Access to superfast broadband is one of the key issues facing Britain's businesses today. The ability to share large amounts of information extremely quickly gives some businesses a distinct advantage.

According to Ofcom, average broadband speeds in the UK was 7.6 megabits per second, up from 6.8Mbps six months previously, thanks in part to upgrades offered by Virgin and BT. This 22% improvement translates into saving around six minutes while downloading a 2 hour-long film, and makes a big difference in multiple-occupancy homes. There is still a broad disparity between rural and urban areas, with an average of 3.3Mbps against 8.8Mbps respectively. At the top end, the UK offers "up to" 40Mbps and 100Mbps is the very top speed. In South Korea, for example headline speeds of up to 1Gbps (1,000Mbps) are being offered.
 
It may depend on your provider, but NGA will also offer the potential for better upload speeds, a factor which is often overlooked when considering the best headline download speed. This improves your potential for collaboration and to take advantage of videoconferencing – in short, to send high-bandwidth information.
 
If you want to take full advantage of fast, clear videoconferencing with good audio/video, or collaborate using rich content, then NGA is absolutely vital. Furthermore, this should not be seen as a luxury: future internet users at your business will consider superfast connections as a basic necessity for competitive business.
 
It's useful to get your terminology correct with regards to fibreoptic connection, all of which deliver marginally different download/upload speeds. The highest-bandwidth NGA service is “fibre to the premises” (FTTP), which means that from provider to user there is no copper cable in the link, and is also known as "fibre to the home" (FTTH) with regard to residential rather than business users. BT is currently trialling a 100 Mbps service in Ebbsfleet, Kent and is planning a trial in Higham Park, London.
 
The most common system in the UK is “fibre to the cabinet” (FTTC) – which means the link is fibre optic to the cabinet in the street and copper from there to your home. In its Digital Britain report, the government suggested that this method may be one of the most economical options to help deliver on its Universal Service Commitment on broadband access. If this proves successful, “up to 1.5 million households, many of whom currently have little or no broadband availability, might be able to access next-generation fast broadband”.


This improvement in the infrastructure of British business will give a huge head start for any company willing to provide for its own future. Even small companies will benefit hugely from the improvement in broadband access, commanding control over potential new markets overseas and being able to communicate quickly and clearly online. To stay competitive, it is vital for business to have NGA.
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One of the most heavily marketed features of the iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S has been its extremely sharp display. The screen is very impressive and was designed to make the most of the handset's many multimedia functions such as web browsing, watching movies and iPhone video chat.

I was surprised to learn that the display isn't actually manufactured by Apple; LG makes the screens for them under an exclusive contact, so you won't see the display popping up on other manufacturer's devices.

Let's move on to the details:

The phone's resolution of 960 x 640 is extremely high for its 3.5 inch display size. Apple claims that when holding the phone 12 inches from your face it is not possible for the naked eye to make out individual pixels. They claim this is due to the phone's pixel density of 326 pixels per inch being greater than the maximum the human retina (hence the display's name) can absorb at a distance of 12 inches.

Some experts have disagreed, stating that the human retina in fact has a maximum resolution of 477 pixels per inch at 12 inches. However, it is accepted that for someone to be able to physically distinguish the difference they would need to have better than 20/20 vision. Putting abstract arguments aside, the display is looks extremely crisp and sharp in real world use.

The screen uses in-plane-switching (IPS) technology to give a very wide viewing angle. The latest iPod touch also has a high resolution Retina display, but it doesn't match its newer phone cousins when it comes to viewing angles.

The new display also boasts a pretty high contrast ration of 800:1. This helps the unit to display brighter whites and darker blacks. The official brightness specs come in at a solid 500 candelas per meter squared. The screen is capable of automatically adjusting its brightness settings depending on the ambient brightness of the environment; this helps to save energy by turning the brightness down in darker environments.

Another nice energy saving feature is the proximity sensor which turns of the screen when it is raised up to the ear during a call. This also helps to stop you accidentally telling the phone to do things by hitting it with your ear.

Finally, the Retina display has a new coating which helps to cut down on those annoying finger prints and smear marks. The new coating has anti-oil properties which reduce the amount of skin oil which transfers onto the display.

If you're interested in other major advances in mobile phone technology, you might like our timeline of revolutionary mobile phones:

What are your thoughts on the iPhone 4/S display? Is there room for improvement? Do you think the screen on the iPhone 5 will be bigger? Let us know in the comments section below.

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Facebook has raised the price at which it hopes to sell its shares from $28-$35 to $34-$38, potentially putting its total value above $100bn (£62.2bn).

The company said strong demand had pushed up the price. Trading in the shares is expected to begin on Friday.

A valuation at this level would make it worth more than the US corporate giants Disney, Ford and Kraft Foods.

The eight-year-old social network has 900 million users worldwide and made a profit of $1bn last year.

If investors buy the shares at the mid-point of $36, Facebook would raise $12.1bn through its planned sale of 337.4 million shares.

Despite the strong interest, a Facebook team is continuing to tour the US with an investor road show, a move undertaken by companies to drum up demand ahead of a sale of new shares.

Facebook is set to list on the Nasdaq and its value will rival Amazon's current worth of $100bn.
Facebook founder and chief executive Mark Zuckerberg will remain in control of the company even after the flotation, controlling more than 57.3% of the voting power through shares he holds and through voting agreements with other shareholders.

The intense interest in the share issue comes despite doubts about the company's ability to make steady profits from social networking.

Although Facebook makes money, profits are currently just 1% of the market value implied by the forthcoming flotation.

Last month, Facebook reported its first drop in revenue between quarters for two years.



Read the rest of this BBC article here.

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Aren’t viruses annoying? They weren’t always like that. Once upon a time, they were merely an annoyance rather than a serious threat.

One of the first viruses was Elk Clone in 1982. Spreading through floppy discs, the 15 year old creator suggested it was a ‘dumb little practical joke’. What did it do? It displayed a poem on the users screen.

Brain was a little more widespread. It was a shock as it was the first virus to attack Microsoft operating systems. What was the outcome? A message to visit the creator’s computer shop repair; a clever method of advertising?
These pale into insignificance compared to today’s viruses. No longer are viruses practical jokes. The threat they pose are very real as hackers continue to prey on unsuspecting computer users. It seems new threats are emerging every day; it’s become big business. That’s why it’s important to check the basics: update your anti-virus database; use patch management software and check a security forum for news on new threats and how to tackle them.

Today, viruses are set to make a profit by stealing your information. You could be surfing the internet, unaware that you’ve installed a Trojan horse or malware; the latter quietly works in the background recording your keystrokes and login details. This is particularly worrying if you use online banking.

In recent years, we’ve seen viruses cause damage around the world. In 2011, Code Red is estimated to have caused $200million – a day. Despite Microsoft releasing a patch for it a month before the outbreak, many had failed to install it, leaving their systems vulnerable. 2003 saw SQL Slammer logged keystrokes. Microsoft regard it as the fastest spreading virus ever.

Many believe Macs are better than PCs due to receiving less viruses. That is all set to change it seems. This year, around 600,000 Macs were infected when hackers targeted a vulnerability in Java. Experts think this is only the start of things to come for Mac users.

Mac users may be punished due to the increasing popularity of Macs. As the number of Mac users increase, so does the interest from cyber criminals. It presents an opportunity to earn more profit from hacking. 

Do you think Mac users will be increasingly targeted by hackers?

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Headphones! 05/11/2012
 

Source: miscpix.com via Tyler on Pinterest

Source: emptees.com via Diane on Pinterest

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