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How to Improve Circulation for Overheating Command Centers

Summary: Good circulation is a necessity in every command center.

Command centers require an immense amount of power. With a variety of high-tech equipment like your network operations center video wall stored within each center, there needs to be a significant amount of cooling to create a comfortable balance. This guide will walk you through some ways that you can improve the overall circulation in your command center.

Be Careful Using Standard A/C Units

As you already know, command centers must be performing at peak efficiency 24/7. If an emergency were to occur and a computer was malfunctioning because of excessive dust, severe issues could arise. Your standard A/C units may supply significant cooling to a spot, but it can also spew out clouds of dust if not cleaned properly. An alternative would be to purchase an HVAC unit that comes with disposable filters. You’ll want to clean these on a monthly basis.

Install Water Cooling

Computers tend to run hot when they start overclocking and working themselves beyond their capacity. If your command center utilizes software and programs that are demanding, you might want to integrate water cooling within each computer instead of your standard fan. The latter tends to blow out dust and can create an environment that’s filled with dust particles. Water cooling on the other hand provides less dust output and keeps the entire computer cool and at safe temperatures.

Relocate Equipment

Another option you can take advantage of is relocating certain equipment to a sealed off area. Not only will this provide more room for your operators, but it can also reduce the amount of heat and dust coming out from each computer. Be sure to consult with a professional A/V integrator beforehand to ensure everything can be moved safely without causing any interruptions.

Use Google’s Pixel camera software on other phones

When reviews of Google’s Pixel phone came out, the camera was the highlight of the phone. In fact, it was a testament to the work Google had put in that photos from the camera were talked about in the same ballpark as the iPhone 7 and Samsung Galaxy S7. Most smartphones use the same Sony image sensor, in other words, what makes one camera better than the other is the software. The Google Pixel camera app was special, and now it works on other phones.

What you get is not an official version of the app. A Ukranian developer has ported the app so that it works on other Android phones with the Snapdragon 820/821 or 835 processors. One of the staff at XDA Developers ran the app on LG G6, a OnePlus 3, a OnePlus 3T, a OnePlus 5, and a Samsung Galaxy S8 without any issue.

What makes the Pixel Camera app special is the HDR+ image processing that produces great images in even low-light conditions. The app uses the Hexagon digital signal processor to take a continuous stream of images from the time the app opens. When you take a shot, all the app does is mark the time, and use the images to build the best possible HDR image.

Please remember that the app probably includes optimizations for the specific hardware in the Pixel and will probably not produce images as good as the Pixel.

Medium and Large-Scale Network Monitoring Efforts Are Scaling Upwards

Summary: Network Operations Centers are bridging the gap between network security and scalability.

A Network Operations Center (NOC) plays a crucial role for any medium or large-scale network monitoring effort. Within the center, your staff will monitor and respond to any problems with the network. The NOC will also form a link between the detection of a network problem as well as implementing a solution – typically by sending a technician to the remote site.

Some companies are in a transitional phase of growth, meaning they are not open every 24/7. Additionally, their network is vast enough to have a NOC center constructed, but can’t justify the expense of staffing it outside of business hours. In this case, many companies will utilize after-hours notifications that email or call the technician in the case of a misnomer or other error that appears.

Within the NOC, control center consoles are outfitted to work alongside the central master console. This console essentially accepts inputs from thousands of remote devices that are in your network.

Alarm Remotes

Alarm remotes are special monitoring devices that are designed to collect alarms from contact closures and sensors, which will send the signal back to the NOC. Note that a single alarm remote can cover dozens of remote devices, depending on the alarms that they each put out. It’s important to remember as you develop and upgrade your NOC, it’s important that you avoid several common pitfalls that will negatively impact the overall performance of your center as well. This can be countered by opting for a integrator that can provide a custom-built center that’s perfect for any solution.

The problems with Cryptocurrency

The blockchain, cryptocurrency, and token platforms rival machine learning and artificial intelligence as the biggest new tech trends set to disrupt existing industries. In just a few short years, there are hundreds of crypto tokes, with a combined market value in the billions of dollars. However, there are still a few issues that these platforms need to address before they can become mainstream:

Volatility

The biggest issue with Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies is the volatility. Financial instruments don’t exhibit the sort of volatility we see from these virtual currencies. Often, the value can rise and fall in hours by staggering amounts. Once Bitcoin and other currencies achieve a level of stability that hovers around one and two percent annually, we will see the potential for wider adoption.

Security

What makes Bitcoin popular is also its greatest threat. The blockchain is akin to a public ledger that nodes on the network verify. However, the problem is that users can add certain bits of information to the transactions and blocks anonymously. What happens when the content is controversial or illegal? Everyone who has a copy of the blockchain, in theory, is in legal trouble.

Anonymity

Bitcoin is popular because of its pseudo-anonymity. There are tokens which are completely private that will probably not see wide adoption due to the potential for criminal and illegal uses. For a token to succeed in the wider space, it cannot be with anonymity, as governments and authorities will not allow such a situation to exist.

 

How do you mine a cryptocurrency?

Even though it is getting harder and harder, people are still mining Bitcoin and other Altcoins, hoping to benefit if and when the value of Bitcoin goes back to pre-crash levels. For those new to the process, mining is where you use your computer or graphics card to perform complex calculations for the cryptocurrency network and get paid in that currency.

There are two ways you can mine, with a CPU or a GPU. The CPU is the processor in your computer, and a GPU is a high-end version of the card that drives the display on your computer. Nowadays, GPU mining is much faster and more productive then mining with a CPU. Also, dedicated miners buy multiple expensive GPU’s and build mining rigs.

You cannot mine all currencies with a CPU, some are too complex and require a GPU for any economic benefit. Mining with both CPU’s and GPU is very power intensive affair and requires a lot of electricity. In locations where electricity is expensive, it is not economical to mine.

If you have a powerful computer that is idle most of the day and electricity is cheap, you can easily start mining the most profitable currency available. If a currency is old and has seen a lot of mining, the difficulty increases, making it harder, and longer to gain any benefit from mining. Having said that, even for the sake of experimentation, you can choose a currency, create a wallet, and mine a few coins.

Understanding the “Levels” of NOC Technicians

Summary: Technicians are often categorised based on their skill, experience, and role they play within the organization.

Within every command center lies a team of skilled technicians that are tasked with keeping the organization’s network healthy and running up to speed. Now, because of the time sensitivity factor that plays a large role in how much down time there is between network “hiccups”, each technician must play his or her role in attributing to the overall defense of the network itself.

“Levels”

NOC technicians are categorized based on levels. Each level indicates a certain type of expertise and problem-solving ability that the technician can bring to the table. For example, if there is a hardware failure, and alert may be assigned to a Level 1 technician. He might do some basic diagnosis and reports to the more experienced technicians but ultimately he’s limited to a certain level of authority over the issue.

Upon further inspection, if the alert is more serious than hardware failure, the problem will be address by a Level 2 or Level 3 technician instead. Each technician plays a role in addressing, diagnosing, and fixing the problem at hand. Whomever is assigned to a certain station, and also depending on the amount of experience this individual has, must have a specific level of training so everything can run smoothly. Think of it like clockwork.

NOC Capabilities

Technicians are tasked with continuously searching for any anomalous activities while making adjustments on the go in order to keep the network free and healthy from any malicious attacks. Keep in mind that the capabilities of a NOC go far beyond simple tasks such as diagnosing attacks and fixing them. Some other capabilities include: policy enforcement, patch management, storage management, email management services, and more.

 

Best Practices Sound for Band Directors

Being a great band director is a lot of hard work and practice. It takes dedication to get your students to sound great, and it’s not easy getting that organization together in order to put on a show. Band is highly coordinated, and it requires extreme discipline, especially when travelling around the country. Here are some best practices to keep in mind.

Portable Equipment

You’ll be doing some travel, and your school might have assigned you a vehicle or a budget for this purpose. Make sure the equipment you have to cart around is portable, and fits neatly where it needs to go. Include at least one bag for each student in your ensemble. Portable equipment, like a Bogen amplifier, is essential when you have to travel across state lines, or even just a few miles. It also helps make unloading a breeze.

Set Goals

Set specific goals that measure up to the talent you have to deal with. Make sure that you have some challenges along the way so students stay motivated, but managing expectations and placing the right goals can be important for growth. Not everyone can compete at the top level, but but many can be pushed to persevere and do their best.

Remember the Kids

Being a band director is a rewarding job because you get to spend time doing the music you love with the kids you care about. Try and keep that in mind as you travel to various competitions, and let the stressors roll off of you.

Article submitted by CAM Electronics. CAM Electronics offers the best in quality AV systems for professional use. Contact CAM Electronics to learn more about amplifiers, and other ways to enhance your professional audio system.

Should You Trust Digital Wallets?

Summary: Digital wallets are the latest in online merchant accounts. But, are they truly a safe alternative?

The versatility and functionality of digital wallets put them in a league of their own. However, there are still some minor concerns that you should be aware of prior to placing your full trust into this technology. Now, in order to understand whether or not digital wallets are right for you, you’ll want to see what types of challenges digital wallets are facing today and what they are doing to overcome them. This article will cover all aspects of these challenges so you can determine if this new technology is perfect for you.

Secure Technology or Fraudulent Magnet?

First off, it should be understood that a digital wallet isn’t easy for an outside to gain access to. While nothing is immune to outside hackers, digital wallets utilize an advanced encryption method to ensure that each and every transaction remains private and secure. This brings up the point of finding a secure platform to work with. Be sure that every merchant account provider that you look into has the latest in security technologies.

Digital wallets never release an account number to a retailer. Because everything is “tokenized”, which means that the transaction takes places within a single session, you’ll find that it leaves behind little to no trace of personal activity. Now, every transaction number is unique and no account data is attached to it, so thieves are less likely to try and snuff out an account number or any other valuable data that links directly to your funds. Without access to this data, cyber criminals are less likely to gain access.

App-Based Digital Wallets

Another security implementation that digital wallets are using these days is password or fingerprint technologies. Since most digital wallets are based on mobile apps, they’ll require you to create a secure password and/or input a fingerprint for access purposes. Keeping your phone on you at all times is relatively ideal to keep your wallet protected, but it doesn’t beat creating a secure password.

Most of the time, thieves that gain access to accounts do so by breaking a simple password like “rabbit4” or “Jeremy1”. Instead, if it allows, combine numbers, letters and symbols to maximize your account’s security – and be sure to write it down in the case you forget it. Doing this will deter hackers from gaining access to your account and stealing personal information and funds. Remember, you always have the option of resetting your account remotely by logging into the app from a desktop or laptop.

 

Amazon faces hurdles in Singapore

Amazon is making a big push into Southeast Asia, and its new venture in Singapore is already facing some hurdles. There are two problems for Amazon in Singapore. The first is that Singaporeans have a lot of shopping malls and prefer to shop in physical stores. The second issue is that rival e-commerce operations like Lazada and Alibaba entered the market a long time ago.

Unlike other countries, Singapore is a unique country where a shopping mall is only a few minutes away. Most people use public transport and phase little in the way of congestion. There are too many stores, and retailers are starting to scale back slightly. With a retail presence around the corner, very few of the islands shoppers buy online. Last year, only 4.6% of retails sales were online.

“Singapore is a very small city-state, so shopping is one of the favorite pastimes for all Singaporeans,” said Chan Hock Fai, a fund manager at Amundi Asset Management. Because retailing is a more mature market in the country, compared with emerging retail and e-commerce markets, “growth rates are harder to come by,” he said.

A report by Google and Temasek Holdings projects e-commerce in Southeast Asia to reach $88 billion by the year 2025. Amazon began its Singapore venture with Prime Now, a two-hour delivery service:

“We’ve launched Prime Now in 50 cities across nine countries, and Singapore is our biggest launch ever,” said Amanda Ip, a spokeswoman at Amazon Prime Now. “We are grateful for the exciting response from customers.”

Outsourced Vs. In-house EDI: The benefits and drawbacks

One of the biggest decisions from a business standpoint is choosing between purchasing software for an in-house EDI implementation as opposed to going with an outsourced EDI service bureau. Below, we look at some of the benefits and drawbacks of both options:

Outsource

Benefits

One of the immediate benefits is the cost savings from identifying and eliminating bad business practices.

Access to the latest technology. When you use a SaaS model, the latest technology is available immediately.

There is a focus on the customer relationship and business rather than the technology itself

Drawbacks

There is an implementation fee

You will need to pay for any transaction, including changing information.

There is no way to know in advance how much time to purchase for mapping business functions and data.

No way to expedite the queue for transactions.

In-House

Benefits

Lower long-term costs as you only pay upfront and do not pay per transaction.

A much greater control of information, as data is not sent to a third party.

Greater business partner satisfaction

Drawbacks

The high initial capital expense for the software and any work to connect existing software.

Requires personnel with knowledge of EDI to manage the in-house systems and troubleshoot issues.

Regular maintenance costs and upgrades will incur separate costs.