New technology...



New technology...included in CurriculumNote: This booklet is intended for the teacher to have the necessary information handy when teaching it to the learners. Please extract and simplify before making it available to learners.E. GoosenJuly 1, 2011Table of Contents TOC \o "1-3" \h \z \u E-books and E-readers,digital books and digital readers PAGEREF _Toc298706517 \h 1Netbook PAGEREF _Toc298706518 \h 2Tablet computer PAGEREF _Toc298706519 \h 2Social networking PAGEREF _Toc298706520 \h 3YouTube PAGEREF _Toc298706521 \h 3Facebook PAGEREF _Toc298706522 \h 4My space PAGEREF _Toc298706523 \h 4Linkedln PAGEREF _Toc298706524 \h 5Twitter PAGEREF _Toc298706525 \h 6FourSquare PAGEREF _Toc298706526 \h 6Online auction and shopping sites PAGEREF _Toc298706527 \h 6eBay PAGEREF _Toc298706528 \h 6BidorBuy PAGEREF _Toc298706529 \h 6Gum Tree PAGEREF _Toc298706530 \h PAGEREF _Toc298706531 \h 7Voip PAGEREF _Toc298706532 \h 7Skype PAGEREF _Toc298706533 \h 8Digg PAGEREF _Toc298706534 \h 8Gnu Freecall PAGEREF _Toc298706535 \h 9Smartphones PAGEREF _Toc298706536 \h 93G, 4G technology PAGEREF _Toc298706537 \h 93Dor3-D PAGEREF _Toc298706538 \h 10High Definition PAGEREF _Toc298706539 \h 10iPods PAGEREF _Toc298706540 \h 11Wiki’s and webinars PAGEREF _Toc298706541 \h 11Apps PAGEREF _Toc298706542 \h 11Podcasts PAGEREF _Toc298706543 \h 12Digital signatures PAGEREF _Toc298706544 \h 12Newsgroups PAGEREF _Toc298706545 \h 12Portals PAGEREF _Toc298706546 \h 13Cloud computing PAGEREF _Toc298706547 \h 13BluRay DVD’s PAGEREF _Toc298706548 \h 15Virtual keyboards PAGEREF _Toc298706549 \h 16Virtual computers PAGEREF _Toc298706550 \h 17Android vs Symbian operating systems PAGEREF _Toc298706551 \h 19GPS instruments PAGEREF _Toc298706552 \h 19Navigation instruments PAGEREF _Toc298706553 \h 19E-scamming and phishing PAGEREF _Toc298706554 \h 20Concept of convergence PAGEREF _Toc298706555 \h 20E-books and E-readers, digital books and digital readers electronic book (also e-book, ebook digital book) is a publication of a complete book in digital form. It consists of text, images, or both. E-books are produced on, published through and readable on computers or other electronic devices.E-books can be read on computers, cell phones or e-book readers.5440680162560An e-book reader is a portable electronic device that is designed to enable people to read digital books and magazines. It looks like a tablet computer, but has readability of their screens, especially in sunlight. It also has longer battery life than a tablet. E-readers use electronic paper which is more comfortable to read than the screens of computers. This is due to the stable image, which has no need to be refreshed constantly, a wider viewing angle, and that it reflects ambient light rather than emitting its own light. An ideal e-paper display can be read in direct sunlight without the image appearing to fade.62865-1505585Any device that can display text on a screen can act as an e-book reader, but without the advantages of the e-paper bookWhat's the difference between notebooks, netbooks and ultra-mobile PCs? computers, notebooks and netbooks use the same basic form (a screen and a keyboard attached by hinges), but differ in size. Netbook computers are smaller and lighter than notebook computers, which, again, are smaller and lighter than book computers are relative newcomers to the computer market. The general definition for a netbook computer is that they are smaller, less powerful and less expensive than notebook computers.As the Web takes a more leading role in computing, the processing requirements for consumer computers become less s and CloudsNetbooks and cloud computing go hand-in-hand. A cloud computing network is a collection of servers that provides data storage and processing power over the Internet. Ideally, a cloud computing service eliminates the need for an expensive, powerful personal computer. The machines on the Internet do all the hard work for you.Tablet computer tablet PC is a laptop computer, equipped with a touch screen that can be rotated. The screen is therefore an additional input device. The tablet runs a standard PC operating system like Windows or Linux.Tablet PCs are pen-based, with handwriting and voice recognition functionality. Tablet PCs use the same hardware as normal laptops but add support for pen input.Support is built into both Home and Business versions of Windows Vista and Windows 7. Tablets running Windows get can also use the touch screen for mouse input, hand writing recognition, and gesture support.27305190500Microsoft Surface(above) is a multi-touch product from Microsoft which is developed as a software and hardware combination technology that allows a user, or multiple users, to manipulate digital content by the use of gesture recognition. This could involve the motion of hands or physical objects. Targeted customers are in the hospitality businesses, such as restaurants, hotels, retail, public entertainment venues and the military for tactical overviews It can also be seen in the CSI-television series.Social networkingen.wiki/Social networkSocial networking is the grouping of individuals into specific groups. Social networking is possible in person, but especially in the workplace, universities, and high schools, it is more popular online. This is because the internet is filled with millions of individuals who are looking to meet other people, to gather and share first-hand information and experiences about cooking, golfing, gardening, developing friendships or professional alliances, finding employment, business-to-business marketing, etc.Participants are mostly adolescents, college age, or young adult professionals. Studies also show that teenagers capture and produce their own media, and stay in constant contact with each other using mobile devices. Usually while doing this they are also using other forms of media such as music or video content via their iPods or other similar devices. This has led social scientists to believe that learning and multitasking will have a new face in the future.When it comes to online social networking, websites are commonly used. These websites are known as social sites.Benefits: the friends that you can make, diversity, learn about new cultures or new languages.BUT, as I'm sure you're aware, there are dangers associated with social networking, such as data theft and viruses, online predators or individuals who claim to be someone that they are not. Just like you're advised when meeting strangers at clubs and bars, school, or work -- you are also advised to proceed with caution online.By being aware of your cyber-surroundings and who you are talking to, you should be able to safely enjoy social networking onlineExamples are: MySpace, FriendWise, FriendFinder, Yahoo! 360, Facebook, Orkut, and Classmates.YouTubeYouTube is a website on which users can upload, share and view videos. It uses Adobe Flash Video and HTML5 technology to display a wide variety of videos created by internet users, including movie clips, TV clips, and music videos, as well as amateur content such as video blogging and short original videos. Unregistered users may watch videos, and registered users may upload an unlimited number of videos. In 2006 YouTube was bought by Google Inc. for $1.65 billion, and now operates as a subsidiary of Google.YouTube was founded by(from left to right)Chad Hurley, Steve Chen, and Jawed Karim.FacebookFacebook is a social networking service and website .In January 2011, Facebook had more than 600million active users.Users may create a personal profile, add other users as friends, and exchange messages, including automatic notifications when they update their profile. Facebook users must register before using the site. Additionally, users may join common-interest user groups, organized by workplace, school or college, or other characteristics. Facebook allows any users who declare themselves to be at least 13 years old to become registered users of the website.90170-2910840The name of the service is derived from the name given to the book students receive at the start of the academic year by university administrations in the United States to help students get to know each other better. Facebook was founded by Mark Zuckerberg with his college roommates and fellow computer science students Eduardo Saverin, Dustin Moskovitz and Chris Hughes in his room at Harvard University."LinkedIn is the office, Facebook is the barbecue in the backyard, and MySpace is the bar," says Hoffman, referring to the three major social-networking sites battling it out for millions of consumers and billions of dollars in online ads.My space Zuckerberg is a place where you can create a profile page that you can use to meet new friends.Advantages:Big NetworkMultimedia: MySpace has music and videos you can add to your site for free.Advanced Editing: you can use HTML and JavaScript in your MySpace editor.Keep In Touch: email, blogs, IM, forums, bulletins and groups Disadvantages:Editor Mishaps: The MySpace blog offers ways to change the colors, backgrounds and other things but you need to know the codes to enter to do it.Anyone Can Contact You: MySpace offers no way to allow people to see your profile but still keep them from emailing your and trying to add you to their own MySpace friend list. Options Are Hard To Find: There are many things you can do on your MySpace profile that are not obvious. Creating a MySpace slideshow, adding HTML templates. You will see some pretty amazing things on some of the MySpace profiles and you may wonder how they are done because MySpace doesn't tell you.LinkedInLinkedIn is a business-oriented social networking site mainly used for professional networking. LinkedIn has more than 60 million registered users, spanning more than 200 countries and territories worldwide. The site is available in English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Romanian, Russian and TurkishLinkedIn's CEO is Jeff Weiner, previously a Yahoo! Inc .executive. The company was founded by Reid Hoffman and team members.One purpose of the site is to allow registered users to maintain a list of contact details of people with whom they have some level of relationship, called Connections. Users can invite anyone (whether a site user or not) to become a connection. This list of connections can then be used in a number of ways:A contact network is built up consisting of their direct connections. It can then be used to find jobs, people and business opportunities recommended by someone in one's contact network.Employers can list jobs and search for potential candidates.Job seekers can review the profile of hiring managers and discover which of their existing contacts can introduce them.Users can post their own photos and view photos of others to aid in identification.Users can now follow different companies and can get notification about the new joining and offers available.Users can save (i.e. bookmark) jobs which they would like to apply for.The "gated-access approach" (where contact with any professional requires either a preexisting relationship, or the intervention of a contact of theirs) is intended to build trust among the service's users. LinkedIn also allows users to research companies with which they may be interested in working. When typing the name of a given company in the search box, statistics about the company are providedIn January 2011, LinkedIn acquired CardMunch, a mobile app maker that scans business cards and converts into contacts. LinkedIn plans to integrate this functionality into their services in the near future.1671955198120TwitterTwitter is a website which offers asocial networking and micro blogging service, enabling its users to send and read messages called tweets. Tweets are text-based posts of up to 140 characters displayed on the user's profile page.Twitter was produced in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched in July. Since then Twitter has gained popularity worldwide and is estimated to have 200 million users generating 190 million tweets a day and handling over 1.6 billion search queries per day It is sometimes described as the "SMS of the Internet".The definition the word twitter is:"... 'a short burst of inconsequential information,' and 'chirps from birds'. And that is precisely what the website is.1918970-60325FoursquareFoursquare is a social networking website based on software for mobile devices that allows registered users to connect with friends and update their location. This service is available to users with GPS-enabled mobile devices such as smart phones. Users "check-in "at venues using a mobile website, text messaging or a device-specific application. Each check-in awards the user points and sometimes "badges". People can use mobile devices to interact with their environment.As of June 2011, the company reported it had 10 million registered users.Users can create a "To Do" list for their private use and add "Tips" to venues that other users can read, which serve as suggestions for great things to do, see or eat at the location.Online auction and shopping siteseBay8699529845...is an online auction and shopping website on which people and businesses buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services worldwide. eBay is one of the success stories of the dot-com bubble with operations in over thirty countries.One of the first items sold on eBay was a broken laser pointer for $14.83. Astonished, Omidyar contacted the winning bidder to ask if he understood that the laser pointer was broken. In his responding email, the buyer explained: "I'm a collector of broken laser pointers."Bid or Buy317528575...is South Africa's largest internet auction website, run by bidorbuy (Pty) Ltd. 2870200-114300Gum TreeGumtree is a network of online classified advertisements and community websites. Classified ads are either free or paid for depending on the product category and the market. Sellers may place their ads on the homepage or under product categories. Gumtree now covers 60 cities across 6 countries- the UK, Ireland, Poland, Australia New Zealand and South Africa. It is the UK's largest website for local community classifieds.Unfortunately Gumtree has been used by fraudsters to place ads scamming people out of thousands of rands. In South Africa, for example, non-existent holiday accommodation was advertised. A deposit was paid, but the holiday makers could not find the house they were supposed to have rented.1795780- is one of South Africa's leading online retailers. They stock everything including DVDs, books, games, electronics, music, cameras and more! This website spells quality, and their service is impeccable. They started with books, and have expanded their collection of items to include wine and health products. However, their stock does have a limit, and out-of-stock items are simply removed from their pages. Kalahari is famous for its big sales. It almost always has a 25% off all books, or a 15% of all music and DVDs sale on the go.Why do they call themselves Kalahari? Well, the Kalahari Desert is fairly sizeable, and located in Africa - which is how you could describe their company. They have 24 hour delivery on selected products, and outsourced products take up to 10 ten days. is regarded as the biggest and most recognizable e-tailer in South Africa.VoIP for "Voice Over Internet Protocol," and is often pronounced "voip." VoIP is basically a telephone connection over the Internet. The data is sentdigitally, using the Internet Protocol (IP) instead of analog telephone lines. This allows people to talk to one another long-distance and around the world without having to pay long distance or international phone charges.In order to use VoIP, you need a computer, an Internet connection, and VoIP software. You also need either a microphone, analog telephone adapter, or VoIP telephone. Many VoIP programs allow you to use a basic microphone and speaker setup. Others requires VoIP phones, which are like regular telephone handsets, but typically connect to your computer via USB. Analog telephone adapters allow you to use regular phones with your computer. IP phones are another option that connect directly to a router via Ethernet or wirelessly. These phones have all the necessary software for VoIP built in and therefore do not require a computer.Advantages:Operational cost phone calls over existing data networks to avoid the need for separate voice and data networks.Conference calling, IVR, call forwarding, automatic redial, and caller ID features that traditional telecommunication companies (Telco’s)normally charge extra for, are available free of charge from open source VoIP implementations.FlexibilityThe ability to transmit more than one telephone call over a single broadband connection.Secure calls using standardized protocols (such as Secure Real-time Transport Protocol). Location independence. Only a sufficiently fast and stable Internet connection is needed to get a connection from anywhere to a VoIP provider.Integration with other services available over the Internet: E-mail, video conversation, message or data file exchange during the conversation, audio conferencing, managing address books.229870491490Skype...is a software application that allows users to make voice and video calls and chats over the Internet. Calls to other users within the Skype service are free, while calls to both traditional landline telephones and mobile phones can be made for a fee using a debit-based user account system. Skype has also become popular for its additional features which include instant messaging, file transfer, and video conferencing. Its headquarters is in Luxembourg. Most of the development team and employees of Skype are situated in Estonia.On 10 May 2011,HYPERLINK "" \o "Microsoft"Microsoft Corporation agreed to buy Skype Communications for US$8.5 billion. The company is to be incorporated as a division of Microsoft, and Microsoft will acquire all of the company's technologies, including Skype, with the purchase.Digg asocial news website. Prior to Digg v4, its cornerstone function consisted of letting people vote stories up or down, called digging and burying, respectively. Digg started out as an experiment in November 2004 by Kevin Rose, Owen Byrne, Ron Gorodetzky, and Jay Adelson. In 2010, when Digg updated to version 4, the site was unreachable or unstable during the launch day and the weeks following. A large number of the site's members have complained about the new design and removed features (such as bury, favorites, friends submissions, upcoming pages, subcategories, and history search). Disgruntled Digg users declared August 30, 2010 as the 'quit Digg day'. Digg's traffic dropped significantly after the launch of version 4 and publishers reported a drop in direct referrals from stories on Digg's front page.Recently hired CEO Matt Williams attempted to address some of the users' concerns in a blog post on October 12, 2010, promising to reinstate many of the features that had been removed. Gnu Freecall new project that aims to creating an open source alternative to Skype. The key difference, however, will be that it's available "without requiring a central service provider to register with, without using insecure source secret binary protocols that may have back-doors, and without having network control points of any kind that can be exploited or abused by external parties," its creators say.GNU Free Call, which was announced on Monday by the GNU Project, will offer a service that's both secure and usable on all platforms. Smartphonesen.wiki/SmartphoneA Smartphone is a mobile phone that offers more advanced computing ability and connectivity than a contemporary feature phone A smart phone combines the functions of a personal digital assistant(PDA) and a mobile phone. Today's models typically also serve as portable media players and cameras, have GPS navigation, Wi-Fi and mobile broadband access.A Smartphone runs a complete mobile operating system, for example: AppleOS, Google Android, Microsoft Windows Mobile, Nokia Symbian, Research In Motion BlackBerry OS, and embedded Linux distributions such as Maemo. 3G, 4G technology new generation of cellular standards has appeared approximately every tenth year since1Gsystems were introduced in 1981/1982. 1G refers to the first-generation of wireless telephone technology.3Gor3rd generation mobile telecommunications, is a generation of standards for mobile phones and mobile telecommunication services fulfilling the International Mobile Telecommunications-2000 (IMT-2000)specifications by the International Telecommunication Union. Application services include wide-area wireless voice telephone, mobile Internet access, video calls and mobile TV, all in a mobile environment. To meet the IMT-2000 standards, a system is required to provide peak data rates of at least 200kbit/s. 4G, 4Gis the fourth generation of cellular wireless standards. It is a successor to the3G and 2Gfamilies of standards. Peak speed requirements for 4G service are 100Mbit/s for high mobility communication (such as from trains and cars) and 1Gbit/s for low mobility communication (such as pedestrians and stationary users).A 4G system is expected to provide a comprehensive and secure all- IP based mobile broadband solution to laptop computer wireless modems, smart phones, and other mobile devices. Facilities such as ultra-broadband Internet access, IP telephony, gaming services, and streamed multimedia may be provided to users.3Dor3-Den.wiki/3D_computer_graphics3D computer graphics(in contrast to2D computer graphics) are graphics that use a three-dimensional representation of geometric data that is stored in the computer for the purposes of performing calculations and rendering 2D images. Such images may be stored for viewing later or displayed in real-time.Despite these differences, 3D computer graphics rely on many of the same algorithms as 2D computer vector graphics in the wire-frame model and 2D computer raster graphics in the final rendered display. In computer graphics software, the distinction between 2D and 3D is occasionally blurred; 2D applications may use 3D techniques to achieve effects such as lighting, and 3D may use 2D rendering techniques.3D computer graphics are often referred to as3D models. Apart from the rendered graphic, the model is contained within the graphical data file. However, there are differences. A 3D model is the mathematical representation of any three-dimensional object. A model is not technically a graphic until it is displayed. Due to3D printing, 3D models are not confined to virtual space. A model can be displayed visually as a two-dimensional image through a process called3D rendering, or used in non-graphical computer simulations and calculations.High Definition that has resolution substantially higher than that of traditional television systems. HDTV has one or two million pixels per frame, roughly five times that of Standard Definition (SD). Early HDTV broadcasting used analog techniques, but today HDTV is digitally broadcast using video compression. At a minimum, HDTV has twice the linear resolution of standard-definition television(SDTV), thus showing greater detail than either analog television or regular DVD. The technical standards for broadcasting HDTV also handle the 16:9 aspect ratio images without using letterboxing or an amorphic stretching, thus increasing the effective image resolution.HD ready and HD ready 1080plogos are awarded to television displays, computer monitors and projectors which have certain capabilities to process and display high-definition source video signal.iPods is a line of portable media players designed and marketed by?Apple. The product line-up currently consists of the hard drive-based?iPod Classic, the touch screen?iPod Touch, the compact iPod Nano, and the ultra-compact?iPod Shuffle. IPod Classic models store?media?on an internal?hard drive. As with many other digital music players, iPods can also serve as external?data storage devices. Storage capacity varies by model, ranging from 2?GB for the iPod Shuffle to 160?GB for the iPod Classic. All of the models have been redesigned multiple times since their introduction. The most recent iPod redesigns were introduced on September 1, 2010.Wiki’s and webinars wiki is a website that allows the creation and editing of any number of interlinked web pages via a web browser using a simplified markup language or a WYSIWYG text editor. Wikis are typically powered by wiki software and are often used collaboratively by multiple users. Examples include community websites, corporate intranets, knowledge management systems, and note services. : Short for?Web-based seminar, a presentation, lecture, workshop or seminar that is transmitted over the?Web.A key feature of a Webinar is its interactive elements -- the ability to give, receive and discuss information. Contrast with?Webcast, in which the data transmission is one way and does not allow interaction between the presenter and the audience.Apps for?application which refers to a?program?or group of programs designed for?end users.?Podcasts is a combination of the words "pod"— from?Apple's iPod?—and "broadcasting" .The name may be misleading, as it has never been necessary to use an iPod, or, indeed, any other form of portable media player, to use podcasts; the content can be accessed using any computer that can play media files.A?podcast?is a series of?audio?or?video media?files that can be downloaded and listened to on any suitable device..Digital signatures are commonly used to authenticate documents. When you sign a physical document, you are authenticating its contents. Similarly, digital signatures are used to authenticate the contents of electronic documents. They can be used with?PDF,?e-mail?messages, and?word processing documents.?To digitally sign a document, you must have a?digital?ID. This unique identifier can obtained from various certification authorities on the Web, such as VeriSign and EchoSign. Once you have a digital ID, you can add register it with programs that support digital signatures, such as Adobe Acrobat and Microsoft Outlook. Then you can use the program's "Sign" feature to add your digital signature to documents.The digital signature is simply a small block of data that is attached to documents you sign. It is generated from your digital ID, which includes both a private and public key. The private key is used to apply the signature to the document, while the public key is sent with the file. The public key contains?encrypted?code, also called a "hash," that verifies your identity.Digital signatures can be used to certify or approve documents. Certifying signatures verify the document's creator and show that the document has not been altered since it was signed. Therefore, only the original creator of a document can add a certifying signature. Approval signatures can be added by anyone with a digital ID and are used to approve documents, track changes, and accept terms stated with a document.Newsgroups term may be confusing to some, because it is usually a?discussion group. Newsgroups are technically distinct from, but functionally similar to,?discussion forums?on the?World Wide Web.?Newsreader?software is used to read newsgroups.Despite the advent of file-sharing technologies, as well as the increased use of blogs, formal discussion forums and social networking sites, newsgroups continue to be widely used.Typically, the newsgroup is focused on a particular topic of interest. Some newsgroups allow the posting of messages on a wide variety of themes, regarding anything a member chooses to discuss as?on-topic, while others keep more strictly to their particular subject. The news admin (the administrator of a?news server) decides how long articles are kept on his server before being expired (deleted). Newsgroups are much like the public message boards on old?bulletin board systems. For those readers not familiar with this concept, envision an electronic version of the?board?in the entrance of your local grocery store.Portals Internet portal is a Web site that acts as a starting point for browsing the Web. Portals typically include search engines and large directories of websites. Some popular portals are?Yahoo,?Excite,?Lycos, Netscape,?AltaVista,?MSN, and?. There are also many smaller portals, known as "niche portals," for specific interests. These sites include?Cnet?(for computers and technology),??(for investors), and??(for gardeners).Most large portals have millions of Web pages indexed for visitors to search though. They also have large directories of Web sites, which are categorized by topic. Though the primary purpose of a portal is to find other sites for you, many now include a lot of information within their own sites.A?web portal?or?links page?is a?web site?that functions as a point of access to information on the?World Wide Web. A portal presents information from diverse sources in a unified way.Apart from the standard?search engine?feature, web portals offer other services such as?e-mail, news, stock prices, information, databases and entertainment. Portals provide a way for enterprises to provide a consistent?look and feel?with access control and procedures for multiple applications and databases, which otherwise would have been different entities altogether. Examples of public web portals are?AOL,?Excite,?iGoogle,?MSN,?Netvibes, and?Yahoo!.Cloud computing computing refers to?applications?and services offered over the Internet. These services are offered from data centers all over the world, which collectively are referred to as the "cloud." This metaphor represents the intangible, yet universal nature of the Internet.The idea of the "cloud" simplifies the many network connections and computer systems involved in?online services. In fact, many network diagrams use the image of a cloud to represent the Internet. This symbolizes the Internet's broad reach, while simplifying its complexity. Any user with an Internet connection can access the cloud and the services it provides. Since these services are often connected, users can share information between multiple systems and with other users.Examples of cloud computing include online?backup?services,?social networking?services, and personal data services such as Apple's MobileMe. Cloud computing also includes online applications, such as those offered through Microsoft Online Services. would anyone want to rely on another computer system to run programs and store data? Here are just a few reasons:Clients would be able to access their applications and data from anywhere at any time. They could access the cloud computing system using any computer linked to the?Internet. Data wouldn't be confined to a hard drive on one user's computer or even a corporation's internal network.It could bring hardware costs down. Cloud computing systems would reduce the need for advanced hardware on the client side. You wouldn't need to buy the?fastest computer?with the most?memory, because the cloud system would take care of those needs for you. Instead, you could buy an inexpensive computer terminal. The terminal could include a?monitor, input devices like a?keyboard and?mouse?and just enough processing power to run the middleware necessary to connect to the cloud system. You wouldn't need a large hard drive because you'd store all your information on a remote computer.Corporations that rely on computers have to make sure they have the right software in place to achieve goals. Cloud computing systems give these organizations company-wide access to computer applications. The companies don't have to buy a set of software or software licenses for every employee. Instead, the company could pay a metered fee to a cloud computing company.Servers and digital storage devices take up space. Some companies rent physical space to store servers and databases because they don't have it available on site. Cloud computing gives these companies the option of storing data on someone else's hardware, removing the need for physical space on the front end.Corporations might save money on IT support. Streamlined hardware would, in theory, have fewer problems than a network of?heterogeneous?machines and?operating systems.Scientists and researchers work with calculations so complex that it would take years for individual computers to complete them. On a grid computing system, the client could send the calculation to the cloud for processing. The cloud system would tap into the processing power of all available computers on the back end, significantly speeding up the calculation.Perhaps the biggest concerns about cloud computing are?security?and?privacy. The idea of handing over important data to another company worries some people. Corporate executives might hesitate to take advantage of a cloud computing system because they can't keep their company's information under?lock?and key.The counterargument to this position is that the companies offering cloud computing services live and die by their reputations. It benefits these companies to have reliable security measures in place. Otherwise, the service would lose all its clients. It's in their interest to employ the most advanced techniques to protect their clients' data.Privacy is another matter. If a client can log in from any location to access data and applications, it's possible the client's privacy could be compromised. Cloud computing companies will need to find ways to protect client privacy. One way is to use?authentication?techniques such as user names and passwords. Another is to employ an?authorization?format -- each user can access only the data and applications relevant to his or her job.106045650240BluRay DVD’s4773295441960 sets?and movie studios make the move to high definition, consumers are going to need playback systems with a lot?more storage capacity.With their high storage capacity, Blu-ray discs can hold and play back large quantities of?high-definition video and audio, as well as photos, data and other digital content.Blu-ray is the next-generation digital video disc. It can record, store and play back high-definition video and digital audio, as well as computer data. The advantage to Blu-ray is the sheer amount of information it can hold:A?single-layer Blu-ray disc, which is roughly the same size as a DVD, can hold up to?27 GB of data?-- that's?more than two hours of high-definition video?or about?13 hours of standard video.A?double-layer Blu-ray disc?can store up to?50 GB, enough to hold about?4.5 hours of high-definition video?or?more than 20 hours of standard video. And there are even plans in the works to develop a disc with twice that amount of storage.Virtual keyboards you type on a virtual laser keyboard, there aren't any switches involved. In fact, there aren't any mechanical moving parts at all. The device projects the image of a QWERTY keyboard onto a flat, non-reflective surface using a red diode laser. The laser, similar to the kind you see on those cheap laser pointers people wave at rock concerts, shines through a Diffractive Optical Element (DOE), which is simply a tiny image of the keyboard. The DOE, along with special optical lenses, expands the image to a usable size and projects it onto a surface. But a simple image of a keyboard won't get you anywhere -- something needs to analyze the information you type in. Situated near the bottom of the device is an infrared (IR) laser diode, which shoots out a thin plane of infrared light. The plane, which is invisible and runs parallel to the surface, rests only millimeters above the image of the keyboard. When you start typing, you pass your fingers through certain areas of the infrared light. A CMOS (complimentary metal-oxide semiconductor) images your finger's position within the area of the keyboard, and a special sensor chip called a Virtual Interface Processing Core analyzes the location of the intended keystroke. The device then sends this information to the computer receiving the commandsOnce powered up, the keyboard can connect to a Smartphone, PDA or laptop via USB cable or, more commonly, Bluetooth wireless technology. These two connection options allow the virtual laser keyboard to send keystroke information to a word processing document, e-mail or any other program in question.?Virtual laser keyboards require flat, opaque and non-reflective surfaces for working projection and typing. Once you have the keyboard set up on the right type of surface, the device displays a full-size QWERTY keyboard, which typically contains 60 or more keys. Virtual Laser Keyboard (VKB - Magic Cube) is a revolutionary accessory (The only keyboard that operates in total darkness) for Iphone, Ipad, Smartphone, PDA, MAC & Tablet PC and any device that operates Bluetooth HID. The VKB (Magic Cube) is the perfect business / Christmas gift (and just what you want to take out of your inner suit pocket in front of your amazed business colleagues. The compact sized VKB harnesses laser and infrared technology to project a full-size QWERTY keyboard onto any flat surface for palmtop computer, PDA or mobile phone.In the size of a Zipo lighter and in an outer spaced "enterprise" style, it uses a laser beam to generate a full-size perfectly OPERATING laser keyboard that smoothly connects to your mobile devices.?-31750-411480About the size of a small cellular phone, (38 x 75 x 29 mm), the VKB enables users to type texts or e-mails as easily as with a ordinary keyboard. Imagine how easy it would be, if you had a proper mobile phone keyboard that fits in your pocket.The Celluon Virtual Keyboard uses a light projection of a full-sized computer keyboard on almost any surface. Used with PDA's and Smart Phones, the Virtual Keyboard provides a practical way to do e-mail, word processing and spreadsheet tasks, enabling users to leave laptops and computers at home.VKB's adaptable technology studies the user's finger movements to interpret and record keystrokes. Because the virtual keyboard is an image projected by light, it disappears completely when not in use.Virtual computers computing makes one computer act and perform like many computers. Through virtual computing providers, users can download and use more than one operating system and perform a multitude of functions at the same time through a single mouse click and receive all the benefits of additional programs and hardware without having to purchase or install them on their own computer. Executives can check their company e-mail on the road, students can take classes from home and managers can keep up with documents stored on internal servers from anywhere in the world.Virtual computing is increasing possibilities and performance in the world of information technology (IT): increased storage space, more software applications, performance and troubleshooting solutions, as well as data backup. In this article, we'll cover what virtual computing is, who performs the virtual services, the system requirements and the benefits and challenges to the user.What is Virtual Computing??Virtual computing allows computer users remote access to software applications and processes when they need it. Users gain access via the Internet through a wireless or network server. For a fee, users can boost their computers' capabilities, size, performance, processes and/or software applications whenever they need it. This real-time technology offers:Operating and utility systemsStorageMemorySoftwareAllocation and reassignment of input/output and other processesData backupAutomated problem solving and troubleshootingTools for monitoring and managing systemsAdvantages:You can achieve faster system speeds due to freeing up the system, memory and storage..It's also flexible. You have the ability to use software when you need it without having to install, configure and store it on the computer. In addition, technical support is available electronically or by telephone at any time.Automated troubleshooting, diagnosing and repairing of hardware and software are available as needed. Virtual computing programs automatically review your computer's speed and efficiency and reallocate processes or repair programs as needed.You have the flexibility to change platforms and servers at will. Virtual computing users can run more than one operating system on one PC at the same time. There's a reduction in cooling and power costs, as well. Virtual computing eliminates the need to operate multiple computers and servers, which saves energy.Virtual files are easy to back up. Entire virtual machines can be stored on one or two small files, making copying an easy and fast process.DisadvantagesWhile virtual computing does enable servers to perform more tasks and run more applications, it can also be time consuming and laborious for some IT staff. Virtual computing can increase their workload because now they have more places to track.Security and firewall issues must also be monitored and addressed to prevent the loss or theft of data in a virtual or remote environment. Transfer of information and the need for physical computers and servers to interact remotely must also be monitored continually.Other cost issues include what virtual providers should charge for each use of software application. Because virtual computing allows one computer to run many applications at the same time, the computer could be running several different applications of the same software simultaneously. There have been concerns regarding paying repeatedly for the same software. To address that issue, providers are exploring a meter process, which would provide users a specific amount of uses and charge them for any overages.2505075146685Android vs Symbian operating systems is a software stack for mobile devices that includes an operating system, middleware and key applications. Android's?mobile operating system?is based on the?Linux kernel. Google and other members of the?Open Handset Alliance?collaborated on Android's development and release. The Android Open Source Project (AOSP) is tasked with the maintenance and further development of Android. The Android operating system is currently the world's best-selling Smartphone platform.Symbian?is a?mobile operating system?(OS) and?computing platform?designed for smart phones?and currently maintained by?Nokia.? is the clear winner in the market for Smartphone operating systems, showing big year-on-year jumps across Western Europe and in the US.Not so Symbian, which plunged over here and has now all but vanished on the other side of the pond.GPS instrumentsThe?Global Positioning System?(GPS) is a space-based?global navigation satellite system(GNSS) that provides?location?and time information in all weather, anywhere on or near the Earth, where there is an unobstructed line of sight to four or more GPS satellites. It is maintained by the United States?government and is freely accessible by anyone with a GPS receiver.Navigation instruments the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another. It is also the?term of art?used for the specialized knowledge used by navigators to perform navigation tasks. All navigational techniques involve locating the navigator's position compared to known locations or patterns.Most modern navigation relies primarily on positions determined electronically by receivers collecting information from satellites. Electronic navigation?covers any method of position fixing using electronic means, including:Radio navigation?uses radio waves to determine position by either?radio direction finding systems or hyperbolic systems, such as?Decca,?Omega?and?LORAN-C.Losing ground to GPS.Radar navigation?uses radar to determine the distance from or bearing of objects whose position is known. This process is separate from radar’s use as a collision avoidance system.[7]Primarily when within radar range of land.Satellite navigation?uses artificial earth satellite systems, such as GPS, to determine position.[7]Used in all situations.E-scamming and phishingPhishing?is a way of attempting to acquire sensitive information such as usernames,?passwords?and credit card details by masquerading as a trustworthy entity in an?electronic communication. Communications purporting to be from popular social web sites, auction sites, online payment processors or IT administrators are commonly used to lure the unsuspecting public. Phishing is typically carried out by?e-mail spoofing or instant messaging, and it often directs users to enter details at a fake website whose?look and feel?are almost identical to the legitimate one. Phishing is an example of?social engineering?techniques used to deceive users, and exploits the poor usability of current web security technologies.A phishing technique was described in detail in 1987, and the first recorded use of the term "phishing" was made in 1996. The term is a variant of?fishing, probably influenced by?phreaking, and alludes to "baits" used in hopes that the potential victim will "bite" by clicking a malicious link or opening a malicious attachment, in which case their financial information and passwords may then be stolen.Concept of convergence convergence?is the tendency for different technological systems to evolve towards performing similar tasks. Convergence can refer to previously separate?technologies?such as voice (and telephony features), data (and productivity applications), and video that now share resources and interact with each other?synergistically.The rise of digital communication in the late 20th century has made it possible for media organizations (or individuals) to deliver text, audio, and video material over the same wired, wireless, or fiber-optic connections. At the same time, it inspired some media organizations to explore multimedia delivery of information.Convergence in this instance is defined as the interlinking of computing and other information technologies, media content, and communication networks that has arisen as the result of the evolution and popularization of the Internet as well as the activities, products and services that have emerged in the digital media space.-o000o- ................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download