the official Web pages of some of these databases:
National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime (NCAVC)
Its mission is to combine investigative and operational support functions, research, and training in order to provide assistance, without charge, to federal, state, local, and foreign law enforcement agencies investigating unusual or repetitive violent crimes. The NCAVC also provides support through expertise and consultation in non-violent matters such as national security, corruption, and white-collar crime investigations.
It comprises the Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU), Child Abduction and Serial Murder Investigative Resources Center (CASMIRC), and Violent Criminal Apprehension Program (VICAP).
VICAP is a nationwide data information center designed to collect, collate, and analyze crimes of violence - specifically murder. It collates and analyzes the significant characteristics of all murders, and other violent offenses.
Homicide Investigation Tracking System (HITS)
A program within the Washington state's Attorney General's Office that tracks and investigates homicides and rapes.
Violent Crime Linkage System (ViCLAS)
Canada-wide computer system that assists specially trained investigators to identify serial crimes and criminals by focusing on the linkages that exist among crimes by the same offender. This system was developed by the RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) in the early 1990s.
UTAP, stands for The Utah Criminal Tracking and Analysis Project
Gathers experts from forensic science, crime scene analysis, psychiatry and other fields to screen unsolved cases for local law enforcement agencies.
Quotes from the official Web pages of some of these databases:
National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime (NCAVC)
Its mission is to combine investigative and operational support functions, research, and training in order to provide assistance, without charge, to federal, state, local, and foreign law enforcement agencies investigating unusual or repetitive violent crimes. The NCAVC also provides support through expertise and consultation in non-violent matters such as national security, corruption, and white-collar crime investigations.
It comprises the Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU), Child Abduction and Serial Murder Investigative Resources Center (CASMIRC), and Violent Criminal Apprehension Program (VICAP).
VICAP is a nationwide data information center designed to collect, collate, and analyze crimes of violence - specifically murder. It collates and analyzes the significant characteristics of all murders, and other violent offenses.
Homicide Investigation Tracking System (HITS)
A program within the Washington state's Attorney General's Office that tracks and investigates homicides and rapes.
Violent Crime Linkage System (ViCLAS)
Canada-wide computer system that assists specially trained investigators to identify serial crimes and criminals by focusing on the linkages that exist among crimes by the same offender. This system was developed by the RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) in the early 1990s.
UTAP, stands for The Utah Criminal Tracking and Analysis Project
Gathers experts from forensic science, crime scene analysis, psychiatry and other fields to screen unsolved cases for local law enforcement agencies.
International Criminal Police Organization (ICPO) - Interpol's DNA Gateway
Provides for the transfer of profile data between two or more countries and for the comparison of profiles that conform to Interpol standards in a centralized database. Investigators can access the database via their Interpol National Central Bureau (NCB) using Interpol's secure global police communications system, I-24/7.
Interpol's I-24/7
Global communication system to connect its member countries and provide them with user-friendly access to police information. Using this system, Interpol National Central Bureaus (NCBs) can search and cross-check data in a matter of seconds, with direct and immediate access to databases containing critical information (ASF Nominal database of international criminals, electronic notices, stolen motor vehicles, stolen/lost/counterfeit travel and ID documents, stolen works of art, payment cards, fingerprints and photographs, a terrorism watch list, a DNA database, disaster victim identification, international weapons tracking and trafficking in human beings-related information, etc).
Interpol Fingerprints
Provides information on the development and implementation of fingerprinting systems for the general public and international law enforcement entities.
Europol (European Union's criminal intelligence agency) Computer System (TECS)
Member States can directly input data into the information system in compliance with their national procedures, and Europol can directly input data supplied by non EU Member States and third bodies. Also provides analyses and indexing services.
As crime globalizes, so does crime fighting. Mobsters, serial killers, and terrorists cross state lines and borders effortlessly, making use of the latest advances in mass media, public transportation, telecommunications, and computer networks. The police - there are 16,000 law enforcement agencies in the Unites States alone - is never very far behind.
Quotes from the official Web pages of some of these databases:
National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime (NCAVC)
Its mission is to combine investigative and operational support functions, research, and training in order to provide assistance, without charge, to federal, state, local, and foreign law enforcement agencies investigating unusual or repetitive violent crimes. The NCAVC also provides support through expertise and consultation in non-violent matters such as national security, corruption, and white-collar crime investigations.
It comprises the Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU), Child Abduction and Serial Murder Investigative Resources Center (CASMIRC), and Violent Criminal Apprehension Program (VICAP).
VICAP is a nationwide data information center designed to collect, collate, and analyze crimes of violence - specifically murder. It collates and analyzes the significant characteristics of all murders, and other violent offenses.
Homicide Investigation Tracking System (HITS)
A program within the Washington state's Attorney General's Office that tracks and investigates homicides and rapes.
Violent Crime Linkage System (ViCLAS)
Canada-wide computer system that assists specially trained investigators to identify serial crimes and criminals by focusing on the linkages that exist among crimes by the same offender. This system was developed by the RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) in the early 1990s.
UTAP, stands for The Utah Criminal Tracking and Analysis Project
Gathers experts from forensic science, crime scene analysis, psychiatry and other fields to screen unsolved cases for local law enforcement agencies.
Sunday, November 19, 2006
Setting Up and Securing Your Wireless Network
There are more and more individuals opting to work from home than ever before. The advantages to this are many including avoiding the morning and evening rush hours, being able to spend time with your kids and significant other, and doing everything on your own time. Though the pitfalls are many, the one that I will be focusing on in this article is that of setting up a secure wireless network for your home based business. Right now somewhere out there, there is someone with a receiver waiting to pick up on an unsuspecting person’s wireless local area network. Their hope is to garner some sensitive information that may lead to identity theft, and stolen proprietary business information.
Most businesses owners are not technically inclined, though they may be power users, in general security settings is not one of the first things they want to mess around with in their day to day operations. This makes most wireless LANs a great target for information predators.
Here are some general guidelines to follow in setting up your wireless network. Though it may vary from vendor to vendor, the gist is more or less the same:
1. Setup the wireless access/router point via a wired client.
2. Always change the factory setting password to something difficult for someone to guess.
3. Enable 128-bit Wired Equivalency Privacy (WEP) encryption on both your access point and network card. From time to time change the WEP key entries. If your hardware does not support a minimal of 128 bit WEP encryption, then it may be time to replace this dinosaur. WEP is only a minimal security precaution, which is better than none at all.
4. Alter the factory default SSID on the access/router point to a convoluted difficult to guess string. Initiate your computer to connect to this configured SSID by default.
5. Setup your access point not to broadcast the SSID if available.
6. Block off anonymous internet requests and pings.
7. P2P Connections should be disabled.
8. Enable MAC filtering.
9. Enable firewall on the network router/access point with demilitarized zone function disabled. Enable client firewalls for each computer in the network.
10. Update router and access point firmware as updates become available.
11. Make sure the physical router is hidden so that a random person can’t reset the settings.
12. Position the physical router near the middle of the establishment as opposed to near windows to prevent others outside from receiving the signals.
These and other settings will collectively help prevent any unwanted intrusions on your private data.
There are more and more individuals opting to work from home than ever before. The advantages to this are many including avoiding the morning and evening rush hours, being able to spend time with your kids and significant other, and doing everything on your own time. Though the pitfalls are many, the one that I will be focusing on in this article is that of setting up a secure wireless network for your home based business. Right now somewhere out there, there is someone with a receiver waiting to pick up on an unsuspecting person’s wireless local area network. Their hope is to garner some sensitive information that may lead to identity theft, and stolen proprietary business information.
Most businesses owners are not technically inclined, though they may be power users, in general security settings is not one of the first things they want to mess around with in their day to day operations. This makes most wireless LANs a great target for information predators.
Here are some general guidelines to follow in setting up your wireless network. Though it may vary from vendor to vendor, the gist is more or less the same:
1. Setup the wireless access/router point via a wired client.
2. Always change the factory setting password to something difficult for someone to guess.
3. Enable 128-bit Wired Equivalency Privacy (WEP) encryption on both your access point and network card. From time to time change the WEP key entries. If your hardware does not support a minimal of 128 bit WEP encryption, then it may be time to replace this dinosaur. WEP is only a minimal security precaution, which is better than none at all.
4. Alter the factory default SSID on the access/router point to a convoluted difficult to guess string. Initiate your computer to connect to this configured SSID by default.
5. Setup your access point not to broadcast the SSID if available.
6. Block off anonymous internet requests and pings.
7. P2P Connections should be disabled.
8. Enable MAC filtering.
9. Enable firewall on the network router/access point with demilitarized zone function disabled. Enable client firewalls for each computer in the network.
10. Update router and access point firmware as updates become available.
11. Make sure the physical router is hidden so that a random person can’t reset the settings.
12. Position the physical router near the middle of the establishment as opposed to near windows to prevent others outside from receiving the signals.
Most businesses owners are not technically inclined, though they may be power users, in general security settings is not one of the first things they want to mess around with in their day to day operations. This makes most wireless LANs a great target for information predators.
Here are some general guidelines to follow in setting up your wireless network. Though it may vary from vendor to vendor, the gist is more or less the same:
1. Setup the wireless access/router point via a wired client.
2. Always change the factory setting password to something difficult for someone to guess.
3. Enable 128-bit Wired Equivalency Privacy (WEP) encryption on both your access point and network card. From time to time change the WEP key entries. If your hardware does not support a minimal of 128 bit WEP encryption, then it may be time to replace this dinosaur. WEP is only a minimal security precaution, which is better than none at all.
4. Alter the factory default SSID on the access/router point to a convoluted difficult to guess string. Initiate your computer to connect to this configured SSID by default.
5. Setup your access point not to broadcast the SSID if available.
6. Block off anonymous internet requests and pings.
7. P2P Connections should be disabled.
8. Enable MAC filtering.
9. Enable firewall on the network router/access point with demilitarized zone function disabled. Enable client firewalls for each computer in the network.
10. Update router and access point firmware as updates become available.
11. Make sure the physical router is hidden so that a random person can’t reset the settings.
12. Position the physical router near the middle of the establishment as opposed to near windows to prevent others outside from receiving the signals.
These and other settings will collectively help prevent any unwanted intrusions on your private data.
There are more and more individuals opting to work from home than ever before. The advantages to this are many including avoiding the morning and evening rush hours, being able to spend time with your kids and significant other, and doing everything on your own time. Though the pitfalls are many, the one that I will be focusing on in this article is that of setting up a secure wireless network for your home based business. Right now somewhere out there, there is someone with a receiver waiting to pick up on an unsuspecting person’s wireless local area network. Their hope is to garner some sensitive information that may lead to identity theft, and stolen proprietary business information.
Most businesses owners are not technically inclined, though they may be power users, in general security settings is not one of the first things they want to mess around with in their day to day operations. This makes most wireless LANs a great target for information predators.
Here are some general guidelines to follow in setting up your wireless network. Though it may vary from vendor to vendor, the gist is more or less the same:
1. Setup the wireless access/router point via a wired client.
2. Always change the factory setting password to something difficult for someone to guess.
3. Enable 128-bit Wired Equivalency Privacy (WEP) encryption on both your access point and network card. From time to time change the WEP key entries. If your hardware does not support a minimal of 128 bit WEP encryption, then it may be time to replace this dinosaur. WEP is only a minimal security precaution, which is better than none at all.
4. Alter the factory default SSID on the access/router point to a convoluted difficult to guess string. Initiate your computer to connect to this configured SSID by default.
5. Setup your access point not to broadcast the SSID if available.
6. Block off anonymous internet requests and pings.
7. P2P Connections should be disabled.
8. Enable MAC filtering.
9. Enable firewall on the network router/access point with demilitarized zone function disabled. Enable client firewalls for each computer in the network.
10. Update router and access point firmware as updates become available.
11. Make sure the physical router is hidden so that a random person can’t reset the settings.
12. Position the physical router near the middle of the establishment as opposed to near windows to prevent others outside from receiving the signals.
Tuesday, November 14, 2006
Computer Consulting Profit Secrets
Do you own or manage a computer consulting company? Are you having trouble growing your computer consulting company's profits?
If so, then you must learn how to focus on your computer consulting firm's profit and bottom line.
In this article, we'll look at 7 profit secrets and strategies you can use in your computer consulting business, to ensure that you are able to balance your clients' small business IT needs against your own computer consulting company's profitability challenges.
Origins of the Problem
While focusing on your computer consulting profits may sound simple enough at first glance, this business-focused discipline often eludes many a computer consulting firm.
This usually happens because many computer consulting business owners fall in love the technology gadgetry, and get seduced by seemingly attractive reseller channel programs, at the expense of their business' profit.
At the end of the day however, your computer consulting company is a business… not a charity and not a hobby. And your computer consulting company must be run like a business.
Profit Secret #1: Show motivation with your small business computer consulting clients.
To avoid being labeled as just another clueless geek, you need to position your computer consulting services to be more in line with those of a virtual CIO for hire. So always be on the look out for new ways to enhance your clients' businesses… not just fix broken desktops and servers.
Profit Secret #2: Be dedicated to the task and relentless in your pursuit to improve the status quo.
Because it takes a lot of work to land the best computer consulting clients, you need to focus on lifetime customer value… not just one-shot-deal sales. So always remember that your proposed or recently implemented computer consulting technology solution isn't a one-shot deal. This kind of long-term vision and planning requires tremendous staying power and perseverance… which often escapes many computer consulting business owners.
Profit Secret #3: Don't be afraid to be creative with your client engagements.
Small business technology solutions often need to stay within relatively modest budgets. And your computer consulting solutions must work without the need for in-house IT staff. To satisfy these challenges, don't be afraid to think outside of the box when appropriate.
Profit Secret #4: Evaluate how your clients' systems, both paper- and computer-based, function today.
As part of your virtual CIO role, look at how these existing clients systems are meeting or not meeting present and future needs. Most of this work will be done during IT audits… another key computer consulting profit secret that can really help to separate you from the pack of mediocrity.
Profit Secret #5: Put yourself in your clients' shoes and think about what THEIR clients need from them.
Yes, as a computer consulting business owner, you need to have good people skills and a certain degree of empathy for your clients' business problems. But an even more advanced computer consulting business owner doesn't just stop at understanding their clients' business problems. The virtual CIO really digs in and learns about their clients' customers' business problems… one layer down on the value chain.
Profit Secret #6: Keep up with advances and new versions.
As virtual CIO for your computer consulting clients, your clients depend on your firm to advise them on what tools can better help their businesses grow. So while you can't allow this R&D and training to consume and devour all of your scarce weekly schedule, you do need to stay a few steps ahead of your clients' IT needs at all times.
Profit Secret #7: Summarize and share that information with your clients.
The essence of your R&D and training should focus on one major objective: will this new platform or tool add value to your computer consulting clients' existing or future installations? And how you can best summarize this information, in layperson language that non-technical clients can understand?
The Bottom Line
Your computer consulting firm's needs to be your client's virtual IT department can often be at odds with your computer consulting firm's need to be profitable. A big part of this problem happens because computer consulting business owners fall in love with technology, at the expense of their marketing and sales activities.
If so, then you must learn how to focus on your computer consulting firm's profit and bottom line.
In this article, we'll look at 7 profit secrets and strategies you can use in your computer consulting business, to ensure that you are able to balance your clients' small business IT needs against your own computer consulting company's profitability challenges.
Origins of the Problem
While focusing on your computer consulting profits may sound simple enough at first glance, this business-focused discipline often eludes many a computer consulting firm.
This usually happens because many computer consulting business owners fall in love the technology gadgetry, and get seduced by seemingly attractive reseller channel programs, at the expense of their business' profit.
At the end of the day however, your computer consulting company is a business… not a charity and not a hobby. And your computer consulting company must be run like a business.
Profit Secret #1: Show motivation with your small business computer consulting clients.
To avoid being labeled as just another clueless geek, you need to position your computer consulting services to be more in line with those of a virtual CIO for hire. So always be on the look out for new ways to enhance your clients' businesses… not just fix broken desktops and servers.
Profit Secret #2: Be dedicated to the task and relentless in your pursuit to improve the status quo.
Because it takes a lot of work to land the best computer consulting clients, you need to focus on lifetime customer value… not just one-shot-deal sales. So always remember that your proposed or recently implemented computer consulting technology solution isn't a one-shot deal. This kind of long-term vision and planning requires tremendous staying power and perseverance… which often escapes many computer consulting business owners.
Profit Secret #3: Don't be afraid to be creative with your client engagements.
Small business technology solutions often need to stay within relatively modest budgets. And your computer consulting solutions must work without the need for in-house IT staff. To satisfy these challenges, don't be afraid to think outside of the box when appropriate.
Profit Secret #4: Evaluate how your clients' systems, both paper- and computer-based, function today.
As part of your virtual CIO role, look at how these existing clients systems are meeting or not meeting present and future needs. Most of this work will be done during IT audits… another key computer consulting profit secret that can really help to separate you from the pack of mediocrity.
Profit Secret #5: Put yourself in your clients' shoes and think about what THEIR clients need from them.
Yes, as a computer consulting business owner, you need to have good people skills and a certain degree of empathy for your clients' business problems. But an even more advanced computer consulting business owner doesn't just stop at understanding their clients' business problems. The virtual CIO really digs in and learns about their clients' customers' business problems… one layer down on the value chain.
Profit Secret #6: Keep up with advances and new versions.
As virtual CIO for your computer consulting clients, your clients depend on your firm to advise them on what tools can better help their businesses grow. So while you can't allow this R&D and training to consume and devour all of your scarce weekly schedule, you do need to stay a few steps ahead of your clients' IT needs at all times.
Profit Secret #7: Summarize and share that information with your clients.
The essence of your R&D and training should focus on one major objective: will this new platform or tool add value to your computer consulting clients' existing or future installations? And how you can best summarize this information, in layperson language that non-technical clients can understand?
The Bottom Line
Your computer consulting firm's needs to be your client's virtual IT department can often be at odds with your computer consulting firm's need to be profitable. A big part of this problem happens because computer consulting business owners fall in love with technology, at the expense of their marketing and sales activities.
Tuesday, November 07, 2006
Six Largest Mistakes Made when Hiring a Cabling Contractor
Cabling of data and voice systems is often ignored by many companies until the last minute just before relocation or new building takes place. Many information systems professionals view it as a low priority or something that just takes away from their budget for real network components such as servers or software. However having a state of the art easy to manage cabling system is just as important as good reliable servers on a network. Cabling is the backbone of any computer network; it ties all the components of the network together therefore it should receive as much careful consideration as any other network component.
Mistake number one – Blindly choosing the lowest bidder
This is the most common mistake made when installing voice and data network cabling. Often the lowest bidder is the contractor who is the smallest, has the least experience or the one that made a mistake on their bid. Prior to making this decision you should know your contractor. Find out how long they have been in business, visit some of the large installations they have done and by all means go visit their offices and warehouse. A site visit to their office will tell you most of what you need to know about an organization. Make sure your contractor has completed jobs of similar scope and size.
Mistake number two – Choosing the manufactures product that will be installed
Many companies have tried to standardize on a particular manufacture of cabling system. Some of the larger manufactures are Belden, Comscope, Ortronics, AMP and Leviton. You can’t go wrong with any of these big names. However IT managers and corporate executives get hung up on trying to standardize because they believe it will make things easier for the IT staff. The reality of the situation is that if you choose any of the larger names the only components that might not be interchangeable are the faceplates. Of course there are performance criteria as well and they all claim to be the best. Do your own research and choose a manufacture that you feel has a strong company that will be there to stand behind their product should you even need to make a warranty claim
Mistake number three – Paying too much for the latest cabling technologies
The fact is that today’s network components and network components of the future cannot exceed the specifications of Cat 5E and Cat 6 cabling components. Combine this with the fact that the average company moves every 3 to 4 years. You will find it hard to benefit from future proofing a building you don’t occupy. Look at you current infrastructure, what equipment or applications do you plan to add or upgrade? Is Gigabit or 10 Gigabit Ethernet an option for you in the near future?
Mistake number four – Not using universal wiring
The EIA/TIA and BICSI both recommend a universal wiring platform for your Communications Infrastructure. In the old days the average install would consist of a single voice grade cable for the phone system and a single data grade cable (Cat 3, Cat5, Cat5E or Cat 6) for their computers. This of course dedicates the usability of these cables to one system type. This is further exacerbated by the termination method used. Voice cables were traditionally terminated on 66 style blocks (66m1-50), which are not user friendly and require a special tool and cross connect wire to make changes. Telephony companies have made a killing for years just performing MAC work (Moves, Adds and Changes) because a customer was unable or unwilling to brave the telephone closet and perform the MAC work themselves.
The practice of using a true universal wiring platform is now the standard for all reputable cabling contractors. A Universal Wiring Platform is made up of all data grade components that are downward compatible for all voice applications. A common installation would consist of 3 Category 5E or Category 6 cables all terminated on a 110 type Patch Panel. At the wall plate all cable would be terminated on the matching grade of 8 position modular jack (incorrectly know as an RJ-45). This design not only allows for maximum flexibility were the customer could have 3 computers or 3 phones or 2 computer and 1 phone or any configuration that works for their application. The point is that now the customer is in complete control of their cabling infrastructure and does not need to pay a contractor to come out every time they move an office. In the long run this will also save you money on the overall cabling system as it will shift and flex to meet your needs without having to bring in your cabling contractor. Remember, having the contractor in after construction has completed will involve them pulling out ceiling tiles and standing on desks while you are trying to do business. The elimination of the disruption alone makes it worth while.
Mistake number five – No CAD pre installation and post installation CAD drawings.
Most customers really have no idea what their cabling platform will look like when they sign the paperwork. They rely on their contractor to “just do the right thing”. Do not make this mistake, if you don’t understand how your infrastructure will work or what it should look like, don’t sign. Your contractor should have the ability to take your building blue print and overlay his cabling plan on top of your electrical plans. This will give you a visual representation of what you are paying for and allow you to ask questions. Likewise, after the job is complete you should receive what is called an “As Built Drawing” showing all of your communications outlets with a standards based numbering system. Some contractor will even provide a scale elevation plan showing were your patch panels are and how much room you have left in each rack for growth and or other equipment. This should be provided to you both hard copy and in AutoCAD format for your architect to incorporate into your final building As Builts.
Mistake number one – Blindly choosing the lowest bidder
This is the most common mistake made when installing voice and data network cabling. Often the lowest bidder is the contractor who is the smallest, has the least experience or the one that made a mistake on their bid. Prior to making this decision you should know your contractor. Find out how long they have been in business, visit some of the large installations they have done and by all means go visit their offices and warehouse. A site visit to their office will tell you most of what you need to know about an organization. Make sure your contractor has completed jobs of similar scope and size.
Mistake number two – Choosing the manufactures product that will be installed
Many companies have tried to standardize on a particular manufacture of cabling system. Some of the larger manufactures are Belden, Comscope, Ortronics, AMP and Leviton. You can’t go wrong with any of these big names. However IT managers and corporate executives get hung up on trying to standardize because they believe it will make things easier for the IT staff. The reality of the situation is that if you choose any of the larger names the only components that might not be interchangeable are the faceplates. Of course there are performance criteria as well and they all claim to be the best. Do your own research and choose a manufacture that you feel has a strong company that will be there to stand behind their product should you even need to make a warranty claim
Mistake number three – Paying too much for the latest cabling technologies
The fact is that today’s network components and network components of the future cannot exceed the specifications of Cat 5E and Cat 6 cabling components. Combine this with the fact that the average company moves every 3 to 4 years. You will find it hard to benefit from future proofing a building you don’t occupy. Look at you current infrastructure, what equipment or applications do you plan to add or upgrade? Is Gigabit or 10 Gigabit Ethernet an option for you in the near future?
Mistake number four – Not using universal wiring
The EIA/TIA and BICSI both recommend a universal wiring platform for your Communications Infrastructure. In the old days the average install would consist of a single voice grade cable for the phone system and a single data grade cable (Cat 3, Cat5, Cat5E or Cat 6) for their computers. This of course dedicates the usability of these cables to one system type. This is further exacerbated by the termination method used. Voice cables were traditionally terminated on 66 style blocks (66m1-50), which are not user friendly and require a special tool and cross connect wire to make changes. Telephony companies have made a killing for years just performing MAC work (Moves, Adds and Changes) because a customer was unable or unwilling to brave the telephone closet and perform the MAC work themselves.
The practice of using a true universal wiring platform is now the standard for all reputable cabling contractors. A Universal Wiring Platform is made up of all data grade components that are downward compatible for all voice applications. A common installation would consist of 3 Category 5E or Category 6 cables all terminated on a 110 type Patch Panel. At the wall plate all cable would be terminated on the matching grade of 8 position modular jack (incorrectly know as an RJ-45). This design not only allows for maximum flexibility were the customer could have 3 computers or 3 phones or 2 computer and 1 phone or any configuration that works for their application. The point is that now the customer is in complete control of their cabling infrastructure and does not need to pay a contractor to come out every time they move an office. In the long run this will also save you money on the overall cabling system as it will shift and flex to meet your needs without having to bring in your cabling contractor. Remember, having the contractor in after construction has completed will involve them pulling out ceiling tiles and standing on desks while you are trying to do business. The elimination of the disruption alone makes it worth while.
Mistake number five – No CAD pre installation and post installation CAD drawings.
Most customers really have no idea what their cabling platform will look like when they sign the paperwork. They rely on their contractor to “just do the right thing”. Do not make this mistake, if you don’t understand how your infrastructure will work or what it should look like, don’t sign. Your contractor should have the ability to take your building blue print and overlay his cabling plan on top of your electrical plans. This will give you a visual representation of what you are paying for and allow you to ask questions. Likewise, after the job is complete you should receive what is called an “As Built Drawing” showing all of your communications outlets with a standards based numbering system. Some contractor will even provide a scale elevation plan showing were your patch panels are and how much room you have left in each rack for growth and or other equipment. This should be provided to you both hard copy and in AutoCAD format for your architect to incorporate into your final building As Builts.
Saturday, November 04, 2006
How To Secure Your Wireless Network
People have more flexible time due to wireless network. Thanks to the invention of wireless. People can now work from home while taking care of their kids or doing house works. No more stress from traffic jam anymore. Is this great?
Well, there is something you should realize. Working from home while using a wireless local area network (WLAN) may lead to theft of sensitive information and hacker or virus infiltration unless proper measures are taken. As WLANs send information over radio waves, someone with a receiver in your area could be picking up the transmission, thus gaining access to your computer. They could load viruses on to your laptop which could be transferred to the company's network when you go back to work.
Believe it or not! Up to 75 per cent of WLAN users do not have standard security features installed, while 20 per cent are left completely open as default configurations are not secured, but made for the users to have their network up and running ASAP. It is recommended that wireless router/access point setup be always done though a wired client.
You can setup your security by follow these steps:
1. Change default administrative password on wireless router/access point to a secured password.
2. Enable at least 128-bit WEP encryption on both card and access point. Change your WEP keys periodically. If equipment does not support at least 128-bit WEP encryption, consider replacing it. Although there are security issues with WEP, it represents minimum level of security, and it should be enabled.
3. Change the default SSID on your router/access point to a hard to guess name. Setup your computer device to connect to this SSID by default.
4. Setup router/access point not to broadcast the SSID. The same SSID needs to be setup on the client side manually. This feature may not be available on all equipment.
5. Block anonymous Internet requests or pings. On each computer having wireless network card, network connection properties should be configured to allow connection to Access Point Networks Only. Computer to Computer (peer to peer) Connection should not be allowed.
Enable MAC filtering. Deny association to wireless network for unspecified MAC addresses. Mac or Physical addresses are available through your computer device network connection setup and they are physically written on network cards. When adding new wireless cards / computer to the network, their MAC addresses should be registered with the router /access point. Network router should have firewall features enabled and demilitarized zone (DMZ) feature disabled.
All computers should have a properly configured personal firewall in addition to a hardware firewall. You should also update router/access point firmware when new versions become available. Locating router/access point away from strangers is also helpful so they cannot reset the router/access point to default settings. You can even try to locate router/access point in the middle of the building rather than near windows to limit signal coverage outside the building.
There is no guarantee of a full protection of your wireless network, but following these suggested tips can definitely lessen your risk of exposing to attackers aiming at insecure networks.
People have more flexible time due to wireless network. Thanks to the invention of wireless. People can now work from home while taking care of their kids or doing house works. No more stress from traffic jam anymore. Is this great?
Well, there is something you should realize. Working from home while using a wireless local area network (WLAN) may lead to theft of sensitive information and hacker or virus infiltration unless proper measures are taken. As WLANs send information over radio waves, someone with a receiver in your area could be picking up the transmission, thus gaining access to your computer. They could load viruses on to your laptop which could be transferred to the company's network when you go back to work.
Believe it or not! Up to 75 per cent of WLAN users do not have standard security features installed, while 20 per cent are left completely open as default configurations are not secured, but made for the users to have their network up and running ASAP. It is recommended that wireless router/access point setup be always done though a wired client.
You can setup your security by follow these steps:
1. Change default administrative password on wireless router/access point to a secured password.
2. Enable at least 128-bit WEP encryption on both card and access point. Change your WEP keys periodically. If equipment does not support at least 128-bit WEP encryption, consider replacing it. Although there are security issues with WEP, it represents minimum level of security, and it should be enabled.
3. Change the default SSID on your router/access point to a hard to guess name. Setup your computer device to connect to this SSID by default.
4. Setup router/access point not to broadcast the SSID. The same SSID needs to be setup on the client side manually. This feature may not be available on all equipment.
5. Block anonymous Internet requests or pings. On each computer having wireless network card, network connection properties should be configured to allow connection to Access Point Networks Only. Computer to Computer (peer to peer) Connection should not be allowed.
Enable MAC filtering. Deny association to wireless network for unspecified MAC addresses. Mac or Physical addresses are available through your computer device network connection setup and they are physically written on network cards. When adding new wireless cards / computer to the network, their MAC addresses should be registered with the router /access point. Network router should have firewall features enabled and demilitarized zone (DMZ) feature disabled.
All computers should have a properly configured personal firewall in addition to a hardware firewall. You should also update router/access point firmware when new versions become available. Locating router/access point away from strangers is also helpful so they cannot reset the router/access point to default settings. You can even try to locate router/access point in the middle of the building rather than near windows to limit signal coverage outside the building.
There is no guarantee of a full protection of your wireless network, but following these suggested tips can definitely lessen your risk of exposing to attackers aiming at insecure networks.
People have more flexible time due to wireless network. Thanks to the invention of wireless. People can now work from home while taking care of their kids or doing house works. No more stress from traffic jam anymore. Is this great?
Monday, October 30, 2006
It's 12 Noon, Do You Know Who's Using Your Network?
The idea of reading email while lounging by the pool, text or instant messaging while doing the laundry, or lounging in the Jacuzzi listening to your MP3 collection is appealing to us all.
Unfortunately, many, or even most, wireless units don't come with security features already functioning. This may not seem like a big issue to someone who is simply setting up a home network, but there are a number of potential problems you should consider.
The most serious problem is the increase in identity theft. If your network is unsecured, the personal data on your wireless electronic equipment is also unsecured. The order you just placed for a book at Amazon may have given your contact and payment information to an unscrupulous hacker!
Nearly every town in which "WiFi" is common will have "War Drivers" and "War Chalkers" at work. These are people who walk or drive around town with wireless equipment, searching for unsecured networks. The "Chalkers" then live up their name, marking curbs and other public items with chalk so that others can more easily find and exploit your network.
Not all "War Drivers" are hackers, of course. Many just want to use your network for free, but the risk is high if you don't learn how to protect yourself. You can usually find quite a bit of free information as to how to secure your network at the website of your router's manufacturer, or by doing a search in a search engine for a phrase like "secure home wireless."
Beyond the truly malicious, there are also your neighbors who may find your network by accident and enjoy nosing into your activities and using your Internet access at will, slowing down your network speed in the process.
Even many businesses use cheap, home-use quality equipment for their company networks. With the poor security often found on small business networks, anyone with a basic knowledge of wireless can access sensitive company and customer data.
If you are unable to secure your network yourself, there are many service companies who will do it for you. A search of your local yellow pages or an inquiry at your neighborhood computer store should yield professional help and get your private data private again
The idea of reading email while lounging by the pool, text or instant messaging while doing the laundry, or lounging in the Jacuzzi listening to your MP3 collection is appealing to us all.
Unfortunately, many, or even most, wireless units don't come with security features already functioning. This may not seem like a big issue to someone who is simply setting up a home network, but there are a number of potential problems you should consider.
The most serious problem is the increase in identity theft. If your network is unsecured, the personal data on your wireless electronic equipment is also unsecured. The order you just placed for a book at Amazon may have given your contact and payment information to an unscrupulous hacker!
Nearly every town in which "WiFi" is common will have "War Drivers" and "War Chalkers" at work. These are people who walk or drive around town with wireless equipment, searching for unsecured networks. The "Chalkers" then live up their name, marking curbs and other public items with chalk so that others can more easily find and exploit your network.
Not all "War Drivers" are hackers, of course. Many just want to use your network for free, but the risk is high if you don't learn how to protect yourself. You can usually find quite a bit of free information as to how to secure your network at the website of your router's manufacturer, or by doing a search in a search engine for a phrase like "secure home wireless."
Unfortunately, many, or even most, wireless units don't come with security features already functioning. This may not seem like a big issue to someone who is simply setting up a home network, but there are a number of potential problems you should consider.
The most serious problem is the increase in identity theft. If your network is unsecured, the personal data on your wireless electronic equipment is also unsecured. The order you just placed for a book at Amazon may have given your contact and payment information to an unscrupulous hacker!
Nearly every town in which "WiFi" is common will have "War Drivers" and "War Chalkers" at work. These are people who walk or drive around town with wireless equipment, searching for unsecured networks. The "Chalkers" then live up their name, marking curbs and other public items with chalk so that others can more easily find and exploit your network.
Not all "War Drivers" are hackers, of course. Many just want to use your network for free, but the risk is high if you don't learn how to protect yourself. You can usually find quite a bit of free information as to how to secure your network at the website of your router's manufacturer, or by doing a search in a search engine for a phrase like "secure home wireless."
Beyond the truly malicious, there are also your neighbors who may find your network by accident and enjoy nosing into your activities and using your Internet access at will, slowing down your network speed in the process.
Even many businesses use cheap, home-use quality equipment for their company networks. With the poor security often found on small business networks, anyone with a basic knowledge of wireless can access sensitive company and customer data.
If you are unable to secure your network yourself, there are many service companies who will do it for you. A search of your local yellow pages or an inquiry at your neighborhood computer store should yield professional help and get your private data private again
The idea of reading email while lounging by the pool, text or instant messaging while doing the laundry, or lounging in the Jacuzzi listening to your MP3 collection is appealing to us all.
Unfortunately, many, or even most, wireless units don't come with security features already functioning. This may not seem like a big issue to someone who is simply setting up a home network, but there are a number of potential problems you should consider.
The most serious problem is the increase in identity theft. If your network is unsecured, the personal data on your wireless electronic equipment is also unsecured. The order you just placed for a book at Amazon may have given your contact and payment information to an unscrupulous hacker!
Nearly every town in which "WiFi" is common will have "War Drivers" and "War Chalkers" at work. These are people who walk or drive around town with wireless equipment, searching for unsecured networks. The "Chalkers" then live up their name, marking curbs and other public items with chalk so that others can more easily find and exploit your network.
Not all "War Drivers" are hackers, of course. Many just want to use your network for free, but the risk is high if you don't learn how to protect yourself. You can usually find quite a bit of free information as to how to secure your network at the website of your router's manufacturer, or by doing a search in a search engine for a phrase like "secure home wireless."
Sunday, October 22, 2006
Peltier Associates Breaking and Fixing Wireless Security
To the information security professional wireless networking may be thought of as a four letter word to be avoided at all costs. Regardless of the security implication wireless networking can provide cost efficiency, and because of that wireless technologies are here to stay. While many in the profession believe that wireless networks can be easily compromised, this class will show how the appropriate wireless architecture with the proper security controls can make your wireless network as secure as any other remote access point into your network.
In this three day, wireless security workshop, we will examine the cutting edge of wireless technologies. The purpose of the course is to give you a full understanding of what wireless (802.11) networks are, how they work, how people find them and exploit them, and how they can be secured. This hands-on course is based on real world examples, solutions, and deployments. In this course we will actually set up and use wireless networks, determine the tools to uncover wireless networks, and also look at how to defeat the attempts to secure wireless networks.
Course Completion
Upon the completion of our CISM course, students will have:
Constructed a wireless network architecture
Install and configure 802.1x authentication using Microsoft Windows IAS and Server 2000
Install a wireless access point
Distinguish between 802.11x standards
Defeat Wired Equivalent Privacy
Key Take Aways:
An understanding of wireless networks
A CD of common tools and documentation
An ability to search the internet for updates and more information on wireless networks
Detail of Course Content The following topics will be covered:
Wireless History
Radio Frequency (RF) Fundamentals
WLAN Infrastructure
802.11 Network Architecture
802.1X Authentication
Extensible Authentication Protocol (EAP)/(LEAP)/(PEAP)
Detection Platforms
WLAN Discovery Tools
Kismet
Wireless Sniffers
Conventional Detection
Antennas
Exploiting WLANs
Securing WLANs
Other Wireless Options
Legal Issues including GLBA and ISO-17799
Future
In this three day, wireless security workshop, we will examine the cutting edge of wireless technologies. The purpose of the course is to give you a full understanding of what wireless (802.11) networks are, how they work, how people find them and exploit them, and how they can be secured. This hands-on course is based on real world examples, solutions, and deployments. In this course we will actually set up and use wireless networks, determine the tools to uncover wireless networks, and also look at how to defeat the attempts to secure wireless networks.
Course Completion
Upon the completion of our CISM course, students will have:
Constructed a wireless network architecture
Install and configure 802.1x authentication using Microsoft Windows IAS and Server 2000
Install a wireless access point
Distinguish between 802.11x standards
Defeat Wired Equivalent Privacy
Key Take Aways:
An understanding of wireless networks
A CD of common tools and documentation
An ability to search the internet for updates and more information on wireless networks
Detail of Course Content The following topics will be covered:
Wireless History
Radio Frequency (RF) Fundamentals
WLAN Infrastructure
802.11 Network Architecture
802.1X Authentication
Extensible Authentication Protocol (EAP)/(LEAP)/(PEAP)
Detection Platforms
WLAN Discovery Tools
Kismet
Wireless Sniffers
Conventional Detection
Antennas
Exploiting WLANs
Securing WLANs
Other Wireless Options
Legal Issues including GLBA and ISO-17799
Future
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
Router - Denial Of Service Attacks
Routers are not perfect. For that matter, nothing is. So if somebody wants to give a router more than it can handle there is a way to do this. We're going to take a look at what are called denial of service attacks.
A router can only handle so much information coming into it at one time. Every machine has its limits and routers are no exceptions. Well, when the nasty trend of denial of service attacks started early this century, routers were unprepared for them. As they began to understand what was happening they began to compensate for the problem. But there was still a way around it. To understand this we first have to understand what a denial of service attack is.
A denial of service attack is just as it sounds. It is when someone prevents the router or routers from servicing the network. The question is, how do they do this? As previously stated, a router can only handle so much information coming into it to be routed at a time. If too much information starts coming in then the router gets overloaded and can't forward the information fast enough. Ultimately, what happens is this slows the network down to the point where nobody can access it. In a denial of service attack, which is a deliberate attempt to cause this problem, a person will send an enormous amount of information from one computer to the router at one time. Eventually this will effectively shut down the network. The reason is because of the trickle down effect. Once the main routers start to get overloaded they start to send messages to the rest of the network that the connection is full. These messages start to cascade through the entire network until all the pathways in the network are full and nobody can communicate with any server on the network.
When companies and web sites began to understand what was happening then started to put safeguards in place. They would put checks in the router software to see if a large amount of information was coming from one IP address. If so, then it simply discarded the information and didn't attempt to pass it on. It seemed that the problem was solved. Not so.
Hackers began to figure out that if they send this enormous amount of information from multiple computers or IP addresses, the routers would have no way of knowing that a denial of service attack was in progress because it would see all this information coming in from multiple locations. Ultimately again, the network would effectively be shut down.
A router can only handle so much information coming into it at one time. Every machine has its limits and routers are no exceptions. Well, when the nasty trend of denial of service attacks started early this century, routers were unprepared for them. As they began to understand what was happening they began to compensate for the problem. But there was still a way around it. To understand this we first have to understand what a denial of service attack is.
A denial of service attack is just as it sounds. It is when someone prevents the router or routers from servicing the network. The question is, how do they do this? As previously stated, a router can only handle so much information coming into it to be routed at a time. If too much information starts coming in then the router gets overloaded and can't forward the information fast enough. Ultimately, what happens is this slows the network down to the point where nobody can access it. In a denial of service attack, which is a deliberate attempt to cause this problem, a person will send an enormous amount of information from one computer to the router at one time. Eventually this will effectively shut down the network. The reason is because of the trickle down effect. Once the main routers start to get overloaded they start to send messages to the rest of the network that the connection is full. These messages start to cascade through the entire network until all the pathways in the network are full and nobody can communicate with any server on the network.
When companies and web sites began to understand what was happening then started to put safeguards in place. They would put checks in the router software to see if a large amount of information was coming from one IP address. If so, then it simply discarded the information and didn't attempt to pass it on. It seemed that the problem was solved. Not so.
Hackers began to figure out that if they send this enormous amount of information from multiple computers or IP addresses, the routers would have no way of knowing that a denial of service attack was in progress because it would see all this information coming in from multiple locations. Ultimately again, the network would effectively be shut down.
Saturday, October 14, 2006
Reasons to Start a Wireless Network
As far as I'm concerned, wireless networks would have to rank as one of the best inventions in history. They really are the best thing since sliced bread. I mean, really, bread is easy enough to cut yourself, but have you ever tried to wire up a network? Its a lot of hard yakka as many would say.
WiFi is the wireless way to handle networking. It is also known as 802.11 networking and wireless networking. The big advantage of WiFi is its simplicity. You can connect computers anywhere in your home or office without the need for wires. The computers connect to the network using radio signals, and computers can be up to 100 feet or so apart. So, in the spirit of spreading the word, I'm going to give you some great reasons why you need a wireless network.
Sharing Internet Access.
Wireless networking gives you a cheap and easy way to share one Internet connection between multiple computers, eliminating the need for more than one modem. You can even add new computers to your network simply by plugging in a wireless card and switching them on -- they get an Internet connection straightaway! There aren't many wired networks that can say that.
Sharing Files and Printers.
A wireless network gives you access to your files wherever you are in your home, and makes it easy to synchronise the data on a laptop with a home computer. It is much easier to send files between computers with a wireless network than it is to send them by email, or even by burning them to a CD.
Plus, with the printer connected, you can also write things wherever you want, press print, and go and collect them from a printer connected to another computer -- printers that are plugged into one of the computers on the network are shared between all the computers automatically.
Always On Connection
A big factor in the spread of broadband was that it let Internet connections be always-on, without needing to dial in. Well, wireless networking lets network connections be always-on, meaning that any of your computers can connect to the Internet whenever you want! You can take laptops from room to room, and it doesn't matter -- they'll always have access. Plus, there's not even any need to set up a username and password system, as wireless networks work without logging in. It's just so convenient!
No More Wires.
This, of course, is the biggest reason why you should switch your network over to wireless. Wires are inconvenient, expensive, ugly and dangerous -- you'll be delighted to see the back of them.
The average Ethernet wire doesn't cost that much per metre, but once you've bought enough metres to do whatever you need to do, well, it tends to add up quickly. Not only that, but if you want to run your wire between rooms or floors, you have to knock holes in the walls -- which might not even be allowed if you're renting. I know plenty of people in rented apartments who had to keep their network confined to one room until they went wireless. With wireless networking, well, you can even take your computer outside, if you want to!
No more wires also means no more spaghetti all over the floor and in the corners. Not only does this improve the safety of your home, as it's all too easy to trip over exposed wires, but it also means that you don't have to go to all the trouble of packing all the wires up and re-connecting them at the other end when you move. It also means that you don't have to examine every wire for damage if your Internet connection breaks down.
Play LAN and Internet Games.
You might have seen an option in your favourite game to play over a LAN. Well, wireless networks are LANs, which means that your whole family can play that game together -- without needing the computers to be anywhere near each other. It's far more fun to play against real people you know than to play against random people over the Internet, not to mention that the game will work much faster. You could even invite your friends to bring their computers and join in -- a 'LAN party'!
An added benefit is that wireless equipment lets you easily connect any games consoles you or your kids might have to the Internet, and start playing online. It's far easier to play online with a wirelessly connected Xbox or PlayStation 2 than to have to connect it to your modem every time.
Convinced Yet?
If you're excited, then that's great -- keep reading these articles for advice on how to set everything up. If you don't think it's for you yet, well, don't give up on it -- I'm sure you'll come round when you realise just how easy and cheap wireless really is.
As far as I'm concerned, wireless networks would have to rank as one of the best inventions in history. They really are the best thing since sliced bread. I mean, really, bread is easy enough to cut yourself, but have you ever tried to wire up a network? Its a lot of hard yakka as many would say.
WiFi is the wireless way to handle networking. It is also known as 802.11 networking and wireless networking. The big advantage of WiFi is its simplicity. You can connect computers anywhere in your home or office without the need for wires. The computers connect to the network using radio signals, and computers can be up to 100 feet or so apart. So, in the spirit of spreading the word, I'm going to give you some great reasons why you need a wireless network.
Sharing Internet Access.
Wireless networking gives you a cheap and easy way to share one Internet connection between multiple computers, eliminating the need for more than one modem. You can even add new computers to your network simply by plugging in a wireless card and switching them on -- they get an Internet connection straightaway! There aren't many wired networks that can say that.
Sharing Files and Printers.
A wireless network gives you access to your files wherever you are in your home, and makes it easy to synchronise the data on a laptop with a home computer. It is much easier to send files between computers with a wireless network than it is to send them by email, or even by burning them to a CD.
Plus, with the printer connected, you can also write things wherever you want, press print, and go and collect them from a printer connected to another computer -- printers that are plugged into one of the computers on the network are shared between all the computers automatically.
Always On Connection
A big factor in the spread of broadband was that it let Internet connections be always-on, without needing to dial in. Well, wireless networking lets network connections be always-on, meaning that any of your computers can connect to the Internet whenever you want! You can take laptops from room to room, and it doesn't matter -- they'll always have access. Plus, there's not even any need to set up a username and password system, as wireless networks work without logging in. It's just so convenient!
No More Wires.
This, of course, is the biggest reason why you should switch your network over to wireless. Wires are inconvenient, expensive, ugly and dangerous -- you'll be delighted to see the back of them.
The average Ethernet wire doesn't cost that much per metre, but once you've bought enough metres to do whatever you need to do, well, it tends to add up quickly. Not only that, but if you want to run your wire between rooms or floors, you have to knock holes in the walls -- which might not even be allowed if you're renting. I know plenty of people in rented apartments who had to keep their network confined to one room until they went wireless. With wireless networking, well, you can even take your computer outside, if you want to!
No more wires also means no more spaghetti all over the floor and in the corners. Not only does this improve the safety of your home, as it's all too easy to trip over exposed wires, but it also means that you don't have to go to all the trouble of packing all the wires up and re-connecting them at the other end when you move. It also means that you don't have to examine every wire for damage if your Internet connection breaks down.
Play LAN and Internet Games.
You might have seen an option in your favourite game to play over a LAN. Well, wireless networks are LANs, which means that your whole family can play that game together -- without needing the computers to be anywhere near each other. It's far more fun to play against real people you know than to play against random people over the Internet, not to mention that the game will work much faster. You could even invite your friends to bring their computers and join in -- a 'LAN party'!
An added benefit is that wireless equipment lets you easily connect any games consoles you or your kids might have to the Internet, and start playing online. It's far easier to play online with a wirelessly connected Xbox or PlayStation 2 than to have to connect it to your modem every time.
WiFi is the wireless way to handle networking. It is also known as 802.11 networking and wireless networking. The big advantage of WiFi is its simplicity. You can connect computers anywhere in your home or office without the need for wires. The computers connect to the network using radio signals, and computers can be up to 100 feet or so apart. So, in the spirit of spreading the word, I'm going to give you some great reasons why you need a wireless network.
Sharing Internet Access.
Wireless networking gives you a cheap and easy way to share one Internet connection between multiple computers, eliminating the need for more than one modem. You can even add new computers to your network simply by plugging in a wireless card and switching them on -- they get an Internet connection straightaway! There aren't many wired networks that can say that.
Sharing Files and Printers.
A wireless network gives you access to your files wherever you are in your home, and makes it easy to synchronise the data on a laptop with a home computer. It is much easier to send files between computers with a wireless network than it is to send them by email, or even by burning them to a CD.
Plus, with the printer connected, you can also write things wherever you want, press print, and go and collect them from a printer connected to another computer -- printers that are plugged into one of the computers on the network are shared between all the computers automatically.
Always On Connection
A big factor in the spread of broadband was that it let Internet connections be always-on, without needing to dial in. Well, wireless networking lets network connections be always-on, meaning that any of your computers can connect to the Internet whenever you want! You can take laptops from room to room, and it doesn't matter -- they'll always have access. Plus, there's not even any need to set up a username and password system, as wireless networks work without logging in. It's just so convenient!
No More Wires.
This, of course, is the biggest reason why you should switch your network over to wireless. Wires are inconvenient, expensive, ugly and dangerous -- you'll be delighted to see the back of them.
The average Ethernet wire doesn't cost that much per metre, but once you've bought enough metres to do whatever you need to do, well, it tends to add up quickly. Not only that, but if you want to run your wire between rooms or floors, you have to knock holes in the walls -- which might not even be allowed if you're renting. I know plenty of people in rented apartments who had to keep their network confined to one room until they went wireless. With wireless networking, well, you can even take your computer outside, if you want to!
No more wires also means no more spaghetti all over the floor and in the corners. Not only does this improve the safety of your home, as it's all too easy to trip over exposed wires, but it also means that you don't have to go to all the trouble of packing all the wires up and re-connecting them at the other end when you move. It also means that you don't have to examine every wire for damage if your Internet connection breaks down.
Play LAN and Internet Games.
You might have seen an option in your favourite game to play over a LAN. Well, wireless networks are LANs, which means that your whole family can play that game together -- without needing the computers to be anywhere near each other. It's far more fun to play against real people you know than to play against random people over the Internet, not to mention that the game will work much faster. You could even invite your friends to bring their computers and join in -- a 'LAN party'!
An added benefit is that wireless equipment lets you easily connect any games consoles you or your kids might have to the Internet, and start playing online. It's far easier to play online with a wirelessly connected Xbox or PlayStation 2 than to have to connect it to your modem every time.
Convinced Yet?
If you're excited, then that's great -- keep reading these articles for advice on how to set everything up. If you don't think it's for you yet, well, don't give up on it -- I'm sure you'll come round when you realise just how easy and cheap wireless really is.
As far as I'm concerned, wireless networks would have to rank as one of the best inventions in history. They really are the best thing since sliced bread. I mean, really, bread is easy enough to cut yourself, but have you ever tried to wire up a network? Its a lot of hard yakka as many would say.
WiFi is the wireless way to handle networking. It is also known as 802.11 networking and wireless networking. The big advantage of WiFi is its simplicity. You can connect computers anywhere in your home or office without the need for wires. The computers connect to the network using radio signals, and computers can be up to 100 feet or so apart. So, in the spirit of spreading the word, I'm going to give you some great reasons why you need a wireless network.
Sharing Internet Access.
Wireless networking gives you a cheap and easy way to share one Internet connection between multiple computers, eliminating the need for more than one modem. You can even add new computers to your network simply by plugging in a wireless card and switching them on -- they get an Internet connection straightaway! There aren't many wired networks that can say that.
Sharing Files and Printers.
A wireless network gives you access to your files wherever you are in your home, and makes it easy to synchronise the data on a laptop with a home computer. It is much easier to send files between computers with a wireless network than it is to send them by email, or even by burning them to a CD.
Plus, with the printer connected, you can also write things wherever you want, press print, and go and collect them from a printer connected to another computer -- printers that are plugged into one of the computers on the network are shared between all the computers automatically.
Always On Connection
A big factor in the spread of broadband was that it let Internet connections be always-on, without needing to dial in. Well, wireless networking lets network connections be always-on, meaning that any of your computers can connect to the Internet whenever you want! You can take laptops from room to room, and it doesn't matter -- they'll always have access. Plus, there's not even any need to set up a username and password system, as wireless networks work without logging in. It's just so convenient!
No More Wires.
This, of course, is the biggest reason why you should switch your network over to wireless. Wires are inconvenient, expensive, ugly and dangerous -- you'll be delighted to see the back of them.
The average Ethernet wire doesn't cost that much per metre, but once you've bought enough metres to do whatever you need to do, well, it tends to add up quickly. Not only that, but if you want to run your wire between rooms or floors, you have to knock holes in the walls -- which might not even be allowed if you're renting. I know plenty of people in rented apartments who had to keep their network confined to one room until they went wireless. With wireless networking, well, you can even take your computer outside, if you want to!
No more wires also means no more spaghetti all over the floor and in the corners. Not only does this improve the safety of your home, as it's all too easy to trip over exposed wires, but it also means that you don't have to go to all the trouble of packing all the wires up and re-connecting them at the other end when you move. It also means that you don't have to examine every wire for damage if your Internet connection breaks down.
Play LAN and Internet Games.
You might have seen an option in your favourite game to play over a LAN. Well, wireless networks are LANs, which means that your whole family can play that game together -- without needing the computers to be anywhere near each other. It's far more fun to play against real people you know than to play against random people over the Internet, not to mention that the game will work much faster. You could even invite your friends to bring their computers and join in -- a 'LAN party'!
An added benefit is that wireless equipment lets you easily connect any games consoles you or your kids might have to the Internet, and start playing online. It's far easier to play online with a wirelessly connected Xbox or PlayStation 2 than to have to connect it to your modem every time.
Monday, October 09, 2006
The Pleasures of a Wireless Media Router
With everything becoming available wireless these days a great innovation is the wireless media router. What is a wireless media router? It’s a router that allows the transmission of signals from the router to anywhere in the house that has a receiver.
Wireless routers are becoming more and more popular. They have many uses, one of which is viewing pictures and movies from your computer on your television. This comes in very handy when you have media files that you can’t burn on CD or cannot be played on your DVD player.
A second use would be to transmit paid television. For example if you paid for HBO usually you would be able to only view it on one nominated television. With the wireless media router you can send the signal you television is receiving, HBO, to any other television in the house. You can even change the channel from the remote television while viewing.
The third use would be watching television at a location where an antenna is not available. This means no more long cables leading from room to room just to be able to watch television.
Depending on the amount of receivers you have you can receive the signal from multiple televisions. How does it work? The receivers are connected to the remote televisions. The router takes the signal from the source television and distributes it to the remote televisions by way of the receiver. On the remote television a certain channel is dedicated to this receiver meaning you can watch independent television, and easily switch the channel to the signal being received from the wireless router.
This also makes running your entertainment room a breeze. The receiver can also be hooked up-to a projector making it easy to view anything you wish. This means you will not need to purchase separate DVD players VCR’s for every room.
With everything becoming available wireless these days a great innovation is the wireless media router. What is a wireless media router? It’s a router that allows the transmission of signals from the router to anywhere in the house that has a receiver.
Wireless routers are becoming more and more popular. They have many uses, one of which is viewing pictures and movies from your computer on your television. This comes in very handy when you have media files that you can’t burn on CD or cannot be played on your DVD player.
A second use would be to transmit paid television. For example if you paid for HBO usually you would be able to only view it on one nominated television. With the wireless media router you can send the signal you television is receiving, HBO, to any other television in the house. You can even change the channel from the remote television while viewing.
The third use would be watching television at a location where an antenna is not available. This means no more long cables leading from room to room just to be able to watch television.
Depending on the amount of receivers you have you can receive the signal from multiple televisions. How does it work? The receivers are connected to the remote televisions. The router takes the signal from the source television and distributes it to the remote televisions by way of the receiver. On the remote television a certain channel is dedicated to this receiver meaning you can watch independent television, and easily switch the channel to the signal being received from the wireless router.
Wireless routers are becoming more and more popular. They have many uses, one of which is viewing pictures and movies from your computer on your television. This comes in very handy when you have media files that you can’t burn on CD or cannot be played on your DVD player.
A second use would be to transmit paid television. For example if you paid for HBO usually you would be able to only view it on one nominated television. With the wireless media router you can send the signal you television is receiving, HBO, to any other television in the house. You can even change the channel from the remote television while viewing.
The third use would be watching television at a location where an antenna is not available. This means no more long cables leading from room to room just to be able to watch television.
Depending on the amount of receivers you have you can receive the signal from multiple televisions. How does it work? The receivers are connected to the remote televisions. The router takes the signal from the source television and distributes it to the remote televisions by way of the receiver. On the remote television a certain channel is dedicated to this receiver meaning you can watch independent television, and easily switch the channel to the signal being received from the wireless router.
This also makes running your entertainment room a breeze. The receiver can also be hooked up-to a projector making it easy to view anything you wish. This means you will not need to purchase separate DVD players VCR’s for every room.
With everything becoming available wireless these days a great innovation is the wireless media router. What is a wireless media router? It’s a router that allows the transmission of signals from the router to anywhere in the house that has a receiver.
Wireless routers are becoming more and more popular. They have many uses, one of which is viewing pictures and movies from your computer on your television. This comes in very handy when you have media files that you can’t burn on CD or cannot be played on your DVD player.
A second use would be to transmit paid television. For example if you paid for HBO usually you would be able to only view it on one nominated television. With the wireless media router you can send the signal you television is receiving, HBO, to any other television in the house. You can even change the channel from the remote television while viewing.
The third use would be watching television at a location where an antenna is not available. This means no more long cables leading from room to room just to be able to watch television.
Depending on the amount of receivers you have you can receive the signal from multiple televisions. How does it work? The receivers are connected to the remote televisions. The router takes the signal from the source television and distributes it to the remote televisions by way of the receiver. On the remote television a certain channel is dedicated to this receiver meaning you can watch independent television, and easily switch the channel to the signal being received from the wireless router.
Tuesday, October 03, 2006
Network Training for Successful Network and System Management
Big companies often have a large network that they need to manage and maintain. This type of system management requires staff that has a computer technical education as well as network training. Without this type of extensive system management large companies would be unable to function as a working whole. Network training gives someone the skills and training that they need to manage and control a large network, as well as make decisions regarding the network that can affect the entire company.
Many of the details pertaining to network management have to do with the security issues surrounding the computer network of a company. There are many issues that have to do with the security of a company that uses computers as one of their main forms of communication with the outside world. This communication via the Internet means that individual computers, as well as the entire network, are at risk when ports to the outside computer world are opened. Network training gives people the skills that they need to maintain a secure system and keep track of the computer network. With secure network management the communication network of a company can be managed and maintained.
The number of network management positions within a company will be determined by the size of the company. The larger the network of computers the more system administration will be needed to keep track of all the system tools and computers. Studies show that companies without any type of network management in place will soon be plagued with issues of down time as their computer system fails to run efficiently. Studies also show that hiring a computer technician without proper network training can lead to an inefficient system as well. As more companies rely on their computer system for communication with their clients and customers, the importance of adequate and superior network management will increase.
Big companies often have a large network that they need to manage and maintain. This type of system management requires staff that has a computer technical education as well as network training. Without this type of extensive system management large companies would be unable to function as a working whole. Network training gives someone the skills and training that they need to manage and control a large network, as well as make decisions regarding the network that can affect the entire company.
Many of the details pertaining to network management have to do with the security issues surrounding the computer network of a company. There are many issues that have to do with the security of a company that uses computers as one of their main forms of communication with the outside world. This communication via the Internet means that individual computers, as well as the entire network, are at risk when ports to the outside computer world are opened. Network training gives people the skills that they need to maintain a secure system and keep track of the computer network. With secure network management the communication network of a company can be managed and maintained.
Many of the details pertaining to network management have to do with the security issues surrounding the computer network of a company. There are many issues that have to do with the security of a company that uses computers as one of their main forms of communication with the outside world. This communication via the Internet means that individual computers, as well as the entire network, are at risk when ports to the outside computer world are opened. Network training gives people the skills that they need to maintain a secure system and keep track of the computer network. With secure network management the communication network of a company can be managed and maintained.
The number of network management positions within a company will be determined by the size of the company. The larger the network of computers the more system administration will be needed to keep track of all the system tools and computers. Studies show that companies without any type of network management in place will soon be plagued with issues of down time as their computer system fails to run efficiently. Studies also show that hiring a computer technician without proper network training can lead to an inefficient system as well. As more companies rely on their computer system for communication with their clients and customers, the importance of adequate and superior network management will increase.
Big companies often have a large network that they need to manage and maintain. This type of system management requires staff that has a computer technical education as well as network training. Without this type of extensive system management large companies would be unable to function as a working whole. Network training gives someone the skills and training that they need to manage and control a large network, as well as make decisions regarding the network that can affect the entire company.
Many of the details pertaining to network management have to do with the security issues surrounding the computer network of a company. There are many issues that have to do with the security of a company that uses computers as one of their main forms of communication with the outside world. This communication via the Internet means that individual computers, as well as the entire network, are at risk when ports to the outside computer world are opened. Network training gives people the skills that they need to maintain a secure system and keep track of the computer network. With secure network management the communication network of a company can be managed and maintained.
Saturday, September 30, 2006
Cisco CCNA Exam Tutorial: The Best Time To Schedule Your Exam
In preparing for CCNA exam success, one of the basic steps is to schedule your exam! And when should you do that?
Schedule your exam NOW.
I can hear you now -- " Why should I schedule my exam now? I haven’t started studying yet!"
From experience, I can tell you that this technique works. People complain about timetables and deadlines, but the truth is that people do their best work with a deadline. “Stress” is not the dirty word that we’ve made it out to be. A diamond is only a lump of coal that was put under pressure.
I wish I had a nickel for every time I’ve heard this:
"I’ll schedule my exam when I’m ready."
You know when "ready" is? For many people, NEVER. I know someone who’s been preparing for his CCNA for years – literally! He’s going to schedule that exam when he’s ready. He’s been getting ready for years!
By scheduling your exam now, you give yourself a mental deadline. You’ll be surprised at how focused your mind becomes when you know the date of your exam before you start. I have used this technique for my CCNA, CCNP, and CCIE exams. It will work for you!
You can schedule your exam with Prometric or VUE right now! Just search for either of those companies in your favorite search engine, and register online today.
Both sites have test center locators, so no matter where you are in the world, you can find the testing center nearest you.
We all have times of the day that we’re mentally sharper than others. I personally am a "morning person", so I always schedule my exams for first thing in the morning. If you’re stronger in the afternoon, schedule an afternoon exam. Regardless of the time of day you’re going to take the exam – schedule it now, right now!
In preparing for CCNA exam success, one of the basic steps is to schedule your exam! And when should you do that?
Schedule your exam NOW.
I can hear you now -- " Why should I schedule my exam now? I haven’t started studying yet!"
From experience, I can tell you that this technique works. People complain about timetables and deadlines, but the truth is that people do their best work with a deadline. “Stress” is not the dirty word that we’ve made it out to be. A diamond is only a lump of coal that was put under pressure.
I wish I had a nickel for every time I’ve heard this:
"I’ll schedule my exam when I’m ready."
You know when "ready" is? For many people, NEVER. I know someone who’s been preparing for his CCNA for years – literally! He’s going to schedule that exam when he’s ready. He’s been getting ready for years!
By scheduling your exam now, you give yourself a mental deadline. You’ll be surprised at how focused your mind becomes when you know the date of your exam before you start. I have used this technique for my CCNA, CCNP, and CCIE exams. It will work for you!
Schedule your exam NOW.
I can hear you now -- " Why should I schedule my exam now? I haven’t started studying yet!"
From experience, I can tell you that this technique works. People complain about timetables and deadlines, but the truth is that people do their best work with a deadline. “Stress” is not the dirty word that we’ve made it out to be. A diamond is only a lump of coal that was put under pressure.
I wish I had a nickel for every time I’ve heard this:
"I’ll schedule my exam when I’m ready."
You know when "ready" is? For many people, NEVER. I know someone who’s been preparing for his CCNA for years – literally! He’s going to schedule that exam when he’s ready. He’s been getting ready for years!
By scheduling your exam now, you give yourself a mental deadline. You’ll be surprised at how focused your mind becomes when you know the date of your exam before you start. I have used this technique for my CCNA, CCNP, and CCIE exams. It will work for you!
You can schedule your exam with Prometric or VUE right now! Just search for either of those companies in your favorite search engine, and register online today.
Both sites have test center locators, so no matter where you are in the world, you can find the testing center nearest you.
We all have times of the day that we’re mentally sharper than others. I personally am a "morning person", so I always schedule my exams for first thing in the morning. If you’re stronger in the afternoon, schedule an afternoon exam. Regardless of the time of day you’re going to take the exam – schedule it now, right now!
In preparing for CCNA exam success, one of the basic steps is to schedule your exam! And when should you do that?
Schedule your exam NOW.
I can hear you now -- " Why should I schedule my exam now? I haven’t started studying yet!"
From experience, I can tell you that this technique works. People complain about timetables and deadlines, but the truth is that people do their best work with a deadline. “Stress” is not the dirty word that we’ve made it out to be. A diamond is only a lump of coal that was put under pressure.
I wish I had a nickel for every time I’ve heard this:
"I’ll schedule my exam when I’m ready."
You know when "ready" is? For many people, NEVER. I know someone who’s been preparing for his CCNA for years – literally! He’s going to schedule that exam when he’s ready. He’s been getting ready for years!
By scheduling your exam now, you give yourself a mental deadline. You’ll be surprised at how focused your mind becomes when you know the date of your exam before you start. I have used this technique for my CCNA, CCNP, and CCIE exams. It will work for you!
Sunday, September 24, 2006
Cisco Certification: The Importance Of Building Your Own Practice Lab
CCNAs and CCNA candidates hear it all the time: “Get some hands-on experience”. From my personal experience climbing the Cisco certification ladder, I can tell you firsthand that there is no learning like hands-on learning. No simulator in the world is going to give you the experience you will get cabling and configuring your own routers.
Whenever I mention this to one of my students, they always say it costs too much. The truth is, it is cheaper now to build your own CCNA and CCNP lab than it has ever been. The secret? Used routers.
The word “used” turns off a lot of people not many of us buy used computers or used servers. Cisco routers, though, are robust I personally own a Cisco 4000 router that I use as a Frame Relay switch in my lab that I’ve had for about four years, and I’ve never had a problem with it.
The good news for current CCNA and CCNP candidates interested in building their own labs is that used Cisco equipment has never been more plentiful or cheaper. eBay is a good way to get an idea of what’s out there and what the prices are, but you don’t have to assemble your lab one piece at a time. Many eBay vendors who sell used Cisco equipment sell ready-made CCNA and CCNP labs for one price, including cables. I personally recommend www.ciscokits.com and www.horizondatacom.com for your lab needs, and there are many other vendors as well.
And should you desire to sell your lab after you complete your certification, you can either negotiate a price with the vendor who sold it to you, or you can sell it yourself on ebay. It’s my experience that 95% of candidates who earn their CCNA go on to pursue their CCNP within one year, though, so don’t sell it too quickly.
In the end, you spend only a few hundred dollars, and you gain invaluable experience and knowledge that will help you both in your certification quest and your job performance. Having been there, I can tell you that you will learn much more from actually configuring and cabling your own equipment than you ever will from any simulation of the real thing.
CCNAs and CCNA candidates hear it all the time: “Get some hands-on experience”. From my personal experience climbing the Cisco certification ladder, I can tell you firsthand that there is no learning like hands-on learning. No simulator in the world is going to give you the experience you will get cabling and configuring your own routers.
Whenever I mention this to one of my students, they always say it costs too much. The truth is, it is cheaper now to build your own CCNA and CCNP lab than it has ever been. The secret? Used routers.
The word “used” turns off a lot of people not many of us buy used computers or used servers. Cisco routers, though, are robust I personally own a Cisco 4000 router that I use as a Frame Relay switch in my lab that I’ve had for about four years, and I’ve never had a problem with it.
Whenever I mention this to one of my students, they always say it costs too much. The truth is, it is cheaper now to build your own CCNA and CCNP lab than it has ever been. The secret? Used routers.
The word “used” turns off a lot of people not many of us buy used computers or used servers. Cisco routers, though, are robust I personally own a Cisco 4000 router that I use as a Frame Relay switch in my lab that I’ve had for about four years, and I’ve never had a problem with it.
The good news for current CCNA and CCNP candidates interested in building their own labs is that used Cisco equipment has never been more plentiful or cheaper. eBay is a good way to get an idea of what’s out there and what the prices are, but you don’t have to assemble your lab one piece at a time. Many eBay vendors who sell used Cisco equipment sell ready-made CCNA and CCNP labs for one price, including cables. I personally recommend www.ciscokits.com and www.horizondatacom.com for your lab needs, and there are many other vendors as well.
And should you desire to sell your lab after you complete your certification, you can either negotiate a price with the vendor who sold it to you, or you can sell it yourself on ebay. It’s my experience that 95% of candidates who earn their CCNA go on to pursue their CCNP within one year, though, so don’t sell it too quickly.
In the end, you spend only a few hundred dollars, and you gain invaluable experience and knowledge that will help you both in your certification quest and your job performance. Having been there, I can tell you that you will learn much more from actually configuring and cabling your own equipment than you ever will from any simulation of the real thing.
CCNAs and CCNA candidates hear it all the time: “Get some hands-on experience”. From my personal experience climbing the Cisco certification ladder, I can tell you firsthand that there is no learning like hands-on learning. No simulator in the world is going to give you the experience you will get cabling and configuring your own routers.
Whenever I mention this to one of my students, they always say it costs too much. The truth is, it is cheaper now to build your own CCNA and CCNP lab than it has ever been. The secret? Used routers.
The word “used” turns off a lot of people not many of us buy used computers or used servers. Cisco routers, though, are robust I personally own a Cisco 4000 router that I use as a Frame Relay switch in my lab that I’ve had for about four years, and I’ve never had a problem with it.
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
What is a Virtual Private Network?
A Virtual Private Network, or VPN, is a way of using the Internet to provide remote users with secure access to their network. Data is scrambled as it’s sent through the Internet ensuring privacy. In other words a business which may be located in New York can use the company’s network to send encrypted information to different branches of the business located in other parts of the country.
Information doesn’t have to be sent office to office either. An individual choosing to work at home can have all of the same amenities (programs, email, etc) as working in the office, thanks to a VPN. Because all data is scrambled prior to being sent, and decrypted once it reaches its destination, there’s no fear of interception since only authorized users can view the information.
With a VPN, data is carried over the Internet through a process called tunneling. Tunneling is when a package is placed within another package before it’s encrypted and sent to its destination. The path in which the packet travels is called a tunnel.
A firewall can be set up to prevent a barrier between a private network and the Internet. The firewall can be set up to only accept certain information and also reject packets containing unwanted information. For purposes of security, the firewall should be set up prior to installing a VPN.
The Benefits of a VPN are:
- Increased Productivity
- Improved Security
- Lower operational costs
- Simplified Network Topology
- Opportunities for Global Networking
While there are plenty of pros to setting up and using a Virtual Private Network, there’s also a con or two. For instance, someone with in-depth knowledge of network security and dealing with VPNs will have to be on staff or specialized training will be required to ensure things run smoothly. Also, different vendors might provide different technologies so not all networks may be compatible. For sure there are kinks to be worked out. Once they are however, it would be worth it to look into Virtual Private Networking for your business - especially if the benefits outweigh the risks.
A Virtual Private Network, or VPN, is a way of using the Internet to provide remote users with secure access to their network. Data is scrambled as it’s sent through the Internet ensuring privacy. In other words a business which may be located in New York can use the company’s network to send encrypted information to different branches of the business located in other parts of the country.
Information doesn’t have to be sent office to office either. An individual choosing to work at home can have all of the same amenities (programs, email, etc) as working in the office, thanks to a VPN. Because all data is scrambled prior to being sent, and decrypted once it reaches its destination, there’s no fear of interception since only authorized users can view the information.
With a VPN, data is carried over the Internet through a process called tunneling. Tunneling is when a package is placed within another package before it’s encrypted and sent to its destination. The path in which the packet travels is called a tunnel.
A firewall can be set up to prevent a barrier between a private network and the Internet. The firewall can be set up to only accept certain information and also reject packets containing unwanted information. For purposes of security, the firewall should be set up prior to installing a VPN.
The Benefits of a VPN are:
- Increased Productivity
- Improved Security
- Lower operational costs
- Simplified Network Topology
- Opportunities for Global Networking
While there are plenty of pros to setting up and using a Virtual Private Network, there’s also a con or two. For instance, someone with in-depth knowledge of network security and dealing with VPNs will have to be on staff or specialized training will be required to ensure things run smoothly. Also, different vendors might provide different technologies so not all networks may be compatible. For sure there are kinks to be worked out. Once they are however, it would be worth it to look into Virtual Private Networking for your business - especially if the benefits outweigh the risks.
Information doesn’t have to be sent office to office either. An individual choosing to work at home can have all of the same amenities (programs, email, etc) as working in the office, thanks to a VPN. Because all data is scrambled prior to being sent, and decrypted once it reaches its destination, there’s no fear of interception since only authorized users can view the information.
With a VPN, data is carried over the Internet through a process called tunneling. Tunneling is when a package is placed within another package before it’s encrypted and sent to its destination. The path in which the packet travels is called a tunnel.
A firewall can be set up to prevent a barrier between a private network and the Internet. The firewall can be set up to only accept certain information and also reject packets containing unwanted information. For purposes of security, the firewall should be set up prior to installing a VPN.
The Benefits of a VPN are:
- Increased Productivity
- Improved Security
- Lower operational costs
- Simplified Network Topology
- Opportunities for Global Networking
While there are plenty of pros to setting up and using a Virtual Private Network, there’s also a con or two. For instance, someone with in-depth knowledge of network security and dealing with VPNs will have to be on staff or specialized training will be required to ensure things run smoothly. Also, different vendors might provide different technologies so not all networks may be compatible. For sure there are kinks to be worked out. Once they are however, it would be worth it to look into Virtual Private Networking for your business - especially if the benefits outweigh the risks.
A Virtual Private Network, or VPN, is a way of using the Internet to provide remote users with secure access to their network. Data is scrambled as it’s sent through the Internet ensuring privacy. In other words a business which may be located in New York can use the company’s network to send encrypted information to different branches of the business located in other parts of the country.
Information doesn’t have to be sent office to office either. An individual choosing to work at home can have all of the same amenities (programs, email, etc) as working in the office, thanks to a VPN. Because all data is scrambled prior to being sent, and decrypted once it reaches its destination, there’s no fear of interception since only authorized users can view the information.
With a VPN, data is carried over the Internet through a process called tunneling. Tunneling is when a package is placed within another package before it’s encrypted and sent to its destination. The path in which the packet travels is called a tunnel.
A firewall can be set up to prevent a barrier between a private network and the Internet. The firewall can be set up to only accept certain information and also reject packets containing unwanted information. For purposes of security, the firewall should be set up prior to installing a VPN.
The Benefits of a VPN are:
- Increased Productivity
- Improved Security
- Lower operational costs
- Simplified Network Topology
- Opportunities for Global Networking
While there are plenty of pros to setting up and using a Virtual Private Network, there’s also a con or two. For instance, someone with in-depth knowledge of network security and dealing with VPNs will have to be on staff or specialized training will be required to ensure things run smoothly. Also, different vendors might provide different technologies so not all networks may be compatible. For sure there are kinks to be worked out. Once they are however, it would be worth it to look into Virtual Private Networking for your business - especially if the benefits outweigh the risks.
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Cisco CCNP / BSCI Certification Exam: Five OSPF Details You Must Know
Preparing for your BSCI exam on your way to the Cisco CCNP certification, you can quickly get overwhelmed by the details! Here are five commonly overlooked points you should keep in mind when it comes to your OSPF studies.
The virtual link command includes the area number of the transit area, and if authentication is being used on Area 0, the virtual link command must include the authentication statement. Since the virtual link is a logical extension of Area 0, it stands to reason that it has to be configured with the authentication type and password configured on Area 0.
OSPF requires no seed metric when routes are being redistributed into an OSPF domain. The default cost for such routes is 20, but you do need to use the "subnets" option if you want to redistribute subnets into OSPF.
There are two kinds of external OSPF routes. The default, E2, reflects the cost of the path from the ASBR to the external destination. The other option, E1, has a cost reflecting the entire path from the local router to the external destination.
When configuring stub areas, each router in the area must agree that the area is stub. For a total stub area, only the ABR needs to be configured with the "no-summary" option, but all routers in the area still must agree that the area is stub.
Routers in a stub area will have a default route to use to reach external destinations; routers in total stub areas will have a default route to use in order to reach both external and inter-area networks.
The BSCI exam and CCNP certification require a great deal of dedication and hard work. Keep studying and paying attention to the details, and you will get there!
Preparing for your BSCI exam on your way to the Cisco CCNP certification, you can quickly get overwhelmed by the details! Here are five commonly overlooked points you should keep in mind when it comes to your OSPF studies.
The virtual link command includes the area number of the transit area, and if authentication is being used on Area 0, the virtual link command must include the authentication statement. Since the virtual link is a logical extension of Area 0, it stands to reason that it has to be configured with the authentication type and password configured on Area 0.
OSPF requires no seed metric when routes are being redistributed into an OSPF domain. The default cost for such routes is 20, but you do need to use the "subnets" option if you want to redistribute subnets into OSPF.
There are two kinds of external OSPF routes. The default, E2, reflects the cost of the path from the ASBR to the external destination. The other option, E1, has a cost reflecting the entire path from the local router to the external destination.
When configuring stub areas, each router in the area must agree that the area is stub. For a total stub area, only the ABR needs to be configured with the "no-summary" option, but all routers in the area still must agree that the area is stub.
The virtual link command includes the area number of the transit area, and if authentication is being used on Area 0, the virtual link command must include the authentication statement. Since the virtual link is a logical extension of Area 0, it stands to reason that it has to be configured with the authentication type and password configured on Area 0.
OSPF requires no seed metric when routes are being redistributed into an OSPF domain. The default cost for such routes is 20, but you do need to use the "subnets" option if you want to redistribute subnets into OSPF.
There are two kinds of external OSPF routes. The default, E2, reflects the cost of the path from the ASBR to the external destination. The other option, E1, has a cost reflecting the entire path from the local router to the external destination.
When configuring stub areas, each router in the area must agree that the area is stub. For a total stub area, only the ABR needs to be configured with the "no-summary" option, but all routers in the area still must agree that the area is stub.
Routers in a stub area will have a default route to use to reach external destinations; routers in total stub areas will have a default route to use in order to reach both external and inter-area networks.
The BSCI exam and CCNP certification require a great deal of dedication and hard work. Keep studying and paying attention to the details, and you will get there!
Preparing for your BSCI exam on your way to the Cisco CCNP certification, you can quickly get overwhelmed by the details! Here are five commonly overlooked points you should keep in mind when it comes to your OSPF studies.
The virtual link command includes the area number of the transit area, and if authentication is being used on Area 0, the virtual link command must include the authentication statement. Since the virtual link is a logical extension of Area 0, it stands to reason that it has to be configured with the authentication type and password configured on Area 0.
OSPF requires no seed metric when routes are being redistributed into an OSPF domain. The default cost for such routes is 20, but you do need to use the "subnets" option if you want to redistribute subnets into OSPF.
There are two kinds of external OSPF routes. The default, E2, reflects the cost of the path from the ASBR to the external destination. The other option, E1, has a cost reflecting the entire path from the local router to the external destination.
When configuring stub areas, each router in the area must agree that the area is stub. For a total stub area, only the ABR needs to be configured with the "no-summary" option, but all routers in the area still must agree that the area is stub.
Thursday, September 07, 2006
Creating a Fool Proof Data Archive System with a Magnetic Tape Library
Most businesses have laws and regulations for how long specific data must be stored, but still many companies don’t have a tape drive, tape libraries, secondary storage or any plan for archiving data. Even if your industry doesn’t have specific requirements, keeping a well documented business information library is a safe bet. Recently, the residential building company Urban Renaissance Agency realized that it had lost archived building plan data for 555 (31%) of its condos due to “insufficient storage measures.”
The mistake not only made the news, but will cost the company millions to recover. Data storage tends to be one of those problems that many individuals and businesses don’t act on until a loss happens. Most people agree that backing up data is important, but feel the process will be too difficult and the issue stays below the radar until a crisis occurs. On the contrary, it’s surprisingly simple to back up, store, and recover data using a tape backup drive and magnetic tape libraries to build a foolproof information archive system.
A tape drive is a very reliable method of recording and archiving data. Using a magnetic tape cartridge, the tape drive scans all of your computer’s files and copies them onto the tape. Businesses might choose to backup files daily, weekly, or monthly. The process can be set up to be manually run or to automatically update at a certain time of the day.
The most important functionality of a tape library is that you have a record of ‘snapshots’ as data appeared at regular intervals throughout history. This means if a customer has a dispute over a contract or a policy from last year, you can pull a tape from your tape library and find the piece of data exactly as it looked one year ago.
Another benefit to storing your data on tape is that cartridges can be stored off site and/or in fire and flood proof containers. More often than not, secondary storage is usually found in the same building as the original data, and often in the same location as the server. With a tape backup drive, once the tape is made the tape cartridge can then be stored anywhere. Because the tapes are there for reference and not part of daily use, they can easily be locked away and stored in disaster and theft resistant safes.
Tape drives come with a variety of options including file cataloging features; a comparison feature that will check the data on the drive against a current document, and are available in a variety of speeds. The tapes you’ll use to build your tape libraries will vary as well. It’s recommended to discuss your options with a data storage specialist who can help you build a system around your budget and your unique business needs.
Most businesses have laws and regulations for how long specific data must be stored, but still many companies don’t have a tape drive, tape libraries, secondary storage or any plan for archiving data. Even if your industry doesn’t have specific requirements, keeping a well documented business information library is a safe bet. Recently, the residential building company Urban Renaissance Agency realized that it had lost archived building plan data for 555 (31%) of its condos due to “insufficient storage measures.”
The mistake not only made the news, but will cost the company millions to recover. Data storage tends to be one of those problems that many individuals and businesses don’t act on until a loss happens. Most people agree that backing up data is important, but feel the process will be too difficult and the issue stays below the radar until a crisis occurs. On the contrary, it’s surprisingly simple to back up, store, and recover data using a tape backup drive and magnetic tape libraries to build a foolproof information archive system.
A tape drive is a very reliable method of recording and archiving data. Using a magnetic tape cartridge, the tape drive scans all of your computer’s files and copies them onto the tape. Businesses might choose to backup files daily, weekly, or monthly. The process can be set up to be manually run or to automatically update at a certain time of the day.
The most important functionality of a tape library is that you have a record of ‘snapshots’ as data appeared at regular intervals throughout history. This means if a customer has a dispute over a contract or a policy from last year, you can pull a tape from your tape library and find the piece of data exactly as it looked one year ago.
Another benefit to storing your data on tape is that cartridges can be stored off site and/or in fire and flood proof containers. More often than not, secondary storage is usually found in the same building as the original data, and often in the same location as the server. With a tape backup drive, once the tape is made the tape cartridge can then be stored anywhere. Because the tapes are there for reference and not part of daily use, they can easily be locked away and stored in disaster and theft resistant safes.
The mistake not only made the news, but will cost the company millions to recover. Data storage tends to be one of those problems that many individuals and businesses don’t act on until a loss happens. Most people agree that backing up data is important, but feel the process will be too difficult and the issue stays below the radar until a crisis occurs. On the contrary, it’s surprisingly simple to back up, store, and recover data using a tape backup drive and magnetic tape libraries to build a foolproof information archive system.
A tape drive is a very reliable method of recording and archiving data. Using a magnetic tape cartridge, the tape drive scans all of your computer’s files and copies them onto the tape. Businesses might choose to backup files daily, weekly, or monthly. The process can be set up to be manually run or to automatically update at a certain time of the day.
The most important functionality of a tape library is that you have a record of ‘snapshots’ as data appeared at regular intervals throughout history. This means if a customer has a dispute over a contract or a policy from last year, you can pull a tape from your tape library and find the piece of data exactly as it looked one year ago.
Another benefit to storing your data on tape is that cartridges can be stored off site and/or in fire and flood proof containers. More often than not, secondary storage is usually found in the same building as the original data, and often in the same location as the server. With a tape backup drive, once the tape is made the tape cartridge can then be stored anywhere. Because the tapes are there for reference and not part of daily use, they can easily be locked away and stored in disaster and theft resistant safes.
Tape drives come with a variety of options including file cataloging features; a comparison feature that will check the data on the drive against a current document, and are available in a variety of speeds. The tapes you’ll use to build your tape libraries will vary as well. It’s recommended to discuss your options with a data storage specialist who can help you build a system around your budget and your unique business needs.
Most businesses have laws and regulations for how long specific data must be stored, but still many companies don’t have a tape drive, tape libraries, secondary storage or any plan for archiving data. Even if your industry doesn’t have specific requirements, keeping a well documented business information library is a safe bet. Recently, the residential building company Urban Renaissance Agency realized that it had lost archived building plan data for 555 (31%) of its condos due to “insufficient storage measures.”
The mistake not only made the news, but will cost the company millions to recover. Data storage tends to be one of those problems that many individuals and businesses don’t act on until a loss happens. Most people agree that backing up data is important, but feel the process will be too difficult and the issue stays below the radar until a crisis occurs. On the contrary, it’s surprisingly simple to back up, store, and recover data using a tape backup drive and magnetic tape libraries to build a foolproof information archive system.
A tape drive is a very reliable method of recording and archiving data. Using a magnetic tape cartridge, the tape drive scans all of your computer’s files and copies them onto the tape. Businesses might choose to backup files daily, weekly, or monthly. The process can be set up to be manually run or to automatically update at a certain time of the day.
The most important functionality of a tape library is that you have a record of ‘snapshots’ as data appeared at regular intervals throughout history. This means if a customer has a dispute over a contract or a policy from last year, you can pull a tape from your tape library and find the piece of data exactly as it looked one year ago.
Another benefit to storing your data on tape is that cartridges can be stored off site and/or in fire and flood proof containers. More often than not, secondary storage is usually found in the same building as the original data, and often in the same location as the server. With a tape backup drive, once the tape is made the tape cartridge can then be stored anywhere. Because the tapes are there for reference and not part of daily use, they can easily be locked away and stored in disaster and theft resistant safes.
Saturday, September 02, 2006
Computer Networking Fundamentals
A computer network is a collection of two or more computers with communication between them through a medium. The communication medium can be through radio waves, wires, infrared, optical fibers etc.
Computer network is an integral part of our daily lives, with the most important reason being that of communication. The use of computer networking is to share resources like fax machines, printers, modems, files etc., and its other uses are database server, computer server, email, chat, internet etc. The computer to which the resources are attached is called the server and the other computers that access the resource are called clients. In peer-to-peer computer networks there are no servers.
The sharing of fax machines, printers, and modems amongst many computers and users reduce the operational cost. A database on a computer network is a very important application as it stores and runs many important data and jobs. Emails and chats can be used for instantaneous communication and sending of files on a computer network.
The computer networks are classified, depending upon the size, as Local Area Networks (LAN), Wide Area Networks (WAN), Metropolitan Area Networks (MAN) and Personal Area Networks (PAN). The topology (topology is the way the computer networks and network resources are connected) of the networking can be classified as Bus Network, Ring Network and Star Network.
The networking hardware basically consists of wiring, network cards and a hub. Computer network cards are required so that one computer can understand what the other computer is “talking”. Network cards have a unique MAC address to identify computers on a computer network. Hubs connect all the computers in the network. Hubs can also be used to connect to other hubs to increase the size of the computer network. Two computers can be connected using Ethernet cards or phone lines or power lines for communication, with hardware kits available at roughly a cost of $100.
As the number of computers in an office or a home increases, so do the number of cables, so wireless networking is a viable solution. In wireless networking radio transreceivers or infrared signals are used to communicate between computers and devices. Examples of wireless networking include Wi-fi and Bluetooth technology, though there may be security issues involved in wireless networking. However there definitely is a stronger preference towards wireless networking nowadays among consumers.
Computer networks have added a new dimension to the 21st century. Today the cyber world is much faster and wider than the real world. This has all been made possible due to computer networks. Computer networks have revolutionized business, communication, travel, research, defense, society and almost all human endeavors. The evolution of computer networks has helped the technological revolution take a big leap forward.
A computer network is a collection of two or more computers with communication between them through a medium. The communication medium can be through radio waves, wires, infrared, optical fibers etc.
Computer network is an integral part of our daily lives, with the most important reason being that of communication. The use of computer networking is to share resources like fax machines, printers, modems, files etc., and its other uses are database server, computer server, email, chat, internet etc. The computer to which the resources are attached is called the server and the other computers that access the resource are called clients. In peer-to-peer computer networks there are no servers.
The sharing of fax machines, printers, and modems amongst many computers and users reduce the operational cost. A database on a computer network is a very important application as it stores and runs many important data and jobs. Emails and chats can be used for instantaneous communication and sending of files on a computer network.
The computer networks are classified, depending upon the size, as Local Area Networks (LAN), Wide Area Networks (WAN), Metropolitan Area Networks (MAN) and Personal Area Networks (PAN). The topology (topology is the way the computer networks and network resources are connected) of the networking can be classified as Bus Network, Ring Network and Star Network.
The networking hardware basically consists of wiring, network cards and a hub. Computer network cards are required so that one computer can understand what the other computer is “talking”. Network cards have a unique MAC address to identify computers on a computer network. Hubs connect all the computers in the network. Hubs can also be used to connect to other hubs to increase the size of the computer network. Two computers can be connected using Ethernet cards or phone lines or power lines for communication, with hardware kits available at roughly a cost of $100.
As the number of computers in an office or a home increases, so do the number of cables, so wireless networking is a viable solution. In wireless networking radio transreceivers or infrared signals are used to communicate between computers and devices. Examples of wireless networking include Wi-fi and Bluetooth technology, though there may be security issues involved in wireless networking. However there definitely is a stronger preference towards wireless networking nowadays among consumers.
Computer networks have added a new dimension to the 21st century. Today the cyber world is much faster and wider than the real world. This has all been made possible due to computer networks. Computer networks have revolutionized business, communication, travel, research, defense, society and almost all human endeavors. The evolution of computer networks has helped the technological revolution take a big leap forward.
Computer network is an integral part of our daily lives, with the most important reason being that of communication. The use of computer networking is to share resources like fax machines, printers, modems, files etc., and its other uses are database server, computer server, email, chat, internet etc. The computer to which the resources are attached is called the server and the other computers that access the resource are called clients. In peer-to-peer computer networks there are no servers.
The sharing of fax machines, printers, and modems amongst many computers and users reduce the operational cost. A database on a computer network is a very important application as it stores and runs many important data and jobs. Emails and chats can be used for instantaneous communication and sending of files on a computer network.
The computer networks are classified, depending upon the size, as Local Area Networks (LAN), Wide Area Networks (WAN), Metropolitan Area Networks (MAN) and Personal Area Networks (PAN). The topology (topology is the way the computer networks and network resources are connected) of the networking can be classified as Bus Network, Ring Network and Star Network.
The networking hardware basically consists of wiring, network cards and a hub. Computer network cards are required so that one computer can understand what the other computer is “talking”. Network cards have a unique MAC address to identify computers on a computer network. Hubs connect all the computers in the network. Hubs can also be used to connect to other hubs to increase the size of the computer network. Two computers can be connected using Ethernet cards or phone lines or power lines for communication, with hardware kits available at roughly a cost of $100.
As the number of computers in an office or a home increases, so do the number of cables, so wireless networking is a viable solution. In wireless networking radio transreceivers or infrared signals are used to communicate between computers and devices. Examples of wireless networking include Wi-fi and Bluetooth technology, though there may be security issues involved in wireless networking. However there definitely is a stronger preference towards wireless networking nowadays among consumers.
Computer networks have added a new dimension to the 21st century. Today the cyber world is much faster and wider than the real world. This has all been made possible due to computer networks. Computer networks have revolutionized business, communication, travel, research, defense, society and almost all human endeavors. The evolution of computer networks has helped the technological revolution take a big leap forward.
A computer network is a collection of two or more computers with communication between them through a medium. The communication medium can be through radio waves, wires, infrared, optical fibers etc.
Computer network is an integral part of our daily lives, with the most important reason being that of communication. The use of computer networking is to share resources like fax machines, printers, modems, files etc., and its other uses are database server, computer server, email, chat, internet etc. The computer to which the resources are attached is called the server and the other computers that access the resource are called clients. In peer-to-peer computer networks there are no servers.
The sharing of fax machines, printers, and modems amongst many computers and users reduce the operational cost. A database on a computer network is a very important application as it stores and runs many important data and jobs. Emails and chats can be used for instantaneous communication and sending of files on a computer network.
The computer networks are classified, depending upon the size, as Local Area Networks (LAN), Wide Area Networks (WAN), Metropolitan Area Networks (MAN) and Personal Area Networks (PAN). The topology (topology is the way the computer networks and network resources are connected) of the networking can be classified as Bus Network, Ring Network and Star Network.
The networking hardware basically consists of wiring, network cards and a hub. Computer network cards are required so that one computer can understand what the other computer is “talking”. Network cards have a unique MAC address to identify computers on a computer network. Hubs connect all the computers in the network. Hubs can also be used to connect to other hubs to increase the size of the computer network. Two computers can be connected using Ethernet cards or phone lines or power lines for communication, with hardware kits available at roughly a cost of $100.
As the number of computers in an office or a home increases, so do the number of cables, so wireless networking is a viable solution. In wireless networking radio transreceivers or infrared signals are used to communicate between computers and devices. Examples of wireless networking include Wi-fi and Bluetooth technology, though there may be security issues involved in wireless networking. However there definitely is a stronger preference towards wireless networking nowadays among consumers.
Computer networks have added a new dimension to the 21st century. Today the cyber world is much faster and wider than the real world. This has all been made possible due to computer networks. Computer networks have revolutionized business, communication, travel, research, defense, society and almost all human endeavors. The evolution of computer networks has helped the technological revolution take a big leap forward.
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