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HEADLINES AT A GLANCE"The Internet's
Invisible Hand" "The Internet's Invisible
Hand" The Internet, which has grown from just 727,000 connections in 1991 to 175 million at the end of last year, is facing a bevy of new challenges as it continues to expand. None of the originators of the Internet, either from government or academic backgrounds, foresaw what it has become today. And experts continue to be amazed at its resiliency. Ethernet creator Robert Metcalfe, for example, said in 1995 that the Internet would experience a major crash, called a gigalapse, but it failed to appear. Even the most trying of circumstances, which arguably came during the Sept. 11 attacks, could not break the Internet infrastructure, but rather put the strain on corporate servers, or the end points that push out data. In the future, pervasive broadband and a new IP protocol will expand the Internet's capabilities, even as some problems seem to loom larger. Security, for instance, is a perennial issue as the Internet's global, decentralized structure and concerns about privacy prevent the creation of a single monitor agency that could help track down online criminals. (Internet Architecture, Technology and Applications) "Wireless Operators Pitch Fancier
Services" European wireless carriers are hoping to boost revenues by selling more advanced services to users who are already talking on their mobiles considerably. The move comes as mobile-phone growth has slowed to just 18 percent, only half of what it was last year, according to Strategis Group. Carriers say text messages have already proven successful, providing about 10 percent of wireless revenues. Now, they are touting services such as the ability to send and receive small digital photos, text sports updates, traffic alerts, and the use of their phone as a wireless modem for their laptop. Meanwhile, carriers in the United States are still stymied with incompatible standards which keep users from sending text messages to friends on other networks. However, in the coming market for location-based services, Strategis analyst Christine Loredo expects the United States to pull ahead of the rest of the world, though location-based capabilities are still several years out. (Wireless Communications) "ZeoSync: Data Discovery Can Shake
Up Tech Sector" ZeoSync, a small research firm, says it has developed a compression algorithm that would enable data compression rates of hundreds-to-one, compared to about 10-to-one for current data compression techniques. Current compression techniques include the MPEG and JPEG standards that involve stripping swaths of data from the file, but ZeoSync says it can compress files further while retaining 100 percent data integrity. Aberdeen analyst David Hill notes that the technology has yet to be proven and warns against staking too much on such extravagant claims. He says, "Either this research is the next 'cold fusion' scam that dies away or it's the foundation for a Nobel Prize. I don't have an answer to which one it is yet." ZeoSync says it expects commercial application of its technique by 2003, and boasts that scientists from Harvard, Stanford, and MIT have been involved in the project, along with renowned mathematician Steve Smale. If true, then ZeoSync's discovery would have tremendous implications for data storage and telecommunications because it would create a huge glut in capacity. (Computer Communications, Systems and Protocols) "Internet's Reach Expected to
Grow" Forrester Research's Carl Howe predicts that the Internet will become less visible and more "executable." The executable quality is characterized by an improved experience for users. "In the executable Internet, imagine a Napster where every song comes with its own player," he explains. "If you're a garage band, you can put a free player on it and put it out there." Howe points out that users desire more than what Web sites currently offer, and believes that the Net will eventually transcend the "click-and-refresh" paradigm and reach deeper into the real world. Technologies Howe says show promise include tires and heart-monitoring devices capable of wireless communications. The high-tech sector is currently one of the strongest users of Internet technology, but Howe foresees the chemical and utility industries embracing the Web more and more. (Internet Architecture, Technology and Applications) "Mini-Lasers Take Chips to 'Light
Speed'" Researchers at Johns Hopkins University have developed a data-transfer process that uses lasers rather than wire. This could pave the way for more efficient chips that are far faster than silicon semiconductors. The approach involves a synthetic sapphire substrate on which a thin layer of silicon is grown for high-speed, low-power transistors and circuits; this array converts wire-based signals into light, which is beamed through the substrate via a mini-laser. The light beam is directed along the chip by microlenses and other optical elements, while optical fiber is used as a chip-to-chip medium. The process is particularly promising for multichip systems that involve longer transmission distances, according to JHU graduate student Alyssa Apsel. "[The process] really promises to revolutionize how computer systems for homes and businesses are put together," says JHU Professor Andreas Andreou, who directed the project. Apsel does not believe the optical chip's assembly costs would exceed those of conventional chips, but mass production is still some time off. (Computer Communications, Systems and Protocols) "Rise of Internet 'Borders' Prompts
Fears for Web's Future" Governments and businesses are attempting to impose borders on the Internet in order to curtail various activities that may be objectionable or constitute a threat to security, but civil libertarians warn that such maneuvers may endanger personal privacy and freedom of speech. Furthermore, they could give oppressive regimes license to censor nonconformist opinions. Several methods exist for maintaining these borders, including Internet access restrictions and communications filters. One of the most controversial techniques is geolocation software that can track down a user's physical location based on their Web address. The technology has the potential to expand Internet boundaries, according to analysts. However, some legal experts say the concept is unworkable because Web site operators would have to know each country's laws concerning what is and is not permitted. Analysts also say that the United States' dominion over the Web will likely change with the institution of online boundaries. (Internet Architecture, Technology and Applications) "AMD's Aiming for Tech
Leadership" AMD's HyperTransport bus design has a chance to become the industry standard for high-end computing, servers, and network equipment, displacing the PCI bus, which has been the dominant bus technology since its introduction in 1992. HyperTransport can process more data more quickly than PCI, and has the advantage over competing technologies since it has been available longer. Intel, usually the leader in chip technology, would have to play second fiddle for once, say analysts. Intel's Infiniband, which also has backing from IBM, Sun, Microsoft, and Dell, is just coming out while HyperTransport has been available since the late 1990s. Intel likely will retain control in the personal computer bus market ahead of AMD's HyperTransport with its broadly supported 3GIO bus, its successor to PCI, due early this year. Meanwhile, more and more companies--including some that are also supporting Infiniband, including Sun Microsystems--are aligning with the HyperTransport Technology Consortium, including Cisco, Apple Computer, Nokia, and chipmakers Nvidia and Broadcom. Linley Gwennap of the Linley Group says HyperTransport will be included in many upcoming network products this year. (Computer Communications, Systems and Protocols) "A Global View of the Mobile
Phone" Global wireless phone penetration will reach 24 percent by 2005, predicts a DisplaySearch report. In 1999, penetration was only 8.1 percent. DisplaySearch estimates 15 percent of the world's population used wireless phones at 2001's end. The study also reveals that Western Europe controls 25.4 percent of the mobile phone market in 2001. Latin America, with 11.7 percent of the market, enjoyed the biggest year-over-year growth (75.3 percent). DisplaySearch estimates that 407.7 million wireless handsets were shipped globally last year, a 4.9 percent increase over 2000. However, shipments of mobile phone display units fell 24.7 percent from 2000 to 366.3 million units in 2001. Meanwhile, Gartner forecasts that 666.3 million cell phones were installed globally in 2001. (Wireless Communications) "Asia Telecoms Services Market to
Grow by 21 Percent in 2002" The telecom services market in the Asia Pacific region, not including Japan, is expected to expand by 20.6 percent in 2002 to US$161 billion, based on IDC data, says news agency AFP. In addition, the IT market in the region excluding Japan is predicted to expand 13.5 percent to $76 billion, AFP says. Globally, the telecoms market is generally the same size as the IT market, says IDC's Piyush Singh. However, in the Asia Pacific market the telecoms market is twice the size of the IT market due to local demographics, he says. It also highlights the growing nature of IT in the region. By 2003-2004, telecoms services will grow to $269 billion, says AFP, as broadband, IP services, and 3G services become more common. AFP believes the telecoms industry will be a prominent driver of IT spending in the region in 2002 with China leading the way. The Chinese IT market will grow by 25 percent to 25.6 billion in 2002, IDC predicts. (Product Sales and Marketing) "Toward More Cybersecurity in
2002" New computer security threats in 2002 should elicit tougher responses from industry, consumers, and the government. Microsoft alone plays an important part in increasing computer security, since 2001 saw numerous compromises to its products and even its router infrastructure, and recent flaws in its new Windows XP software expose users to the entire Internet. Routers should also begin implementing the secure border gateway protocol, the secure version of the common language used by routers of all different makes. The secure version would enable authentication and encryption technology that also keeps everything else safe on the Web. ISPs should move toward mandatory firewall installation for cable modem users, who are otherwise leaving their computers open for hackers to commandeer. Finally, the federal government should do more to ensure across-the-board network security, the lack of which was made apparent by the recent shutdown of the Interior Dept. Internet connections. Rep. Tom Davies (R-Va.) is working to rehabilitate the Government Information Security Reform Act and strengthen computer security standards. (Network Reliability, Security and Quality Assurance) "Satellite-Based Computer Network
Serves Students on Remote Pacific Islands" The University of the South Pacific is located on Suva, Fiji, and serves 11 other countries in the region. All campuses are connected to a computer network dubbed USPNet-2000. The network provides a high-speed, two-way data circuit for exchanging information and audio services. The network also allows up to four concurrent video transmission from Suva. Students and instructors from various campuses can take part in audio tutorials or watch live video broadcasts of lectures. Some 13 distance learning programs are offered at the university. However, the university prefers students spending some of their time on campus to complete most of its 165 credit programs. On average, tuition costs $1,200 for a full-time student; the governments of Australia, Japan, New Zealand, and member countries provided $5.6 million in funding for the USPNet-2000 project. (Satellite and Space Communications) "Top Female Tech Engineers May Make
More than Men--Report" IEEE-USA's annual Salary and Fringe Benefit Survey indicates that female computer engineers may earn more than men. Those with 20 to 24 years experience pull in a yearly median income of $100,037, compared to $98,500 for men. However, women with only five to six years experience earn a median salary of $68,000, while their male counterparts earn $76,000. Women with 15 to 19 years of experience are making a median income of $84,700, while men in the same range are making $96,000. The report finds that Asian-American workers are earning the highest median income ($99,000), followed by Caucasians ($93,000), Hispanics ($86,500), and African-Americans ($86,340). The median salary for all 9,500 survey respondents is $93,100, but IEEE-USA says women comprise only 6.8 percent of its membership. (Communications) "US Army Web Site Goes Dark in
Asia-Pacific Region" User reports indicate that the main U.S. Army Web site is not available to many surfers in the Asia-Pacific region, and network traces performed from Internet addresses in various Asian nations showed that the site was not reachable. However, access from Internet addresses based in the United States is available. No one can say whether the block was intentional, or when it was implemented if it was. A lead network administrator at the Army's Information Systems Command says that the blockage was probably due to Army network security policy, and explains that the Army performs blocks based on network security threats, including IP addresses from foreign locations. The nations having trouble with access all seem to belong to an Internet address space called the Asia Pacific Network Information Center (APNIC), one of three regional Internet registries. APNIC's Web site says it manages address space for 62 nations. The Army site uses the .mil top level domain, and Alldas records indicate that 95 sites in that TLD were vandalized last year. (Network Reliability, Security and Quality Assurance) "Searching for Next Big Thing" Analysts expect the next decade to reveal at least four technology trends to reshape the economy and lifestyles, just as the PC, wireless communications, local-area networks, and the Internet molded much of the 1990s. Deloitte & Touche director of global technology Doug Tuttle says the current slump is indicative that new trends may be emerging, such as collaborative commerce. USB Warburg says technology will focus around the needs of business in the coming decade, and that companies should take a note from IBM, which CEO Lou Gerstner recast into more of a services provider in the 1990s. Its research also predicts the new decade will bring only four new paradigm technologies, compared to six in the last decade. Some technologies that have been tagged as hot sectors are broadband wireless, Gigabit Ethernet, Infiniband, and advanced wireless platforms such as 3G. Product Sales and Marketing "Speech Recognition's Next
Iteration" IBM Research is working on ways to vastly improve speech recognition technology, including software that can read the many nuances of pronunciation and acoustics as well as contextual interpretation. Current speech recognition systems are limited in that speakers must use precise syntax in order to be understood, and IBM is developing the Super Human Speech Recognition Project to surpass such limitations. Efforts the project will focus on include software that can predict word arrangement. One of the more ambitious programs, according to IBM Research's David Nahamoo, is the creation of a system that can comprehend conversations on multiple levels and respond to open-ended inquiries. The method to build such as system is called domain-specific interpretation. Furthermore, Nahamoo says the approaches IBM Research is developing are being embedded in available software applications. The Super Human Speech Recognition Project is expected to be launched later this year. (Multimedia Communications and Digital Media) "Web Services, Internet
Collaboration Pose Security Challenges for 2002" Increased use of Web services and videoconferencing will pose the most serious computer security threats in 2002. Gartner analyst John Pescatore even goes so far as to recommend that companies not implement Web services this year because of the untested methods used to link internal applications with partner company systems. He says the same danger exists for videoconferencing and remote collaboration technologies being pushed in wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. David Lelievre of ASP Tweddle Information Services tags wireless security as a growing new sector in 2002 because it is a requisite for more enterprise wireless e-business adoption. He also says businesses should beware of vendor consolidation in the security sector, watching for signs of financial instability when screening potential providers. TruSecure analyst Roger Thompson says blended virus threats such as Nimda will also continue to wreak havoc on networks, unless administrators keep pace with the latest software patch releases and antivirus programs. (Enterprise Networking) "High Wireless Act" The convenience of wireless communications had led many businesses to adopt it for use in their corporate enterprise networks, but inherent in the technology are vulnerabilities that make it an attractive target for hackers and industrial spies. The biggest problem in wireless communications lies primarily in the way data travels, with two competing standards used to transmit data packets. Systems that use wireless application protocol (WAP) rely on Wireless Transport Layer Security (WTLS), which encrypts data traveling from wireless systems, much like Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) does for the Internet. However, WTLS is not compatible with SSL because most WAP technology cannot handle the memory and processing required by the latter's RSA encryption algorithms. This requires a brief period of time, just milliseconds, needed at WAP gateways to decrypt WTLS information into plain text and then to encrypt it again to SSL, and it is at this point where hackers often lay their traps, accessing transactional information often sent through WAPs at the moment the information is decoded. To prevent breaches, company security should make sure no critical information is stored on WAP gateways, as well as limit access from outside firewalls and monitor activity on both sides of the WAP gateway. Wireless local area network (WLAN) is the second major standard used to transmit data from and among wireless networks. Many of WAP's weaknesses also apply to it, but it can be more dangerous, because it allows direct access to enterprise systems, and since the bandwidth it uses is greater, it is more likely to be targeted. The relative novelty of WLAN limits the amount of security standards developed for its protection, but securing access points and limiting access, using virtual private networks, and utilizing network IDs can minimize risks. (Network Reliability, Security and Quality Assurance) "Demand for Security Services
Rises" More health and financial institutions are bolstering their network security to protect against more dangerous viruses, innovative hacking techniques, and stringent federal privacy and security regulations. Tax Technologies recently switched its customers over to a hosted distribution platform for its tax compliance software, using IBM Global Services' hosting services. To meet the concerns of customers about the vulnerability of a hosted software platform, Tax Technologies also tapped Global Services to provide extra network security management, including IP monitoring, intrusion detection, and a dedicated firewall service. Tax Technologies has also signed with Global Services to make its Web site operations redundant at a separate hosting location, in response to worries over the Sept. 11 attacks, says Tax Technologies VP and CTO Jeff Wenger. (Network Reliability, Security and Quality Assurance) "Next Step Beyond 10G Unclear" The next Ethernet throughput raise after 10
Gigabit is currently up in the air because three bandwidth standards are
fighting it out to be the next step. One is a 40 Gbps version of
Synchronous Optical Network (SONET) called OC-768. Another group of
vendors believes Ethernet should continue its traditional upgrade route,
which would proceed to the next multiple of 10. A third standard is SONET
OC-3072, which is expected to offer 160 Gbps. It is possible that more
than one of these standards will be developed. Ethernet frame size is
another issue drawing debate, as some engineers want the 1,500-byte frame
standard to be maintained, while some vendors are supporting a new
8,000-byte frame format that promises to reduce processing overhead.
Despite all this controversy, vendors do not see a pressing need to
develop a higher-speed Ethernet. Chandra Kopparapu of Foundry Networks
does not believe the next Ethernet specification will be settled until
late 2002. (Gigabit Networking) HOW TO SUBSCRIBE/UNSUBSCRIBE You can receive notification of the ComSoc INC as a free service provided by the IEEE Communications Society. The following are the instructions to subscribe/unsubscribe via email 1. Send an email message to INC-request@comsoc.org subscribe The archived back issues can be found on the ComSoc INC site DISCLAIMER: These news write-ups are written by Information Inc. from worldwide sources. For details about disclaimers and limitation of liability please go to http://www.ieee.org/about/documentation/copyright/legal.htm#liability © copyright 1999 INFORMATION, INC. |
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