Organizations in today’s competitive world must understand and utilize the value of knowledge management. Knowledge management, the set of business processes developed in an organization to create, store, transfer, and apply knowledge, is a great way to leverage a business because it involves capitalizing on assets already within the company. By using the systems of knowledge management, companies are able to be more effective and efficient while also gaining a strategic advantage over the competition.
Knowledge management involves the compiling of different types of knowledge found within an organization and managing it in such a way that the organization maximizes its potential. The three different types of knowledge generally existing in businesses are structured, semi-structured, and tacit. Structured knowledge includes the explicit knowledge found in formal documents, and usually only comprises about 20% of the company’s knowledge. Semi-structured knowledge consists of the more informal things like e-mail, voice mail, memos, bulletin board postings, and electronic presentations. The last category is tacit knowledge, which refers to the knowledge inside the brains of employees and is rarely recorded on paper or documents.
When a company has a system for compiling the information from the three different types of knowledge found within the entire company that is used for decision-making, it adds value to the company in a very strategically advantageous way. These systems are called enterprise-wide knowledge management systems. The strategic advantage that comes from using these systems is because the source of the knowledge is one that cannot be used by any other competitor. These systems are also very profitable since the knowledge comes from resources already being used within the company and requires no outsourcing or new costs.
To help manage the structured and semi-structured knowledge, business should utilize enterprise content management systems. These systems work with huge amounts of data, documents, communications and decisions and attempt to classify the different pieces of knowledge accordingly so that later it can be recalled and used in decision-making. Some businesses that deal with larger amounts of digital data may choose to use a digital asset management system instead since these specialize in working with digital objects.
The tacit knowledge is where the systems get tricky, and these are called knowledge network systems. A great example of a knowledge network system is a company’s internal help desk. This help desk may appear to be one telephone number that everyone calls when they have a question, but by pressing a certain number sequence, you are routed to a specialist that deals with the certain area of knowledge you are lacking and need help with. Another great example is the FAQ (frequently asked questions) database that can be found with almost anything these days to help you better understand something you don’t but another person is an expert at.
In today’s world, there are many innovative technologies out there that allow companies to internally promote the sharing of knowledge across great distances. For example, a company can use its intranet to host a wiki that is available to every employee for posting of best-practices when dealing with different situations or tasks so that everyone has access to the skills and techniques for working more efficiently and effectively.
Another system example is knowledge work system (KWS). This system is used primarily by engineers, scientists, and others who fit into technical mindset. As the book points out examples include CAD, virtual reality software, virtual reality modeling language, and investment workstations. For engineers it is very important to have access to systems like CAD because it allows for the engineer to use the software and develop 3-dimensional renderings of their product or bridge design. It also allows for showing what parts are going to be used to make the product.
For virtual reality software people can see things and in a “computer setting” and it may seem like another life. Doctors use this type of technology to look at tiny blood vessels. Another example is gamers who use virtual reality to simulate games with others also playing on virtual reality.
Investment workstations are very important to brokers who handle and control money because it allows for all the information to be centralized and easily accessed. These workstations combine information from a variety of external sources with in-house information. This helps to save time and money of everyone involved.
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Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Monday, November 17, 2008
Offshore Call Centers
During the past decade, outsourcing a call center to an overseas destination has become an increasingly attractive option. This is a big change from the previous decade when companies typically had call centers in-house. This change has been brought on through a combination of lower labor costs, state-of-the-art telecommunications infrastructures, and a multilingual and educated workforce overseas, which has assisted struggling U.S. companies reduce costs in a challenging economy. Some of the major countries or districts that provide call center services are: India- Programming, Customer Support; China- Programming; Russia- Programming and R&D; Pakistan- Programming, Customer Support; Bangladesh- Programming and IT; Bulgaria- Programming and R&D; Ukraine- Programming and R&D; Belarus- Programming, R&D; Romania- Programming and IT; Philippines- Data Entry and Customer Support; Egypt- Customer Support and Programming; Malaysia- Customer Support and R&D.
After squeezing out all the potential productivity improvements in the domestic call centers, many Fortune 500 companies, such as GE, American Express, Sprint, and Dell, and many more, went "offshore" to further improve their cost-effectiveness by as much as 60%. Labor costs in domestic call centers makes up 70% of operating expenses, and in offshore facilities the labor costs are a mere 10% of those in the U.S. because employees in offshore facilities are willing to work at a fraction of domestic wages. The savings resulting from these cost advantages, for some companies, has been upwards of $250 million annually.
Offshore call centers employ university graduates from their enormous pools of skilled labor of approximately 2 million English-speaking college graduates and 300,000 post-graduates annually. Some Fortune 500 companies have started investing in local overseas communities so they can attract people and train them for their call centers. These multinationals have created new career opportunities for graduates looking for rewarding careers. With higher skilled employees, offshore call centers have achieved total satisfaction ratings of 92% versus the U.S’s 85%, along with 20% more transactions per hour than domestic facilities. These employees are committed to a call center career, and do not consider it just a temporary job.
Outsourcing started with simple, transaction-oriented, non-customer-facing work like back-office processing. Now it has evolved to e-mail, live inbound and outbound calls, human resources, accounting and bookkeeping, legal processing, transcription services, writing and editing, software development, web site designing, and knowledge processing transactions. These interactions were initially relatively simple, but are now much more complex requiring a superior infrastructure providing greater efficiency, scalability, value-added analytics, and integration with other systems.
To meet these fast changing complex needs and provide a superior service, offshore call centers are investing in state-of-the-art infrastructures consisting of networks with multiple domains; more than 150+ computers with high speed Pentium 4 processors, 1GB of DDR each, with 17” Samsung color monitors and 17” TFTs; Asterisks based IBM servers; IBM database servers; Mikrotik based IBM servers; FTP IBM servers (Internal as well external); wireless CISCO Routers working as a external gateway with maximum speed up to 108 Mbps; CISCO SRW-224G4 (REAL SWITCH) with 24 ports; MP-124 (Audio code with 24 ports); direct international lines VOIPs; and CISCO DES- 1024 R (Internal or fake switch with 24 ports).
Since offshore call centers offer a cost effective service consisting of a well-educated workforce supported by a superior IT infrastructure US companies are wising up and are taking advantage of this money saving method of doing business, especially during these times of economic uncertainty.
From a personal perspective, calling offshore call centers can become frustrating if the operator does not speak fluent English. One of the members in the group posting this blog works with call centers, most of them offshore, on a daily basis by acquiring information from insurance companies that have outsourced overseas, and unfortunately, employs workers who do not speak fluent English. This makes for a frustrating transaction when often the call involves time sensitive insurance matters involving payment of claims where information needs to be exchanged as quickly as possible. We have seen that offshore call centers have invested in superior IT infrastructures to meet the fast changing complex technology needs of their customers. Now, maybe these call centers will recognize the need for an equally superior group of fluent English speaking employees and invest in the much-needed English language instructional classes.
Our group would like to post a question for discussion: Do you think, with the economy the way that it is, that we should be outsourcing call center jobs, or do you think that we should try to keep these jobs in the US?
After squeezing out all the potential productivity improvements in the domestic call centers, many Fortune 500 companies, such as GE, American Express, Sprint, and Dell, and many more, went "offshore" to further improve their cost-effectiveness by as much as 60%. Labor costs in domestic call centers makes up 70% of operating expenses, and in offshore facilities the labor costs are a mere 10% of those in the U.S. because employees in offshore facilities are willing to work at a fraction of domestic wages. The savings resulting from these cost advantages, for some companies, has been upwards of $250 million annually.
Offshore call centers employ university graduates from their enormous pools of skilled labor of approximately 2 million English-speaking college graduates and 300,000 post-graduates annually. Some Fortune 500 companies have started investing in local overseas communities so they can attract people and train them for their call centers. These multinationals have created new career opportunities for graduates looking for rewarding careers. With higher skilled employees, offshore call centers have achieved total satisfaction ratings of 92% versus the U.S’s 85%, along with 20% more transactions per hour than domestic facilities. These employees are committed to a call center career, and do not consider it just a temporary job.
Outsourcing started with simple, transaction-oriented, non-customer-facing work like back-office processing. Now it has evolved to e-mail, live inbound and outbound calls, human resources, accounting and bookkeeping, legal processing, transcription services, writing and editing, software development, web site designing, and knowledge processing transactions. These interactions were initially relatively simple, but are now much more complex requiring a superior infrastructure providing greater efficiency, scalability, value-added analytics, and integration with other systems.
To meet these fast changing complex needs and provide a superior service, offshore call centers are investing in state-of-the-art infrastructures consisting of networks with multiple domains; more than 150+ computers with high speed Pentium 4 processors, 1GB of DDR each, with 17” Samsung color monitors and 17” TFTs; Asterisks based IBM servers; IBM database servers; Mikrotik based IBM servers; FTP IBM servers (Internal as well external); wireless CISCO Routers working as a external gateway with maximum speed up to 108 Mbps; CISCO SRW-224G4 (REAL SWITCH) with 24 ports; MP-124 (Audio code with 24 ports); direct international lines VOIPs; and CISCO DES- 1024 R (Internal or fake switch with 24 ports).
Since offshore call centers offer a cost effective service consisting of a well-educated workforce supported by a superior IT infrastructure US companies are wising up and are taking advantage of this money saving method of doing business, especially during these times of economic uncertainty.
From a personal perspective, calling offshore call centers can become frustrating if the operator does not speak fluent English. One of the members in the group posting this blog works with call centers, most of them offshore, on a daily basis by acquiring information from insurance companies that have outsourced overseas, and unfortunately, employs workers who do not speak fluent English. This makes for a frustrating transaction when often the call involves time sensitive insurance matters involving payment of claims where information needs to be exchanged as quickly as possible. We have seen that offshore call centers have invested in superior IT infrastructures to meet the fast changing complex technology needs of their customers. Now, maybe these call centers will recognize the need for an equally superior group of fluent English speaking employees and invest in the much-needed English language instructional classes.
Our group would like to post a question for discussion: Do you think, with the economy the way that it is, that we should be outsourcing call center jobs, or do you think that we should try to keep these jobs in the US?
Electronic Payment Systems
There are many different systems used today that make cash or check completely obsolete. They include digital wallets, micropayment, accumulated balance digital payment systems, stored balue payment systems, digital checking, and electronic billing presentment and payment systems.
A digital wallet allows users to make electronic commerce transactions quickly and securely. It is also known as e-wallet. One of the more well known forms of digital wallet is Paypal. The software provdes security and encryption for personal information and transactions. It allows users to shop without having to re-key their personal information every time they make a transaction. The technology is not only a software program, but it is also an information component. It is basically a database for user-inputted information. The database consist of the users shipping address, billing address, payment information and other important data.Digitial wallet has become a valuable part of Ebay. Ebay uses the technology for practically every transaction processed by its users.
Micropayment systems were brought about for those payments in very small amounts. Some non-ecommerce examples are toll booths and bus fees. This system becomes very obsolete, however, when dealing with credit cards because of the bank charges associated with each transaction.
Some micropayment systems will build an amount and then charge a larger sum for just that reason. These systems are called accumulated balance digital payment system. They will charge every month for the usage after the balance accumulates. An example of this is Vodafone.
Stored value payment systems are becoming more and more popular with each year. The primary reason for this is that more and more people are using the internet for literally everything. From purchasing clothes and food, to shoping for engagement rings. What this system does is holds the payment information in a bank for later use. One well known example of it is Paypal, which is a peer to peer. However, other websites, like AOP.org (a homeschooling cirriculum purchasing website) will store the information in their systems with a set up log in. This type is called a merchant platform.
Back in the 70's and 80's check writing became a basic form of payment. Problems came about later on the years where one would write a check and later "bounce" due to insufficient funds. This type of activity cause banks, retailers, and consumer to shell out expensive fees if the check was not recovered nor resolved. Out came in 2004 the "Check Clearing for the 21st Century Act" also know as Check 21. This practically removed barriers to paper electronic check processing. How this works was if a consumer pays for goods and services with a check, it automatically gets scanned online, to verify funds where normally would take days for the merchant to receive money now would take hours to move funds once payment is applied, instead of days. This act help reduce "paperwork", and help accelerate cash flow to businesses and other organizations. The use of the internet as a medium to clear payment via a checking account has made business e commerce more popular. The efficiency and speed of the transactions help move goods and services more rapidly. The digital checking movement created more business opportunities online than other retailer handling personal paper checks. According to Fed experts, by 2010 the paper check processing should completely decline rapidly. This should make transactions more than ever quicker and safer in the future.
Last, but not least, we have electronic billing presentment and payment systems. These systems are generally used in an automatic payment type. A really good example that many people use, in Arkansas, is CheckFree. This is Entergy's online payment system. You store your information in your CheckFree account and can set up automatic drafts to your checking or savings account to pay your bill. You can also add other bills that allow CheckFree use, like Dell, to your portfolio.Last, but not least, we have electronic billing presentment and payment systems. These systems are generally used in an automatic payment type. A really good example that many people use, in Arkansas, is CheckFree. This is Entergy's online payment system. You store your information in your CheckFree account and can set up automatic drafts to your checking or savings account to pay your bill. You can also add other bills that allow CheckFree use, like Dell, to your portfolio.
A digital wallet allows users to make electronic commerce transactions quickly and securely. It is also known as e-wallet. One of the more well known forms of digital wallet is Paypal. The software provdes security and encryption for personal information and transactions. It allows users to shop without having to re-key their personal information every time they make a transaction. The technology is not only a software program, but it is also an information component. It is basically a database for user-inputted information. The database consist of the users shipping address, billing address, payment information and other important data.Digitial wallet has become a valuable part of Ebay. Ebay uses the technology for practically every transaction processed by its users.
Micropayment systems were brought about for those payments in very small amounts. Some non-ecommerce examples are toll booths and bus fees. This system becomes very obsolete, however, when dealing with credit cards because of the bank charges associated with each transaction.
Some micropayment systems will build an amount and then charge a larger sum for just that reason. These systems are called accumulated balance digital payment system. They will charge every month for the usage after the balance accumulates. An example of this is Vodafone.
Stored value payment systems are becoming more and more popular with each year. The primary reason for this is that more and more people are using the internet for literally everything. From purchasing clothes and food, to shoping for engagement rings. What this system does is holds the payment information in a bank for later use. One well known example of it is Paypal, which is a peer to peer. However, other websites, like AOP.org (a homeschooling cirriculum purchasing website) will store the information in their systems with a set up log in. This type is called a merchant platform.
Back in the 70's and 80's check writing became a basic form of payment. Problems came about later on the years where one would write a check and later "bounce" due to insufficient funds. This type of activity cause banks, retailers, and consumer to shell out expensive fees if the check was not recovered nor resolved. Out came in 2004 the "Check Clearing for the 21st Century Act" also know as Check 21. This practically removed barriers to paper electronic check processing. How this works was if a consumer pays for goods and services with a check, it automatically gets scanned online, to verify funds where normally would take days for the merchant to receive money now would take hours to move funds once payment is applied, instead of days. This act help reduce "paperwork", and help accelerate cash flow to businesses and other organizations. The use of the internet as a medium to clear payment via a checking account has made business e commerce more popular. The efficiency and speed of the transactions help move goods and services more rapidly. The digital checking movement created more business opportunities online than other retailer handling personal paper checks. According to Fed experts, by 2010 the paper check processing should completely decline rapidly. This should make transactions more than ever quicker and safer in the future.
Last, but not least, we have electronic billing presentment and payment systems. These systems are generally used in an automatic payment type. A really good example that many people use, in Arkansas, is CheckFree. This is Entergy's online payment system. You store your information in your CheckFree account and can set up automatic drafts to your checking or savings account to pay your bill. You can also add other bills that allow CheckFree use, like Dell, to your portfolio.Last, but not least, we have electronic billing presentment and payment systems. These systems are generally used in an automatic payment type. A really good example that many people use, in Arkansas, is CheckFree. This is Entergy's online payment system. You store your information in your CheckFree account and can set up automatic drafts to your checking or savings account to pay your bill. You can also add other bills that allow CheckFree use, like Dell, to your portfolio.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Decision Making
The decision-making process is something that each company must go through if they want to succeed as a business. This is done through four different stages including intelligence, design, choice and implementation. Within the decision-making process, there are three different types of decision. Unstructured decisions are usually made by senior management and can include approving the overall budget and company goals. Structured decisions are usually made by individual employees and usually involve simple and routine decisions. The last are semistructured decisions that are usually made by middle management and can include departmental decisions.
Going back to the decision-making process, we can easily see that making a decision for a company should not be taken lightly. If you are in a management position and have the authority to make decisions, you are not only affecting the bottom line of the company, but also your employees. If a decision is the wrong one, it could cost them their jobs. On the other hand, a good decision made by following the process can help your company become one of the best.
There are a few different systems that support decision-making and each affect the business in a different way. The Management information system (MIS) helps a business by providing imperative reports that affect the bottom line for a company or show how different employees are performing. A decision-support system (DSS) supports more unstructured decisions. It is made up of several components that allow for data information and analysis. Executive support systems help the upper management of a company by realizing what information they need and pulling it together quickly. Lastly, a group decision-support system is interactive and allows decision makers to come together on the computer to discuss options. These are usually web-based.
All of these processes come together to form some of the most successful companies in our world today. I think if you live in the Little Rock area, lately you may have noticed some articles referring to Dillard’s and how some of the shareholders want to oust the current CEO, William Dillard, Jr. From the articles we’ve read, it can be seen that in making his decisions for the company, the shareholders do not believe he has followed the decision making process in because of that, profits have fallen. This mistake has caused the shareholders to ask for his removal and to figure out how they can make the profits of Dillard’s rise again.
One example that comes to mind of good decision making is that of Sam Walton. When he started Wal-Mart, it was not based just on him making money, but on providing for the communities. The decisions that Sam Walton made and that his family has made in the past has brought that company to what it is now. Wal-Mart supercenters are actually now the largest food retailer in the United States and handles 30 percent or more of the total national sales for products. So whether you like to shop at Wal-Mart or not, we have to give credit to Sam Walton for the decisions he made to build such a successful business.
Going back to the decision-making process, we can easily see that making a decision for a company should not be taken lightly. If you are in a management position and have the authority to make decisions, you are not only affecting the bottom line of the company, but also your employees. If a decision is the wrong one, it could cost them their jobs. On the other hand, a good decision made by following the process can help your company become one of the best.
There are a few different systems that support decision-making and each affect the business in a different way. The Management information system (MIS) helps a business by providing imperative reports that affect the bottom line for a company or show how different employees are performing. A decision-support system (DSS) supports more unstructured decisions. It is made up of several components that allow for data information and analysis. Executive support systems help the upper management of a company by realizing what information they need and pulling it together quickly. Lastly, a group decision-support system is interactive and allows decision makers to come together on the computer to discuss options. These are usually web-based.
All of these processes come together to form some of the most successful companies in our world today. I think if you live in the Little Rock area, lately you may have noticed some articles referring to Dillard’s and how some of the shareholders want to oust the current CEO, William Dillard, Jr. From the articles we’ve read, it can be seen that in making his decisions for the company, the shareholders do not believe he has followed the decision making process in because of that, profits have fallen. This mistake has caused the shareholders to ask for his removal and to figure out how they can make the profits of Dillard’s rise again.
One example that comes to mind of good decision making is that of Sam Walton. When he started Wal-Mart, it was not based just on him making money, but on providing for the communities. The decisions that Sam Walton made and that his family has made in the past has brought that company to what it is now. Wal-Mart supercenters are actually now the largest food retailer in the United States and handles 30 percent or more of the total national sales for products. So whether you like to shop at Wal-Mart or not, we have to give credit to Sam Walton for the decisions he made to build such a successful business.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
E-commerce
Have you ever wanted to go shopping, but you didn’t have anyone to watch the kids? What about wanting to go shopping, but the store isn’t in your hometown? E-commerce can help in these situations. More and more people are turning to the internet to do their shopping. It is convenient because you never have to leave the house, and you have a larger selection of things to choose from. Example, here in Little Rock we don't have a Macy's or Nordstrom’s. You can shop both these stores online and order whatever you find. While most shopping is still traditional, "e-commerce revenue represents about 5 percent of all retail sales in the U.S. and there is tremendous upside potential for growth." (pg. 313, MIS textbook)
E-commerce has many aspects that makes if different and better that traditional shopping. The textbook describes e-commerce as ubiquitous. This basically means that the t is available everywhere! You can reach the internet from your home, work, or even car! This creates a huge marketspace. Another great things about e-commerce is that it has universal standards. The standards for the internet are basically the same world wide. This aspect of e-commerce lowers the market entry cost. With e-commerce you have an unbelievable about of product differentiation, and it is easy to comparison shop! E-commerce opens a consumer up to the world! A person in the United States could easily shop in Paris from their living room, in their pajamas! How cool is that?
E-commerce has entered into our daily lives in one way or another. There are three different types of e-commerce; business-to-business, business-to-consumer, and consumer-to-consumer. Can you tell which one the group members have experienced?
Group member Lori said, “I like to shop on e-bay. I can find everything I need right there, and the prices are unbeatable!” If you guessed consumer-to-consumer, you got it!
When group member Renita was asked about e-commerce she replied, “ I love shopping online. It is very convenient, I have small children and getting to the mall or other stores is not always an option. So being able to get online and buy what I want or need is perfect. I shop at a lot of stores that we don't have here. So many people are looking for convenience these days and the stores have made it easy for us. Also with the Black Friday (Day after Thanksgiving) sales coming up a lot of people will be shopping online rather than going to stand in long lines at the store.” Did you guess business-to-consumer? This is what group member Justin had to say, “Not only people shopping online, but businesses as well. My civilian job is with Best Buy. I know first hand that all of the ordering is done by computers now. When something gets low on stock the computer system recognizes that it needs to order more. The funny thing about this way of doing business is that it doesn't take people anymore, it is done by the "all powerful computers." Doing business this way can be very useful, but it can hurt the company as well if it is not carefully monitored by employees. What I mean is that, you need someone dedicated to inventory. Having someone dedicated to inventory gives you the peace of mind that the computer system is correct and it also helps with loss prevention.” That’s it, business-to-business! Group member Brittney said, “ I get to experience all three types! I love shopping online at Buckle and Victoria Secret! I live over an hour away from either of these stores, so online shopping is the key. I also find good deals on textbooks through e-bay’s half.com. I have also bought parts for my job through other online companies. E-commerce is great!”
These are just a few examples of how e-commerce can affect your life. Have you thought about how it affects yours? It provides more options, saves time, and sometimes even money. Take a minute to think about where you would be without e-commerce. Don’t worry though, e-commerce is not going anywhere, only growing!
E-commerce has many aspects that makes if different and better that traditional shopping. The textbook describes e-commerce as ubiquitous. This basically means that the t is available everywhere! You can reach the internet from your home, work, or even car! This creates a huge marketspace. Another great things about e-commerce is that it has universal standards. The standards for the internet are basically the same world wide. This aspect of e-commerce lowers the market entry cost. With e-commerce you have an unbelievable about of product differentiation, and it is easy to comparison shop! E-commerce opens a consumer up to the world! A person in the United States could easily shop in Paris from their living room, in their pajamas! How cool is that?
E-commerce has entered into our daily lives in one way or another. There are three different types of e-commerce; business-to-business, business-to-consumer, and consumer-to-consumer. Can you tell which one the group members have experienced?
Group member Lori said, “I like to shop on e-bay. I can find everything I need right there, and the prices are unbeatable!” If you guessed consumer-to-consumer, you got it!
When group member Renita was asked about e-commerce she replied, “ I love shopping online. It is very convenient, I have small children and getting to the mall or other stores is not always an option. So being able to get online and buy what I want or need is perfect. I shop at a lot of stores that we don't have here. So many people are looking for convenience these days and the stores have made it easy for us. Also with the Black Friday (Day after Thanksgiving) sales coming up a lot of people will be shopping online rather than going to stand in long lines at the store.” Did you guess business-to-consumer? This is what group member Justin had to say, “Not only people shopping online, but businesses as well. My civilian job is with Best Buy. I know first hand that all of the ordering is done by computers now. When something gets low on stock the computer system recognizes that it needs to order more. The funny thing about this way of doing business is that it doesn't take people anymore, it is done by the "all powerful computers." Doing business this way can be very useful, but it can hurt the company as well if it is not carefully monitored by employees. What I mean is that, you need someone dedicated to inventory. Having someone dedicated to inventory gives you the peace of mind that the computer system is correct and it also helps with loss prevention.” That’s it, business-to-business! Group member Brittney said, “ I get to experience all three types! I love shopping online at Buckle and Victoria Secret! I live over an hour away from either of these stores, so online shopping is the key. I also find good deals on textbooks through e-bay’s half.com. I have also bought parts for my job through other online companies. E-commerce is great!”
These are just a few examples of how e-commerce can affect your life. Have you thought about how it affects yours? It provides more options, saves time, and sometimes even money. Take a minute to think about where you would be without e-commerce. Don’t worry though, e-commerce is not going anywhere, only growing!
Monday, November 3, 2008
Wireless Sensor Networks
Everyone wants to be wireless because of the conveniences it offers, but what exactly does being wireless mean? Does the conveniences match up or exceed the security vulnerabilities?
One Group Two member stated she has always connected to the internet on a desktop and now signs posted in the windows of businesses and the constant chum of WiFi conversations have peeked her interest to what a WiFi is. So what exactly is a WiFi? Research informs Group Two that WiFi is a wireless network that allows internet connectivity by the use of radio waves, minus the dangling wires. The same concept is used in cell phones, yet the frequencies are greater in WiFi connections, allowing for more data to be transferred at a time. Much the same idea as when our nose or tongue sends sensory information to our brain. However, just because one enters a location that advertises WiFi, he must have the capabilities on his laptop in order to connect. One requirement is already met if a fairly new laptop is being used as they are all now sold with internet-ready accessibility of an internal wireless transmitter. If an older laptop is used, a wireless adapter can be purchased that fits into the USB port or PC card slot. The laptop will then automatically search for a neighboring WiFi hotspot and ask if the user wants to connect to it. However, these networks usually contain many other users riding on the same free connection. This will slow down activity and even make the computer susceptible to security breaches. The setting on a laptop that allows automatic searches and connectivity for any available and unrestricted network can be turned off. There is yet another control for even greater security named the Media Access Control. The physical address of the computer must be verified before accessing the network by specifying authorized addresses at the installation of the router. Albeit, the security risk is manageable and does not compare to the convenience that wireless provides. One can move from place to place without being bound by wires. Now that’s a true advantage!
One can even have wireless internet in the comfort of his own home or during transport without a hotspot. Assessing the web is a cinch with a network card from an internet service provider or cell phone company. They are termed “air cards”. So if one is hanging on to a landline just to use dial-up or DSL to connect to the internet, the air card replaces landlines easily and with mobility options.
Another option is to get a wireless router, which would let you access the internet anywhere in your house within a certain distance of the router. The transmission uses an antennae on the router either internally or externally, which connects computers with wireless signals. With the advent of wireless keyboards, mouses, and even printers, the inconvenience of having lots of different wires is soon to become a mere memory. However, it is necessary that the router is compatible to the configurations of your laptop or it may not initially work correctly. More research and shopping will need to be done to make it work, so it is suggestive to get compatible systems initially.
There are many types of wireless networks and they are used in many more methods than with laptops, computers, cell phones, and the bluetooth. Much to Group Two’s surprise, it was learned that wireless sensor networks (WSN) are used in the production of grapes. It seems grapes are highly affected by the environment. The WSN monitors the physical and chemical characteristics of the soil and makes determinations about when to harvest and making wine production a process that can be monitored for a desired result.
WSN’s are also being implemented in the field of health care. They are used to measure heart rates and oxygen saturation levels in the blood. They soon will be used to monitor patients with heart disease, sleep apnea and asthma. They are used as alarms and monitor real time for instant and continuous processing. Once again the convenience of wireless...sensing without being present; what an idea!
WSNs were originally used by the military for battlefield surveillance purposes. They are commonly used to monitor, track, or control. An interesting application of WSNs while monitoring for the military is they can detect when an enemy intrudes a certain perimeter. In the past, landmines were used for the same purpose. Landmines can remain active for up to 50 years and they have killed or injured over a million people since 1975. So WSNs are a good example of technology saving lives.
Wireless technology is rapidly expanding. It is in libraries, hospitals, homes, hotels, coffee shops and just moments away from being in the nearest public restrooms thanks to the boundless innovations of those at Google!
One Group Two member stated she has always connected to the internet on a desktop and now signs posted in the windows of businesses and the constant chum of WiFi conversations have peeked her interest to what a WiFi is. So what exactly is a WiFi? Research informs Group Two that WiFi is a wireless network that allows internet connectivity by the use of radio waves, minus the dangling wires. The same concept is used in cell phones, yet the frequencies are greater in WiFi connections, allowing for more data to be transferred at a time. Much the same idea as when our nose or tongue sends sensory information to our brain. However, just because one enters a location that advertises WiFi, he must have the capabilities on his laptop in order to connect. One requirement is already met if a fairly new laptop is being used as they are all now sold with internet-ready accessibility of an internal wireless transmitter. If an older laptop is used, a wireless adapter can be purchased that fits into the USB port or PC card slot. The laptop will then automatically search for a neighboring WiFi hotspot and ask if the user wants to connect to it. However, these networks usually contain many other users riding on the same free connection. This will slow down activity and even make the computer susceptible to security breaches. The setting on a laptop that allows automatic searches and connectivity for any available and unrestricted network can be turned off. There is yet another control for even greater security named the Media Access Control. The physical address of the computer must be verified before accessing the network by specifying authorized addresses at the installation of the router. Albeit, the security risk is manageable and does not compare to the convenience that wireless provides. One can move from place to place without being bound by wires. Now that’s a true advantage!
One can even have wireless internet in the comfort of his own home or during transport without a hotspot. Assessing the web is a cinch with a network card from an internet service provider or cell phone company. They are termed “air cards”. So if one is hanging on to a landline just to use dial-up or DSL to connect to the internet, the air card replaces landlines easily and with mobility options.
Another option is to get a wireless router, which would let you access the internet anywhere in your house within a certain distance of the router. The transmission uses an antennae on the router either internally or externally, which connects computers with wireless signals. With the advent of wireless keyboards, mouses, and even printers, the inconvenience of having lots of different wires is soon to become a mere memory. However, it is necessary that the router is compatible to the configurations of your laptop or it may not initially work correctly. More research and shopping will need to be done to make it work, so it is suggestive to get compatible systems initially.
There are many types of wireless networks and they are used in many more methods than with laptops, computers, cell phones, and the bluetooth. Much to Group Two’s surprise, it was learned that wireless sensor networks (WSN) are used in the production of grapes. It seems grapes are highly affected by the environment. The WSN monitors the physical and chemical characteristics of the soil and makes determinations about when to harvest and making wine production a process that can be monitored for a desired result.
WSN’s are also being implemented in the field of health care. They are used to measure heart rates and oxygen saturation levels in the blood. They soon will be used to monitor patients with heart disease, sleep apnea and asthma. They are used as alarms and monitor real time for instant and continuous processing. Once again the convenience of wireless...sensing without being present; what an idea!
WSNs were originally used by the military for battlefield surveillance purposes. They are commonly used to monitor, track, or control. An interesting application of WSNs while monitoring for the military is they can detect when an enemy intrudes a certain perimeter. In the past, landmines were used for the same purpose. Landmines can remain active for up to 50 years and they have killed or injured over a million people since 1975. So WSNs are a good example of technology saving lives.
Wireless technology is rapidly expanding. It is in libraries, hospitals, homes, hotels, coffee shops and just moments away from being in the nearest public restrooms thanks to the boundless innovations of those at Google!
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Computer Forensics
The world is becoming a smaller place to live and work. We bank electronically, and are more likely to receive an email than a letter. Criminal activity has, to a large extent, also converted from a physical dimension to a cyber dimension. As early as 1984, the FBI Laboratory and other law enforcement agencies began developing programs to examine computer evidence. For the most part these examinations were scattered throughout the agency but now it appears to be trending toward moving to a laboratory environment. Computer Forensics is defined as “the science of identifying, recovering, extracting, preserving, and documenting ESI (Electronically Stored Information) so that it can be presented as evidence in a court of law.” This science was created to address the specific needs of law enforcement in order to make the most of the electronic evidence. Computer forensics has been an evidence gathering tool of technology-related investigations and intelligence gathering in law enforcement and military agencies since the mid-1980s. However, only since 1999 have the tools been developed that make the examination process comprehensive, expedient, and financially feasible.
There are five basic steps to the computer forensic process: Preparation of the investigator, Collection of the data, Examination of the data, Analysis of the data, and Reporting of the findings.
The investigators must first acquire the equipment that is needed for each investigation. This equipment can include the normal equipment that is used in a traditional forensic investigation, such as cameras, notepads, crime scene tape, cable tags, and stick-on labels. It can also include equipment to help with the operating systems, data recovery software, disk imaging software, encryption decoding software, and file viewers. Investigators should try to never use the original media that is collected as evidence because that evidence needs to be preserved. They should also be aware of the court rules that are in place for evidence and be sure to follow these rules closely.
According to a veteran law enforcement officer and trainer, the most important aspect of computer forensic investigation is gathering the evidence. He said that all the computer technology in the world for forensics is only as good as the evidence (input) that is used. So when the officers or detectives arrive on the scene is imperative that the scene remain sterile. It is also imperative that evidence is gathered using proper procedures as not to contaminate the evidence. Once all the evidence has been gathered, the data can be put into the computers and various other machines, labs, etc. It really is amazing all the information that investigators can glean from the technology. However, again he stressed that the computers are only as good as their human counterparts. If the data input has been contaminated or gathered in a manner that is inconsistent with proper protocol, then the output from the forensics will not be good.
Computer forensic examinations are conducted in forensic laboratories, data processing departments, and in some cases, the detective’s squad room. Computer evidence represented by physical items such as chips, boards, central processing units, storage media, monitors, and printers can be described easily and correctly as a unique form of physical evidence. Although forensic laboratories are very good at ensuring the integrity of the physical items in their control, computer forensics also requires methods to ensure the integrity of the information contained within those physical items. The challenge to computer forensic science is to develop methods and techniques that provide valid and reliable results while protecting the real evidence from harm. Evidence can be found in many different forms: financial records, word processing documents, diaries, spreadsheets, databases, e-mail, pictures, movies, sound files, etc. There is a lot of information that is stored in a computer of which most users are unaware. A forensic examiner can usually tell what a computer was used for, when it was used, what the user has done on the Internet (and when), and recover much of what the user wrote, read or viewed on the computer. Examiners can find deleted files. They may not get the entire file, but they can get some of it.
Evidence to be analyzed must be information uncovered during an investigation. With average storage capacities approaching 30 gigabytes and systems with 60 GB available it is likely to be impossible to completely and exhaustively examine every file stored on a seized system. There may also be legal prohibitions against searching every file (example: doctor files-patient privacy). To keep the seized evidence intact and unaltered they try to make a copy of files to do the investigation from and then leave the original intact and unaltered. Unlike most investigation the evidence from computers will not always be the same, like fingerprints or DNA, each case will have different information to be analyzed. This leads to different policies of collection, examination and analyzing. Computer forensic science is also almost entirely technology and market driven, generally outside the laboratory setting, and the examinations present unique variations in almost every situation.
The final step in a computer forensic investigation is the report writing. This is actually the one of the greatest tasks of the forensic analyst because they must put the data together in such as way as to be readable for the intended audience. If the judge and jury in a court case cannot understand the evidence being submitted, it is unlikely that they will be swayed by the evidence in their decision making process. Disorganized and poorly written reports can jeopardize a case. There are websites that are aimed at helping these professionals to write good, detailed reports. There is even a website with a template to ensure that the report writer has all the necessary information in the report. That template is located at http://computer-forensics.privacyresources.org/forensic-template.htm Computer forensics is one of the many career opportunities for the skilled IT professional that would prove to be very interesting and challenging.
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