All About Web Innovations

With the new 3G iPhone announced for release by Apple in the next couple of months and the FCC’s approval of their product, the new 3G capable iPhone is giving users and gadget lovers the power to browse the intern et on the go a feature lacking in the initial model. The older iPhone was thicker, heavier and had less capabilities but many are crying foul with the lack of new innovations on the newer release. They have called it a totally newer product with a different packaging but the same overall features in terms of software and other capabilities except of course for the 3G capability.
The Apple iPhone has long been on the list of “wants” for all gadget lovers especially in the many major city’s of the world who were disappointed with the initial gadget’s release. Apple has said that they are in the process of developing more applications and features for later models and that updates would be offered from their website. The new iPhone allows you to go directly to the Apple online store to purchase content, a feature previously unavailable with the older unit that had to be uploaded through a separate PC.
Apple has invested a lot in their gadgets (iPods, iPod’s and others) that they have had to put up new manufacturing facilities just to make them in opposition to the approach of other companies who tend to develop development around their existing facilities to save cost. Their gamble into the new iPhone has been advertised as their drive to take the iPhone into the hands of the masses who previously cannot afford their products. Just hope they make it for the global economy is slowing and it would only be time before it hits home.

Ever since sexual predators started to use social networks for their predatory behavior people have been told again and again that they should be frugal when it comes to personal information due to threats that exists on all corners of the internet. With the pornography ring busted in Australia recently, people still fail to notice that the information the place on the net through the many social networking sites is subject to the eyes of everyone and we do mean everyone.
Imagine a sexual predator in your hometown posing as a person with the same interests as you that you feel you have known her for years, then it turns out to be that the she was a he who has been stalking you online and physically for quite sometime. Do you need the ending? This is becoming more and more common and with younger children starting to use the web as a socializing platform from home the problems that can arise such as the one we discussed in endless. The internet is a dangerous place from the beginning and one of the main problem is that you really never know who you are in a chat session with, for real. They can be anybody and anyone around you or even half way around the world and that is a side of the internet that may need some checking. The transparency of the net that makes it too good to be true (it allows people from all over the world to get information on just a bout anything they fancy) is a double edged sword that can be turned against you in an instant.
Identity theft, fraud and many other crimes have now evolved around the internet and more and more of us are getting victimized. The experts have long advised us that if you deem information to be confidential or that you want to remain anonymous with regards to the use of the internet, best to keep your personal details to yourself and off the net. Even secure and encrypted sites can be hacked and there is no sure fire online security system that can provide total security and anonymity.

The advent of Web 2.0 has become one of the most thrilling developments in the evolutionary history of the internet. The power of the big business was liberated and brought into the hands of the users who now demand more from the web. From total satisfaction to sharing personal thought, the web has evolved so much that it is by no means any similar to the initial design and concept.
Having video blogs and blogs that earn money for that fact is making people realize that the web is more that just someplace to get mp3’s from and that they could now take the web with them all over the place. Ultra-mobile PC’s, laptops, PDA’s and even your lowly 3G mobile phone can now keep you in touch with the internet all the time.
Web development has evolved into an art with advertising now responsible for most profits of search engines and more traditional businesses. From your local hardware tot he furniture shop, they all have in one form or the other a web based ad system that gives them a bit more exposure.
But there is a dark side in all the developments that we have seen over these few years, privacy and identity theft have risen to such high levels that major law enforcement agencies have been forced to create specific offices just to deal with them. The many problems with information (classified and personal) being either lost or stolen have also risen so much that the UK and US government have had to redefine the way information is handled and transported to and from secure facilities. One of the biggest weak points that has continued to plague the privacy issue is that we humans are still the ones responsible for the loss or leakage of such information. Lost data CD’s, complacent behavior that makes us lenient in our handling of information is still one of the most vulnerable points in any IT system.

The world and the internet has truly evolved into something wonderful that allows people from across the world to get hold of information when and where ever they want it. Let us just hope that we, the creators of all this technology does not get obsolete as many of the technologies that have gone before us have faded into history.

WiMax is now under development and is set to be the next generation of wireless communications. WiFi has a limitation of around a hundred meters or so but WiMax goes on for kilometers without much loss in signal strength and quality. many industry leaders such as Motorola, Intel and IBM have research and development programs for the standardization of the communications protocol so the future is sure to be ruled by WiMax networks.
WiMax has a bright future indeed for the introduction of high speed data allows faster internet speeds at farther distances. It also allows telephone service providers to reach farther in areas where the limits of DSL have been reached. Typically DSL is effective for a few hundred meters so placing a WiMax system allows it to reach farther thus resulting in more customers.
The system is still under development and beta phase systems (during hurricane Katrina this was used by Intel to provide the communications backbone of FEMA and other rescue services) and each developer has their own versions and features. Further development and standardization still have to be addressed to allow full-blown implementation of the system which makes it one of the most promising wireless technologies for tomorrow’s internet users.

Bluetooth is capable also, like WiFi, of providing wireless internet to computers. This can be done by turning a data-capable mobile phone into a makeshift modem for dial-up internet access. The connection is then provided to the computer via Bluetooth which is wireless.

The difference between the two is that WiFi provides higher throughput and covers larger distances at the expense of having higher power consumption and requiring the installation of more expensive hardware. Bluetooth can be used to replace a variety of applications while the purpose of WiFi is just that, to provide wireless LAN access to devices designed capable of hosting it.

Generally, most people have confused Bluetooth as being able to directly provide Internet access to computers once attached. This may have been due to them being confused by Bluetooth’s current capabilities. To clear things up, this article is here to define briefly what Bluetooth is and how exactly it provides internet access.

Bluetooth, generally speaking, works on the same principle as WiFi. Both use unregistered spread spectrum technology. Bluetooth is a device for connecting different devices, eg. mobile phones and computers, handsets and phones, etc., wirelessly. It is meant as a step up from the infrared technology that connected devices before. Bluetooth is more than capable than infrared in its capabilities such as being able to connect devices at greater distances and higher speeds.

A major concern of WiFi users is the vulnerability of encrypted data sent through WiFi. Studies have shown that the most common wireless encryption standard, the WEP or Wired Equivalent Privacy, was easily breakable even when configured correctly. WiFi networks are typically set to open mode, or encryption-free mode. These networks can be monitored and be used to read and copy any personal information that may be transmitted over the network unless more secure methods are use such as accessing secure web pages or VPN.To counter this problem, WiFi protected access have began shipping since 2003 and are now available in a majority of WiFi capable products.

As of now 300 plus cities all over the world now offer citywide free WiFi connectivity. St. Cloud, Florida was the first city to do so. Other cities included Luxembourg in Europe, Mexico City downtown, London, Liverpool, Manchester, Philadelphia, New Orleans, Corpus Christi in Texas, Leeds, Norwich and much more. An increasing trend in cities is that there are so many hotspots overlapping each other, anyone could get a good signal anywhere in the city. The popularity of integrating WiFi into districts has indirectly benefitted the city itself, especially if the city is only a small area, say Hong Kong for example.

e)      Spaces where cable cannot be run, such as outdoor spaces, or where cables can most likely be damaged, can now host wireless LANS for people to enjoy connectivity.

f)      Local Area Networks can now be deployed to a mass number of users without the need for additional costs in network deployment and expansion.

g)       WiFi has set a global standard for wireless internet connectivity. Any WiFi capable device is fully capable of operating anywhere in the world.

h)       Dropping prices of WiFi chipsets allow it to be an economical networking option that can be integrated into other devices without drastically affecting overall price.    

The benefits of WiFi are:a)      Any WiFI capable device (eg. phone, MP3 player, PDA, game console, etc.) can tap into the Internet so long as they are within range of the wireless network.b)      WiFi is a great advertisement or promotion for enthusiasts or authorities who wish to promote a certain area. c)       WiFi has gathered together different vendors and unified them into a community. This has produced a unified front that branded products as WiFi capable to ensure consumers that devices are capable of inter-operating.d)      WiFi’s introduction into the business environment has decreased redundancy, enabled support for fast roaming, and increased overall productivity.