The New Rules for Public Relations

By J. Blake Miller

During the boom years, high-level public relations representation was highly sought after by companies of all sizes. When the economic downturn hit and executives toiled with last-straw strategies and tactics for identifying hidden profit opportunities, public relations professionals saw their share of pink slips. Now, as the economy continues to rebound, PR is once again in favor.

Many people do not realize that practices that maximize profitability during good economic times are the very same practices that help maximize profits or minimize losses during downturns. A strategic public relations campaign can strengthen a company’s position and competitive edge during a weak economy and support sales initiatives during a strong economy.

In an economic downturn, people still conduct business; there is just less of it. Positioning a company as a market leader and measurably increasing media visibility is what successful PR is all about. And businesses that survive will be those with the shrewdest PR strategies, the most creative approach to customers, the highest perceived value, the greatest service during and after the sale, and the fiercest sales force.

When the economy is enjoying a rebound, public relations can support well-established organizations while enhancing the reputations of smaller, growing companies through public education. When the economy is up, so follows the public’s spirits. And when spirits are up minds tend to be more open to new ideas. This is a breeding ground for innovative and lively discussions designed to catapult one company over another. A robust economy, by nature, sparks interest in new products and services while offering opportunities for companies to provide thought-provoking and educational commentary.

Among the most effective public relations practices used by successful companies is thought leadership. Thought leadership is the art of communicating a strategic vision to others in an informative and convincing way. Masters of thought leadership will not speak above or below their audience, but directly to them. Understanding their public enables thought leaders to position themselves as experts in their given field while crafting their message in a way that influences their audience in a positive manner.

For many companies, PR is an afterthought to strategic planning and can appear to be out of sync with business objectives. PR should tie into sales, desired results, and should speak directly to the company’s mission. It works best (in any economy) when tightly integrated with marketing. And since one person cannot carry out an effective PR strategy, the success of a campaign depends on the support, commitment and involvement of the highest levels within the organization.

Today, the PR industry is under more scrutiny than ever before. The days of building a company on hype and rumor are long gone – as are robust retainers for lackluster returns. In any economy, smart companies scrutinize their budgets. Regardless of the price paid, executives seek quality and return on investment. This puts the PR industry under pressure to show value for every hour worked and every dollar spent.

Tactical public relations should be quick, flexible, and cost effective. Competitive and economic environments can change rapidly and lightening fast response to these changing environments is crucial to the success of any PR campaign. Long-term programs planned a year in advance with exorbitant budgets are a thing of the past. Pretending to know what will happen over the next 12 to 14 months is an unaffordable luxury.

By switching gears and returning to basics, public relations can be part reconnaissance and part sales support. Whatever the economy, PR is a worthwhile tool that can be used to add value to any organization.

CASE STUDY

Objectives:
• Identify and disseminate regional and national news being produced from Integrated Screening Partners, a pre-employment screening provider
• Build communications foundation to ensure Integrated Screening Partners inclusion in reports and stories regarding pre-employment screening
• Leverage trends to garner national and regional coverage in trade, business and consumer publications
• Provide recommendations and direction on general marketing and community visibility initiatives for the Central Texas region

Strategies:
• Articulate the strength of Integrated Screening Partners diverse menu of services to the media, companies that use pre-employment screening services, and the general public
• Plan and launch an aggressive media relations program
• Leverage Integrated Screening Partner executives to generate media attention via a thought leadership program

Implementation:
• Developed target media list
• Developed company fact sheet and positioning document
• Developed messages and pitch strategies to highlight the benefits of Integrated Screening Partners fully customizable product
• Implemented monthly pitch schedule for articles and columns in trade, business and consumer media

Results:
• Within three months:
Integrated Screening Partners was written into and/or quoted in 11 regional and national business, trade, and consumer articles, including MSNBC and Chicago Tribune


About the author:

J. Blake Miller is Executive Director of BlabberMouth PR. Blake is a widely known and respected professional in the hospitality and logistics industries. With more than 20 years of sales, marketing and coaching experience, Blake brings an insider's perspective to his role as Executive Director of BlabberMouth PR. Since joining BlabberMouth, Blake has filled a special role in strategic external communications, implementing and managing national communication strategies, media campaigns, forums and focus groups on innovative program and policy initiatives. Blake offers his strengths in delivering impeccable service and unbeatable representation to his clients.
blake@blabbermouthpr.com
www.blabbermouthPR.com



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Satellite radios are great in the outback!

By Corbin Mathieson

Satellite radio has quite literally been a god send to people who live or travel regularly in remote locations, or even for people who are required to travel long distances. Static-free reception can now be experienced and enjoyed by listeners who have a satellite radio even if they are
in the remotest of locations.

In the past if you were travelling for long periods, every hour or so you would have to start tweaking with the radio dial, as the radio station you were just listening to began to turn to static after it seemed to fade in and out for a while. You would then frantically try to locate a new radio station to listen to and just as you did, it too would turn static. This would go on until eventually there were no
decent stations left on the dial and then finally you would succumb to putting on a cassette or a CD or even turning off the entire stereo all together. But with the advent of satellite radio, static, tuning, fiddling and complete boredom will soon be a thing of the past.

The standard, more conventional radio signals are only able to travel around 30-40 miles from their original
transmitters so if you travel beyond this distance then the signal will eventually get weaker and weaker until you are no longer able to hear the transmission at all. However in a far greater development of technology, satellite radio waves travel from space (around 22,000 miles) meaning that you will be able to travel across the entire country without even having to change national radio stations because the frequency will be consistent and strong.

Automobile manufacturers have been installing satellite radio receivers as standard fittings for some years now, so
when the satellite radio transmission finally begins most drivers will be able to clearly access the signals and won't
experience any problems in utilizing the new technology. What a revolution!! Currently there are only three space-based radio broadcasters who are working on the
development of this technology. In 1997, the government agency the Federal Communications Commission gave licenses
worth around $80 million to these companies to experiment and deliver on the allocated radio band for digital satellite radio transmission.

These three satellite radio companies have conducted completely different research programs and as a result naturally are now offering different products to the market.
As a result there is more then likely going to be a 'VHS versus Beta' type battle between the companies as the
technology progresses. Two of the companies, XM Radio and Worldspace have made a formal agreement to share new
technological developments with the other party and to make every effort to work collaboratively to develop and design
further innovations in this expanding communications field. This partnership can only be a good thing for consumers,
particularly consumers who frequent remote locations on a regular basis and who need to communicate with the outside world when they do so.

About the author:
Corbin Mathieson is the webmaster of
Ask Satellite which is a
premier source of information about Satellite. For more
information, go to: http://asksatellite.com


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Web Conferencing Services - Types

By Diane Parker

You may already have recognized the need for web conferencing within your organization. You have heard all about the many benefits and have decided it is the way forward for your company. Now all you have to do is decide which type of web conferencing would best suit your company's needs.

A quick investigation into the types of web conferencing available will result in a myriad of information. For the uninitiated, unraveling what is available can be confusing and time-consuming.

Below you will find a quick guide to the types of web conferencing currently out there. Each organization will have its own individual requirements and it is important to be clear about what you hope to gain from web conferencing. For example, is it a fully interactive virtual meeting place that your organization needs, or do you require a document sharing system that will allow employees in different geographical locations to work together on projects? Once you understand how you want web conferencing to work for you, analyzing the types of web conferencing and how they could work for your organization will become much easier.

Web Meeting
With growths in international business and a growing trend towards home working, the need for a virtual meeting place is increasing. A web meeting is just what it says - a meeting that takes place over the Internet. This facility has the capabilities to hold real-time conversations and share documents. Web meetings can be fully interactive, allowing participants to converse in real time and for information to be exchanged between delegates.

Web meeting set-ups vary in terms of sophistication and a very rudimentary system can be set up using just a digital camera and a broadband connection.

The Webcast
As the name would suggest, a webcast is a type of broadcast similar in nature to a television broadcast except, of course, a webcast takes place over the Internet. The broadcasting nature of this facility means that there is little opportunity for the presenter and delegates to interact with each other and therefore its function is primarily as a presenting tool. The other main feature of a webcast is that it can be broadcast simultaneously to hundreds of recipients.

If your requirement is for a presenting tool that also offers the interactive features of a web meeting, then you should consider a webinar.

The Webinar
As the name suggests, the webinar is a facility that allows you to conduct a seminar over the web. Allowing a greater level of interaction than the webcast, a webinar enables the presenter to conduct question and answer-type sessions with delegates. However, you should remember that a webinar does not afford the same degree of interaction as a web meeting.

Other Uses For Web Conferencing

Online Presenting
Web conferencing can also be used for conduction online presentations. Online presenting is ideal for sales pitches, performance reporting or providing training for other members of your organization. Add on features include slide shows, web based conversing and audio/video streaming.

Online Collaboration
This is by far the most commonly used type of web conferencing and is the ideal solution for organizations who have multi-location sites yet require collaboration between their employees on projects and documents. Online collaboration has file sharing capabilities that updates changes and alterations to documents in real-time to avoid errors.

About the author:
Diane Parker is a web content writer who specializes in internet related topics. Her conferencing articles include: web conferencing software, choosing a web conferencing tool and internet conferencing.


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Sending faxes for long distances

By Muthukumar



Sending faxes over a long distance is generally associated with high charges, and you sometime think to avoid sending a fax and think for some other means. The rate for phone calls over long distance is high and, therefore, the rate for faxes over long distance is also high! There seems no escape from this problem, but if you are proactive enough and are able to do some change in methods or your telephone connection, you can end up in saving a lot of money!

Options to Reduce Cost for Faxes over Long Distances

Using phone cards

Using phone cards for sending faxes over long distances is a good option, and if you are aware about the potential of saving money with phone cards, you will not mind it using for the faxing also!

There are many companies that offer cheap phone cards for long distance calls, and you can use these phone cards by attaching the fax machine to it. For this matter, you will just have to search a bit for some companies that are offering the facilities. Phone cards are available with multiple facilities and there are different rates for those phone cards: you can easily choose the one that suits your needs and requirements according to the usage of phone! If you have good and cheap phone cards facility, you will not to have think before sending faxes over long distances!

Using Internet for Sending Faxes

If nothing suits you better with phone cards and other option, you can think of sending your faxes through Internet. The advantage of sending faxes using Internet is that you can use the whole full speed of Internet. Most of the Fax machines are limited to receive or transmit data at 9.6 Kbps or 14.4 Kbps; but with Internet, you can send your faxes at Ethernet speeds and save time and money at the same time!

Though the techniques are not that easily available, but computer companies are offering more and more products that can be used for sending fax using Internet! Windows also have programs that help in sending fax, and some software companies are developing more programs to run these facilities more effectively! There may be a chance that companies end up in manufacturing fax machines that can be directly plugged in LAN card, but that seems a distant probability!

But certainly, sending fax-using Internet saves a lot of money and time, though the scope is limited!

At the end we can say that there are good option available for reducing cost over faxes for long distances, but you need to be experimenting and a little more concerned about the market that is always ready with new products and features!


About the author:
The author Muthukumar is an affiliate seller of phone cards. You can buy cheap phone cards at http://internet.pushline.com


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Get Down With OCP Evaluating DBA Job Applicants in an OCP World

By Carrie Haggerty

Not long ago, weeding through DBA applicants with a tech interview was a straightforward process. You'd ask candidates 200 or so technical questions. If they got 100 correct answers, you knew they'd been around the block; 150 or more and you knew you were on to superior talent. But once the Oracle Certification Program (OCP) became popular in the late 90s, the traditional tech interview lost its effectiveness. These days, candidates can answer 180 questions correctly and you still won't know whether they're talking from experience or simply regurgitating what they memorized at OCP a few weeks earlier. Although it has become increasingly difficult to determine whether you've found a seasoned, highly qualified DBA or a newly minted OCP Graduate, there are ways.
First, start by throwing out the questions. Any candidate who has been through OCP knows the answers—all of them. That list that helped you find superstar employees in the past is unfortunately useless now. Second, if you are a manager without solid database experience, enlist the help of an experienced DBA to help you prepare that critical interview. IT Managers have varied backgrounds and here it's important to pull from the right background, be it yours or someone else's.
You also need to analyze your needs. If you're looking to hire a junior person and mentor them, the OCP program ensures that the candidate has been exposed to most areas of the Oracle RDBMS. You can assume you'll have an employee who knows the commands and has a general concept of how a database works. But if you select an inexperienced OCP candidate thinking you're getting a skilled veteran, you'll be in for countless unpleasant surprises. Typical horror stories sound like:
• A DBA restores the backup for the first time in a real-life situation, finds out the backup strategy was flawed and loses the whole database. S/he probably also forgot to make a backup of the database before attempting the recovery, therefore rendering Oracle support intervention nearly impossible.
• A DBA recommends technical implementation decisions based on limited experience with a single user database that has 10 tables of 100 rows each. Of course, the system hangs a few hours after the launch—as soon as 10,000 users start pounding on a 500GB database.

The most damaging aspect of newer DBAs is that they don't know when they are in over their heads, or how to plan properly. Senior IT professionals, no matter their field of expertise, have a gut feeling when it's happening. They know they have to step away, talk things over with a peer, roll everything back, and try another day. Inexperienced IT professionals are fearless and can therefore be dangerous, especially if they're expected to run the show.
So how do you find truly qualified DBAs in an OCP World? Put them to work—in the interview, that is. Create real world situations where candidates are allowed full use of any familiar online resources, and see what they can do. Some examples:
Want to check out their data modeling skills? Give candidates a hypothetical business that everyone understands, like a video rental store, and a basic set of business requirements. Put them in front of a white board and let them create a model that meets the stated requirements. You play the role of a subject-matter expert who is decidedly non-technical, and have them walk you through the results.
Wondering how they handle troubleshooting? Set up a database with various performance anomalies such as poorly written queries, missing indexes, and internal resource contention. Have applicants deal with the issues and walk you through their methodology. They can't use automated tools. The Oracle Data Dictionary and OS basic facilities must suffice.
Want to see if they know how to minimize downtime? Pretend you're a client who wants to upgrade a 500GB database from version X to version X+1. It's a 24/7 environment and each hour of downtime costs $10,000. There will be downtime regardless, but the DBA should be able to generate scenarios to keep it at a minimum.
Whatever skills you're looking to assess, make sure you test candidates in situations they can't prepare for and can't fake. The new interview process isn't quite as easy as those trusty old 200 questions. It requires more up-front planning and often more time in the interview room. But if it saves you from having to fire incapable employees who wreaked havoc on your database, it's probably worth it. A little advance preparation can save a whole lot of time, money, and hassle down the road. And isn't that all we're looking for in this crazy, mixed-up OCP world?

About the author:
Robert Hamel DBA Team Lead for Pythian Group, North America’s leading provider of remote DBA services. He has supervised/managed the delivery of 101805 hours of DBA work (and counting) since July 2000. Experts at getting fine-tuned performance out of the Oracle database symphony, Pythian provides its clients with an unrivaled level of DBA proficiency, sophisticated Oracle monitoring and reporting, and 24/7/365 service. http://www.pythian.com


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A Peek Into the Near Future of Electronics Technology

By Terry Mitchell

How long do you think DVDs have around? 20 years? 10 years? Actually, they have only been around for about seven years, but it seems like they have been around much longer. Many of us can hardly remember life before DVDs. That can be attributed to how rapidly we can become acclimated to some innovations in electronics technology. I believe there are other electronics technologies, either just getting ready to take off, not widely available yet, or just around the corner, that are going to become adopted just as quickly in the near future.

Once such item is Voice over Internet Protocol, also known as VoIP. This innovation renders the whole concept of long distance virtually obsolete. It bypasses the traditional telephone company infrastructure and delivers phone service over a broadband internet connection to a regular phone. Similar to cell phones, this service is purchased based on a fixed and/or unlimited number of minutes. However, geographical divisions are generally made by country or continent, rather than by local calling areas or area codes. For example, a typical VoIP contract in the U.S. would stipulate unlimited calling to North America and 300 monthly minutes for calls to everywhere else. Unlike cell phone service, you are not charged for incoming calls. With VoIP service, area codes are not much of an issue, although you still must have one. However, some providers offer plans in which you can select any area code in your country or continent! The area code you choose mainly comes into play for those with traditional phone service who make calls to you. If you pick a California area code, for example, someone calling you from a traditional phone line would be billed as if they called California, even if they lived next door to you in New York.

One of the major advantages of VoIP is that it is less expensive than traditional phone service. Since it bypasses most of the phone companies' infrastructure, it also bypasses many of the taxes associated with it. So far, Congress has maintained a hands-off approach when it comes to taxing VoIP services. Most of the major phone companies are either now offering VoIP or plan to start by mid-2005. However, there are some smaller companies that are offering it at a much lower cost. Vonage (www.vonage.com) is a small company that was one of the pioneers of VoIP. Lingo (www.lingo.com) and Packet8 (www.packet8.com) are two other small companies offering VoIP at a cut-rate price.

Another such technology is Broadband over Power Line, or BPL. Already in wide use in many other countries and currently being tested in the U.S., BPL is the delivery of broadband internet service over traditional power lines. A computer is connected to a special modem which is simply plugged into an electrical outlet. This kind of service could prove useful for those who cannot get traditional broadband services like cable modem or Digital Subscriber Line (DSL), as almost everyone has access to electricity now. Once refined, BPL could eventually prove to be cheaper and faster than these more established services and attract away some of their customers. By the way, be careful when you’re discussing BPL and make sure people don’t think you’re saying, “VPL.” Otherwise, you might encounter quite a bit of snickering!

While we're on the subject of broadband internet services, several technologies just around the corner are going to make them much faster than they are today. The typical download speeds for broadband ranges from 1.5 to 10 megabits per second (mbps) today. Within the next year, speeds of 15-20 mbps will be available to the average consumer. Then, shortly thereafter, speeds of up to 25, 50, 75, and even 100 mbps will be available in some places. In the not-so-distant future, speeds of 25-100 mbps is will be quite common. "Fast TCP", which is currently being tested, has the potential to turbo-charge all forms of currently available broadband internet connections without requiring any infrastructure upgrades. It will better utilize the way in which data is broken down and put back together within traditional internet protocols.

All the major phone companies are currently in the process of replacing their copper wires with high capacity fiber optic lines. One example is Verizon's Fiber-to-the-Premises (FTTP) initiative. Fiber optic lines will greatly increase the amount of bandwidth that can be delivered. Fiber optics will allow phone companies to deliver video, either via a cable TV-type platform or a TV over Internet Protocol (TVIP) platform (see my October 7 column), and faster DSL speeds. At the same time, the phone companies are working with Texas Instruments to develop a new, more technically efficient form of DSL, called Uni-DSL. Eventually, the current internet as we know it will be scrapped and completely replaced with a whole new internet called "Internet 2." This new internet is expected to provide speeds of up to 6000 times faster than current broadband connections!

Another technology item that you've probably heard a lot about recently is digital television. Digital TV uses a different wavelength than traditional analog TV and has a much wider bandwidth. It also has a picture that never gets "snowy" or "fuzzy." If the signal is not strong enough, you get no picture at all, rather than the fuzzy picture you sometimes get with analog. In order to receive digital signals over the airwaves, you must have a digital TV set (one with a digital tuner inside) or an analog TV with a set-top converter. Cable and satellite TV also use digital formats, but unlike broadcaster signals, their non-High Definition digital signals are automatically converted to a format an analog TV can process, so a digital TV or converter is not needed. High Definition Television formats, even on cable to satellite, require a digital TV or a converter (more on High Definition later).

All broadcasters are now doing some broadcasts on their digital channels in addition to their normal broadcasts on their analog channels, but they were originally supposed to completely convert over from analog signals to digital signals by the end of 2006. However, there is an exception that allows them to wait until 85% of the television sets in their market are digital. This could take 10 years or more to happen. Congress and the FCC are now looking at imposing a hard deadline on all broadcasters to convert to digital signals by 2009. Once they all convert to digital signals, their analog channels will taken back by the FCC and used for other purposes like emergency signals.

High Definition Television (HDTV) is one possible use of digital signals. HDTV uses the entire digital bandwidth and is the crystal clear format you've probably seen on TVs in electronics stores. It has no visible lines on the screen. Someone once described it as being like "watching a movie in the theater." Keep in mind that all HDTV is digital, but not all digital is HDTV. Along those same lines, not all digital TVs are HDTVs. Since digital TVs are very expensive and those with HDTV capability are even more expensive, consumers really need to keep this in mind.

The other possible use of digital signals is channel compression, often referred to as "multicasting." Non-HDTV programming does not utilize the entire width of a digital signal. Therefore, it is possible to compress two or more channels of programming into one digital signal. Satellite and cable operators do this all the time with their non-HDTV digital channels, but this process is transparent so many people don't realize it. Many broadcasters plan to use their digital signals this way during times when they are not being used for HDTV programming. For example, some plan to air all news and all weather channels in addition to their regular channels of programming.

TV recording and playback technology is changing as well. DVD recorders, which debuted about four years ago, have now become affordable to the average family. A couple of years ago, they were priced above $1000, but now you can get them for around $250, in many cases. The main sticking point now with DVD recorders is that not all of them will record/play all three of the competing formats: DVD-RAM, DVD-RW, DVD+RW. They will have difficulty gaining wide acceptance from the public until one format is settled on or all recorders can record and play all three formats.

One the other hand, digital video recorders (DVRs) and personal video recorders (PVRs), just two names for something that is really the same thing, seem to be gaining quickly in popularity. DVRs/PVRs utilize a hard drive to record programs, without the need for discs or tapes. DVRs/PVRs with larger hard drives are becoming available and less expensive all the time. These devices can record one show while you are watching another. They can record more than one show at a time. They allow you to watch the part of a show that has already been recorded while the remainder of that show is still being recorded. They allow for easy scanning, searching, and skipping through recorded programs and even allow you to skip commercials with one touch of a button. They allow you to pause live programs while you answer the door or go to the restroom and then pick up where you left off when you get back. With these devices, recording can be automatic, i.e., you can program them to automatically record every episode of your favorite shows, no matter when they air. You can also have them automatically find and record programs that match your interests. In addition, video can be automatically downloaded to the device via a phone connection. TiVo, the leading brand in the industry, has announced that it will be teaming up with Netflix next year to allow downloading of movies on demand via a broadband internet connection (see my October 7 column for more details).

DVRs/PVRs are becoming so popular that cable and satellite TV providers have begun including them as add-ons to their receivers, either at no extra cost or for a small additional monthly fee. About the only shortcoming of DVRs/PVRs is the fact that they can't play pre-recorded DVDs or tapes, so you would still need your DVD player or VCR if you rent or purchase movies. However, hybrid devices which combine DVRs/PVRs with a DVD player/recorder and/or VCR are now hitting the market. Those devices would not only get rid of that problem but would also give you the option of permanently transferring a recorded show/movie from a hard drive to a recordable DVD.

Flat screen and flat panel TV technology is also starting to boom. Many people are confused about the difference between flat screen TVs and flat panel TVs. Flat screen TVs use the old cathode ray tube (CRT) technology for their picture tubes and are therefore bulky like traditional TV sets. However, they are different from traditional TV sets in that they have a flat screen. They deliver a picture that doesn't have as much glare as traditional, more round screens. Also, the picture will look the same to everyone in the room, no matter where they are sitting. The picture on a traditional screen looks distorted when viewing it from an angle.

Flat panel TVs, on the other hand, utilize either liquid crystal display (LCD) or plasma technology instead of the old CRT technology and are generally just a few inches thick. Many of them can be hung on a wall. In fact, flat panel TVs that are flatter than a credit card will be coming soon! What's the difference between LCD and plasma? LCD is generally used for flat panel TVs with a display of less than 30 inches and usually has a brighter picture and better contrast than plasma. LCD is used for flat panel computer monitors as well. Plasma is generally used for flat panel TVs with a display of more than 30 inches and has a better color range than LCD. Plasma is becoming more common as TVs get bigger and flatter.

Although I'm not so sure about this one, I will include "entertainment PCs" because of their tremendous potential to revolutionize home entertainment. The concept of "entertainment PCs" is being hailed right now by both Microsoft and Intel. In fact, Microsoft has developed a special operating system for them. They could be used as the hub for all home entertainment and could enhance a family's experience of television, radio/music, and internet and actually help to combine all of these into one. They could be used to download content from the internet and play it on a TV. They could provide such sophisticated TV recording interfaces that VCRs, DVDs, and DVRs/PVRs could all eventually become obsolete. In addition, they could be a better source for photograph and home video editing and processing than regular PCs. With that being said, I'm not so sure that people will be willing to accept PCs as a source of home entertainment. Bill Gates begs to differ and is willing to put his money where his mouth is.

Obviously, not all of the cutting edge electronics technologies mentioned above will meet with great success. Some of them might actually go the way of Betamax, digital audio tape (DAT), and DIVX. However, many of them are sure to catch fire and become such an intricate part of our everyday lives that we'll wonder how we ever got along without them. Which ones will they be? Only time will tell.

About the author:
Terry Mitchell is a software engineer, freelance writer, and trivia buff from Virginia, USA. He operates a website - http://www.commenterry.com- on which he posts commentaries on various subjects such as politics, technology, religion, health and well-being, personal finance, and sports. His commentaries offer a unique point of view that is not often found in meanstream media.

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Important steps in installing a satellite dish

By Chris Joseph


With the recent breakthroughs in the communication world, DSL connection has already become a household term. It has already been launched in various areas across the world; however, obtaining a high-speed access to the Internet via satellite is a technology that is still unavailable to many television users because of lack of facilities. At present, the solution to this limitation can now be achieved through the satellite dish network. Whether you live in an area with DSL access or not, you can now utilize DSL technology to the extreme.
If you intend to use satellite dish for your homes or offices, you must receive transmitted signals through a clear view of the southern hemisphere. You must ensure that your chosen location is free from any obstruction like trees, buildings and other structures that can alter your signal and in effect, cause poor reception. If your site is free from any obstruction, it is not necessary to locate the co-ordinates until later when you decide to install the dish system. When you live within these areas, you can install your dish on a galvanized pole that is cemented in the ground or by positioning it no further than 100 ft. from your area.
To give you a better idea regarding this, here are some steps to install a satellite dish successfully and get it authorized:
„X First, you must know the satellite service in your location. Say, if you live in Europe, you can choose between AFN and Direct to Sailor (DTS). The former has a greater number of channels available but doesn¡¦t have worldwide service while the latter has worldwide coverage but has fewer program channels.

„X Next, you must find the technical information on the satellite that will be used in the whole process. Then, you have to search for the ¡§look angle¡¨ ¡V this is the direction in which the satellite dish has to be pointed to get the signal.

„X Finally, set up the system all together by assembling and pointing the satellite dish, connecting and programming the decoder. After selecting the proper location, you have to distinguish where to mount the dish. To get the best reception possible, it is advisable that you mount the dish outside your home or office such as in surfaces like roofs, decks, chimneys, etc. Most areas will be pre-wired with the correct RG-6 coaxial cable used in both satellite TV and cable services. You must also pre-install external outlets in each room where the televisions are situated. Take note that you must always install RG-6 cable and not any other type of cable.
In addition, you can also place a satellite receiver at the vicinity of the cable outlet in your home or office depending on the number of televisions connected to the satellite system. The said receivers are like a smaller version of a VCR that actually processes the signal from the satellite dish to your TV for sharp, stunning, digital quality pictures.
If the location that you have chosen is questionable and you are planning to install the satellite dish yourself, you might need a compass and position yourself towards the southern hemisphere. You will first need to know the correct azimuth ¡V the horizontal direction of your dish and the direction of the communications satellites in orbit ¡V and your elevation co-ordinance. You have to expect these elements to differ by geographical location.
Furthermore, major satellite TV providers namely: DirecTV and Dish Network have ¡§satellite dish pointing basics¡¨ on their sites that are established by your zip code. And if you intend to make use of terrestrial DSL, the variant via satellite will perfectly suit you. With it, you will benefit both by saving your charges and valuable time. While you pay the low fees for the channels you receive, you can also find service providers that provide you with hundreds of dollars of satellite TV equipment including dish, receivers, etc. for free.


About the author:
chris Joseph is the founder of http:// www.satellite-tv-choice.comand informational web site that teaches
you all about getting a free satellite tv


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RFID for Beginners

By Amie Kandowski

RFID technology is used frequently today and has been around since the 1920s, but not many people know about, or understand it. RFID stands for Radio Frequency Identification and is used to store and retrieve information. This information is stored and retrieved using RFID tags or transponders. RFID tags are small and can be incorporated into many products. The tags have antennas that allow them to receive and respond to radio-frequency queries from an RFID transceiver.

Two Types of RFID Tags

There are two types of RFID tags; active tags, and passive tags. Passive tags do not have their own power supply, but rather receive their power from a tiny electrical current present in the antenna that is induced by an incoming radio frequency scan. Because of the small power present in the system, passive RFID tags are used only in short distances (such as an ID card).

Active RFID tags have a power source and therefore are much stronger and can be used over larger distances and are therefore more highly effective. Active RFID tags also have the potential to store more information than their passive counterparts. Some active RFID tags have a battery life of up to ten years.

The System of RFID

RFID works off of a system that relies on tags, tag readers, tag programming stations, sorting equipment, circulation readers, and tag inventory wands. RFID is generally used in security, because security gates are programmed to read the RFID tags and then either open or close accordingly. The system helps the information be easily transmitted via an RFID device. Systems have evolved over the years along with RFID chips. The hope is that RFID will one day be available to everyone (meaning consumers) because it will be more efficient and cost effective to implement RFID processes.

Where is RFID Used?

RFID can be found almost everywhere. RFID can be found in bookstores and CD stores. The little alarm that sounds if a CD has not been scanned is made possible by an RFID chip. RFID chips are found on animal tags, on books in libraries, in car alarms and car lock systems. RFID can also be used to detect motion. This could be very useful in the coming years in terms of prisons. In 2004 the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction (ODRH) approved a $415,000 contract to test RFID technology in prisons. The idea is that the prisoners will ware wristbands that will watch their movement. If there is any movement, which is out of the ordinary, security will be alerted. This technology will be employed in many states in the coming years.

Conclusion

RFID technology seems to have endless possibilities. Some critics of RFID technology say that it violates the privacy of citizens. This is based on the fact that RFID can be used to track whereabouts of people and obtain personal information. Putting all of this power into a little chip makes it undetectable. However, RFID can also possibly be used in driver’s licenses for faster police scanners, and as a way to monitor hospital patients. With every potentially harmful application of RFID, there are several wonderful applications. It will be interesting to see all of the wonderful applications of RFID in the future.

About the author:
Amie Kandowski enjoys writing about RFID technology and is a writer for the RFID Gazette ( http://www.rfidgazette.org).


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History of the Telephone - From Bell to VoIP and Beyond

By Lucy P. Roberts

Everyone knows the story of Alexander Graham Bell inventing the telephone. There’s the story of Bell’s first words, “Mr. Watson, come here, I want to see you,” that’s indelibly printed on our brains from childhood. However, what some don’t know is that the telephone was developed in a similar form simultaneously by Elisha Gray, who lost the patent battle by only a few hours in 1876.

Bell was successful primarily because he understood not only electricity and the workings of the telegraph, but had a thorough understanding of acoustics, which most inventors weren’t all that familiar with. While focusing on the mechanics, they weren’t taking into account the unique qualities of sound that made transmitting speech so much more complex than simple clicks of the telegraph. With a background in music and acoustics, Bell could address these issues more readily.

Chance happening plays role in acceptance

The telephone may not have gained such wide acceptance if, as if by serendipity, the Centennial Exhibition hadn’t been scheduled in Philadelphia for only a few months later. Tucked away at a small table in an obscure corner, Bell did not hope to garner much attention until he drew the attention of the Emperor Dom Pedro de Alcantara of Brazil, who was amazed by the invention. Immediately, all the scientists in attendance were clamoring to study the new invention.

At first telephones were seen as a fad that were more for entertainment purposes than commerce, until newspapers and banks began grudgingly using them to convey information quickly by virtue of free phone installations. The publicity from this made them immediately more popular and soon phone exchanges were set up in most major cities.

In the 1880’s metallic circuits were developed that allowed for long distance calls, which grew in popularity slowly because of the cost. Later, in the 1890’s, this was overcome by the development of the party line so that families, especially in rural areas, could split the cost of a line.

Direct dial overcomes operator interference

Until 1891, calls were put through by exchange operators, but this was done away with by a Kansas City man who invented the direct dial system because he was paranoid enough to think that the operators were sending his business calls to competitors. He was an undertaker.

In 1927, the first transatlantic call was made over radio waves. During both World Wars, telephone advancements grew by leaps and bounds because of heavy spending by the Defense Department. Innovations resulting from war-time experiments included Bell Telephone’s first mobile telephone system, which connected moving vehicles to landlines via radio. Surprisingly, this was as early as 1946, a year that also saw the development of coaxial cables for major transmission improvements with less interference.

In the 1960’s, telephones were so much a part of the landscape that Bell Telephone could no longer continue to use the alpha-numeric codes for telephone exchanges (remember using numbers like Normandy-7610?) and switched to longer, all numeric numbers. At the same time, transatlantic cables were being laid to accommodate the increased demand for intercontinental telephone communication.

One of the most important shifts in telephone history was the launch of the first telephone satellite in July of 1962. TelStar was a joint venture between Bell and NASA and revolutionized telephone communications like nothing that had come before. Satellites in geosynchronous orbit could now be used for long distance calls without the need for laying endless lines of cable and did away with the problem of frequent cable damage and repair.

Fiber optics move sound at the speed of light

Fiber Optic Cables were first used for telephone transmission in 1977, when both GTE and AT&T laid Fiber Optic lines in Chicago and Boston. By the mid-1980’s, fiber optic cable was the preferred method of telephone transmission, since it could carry a much higher volume of calls with much less interference. Since it also carries information faster and farther and resists lightning strikes, the advantages soon became obvious to the computer and other industries as well.

When the United States government deregulated telephone service, AT&T, the telephone communications giant, was immediately inundated with competition from MCI, Sprint and hundreds of smaller local companies and soon fiber optic lines were snaking around the country, being dropped along side natural rights of way such as gas lines and railroads. Telephone costs dropped and a new telephone service revolution had begun.

Cellular phones take the next step forward

In 1973, Dr. Martin Cooper of Motorola Corporation made what was probably the first cellular telephone call on a portable handset called the Dyna-Tac. After a successful test run, he took it to New York to introduce the technology to the public. By 1977, the cell phone had gone public, but these first models were cumbersome and generally used by those who were used to keeping in touch by two-way radio. By no means were they considered something that everyone should have or even want. They were initially considered a replacement for the mobile phones already in existence. The difference with cellular was the use of small “cells” for range of service in order to increase the capacity of calls handled, dramatically increasing the number of calls capable of being made by mobile/cellular phone at one time in one area.

The first cellular services used analog technology operating at 800 Megahertz in a continuous wave. Over time, the power needs of callers increased and the industry standard moved to a more reliable 1850 MHz with PCS. In 1988, the Cellular Technology Industry Association was formed to develop guidelines for cellular service providers and steer developments and improvements in the cell phone industry. There are now well over 60 million cellular telephone customers, a staggering number for a service that has been commercially available for only thirty years.

Next stop, digital!

While the majority of users still have analog cell phones, the new frontier is definitely digital. Rather than using a continuous wavelength for transmission, digital chops up the wave into discreet bytes of information and sends them in “pulses” of data. The up side to this is that digital signals tend to be more secure when transmitted than analog. It’s also a more efficient use of bandwidth and provides clearer, cleaner sound quality. If you transmit video clips or photos (like with the new video or picture cell phones) digital is much faster, and will be the choice hands-down when you’re integrating the cell phone and the Internet.

There is a caveat; however, in that digital currently transmits through three different technologies. This can lead to some problems with coverage. If you are on a TDMA (time-division multiple access) system and traveling in an area that has digital coverage that’s CDMA (code-division multiple access), you could run into problems.

The answer for now is the combined analog-digital technology that providers are touting. This offers the great coverage of analog when needed and the great speed and quality of PCS/digital.

Telephone conferencing arrives on the scene

The first real “audio conferencing” could be said to have been the party lines set up back in the early years of telephone use, although at that time the advantages of a party line for multiple users weren’t grasped except as a way to save money. In fact, the fact that several people in different locations could pick up and talk on the line at the same time was considered a nuisance and was actively discouraged as “eavesdropping.”

When party lines were phased out, the idea of multiple conversations were forgotten until businesses began seeking ways to carry on meetings via telephone in order to save travel expenses and link teams together over distances. The concept was revisited with new parameters; this time restrictions needed to be in place, and the lines had to be open only when needed and desired.

Soon companies around the globe were offering to coordinate conference calling for companies based on either flat rates, monthly fees or based on call volume, with a trained operator setting up connections between each participant on a dedicated line so that groups of up to ten could talk simultaneously. Their bulk long-distance rates enabled them to pass savings along to their customers.

Telephone manufacturers like Polycom, AT&T and Panasonic also jumped on the bandwagon, developing office telephone systems that enabled users to dial a client, put them on hold then call up a third party and connect the three callers into one conversation.

The Internet soon brought competition, however, to audio conferencing and the cost of long distance telephone calls. Even with lower rates based on bulk purchasing and group rates, Internet telephony is gaining ground on traditional telephone audio conferencing because it’s so much cheaper.

VoIP, the Internet and the eventual demise of traditional telephone conferencing

Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) soon became popular for telephone communications because it avoids the toll charges of standard telephone connections. Dial-up internet connections provided near “toll-quality” voice communications, and with broadband connections the increased data throughput enabled businesses to use VoIP in conjunction with other Internet services like data sharing and video conferencing. With the money saved using VoIP, it seems obvious that using analog phone lines for telephone conferencing will soon be a thing of the past.

Most VoIP audio conferencing technologies give you the capability to network multiple groups or parties from different geographical locations, making it simple to hold an international sales staff meeting. Web conferencing solutions using VoIP from companies such as Voxwire, TTCGlobalTalk and VoiceCafe can provide almost unlimited conference room seats for a meeting, limited only by the bandwidth of the VoIP server.

As the Internet becomes a standard part of any suite of office equipment, analog telephone services, audio conferencing and their equipment will soon become obsolete. Audio conferencing will be done more and more on the Internet using VoIP based web conferencing services offering powerful collaborative services that go beyond just simple voice communications. For placing calls, digital phone services like Vonage and Packet8 that implement VoIP over broadband connections will step in to offer less expensive, more comprehensive calling options to meet the needs of individuals and companies going into the future.

This article on the "The History of the Telephone" reprinted with permission.
Copyright © 2004-2005 Evaluseek Publishing.

About the author:
Lucy P. Roberts is a successful freelance writer providing practical information and advice for consumers and businesses about everything related to audio conferencing services and VoIP providers. Her numerous articles include tips for saving both time and money; product reviews and reports; and other valuable insights for persons searching the Internet for information about how VoIP works and related topics.

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Understanding Email Netiquette

By Trevor Johnson

In life, it is the moral responsibility for the elder to teach the younger, or for the experienced to teach the inexperienced. In internet life, the same moral responsibility applies in regards to correct use of email.

One large difference is that, in internet life, it is very often the younger who are the experienced. The current waves of growth in internet usage, the new users, are largely from the older generations.

Accordingly, it becomes the responsibility of the experienced users to educate and train newer users in the correct usage of email. One simple way of imparting this education to lesser experienced internet users is to politely refer them to this article, either on the page you are currently reading or at http://BestPrac.Org/articles/netiquette.htm

The internet life carries it's own versions of courtesy, privacy and security issues that all users need to know. Hence a new word has entered the vocabulary - Netiquette. (Internet etiquette.)

For example:

In internet and email culture, ALL CAPITALS IS AKIN TO SHOUTING and is universally seen as rude and impolite.
New email users often forget to include a brief "Subject" line on their emails, or do not understand the importance of it. Ordinary postal service "snail-mail" does not ordinarily require a heading about the contents of the letter on the outside of the envelope - though most posted periodicals and many commercial accounts nowadays do identify the contents or level of importance on the outside of the envelope. Email, however, operates very differently from snail-mail. Never omit a subject line, and keep your subject line brief and relevant. Without a subject line, your email will probably be seen as yet another junk email and be deleted unread by the intended recipient. More commonly, it may not even reach the recipient at all. Many ISPs filter suspicious looking emails and delete them without delivery. A blank subject line to an email filter is like waving a red rag in front of a bull.
Never send emails to people you do not know without their express permission. Only send email to people who you know, or who have clearly indicated that they want to receive correspondence from you. Violation of this act of Netiquette can land you in all sorts of trouble. You will be labelled as a spammer. In some states or countries, you risk being charged with criminal or cival violations of the law for sending unsolicited email. Even in countries or states where there is no specific law prohibiting unsolicited email, it is regarded as bad manners and offensive. If you check with your ISP, you will almost always find that they reserve the right to terminate your internet connection if they receive complaints about you for sending unsolicited email.
Even when sending email to people that you do know, only send them what they are likely to want. Not everyone you know wants jokes or other "chain email" forwarded to them. Not everyone shares your sense of humour or has the time while connected at work to be reading frivolous emails. If you like forwarding jokes or other "chain emails" to your friends, check with them first to be sure they are happy to receive them.
Think before you type. Type, then think again. Unlike face-to-face or voice-to-voice communications, the easily and quickly typed email can all too easily be a source for expressing your feelings in the bluntest of ways. Similarly, the hastily written word may lack feelings and not express the emotions that can be sensed with eye contact or voice modulation in other forms of communications. It is too easy to forget that there is a human at the other end - not just a computer. You can very easily damage your own reputation and destroy friendships with thoughtless emails. Once an email is sent, you cannot retrieve it. The damage is done.
While to the experienced user all of the above is simply common sense, as the old saying goes "Common sense is not really all that common." These basics are not innate within the human sole. Newcomers need to be taught.

When to use To:, CC: or BCC:

Another vital area of appropriate email usage goes beyond merely being courteous in your communications - the correct use of To: or CC: or BCC when adding recipients to the email your are sending.

All popular email software and all web-email accounts give you a choice of these three different ways to add a recipient for your email. (Sometimes you might need to check your software menu and enable BCC as a visible option. It is not a visible option by default in all email software, unfortunately.) Your choice has vital privacy and security implications, so it is important to know which to use and when. While "To:" is self explanatory, a brief definition and history of CC: and BCC: will help you understand their correct usage.

CC: is a term from old fashioned typists. It stands for "Carbon Copy". In days of old, prior to photocopiers or word processors with laser printers, copies of letters were made by inserting two sheets of typing with a sheet of carbon paper in between into the typewriter. When a secretary typed a letter that was meant for one person though another person (other other people) was to receive a copy, and the first person was to be informed that a copy was being sent to another person, the typist would add a line under the signature at the end of the letter, along the lines of:

CC: Joe Bloggs.
Jane Smith.

This convention alerted to direct recipient to the fact that the letter had also been sent to other specific people.

If you did not want the direct recipient to know that copies were sent to other people, you'd simply not include a CC: line at the end of the letter.

BCC: stands for "Blind Carbon Copy". It is the electronic equivalent of sending a letter to multiple people without a CC: line. It means that people receive the email without any trace of who else is also receiving it being revealed.

Given those definitions, there are simple guidelines as to when you should use To:, CC: or BCC: in the emails that you send:

If your email is being sent to just one person or email address, place it in the "To:" section.
If your email is being sent to more than one recipient and all the recipients truly need to know who else is receiving it, put all the addresses in the CC: section.
If your email is being sent to more than one recipient but there is no urgent reason for all the recipients to know the names and email addresses of everyone else to whom it is being sent, put all the addresses in the BCC: section.
(Some email software requires at least one address to be placed in the To: section. If yours insists on this when you are trying to send a CC or BCC email, put your own email address in the To: section.)

Understanding these basic principles of email usage has many benefits. It preserves the privacy of your contacts. It prevents lists of names and email addresses being sent to strangers when someone you send an email then forwards it to others. It helps to prevent viruses, worms and trojans being accidentally spread by your friends with out-of-date antivirus programs.

Most of all, it shows the people with whom you communicate that you are sensible and responsible in your online behaviour. It shows that you take their privacy and security seriously. It builds trust in your communications.

About the author:
Trevor Johnson is Chairman of the internationally active Anti Spam organization BestPrac.Org (http://www.BestPrac.Org) which promotes internet industry standards of Best Practice for the Prevention and Elimination of Email Spam.

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