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5 Reasons Why You Need a Wireless Network
As far as I'm concerned, wireless networks are one of the best inventions in history -- they really are the best thing since sliced bread. I mean, really, bread is easy enough to cut yourself, but have you ever tried to wire up a network? So, in the...
Benefits of making your website accessible to disabled users – part 1: increase in reach
The Disability Discrimination Act states that service providers must not discriminate against disabled people. A website is regarded as a service and therefore falls under this law. Some organisations are changing their websites, but many are...
Google Joins the Internet Phone Revolution.
Google Joins the Internet Phone Revolution. Its not so long ago that the idea of free phone calls over the Internet would have been thought an impossibility, but as any knowledgeable user will tell you they are now commonplace. Skype the pioneer...
How Does A Firewall Work?
You may have heard the term firewall before but have you ever wondered how does a firewall work and why do I need one? A computer firewall protects your computer by putting up a barrier to keep anyone from accessing your files when you are surfing...
Is your web site ready for its visitors?
There’s a great interest among the Internet entrepreneurs about how to promote their business on the Web. There’s always a quest for new and innovative ways of promotion that promise greater results at lower cost and in shorter time. Yet with all...
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10 Years in Internet Time
2005 marked approximately 10 years since what many consider the
dawning of the commercial internet and World Wide Web with the
newly-formed WWW Consortium (W3C) and the availability to
purchase domains by the public. It's been quite a ride for some
and a yawn for others, but one thing is for certain: the
internet has changed the world forever.
For starters, as of last year, more people in the US are using
broadband access as opposed to a dial-up connection providing
many times the download speed. From news to sports to business
and online shopping, internet users find it difficult to
remember the days of plain text and waiting for sometimes hours
to download pictures, videos, music and other media-rich
content. Today the use of such interactive content is
main-stream and provides infinite more utility to the internet
than a decade ago.
It was recently reported that Instant Messaging is used more
often than e-mail by more than 50% of adult Americans, and among
the younger set, that number jumps to over 62%. Instant
messaging has become a routine activity from college campuses to
corporations, integrating simple text and multi-media with PCs
and even cell phones.
This year also marks the first point in history that more people
turn to the internet to search for businesses and shopping than
they do to the printed material we have traditionally kept in
the kitchen drawer under the telephone, and over 60% of US
households in a recent survey said they research the internet
before shopping locally for products and services. Relevancy,
accuracy, variety, and rich content have made the internet an
integral part of our daily lives. Who would have guessed so much
as recently as 10 years ago?
So what will the next 10 years bring? Here are some predictions
based on a variety of industry watchdogs and experts:
1. With nearly 45% by some counts, of the US population meeting
legal handicap and/or other impairment criteria, expanding the
usability of the
Lionel Loueke: Jazz Meets African Rhythms On 'Mwaliko'
The jazz guitarist draws on an extremely wide range of styles. From bebop to Brazilian rhythms to lyrical ballads to sounds from his native Benin, Loueke's latest album, <em>Mwaliko</em>, showcases the artist's inventive take on jazz.
Cindy Blackman And Sherrie Maricle On JazzSet
Drums — wide and deep talking-to-you drums — that's the Cindy Blackman sound. At the Women in Jazz Festival at the Kennedy Center, the Lenny Kravitz dummer brought her quartet featuring JD Allen. Sherrie Maricle's Fiveplay opens.
internet to those individuals will be both an
ethical and financially prudent investment. Addressing motor and
cognitive impairments as well as vision and hearing challenges
the internet can, and will be improved and adapted to providing
accessible content to more and more of the population. The UK
and Australia both already have laws on the books requiring
internet sites to be accessible to various degrees and
accessibility guidelines/recommendations are already in place
here in the US with several agencies reviewing appropriate
requirements and ultimately laws in our country. WSI among
others is already in position to offer products and services
geared towards this new and important initiative.
2. The internet will continue to expand and provide convenience
to our lives outside of the traditional computer. Available as
we speak is a 3rd generation (3G) of cell phones which allow
downloading of directions, maps, music, scores and even video
entertainment right to your phone on demand. In some markets,
users can shop, place orders via their telephones, be notified
that their order is ready and see a map of how to get there to
pick it up. Even Dick Tracey would have gotten a kick out of
that!
We have come a long way in the first 10 years of the commercial
internet. It has helped to form many aspects of our culture for
both good and bad, and by all predictions will continue to be an
increasingly important part of how we work, study, shop, and
even play in the coming decades. What role are you or your
organization playing?
About the author:
John Geiger owns and operates a local affiliate of WSI Internet
Consulting and Education, a Toronto based global network of
consultants, developers and production centers providing
consultation as well as turn-key internet business solutions for
small and medium-sized enterprises to include web-site design,
development and hosting; site maintenance and upgrades, full
e-commerce solutions,etc. See www.webmasters-wsi.com
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