New IT Technologies Paper - Essay Example

1. New IT technologies - strengths and weaknesses 1a. Fiber Internet connection A Fiber Internet connection is based on the use of fiber optics instead of a cable. This mode of Internet connection has become quite popular as it is related to a series of advantages, as these advantages are described in a report published by HubTechInsider (2009): a) the bandwidth of such Internet connection is significantly higher than the traditional, cable, Internet connection, b) the fiber optics used in such Internet connection can be replaced offering even higher bandwidth, as available by Internet providers worldwide, c) the performance of fiber optics is not affected by electromagnetic signals; d) there is no way, or at least it is quite difficult, for accessing the data transmitted through a fiber Internet connection; the security risks related to fiber Internet connection are quite limited.

In addition to the above, the fiber Internet connection offers to its users extremely high speed of connection (Fibre Noire 2012). On the other hand, fiber Internet connection has a series of disadvantages, which are also highlighted in the report of HubTechInsider (2009): a) the cost for installing such Internet connection can be high, b) the fiber Internet connection requires the use of specific equipment which may not be always available; c) the fiber used in the fiber Internet connection can be easily destroyed either during the connection’s installation or during the works for recovering/ maintaining the connection; indeed, fiber optics do not have the physical strength of cable, a fact that it is considered as the major disadvantage of the specific material.

It has been also proved that fiber Internet connection can be used only when the distance that the signal transmitted has to cover is short (Fiber Store 2012). 1b. Cloud Computing Cloud computing is based on the use of a central database both for data storage and for data processing (Wang 2013). In this way, the access to data is feasible even from distance (Wang 2013). Cloud computing is considered as a significant evolution in IT. The use of this technology in practice has revealed its strengths and weaknesses.

The strengths of cloud computing should be highlighted, as described in the study of Viswanathan (2013): a) the cost of using and maintaining such system can be quite low, b) no limits exist in regard to the system’s capacity; c) in case of the system’s damage, the data stored in the central database can be easily retrieved; in traditional databases restoring data after a system’s damage is often impossible, d) it is quite easy for any registered user to access the system’s central database; the easiness in accessing data is considered as a major advantage of this system, compared to traditional databases.

However, according to Roberts & Norwood (2013) Cloud computing has also certain disadvantages: a) there is no direct control on the cloud; actually, the system is under the full control of the host company; failure in choosing a reliable host company can set the data stored in the cloud in critical risk (Roberts & Norwood 2013), b) the cloud is fully developed, and available, online; this means that all information stored in the cloud can be accessed online by unauthorized persons (Roberts & Norwood 2013); c) in case of the system’s failure, support can be problematic (Roberts & Norwoo