Carl Weinschenk

The 802.11 sector is one of the most entertaining in all of telecommunications. The speed and range of the wireless capabilities it offers are constantly advancing and, in at least one case— 802.11ad—the focus is on driving very useful shorter range capabilities. The fun part is that innovation is fast and even a bit furious. […]

Android: More Vendors, More Flexible and Fun Devices The exciting mobile devices that are introduced are driven by lower profile—but no less amazing—advances in the components of which those smartphones and tablets are comprised. That’s pretty obvious, but it also is something we should acknowledge once in a while. Today, Apple is reported to be […]

It’s not news that metro and carrier Ethernet is growing by leaps and bounds. More precise measures of the progress that the technologies are making are offered by research released during the past month or so. Last week, Vertical System Group named its “leader board” of global providers. The seven top finishers, in order of […]

We are at the strange time when the weather still says summer, but the school buses and empty campgrounds say autumn. Regardless of the season, IT and telecom remain busy. Let’s look at the news and commentary that deserves attention during this short week. Copper Soldiers On One of the more subtle but important dramas […]

The move to fiber is not just a phenomenon in the United States, of course. Plenty of progress is being made in many regions. In mid-August, ABI Research released worldwide fiber broadband numbers. The study said that 19 percent of subscribers worldwide are now receiving content via this technology, a 23 percent increase over the […]

What Can Augmented Reality Do? Up to this point, wearable computing has been a bit of a curiosity. Google Glass, in particular, has caught the imagination of the public and generated debate about the uses, security and even ethical and moral implications of the technology. What hasn’t been a big part of the discussion to […]

Much of the early reaction to the announcement early on Sept. 3 that Microsoft plans to acquire most of Nokia for $7.2 billion focused on the likelihood that the deal makes Stephen Elop the favorite to succeed Steve Ballmer as CEO of the company. That’s likely true and, of course, very important. It’s also fair […]

Ten Tips for Realizing a True Mobile Enterprise Facebook is only a business platform around the edges. Folks who use it for work most likely are breaking a corporate rule or two. No matter: What happens to the behemoth, good and bad, has both a direct and indirect impact on the state of the Web. […]

The Latest Fashion – Wearable Computers Summer is truly over. It’s back to school. That’s too bad for the kids. It doesn’t seem as bad for the rest of us, since this was a summer when things didn’t really slow down. Let’s look at interesting news and commentary from the week that’s ending. Wearable Wi-Fi […]

Study Shows Employees Steal Corporate Data and Don’t Believe It’s Wrong Employers have used every tool available to keep an eye on workers. It is a reasonable assumption that various electronic devices can be a key tool in these efforts. Researchers from three universities found that electronic surveillance reduces theft and improves work output when […]

How to Choose the Right Mobile Device: Five Considerations The headline news a while back was that Canonical was attempting to finance its Ubuntu Edge project—which combined two operating systems in the same device to create a true hybrid desktop/smartphone—through crowdsourcing on Indiegogo. The company would ask for a record $32 million. The headlines more […]

Software-defined networks (SDNs) are still in the honeymoon phase, seen as the cure-all that will solve many, if not all, of the capacity and efficiency problems of enterprises and service providers. But the difficulties and limitations of designing and deploying SDNs are not yet apparent. Governmental networks have long been a proving ground for telecommunications […]