Dec 31 2008 10:38PM GMT
Posted by: Ivy Wigmore
Our WhatIs.com Tech Term is millennials
Millennials, an abbreviation for millennial generation, is a term used by demographers to describe a segment of the population born between 1980 and 2000 (approximately). Sometimes referred to in the media as “Generation Y,” millennials are the children of the post-WWII baby boomer generation.
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Secret Word of the Day
This is the calendar used in the Western world since 1582. What’s the secret word?
Answer
Acronym Challenge
Y2K was the focus of fears that computer systems would cause widespread problems because of a date issue. What does Y2K stand for?
Answer
Tech Trivia
Who instituted the Julian calendar?
Answer
Learn Something New Every Day
Top searches of 2008
Here the top 10 terms readers wanted to learn more about in 2008.
Enterprise Linux 2008: The year in review
Our Enterprise Linux 2008 year in review notes some of the highlights of Linux growth this year.
Dec 31 2008 5:24PM GMT
Posted by: Ivy Wigmore
Networking,
Security,
biometrics,
compliance,
encryption,
CIO,
Mobile,
cloud computing,
communications,
top searches of 2008
Our WhatIs.com Tech Term is Top search terms of 2008
You asked for them and here they are — we’ve assembled a list of the terms most often searched on the site this past year.
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Secret Word of the Day
This term refers to any commonly used word (such as “the”) that a search engine has been programmed to ignore. What’s the secret word?
Answer
Acronym Challenge
ARPU is an expression of the income generated by a typical subscriber or device per unit time in a telecommunications network. What does ARPU stand for?
Answer
Tech Trivia
Number #1 on our list this year was SAP, a company started in Germany by five former employees of a certain technology company. What company did SAP’s founders originally work for?
Answer
Learn Something New Every Day
2008 was a challenging year for security. What will 2009 bring? See Five predictions for Web security trends and changes in 2009.
An expert explores whether security and compliance concerns in the cloud could hinder the viability of cloud computing.
Dec 30 2008 2:31PM GMT
Posted by: Margaret Rouse
ICANN,
cybersquatting,
domain names
Our WhatIs.com Tech Term is cybersquatting
According to the U.S. federal law known as the Anti-Cybersquatting Consumer Protection Act, cybersquatting is registering, trafficking in, or using a domain name with bad-faith intent to profit from the goodwill of a trademark belonging to someone else.
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Secret Word of the Day
When registering a new domain name, this is taking advantage of the new five-day grace period to sample different domain names for free.
Answer
Acronym Challenge
ICANN announced that it intends to change the Internet domain naming system by allowing a nearly unlimited number of generic top level domain names. What does ICANN stand for?
Answer
Tech Trivia
What do you call it when someone repeatedly registers and deletes a domain name so he ties up the domain name without paying for it?
Answer
Learn Something New Every Day
Hackers are buying domain names with common typing errors that people make when typing a URL.
Who invented the domain name system? Paul Mockapetris. This vintage interview is still an interesting read.
Dec 29 2008 9:43PM GMT
Posted by: Ivy Wigmore
Tech Trivia
Our WhatIs.com Tech Term is spintronics
Spintronics is an emerging field of nanoscale electronics involving the detection and manipulation of electron spin. Electron spin can be detected as a magnetic field having either of two orientations, known as down and up. Exploiting spin states provides an additional two binary states so that a bit can have four possible states.
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Secret Word of the Day
This is the standard unit of electric current. What’s the secret word?
Answer
Acronym Challenge
The LHC is expected to help physicists, astronomers and cosmologists answer questions about the nature and origins of matter, energy and the universe. What does LHC stand for?
Answer
Tech Trivia
Electrons are one of two charge carriers responsible for current in semiconductor materials. What’s the other one?
Answer
Learn Something New Every Day
FAQ Guide: When to expect solid state drives in the enterprise
In this FAQ guide, Mark Peters, an analyst with consulting firm Enterprise Strategy Group, provides answers to the questions he is hearing most frequently from storage administrators related to solid state drives.
Salary and careers special report for enterprise CIOs
Enterprise CIOs are still feeling secure in their jobs despite the faltering economy. But that doesn’t mean CIOs are shying away from seeking new career opportunities or considering telecommuting if it would make their working lives better. SearchCIO.com’s 2008 Salaries and Careers Special Report provides feedback from enterprise IT executives.
Dec 27 2008 11:21PM GMT
Posted by: Ivy Wigmore
VoIP,
telecommunications,
CIO,
collaboration,
videoconferencing,
communications,
Telepresence,
Tech Trivia,
connections
Our WhatIs.com Tech Term is Skype
Skype is an IP telephony service provider that offers free calling between subscribers and low-cost calling to people who don’t use the service. In addition to standard telephone calls, Skype enables file transfers, texting, video chat and videoconferencing.
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Secret Word of the Day
You could use this service to make a friend think it was the White House on the line when you called. What’s the secret word?
Answer
Acronym Challenge
A CNG program inserts noise into the silent parts of conversations so you won’t think you’ve lost your connection. What does CNG stand for?
Answer
Tech Trivia
Are communications over a cable modem Internet connection symmetric or asymmetric?
Answer
Learn Something New Every Day
IT Knowledge Exchange: VoIP Q&A
Browse the collection of questions and answers about VoIP or join ITKE to ask your own questions.
Telepresence and video conferencing: Reaping the benefits
The benefits of video communications technology have yet to be realized in many enterprises, but the right deployment and the right corporate culture can help these companies reap tremendous benefits.
Dec 26 2008 2:24PM GMT
Posted by: Margaret Rouse
virtual to virtual
Our WhatIs.com Tech Term is virtual to virtual (V2V)
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Secret Word of the Day
This virtualization strategy allows a network administrator to allocate physical storage on an “as needed” basis. What is it?
Answer
Acronym Challenge
If you’re running Microsoft Virtual Server 2005, VMM is the name of the driver that functions as a firewall between the host OS and the virtual machines. What does VMM stand for?
Answer
Tech Trivia
What’s the name of the virtualization feature for Microsoft Windows Server 2008?
Answer
Learn Something New Every Day
If you’re new to virtualization, Anil Desai has some advice for how to get started.
Virtualization expert Anil Desai explains what Hyper-V is, how it works and how it fits in with other virtualization products.
Dec 22 2008 4:38PM GMT
Posted by: Margaret Rouse
virtual reality,
Tech Trivia
Our WhatIs.com Tech Term is virtual reality
Virtual reality is an artificial environment that is created with software and presented to the user in such a way that the user suspends belief and accepts it as a real environment. On a computer, virtual reality is primarily experienced through two of the five senses: sight and sound.
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Secret Word of the Day
This is a virtualized event that showcases goods and services for a specific industry. What’s the secret word?
Answer
Acronym Challenge
SL is a virtual world developed by Linden Lab. What does SL stand for?
Answer
Tech Trivia
Bruce Artwick is credited with producing the first successful virtual reality software application. What virtual environment did his software create?
Answer
Learn Something New Every Day
Telepresence industry to pass $1 billion in 2013
Telepresence combines high quality audio and videoconferencing technology with a special physical environment to create the feeling of an in-person meeting.
Telepresence, unified communications and collaboration: A network operator’s role
While voice was the original medium of telecom, the expanded availability of computers and data-capable appliances like cell phones created a broader definition of the term.
Dec 22 2008 12:58PM GMT
Posted by: Margaret Rouse
product lifecycle management,
Tech Trivia
Our WhatIs.com Tech Term is
Product lifecycle management (PLM) is a process for overseeing the manufacturing of a product, from its design and development to its ultimate disposal.
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Secret Word of the Day
This is arguably the most important part of a PLM software application. It’s a collection of data items that can accessed or reassembled in many different ways. What’s the secret word?
Answer
Acronym Challenge
ABB requires anything in an organization that incurs costs to be recorded and its relationship to other costs, analyzed. What does ABB stand for?
Answer
Tech Trivia
When it comes to manufacturing, sometimes necessity is the mother of invention. What storage medium did William Powell Lear, founder of Learjet, invent and patent?
Answer
Learn Something New Every Day
Manufacturers set sights on PLM
A focus on business process improvement around product development is fueling steady growth in the PLM market at a time when the economy is stalled and corporate budgets are tight.
As PLM gains ground, PLM-ERP integration moves to forefront
As product lifecycle management gains traction beyond the engineering and product development groups, companies are focusing on integrating the platform with other core business systems.
Dec 19 2008 9:44PM GMT
Posted by: Ivy Wigmore
Security,
Microsoft Windows,
browsers,
operating systems,
CIO,
antivirus,
malware,
network administration,
Tech Trivia,
personal computing
Our WhatIs.com Tech Term is scareware
Scareware is a type of malware designed to trick victims into purchasing and downloading useless and potentially dangerous software. A scareware program usually generates pop-ups that resemble Windows system messages and warn the user that viruses or other problems have been detected.
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Secret Word of the Day
This controversial rootkit program gets its name from a play on words mocking a Microsoft product. What’s the secret word?
Answer
Acronym Challenge
Scareware preys on users’ FUD. What does FUD stand for?
Answer
Tech Trivia
What browser was #1 on Bit9’s 2008 list of the most vulnerable applications? (Hint: It might not be the one you think it is.)
Answer
Learn Something New Every Day
John Strand explains how to prevent clickjacking with security policies.
Ken Harthun writes about malware and vulnerabilities in his ITKE Security Corner blog.
