Communications News articles from June 2003

Communications News archives from June 2003

What's the buzz? (Editor's Note).
June 1, 2003... The buzz in the enterprise IT market is definitely about wireless. Major newspapers are covering the wireless LAN story. Various trade publications are hitting the subject hard. Wireless was also the hot topic at the recent Networld+Interop...

Enterprise networks remain vulnerable. (Trends).
June 1, 2003... Network-based attacks--excluding worm and blended-threat activity--have declined by 6%, according to a recent security report from Symantec. While good news for IT security staff scrambling to protect their corporate networks, the small drop...

Publications. (Trends).(Juniper and Cisco Routing--Policy and Protocols for Multivendor IP Networks)(Book Review)
June 1, 2003... Juniper and Cisco Routing--Policy and Protocols for Multivendor IP Networks, by Walter Goralski, focuses on real routing policy situations instead of just detailing protocol anatomy. The publication provides real-world, multivend or...

Events. (Trends).
June 1, 2003... [check] WebSec 2003, July 28-30, San Francisco, provides security professionals with sessions on secure instant messaging, Web security architecture, hacking Web applications and wireless authentication, as well as a vendor exposition....

Cell phones on planes? No! (Feedback).(Letter to the Editor)
June 1, 2003... I just finished reading your Editor's Note in the March issue, and you made my day. It makes me feel good that at least one other person feels the same way I do about call waiting and loud phone calls on air planes. It reinforces my argument...

What about video over IP? (Feedback).(Letter to the Editor)
June 1, 2003... A minor point (about Lenny Liebmann's April column, "Six secrets of VoIP testing"), but just wanted to point out that VoIP can also mean video over IP. The word "voice" only appears in the paragraph under Lesson 2 and nowhere else. I almost...

West Point unwired: the Military Academy at West Point continues to lead the way in high-tech curriculum with wireless classroom networking. (Cover Story).
June 1, 2003... When the class of 2007-1,200 first-year cadets--arrives at the Military Academy at West Point in the fall of 2003, one of the first tasks they will do is pick up their "cadet computers." That has been the drill for nearly two decades, but this...

Ethernet: the next standard in WANs: optical choice offers enterprise LANs flexibility and affordability between metropolitan sites. (Network Services).
June 1, 2003... Enterprises continue to hunger for more bandwidth as they put more applications on the Web, exploit the cost advantages of distance learning and streaming media, and take advantage of the security and flexibility of storage-area networks. Many...

Credit union serves up secure solution; password technology system provides members with authenticated, 24/7 network access. (Network Security).(State Employees Credit Union )
June 1, 2003... More than 73,000 members. $530 million in assets. A fast-growing dial-in network where remote users can gain 24/7 access. A potential security nightmare. That was the challenge facing the State Employees Credit Union (SECU) in Lansing,...

Sting taken out of security, threats: Georgia Tech switches to a comprehensive solution for running best-of-breed applications. (Network Security).
June 1, 2003... The Georgia Institute of Technology, in the heart of downtown Atlanta, is one of the country's premier research universities, and, like other universities, needs to protect the security of its network. With its reputation to uphold, a robust...

Port 53 monitoring. (Monitoring, detection products).(NetContinuum NC 1000 )(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... Powered by a custom security ASIC, the NC 1000 combines all critical Web security functionality into a single, high-performance gate way to secure Web resources with zero impact to existing network performance or infrastructure. Deployed behind...

Agent management system. (Monitoring, detection products).(Entercept Security Technologies' Entercept 4.0)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... Designed to meet the needs of large enterprises that want to protect thousands of servers with various applications and disparate operating systems, Entercept 4.0 delivers comprehensive, enterprise-class intrusion prevention and streamlined...

Identity management. (Monitoring, detection products).(Datakey Axis)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... Datakey Axis is a smart card-based solution that simplifies access control and identity management throughout the enterprise. The system provides convenient and secure login to company resources by consolidating all credentials/user identities...

Intrusion prevention. (Monitoring, detection products).(Harris STAT Neutralizer Server Edition)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... STAT Neutralizer Server Edition is an intrusion-prevention product intended to protect Web sites from various malicious activities, such as defacements and from being used as platforms for "zombie" attacks. To provide protection for Microsoft...

Network performance analysis. (Monitoring, detection products).(Oculan 250)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... Designed as a solution for small to midsize businesses, the Oculan 250 combines an array of management and security functionality into a pre-integrated solution with a single user interface. Features include network and systems management,...

Server enclosure. (Product Spotlight).(American Power Conversion NetShelter VX )(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... The NetShelter VX enclosure offers ample ventilation for servers and networking equipment, adjustable vertical mounting rails and integrated rear cable-management channels. The rear power-distribution channels allow basic, metered and switched...

Component labeling. (Product Spotlight).(Panduit PANACEA LS7 )(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... The PANACEA LS7 hand-held printer is designed to assist in compliance with the labeling requirements of the new TIA/EIA-606-A administration standard. The printer is part of a complete labeling system, including faceplates, surface mount boxes,...

Cable hangers. (Product Spotlight).(Harger SSCH15/8)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... The SSCH15/8 stainless steel coax hangers provide an efficient way to attach 1-5/8" coax cables to a tower structure. The product provides a secure connection without the use of the standard "butterfly" design. Also available is the SSDCH15/8...

Self-sealing connector. (Product Spotlight).(from Greene, Tweed Technologies)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... FC-DRY HP self-sealing fiber-optic connectors protect fiber-optic terminations from wet and hostile environments, including water, ice, humidity and corrosives that can interfere with transmission and degrade optical performance. The product...

Monitoring console. (Product Spotlight).(Middle Atlantic Products Quiet-Cool Series)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... The Quiet-Cool Series surveillance and monitoring console offers thermal and cable-management, equipment-access and sound-isolation capabilities. This product features an active thermal-management system, which includes filtered air intakes and...

Coaxial cable. (Product Spotlight).(Semflex BPE Series Cable is )(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... The BPE Series Cable is capable of 50-ohm applications up to 6 GHz, where microwave performance characteristics need to be managed, but temperature range and higher frequency performance of the dielectric is not required. The product's...

Compact mount box. (Product Spotlight).(from HellermannTyton)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... The Four-port surface mount box is easy to install and can be fastened to any surface. The product can accommodate retrofit situations where internal wall access may not be obtainable. The cover of the surface mount box snaps on easily and can...

Intelligent power controller. (Product Spotlight).(Pulizzi Engineering IPC3402-2756)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... Designed to fulfill the power-density and control/management requirements of most rack-mount systems, the IPC3402-2756 is a high-current intelligent power controller. The unit saves rack space by offering 24 amps of power in a 1-U tall package,...

Raceway bridge. (Product Spotlight).(Mono-Systems Surface Raceway Bridge )(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... The Surface Raceway Bridge allows cables to cross over common field obstacles, such as pre-existing raceways and conduit. The product is compatible with the following fittings: SMS4257B, 2157B and 3257B. The fittings provide quick assembly, as...

Test those patch cords: analysis of wide variety of products reveals interoperability problems. (Infrastructure).
June 1, 2003... Over the past few years, most LAN owners have become aware that at faster data rates patch cords have a huge impact on LAN performance, signal quality and channel through put. The Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) even advises if...

In a league of their own: phone system options key enterprise communications implementations. (Special focus: voice networks).
June 1, 2003... When the Frisco RoughRiders, the Double A minor league affiliate of the Texas Rangers baseball club, began operations, its first draft choice was unusual to say the least-a sophisticated and flexible phone system. The system connects all parts...

Network taps vs. port mirroring. (Special focus: voice networks).
June 1, 2003... Monitoring/analysis tools and intrusion-detection (IDS) devices depend on either capturing or monitoring data packets from the network, while minimizing impact on its flow. There are two primary methods of acquiring and reading data on switched...

IP telephony links multiple offices; integrated platform offers call processing and voice applications. (Special focus: voice networks).(inChord Communications uses Cisco Systems ICS 7750)
June 1, 2003... For companies that support numerous remote and home office locations, finding a cost-effective, reliable and flexible way to link all of their workers becomes a chief concern. In addition to cost-effectiveness, a good telecommunications soon...

Buyers Guide. (Special focus: voice networks).(Buyers Guide)
June 1, 2003... The first of this Voice Networks Buyers Guide, the Product Guide, lists the various products this category, and the companies that make those products. The second section, the Company Guides provides phone and fax numbers, and Web addresses of...

Conference bridge. (New products).(Forum Communications Systems CONFER ECS)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... The CONFER ECS is an advanced conference bridge that is also an affordable emergency-response collaboration solution. Recognizing that in any critical event emergency specialists and critical management experts need to connect in seconds, the...

IP communications. (New products).( Alcatel OmniPCX Enterprise )(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... Addressing the needs of corporations that seek to establish reliable IP communications on a converged voice and data IP network, the OmniPCX Enterprise is an enterprise-wide IP communication platform. Based on a single software platform...

PC-based solution. (New products).(NEC America NEAXMail AD-64 )(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... A Windows 2000-based voice-messaging system combines advanced unified messaging, voice mail and automated attendant functionality to help an organization become more responsive. NEAXMail AD-64 is a suite of unified-messaging and desktop call...

Integrated gateway. (New products).(Zultys Technologies MX1200)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... The MX1200 enterprise media exchange fully integrates voice-over-IP, data, video and fax into a single, o compact 2-U box. The system brings together call management, automated call distribution, voice mail, auto-attendant, Internet gateway and...

Mobile messaging. (New products).(JetQue Messenger)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... Mobile professionals can manage their voice messages from different networks on a single system, saving time and dialin costs. JetQue Messenger is a secure voice-messaging software solution for the enterprise that pushes message notification...

Simplified message access. (New products).(Siemens Communications' Messenger Pro)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... Messenger Pro provides a cost-effective, unified-messaging solution, as well as voice mail. The system is scalable for up to 750 users, providing a single point of access for all messages. Voice messages are forwarded to a user's PC as WAVE...

Remote PBX access. (New products).(Tetone's OfficeLink Solo)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... OfficeLink Solo enables remote users to connect to a corporate PBX/ACD from virtually anywhere using only a touchtone telephone. Incoming calls are routed to the remote location, while providing access to common features like transfer,...

Small-business phone system. (New products).(Vodavi Communications Systems STARPLUSCSTS)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... Targeted for any small to midsize business, the STARPLUS STS is an economical phone system that includes all the primary communications functions crucial for a productive small-business environment. The system supports full or fractional T-1,...

Voice-controlled system. (New products).(Teleco's Perfect Voice Office Pro 4.5 )(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... The Perfect Voice Office Pro 4.5 multimodal, unified-communication system offers companies multilingual automatic speech recognition, allowing a caller to select a language from up to nine of the 27 supported languages. The system supports...

Communications united under a sinole platform; college adds VoIP and instant-messaging capabilities for its five campus locations. (Internet).(Abitibi-Temiscamingue College uses RDC Technologies' Com4IP)
June 1, 2003... Unifying and securing corporate-wide communications is becoming an increasingly important issue, especially for those organizations with multiple branch offices and/or a highly mobile workforce. One important issue for these enterprises is the...

Web meetings benefit bottom line: restaurant company uses conferencing to enhance training and menu offerings. (Conferencing).(CKE Restaurants)
June 1, 2003... CKE Restaurants, the parent company of Carl's Jr., Hardee's, La Salsa, Green Burrito and Timber Lodge Steakhouse restaurants, has no problem serving up mouth-watering hamburgers, burritos or prime rib. When it needed to leverage the Web to...

Secure wireless gateway. (Editors' Choice).(Bluesocket WGX-4000 Switch Wireless Gateway )(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... The WGX-4000 Switch Wireless Gateway is high-performance, WLAN infrastructure platform that aggregates WLAN traffic from existing edge switches, as well as directly connected access points. It conforms into existing wired and wireless network...

IP-based mobile phone. (Editors' Choice).(Cisco Systems 7920)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... The 7920 Wireless IP Phone provides employees in hospitals, warehouses, retail stores, universities and highly mobile work environments reliable access to the company's IP communications systems. The phones operate over IP network...

All-in-one network appliance. (Editors' Choice).(EmergeCore Networks IT-100)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... The IT-100 combines 20 GB of storage with a router, four-port switch, firewall, wireless access point, FTP server, multiple domain support, e-mail server and VPN services in a single, low-cost device. Designed to address the networking needs of...

WLAN management. (Editors' Choice).(Trapeze Networks' WLAN Mobility System )(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... The WLAN Mobility System includes the Mobility Exchange, Mobility Points, Mobility System Software and the RingMaster tool suite. Together, they share a system-wide control plane and data plane that deliver secure user mobility, seamless wired...

Risk and return: how will your company's portfolio-management strategy affect you? (The Bottom Line).
June 1, 2003... In this column, we often look at the intersection of network technology and business disciplines. There are plenty of people out there who can debate the merits of H.323 vs. SIP or help you decide which authentication solution is best for you....