Posts Tagged ‘Computers’

Mobile Broadband – Convenient, Portable & Flexible

Wednesday, September 1st, 2010

Mobile broadband is defined as broadband access (e.g. cable and DSL) in the cellular environment. Wireless internet has been around for a number of years but mobile broadband has only recently (within the last few years) become popular due to the costs involved. Mobile broadband is a step up from local wireless data applications such as WiFi which gets rid of the wire, but not the confinement. A user must be stationary and in a WiFi hotspot (generally inside) when using WiFi technology. WiFi could be considered as the data transfer counterpart of the cordless telephone, whereas mobile broadband corresponds to the cellular phone, which enables access to high speed data almost anywhere in the world. The recent improvements in mobile broadband technology has meant that businesses can communicate with their employees and customers much more efficiently and effectively that ever before, changing the business environment quite drastically. Wireless broadband is shaping the business world.

Mobile broadband works in a similar way to mobile phone communications that use radio waves and frequencies to send and receive data. This digital information is sent in packets to and from the cell phones and telephone communication towers. With standard mobile telephone calls, the data that is transmitted and received is only in an audio format. Alternatively, the digital data that is communicated through cell phones and towers is in various formats such as web page data, audio data, visual data such as videos and also emails.

There are a few different types of mobile broadband, which can make life confusing. Below is a list detailing them:

-The first form of mobile broadband was EDGE, also known as 2.5g. Though it was quite slow and expensive, so take up was poor.

-The second format that was introduced was 3g, known on GSM formats as UMTS. Though transfer speeds were also quite slow, it began to offer users an alternative to using WiFi.

-Following 3g was HSDPA. It is quite fast, though not as fast as WiFi.

-Currently HSUPA is the standard, with bandwidth similar to WiFi speeds.

A new format that is currently being developed is called WIMAX. WIMAX, or 4g, will be able to give users broadband connection speeds faster than the WiFi speeds currently offered in popular hotspots. It will also have a very wide network coverage ratio, which means more people being able to access the internet from more places. With the constantly improving mobile internet access speeds, accessibility to the internet is increasing non-stop. In ten years we could begin to see a reduction in the number of people signing up to cable DSL, instead turning to companies offering mobile broadband connections. It would be possible to have just one internet service provider that you could access from anywhere in the world, on any type of device, from PCs to consoles to PDAs.

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How To Choose A Broadband Provider

Saturday, August 28th, 2010

Have you been thinking of adding a broadband connection to your home or changing your existing broadband provider? If so there are a few points that you need to think about.

Why Do You Need broadband – First you need to take your household needs into consideration. If you do not use the internet for much more than email and occasional searches then you do not need an expensive broadband package, some providers will even offer plans at a discount for casual users. However, if you or your household uses the internet constantly you will want a broadband service that offers unlimited bandwidth.

What Services Are Available In Your Area – After you have decided what type of service would best suit your needs, you need to find a provider. If you have access to an internet connection, you can find any number of sites that will help you find a list of providers for your area and what deals they offer for broadband service. Available services may be impacted by several factors, such as proximity to a telephone exchange. If you live a great distance from an exchange, high speed broadband may not be possible. Another factor to keep in mind is whether or not your area has a cable connection.

What Type Of Equipment Will You Need – This is really a two-part question : how many computers you will use and what type of connection does this require? Many people today have more than one computer, usually a desktop and a laptop. To ensure that each computer in the household has internet access, a wireless or mobile connection is usually set up. This will require a router and some form of wireless connector. The router supplies an “always on” link to the internet, and is the piece that is connected directly to the cable. Any computer that wishes to use the router’s signal must have the proper access code in order to connect. Most laptops include the wireless technology to connect via a router, but a desktop will probably require the addition of an internet card or plug-in dongle for wireless access. You may also connect the desktop directly to the router via your LAN (local area network) or an Ethernet cable.

Terms Of Use – Broadband works by connecting many users to the “pipe”, essentially allowing customers to rent the access to the connection. Because of this system it is important that there is a way to allow all users to fairly have the same connection speed. When searching for a provider it is vital that you make sure they have a fair usage policy. Some providers may limit your download speeds if you go over a set amount of bandwidth or if you make a habit of downloading at peak times in the day. These restrictions generally take the form of reduced speed or extra charges, so you need to carefully read the policies before settling on a broadband provider.

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ADSL Is The New DSL

Monday, May 17th, 2010

DSL or Digital Subscriber Line is a telephony version of high-speed internet. It takes advantage of traditional hard-wire copper telephone lines without blocking your telephone signal. DSL ranges from 10-140 times faster than old-fashioned 56kbps aka. “dialup” modems.

DSL comes in two flavors – ADSL and SDSL. ADSL has faster download than upload, whereas SDSL is the opposity. ADSL is favored by home users, whereas SDSL is favored by large businesses.

People in the United Kingdom (UK) who need broadband service that is speedy can use the ADSL service which will run at speeds up to 8Mbps. Internet services in the UK mostly run at 512Kbps or 2Mbps. It is a matter of deciding what your needs are for your internet service.  Once this is determined, you will be ready to investigate which providers service the area where you live.

In the United Kingdom many providers of internet service actually buy the service from network providers such as British Telecommunications and Kingston Communications and then turn around and resell the service to their customers. Most of the United Kingdom (about 90%) is covered by ADSL service.

Old DSL hubs that were around before ADSL and SDSL signals are not capable of handling ADSL or SDSL, so check to be sure the hub that services you is new or has been upgraded. Also, the closer you are to the hub, the better your signal will be, so you will want to ask where the hub is. If you are very far away, such as in a remote rural area, you will notice significant signal degradation with higher speed services. It will be better for you to sign up for a lower speed which suffers less comparatively than higher speeds. You can periodically contact your service provider to ask about the status of the hub, and see if or when they will be installing a hub closer to you.

ADSL billing programs have the same kind of variety of other internet providers. Most charge for installation and technology, although some providers may have promotions for either one or both to offer them free or at a reduced price. The service can be billed monthly or annually. You will want to ask if you will own the technology at the end of your contract or if the company considers it a rental, because if it is a rental then you will want to turn it in promptly if you cancel your service in order to avoid extra charges.

ADSL Installation In general, ADSL installations are so simple that you can install it by yourself and these services are offered as self-install or plug and play. You could do with to connect your modem to your PC and to the sockets on the micro filter. Installing the drivers and software provided by means of the modem are after that and toward the inside your username / password to login to broadband will be after that finishing. Being a broadband user you will then sure include an extraordinary surfing experience more than the internet.

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The Most Advantages Of Voice Over IP Technology

Monday, April 12th, 2010

Voice over IP (VOIP) technology is bringing forth a important advance in telecommunications. This technology delivers a new and a lot less expensive way for people to send and receive telephone calls and conference calls. While VOIP technology is new, people are switching to using it for one main reason – it saves them a bunch of cash on their phone bills. VOIP technology leverages the technology that makes the Internet work. Internet systems operate by sending so-called packets of information more some likely broadcast media, including cables, wires, fiber optics, and the air using wireless technology. At the receiving end, the packets of information are connected together to recreate the original message.

There are special Voice Over IP modems that send and receive telephone voice information. The VoIP technology uses digital internet packets to send the voice. The Voice Over IP sound quality is generally much better than the old fashioned telephone system, which makes it a desirable option over old fashioned telephones. It is so crispy that people don’t even hear any buzz that you usually hear in other systems. The only requirement that is needed for this Voice Over IP is a high speed Internet connection. High speed internet connections are available almost everywhere in the United States, even in small towns. This kind of Internet presence will make everyone access VOIP services. Now we can research which companies are offering Voice Over IP plans. There are plenty of companies in the market which provide Voice Over IP services.

Vonage: Vonage is the largest and the majority well known of the Internet companies that provide VoIP service plans. However, Vonage is one of the extra expensive options for getting VOIP service. A limitless calling plan expenses approximately 25 dollars per month. But several people use Vonage, primarily because of their violent advertising over the past year.

– Sunrocket: Sunrocket offers reasonably reliable service starting as low as $17 per month. They are fairly new to the world of VoIP, but the technology has been around for a while and their low price gives them an edge over other services.

– Mainstream telephone companies: The big companies do not like losing their ground to upstarts like Vonage and Sunrocket, so companies like Verizon that offer traditional telephones are now also offering a version of VoIP. They cost about the same as Vonage, so they have trouble competing. Their one edge is they may combine bills, so instead of being billed for phone and cable separately you would see it all on the same bill.

There are many small companies that have started setting foot into this new technology. To attract customers sometimes these companies offer terrific low cost services. The Voice Over IP business environment is changing rapidly so that these new companies must be approached carefully.

Long distance charges are expensive, and today everyone makes enough long distance calls to make a difference. Because of this, no matter who you choice as your VoIP carrier, you are pretty much guaranteed to get more talk time for less money, and you probably will end up with a few extra features, too!

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Security For Business Communications

Tuesday, March 9th, 2010

Data is the life blood of any business and keeping data safe is of vital importance for any business.  Data can take many forms including company guidelines and policies along with client information.  Protecting this data from computer hackers and other potential threats is very important to maintain successful business relationships.  Any lost data could mean lost customers even to extent of having a business fail entirely due to the lack of security.

The reasons for protecting the data from falling into wrong hands are clear. Though the means to gain the data illegally have improved, the means to protect the data has also improved. The computers have become the main stay for any business. Everyone uses them to store the data that might be important to them. This is why software that can protect the data from being accessed by unauthorized people must be installed. Such software includes the ones like anti-hacking, anti-spyware, antivirus, etc.

Along with computers, telephones are used to communicate with clients in the business world.  Communication via phone must also be protected from malicious types, also. In recent years, VoIP has become more widely adopted across businesses because it provides the ability to improve competencies and increase productivity. VoIP provides a business with the ability to make calls at a lower rate than conventional methods and also provides a wide feature set when compared with a conventional phone. These features can provide businesses with better ways to communicate while not taking as much from operational costs.  VoIP gives the users the capabilities to access audio and videoconferencing, text messaging, call waiting, and three-way calling with some of these not being charged. When compared with conventional phones, VoIP can provide great costs savings.

With the innovation of Wi-Fi, a user can use his VoIP telephone to call anyone anywhere. Since it is easier and faster to make telephone calls with a telephone rather than waiting for a computer to boot up, the user can save valuable time which gives him more time to devote to the success of his business, which in turn can lead to higher profits.

The sound quality is seen to be better than regular telephones, as the sound from the sender is first converted into digital signals over the internet, instead of analog signals in normal telephones. These digital signals can carry additional features of a sound, like the crispness and the clarity of the sound, for a longer distance. This makes the experience on the VoIP phones better than regular phones, when making long distance calls. VoIP is being complemented by the recent advances in wireless technology. The best advance is the Wi-Fi that can help a user make wireless VoIP calls through Wi-Fi phones, instead of hooking up to computer to make and receive the VoIP calls, which can be tiresome.

Innovations in wireless technology with VoIP phones have alleviated the necessity to hook-up the phone directly to the computer to receive or make calls. Security is still an issue with VoIP phones.  People using wireless VoIP phones must take precautions to maintain secure communications.Users of wireless VoIP phones should employ programs that allow for secure communication. Using data security on these phones may require users to input approved credentials. Newer Wi-Fi  phones have integrated privacy measures directly on the phones to allow for protected calls.

Since information is vital to every business, it is important that you be constantly aware of the need to protect your data from would-be intruders. VoIP and a Wi-Fi connection can be valuable tools to help you meet these goals.

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Can anyone recommend a VoIP software which I can use in my speech lab class using headsets on the computers?

Saturday, December 6th, 2008
voip
kimberlyn M asked:

I would really want to use a software wherein I would be able to set up my own server and configure it in a class. I would also prefer freeware or service providers to provide simple but quality VoIP services.

I’m planning just to have a voice chat connection with my student’s computers in order to check them during our speech lab sessions.

Thank you very much.
Does anyone know a VoIP software capable on LAN? My class uses LAN. Thank you again!

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