Telecommunication Management In Modern Life - Case Study Example

Telecommunication Management In Modern Life 1) What did Mark Weiser mean by “Ubiquitous Computing?” According to Mark Weiser, ubiquitous computing, or ubicomp, makes for the withering of PC and workstations scenario possible as computers in the workplace can be as effortless, and ubiquitous. Computing access will be everywhere: in the malls, on wrists, and in "scrap computers" (like scrap paper) for anybody’s consumption. When Mark Weiser wrote “ubiquitous computing”, he neither meant virtual reality nor multi tasking. Rather it is more of embodied virtuality where very technological advancement is integrated seamlessly in our daily lives. A good illustration of this was cited by Weiser in his article titled “The Computer for the 21st Century” published in Scientific American last 1991. A fictional day in the life of Sal was illustrated as an example of Ubiquitous Computing. 2) What frequency in GHz do Wifi and Bluetooth use? According to Bluetooth.com, the usual frequency in GHz that Bluetooth devices use is 2.4 Ghz. Likewise, Wifi also operates in the same frequency range. However, it is important to emphasize that although both of them use Radio Frequency waves, Wifi can be used to connect more devices such as computers as compared to a Bluetooth. 3) RBOC RBOC means Regional Bell Operating Companies. These companies used to be known as RHC’s ( Regional Holding Companies). This change was brought about by an antitrust suit filed by the Department of Justice against telecommunication giant AT & T. 4) How many RBOCs were created by the1984 consent decree? As a result of the 1984 consent decree, 7 RBOC’s were created out of the initial 22 local Bell Operating Companies. This was the case of United States vs. Western Electric. These 7 RBOC’s were “forbidden from entering manufacturing, long-distance, and other related markets” (Sullivan and Hertz) as published in an article in Berkeley Law Technology Journal. Source: http://www.law.berkeley.edu/journals/btlj/articles/vol5/Sullivan/ html/reader.html 5) What is the difference between an Intranet and an Extranet? ­­­­­­ An Intranet is an internal information system that basically serves the same purpose as the Internet. The main difference is that only the people in an organization can access or post information within the Intranet. Intranet is closed to the world, because it requires private identifications and passwords. Intranets usually functions to share calendars, documents and to provide a secure forum for discussion and commentary within an organization. On other hand, an Extranet is just an Intranet that screens outside people before being allowed to get in. An organization can decide who can provide and access information within its Extranet. Extranet is essentially an Intranet Extranet solution being able to “provide the secure internal functionality of an Intranet and the capability to securely share files and collaborate with external contributors.” 6) What are the names of the two layers in the OSI Model that the Internet Model includes in the Application Layer? In the OSI model, the definition of its Application Layer distinguishes two levels: Session Layer and Presentation Layer. The mechanism for opening, closing, and managing a session between end-user application processes, i.e. a semi-permanent dialogue, can be found at the Session Layer. Services in this layer are commonly used in application that utilizes remote procedure calls (RPCs). On the other hand, delivery and formatting of information to the application layer for further processing or display is the function of the Presentation Layer; including relieving of the application layer of concern regarding syntactical differences in data representation within the end-user systems. 7) What is the IETF and what does it do? Internet Engineering Task Force, otherwise known as IETF, is a large open internet based organization composed of different IT professionals such as network designers, researchers, and vendors. It is under the Internet Society, which is a non-profit organization. According to the IETF.org website “The mission of the IETF is to make the Internet work better by producing high quality, relevant technical documents that influence the way people design, use, and manage the Internet”. 8) What is “convergence?” A general meaning of convergence commonly used is derived from mathematics, which translates to arriving at a certain value or definite point leading to a fixed state. There are many types of convergence. However, telecommunication convergence is the topic here which I would elaborate on. Wikipedia describes “telecommunication convergence” as the combination of multiple services through lines of telecommunication from a single provider”. This type telecommunication convergence emerged as a platform for companies to promote products. 9) Give an example of technological convergence? A good example of technological convergence would be devices such as Wii and PSP, which not only deliver games but play movies/video as well as play music. Technological convergence is often found in consumer electronics such as CD players that can handle different formats since it is used as a platform for marketing the functionality of the project. 10) Give 5 examples of Application Layer services Telnet Telnet (teletype network) is a network protocol used on the Internet or local area networks, or LAN, which would provide a bidirectional interactive communications facility. Telnet typically provides access to a command-line interface on a remote host via a virtual terminal connection. This consists of an 8-bit byte oriented data connection over the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP). File Transfer Protocol File Transfer Protocol, otherwise known as FTP, is a standard network protocol. It is used to exchange and manipulate files over a TCP/IP based network, an example of which is the Internet. FTP is built on a client-server architecture and uses separate control and data connections between the client and server applications. Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) is an Internet standard for electronic mail (e-mail) transmission across Internet Protocol (IP) networks. Hypertext Transfer Protocol Hypertext Transfer Protocol, popularly known as HTTP, is an application-level protocol. Its use for retrieving inter-linked resources, called hypertext documents, inspired English physicist Tim Berners-Lee to establish the World Wide Web in 1990. The major versions of HTTP are: HTTP/1.0, which uses a separate connection for every document; and HTTP/1.1, which can reuse the same connection to download, for instance, images for the just served page. HTTP/1.1 can prove to be faster may be faster as it takes time to set up such connections. Electronic mail Hugely popular, Electronic mail, email, e.mail or e-mail, is a method of exchanging digital messages. Electronic mails were originally always transmitted directly from one user's device to another's; however, this is rarely this is rarely the case nowadays. 11) What is the difference between SMTP and MIME? Is this rephrased na? In general, SMTP and MIME are terms used to refer to the email addresses of the sender and recipients specified in the email, or during the email transmission. In most cases, SMTP and MIME email addresses will be identical. However, the SMTP email addresses are only used by SMTP servers during the transmission of the email to bring the message to its destination. When the email is saved in the recipient’s mailbox, this information is normally lost. MIME addresses, on the other hand, are addresses specified within the ‘FROM:’ and the ‘TO:’ fields, which are part of the message being transferred. They are both specified after the ‘data’ SMTP command. Source: http://kbase.gfi.com/showarticle.asp?id=KBID002678 12) What is the difference between a Webcast and a Videoconference? Adding video from a desktop Webcam is the simplest form of videoconferencing, where the presenter appears on the screens of all the attendees in a small Webcam video window. The “Brady Bunch” effect is offered by some software programs for small groups in which all of the attendees appear on the screen in separate Webcam windows. The difference, however, between this simple form of videoconferencing and what are known as Webcasts lies in the fact that Webcasts are professional-quality online video presentations, usually for larger groups and with less interactivity between participants. Source: http://communication.howstuffworks.com/how-conferencing-works3.htm 13) Name three applications that reside in the Application Layer of the Internet: Applications that can be found in the Application Layer include Teletype Network (Telnet), File Transfer Protocol (FTP), and Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP). 14) Name four functions of the Application Layer: Functions of the Application Layer typically include: Identifying communication partners – the application layer determines the identity and availability of communication partners for an application with data to transmit Determining resource availability – the application layer must decide whether sufficient network resources for the requested communication exist Synchronizing communication – all communication between applications requires cooperation that is managed by the application layer Mainly provides end-user services which includes file transfers, e-mail, electronic messaging and virtual terminal access. 15) Give two problems with Host-based Architectures. Host based architecture—a term coined by Fitzgerald and Dennis—is a stage of converting input into output. It is a stage of centralized processing, whereas all computer data processing occurs at a single site. In this type of processing, the main computer does all of the work and is therefore more secure (relatively) prevents abuse of the system. However, host-based architecture is relatively old and is the older technique of processing. This has a lot of disadvantages that must be considered. The host must perform all actions, which may imply that it will work slower, that the upgrades and will be much more costly. Some of these problems could be solved using intelligent terminals and PC emulation, as well as pseudo conversations programming methods, like CICS. 16) Give two problems with Client-based Architectures Traffic congestion The number of simultaneous client requests to a given server increases. In such cases, the server can become overloaded. In contrast to a P2P network, its aggregated bandwidth actually increases as nodes are added, since the P2P network’s overall bandwidth can be roughly computed as the sum of the bandwidths of every node in that network. Also, the client-server paradigm lacks the robustness of a good P2P network. Under the client-server scheme, should a critical server fail, clients’ requests cannot be fulfilled. Resources are usually distributed among many nodes in P2P networks. For example, even if one or more nodes depart and abandon a downloading file, the remaining nodes should still have the data needed to complete the download. 17) What is Middleware? “Gluing together” or mediating between two separate and often already existing programs is generally referred to as Middleware. Its common application includes allowing programs written for access to a particular database to access other databases. Middleware programs typically provide messaging services so that different applications can communicate. 18) Name the elements of a typical 4-tier Client- Server Architecture: 1. Presentation tier 2. Logic Tier 3. Data Tier 4. Middle Tier 19) What is a thin client? Webopedia defines “thin client” as a computer, or computer program, that depends on some computer (known as server) so it can perform its “computational roles”. Sample of this would be a computer in a laboratory that is connected to a server such as the case of a PC in a public library. 20) Of the Host-Based, Client-Based and Client-Server Architectures, which is the most scalable? Host-Based is the most scalable. It can detect intrusions in a system and detection can be either IDS/IPS. 21) What is the difference between HTTP and HTML? HTML, which means Hyper Text Mark-Up Language, is commonly known as the language of web pages. This language can be edited and the code defines how a web page looks like. An HTTP, on the other hand, is a protocol that is utilized when contents of a web page need to be transferred from, say, a web server. 22) What is the difference between SMTP and MIME? Same as # 11 23) What is FTP used for? The FTP is commonly used in the exchange and manipulation of files over a TCP/IP based network. An example of such network is the Internet. 24) What is Telnet used for? Like the FTP, it is a network protocol that can be used in the Internet or LAN (local area network). It usually provides a bidirectional interactive communications facility. 25) What is the difference between Teleconferencing and Webcasting? Teleconference entails listening to a live program via telephone. Users need only a telephone line. Webcasts are professional-quality online video presentations, usually for larger groups and with less interactivity between participants. 26) What is in the Physical Layer? When we talk of Physical Layer, it pertains to hardware transmission technologies in a network. It is fundamental since it supports the logical data structures. At the same time, it is critical since it contains mechanical, electrical, as well as procedural interface to the transmission medium. However, it is not only about hardware, but it also plays the role of defining network functions. 27) How are digital signals (e.g. on the wire as measured on an oscilloscope) also in a sense analog? They are also analog since they are signals. The only difference is that the oscilloscope portrays a digital representation of what could be an analog reading. “In conceptual summary, a digital signal is a quantized discrete-time signal; a discrete-time signal is a sampled analog signal”( What is the Difference Between Digital and Analog Signals?, www.wikianswers.com) 28) Give an example of half duplex communication: An example of a half duplex communication would be FM radio. Another one would be Ethernet networks (unswitched) since transmission of data can only be done one at a time. 29) Which makes more effective use of available frequency, FDM or TDM and why? It would be FDM since more users can share the frequency as in the case of radio stations. Moreover, TDM cannot be used for broadcasting. It is for this reason that when things became digital FDM replaced TDM. 30) What is the benefit of single mode fiber optics (using lasers) over multimode? There are three main benefits: speed, bandwidth, and cost. Fiber optics cost less to maintain and they also work on very high speed. Single mode fiber transmits faster and can carry a very high bandwidth. Although multimode can give higher bandwidth, it is limited to transmitting in medium distances only. 31) What is the difference between serial and parallel communications? The main difference would be the function of transferring data from a remote device to a hard drive. Obviously, the serial port allows this to happen. Because of this two-way communication, data can be transferred from one work station to another. Moreover, these work stations can be connected to peripherals, which make serial port a big help in terms of efficiency. Parallel communication implies that communication is only one-way which is limiting as compared to serial communications. 32) What is the difference between a MODEM and a CODEC? The difference would be in form. Modem is hardware and CODEC is software. A modem usually transmits data so that information can be received well. A codec is a software commonly used to “interpret” or “translate” digital information as the case of music files. 33) When is controlled access (e.g. token passing) better than contention access? Actually, contention access is better since it provides more bandwidth. However, token passing is better when there is a need to restrict use which is applicable in sites that need to be secured. 34) (BONUS QUESTION) Your 4 bit divisor is 1101. Your message is 111111. Compute the FCS. 10909 remainder 191 – this is the FCS. 35) (BONUS QUESTION) What property of the 4 bit divisor is required for CRC error detection systems to work? The CRC remainder is crucial in order to detect if there is an error. When there is a remainder, something is wrong with the data. The divisor is critical in deriving the redundancy bits. If the remainder is 0, then data is accepted . Read More