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Wireless Wide Area Networks (WANs) have so far garnered only niche acceptance: They are used in rural areas where wired telecommunications services are not available and in select instances where companies deem them less expensive than other options, like T1 lines ...

At an airport, one often sees busy executives talking on cell phones and banging away at their laptop keyboards in desperate attempts to finish up a few key items before the flight crew locks the plane door behind them. Airplanes have been an area where cell phone and wireless networks are not allowed, but that may soon change in what would be welcome news for mobile executives...

The space shuttle Columbia disaster on Feb. 1, 2003 sparked development of the world's second largest supercomputer, a system with 10,240 Intel Itanium 2 processors capable of performing 51.87 trillion calculations per second ...

Hackers possess two admirable traits: persistence and ingenuity. These attributes have unfortunately lead to a phenomenon known as "pharming," the latest in a never-ending series of insidious attacks ...

One reason the Internet gained as much interest as it did in its early days was the convenience that it offered individuals interested in pornography. No longer did they have to visit adult bookstores in person; with a few keystrokes the materials were delivered directly to their personal computers ...

It has become as common for many folks as putting on their socks and shoes: Almost instinctively, they put their cell phones into their pockets, and then later in the day hold them close to their ears to talk with friends, family, or co-workers. Cell phone users, who number 150 million in the United States, believe their actions are innocuous, but there is a group of scientists and vendors who think otherwise...

You catch the early train and can't watch your favorite morning news show; you work late one night and miss the latest "CSI," or you're stuck sitting in an airport while your favorite team is playing in a championship basketball game. In the past, you had limited options in situations like these: Tape or TiVo the show and watch it later, or simply miss it completely. But soon, cellular network suppliers may present you with a better alternative: watching television programs on your cell phone...

Each morning, users open their e-mail boxes and discover solicitations for low-rate mortgages, prescription drugs, weight-loss programs, pornography and shady business transactions. Sorting through legitimate and illegitimate messages is a frustrating and time-consuming process ...

You move into a new neighborhood, and you need telephone services. Who should you call? In the past, your selection was limited to the local phone company or one of the long distance carriers. Recently, a third option emerged: your local cable television operator ...

When it comes to high-speed data networks, users tend to focus on cable modems or digital subscriber lines, but they do have a third option: satellite services. Though not nearly as popular as the others alternatives, satellite systems have found a growing number of fans. Approximately 100,000 consumers and businesses in the U.S. rely on them for Internet access...

Every day, employees are bombarded by an avalanche of messages: voice mail items on their desktop and mobile phones, notes on their pagers, e-mail, a fax or two, and perhaps just a number of sticky notes taped to their computer screens. At the same time, because of recent technical advances, users are pressured to respond to these messages ASAP: Being unable to reply because one is traveling or out of the office for a meeting, for example, is simply no longer acceptable...

Security advisor Kaspersky Lab reported last week that Russia had earned the dubious distinction of becoming the ninth country with a confirmed infection of a virus targeted at Bluetooth devices. The Cabir.a virus had already stricken handhelds in the Philippines, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, China, India, Finland, Turkey, and Vietnam ...

Every day, vendors are working to deliver faster microprocessors that work with more memory. Meanwhile, software suppliers are designing more sophisticated applications that work with data, voice, and recently even video information ...

Fingerprinting is an authentication technique that has helped law enforcement officials identify potential criminals for decades, but recently it has started to gain wider usage. The technique is emerging as the most popular form of biometrics, and much of the budding interest is coming from government agencies looking to enhance physical security, such as access to buildings. Corporations are also making a move toward using fingerprinting technology to provide more reliable identification of employees, business partners and customers...

It is a sight that one sees seemingly everywhere, from neighborhood streets to busy highways to bumper-to-bumper traffic jams: drivers taking their eyes off the road and hands off the wheel to use their cell phones. This dangerous activity has become commonplace, but attempts to address the issue remain controversial ...

Competition can be great for consumers but terrifying for vendors, a maxim being put into effect in the cellular services realm. Consumers now find themselves besieged by a wide variety of carrier bonuses, such as free handsets and calling plans that feature thousands of free minutes. As a result, a growing number are switching services (a process dubbed "churn"), and their decisions are making it quite difficult for carriers to make a profit...

In a battle to establish a de facto standard, is it better to deliver technology first or to have the greater number of supporters? The emergence of ultrawideband (UWB) products, which allow a wide variety of PC and consumer electronics devices to exchange information over high-speed wireless networks, may provide an answer to that question ...

IT managers tend to look at wireless local area networks, or WLANs, much like adults view groups of loud teenagers -- with at least a little bit of trepidation and sometimes some fear as well. That's because while the wireless technology potentially offers companies the ability to enhance productivity, it is also known to have some significant security loopholes...

Up to now there hasn't been a connection between cellular and WiFi networks, but that situation is expected to change soon ...

Because cellular services are one of the fastest growing segments in the telecommunications market, new models are emerging that focus on how cellular services are delivered. The days when carriers installed and controlled their own equipment are giving way to a new era in which wireless network service providers lease their networks to others, who are dubbed mobile virtual network operators (MVNO)...