Week 6 Readings

Articles

“Local area network.” (2013, September 30). Retrieved September 30, 2013, from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Local_Area_Network

             I was able to understand the article “Local area network” (2013) overall; I was familiar with the concept before reading the Wikipedia entry, so the more in-depth inspection of the local area network (LAN) was interesting. What makes up a LAN provided some remarkable details that I didn’t know about. For me, LAN was just a network. Learning what actually goes into it – switches, firewalls, sensors, load balancers, and routers (“Local area network,” 2013, under “Technical Aspects,” para. 2) – shows how complex the operation really is.

            The driving force behind networking reveals how much digitization has meant to and improved life nowadays. According to the article, initially the desire to share storage and printers – both of which was costlier back in the 1970s – encouraged people to network their computers (ibid., under “Standards evolution,” para. 1). On a basic level, this motivation offers an example of basic human nature to avoid unnecessary costs, or find ways to ameliorate conditions. That they turn to others exhibits the tendency to seek others for aid and communicate with each other. This fits the current uses of computers and the Internet nowadays, so I guess the LAN is one of the “founding” technologies for current attitudes on technologies.

 

"Computer network.” (2013, October 1). Retrieved October 1, 2013, from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_network

             The article for “Computer network” (2013) was a good piece to read after reading the Wikipedia article “Local area network” (2013). It touched on some of the same ideas that “Local area network” did but went into further detail – for example, it elaborated more on the different types of wired technologies, such as the twisted pair, coaxial cable, and optical fiber (“Computer network,” 2013, under “Wired technologies”), as well as the differences between LAN and other networks such as PAN or WAN based on their scopes, areas of influence, capabilities, and content (ibid., under “Geographic scale”). As such, the article provided good parallels to compare with the other Wikipedia article.

            One part – particularly the terminology – has got me thinking. The article relates how “exotic technologies” exist, wherein people use unorthodox methods of sending information. The examples provided includes IP over Avian Carriers (IPoAC), a joke proposal for sending IP traffic on homing pigeons, and spreading the Internet to interplanetary dimensions (ibid., under “Exotic technologies”). In this case, “exotic” – as compared to wired or wireless technologies – means unusual technologies, based on jokes more than serious ideas. But this may change. Of course, the pigeon idea is ludicrous. If in the future, though, more complex technologies are sent out into space or astronauts are able to travel farther distances, there will be a greater need in ensuring that they can keep in contact with people on earth or with others throughout space. Setting up Internet systems elsewhere may become necessary. Although this might be impossible, it is interesting to consider theoretically. Could the systems work on their own? Would they be able to work with other Internets and, if so, how? Would they be the same as or modeled off of the Internet we have now, or would it work in different ways? How quick would the technology be in sharing information between planets?

 

Coyle, K. (2005, September). “Management of RFID in Libraries.” The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 31(5): 486-9. Retrieved from http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0099133305000856

          Costs overshadow the article as a whole. Although the article is aimed towards librarians and other information science professionals, K. Coyle (2005) circulates around the commercialization aspects of using RFID in libraries – the varieties of RFID technologies based on such factors as frequency of radio waves and “of course its cost” (Coyle, 2005, under introduction, para. 3); the RFID’s developing payment systems and “micro-payment” plans (ibid., under “Should Libraries use RFID?,” para. 3); and its functions better cost-suited for the “renting” model of libraries compared to the retail stacking more costs by using RFID for items that come in and out (ibid., under “RFID and Library Functions,” para. 1). Such a preoccupation is understandable; the RFID is used mainly in retail sectors of society, so costs are a major factor in using them. It also touches on a major concern in libraries; the institutions have had problems with funding for years, and knowing more about the products would help librarians find cost-effective solutions to current and new problems.

Some problems posed, though, seem more a common-sense issue than actual barriers. For example, Coyle notes that less sturdy items may not have enough space for the two-inch square tag and may require a different checkout system altogether (ibid., under “Some Problems Remain,” para. 2) and that oddly shaped and metal-accessorized items produce similar problems (ibid., para. 3). I’m sure that if I had more knowledge on this issue, I would not be arguing what I’m about to suggest. However, based on the available knowledge, I think the problems could be bypassed. If the issue is the structure of the items in question, why not change it? Maybe store the items in plastic slips or small “boxes” which provide space for the tags. While this might add more costs, it could prevent future problems once installed and be less expensive than maintaining two systems. Otherwise, this could just be a contemporary problem. The technology itself is advancing; in a few years, there could be smaller, lighter, more-efficient tags that can be used on the items or ways to combine different RFIDs so that they all operate on the same system. It all depends on whether libraries can wait for it to appear or if the problem is immediate.