Motorola doubles top-tier Internet speeds for Armstrong Cable | MSO Optics News | Lightwave Online

JANUARY 13, 2010 -- Armstrong Cable is deploying the Motorola BSR 64000 TX32 decoupled downstream module across its broadband network. Armstrong, with cable systems in Kentucky, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia, is leveraging Motorola's high-density downstream equipment to stay ahead of increased broadband competition within its serving areas.

Increased demand for bandwidth is prompting cable operators to seek cost-effective technologies that will deliver a substantial boost to downstream Internet speeds. By adding high-density and redundant TX32 modules directly into the Motorola BSR 64000, Armstrong expects to cost-effectively deliver an additional 64 QAM channels out of an existing chassis. The benefits include the quadrupling of downstream capacity and channel bonding services all while utilizing existing hardware investments...

Balderson speaks on his committee appointment

94th district Republican State Representative Troy Balderson will soon begin his service on the Public Utilities Committee. He was recently appointed to the committee and says he will be the only spokesman for the Appalachia Ohio district.

"A reality to the big cities that don't understand that when you tell them that the majority of my district can't get broadband Internet. They say, no sir, or that I can't get AT&T service in Coshocton County-whether it's roaming or any service at all," says Balderson...

Nationally-recognized Northeast Ohio tech company growing and hiring -- INDEPENDENCE, Ohio, Jan. 20 /PRNewswire/ --

INDEPENDENCE, Ohio, Jan. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- One of the region's most successful – yet little-known – technology companies is poised to triple in size from 15 to 45 employees in 2010. Mongoose Metrics, founded in 2007 by IT and telecom veterans Bradley Reynolds, Stephen Abbey and Jeff Tirey, provides patent-pending call tracking technology to savvy marketing enterprises which enables clients to mine never-before-available data about online to offline (web to phone conversion) buyer behavior.

"Every business gets phone calls," says Reynolds, "And with our technology, we can expose who is calling along with a rich trove of information including why they are calling, what they are looking for as well as a comprehensive marketing behavioral analysis," he adds...

Korea increases world lead in average broadband speed | Hanopolis

According to Akamai's state of the internet report (click for real time world monitor), Korea's broadband connection speed in the third quarter of 2009 was the fastest among 226 countries at 14.6 megabits per second, 16 percent faster than a year ago and 29 percent faster than from the prior quarter. (We're not sure how average speed can be faster on a quarterly basis versus a yearly basis, unless the on quarter increase is being extrapolated for a whole year or large fluctuations exist from quarter to quarter.)

Japan, which followed second averaged just 7.9 Mbps (twice as slow as Korea), a 8.2 percent improvement over the previous year and 11 percent rise on quarter. Coming in third was Hong Kong with 7.6 Mbps, and Romania with 6.2 Mbps...

Access to news wildly unequal in U.S., study says

Saving journalism and achieving digital democracy might seem like a pretty tall order.

But that is the task of a high-powered commission that says, in a report being released Friday, that the country’s growing hunger for information is “being met unequally, community by community.” The elaborately named Knight Commission on the Information Needs of Communities in a Democracy raises the specter of two Americas — one wired, the other not so much...

Bill promotes greater competition - The Times-Gazette - Hillsboro, OH

Not so long ago, if you wanted to talk to a friend or relative, you had to walk over to your rotary telephone, spin the number dial and wait for an answer. If you were out of the house and needed to make a call, you had to find a quarter and locate the closest pay phone.

In 2010, thanks to incredible advances in technology over the past decade, the pay phone, and for a growing number of Ohioans, the traditional home phone have been replaced by cable phone service, Internet communications and mobile phones that can do everything from search the Internet to take pictures to play videos. From 2001 to 2009, local telephone companies lost 3 million lines, while the number of wireless phone customers in Ohio grew by nearly 4.5 million, according to a recent report from the Ohio Telecom Association...

Technology reshapes Bell | cincinnati.com | Cincinnati.Com

On a shelf near his desk, Jack Cassidy, Cincinnati Bell Inc. president and CEO, has reminders of his start in the cellular phone business more than 20 years ago.

One is a second-generation cell phone that looks like a military walkie-talkie. The other is an early Motorola flip phone that's almost as large. "I don't know any other industry where technology and consumer preferences change as fast as they do in telecommunications," says Cassidy, who started in the cell phone business in 1987 and has been Bell's CEO since 2003...

Solving the bandwidth problem - Forbes.com

For every giant step forward in technology there is a bottleneck that needs to be solved. It isn't exactly a step backward, but it does slow down the rate of progress.

The push from mainframes to minicomputers and PCs created bottlenecks in moving data between computers and even within computers. The move to virtualization and cloud computing has created all sorts of new log jams on internal and external networks, and the problem is only getting worse...

Speculation grows about Apple tablet, which could land in March - USATODAY.com

SAN FRANCISCO — Apple's much-rumored multimedia tablet computer could be on store shelves in March. A Taiwanese components supplier has told longtime Apple analyst Gene Munster at Piper Jaffray that it is "likely" the tablet could be available by late March. Munster says he has not been briefed by Apple on the product.

Munster and other analysts have speculated the tablet — expected to be introduced in late January — will come with a 10-inch touch display that lets consumers read newspapers and books, watch movies and TV, play games and use the Internet...

Companies turn to virtual trade shows to save money - USATODAY.com

Who needs handshakes and cocktail hours? With travel budgets deeply slashed across Corporate America, more companies are turning to virtual trade shows to connect with customers and suppliers.

Virtual shows combine the latest technology in webcasting, online chats, video streaming, webinars and avatar graphics to offer the elements of trade shows: exhibitor booths, speeches, seminars, distribution of marketing literature and social "gatherings..."

DataJack names wireless technology pioneer Christopher Douglass president

MIAMI--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- A subsidiary of QuamTel, Inc.,(OTCBB: QUMI) DataJack, Inc., a fast growing provider of high speed, reliable, secure nationwide 3G mobile broadband services, has named Christopher Douglass as the company's new President. Douglass, a telecommunications industry veteran and pioneer in mobile and wireless technology, brings more than 20 years of experience to the DataJack management team.

In his role as President of DataJack, Douglass will lead the management team, set strategies for rapid managed growth, drive global expansion through strategic alliances and business development initiatives, and oversee the day to day operations of the company.

Omnicity, SZD Whiteboard partnership anticipates rapid advancement of Ohio broadband efforts

COLUMBUS, Ohio, Jan. 4 /PRNewswire/ -- Omnicity Corp, an Indiana-based wireless broadband provider, has engaged SZD Whiteboard to help the company identify and acquire wireless providers in rural Ohio. "Omnicity is growing aggressively and we will be assisting in a variety of areas that will help the company in its mission of becoming the nation's premier consolidator of rural broadband," said Greg Dunn, principal of SZD Whiteboard's broadband team.

SZD Whiteboard has been successful in helping local governments to develop partnerships with private companies to meet the broadband needs of the area. Omnicity represents a new opportunity for SZD Whiteboard to introduce a partner, with significant means, to Ohio wireless and fiber services companies. The expected result will be the rapid expansion of fiber and wireless services throughout Ohio through the acquisition of existing, local wireless companies as a regional base of operations...

Amazon in sales tax crosshairs - Puget Sound Business Journal (Seattle):

Lawmakers in a number of cash-strapped states are poised to revive efforts to make Amazon.com and other internet retailers collect sales tax — efforts that, if successful, could have far-reaching consequences for Amazon’s fast-growing e-commerce business.

Seattle-based Amazon.com Inc. collects sales tax in only a handful of states. But last year, several state legislatures, looking for new sources of revenue to fill budget holes, tried to force Amazon and other internet retailers to collect sales tax on web purchases...

Hollywood and technology companies work to make digital video portable - NYTimes.com

It is easy to take a DVD to a friend’s house and watch it on his TV. But things are more complicated when digital video downloads are involved. A movie file bought from Blockbuster.com will not work on a Sony HDTV, for example, and videos from iTunes work only on devices with Apple software.

At the Consumer Electronics Show, a big high-tech gathering that will begin Wednesday in Las Vegas, Hollywood studios and consumer electronics makers plan to lay out some steps they are taking to simplify this digital future — and perhaps stem the worrying decline in home entertainment sales...

Newspapers see the appeal of a local Web gadget, SeeClickFix - NYTimes.com

Doug Hardy, an associate editor and Internet supervisor for The Journal Inquirer in Manchester, Conn., wanted to increase page views on its Web site.

Mr. Hardy had heard about SeeClickFix.com, a local advocacy Web site that lets users write about issues to encourage communication between residents and local government. SeeClickFix users post a complaint about problems that occur within a set of boundaries on a Google Map, like graffiti at a bus stop or potholes on a busy street, and the site communicates the problem to the appropriate government agency and marks the problem on the map...

Fiber Optic Networks: Connect communities

Fiber optic technology advanced at an astonishing rate in the second half of the twentieth century. The discovery of fiber optics in 1966 was indeed a major landmark for which Charles Kao won a share of the Nobel Prize in physics in 2009. Working at the Old Standard Telecommunications Laboratories in the United Kingdome, Kao coauthored a paper with G. A. Hockham in 1966 on the subject of the theory and practice of the use of optical fiber for communications applications.

In this paper, for the first time, they described how to transmit light over long distances using ultrapure optical glass fibers which enabled such transmissions to reach 62 miles. As a result of this discovery, the first ultrapure fiber was produced in 1970...

Robot lets local nurses talk remotely to patients

CENTERVILLE — Miami Valley Hospital South on Monday, Jan. 4, will begin handling some nonphysician health care services for patients remotely via robot.

Health care providers such as nurses, diabetic educators, registered dietitians and wound specialists can speak to patients at the Centerville hospital remotely via the robot without leaving Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton...

A data explosion is remaking retailing - NYTimes.com

MOST people think of the grand challenges in computing as big science projects, like simulating nuclear explosions or protein folding. But with the holiday shopping season just ended, consider another: retail marketing.

Retailing is emerging as a real-world incubator for testing how computer firepower and smart software can be applied to social science — in this case, how variables like household economics and human behavior affect shopping...

Students admitted early to college network on Facebook - washingtonpost.com

The first 570 members of George Washington University's Class of 2014 found out they had been accepted one day in early December. Within hours, they began to network on Facebook -- making friends, debating dorms, discussing "Real World: Washington D.C." and organizing a Wiffle ball team.

"Let the friend requests begin lol. Congrats again guys, 2014 all the way!" a high school senior from New Jersey posted late that night. A few days later, a senior from Illinois wrote, "The senioritis has definitely begun..."

Schaffer passes amendment to help expand broadband in Appalachian areas

COLUMBUS — State Senator Tim Schaffer (R-31) gained approval of an amendment that would help expand and deploy high speed Internet in rural Appalachian Ohio.

The amendment was a part of Senate Bill 162, the telecommunications bill, which was recently passed by the Ohio Senate. Senate Bill 162 updates Ohio’s telecommunications laws in order to reflect advances in technology while at the same time maintaining protections for Ohio consumers...

How digitized content democratizes knowledge - PC World

I used to own a copy of National Geographic magazine from 1911. It was packed with black-and-white photographs of 'natives' and village ethnic minorities in various countries posing awkwardly in ceremonial costumes. The issue was part of a larger collection that included most copies of National Geographic published in the 1960s, '70s and '80s, and several dozen copies from the 1920s through the 1950s. It took up two rows on my bookshelf.

I've moved several times since acquiring all of those magazines, which fit neatly into nine very heavy boxes. Toting them from place to place added to the pain and expense of moving...

How digitized content democratizes knowledge - PC World

I used to own a copy of National Geographic magazine from 1911. It was packed with black-and-white photographs of "natives" and village ethnic minorities in various countries posing awkwardly in ceremonial costumes. The issue was part of a larger collection that included most copies of National Geographic published in the 1960s, '70s and '80s, and several dozen copies from the 1920s through the 1950s. It took up two rows on my bookshelf.

I've moved several times since acquiring all of those magazines, which fit neatly into nine very heavy boxes. Toting them from place to place added to the pain and expense of moving...

Editorial: Looking forward to technology of 2010

It might be hard to imagine that something like an iPhone — which, as we know it today, puts the ability to book flights, find the nearest coffee shop and manage bank accounts at our fingertips — will be considered antiquated 10 years from now.

But as we head into a new decade and look back at the technological advancements of the last 10 years, that seems virtually certain. Consider the following, as reported by The Associated Press...

IP Carrier: Broadband stimulus won't change much, firm says

Some observers seem to have believed the "broadband stimulus" program, as helpful as it will be for some organizations and service providers, would somehow "fix" a "broadband" adoption problem in the rural and some other "underserved" areas of the country. It appears reality is setting in.

"The bottom line is that the stimulus money is going to change any of the access issues," says Robert Rosenberg, Insight Research Corp. president. "It is far to few dollars to make any impact..."

The past and future of Smart Grid

Smart grid may be the most hyped words of 2009 in the green tech space, but that doesn't mean there isn't a lot of hard, cold cash behind the hype. Will 2010 bring a bursting of a smart grid bubble, or a continued unfolding of its promise to provide a framework for renewable energy, efficiency and conservation programs to come? Let these top stories of 2009 be your guide...

Rumors about Apple tablet computer ramp up - chicagotribune.com

A new tablet-style computer from Apple Inc. might be the first major launch in a new class of slate-like multimedia devices that could leapfrog the laptop.

With a gleaming touch screen, it might be perfect for watching movies, reading books, listening to music or surfing the Web. It might come out next summer and it might cost $800. Or it might not...

Ohio hospital quality data to go live - Dayton Business Journal:

Performance data for Ohio hospitals will go live on the Department of Health Web site starting Friday.

A 2006 state law set the Jan. 1 deadline for public reporting of the data to help patients learn how well hospitals follow scientifically backed recommendations for care, such as giving aspirin to patients suspected of having a heart attack. The state has been collecting and reporting a set of six quality measures in the interim while a committee selected about 100 measurements for the final list...

The 10 most important social and digital media developments of 2009 - InternetNews.com

We aren't going to call 2009 the seminal year in the rise of social media, social networking or any of the novel digital applications and media that fly under the banner Web 2.0. That would be a bit presumptuous. But this year did bring a bumper crop of notable developments across the social Web and digital media, and we thought it would be worthwhile to commemorate a few of them.

We've assembled a top 10 list in loosely considered order, of significant themes and plot points in the unfolding story of the remaking of the media landscape -- social and otherwise...

Study: Online spending rises during U.S. holiday season - PC World

Online spending increased during this year's holiday season in the U.S. with more people making online purchases, research firm ComScore said in a study released on Wednesday.

Consumers spent around US$27 billion on products from November 1 to December 24, an increase of 3.5 compared to last year. Consumer electronics saw particularly strong online sales, rising by around 20 percent compared to the corresponding period last year, ComScore said...

Clearwire stayed ahead in big year for WiMax - PC World

2009 was a very big year for Clearwire, as the wireless Internet provider took its ambitious rollout of mobile WiMax from just two cities to nearly 30 markets.

After years of planning and false starts, a national 4G (fourth-generation) mobile data network began to take shape in the U.S., and in terms of launching commercial services, the rollout is on schedule. Clearwire, formed last year through the merger of a pre-WiMax service provider of the same name and Sprint Nextel's Xohm WiMax business, is in 27 markets now and has the capital it needs to reach 120 million people by the end of next year, according to Chief Commercial Officer Mike Sievert...

AT&T tells FCC it's time to cut the cord - PC World

In response to a Notice of Inquiry released by the FCC to explore how to transition to a purely IP-based communications network, AT&T has declared that it's time to cut the cord. AT&T told the FCC that the death of landlines is a matter of when , not if, and asked that a firm deadline be set for pulling the plug.

AT&T tells the FCC that supporting traditional POTS landlines is impeding investment in broadband, VoIP, and wireless services.AT&T said in its response to the FCC that "with each passing day, more and more communications services migrate to broadband and IP-based services, leaving the public switched telephone network ("PSTN") and plain-old telephone service ("POTS") as relics of a by-gone era..."