DreamHost Spins Out Akanda NFV Platform--More Networking Abstraction Happening

The short version of this post is that DreamHost is spinning out a new entity to commercialize a networking tool it built for its own use.

The longer version is more interesting and speaks to some big changes in the networking world as customers and vendors start to see the parallels between what server virtualization did for compute, and what Software Defined Networking (SDN) can deliver for the networking world. If you’re a traditional networking vendor like Cisco or Juniper, this scares you to your core. Your once cozy view of the world, full of tightly coupled and proprietary software/hardware stacks, is no longer. If you’re a new startup, an organization with a big networking requirement, or someone who simply likes to watch disruption happen, this is a cool time to be in the industry.

DreamHost falls into the middle category. The company built its own networking virtualization platform to run thousands of compute instances, and has decided to spin that product out into its own entity, Akanda. The team behind Akanda know a thing or two about software disrupting legacy industries – they were also behind not only DreamHost but also Inktank, a Software Defined Storage vendor now owned by Red Hat RHT +1.03%.

Akanda is coming out of stealth after a lengthy time delivering Layer 3+ networking virtualization for DreamHost’s, OpenStack-powered DreamCompute platform.

Henrik Rosendahl, a virtualization industry veteran, will lead Akanda as CEO. Simon Anderson, DreamHost’s CEO, will Chair the Akanda Board, and Jonathan LaCour, VP Cloud at DreamHost, will serve as a Director and technical advisor. A high-caliber bunch indeed!

In terms of funding, DreamHost is seeding the company, but Akanda has flagged future outside investment.

As to the current state of the Akanda project, it provides Open Source L3+ NFV Functions supporting IPv6 on VMware NSX. OpenDaylight Support and Linux Bridge will be announced in the coming months. Akanda provides interfaces to OpenStack REST APIs, Neutron, Nova and has an integrated NFV Management and Orchestration Platform.

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Is Dell Opening Networking's Pandora's Box?

I love Pandora , the music service that lets me customize my music stations to what I want to hear, letting me design my stations around my actual needs.  If you remember the Pandora story, she was the first woman created by the gods, and she opened the box that needed to remain closed.  Very fitting as companies like Cisco Systems CSCO +0.49% are trying to keep the networking box closed and others like Juniper Networks JNPR +1.62% and Alcatel-Lucent are trying to walk the fine line between open and closed systems.  For years networking has been a “black box”, a tightly integrated piece of hardware and software that not only performed the functions but also trapped users in a world of proprietary lock-in.  At the same time that dynamics are shifting on the vendor side, customers are starting to stand up, with marquee companies like Citigroup C +0.36%, Federal Express EXPR -0.95% and Pfizer PFE -0.07% participating in the Open Networking User Group to demand change. Some vendors, like Dell , are tackling this black box problem and opening a whole Pandora’s box to the industry.  But unlike the myth, where it unleashed all of the evils into the world, when this Pandora’s box is opened, it is unleashing flexibility and huge cost savings for businesses that are clamoring for change. We look at Dell’s opportunity in open networking in our latest white paper.

The problem with today’s networking is that it is designed around proprietary architectures and management tools.  There is still too much hard wiring of functionality.  Changes are costly and take a long time.  For businesses trying to move quickly in today’s business world, the networking is usually the thing that holds them back. With business models changing quickly and customers clamoring for “agility” (the new buzzword for the most recent business cycle), systems and networks need to move quickly and efficiently.  Why is the cloud business growing so quickly?  Sure, it’s cheaper (in most aspects) but the real reason is the speed at which it can be deployed.  Customers who need to move quickly can often find that cloud-based services can be deployed faster than trying to do it in-house.  If networking can accelerate quickly, businesses will have more options for expanding their business, and that ultimately drives down the cost of doing business. A new trend called “open networking” is emerging, allowing IT to take more control of their networking and knock down some of the barriers that prevented them from acting quickly.

An unlikely leader in this trend is Dell, a company that is a leader in both servers and the clients connected to the servers.  For years, Cisco Systems was the glue between these components, but as companies are clamoring for a different way of networking, Cisco Systems represents the old guard and companies like Dell and Hewlett-Packard HPQ +1.33%, who both have nascent networking businesses have an opportunity to grow quickly.

But why would the tides quickly turn to server vendors and not stay in the camp of the networking vendors?  There are two key reasons; the first is a business reason and the second is a technical reason.

On the business side of things, companies like Juniper Networks, Alcatel-Lucent, and most importantly Cisco Systems, all have market share to protect.  For the past 20 years they’ve done their best to lock customers in; now should be the time that they should be reaping their benefits.  But like a dictator that holds their population down, eventually there is a revolt.  This week I will be speaking at the Open Networking User Group, discussing the business needs for open networking.  When the largest companies in the market like Bank of America BAC -0.29%, Gap GPS -0.61% and Cigna CI +1.02%, who spend billions in the market each year, are standing up to make their voices heard, it’s clear that the natives are already restless.  The status quo of networking is not acceptable and these companies want a more open approach.  In the pitted battle between vendors and customers, it’s pretty clear who has the advantage.  When customers have the ability to dictate where they spend their precious IT budget dollars, the market will come around to their way of thinking. This says that companies like Dell who are embracing the open networking trend have the upper hand.  Companies like Cisco that are waving their hands a lot instead of providing true open solutions face a tougher challenge.

One the technical side, the other thing that will drive server vendors forward into networking has to do with what networking products look like these days. For years, networking products were far more specialized.  That “black box” was vertically integrated and customers had little choice in what they bought.  But today, the world of networking looks far less specialized, it looks far more standardized.  In fact, it looks more like a server or PC than ever before from the CPUs and memory to other components.  So the people with the best computer supply chains are suddenly advantaged.  On top of that, the trend towards software defined networking (SDN) is pushing much of the functionality off of specialized (proprietary) devices onto more standardized devices, in some cases even running directly on servers.  Combine this will the first open networking operating systems that give customers a choice in which OS they run on their networking devices and you can start to see how customers might start to get back to a level playing field.  Openness in both the hardware and software is really shaking things up.

Dell is actually one of the first major vendors to offer customers the choice in networking operating systems, direct from their factory.  History has proven that choice and flexibility help drive down cost in the market, and as customers save more with Dell networking products, this opens up the IT budget for completing more projects – a compelling advantage in a world that is looking for more agility.

As customers start to use groups like ONUG to make their message known, and vendors like Dell start delivering more of what they are asking for, the dynamics of the networking market can shift quickly.  Enterprise customers are starting to become more empowered through the options in the market and this is good news for everyone – except the incumbents that are still pushing a proprietary agenda.  It looks like this Pandora’s box is letting customers customize their enterprise networking just like I can customize my music choices.  This leads to more agility and more choice, making the Pandora’s box far more powerful than the black box of the past.

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Five Technology Tools To Boost Your Networking

If you read my posts on why career changers don’t get interviews or why your job interview don’t lead anywhere, you can see how important networking is to fix or avoid these problems altogether. But unless you automate your networking, it will be difficult to do enough of it. You’ll have to remind yourself to do it and then motivate yourself to take the next step each and every rime. However, technology can help ease your networking burden. Here are five technology tools that are free to use, that do not require programming or special skills and that can help automate your networking right away. I am not a paid affiliate of any of these tools.

Email signature
You probably already have an email signature template at your job. But your personal email needs one as well. At a minimum you should have your full name, phone number and email address. You can also turn every email into a networking push by adding your LinkedIn URL or website, encouraging people to learn more about your background. If you blog, you can add your latest title with a hyperlink to the post. If you have an event, you can hyperlink to the registration details. I create my email signature templates right within my email provider (e.g., Outlook, Gmail). Or you can use a custom tool, such as WiseStamp, to create more elaborate options. (I discovered WiseStamp when someone emailed me a signature with hyperlinked buttons, graphics, even a photo, which she had created using WiseStamp.)

Scheduling tool
You mean to network but it takes several back and forth emails just to get a time on the calendar. If you use an online scheduling tool you can cut down on the time and aggravation (which encourages you to initiate more networking and encourages recipients to say Yes). Doodle and TimeTrade are two that I have used both to initiate appointments and to respond to invitations. Both have free options.

Alert system
A great way to network naturally is to reach out when there is news – someone gets a promotion and you congratulate them, a company is mentioned in the news and you acknowledge this to your friend who works there. Facebook and LinkedIn both provide updates around professional moves like promotions or personal news like birthdays and anniversaries. You can also use Google Alerts (which combs the Internet for content containing a specific keyword) to follow companies or specific people for breaking news. Newsle is another example of an alert service that links to your social media or address book contacts and then sends you a summary email with links for when they are mentioned online. Both Google Alerts and Newsle are free.

Social media dashboard
Another great way to network naturally is to share news when you think of it but spread out the timing of when you share it. If you use a social media dashboard to track and post to your different social media profiles, you can schedule your shares in advance. This ensures that you don’t need to visit each social network each and every time you want to share, and you avoid the temptation of just checking out a few cat videos while I’m there….I use Buffer and HootSuite, both of which have free options. I post my content but also interesting articles I see in areas relating to my expertise. For a career changer who wants people to see a whole new angle to their expertise, curating regular content relating to their new target area is a great way to send that message out regularly but unassumedly.

CRM system
A CRM, or customer relationship management, system is more than just how you will track your contacts’ informatiion. If you are going to network properly, you will need to follow up over time and therefore you will need to track when you first met, subsequent meetings, and any follow-up action items promised. If you’re simply using your phone or an online address book, you won’t be able to easily make notes and highlight action items. A CRM system allows you to tag contacts by different categories (e.g., people you need to call v. people you are already in talks with). It enables you to include comments and notes about the person and your interactions. I use an Excel spreadsheet as my home-grown CRM tool. I have a column for how I met someone, when I first contacted them, what the next follow-up action should be, and ad hoc notes I want to capture about the person. I find that Excel enables me to track just what I want in a searchable way. Other examples of CRM systems are SuccessHawk for job seekers or PipeDrive for entrepreneurs (both of which are paid solutions, not free).

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Networking Tips for the Holiday Office Party

The holiday office party is a wonderful time to mingle with colleagues in a less pressured setting.

Which makes it a great time for networking.

Never thought of an office party as a networking event? Then you are missing a key opportunity to develop or deepen relationships with co-workers, to personally thank those who have been helpful or supportive throughout the year, and to introduce yourself to senior executives.

But if you have any level of anxiety when it comes to networking (and who doesn’t?), here are a few tips to keep in mind:

Gayle Hallgren-Rezac and Judy Thomson, networking masters and the co-authors, WORK THE POND! Use the Power of Positive Networking to Leap Forward in Work and Life, advise you to work the room in pairs. The role of each “tag teammate” is to keep an eye on the other person, to make introductions, and to make sure that both of you are comfortably engaged in conversations.

Another of their networking tips is to give yourself a challenge by seeking out the person who would be considered the ‘host’ of the party. (This is probably the most senior person.) Thank him or her for sponsoring the event. You don’t have to go overboard with praise but acknowledge that you “appreciate the chance to connect with some new people you wouldn’t have met otherwise.” If this senior person is open to continuing the conversation, mention something positive that your team is doing. (Prepare one or two examples ahead of time.)

They’d also advise you to “create good karma” by rescuing the individual who is standing alone clutching a drink in one hand and a plate of food in the other or who is walking around with “the look” – scanning the room to find a friendly face. (This may be a new employee or someone who is more of an introvert.) Approach that person and introduce yourself.

When it comes to body language tips for networking at the office party, here’s what I’d advise:

* Develop an inclusive, welcoming attitude. Pretend that your job is to make others feel welcome and at ease. Approaching people with this attitude (and a genuine smile) will immediately resonate in a positive way.

* Stand tall. When you pull your shoulders back and hold your head high, you assume a posture of confidence and self-esteem.

* Reach out and touch someone – but don’t go overboard. The way you greet your fellow party-goers can have a huge impact on their perception of you. A warm, but firm handshake is a business skill worth developing, and a light touch on the arm or shoulder can create an instant bond. But if you hang on people or touch them too frequently, you send unintended signals of neediness or flirtation.

* Let your body show that you are at ease. If you want people to see you as comfortable and approachable, assume an open position with your legs about shoulder width apart and your arms loosely at your side or held waist high. Don’t cross your arms and legs or use objects (your drink or plate of food) as a barrier. It looks as if you are closed off or resistant.

* Mirror the other person’s gestures and expressions. When we interact with others, subconsciously we scan the other person’s body to see if they move or gesture in a similar way to us. When you subtly mirror the person you are speaking with, it is a way of silently saying, “We have something in common.”

* Make positive eye contact. Looking at someone’s eyes transmits energy and indicates interest and openness. (This is a great time to improve your eye contact by making a practice of noticing the eye color of everyone you speak with at the party.)

* Lean in slightly. Leaning forward shows you’re engaged and interested, but also be respectful of other people’s space. Although this varies by culture, in North American business situations, even in a party setting, that means staying at least 18 inches away.

* Dress for success. Remember, this is a business event not a date. Festive and stylish is great, but flashy or too revealing looks unprofessional.

* Leave your smart phone home. Or, at least, keep it out of sight. Don’t text or check email while talking with your fellow party-goers.

* Limit your alcohol. It will make following these tips so much easier!

If lucky enough to be invited, you definitely should attend the office holiday party. When you go, don’t pass up this wonderful opportunity to expand your network and build your personal brand.

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Top 10 Highest Paying Jobs in Computers and IT

As technology advances and evolves, individuals with formal training and skills will find themselves in a position to take advantage of the best opportunities the field of computers and information technology has to offer.

Featured Programs
1. American InterContinental University - BIT - Software Analysis and Development
2. Kaplan University - BSIT - Network Administration

Here are the Top 10 Highest Paying Jobs In Information Technology and Computers.

1. Business Continuity Analyst

Business Continuity Analysts are the disaster relief experts in the IT industry. Business continuity analysts ensure that companies recover data and resume normal operations following blackouts or disasters. Business continuity analysts research and prepare recovery strategies based upon possible risks and potential losses. Business continuity analysts are leaders with an extensive knowledge of information security and risk management who also train employees within businesses to execute recovery plans in the event of a disaster. Business continuity experts generally must obtain a minimum of a bachelor’s degree in business, information management, or computer science to gain employment earning $95,000 to $105,000 annually.

2. Computer and Information Scientists And Researchers

Computer and Information Scientists And Researchers develop and devise solutions to computer hardware and software issues. As expert theorists and inventors in the field of computer science and information technology, computer and information scientists and researchers are considered the innovators of invention and delegators of responsibility. Computer and information scientists and researchers have an in-depth understanding of business, engineering, scientific, and technological fields and lead governmental agencies, engineering firms, academic institutions, and private software publishers as integral members of research teams.

Featured Programs
1. American InterContinental University - BIT - Software Analysis and Development
2. Everest University - BS - Computer Information Science
3. Saint Leo University - BS - Computer Information Systems

Training to qualify as a computer and information scientist and researcher involves completing studies within a PhD program within disciplines like: information systems, computer science, information technology, software engineering, and computer engineering. Salaries for computer and information scientists and researchers are $77,000 to $125,000 yearly.

3. Data Modeler

Data modelers are systems analysts who work closely with teams of architects developing conceptual, logical, and physical data models for the binary processes of computers. Data modelers devise the processes which separate mass amounts of data in computer systems to reduce inessential or redundant data to improve data transfer between systems. Data modelers generally complete studies within bachelor or master degree programs in applied mathematics, information systems management, or computer or information science. Earnings for data modelers range from $75,000 to $103,000 yearly.

4. Systems Software Engineers

Systems software engineers apply the principles and theories of computer science combined with mathematical analysis to design, test, and maintain the software systems that run computers. Software application engineers are the IT industry’s experts who develop operating systems, middleware, computer games, business applications, databases, and network control systems. Software application engineers work closely with teams of other IT professionals who specialize in developing the multiple layers of computer software to collaborate and contribute to the evolution of the rapidly changing IT industry. Software applications engineers are required to complete a minimum of a bachelor degree in software, computer systems, or mathematics combined with work experiences in computer systems and applications. Software application engineers earn salaries of $73,200 to $114,000 annually.

5. Network Security Administrator

Network security administrators are important members of IT teams who maintain and secure computer systems and data within firms and organizations. Systems administrators perform a number of far ranging duties including installing, supporting, and maintaining computer systems and servers. Network security administrators also perform light programming, project management, training to those who operate computers, consulting and problem solving for operating issues, and supervisory skills to technical support and other staff.

Featured Programs
1. American InterContinental University - BIT - Information Assurance and Security
2. Capella University - MS - Information Assurance and Security

System administrators also devise plans to respond to service outages, internal and external threats. Training to become a network systems administrator requires a minimum of a bachelor degree based in computer science, computer engineering, information technology, information system management, or system administration combined with work experience as few graduate level programs exist. Annual earnings for network security administrators range from $68,000 to $88,000.

6. Computer Systems Analysts

Computer systems analysts are the IT industry’s specialized planners, designers, installers, and developers. Computer systems analysts customize computer systems to meet the information technology needs of most firms and organizations. Computer systems analysts work closely with programmers, software engineers, network security specialists, and management teams to coordinate and customize computer systems, cost benefit and return reports, and other information management tasks. Computer systems analysts must complete a minimum of a bachelor degree in computer science, information science, information systems, management information systems, applied mathematics, business administration, or engineering. Present employment trends show employers prefer candidates with graduate degrees, particularly a Master’s in Business Administration with a specialization in information systems combined with work experiences. Computer systems analysts earn salaries of $58,000 to $96,000 annually.

7. Systems Security Administrator

Systems Security Administrators are specialized IT professionals who design and implement system structures, design and upgrade software, maintain server security, and oversees server activity. Systems security administrators also manage high volume web activity for organizations which accept online payments and advertising as well as well as resolve technical issues while maximizing the efficiency of network systems. Network systems administrators often complete certificate or associate degree programs in information security or computer science disciplines and gradually work their way up from entry level positions after gaining experience. Systems administrators generally have salaries of $52,000 to $ 84,100.

8. IT Auditor

IT Auditors are responsible for collecting information regarding the overall operations, practices, controls, and accounting within firms and organizations. IT auditors also ensure that businesses comply with organizational and governmental regulations to secure data and records by evaluating physical, business, and financial controls. IT auditors also investigate computer networks to uncover issues like mismanagement, fraud, and inefficiency while devising means of improving security, user interface, and processing capabilities. IT auditors are required to complete studies within master’s degree programs in accounting, business administration, or information technology management and either a certified public accountant or certified information systems auditor credentialing program to gain employment. IT auditors have salaries of $51,000 to $76,000 yearly.

9. Professional Hackers

Professional hackers are the IT industry’s “sneakers” who ethically prevent computer hacking, criminal computer activities, and other illicit attacks. Professional hackers are highly trained and vital members of all IT teams as they detect and prevent malevolent attacks on systems. Professional hackers are essentially expert computer programmers who utilize complex software and hardware to help public and private agencies, firms, and businesses in preventing attacks and exposing potential vulnerabilities. Professional hackers may use subtle techniques like phishing, keylogging, modification attacks, denial of service attacks, email address hacking, cookie stealing, website hacking, javascripts, and bruteforce methods to access, capture, or retrieve information, accounts, databases, and network systems. Professional hackers generally must complete a minimum of a certification program combined with gaining a full understanding of programming languages to qualify for employment earning yearly salaries of $57,000 to $81,000.

10. Computer Programmers

Computer programmers write programs, the software necessary for one aspect of computer programs or codes. Computer programmers work closely with computer software engineers and systems analysts converting software programs into logical instructions. Computer programmers utilize programming processing languages like C++ and Python to increase productivity, devise debugging functions, and a number of other functions.

Featured Programs
1. American InterContinental University - BIT - Software Analysis and Development
2. Everest University - BS - Computer Information Science
3. Saint Leo University - BS - Computer Information Systems

Computer programmers also update, modify, repair, and expand existing programs using computer assisted software engineering tools for specific applications, computer programs, and other computer functions. Computer programmers are required to complete studies within associate or bachelor level computer programming degree programs combined with work experience and the most current technology information available to gain employment. Earnings for computer programmers range from $53,000 to $90,000 annually

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Social Networking

Amar

Bubblews Will Give You a Penny for Your Thoughts July 29, 2014 Bubblews, a social media platform that offers to pay users for their posts, last week moved out of its testing phase, which began in 2012. It emerged with a new look designed to attract users who might be dissatisfied with other social media offerings. Bubblews is attempting to build a self-sustaining ecosystem in which users who create engaging posts are paid for their work.

Do Facebook Searches to Show Disability Fraud Violate the Constitution? July 28, 2014 Looking for evidence of disability fraud, the district attorney for Manhattan last year obtained 381 search warrants and served them on Facebook as part of a long-term investigation into a massive scheme. The search warrants were "sealed," which means they were not made public. Ultimately, 106 former New York police and firefighters were arrested.

Facebook Rolls in Mobile Ad Dough July 24, 2014 Facebook chalked up $2.68 billion in ad revenue in Q2, up 67 percent year over year, and mobile ads accounted for about 62 percent of that haul, totaling $1.66 billion. "The ability of Facebook to move into the mobile ad space and to monetize it successfully was heavily questioned last year," said Andreas Scherer, managing partner at Salto Partners.

Twitter's 'D' in Diversity Reflects Broader Industry Failure July 24, 2014 Like many other tech companies, Twitter is largely made up of white, male employees, pointing to a lack of diversity in the industry. The company revealed statistics about its organizational demographics, noting that almost 60 percent of Twitter's U.S. employees self-identify as white. Of Twitter's global workforce of around 3,000, 70 percent are male, and only a tenth of tech workers are women.

Facebook Saves the Day From Slipping Away July 24, 2014 Facebook has launched a feature that allows users to save content from their News Feed to read or watch later. Called "Save," it is designed help users who may be inundated by links to articles, music clips and videos to separate the wheat from the chaff. Users who see something intriguing now can choose the Save option in a dropdown menu in the upper right-hand corner of a post.

Investors Wise to Secret's Tantalizing Promise July 22, 2014 Secret last week announced that a recent round of funding, to the tune of $25 million, would help it expand its social networking reach. Since its launch about six months ago, Secret has provided a platform for users to post anonymous notes on topics ranging from the ridiculous to the sublime. Though its draw is anonymity, Secret points users to posts by people in their circle of friends.

'Buy' Button Could Turn Facebook Into Impulse-Shopping-Ville July 18, 2014 Facebook is testing a function that would allow users to buy products without leaving the site or app. Small and medium-sized businesses in the U.S. that are taking part in the trial can add the Buy button to ads displayed in users' News Feeds or in posts on their pages. Users will see the Buy button in relevant ads whether they're on the Facebook website or using their mobile device.

Comcast Rep Tears Into Fleeing Customer 'Like a Pit Bull on a Pork Chop' July 15, 2014 Comcast on Tuesday was scrambling to repair the damage after a phone representative's rude treatment of a couple trying to disconnect their service went viral, thanks to a recording posted on the Web. The couple -- former Engadget editor Ryan Block, now at AOL, and his wife, TV host and writer Veronica Belmont -- called Comcast over the weekend and asked to cancel their service over the phone.

The Social Media Fraud July 07, 2014 I spent much of last week talking about Facebook's infamous study of nearly a million customers and the company's attempts to make half of those customers happier and the other half more depressed. Setting aside how insanely stupid it was for Facebook to do this is the fact that with social media, isn't social the real problem? Could the entire segment be a fraud?

Emotional Backlash Unlikely to Unsettle Facebook July 02, 2014 It's unlikely that Facebook's psych experiment that turned some 700,000 of its users into involuntary lab rats will hurt its brand or advertising revenue. However, Facebook's research on the emotional impact of content in the News Feeds of its members has unleashed a torrent of criticism. Facebook has faced this kind of outrage before, though, and the results have almost always been the same.

Google Gives Orkut Users Eviction Notice July 01, 2014 Google on Monday announced that it is bidding farewell to Orkut, its first attempt at a social network, which saw fair international success before Facebook took over the scene. Launched in 2004, Orkut provided a place for users to display profiles, hang out and connect with others. The site gained popularity outside the U.S., particularly in Brazil and India.

Manipulative User Research Earns Facebook a Shiner June 30, 2014 Once again, Facebook is embroiled in a controversy over privacy. This time, hackles have been raised by publication of a study for which the company manipulated the News Feeds of nearly 700,000 subscribers. The study concluded that negative messages on social networks make people sad, and positive ones make them happy -- and those feelings can spread through a social network to third parties.

Facebook, NY DA Lock Horns Over User Data Warrants June 27, 2014 Facebook, not known for respecting users' privacy, is battling a New York County district attorney's demand for all information pertaining to the accounts of several hundred of its subscribers. DA Cyrus Vance's office issued 381 secret warrants for the information in July of 2013 in a hunt for retired police officers and firefighters wrongfully claiming Social Security disability benefits.

Wall Street Goes Gaga Over GoPro June 27, 2014 Action camera maker GoPro, which went public Thursday, saw its share prices skyrocket, closing at $31.34, 30 percent over its asking price of $24. That was a rare positive note in an otherwise down market, but it has raised questions. Is the price justified, considering that GoPro has only one product? Can the company meet the challenges of going public? What about the competition?

Path Adds Another Avenue for Mobile Gabfest June 23, 2014 Path has hived off its mobile-only messaging service as a standalone app named "Talk," it announced Friday. It also ended limits on the number of friends users can communicate with, and announced its purchase of place messaging pioneer TalkTo as it sets itself for growth. The Talk app has a new feature, Ambient Status, that shows users' current status at a glance.

SnappyTV Could Amp Up Twitter Amplify June 19, 2014 Twitter just announced a new addition to its social-TV arsenal: SnappyTV, an online service that allows content owners to clip, edit and share video from live broadcasts in near-real time. "As we continue to invest in video, it's important for us to provide tools that make it easy for TV broadcasters, businesses, and event producers to share high-quality videos," said Twitter's Baljeet Singh.

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Wireless Networking

Sprint Launches the Swiss Army Knife of Mobile Hotspots July 14, 2014 Sprint last week unveiled a mobile hotspot designed to satisfy all the wireless needs of a consumer in one 4.7 x 4.7-inch device. Sprint LivePro is a multifunctional device that acts as both a mobile hotspot and a mini projector. Users connect via Sprint's 4G LTE Spark network -- the company's enhanced LTE service that launched last October -- or through its WiFi network.

Supreme Court Turns Deaf Ear to Google's Street View Appeal June 30, 2014 The Supreme Court has declined Google's appeal of a lower-court ruling in a class-action lawsuit that alleges it violated federal wiretap laws with its Street View cars. The court left in place a decision the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals handed down in September. The appeals court declined to dismiss the case, ruling that Google was not exempt from liability under the federal Wiretap Act.

Godzilla Foreshadows Trouble for Internet of Things June 16, 2014 The Internet of Things has come under attack by pranksters in recent days. The events could signal tumultuous things to come as more and more everyday objects connect to the Internet. Homeland Security has advised the customers of digital sign maker Daktronics to "take defensive measures" following a series of cyberpranks on the company's traffic signs.

Samsung Invests $2B in Biopharmaceuticals May 12, 2014 Samsung is investing at least $2 billion in... biopharmaceuticals? With this foray into the drug industry, Samsung hopes to become a major player in biotechnology, which is expected to be a booming industry in coming years. A key component of this play is so-called biosimilars -- cheap versions of brand-name biotechnology drugs that no longer are protected by patents.

Nod's Ring May Be Smart but Not Precious April 29, 2014 Nod Labs on Tuesday jumped into the wearable tech market with a ring device that's designed to serve as a universal controller. Featuring Broadcom Bluetooth Smart and Nexus-Trellis software, Nod's namesake wearable input device is designed to offer touchless interaction with set-top boxes and other connected home devices without the need for remotes or cameras.

Twitter Tries to Defuse Turkey Controversy April 15, 2014 Twitter has agreed to close some accounts in Turkey, but the two sides are still at loggerheads over allegations of tax evasion and whether or not Twitter must maintain a physical presence in the country. Twitter Vice President of Global Public Policy Colin Crowell led a delegation of sorts to address the country's multifaceted grievances with the social media site.

FireChat Messaging App: Look Ma, No Internet! April 02, 2014 FireChat, an iPhone app designed for anonymous hyperlocal communication, could change the way we connect with one other: It does not require an Internet connection or even a cell signal to work. FireChat takes advantage of the Multipeer Connectivity Framework in iOS 7. This feature allows developers to connect devices to each other using Bluetooth, WiFi, and peer-to-peer connections.

Turkey PM, Prez Go Round and Round About Social Media March 10, 2014 Turkey's prime minister and president are spewing conflicting talking points on the nation's stance toward social media. It turns out the one who's getting nailed on social media is the one who wants more restrictions. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan last week vowed to restrict social media after this month's local elections, but President Abdullah Gul said that was "out of the question."

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Networking Devices Hub Switch Router Modem Bridges Brouters Gateways

Networking Devices Hub Switch Router Modem Bridges Brouters Gateways

HUB

Networks using a Star topology require a central point for the devices to connect. Originally this device was called a concentrator since it consolidated the cable runs from all network devices. The basic form of concentrator is the hub.

 

As shown in Figure; the hub is a hardware device that contains multiple, independent ports that match the cable type of the network. Most common hubs interconnect Category 3 or 5 twisted-pair cable with RJ-45 ends, although Coax BNC and Fiber Optic BNC hubs also exist. The hub is considered the least common denominator in device concentrators. Hubs offer an inexpensive option for transporting data between devices, but hubs don't offer any form of intelligence. Hubs can be active or passive.

An active hub strengthens and regenerates the incoming signals before sending the data on to its destination.

Passive hubs do nothing with the signal.

Ethernet Hubs

An Ethernet hub is also called a multiport repeater. A repeater is a device that amplifies a signal as it passes through it, to counteract the effects of attenuation. If, for example, you have a thin Ethernet network with a cable segment longer than the prescribed maximum of 185 meters, you can install a repeater at some point in the segment to strengthen the signals and increase the maximum segment length. This type of repeater only has two BNC connectors, and is rarely seen these days.

 8 Port mini Ethernet Hub

The hubs used on UTP Ethernet networks are repeaters as well, but they can have many RJ45 ports instead of just two BNC connectors. When data enters the hub through any of its ports, the hub amplifies the signal and transmits it out through all of the other ports. This enables a star network to have a shared medium, even though each computer has its own separate cable. The hub relays every packet transmitted by any computer on the network to all of the other computers, and also amplifies the signals.

The maximum segment length for a UTP cable on an Ethernet network is 100 meters. A segment is defined as the distance between two communicating computers. However, because the hub also functions as a repeater, each of the cables connecting a computer to a hub port can be up to 100 meters long, allowing a segment length of up to 200 meters when one hub is inserted in the network.

Multistation Access Unit

A Multistation Access Unit (MAU) is a special type of hub used for token ring networks. The word "hub" is used most often in relation to Ethernet networks, and MAU only refers to token ring networks. On the outside, the MAU looks like a hub. It connects to multiple network devices, each with a separate cable.

Unlike a hub that uses a logical bus topology over a physical star, the MAU uses a logical ring topology over a physical star.

When the MAU detects a problem with a connection, the ring will beacon. Because it uses a physical star topology, the MAU can easily detect which port the problem exists on and close the port, or "wrap" it. The MAU does actively regenerate signals as it transmits data around the ring.

Switches

Switches are a special type of hub that offers an additional layer of intelligence to basic, physical-layer repeater hubs. A switch must be able to read the MAC address of each frame it receives. This information allows switches to repeat incoming data frames only to the computer or computers to which a frame is addressed. This speeds up the network and reduces congestion.

Switches operate at both the physical layer and the data link layer of the OSI Model.

Bridges

A bridge is used to join two network segments together, it allows computers on either segment to access resources on the other. They can also be used to divide large networks into smaller segments. Bridges have all the features of repeaters, but can have more nodes, and since the network is divided, there is fewer computers competing for resources on each segment thus improving network performance.

Bridges can also connect networks that run at different speeds, different topologies, or different protocols. But they cannot, join an Ethernet segment with a Token Ring segment, because these use different networking standards. Bridges operate at both the Physical Layer and the MAC sublayer of the Data Link layer. Bridges read the MAC header of each frame to determine on which side of the bridge the destination device is located, the bridge then repeats the transmission to the segment where the device is located.

Routers

Routers Are networking devices used to extend or segment networks by forwarding packets from one logical network to another. Routers are most often used in large internetworks that use the TCP/IP protocol suite and for connecting TCP/IP hosts and local area networks (LANs) to the Internet using dedicated leased lines.

Routers work at the network layer (layer 3) of the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) reference model for networking to move packets between networks using their logical addresses (which, in the case of TCP/IP, are the IP addresses of destination hosts on the network). Because routers operate at a higher OSI level than bridges do, they have better packet-routing and filtering capabilities and greater processing power, which results in routers costing more than bridges.

Routing tables

Routers contain internal tables of information called routing tables that keep track of all known network addresses and possible paths throughout the internetwork, along with cost of reaching each network. Routers route packets based on the available paths and their costs, thus taking advantage of redundant paths that can exist in a mesh topology network.

Because routers use destination network addresses of packets, they work only if the configured network protocol is a routable protocol such as TCP/IP or IPX/SPX. This is different from bridges, which are protocol independent. The routing tables are the heart of a router; without them, there's no way for the router to know where to send the packets it receives.

Unlike bridges and switches, routers cannot compile routing tables from the information in the data packets they process. This is because the routing table contains more detailed information than is found in a data packet, and also because the router needs the information in the table to process the first packets it receives after being activated. A router can't forward a packet to all possible destinations in the way that a bridge can.

• Static routers: These must have their routing tables configured manually with all network addresses and paths in the internetwork.
• Dynamic routers: These automatically create their routing tables by listening to network traffic.
• Routing tables are the means by which a router selects the fastest or nearest path to the next "hop" on the way to a data packet's final destination. This process is done through the use of routing metrics.
• Routing metrics which are the means of determining how much distance or time a packet will require to reach the final destination. Routing metrics are provided in different forms.
• hop is simply a router that the packet must travel through.
• Ticks measure the time it takes to traverse a link. Each tick is 1/18 of a second. When the router selects a route based on tick and hop metrics, it chooses the one with the lowest number of ticks first.

You can use routers, to segment a large network, and to connect local area segments to a single network backbone that uses a different physical layer and data link layer standard. They can also be used to connect LAN's to a WAN's.

Brouters

Brouters are a combination of router and bridge. This is a special type of equipment used for networks that can be either bridged or routed, based on the protocols being forwarded. Brouters are complex, fairly expensive pieces of equipment and as such are rarely used.

A Brouter transmits two types of traffic at the exact same time: bridged traffic and routed traffic. For bridged traffic, the Brouter handles the traffic the same way a bridge or switch would, forwarding data based on the physical address of the packet. This makes the bridged traffic fairly fast, but slower than if it were sent directly through a bridge because the Brouter has to determine whether the data packet should be bridged or routed.

Gateways

A gateway is a device used to connect networks using different protocols. Gateways operate at the network layer of the OSI model. In order to communicate with a host on another network, an IP host must be configured with a route to the destination network. If a configuration route is not found, the host uses the gateway (default IP router) to transmit the traffic to the destination host. The default t gateway is where the IP sends packets that are destined for remote networks. If no default gateway is specified, communication is limited to the local network. Gateways receive data from a network using one type of protocol stack, removes that protocol stack and repackages it with the protocol stack that the other network can use.

Examples

• E-mail gateways-for example, a gateway that receives Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) e-mail, translates it into a standard X.400 format, and forwards it to its destination
• Gateway Service for NetWare (GSNW), which enables a machine running Microsoft Windows NT Server or Windows Server to be a gateway for Windows clients so that they can access file and print resources on a NetWare server
• Gateways between a Systems Network Architecture (SNA) host and computers on a TCP/IP network, such as the one provided by Microsoft SNA Server
• A packet assembler/disassembler (PAD) that provides connectivity between a local area network (LAN) and an X.25 packet-switching network

CSU / DSU (Channel Service Unit / Data Service Unit)

A CSU/DSU is a device that combines the functionality of a channel service unit (CSU) and a data service unit (DSU). These devices are used to connect a LAN to a WAN, and they take care of all the translation required to convert a data stream between these two methods of communication.

A DSU provides all the handshaking and error correction required to maintain a connection across a wide area link, similar to a modem. The DSU will accept a serial data stream from a device on the LAN and translate this into a useable data stream for the digital WAN network. It will also take care of converting any inbound data streams from the WAN back to a serial communication.

A CSU is similar to a DSU except it does not have the ability to provide handshaking or error correction. It is strictly an interface between the LAN and the WAN and relies on some other device to provide handshaking and error correction.

NICs (Network Interface Card)

Network Interface Card, or NIC is a hardware card installed in a computer so it can communicate on a network. The network adapter provides one or more ports for the network cable to connect to, and it transmits and receives data onto the network cable.

Wireless Lan card

Every networked computer must also have a network adapter driver, which controls the network adapter. Each network adapter driver is configured to run with a certain type of network adapter.

Network card

Network Interface Adapter Functions 
Network interface adapters perform a variety of functions that are crucial to getting data to and from the computer over the network.

These functions are as follows:

Data encapsulation
The network interface adapter and its driver are responsible for building the frame around the data generated by the network layer protocol, in preparation for transmission. The network interface adapter also reads the contents of incoming frames and passes the data to the appropriate network layer protocol.

Signal encoding and decoding
The network interface adapter implements the physical layer encoding scheme that converts the binary data generated by the network layer-now encapsulated in the frame-into electrical voltages, light pulses, or whatever other signal type the network medium uses, and converts received signals to binary data for use by the network layer.

transmission and reception
The primary function of the network interface adapter is to generate and transmit signals of the appropriate type over the network and to receive incoming signals. The nature of the signals depends on the network medium and the data-link layer protocol. On a typical LAN, every computer receives all of the packets transmitted over the network, and the network interface adapter examines the destination address in each packet, to see if it is intended for that computer. If so, the network interface adapter passes the packet to the computer for processing by the next layer in the protocol stack; if not, the network interface adapter discards the packet.

Data buffering 
Network interface adapters transmit and receive data one frame at a time, so they have built-in buffers that enable them to store data arriving either from the computer or from the network until a frame is complete and ready for processing.

Serial/parallel conversion
The communication between the computer and the network interface adapter runs in parallel, that is, either 16 or 32 bits at a time, depending on the bus the adapter uses. Network communications, however, are serial (running one bit at a time), so the network interface adapter is responsible for performing the conversion between the two types of transmissions.

Media access control
The network interface adapter also implements the MAC mechanism that the data-link layer protocol uses to regulate access to the network medium. The nature of the MAC mechanism depends on the protocol used.

Network protocols

A networked computer must also have one or more protocol drivers (sometimes called a transport protocol or just a protocol). The protocol driver works between the upper-level network software and the network adapter to package data to be sent on the network.

In most cases, for two computers to communicate on a network, they must use identical protocols. Sometimes, a computer is configured to use multiple protocols. In this case, two computers need only one protocol in common to communicate. For example, a computer running File and Printer Sharing for Microsoft Networks that uses both NetBEUI and TCP/IP can communicate with computers using only NetBEUI or TCP/IP.

ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network) adapters

Integrated Services Digital Network adapters can be used to send voice, data, audio, or video over standard telephone cabling. ISDN adapters must be connected directly to a digital telephone network. ISDN adapters are not actually modems, since they neither modulate nor demodulate the digital ISDN signal.

Like standard modems, ISDN adapters are available both as internal devices that connect directly to a computer's expansion bus and as external devices that connect to one of a computer's serial or parallel ports. ISDN can provide data throughput rates from 56 Kbps to 1.544 Mbps (using a T1 carrier service).

ISDN hardware requires a NT (network termination) device, which converts network data signals into the signaling protocols used by ISDN. Some times, the NT interface is included, or integrated, with ISDN adapters and ISDN-compatible routers. In other cases, an NT device separate from the adapter or router must be implemented. ISDN works at the physical, data link, network, and transport layers of the OSI Model.

WAPs (Wireless Access Point)

A wireless network adapter card with a transceiver sometimes called an access point, broadcasts and receives signals to and from the surrounding computers and passes back and forth between the wireless computers and the cabled network.

Access points act as wireless hubs to link multiple wireless NICs into a single subnet. Access points also have at least one fixed Ethernet port to allow the wireless network to be bridged to a traditional wired Ethernet network.

Modems

A modem is a device that makes it possible for computers to communicate over telephone lines. The word modem comes from Modulate and Demodulate. Because standard telephone lines use analog signals, and computers digital signals, a sending modem must modulate its digital signals into analog signals. The computers modem on the receiving end must then demodulate the analog signals into digital signals.

Modems can be external, connected to the computers serial port by an RS-232 cable or internal in one of the computers expansion slots. Modems connect to the phone line using standard telephone RJ-11 connectors.

Transceivers (media converters)

Transceiver short for transmitter-receiver, a device that both transmits and receives analog or digital signals. The term is used most frequently to describe the component in local-area networks (LANs) that actually applies signals onto the network wire and detects signals passing through the wire. For many LANs, the transceiver is built into the network interface card (NIC). Some types of networks, however, require an external transceiver.

In Ethernet networks, a transceiver is also called a Medium Access Unit (MAU). Media converters interconnect different cable types twisted pair, fiber, and Thin or thick coax, within an existing network. They are often used to connect newer 100-Mbps, Gigabit Ethernet, or ATM equipment to existing networks, which are generally 10BASE-T, 100BASE-T, or a mixture of both. They can also be used in pairs to insert a fiber segment into copper networks to increase cabling distances and enhance immunity to electromagnetic interference (EMI).

Firewalls

In computing, a firewall is a piece of hardware and/or software which functions in a networked environment to prevent some communications forbidden by the security policy, analogous to the function of firewalls in building construction.

A firewall has the basic task of controlling traffic between different zones of trust. Typical zones of trust include the Internet (a zone with no trust) and an internal network (a zone with high trust). The ultimate goal is to provide controlled connectivity between zones of differing trust levels through the enforcement of a security policy and connectivity model based on the least privilege principle.

There are three basic types of firewalls depending on:

• whether the communication is being done between a single node and the network, or between two or more networks
• whether the communication is intercepted at the network layer, or at the application layer
• whether the communication state is being tracked at the firewall or not

With regard to the scope of filtered communication these firewalls are exist:

• Personal firewalls, a software application which normally filters traffic entering or leaving a single computer through the Internet.
• Network firewalls, normally running on a dedicated network device or computer positioned on the boundary of two or more networks or DMZs (demilitarized zones). Such a firewall filters all traffic entering or leaving the connected networks.

In reference to the layers where the traffic can be intercepted, three main categories of firewalls exist:

• network layer firewalls An example would be iptables.
• application layer firewalls An example would be TCP Wrapper.
• application firewalls An example would be restricting ftp services through /etc/ftpaccess file

These network-layer and application-layer types of firewall may overlap, even though the personal firewall does not serve a network; indeed, single systems have implemented both together.

There's also the notion of application firewalls which are sometimes used during wide area network (WAN) networking on the world-wide web and govern the system software. An extended description would place them lower than application layer firewalls, indeed at the Operating System layer, and could alternately be called operating system firewalls.

Lastly, depending on whether the firewalls track packet states, two additional categories of firewalls exist:

• stateful firewalls
• stateless firewalls

Network layer firewalls

Network layer firewalls operate at a (relatively low) level of the TCP/IP protocol stack as IP-packet filters, not allowing packets to pass through the firewall unless they match the rules. The firewall administrator may define the rules; or default built-in rules may apply (as in some inflexible firewall systems).

A more permissive setup could allow any packet to pass the filter as long as it does not match one or more "negative-rules", or "deny rules". Today network firewalls are built into most computer operating system and network appliances.

Modern firewalls can filter traffic based on many packet attributes like source IP address, source port, destination IP address or port, destination service like WWW or FTP. They can filter based on protocols, TTL values, netblock of originator, domain name of the source, and many other attributes.

Application-layer firewalls

Application-layer firewalls work on the application level of the TCP/IP stack (i.e., all browser traffic, or all telnet or ftp traffic), and may intercept all packets traveling to or from an application. They block other packets (usually dropping them without acknowledgement to the sender). In principle, application firewalls can prevent all unwanted outside traffic from reaching protected machines.

By inspecting all packets for improper content, firewalls can even prevent the spread of the likes of viruses. In practice, however, this becomes so complex and so difficult to attempt (given the variety of applications and the diversity of content each may allow in its packet traffic) that comprehensive firewall design does not generally attempt this approach.

Proxies

A proxy device (running either on dedicated hardware or as software on a general-purpose machine) may act as a firewall by responding to input packets (connection requests, for example) in the manner of an application, whilst blocking other packets.

Proxies make tampering with an internal system from the external network more difficult, and misuse of one internal system would not necessarily cause a security breach exploitable from outside the firewall (as long as the application proxy remains intact and properly configured). Conversely, intruders may hijack a publicly-reachable system and use it as a proxy for their own purposes; the proxy then masquerades as that system to other internal machines. While use of internal address spaces enhances security, crackers may still employ methods such as IP spoofing to attempt to pass packets to a target network.

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