By most accounts, the wireless revolution is in its maturity stage.
Answer: False Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 304
Businesses of all sizes are devoting more of their resources to wireless devices, services, and applications.
Answer: True Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 305
A number of studies have shown that wireless networking actually decreases worker productivity and output.
Answer: False Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 305
Global positioning system is a worldwide satellite navigational system.
Answer: True Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 306
Steadily increasing costs have resulted in making high-speed wireless communication even less affordable.
Answer: False Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 306
Cellular telephones and paging devices have been assigned a specific range of frequencies by national regulatory agencies and international agreements.
Answer: True Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 307
Microwave signals can be bounded off communication satellites, enabling them to serve as relay stations for microwave signals transmitted from terrestrial stations.
Answer: True Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 308
Communication satellites are not very cost-effective when transmitting large quantities of data over very long distances.
Answer: False Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 308
Low-orbit satellites consume less power and cost less to launch than conventional satellites.
Answer: True Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 308
Short message service (SMS) is a text messaging service used by a number of digital cell phone systems to send and receive short alphanumeric systems less than 160 characters in length.
Answer: True Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 309
Unlike e-mail, SMS messages cannot be forwarded and stored for later retrieval.
Answer: False Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 309
Digital cellular service uses several different competing standards that do not interoperate.
Answer: True Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 309
In the United States, Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) is the standard used in digital cellular services.
Answer: False Difficulty: Hard Reference: p. 309
The movement from the historically slow and inefficient circuit-switched phone networks of the past to high speed, cellular, digital packet-switched networks is called 3Gnetworks.
Answer: True Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 309
Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) is a system of protocols and technologies that lets cell phones and other wireless devices with tiny displays, low-bandwidth connections, and minimal memory access Web-based information and services.
Answer: True Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 310
A microbrowser is an Internet browser with a small file size that can work with the low-memory constraints of handheld wireless devices and the low bandwidth of wireless networks.
Answer: True Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 310
Wireless Markup Language (WML) does not support most wireless network standards and operating systems for handheld computing devices.
Answer: False Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 310
I-mode is a wireless service offered by AT&T in the United States.
Answer: False Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 311
Wireless phones, pagers, computers, printers, and computing devices using Bluetooth can communicate with each other and even operate each other without direct user intervention.
Answer: True Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 312
The IEEE set of standards for wireless LANs is the 802.11 family, also known as Wi-Fi. Answer: True Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 312
The 802.11a standard can transmit up to 54 Mbps in the 2.4-GHz range.
Answer: False Difficulty: Hard Reference: p. 313
Most Wi-Fi communication uses infrastructure mode.
Answer: True Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 313
The 802.11 standard can be used to provide wireless access to the Internet using a broadband connection.
Answer: True Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 314
Wi-Fi currently enables users to freely roam from hotspot to hotspot even if the hotspot is using different Wi-Fi network services.
Answer: False Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 315
One of the attractive features of Wi-Fi is its excellent security features, which make it safe to intruders.
Answer: False Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 315
Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax) is a popular term for IEEE Standard 802.16, known as the “Air Interface for Fixed Broadband Wireless Access Systems.”
Answer: True Difficulty: Hard Reference: p. 317
WiMax has a wireless access range of up to 30 feet.
Answer: False Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 317
EV-DO provides wireless access to the Internet over a cellular network at an average speed of 300 to 500 Kbps.
Answer: True Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 317
M-commerce represents a substantial percentage of the total e-commerce transactions taking place over the Internet.
Answer: False Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 318
M-commerce applications have taken off for services that are time-critical, that appeal to people on the move, or that accomplishes a task more efficiently than other methods.
Answer: True Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 318
Wireless portals typically offer a variety of features, links to other wireless sites, the ability to select content to be pushed to the user’s device as well as providing a point of entry for anyone to send the user a message.
Answer: True Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 321
Micropayments systems have not worked very effectively in Europe and Asia.
Answer: False Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 321
NTT DoCoMo cell phone customers can use special cell phones equipped with a smart card computer chip that can store electronic cash.
Answer: True Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 322
In both the United States and Europe, micropayment services are based on a “walled garden” model in which individual service providers run their own separate payment systems.
Answer: True Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 322
What is needed to help m-commerce take off is more interoperability achieved by having all the players agree on a common, secure platform for wireless m-commerce payments.
Answer: True Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 322
The data transfer speeds on second-generation cellular networks are very fast compared to dial-up connections to the Internet.
Answer: False Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 322
Major customer relationship management (CRM) vendors have enhanced their products to provide mobile support for sales and service activities.
Answer: True Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 323
Radio frequency identification (RFID) systems require line-of-sight contact in order to be read.
Answer: False Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 325
A radio frequency identification reader consists of an antenna and a radio transmitter with a decoding capability attached to a stationary or handheld device.
Answer: True Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 325
Information in passive RFID tags can be rewritten and modified.
Answer: False Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 325
Multiple-Choice Questions
Which of the following statements concerning mobile phones is NOT true?
a. Feature rich
b. Expensive
c. Powerful
d. Nearly ubiquitous
Answer: b Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 304
In China over __________________ users use mobile phones, which is more than the number of fixed telephone lines in existence.
a. 100 million.
b. 300 million.
c. 600 million.
d. 900 million.
Answer: b Difficulty: Hard Reference: p. 306
Microwave signals:
a. are lower in frequency than cell phones
b. are lower in frequency than fiber optics.
c. are lower in frequency than paging devices.
d. are lower in frequency than short-wave radio.
Answer: b Difficulty: Hard Reference: p. 307
Amoco uses __________________ for real-time data transfer of oil field exploration data gathered from searches of the ocean floor.
a. fiber optics
b. Bluetooth technology
c. Wi-Fi technology
d. satellites
Answer: d Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 308
These systems beep when the user receives a short alphanumeric message, and are often used for communicating with mobile workers:
a. low-earth orbit.
b. paging.
c. microbrowser.
d. RFID
Answer: b Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 308
A BlackBerry Handheld is an example of a(n):
a. satellite system.
b. e-mail handheld.
c. fiber optic system.
d. geosynchronous satellite.
Answer: b Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 308
Cellular phones work by using __________________ to communicate.
a. radio waves
A text message service used by a number of digital cell phone systems to send and receive short alphanumeric messages less than 160 characters in length is:
a. SMS.
b. WAP.
c. GSM.
d. WML.
Answer: a Difficulty: Hard Reference: p. 309
Three out of four of the world’s estimated 2 billion cells phones are:
a. TCP.
b. WAP.
c. OSI.
d. GSM.
Answer: d Difficulty: Hard Reference: p. 309
The world’s largest cell phone market is:
a. the United States.
b. Russia.
c. China.
d. Hong Kong.
Answer: c Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 309
Wireless cellular phone systems are entering this generation of networks:
a. 2G.
b. 3G.
c. 4G.
d. 5G.
Answer: b Difficulty: Hard Reference: p. 309
Third-generation (3G) cellular networks are based on __________________ technology to achieve greater efficiencies and higher transmission speeds:
a. analog
b. digital
c. vacuum tubes
d. packet-switched
Answer: d Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 310
First-generation (1G) wireless cellular would be best described as a(n):
a. analog circuit-switched network for voice communication.
b. digital circuit-switched wireless network, primarily for voice communication.
c. interim step toward 3G in the United States.
d. high-speed, mobile, supports video and other rich media.
Answer: a Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 310
Second-generation (2G) wireless cellular would be best described as a(n):
a. analog circuit-switched network for voice communication.
b. digital wireless network, primarily for voice communication.
c. interim step toward 3G in the United States.
d. high-speed, mobile, supports video and other rich media.
Answer: b Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 310
WAP uses Wireless Markup Language (WML), which is based on __________________ and is optimized for tiny displays.
a. Java applets
b. Extensible Markup Language
c. artificial intelligence
d. fuzzy logic
Answer: b Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 310
Analog circuit-switched networks for voice communication is classified as this generation of wireless cellular:
a. 1G.
b. 2G.
c. 2.5G.
d. 3G.
Answer: a Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 310
High-speed, mobile, supports video and other rich media, always-on for e-mail, browsing, and instant messaging is classified as this generation of wireless cellular:
a. 1G.
b. 2G.
c. 2.5G.
d. 3G.
Answer: d Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 310
The IEEE standard for the WiMax is:
a. IEEE 802.15.
b. IEEE 802.11.
c. IEEE 802.16.
d. IEEE 802.20.
Answer: c Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 311
Bluetooth is the popular name for this IEEE standard:
a. IEEE 802.15.
b. IEEE 802.11.
c. IEEE 802.16.
d. IEEE 802.20.
Answer: a Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 312
Bluetooth can be used to link up to __________________ devices within a 10-meter area using low-power, radio-based communication.
a. four
b. six
c. eight
d. ten
Answer: c Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 312
The IEEE set of standards for wireless LANS is the 802.11 family, also known as:
a. Bluetooth.
b. Wi-Fi.
c. WiMax.
d. VoIP.
Answer: b Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 312
The Wi-Fi 802.11a standard can transmit up to:
a. 54 Mbps in the unlicensed 5-GHz frequency range
b. 11 Mbps in the unlicensed 2.4-GHz range
c. 54 Mbps in the 2.4-GHz range.
d. 722 Kbps in the 2.4-GHz range.
Answer: a Difficulty: Hard Reference: p. 313
The Wi-Fi 802.11b standard can transmit up to:
a. 54 Mbps in the unlicensed 5-GHz frequency range and has an effective distance of 10 to 30 meters.
b. can transmit up to 11 Mbps in the unlicensed 2.4-GHz band and has an effective distance of 30 to 50 meters.
c. can transmit up to 54 Mbps in the 2.4-GHz range.
d. can transmit up to 722 Kbps in the 2.4-GHz range.
Answer: b Difficulty: Hard Reference: p. 313
A Wi-Fi system can operate in two different modes. Ad-hoc mode is also known as:
a. peer-to-peer mode.
b. local area network mode.
c. wide area network mode.
d. metropolitan area network mode.
Answer: a Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 313
A ______________________ connects two LANS based on different technologies:
a. router
b. hub
c. bridge
d. hotspot
Answer: c Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 313
Mobile wireless stations often need an add-in card called a _____________________ that has a built-in radio and antenna.
a. clock
b. controller
c. modem
d. network interface card
Answer: d Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 313
One or more access points positioned on a ceiling, wall, or other strategic spot in a public place to provide maximum wireless coverage for a specific area are referred to as:
a. laser spots.
b. hotspots.
c. infrared spots.
d. casting spots.
Answer: b Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 314
WiMax the IEEE 802.16 standard can transmit up to a distance of:
a. 10 to 30 meters.
b. 30 to 50 meters.
c. 31 miles.
d. 100 miles.
Answer: c Difficulty: Hard Reference: p. 317
EV-DO provides wireless access to the Internet over a cellular network at an average speed of:
a. 10 – 19 Kbps.
b. 54 - 144 Kbps.
c. 144 Kbps – 2+ Mbps.
d. 300 - 500 Kbps.
Answer: d Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 317
When users move from wireless hotspot to wireless hotspot to gain network or Internet access, it is sometimes referred to as:
a. nomadic computing.
b. itinerant computing.
c. roam computing.
d. travel computing.
Answer: a Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 318
_____________________ commerce applications have taken off for services that are time-critical and appeal to people on the move.
a. M-commerce
b. B2B-e-commerce
c. B2C-e-commerce
d. C2C-e-commerce
Answer: a Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 318
AOLbyPhone is an example of a(n):
a. m-commerce portal.
b. e-commerce portal.
c. voice portal.
d. wireless portal.
Answer: c Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 321
Purchases for items such as soft drinks and newspapers that are not well suited to credit card billing would be best suited to this type of transaction:
a. EDI.
b. m-commerce.
c. e-commerce.
d. pervasive computing.
Answer: b Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 321
In both the United States and Europe, micropayment services are based on a “_____________________” model in which individual service providers run their own separate payment systems.
a. flower garden
b. walled garden
c. enclosed garden
d. sacred garden
Answer: b Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 322
In a RFID system, a(n) ____________________ is electronically programmed with information that can uniquely identify an item, such as an electronic code.
a. reader
b. antenna
c. microchip
d. transponder
Answer: d Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 325
Automated toll-collection systems use these types of RFID tags:
a. reactive.
b. passive.
c. active.
d. receptive.
Answer: c Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 325
These RFID tags are usually read-only and are programmed with data that cannot be modified:
a. active.
b. passive.
c. receptive.
d. reactive.
Answer: b Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 326
RFID tag costs are currently:
a. between $1.00 and $20.00 each.
b. between $20.00 and $50.00 each.
c. about 19 cents.
d. under 5 cents.
Answer: c Difficulty: Medium Reference: p. 326
Computers will become increasingly embedded in our natural movements and interactions with our environments. This phenomenon is known as:
a. Murphy’s law.
b. passive computing.
c. active computing.
d. pervasive computing.
Answer: d Difficulty: Easy Reference: p. 327
Atop 802.15.4 is the ____________________ protocol, which handles application-level communication between devices.
a. ZigBee
b. TinyBee
c. BigBee
d. ZagBee
Answer: a Difficulty: Hard Reference: p. 329
Fill in the Blanks
Telematics services combine wireless communication with tracking capabilities from the global position system.
Difficulty: MediumReference: p. 306
OnStar from General Motors is an example of a telematics service for automobiles.
Difficulty: MediumReference: p. 306
All wireless media rely on various parts of the electromagnetic spectrum.
Difficulty: HardReference: p. 306
Microwave systems, both terrestrial and celestial, transmit high-frequency radio signals through the atmosphere and are widely used for high-volume, long-distance, point-to-point communications.
Difficulty: HardReference: p. 307
A satellite is a specialized wireless receiver/transmitter that is launched by a rocket and placed in orbit around the earth.
Difficulty: EasyReference: p. 308
Amoco uses satellites for real-time data transfer of oil exploration data gathered from searches of the ocean floor.
Difficulty: EasyReference: p. 308
Conventional communication satellites move in stationary orbits approximately 22,000 miles above the earth.
Difficulty: EasyReference: p. 308
Paging systems beep when the user receives a short alphanumeric message and are often used for communicating with mobile workers.
Difficulty: EasyReference: p. 308
e-mail handhelds, such as the BlackBerry Handheld are a popular method of wireless text messaging.
Difficulty: MediumReference: p. 308
Cellular telephones work by using radio waves to communicate with radio antennas (towers) placed within adjacent geographic areas called cells.
Difficulty: MediumReference: p. 308
Older cellular systems are analog and newer cellular systems are digital.
Difficulty: MediumReference: p. 309
Personal digital assistants (PDAs) are small, handheld computers capable of entirely digital communications transmission.
Difficulty: EasyReference: p. 309
Smart phones can handle voice transmission and e-mail, save addresses, store schedules, access a private corporate network, and access information from the Internet.
Difficulty: EasyReference: p. 309
The standard for digital cellular services in Europe is Global System for Mobile Communication.
Difficulty: HardReference: p. 309
The major standard for digital cellular services in the United States is Code Division Multiple Access, which is the system used by Verizon, MCI, and Sprint.
Difficulty: HardReference: p. 309
General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) transports data over GSM wireless networks and improves wireless Internet access.
Difficulty: EasyReference: p. 310
Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) is a system of protocols and technologies that enables cell phones and other wireless devices with tiny display screens, low-bandwidth connections, and minimal memory to access Web-based information and services.
Difficulty: MediumReference: p. 310
A(n) microbrowser is software with a small file size that can work with low-memory constraints, tiny screens of handheld wireless devices, and the low bandwidth of wireless networks.
Difficulty: MediumReference: p. 310
I-mode is the packet-based service for mobile phones offered by Japan’s leader in wireless technology, NTT DoCoMo.
Difficulty: MediumReference: p. 311
Wireless Application Protocol uses a gateway to encode and decode content and requests for information from a cell phone to a Web server.
Difficulty: MediumReference: p. 311
Bluetooth is the popular name for the 802.15 wireless networking standard, which is useful for creating small personal area networks.
Difficulty: MediumReference: p. 312
Devices in a Wi-Fi network operating in infrastructure mode communicate using access points.
Difficulty: MediumReference: p. 313
The 802.11b standard can transmit up to 11 Mbps in the unlicensed 2.4GHz band..
Difficulty: MediumReference: p. 313
An access point is a box consisting of a radio receiver/transmitter and antennas that links to a wired network, router, or hub.
Difficulty: MediumReference: p. 313
A Wi-Fi system can operate in two different modes. In ad-hoc mode, also known as peer-to-peer mode, wireless devices communicate with each other directly and do not use an access point.
Difficulty: MediumReference: p. 313
Mobile wireless stations often need an add-in card called a wireless network interface card (NIC) that has a built-in radio and antenna.
Difficulty: MediumReference: p. 313
Hotspots typically consist of one or more access points positioned on a ceiling, wall, or other strategic spot in a public place to provide maximum wireless coverage for a specific area.
Difficulty: MediumReference: p. 314
EV-DO stands for Evolution Data Optimized.
Difficulty: EasyReference: p. 317
EV-DO provides wireless access to the Internet over a cellular network at an average speed of 300 to 500 Kbps.
Difficulty: EasyReference: p. 317
Mobile computing enables Internet-enabled cell phones, PDAs, and other wireless computing devices to access digital information on the Internet from any location.
Difficulty: EasyReference: p. 318
Nomadic computing is the use of portable computing devices in conjunction with mobile communications technologies to enable users to access the Internet from wireless hotspots.
Difficulty: MediumReference: p. 318
m-commerce is the use of the Internet for purchasing goods and services as well as for transmitting messages using wireless mobile devices.
Difficulty: EasyReference: p. 318
Wireless portals feature content and services optimized for mobile devices to steer users to the information they are most likely to need.
Difficulty: EasyReference: p. 321
Voice portals accept voice commands for accessing Web content, e-mail, and other electronic applications from a cell phone or standard telephone.
Difficulty: EasyReference: p. 321
Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) systems use tiny tags with embedded microchips containing data about an item and its location to transmit radio signals over a short distance to special readers.
Difficulty: MediumReference: p. 325
Active RFID tags are powered by an internal battery and typically enable tag data to be rewritten and modified.
Difficulty: MediumReference: p. 325
Passive RFID tags do not have a separate power source and obtain their operating power from the radio frequency energy transmitted by the RFID reader.
Difficulty: MediumReference: p. 326
Computers will become increasingly embedded in our natural movements and interactions with our environment. This phenomenon is known as pervasive computing.
Difficulty: EasyReference: p. 327
Wireless sensor networks (WSNs) are networks of interconnected wireless devices that are embedded into the physical environment to provide measurements of many points over large spaces.
Difficulty: EasyReference: p. 329
ZigBee, also called 802.15 is a proprietary set of high level communication protocols for wireless sensor networks.
Difficulty: EasyReference: p. 329
Essay Questions
Identify at least five principal wireless transmission media and devices. Technologies and devices for wireless transmission include: microwave transmission, communication satellites, pagers, e-mail handhelds, personal digital assistants (PDAs), cellular telephones, and smart phones. Personal computers are also starting to be used in wireless transmission.
.
Identify the two major cellular standards and briefly describe the evolution of these networks. The two major cellular standards include Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), which is used primarily in the United States, and Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM), which is the standard in Europe and much of the rest of the world.
Cellular networks have evolved from slow-speed (1G) analog networks to high-speed high-bandwidth digital packet-switched third-generation (3G) networks with speeds ranging from 144 Kbps to over 2 Mbps for data transmission. Second-generation (2G) cellular networks are digital circuit-switched networks used primarily for voice transmission, but they can also transmit data at rates ranging from 9.6 to 14.4 Kbps. 2.5G networks are packet-switched, use many existing infrastructure elements, and have data transmission rates ranging from 50 to 144 Kbps.
What is the difference between Bluetooth and Wi-Fi 802.11b wireless technology? Bluetooth can link up to eight devices within a 10-meter area using low-power, radio-based communication and can transmit up to 722 Kpbs in the 2.4 – GHz band. Wireless phones, keyboards, computers, printers, and PDAs using Bluetooth can communicate with each other and even operate each other without direct user intervention.
The most popular standard of the 802.11 standards is currently 802.11b, which can transmit up to 11 Mbps in the unlicensed 2.4 GHZ band and has an effective distance of 30 to 50 meters, although this range can be extended outdoors by using tower-mounted antennas. The 802.11b standard has been the most widely used standard for creating wireless LANs and providing broadband wireless Internet access. However, 802.11b is vulnerable to penetration by outsiders and interference from other wireless devices in the same frequency spectrum.
What is the difference between Bluetooth and WiMax wireless technology? Bluetooth can link up to eight devices within a 10-meter area using low-power, radio-based communication and can transmit up to 722 Kpbs in the 2.4 – GHz band. Wireless phones, keyboards, computers, printers, and PDAs using Bluetooth can communicate with each other and even operate each other without direct user intervention.
WiMax has a wireless access range of up to 31 miles and a data transfer rate of up to 75 Mbps, making it suitable for providing broadband Internet access in areas lacking DSL and cable lines. The 802.16 specifications also have robust security and quality of service features to support voice and video.
Evaluate the role of m-commerce in business. Identify some key areas where m-commerce is useful. M-commerce uses the Internet for purchasing goods and services as well as for transmitting messages using wireless mobile devices. It is especially well-suited for location-based applications, such as finding local hotels and restaurants, monitoring local traffic and weather, and providing personalized location-based marketing. Mobile phones and handhelds are being used for mobile bill payment, banking, securities trading, transportation schedule updates, and digital music and game downloads.
Explain the difference between wireless mobile portal, voice portals, and m-wallets. Wireless portals (mobile portals) feature content and services optimized for mobile devices to steer users to the information they are most likely to need. Voice portals accept voice commands for accessing Web content, e-mail, and other electronic applications from a cell phone or standard telephone.
M-commerce requires special digital payment systems that can handle micropayments, because most m-commerce purchases today are for very small amounts. Mobile wallets (m-wallets) expedite purchases by storing online shoppers’ personal information and credit card numbers.
Describe how wireless technology can increase productivity and worker output. Wireless technology increases productivity and worker output by providing anytime, anywhere communication and access to information, including the information resources of the Internet. Wireless communication helps businesses stay more easily in touch with customers, suppliers, and employees and provides more flexible arrangements for organizing work. Employees can make productive use of formerly wasted slices of time between larger tasks.
Describe three important wireless applications in business. Give examples. Mobile applications are having a significant impact on customer relationship management (CRM), supply chain management (CRM), and health care.
Mobile CRM applications provide additional support for sales and service activities at the point of customer interaction.
Mobile wireless technology facilitates supply chain management by capturing data on the movement of goods as these events take place and by providing detailed, immediate information as goods move along supply chain partners. Radio frequency identification (RFID) systems provide a powerful technology for this purpose.
Mobile technology is improving health care by delivering essential information to physicians and nurses who constantly move from place to place and capturing patient information for electronic record systems at the point of creation.
Describe the main differences between a voice portal and a smart phone. A voice portal is a Web site or other service that a user can reach by telephone. For example, a voice portal accepts voice commands for accessing Web content, e-mail, and other electronic applications from a cell phone or standard telephone. Mobile user with a cellular telephone can dial in to a voice portal Web site and request information from a special voice-producing program at the Web site. This sophisticated voice recognition software processes the requests, and responses are translated back into speech for the customer.
Whereas a user with a smart phone can connect to the Internet and get information on a small visual display, the user of a voice portal needs only a regular cellular phone. After requesting information by speaking or pressing keys, the voice portal responds with voice information or, in some cases, with an e-mail message. A smart phone can handle voice transmission and e-mail; save addresses; store schedules; access a private corporate network; and access information from the Internet. Some have embedded digital cameras.
Discuss how wireless transmission works to send signals. Wireless transmission sends signals through the air or space without being tied to a physical line. All wireless media rely on various parts of the electromagnetic spectrum. Some types of wireless transmission, such as microwave or infrared by nature occupy specific spectrum frequency ranges (measured in megahertz (MHz). Other types of wireless transmissions, such as cellular telephones and paging devices, have been assigned a specific range of frequencies by national regulatory agencies and international agreements. Each frequency range has characteristics that have helped determine the specific function or data communications niche assigned to it.
Microwave systems, both terrestrial and celestial, transmit high-frequency radio signals through the atmosphere and are widely used for high-volume, long-distance, point-to-point communication. Microwave signals follow a straight line and do not bend with the curvature of the earth, therefore, long-distance terrestrial transmission systems require that transmission stations be positioned about 37 miles apart, adding to the expense of microwave.
