Internet

"The Internet, sometimes called simply "the Net," is a worldwide system of

computer networks - a network of networks in which users at any one computer can,
if they have permission, get information from any other computer (and sometimes
talk directly to users at other computers)."

 Types of Internet Connections

 Analog (up to 56k): Also called dial-up access, it is both

economical and slow. Using a modem connected to your PC, users
connect to the Internet when the computer dials a phone number
(which is provided by your ISP) and connects to the network. Dial-up
is an analog connection because data is sent over an analog, public
telephone network. The modem converts received analog data to
digital and vise versa. Because dial-up access uses normal telephone
lines the quality of the connection is not always good and data rates
are limited. Typical Dial-up connection speeds range from 2400 bps
to 56 Kbps.

 ISDN: Integrated services digital network (ISDN) is an

international communications standard for sending voice, video, and
data over digital telephone lines or normal telephone wires. Typical
ISDN speeds range from 64 Kbps to 128 Kbps.

 B-ISDN: Broadband ISDN is similar in function to ISDN but it

transfers data over fiber optic telephone lines, not normal telephone
wires. SONET is the physical transport backbone of B-ISDN.
Broadband ISDN has not been widely implemented.

 DSL: DSL is also called an always on connection because it uses

existing 2-wire copper telephone line connected to the premise and
will not tie up your phone as a dial-up connection does. There is no
need to dial-in to your ISP as DSL is always on. The two main
categories of DSL for home subscribers are called ADSL and SDSL.

 ADSL: ADSL is the most commonly deployed types of

DSL in North America. Short for asymmetric digital
subscriber line ADSL supports data rates of from 1.5 to 9
Mbps when receiving data (known as the downstream rate)

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 and from 16 to 640 Kbps when sending data (known as the
upstream rate). ADSL requires a special ADSL modem.

 SDSL: SDSL is still more common in Europe. Short for

symmetric digital subscriber line, a technology that allows
more data to be sent over existing copper telephone lines
(POTS). SDSL supports data rates up to 3 Mbps. SDSL
works by sending digital pulses in the high-frequency area of
telephone wires and can not operate simultaneously with
voice connections over the same wires. SDSL requires a
special SDSL modem. SDSL is called symmetric because it
supports the same data rates for upstream and downstream
traffic.

 VDSL: Very High DSL (VDSL) is a DSL technology that

offers fast data rates over relatively short distances — the
shorter the distance, the faster the connection rate.

 All types of DSL technologies are collectively referred to as

xDSL. xDSL connection speeds range from 128 Kbps to 8
Mbps.

 Cable: Through the use of a cable modem you can have a

broadband Internet connection that is designed to operate over cable
TV lines. Cable Internet works by using TV channel space for data
transmission, with certain channels used for downstream
transmission, and other channels for upstream transmission. Because
the coaxial cable used by cable TV provides much greater bandwidth
than telephone lines, a cable modem can be used to achieve
extremely fast access. Cable speeds range from 512 Kbps to 20
Mbps.

 Wireless Internet Connections: Wireless Internet, or wireless

broadband is one of the newest Internet connection types. Instead of
using telephone or cable networks for your Internet connection, you
use radio frequency bands. Wireless Internet provides an always-on
connection which can be accessed from anywhere — as long as you
geographically within a network coverage area. Wireless access is
still considered to be relatively new, and it may be difficult to find a
wireless service provider in some areas. It is typically more
expensive and mainly available in metropolitan areas.

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  T-1 Lines: T-1 lines are a popular leased line option for businesses
connecting to the Internet and for Internet Service Providers (ISPs)
connecting to the Internet backbone. It is a dedicated phone
connection supporting data rates of 1.544Mbps. A T-1 line actually
consists of 24 individual channels, each of which supports 64Kbits
per second. Each 64Kbit/second channel can be configured to carry
voice or data traffic. Most telephone companies allow you to buy just
one or some of these individual channels. This is known as as
fractional T-1 access.

 Bonded T-1: A bonded T-1 is two or more T-1 lines that

have been joined (bonded) together to increase bandwidth.
Where a single T-1 provides approximately 1.5Mbps, two
bonded T1s provide 3Mbps or 46 channels for voice or data.
Two bonded T-1s allow you to use the full bandwidth of
3Mbps where two individual T-1s can still only use a
maximum of 1.5Mbps at one time. To be bonded the T-1
must run into the same router at the end, meaning they must
run to the same ISP. T-1 Lines support speeds of 1.544 Mbps.
Fractional T-1 speeds are 64 Kbps per channel (up to 1.544
Mbps), depending on number of leased channels. Typical
Bonded T-1 (two bonded T-1 lines) speed is around 3 Mbps.

 T-3 Lines: T-3 lines are dedicated phone connections supporting

data rates of about 43 to 45 Mbps. It too is a popular leased line
option. A T-3 line actually consists of 672 individual channels, each
of which supports 64 Kbps. T-3 lines are used mainly by Internet
Service Providers (ISPs) connecting to the Internet backbone and for
the backbone itself. Typical T-3 supports speeds ranging from 43 to
45 Mbps.

 Satellite: Internet over Satellite (IoS) allows a user to access the

Internet via a satellite that orbits the earth. A satellite is placed at a
static point above the earth's surface, in a fixed position. Because of
the enormous distances signals must travel from the earth up to the
satellite and back again, IoS is slightly slower than high-speed
terrestrial connections over copper or fiber optic cables. Typical
Internet over Satellite connection speeds (standard IP services)
average around 492 up to 512 Kbps.

 Implications of Internet

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  To Find Information: We can use the Internet to find
information about almost anything, using Internet search engines
such as Google and Yahoo. However, we must carefully check the
source (website) and quality of the information. An example of good
source of general information is wikipedia.org

 File Sharing: A file can be put on a “Shared Location” or onto a

File Server for instant use by colleagues. Mirror servers and peer-to-
peer networks can be used to ease the load of data transfer.

 Communication and Social Networking: Internet chat and

instant messaging systems allow people to stay in touch in a
convenient way while working at their computers. Messages can be
sent and received instantly. In addition, these systems also allow file
transfer, as well as voice and video contact. Social networking
websites allow people to stay in touch with friends and family, and
knowing their activities by viewing their profiles. The concept of a
social networking website is to store people’s profiles and connecting
them between one and another. A personal profile can include
pictures and videos to be shared

 Remote Access: Computer users can easily connect to other

computers and information stores around the world using the internet.
The access can be done with or without security, authentication and
encryption, depending on the needs. Remote access is encouraging
new methods of working from home and information sharing in
many businesses. Using Virtual Private Network (VPN), a
businessman can use a remote desktop session to access his PC in the
other side of the world.

 VoIP: VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) started from an optional

two-way voice chat provided by some of the instant messaging
systems that started around the year 2000. The benefit of VoIP is that
it can be free or cost much less than a normal telephone call, because
the Internet carries that voice traffic. VoIP is surely a cheap solution
for long distance call

Intranet

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"An intranet is a private computer network that uses Internet protocols and network
connectivity to securely share any part of an organization's information or
operational systems with its employees."

 Features Of Intranet
 Sometimes the term refers only to the organization's internal website,
but often it is a more extensive part of the organization's computer
infrastructure and private websites are an important component and
focal point of internal communication and collaboration.

 An intranet is built from the same concepts and technologies used for
the Internet, such as clients and servers running on the Internet
Protocol Suite (TCP/IP). Any of the well known Internet protocols
may be found in an intranet, such as HTTP (web services), SMTP (e-
mail), and FTP (file transfer).

 Intranets differ from extranets in that the former are generally

restricted to employees of the organization while extranets may also
be accessed by customers, suppliers, or other approved parties.
Extranets extend a private network onto the Internet with special
provisions for access, authorization and authentication.

 Intranets are being used to deliver tools and applications, e.g.,

collaboration (to facilitate working in groups and teleconferencing)
or sophisticated corporate directories, sales and Customer
relationship management tools, project management etc., to advance
productivity.

 Intranets are also being used as corporate culture-change platforms.

For example, large numbers of employees discussing key issues in an
intranet forum application could lead to new ideas in management,
productivity, quality, and other corporate issues.

 Implications of Intranet

Following are some general examples of information or processes that might be

available on an intranet to serve various departments.

 Human Resources: From employee training materials to the

employee handbook, an intranet can offer quick easy access to

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 fundamental publications to all employees. Benefits, 401 k tracking,
job applications, and an employee directory are just a few examples.
A company newsletter and employee newsgroups or chat boards are
other opportunities an intranet affords.

 Sales Department: One of the most productive uses of an

intranet is interactive multimedia training. Sales reports, forecasts
and goals, marketing strategies and geographic saturation are all tools
the intranet can keep available at the click of a mouse. Profiles of
potential new markets or clients, and information on potential
competing markets can also be helpful to sales staff in designing
better sales models.

 Accounting Department: Requisition requests on an intranet

will save time, resources and money. Pages within an intranet can be
password protected to limit employee access, or administratively
controlled. Payroll, receivables/payables, and budget reports are all
processes that can reside on the intranet.

 Information Systems: Data warehousing access, departmental

software development applications, and network support can be
invaluable uses of an intranet. Intranet support itself with FAQs and
interactive tutorials for virtually any purpose or department, allow
employees to teach themselves, minimizing training investment.
Security information and technical resources are also common uses
of an intranet.

 Executive Branch: Bottom line information like quarterly

profit/loss reports, stock market analysis, tax and legal information,
and merger or partnership information can all be neatly provided on
an intranet. Meeting minutes, appointment calendars and key profiles
(employees, companies or clients) can also reside here.

Extranet
"An extranet is a private network that uses Internet protocols, network connectivity,
and possibly the public telecommunication system to securely share part of an
organization's information or operations with suppliers, vendors, partners, customers
or other businesses." It has also been described as a "state of mind" in which the
Internet is perceived as a way to do business with a pre approved set of other
companies' business-to-business (B2B), in isolation from all other Internet users. In

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contrast, business-to-consumer (B2C) involves known server(s) of one or more
companies, communicating with previously unknown consumer users.

 Features of Extranet

 It has also been described as a "state of mind" in which the Internet is

perceived as a way to do business with a pre approved set of other
companies' business-to-business (B2B), in isolation from all other
Internet users. In contrast, business-to-consumer (B2C) involves
known server(s) of one or more companies, communicating with
previously unknown consumer users
 An extranet can be understood as an intranet mapped onto the public
Internet or some other transmission system not accessible to the
general public, but is managed by more than one company's
administrator(s). For example, military networks of different security
levels may map onto a common military radio transmission system
that never connects to the Internet.

 Implications of Extranet

During the late 1990s and early 2000s, several industries started to use the term
"extranet" to describe central repositories of shared data made accessible via the
web only to authorized members of particular work groups.
For example, in the construction industry, project teams could login to and access a
'project extranet' to share drawings and documents make comments, issue requests
for information, etc. In 2003 in the United Kingdom, several of the leading vendors
formed the Network of Construction Collaboration Technology Providers, or
NCCTP, to promote the technologies and to establish data exchange standards
between the different systems. The same type of construction-focused technologies
has also been developed in the United States, Australia, Scandinavia, Germany and
Belgium, among others. Some applications are offered on Software as a Service
(SaaS) basis by vendors functioning as Application service providers (ASPs).
Specially secured extranets are used to provide virtual data room services to
companies in several sectors (including law and accountancy). There are a variety of
commercial extranet applications, some of which are for pure file management, and
others which include broader collaboration and project management tools also there
are exist a variety of Open Source extranet applications and modules, which can be
integrated into other online collaborative applications such as Content Management
Systems.

Neural network

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Traditionally, the term neural network had been used to refer to a network or circuit
of biological neurons. The modern usage of the term often refers to artificial neural
networks, which are composed of artificial neurons or nodes."
Thus the term has two distinct usages:

 Biological neural networks are made up of real biological

neurons that are connected or functionally-related in the peripheral
nervous system or the central nervous system. In the field of
neuroscience, they are often identified as groups of neurons that
perform a specific physiological function in laboratory analysis.

 Artificial neural networks are made up of interconnecting

artificial neurons (programming constructs that mimic the properties
of biological neurons). Artificial neural networks may either be used
to gain an understanding of biological neural networks, or for solving
artificial intelligence problems without necessarily creating a model
of a real biological system. The real biological nervous system is
highly complex including some features which may seem superfluous
to the understanding of the working of artificial networks.

 Implications of Neural Network

The tasks to which artificial neural networks are applied tend to fall within the
following broad categories:

 Function approximation, or regression analysis, including time series

prediction and modeling.

 Classification, including pattern and sequence recognition, novelty

detection and sequential decision making.

 Data processing, including filtering, clustering, blind signal

separation and compression.

Application areas include system identification and control (vehicle control, process
control), game-playing and decision making (backgammon, chess, racing), pattern
recognition (radar systems, face identification, object recognition, etc.), sequence
recognition (gesture, speech, handwritten text recognition), medical diagnosis,
financial applications, data mining (or knowledge discovery in databases, "KDD"),
visualization and e-mail spam filtering.