Computer Technology Guide

Robots have been around as long as we can remember, but until relatively recently, their impact on our lives has been limited to the movie screen. However, they’ve come a long way since the “Danger Will Robinson!” robot from the television series Lost in Space. Advances in processing power, software algorithms, and motor miniaturization have allowed for the creation of some truly amazing mechanical creatures.

One of the most compelling robots is one created by Aldebaran Robotics called the Nao Bot. This robot is almost eerie in its ability to mimic human movements. It is fitted with optical, audio, and capacitive (touch) sensors to allow it to react to a variety of stimuli from its environment including voice and hand signals. It can even work together with other Nao Bots. While not really able to sort laundry or clean the dishes independently, it can do a pretty impressive dance number. Sony has its own version as well.

Not all robots are for entertainment purposes. You may have seen the disc-shaped robot in stores (I saw one at Target the other day) that vacuums floors independently. One company, iRobot Corporation, offers a line of specially designed robots that vacuum floors, clean swimming pools, and even clean out gutters with little or no interaction. The cost of these robots varies from $100 up to about $500 depending on the features that you want.

Have you ever wished you had a helper for moving a bulky item like a table or piece of drywall? Well now there is a robot developed by Masaaki Kumagai and Takaya Ochiai at the Tohoku Gakuin University in Japan that can balance on a ball so effectively that it is capable of carrying relatively heavy loads without falling over. Although not yet available at your local Lowes, this technology shows great promise for practical applications.

These are only a few of the robots that are being developed and even sold commercially. From hospitals to factories to homes, robots are beginning to make their way into our lives. The day when one of these mechanical helpers are as commonplace in our homes as a computer may not be far away.

Today we live in a world where technology is an active player in our live, ensuring that we have within reach all the information we need to perform our daily tasks, no matter where we are located (home, office, school, train…etc.). In recent years, thanks to the development of new technologies and innovative products (such as: smartphones, netbooks, PDAs, e-readers…etc.) information has become more accessible than ever, and the stream of information available has suffered a noticeable increase.

Even more, the recent advancements in technology, especially in the communication area, have changed the way we work, the way we communicate with one another, and also the way we learn. Regarding the latter domain “learning and teaching”, a major difference in the way we learn and teach today, was brought about by E-learning.

E-learning is what we know today as “electronic learning and teaching”: electronic applications employed in the form of: “Web-based learning, computer-based training, virtual classrooms or digital collaboration”. By employing E-learning, the information reaches the user much faster, via the internet / intranet, CD-ROM…etc., and it has the advantage of being delivered in all sorts of formats: text, image, animation and also video or audio formats.

The advancements in technology and the decreasing costs, have allowed an increase in the number of users who attend on-line institutions. According to estimates, in 2006 more than 3.5 million students were attending on-line courses at institutions of higher education in the U.S.A. This number is expected to increase in the following years to such an extent, that by 2014, 81% of the students (from U.S.A.) enrolled in a post-secondary institution will be taking most part of their courses on-line.

Thanks to the numerous advantages offered by e-learning, this kind of education is becoming more and more popular, prevailing over traditional higher form of education. One such benefit is the (fast) accessibility to information no matter where we are located in the world. Another is flexibility: with a basic Internet connection and a PC, anyone can have access 24×7 to online courses. Last but not least, it helps learners to develop a set of digital competences and skills which will be useful in their day by day activities.

Other positive aspects of E-learning are: reduced learning times, smaller costs (even transportation costs are reduced), the possibility to keep track of the progress and to keep updated all the time no matter location, permanent access to the web content..etc.

E-learning is becoming an important part of the educational process, and day by day it conquers more ground and more followers in the detriment of traditional methodologies.

The battle continues…

Things are about to get very messy in the ongoing battle for processing chip dominance between AMD and Intel. For years, Intel has held the high ground, beating off attack after attack from AMD and holding its own in a marketplace that changes chips every half hour. Intel has always been the big name, the big player and the ‘go to guys’ for everything Core i3, i5 and i7 orientated.

But all of that could be about to change, if AMD’s talks with giant corporation Apple are successful. Intel has been the sole provider of microprocessors for the iconic Apple Notebook and its desktop PCs since 2006, when Apple parted company with PowerPC. AMDs representatives have recently been spotted leaving meetings with members of Apple’s top people – and according to hearsay it’s been smiles all round.

The meetings have led to Apple starting to take a long, hard look at AMD processors in their research labs as a precursor to the chips being incorporated into some of Apple’s up and coming projects. Rumour is that Apple is particularly interested in AMD’s workstation and notebook CPUs.

So why is Apple talking to the enemy (as far as Intel are concerned)? It may have a lot to do with the problems that Apple has encountered with Intel processors. Not only were there accusations that the Intel chips slowed the page refresh time for the notebook, but the Intel chipset designs have hindered Apple’s plans to continue their partnership with Nvidia to develop a standardised chipset for use with Intel processors across the full range of Apple products. A shortage of the new Core family of chips also delayed the release of the latest version of the MacBook series, which didn’t help matters. The result of this has been that Apple has been forced to use the less capable Intel integrated graphics chip inside the new MacBook Pro instead of the more capable Nvidia product.

AMD – up and coming and a potential threat to Intel’s dominance

The deal with Apple could undermine Intel’s dominance of the marketplace. As a result of Apple’s discussions with AMD, more manufacturers are now taking a second look not only at what AMD offers already, but also their plans for future research and development. Admittedly, it could all be a case of corporate manoeuvring on Apple’s part to see what Intel step up with as an alternative. But no matter what the reasons, the real winners down the line will be the consumer. Competition, particularly in the technology world, leads to leaps forward in development. New ideas and concepts are the product of debate and competition as each tries to out manoeuvre the other. AMD may lack the performance and efficiency of the Intel processor, but their acquisition of ATI gives them the edge over their rivals when it comes to GPU technology.

Because Apple is focusing on improving its graphics package (name one graphic designer who doesn’t use a MacBook), the smart money is on a merger between Apple and AMD, allowing Apple to push forward with the Nvidia plan. But rest assured – Intel isn’t just going to sit back and let it happen without a fight. It could all come down to numbers – which is going to profit Apple most; stick with their current partnership or change to a new one with AMD? The most likely probability is that Apple, recently announced as financially bigger than the monolithic Microsoft and therefore a major influence in the direction of the microprocessing marketplace, will most likely end up working with both AMD and Intel. As the old saying goes, those who are at the forefront of microprocessing and graphics capability are living in interesting times…

ENDS

One of the most useful methods in computer networking, the Carrier Sense Multiple Access/Collision Detection (also called CSMA/CD) is an efficient network access procedure that can be applied in a data transmission station that has the ability to identify another signal during frame transmission. In addition, this procedure is also helpful in using a carrier sensing method. Moreover, this networking method is helpful in improving the performance of Carrier Sense Multiple Access when a collision is found. Know more about it by looking at the easy steps in how to detect jam signals as well as collisions.

Identifying Collision Details

The procedures that are used for detecting collision details depend on a particular media used. For instance, collision can be detected on electrical buses like the Ethernet by examining the received data as well as the transmitted data and comparing them. If there are differences in the transmitted and received data, then it signals a collision, which can lead to the termination of data transmission. If a collision is detected, it will send a jam signal, which will control the functions of transmitters. However, computer users should know that to efficiently use this method, there are some repeaters and hubs in a computer network that must be replaced with switches.

The Applications of Carrier Sense Multiple Access/Collision Detection

The Carrier Sense Multiple Access/Collision Detection (CSMA/CD) is composed of different rules that direct each network as well as the devices in a computer network the appropriate time to start or stop data transmission. Even if the application of this method is recommended to all computer network administrators, it is still has limitations. In this regard, they are not assured that this can prevent 100 per cent data transmission collision in different networks. To resolve problems associated with collisions, there are some network devices that can be used to decrease the collision domain size.

Additional Information and Other Important Details About CSMA/CD

A collision domain size in a computer network can be decreased by installing devices like network bridges as well as switches, which are useful for microsegmentation. Aside from switches and network bridges, another device that can be used to avoid data collision is a router. This device is designed to filter data being transmitted in a network. Additionally, it is also helpful in dropping and forwarding packets depending on Internet Protocol or IP addresses. Moreover, it is also efficient in broadcasting the addresses in a network that can easily receive and transmit data or packets.

The one thing that surprised me about the release of the iPad was that Apple didn’t supply those cheap nasty white headphones they do with all their other products! I own an iPod Touch as well as iPhone so I already have two pairs of white headphones collecting dust on a shelf in my spare room. The sound quality is terrible and the first thing I’ve always done is buy a new pair so that I can appreciate the quality of playback offered by Apple’s devices. At least with the iPad I could start afresh and I won’t be collecting more junk.

So how would you go about finding the best headphones for the iPad? I really think it comes down to what type of user you are. I’d class you as one of three types. Firstly there’s the serious user. I’m talking about someone who is maybe using the iPad in a professional sense such as a DJ, music producer or film maker. They need the absolute best quality audio playback possible from the device so you’d be looking to get some studio monitoring headphones. This would usually set you back up to $200 and beyond but the playback will be crystal clear. You’d hear things with these headphones you wouldn’t with a little set up ear buds.

Ear buds would be ideal if you’re what I’d call a casual listener. This is type of person who uses their iPad for watching TV shows, YouTube videos and listening to music online. The sound quality you get is good enough for this type of use. The saving compared to studio monitoring headphones can be a small fortune as you can pick up ear buds for $10 these days. If you decide to go for this type of headphone I’d recommend sticking to well known brands such as Sony, AKG or Sennheiser. At least if you stick to the big companies you know you’ll be getting a decent quality piece of technology. You will also get a guarantee from the manufacturer for the first year or so of use. Ear buds don’t last too long so this is a great feature.

Finally we have the traveller. For this time of use, you must get noise cancellation headphones. If you’ve tried to use any media device on a plane you’ll know that the noise of the engines can quite frequently drown out whatever you’re trying to listen to. You’ve no chance with little ear buds and you’d end up damaging your hearing with studio monitoring headphones! Noise cancellation headphones will block out the background noise and let you listen to your iPad at a volume that won’t damage your ears.

There are a few noises you never want to hear. Right up there on the list is a funny noise from your hard disk drive. A scraping, grinding, or rattling noise means there is definitely a problem. Before we examine what might be causing these noises, there is a first priority. If you have no current backup, it’s the first thing you should do, starting with the most critical data files first. If you act immediately when you first hear a strange noise, you have a very good chance of backing up before the hard drive fails.

OK, now that we have a backup we can try and troubleshoot the cause of this noise coming from your hard drive. Hard drives have several moving parts. The platters (where the data is stored and read from) spin at tremendous speeds measured in RPMs. Even a slow hard drive these days goes at least 5400 revolutions per minute. The spindle that the platters sit on also spins at that speed. Then you have an armature that moves the device that reads the platters that constantly moves from the outside edge towards the center.

Any of these moving parts can wear out and start making noises. You can’t really replace the interior parts due to cost and methods so your only choice is to replace the computer drive. Like I mentioned above, if you immediately act as soon as you hear the first strange noise, your hard drive may last a little longer. Many new hard drives come with software that can easily transfer your entire drive contents to your new one. So it’s a huge advantage of transferring the contents from a working drive to the new disk drive.

Moving the contents is a huge time saver since you won’t need to reinstall your operating system and any other software applications. And there are many other pieces of data like your email, address book, Browser Favorites, and even passwords or network settings. You never realize how much stuff you have on your computer until you lose it. Moving the entire system software and data is much easier and you won’t lose anything.

If your hard disk doesn’t come with software to copy the contents of your old drive to a new one, there are a couple good software programs that you can buy to do it. My first choice would be Acronis Migrate 7, it runs about $40 and can be used to make a backup image too. There are other programs out there but none as easy and bulletproof as Acronis.

If it comes to replacing your computer drive, there are certain aspects of your original drive that you want to check to make sure the new one is similar. Most times you can increase the size and the speed of your new hard drive for better performance and more data storage. Let say you had a 250 Gig SATA hard drive, that runs at 5400 RPM that is going to fail soon by the sound of it. You can easily get a 500 Gig SATA drive that runs at 7500 RPM (the faster it spins, the faster you can store and retrieve data) for around $65.

So you just doubled your storage capability and increased your access speed considerably. These new hard drives come with very simple instructions on replacing your old one. If the software that can copy the entire hard disk drive comes with your particular choice it will have information on exactly how to do this, often step by step instructions. Acronis Migrate 7 also includes complete instructions and are designed for even a novice user. And Acronis has great support too if you have any questions.

So if you hear a hard drive noise, the time to act is right then and there. Immediately backup all your data first. Then as soon as you can, buy a replacement drive and install it. It will be a minor issue. But it you ignore the hard drive noise, I guarantee you will have a much bigger problem and probably lose some important data.

A month ago I signed up to Daytum, a web service that lets you record data about your life. After admiring their simple and logical data recording method, I began wondering what drives people to disseminate their life in data and whether “Personal Intelligence” had anything to teach the “Business Intelligence” world.

Looking through the public profiles people are tracking everything from exercise regimes to irrational fears, from fuel consumption to religious activity. It seems to me that there are three main groups of users:

1. The efficiency drivers: those who track everything to give an objective view of where they can save money and time

2. The motivational diarists: those who record things like dietary intake and gym routines to chart their achievements and, I suspect, act as a record of shame when things go wrong.

3. The curious masses: those who enjoy visualizations of the number of cups of tea they’ve consumed this month or how many hours a year they spend on the toilet.

Data analysis and visualization in the business world has always had a strong arm in efficiency drives, so it is only natural that our first group have taken to do the same with their own finances. It can be quite revealing to find that your monthly coffee expenditure could pay for a weekend break for two.

However, it is the second cohort that interests me most. It is an old mantra that what doesn’t get measured doesn’t get done, but measures and targets handed down by management often produce the opposite of the desired effect. Perhaps empowering people with tools to track and visualize their own productivity could increase motivation, without the feeling that Big Brother is watching your every move. Or then perhaps it would just be another distraction.

As data recording becomes quicker and data visualization becomes easier, those who embrace personal data analysis may find a personal competitive advantage just as businesses do everyday. Whether businesses can harness this effectively to motivate their employees remains to be seen.

In some cases, the technology may not even by visible to the user. With the emergence of embedded computing, the forms of persuasive technology will likely become more diverse, “invisible”, and better integrated into everyday life.

The web, which is so prominent today, will be just one of many forms of persuasive technology within another 20 years or more. The uses for persuasive technology also will expand in the coming decade, extending far beyond the primary applications we see today, such as advertising, marketing, and sales. At work, persuasive technology might be used to motivate teams to set goals and meet deadlines.

At home, it could encourage kids to develop better study habits. In civic life, it could persuade people to vote on Election Day. Wherever the need for persuasion exists I believe that interactive technology can play a significant role.

Advantages over Traditional Media: Interactivity

Traditional media, from bumper stickers to radio spots, from print ads to television commercials, have long been used to influence people to change their attitudes and behaviors. What’s different about computer and persuasion the answer? In a word is interactivity.

As a general rule, persuasion techniques are most effective when they are interactive, when persuaders adjust their influence tactics as the situation evolves. Skilled salespeople know this and adjust their pitches according to feedback from the prospect.

Persuasive technologies can adjust what they do based on user inputs, needs and situations. An interactive program to help someone quit smoking can tailor its approach to how much the personal smokes (physical addiction) abd address the often powerful psychological issues (psychological addiction) that compel the person to smoke.

Over time, as the person reports progress or failures, the system can use its knowledge about the smoker’s demographic variables as well as physical and psychological addiction issues to make suggestions (such as interactive scenarios), or provide the right kind of encouragement to help the person quit.

Traditional media cannot easily deliver such a tailored program. Today computer technology is being designed to apply traditional human techniques of interactive persuasion, to extend the reach of humans as interactive persuaders. This new new territory, both for computing technology and for human beings.

Rogue antispyware programs became one of the most popular means to infect computers and gain money of their users. These programs imitate legitimate antispyware programs but in fact are based on empty software so have no functions at all.

Most of the time, these programs are distributed to computer systems with a help of Trojan viruses. Sometimes they also spread on malicious Internet sites, imitates Windows updates, etc. However, in any case, a rogue program infiltrates without asking permission of the user and doesn’t require its authorization.

Once inside, it enters Windows Registry and makes some changes there so that it could do its job without interference. Usually it uses a fake scanner which pretends to look for infections. Then the program offers removing infections with a help of its so-called full version of a program which you need to pay for. You must beware that rogue programs are not able to detect any infections, so it simply gives fake scan results just tom trick you into purchasing a malicious application.

Moreover, rogue programs tend to display fake pop up ads and security notifications to make an illusion your system requires some attention and needs a security tool. One more thing to be mentioned is browser hijacking. A rogue program often comes with a browser hijacker which hijacks your Internet browser and makes redirections to some malicious websites promoting a rogue program as an antispyware.

One of the most popular rogue programs at the moment are AV Security Suite, Antispyware Soft, My Security Engine. Some of such programs are active for a very short period of time, others, for example, Security Tool stay active for months.

Fortunately, security experts are always ready to help fix your security problems. They not only describe this kind of infections on their websites, but also provide solutions to particular problems. If it happened to you to be infected with some fake antispyware program, you may want to read more about a particular infection. Check the website below to get more information about infections that bother you and find a way to get rid of them.