Counting the Internet of things in real time

For extreme numbers people who might want to track things as they connect to the Internet, Cisco created the Internet of Everything Connections Counter.

CNET

by Dan Farber

 July 30, 2013 10:51 AM PDT

(Credit: Cisco)

Cisco loves the Internet of things. After all, the company is in the business of selling software and hardware to help enable what it says will be 50 billion things connected to the Internet by 2020. Things include billions of sensor-packed mobile devices, coffeemakers, cardiac monitors,cars, tires, roads, parking meters, supermarket shelves, cattle, thermostats, and skin, just to name a few. By Cisco's count, 50 billion things is just 2.7 percent of all the things that will be on the planet in 2020.

According to Cisco's latest revelations, 80 things per second are connecting to the Internet, and by 2020, 250 things will connect each second. For people who want to keep track of the number in "real time," the company created the Cisco Internet of Everything (IoE) Connections Counter.

Cisco has also calculated that the Internet of Everything -- people, process, data and things taking advantage of network connections -- will create $14.4 trillion of "value at stake," defined as the potential bottom-line value derived from harnessing the Internet of Everything, over the next 10 years. That figure includes $613 billion in potential global corporate profits this year. For companies taking even greater advantage of the Internet of Everything, an additional $544 billion in profits could be gained in 2013.

There's not just money in those things, however. From Cisco's view, the Internet of things and everything leads to "transformational value."

"Even more exciting is when all of these things are combined with people, process, and data via the network to deliver transformational value to the world by improving the way we make decisions, saving us time and money, and so much more. That's the Internet of Everything, and its value increases every time we connect the unconnected," the company said.

In other words, the more connections the better. But even with 50 billion things, billions more people, and zetabytes of data trying to tell us what to do, we'll still be able to make poor decisions.

Topics:

Computing

Tags:

Cisco,

Internet of things

Dan Farber

Dan has more than 20 years of journalism experience. He has served as editor in chief of CBSNews.com, CNET News, ZDNet, PC Week, and MacWeek.

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ISACA Academic Advocate Program

July 27, 2013 · Steve Linthicum

Yesterday (July 26th) I attended a workshop that was put on by our local chapter of the ISACA, where information on Mobile Application and Device Security was discussed. In conjunction with the workshop I receive four (4) continuing professional education hours that I can use to meet the continuing education requirements associated with a number of the security certifications I hold (see certificate below).


The ISACA has a program specifically designed to partner with academic institutions like my college. Through their Academic Advocate Program, I serve the “advocate” role for my College. There is no cost for my college to join the program. The program provides me and my students with access to a number of beneficial learning resources.  Unfortunately none of the other colleges and universities in my region participate in local chapter activities (or this Academic Advocate Program), something I hope to work on this academic year. For those of you who are security minded like me, I strongly encourage you to consider joining the ISACA and possibly working towards their principal certifications (CISA and CISM).

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POV: Maintaining the Magic Of the Community College Jack Scott, Chancellor Emeritus, California Community Colleges

Community College Week

The American community college had a humble beginning in 1906 at Joliet, Ill., when only six students enrolled. But the institution grew rapidly and became a powerful movement in higher education.


The American community college had a humble beginning in 1906 at Joliet, Ill., when only six students enrolled. But the institution grew rapidly and became a powerful movement in higher education. Clark Kerr, a former president of the University of California and a national educational leader, labeled the community college as the greatest innovation of 20th century American higher education.

And who can dispute that conclusion? Today American community colleges enroll over 8 million for-credit students. Forty percent of all undergraduates enrolled in colleges and universities in the United States are in community colleges.

What accounts for this phenomenal growth? Many factors contribute to this success, but the central foundation is that the community college fulfills the American democratic ideal articulated in the Declaration of Independence that “all men are created equal.” Until the community college came along with its basic commitment to open access, higher education was not open to all. Suddenly, the doors were open to the older student, the student with limited income, the part-time student who had to work, the high school graduate who sought a second chance.

Another key to the growth of the community college was its flexibility. For instance, although the community college was primarily a transfer institution in its beginning, it soon seized the opportunity to offer vocational training for those occupations requiring higher education of two years or less. These career technical programs expanded rapidly (e.g., nursing, auto technology, police science). Today, the community college is arguably the number one workforce development program in the nation.

Another opportunity that the community college seized was adult education. It became clear in the 20th century that many adults beyond the typical college age desperately needed higher education. The low cost and geographical proximity of the community college made it the ideal institution to meet this need. Veterans, women who had only a high school diploma, even college graduates who saw the need for specific courses flooded the campuses.

Throughout its history, the American community colleges saw societal needs and created programs to meet those needs. And that same characteristic is needed today; in fact, no institution can remain alive and vital unless it is constantly open to innovation and change.

A perfect illustration of what happens to an institution that fails to change is the American automobile industry in the last half of the 20th century. Content with its preoccupation with large, gas-consuming cars, the domestic automobile industry failed to meet the public demand for smaller, more efficient cars. As a result, Japanese and German auto manufacturers met this public need and America’s auto giants such as General Motors, Ford and Chrysler moved toward bankruptcy. Fortunately, these domestic manufacturers have reversed the previous trend, but not after a huge loss of sales, profits, and thousands of American jobs.

So the lesson for community colleges is to continue its history of flexibility and change in confronting the challenges of today. Someone might resist this suggestion given the reduced financial resources. But often the climate of financial stress is the exact time when change can occur. As Rahm Emanuel, the mayor of Chicago, once aptly stated, “A crisis is a terrible thing to waste.”

Although the challenges are many, I want to highlight two important situations confronting American community colleges and offer some suggestions on how to confront them. Because of my recent experience as Chancellor of California community colleges, I will cite examples from this state.

The first challenge is to improve student success in our colleges. Open access is fundamental to our nature, but admitting students is only the first step. We must make every effort to enable students to reach their goals, whether those goals are transferring to a four-year institution, completing a career technical certificate, or simply completing a course designed to improve their jobs or lives.

Fortunately, no goal has seized the imagination of our community colleges in recent years more than student success. The American Association of Community Colleges has led the way with its 2012 report titled “Reclaiming the American Dream.” Movements on improving student success have sprung up in almost every state.

For instance, in California we formed a statewide student success task force in 2011 and, after careful study, presented 22 recommendations. This report called for bold action including legislation, adoption of rules and regulations by the Board of Governors, and the implementation of best practices on all college campuses. A student success scorecard is now in place on the 112 community colleges in California, so that each college can measure its progress in improving student success. It is essential that this drive toward greater student success become part of the permanent fabric of all community colleges.

The second crucial challenge facing community colleges is to improve transfer to four-year universities. Too often community college students transfer to universities only to discover that some of their units are not transferable. Universities in the same state frequently vary in their acceptance of these units.

The unfortunate outcome is that the students lose time to a degree at a considerable personal cost. Furthermore, the state has to underwrite the cost of these additional units. In a time of reduced financial resources, we need to take forceful action to avoid this waste of student and public funds.

And I am convinced that in most cases this transfer issue can best be solved by legislative action. To try to negotiate this solution by discussion between individual colleges and universities takes an inordinate amount of time and results in a patchwork of agreements that varies widely from community colleges to universities. On the other hand, when governors and legislators fully realize the terrific cost in this inefficiency, they can be motivated to take action.

Let me illustrate. In 2009, we introduced a bill in the California State Senate that accomplished much greater ease of transfer. Senate Bill 1440 simply required the following: All of California’s 112 community colleges would create a transfer associate degree that was no more than 60 units in length.

The general education requirements at the community college would conform to the general education curriculum of the California State University. All the 23 campuses of California State University would accept these units. The California State University would require no more than 60 additional units
for a student to complete a bachelor’s degree.

Once the California legislature recognized the wisdom of such an action, the bill was easily passed and signed into law.

Some states have gone even further. For example, Florida has common course numbering. In other words, English 100 at Miami Dade College is the same as English 100 at the University of Florida and Florida State University. Frankly, this is an idea whose time has come. To enlist the support of pubic officials such as leading legislators and governors is key to its success. The result will be to elevate the role of community colleges in higher education and serve thousands of our students.

These two challenges simply call upon American community colleges to exercise the flexibility that has always characterized us. We can be justifiably proud of our heritage; it is thrilling to be part of such a dynamic institution. And by being open to change, we can both maintain and enhance the magic of the American community college.

Jack Scott became the 14th Chancellor of the California Community Colleges System in January 2009 after serving two terms in the California State Assembly and two terms in the state Senate. He’s a former community college president and chancellor emeritus of Pasadena City College. This article is the continuation of a series being authored by principals involved in National American University’s Roueche Graduate Center, and other national experts identified by the center. John E. Roueche and Margaretta B. Mathis serve as editors of the monthly column, a partnership between NAU’s Roueche Graduate Center and Community College Week. For additional information send emails to mbmathis@national.edu or, call 512-813-2300.
© 2013 Community College Week (ISSN 2328-2045)
published 24 issues per year, by Autumn Publishing Enterprises, Inc., Box 1305, Fairfax, VA 22038, Phone: 703.978.3535 fax: 703.978.3933. Periodicals postage paid at Fairfax, VA22030 and at additional mailing offices.

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Google Donates $600,000 to Build a Free Public WiFi System in 31 San Francisco Parks

By Rachelle Chong posted on July 24, 2013 Techwire

Today, through a deal brokered by San Francisco Supervisor Mark Ferrell, Google announced that it will donate $600,000 to bring free wireless service to the public in 31 San Francisco parks, recreational centers and plazas. This free WiFi service in the City’s parks will enhance park users’ ability to obtain government benefits and services and other information available from the Internet from wireless devices like laptops, tablets, and smartphones.

The Google donation will be made to the San Francisco Citizens Initiative for Technology and Innovation (sf.citi), a 501(c)6 non-profit group headed by Ron Conway. Sf.citi’s members are tech companies who wish to leverage the power of the technology community around civic action. The proposal is that sf.citi will contract with wireless company iNet to install the necessary WiFi equipment using municipally-owned infrastructure, fiber, and right-of-ways, and then present the finished system to the Department of Technology of the City and County of San Francisco as a gift. Approvals are required by the Recreation and Parks Commission, the Planning Department, and the Board of Supervisors. The system is hoped to be initiated by year’s end and operating by Spring 2014.

In a statement, Google’s spokesperson, Veronica Bell, said that Google was hopeful the city and local groups will use the free WiFi to bridge the digital divide and strengthen their community. The Google donation will cover the costs of the equipment, installation and maintenance for two years. It is presumed that the city will foot the maintenance costs thereafter.

San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee praised the initiative as a great example of public-private partnerships that help bring better services to his city’s residents in the 21st century. Mayor Lee is a friend of the tech industry in San Francisco, placing a strong focus on making the city friendly to tech companies, workers and users.

Supervisor Farrell was quick to emphasize that the chosen 31 parks and plazas span the city including Chinatown and the Tenderloin and are focused on public spaces that get the most use. He further stated that the Google money was strictly a gift, with no strings attached.

This year, the San Francisco Department of Technology is also working on a free wireless network along Market Street that would be installed and operated by it. This will enhance the City’s work to revitalize this area with tech start-ups.

Free WiFi hotspots help close the digital divide for low income and homeless persons, who may not otherwise be able to afford Internet access but own a wireless device, such as a smart phone or tablet device. This access in public spaces also takes a load off community centers and libraries that provide free Internet access and computers to the public, but are stressed by budget shortfalls.

This news is no doubt welcomed by former San Francisco Mayor and now Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom, who originally worked with Earthlink and Google six years ago to bring a free public wireless system to San Francisco. Later Earthlink withdrew from the deal, amid much public controversy.

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Ask SSC . . . What is the California Career Pathways Program?

Copyright © 2013 School Services of California, Inc.

Volume 33 For Publication Date: August 09, 2013 No. 16 

Q. I've heard about a new funding source for career-technical education in the 2013-14 State Budget. Can you tell me more about it? 

A. The 2013-14 State Budget includes $250 million for the establishment of the "California Career Pathways Trust." This program, a priority for Senate President pro Tempore Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento), will provide funds for K-14 career pathways programs over three years, beginning with 2013-14. These funds are independent of any other career-technical education funds being received by a K-14 district, county office, or charter school and will be provided on a competitive basis in the form of one-time grants. 

While the request for application is still in the process of being drafted, the education omnibus bill (Assembly Bill 86, Chapter 48/2013) outlines that grants will be available for programs that accomplish any of the following: 

• Fund specialists in work-based learning to convene, connect, measure, or broker efforts to establish or enhance a locally defined career pathways program that connects K-14 education with business entities
• Establish regional collaborative relationships and partnerships with business entities, community organizations, and local institutions of postsecondary education 
• Develop and integrate standards-based academics with a career-relevant, sequenced curriculum following industry-themed pathways that are aligned to high-need, high-growth, or emerging regional economic sectors 
• Provide articulated pathways to postsecondary education aligned with regional economies 
• Leverage and build on any of the following: 
• Existing structures, requirements, and resources of the Carl D. Perkins, California Partnership Academies, and regional occupational programs 
• Matching resources and in-kind contributions from public, private, and philanthropic sources
• The California Community Colleges Economic and Workforce Development Program and its sector strategies and deputy sector navigators
• Participation in the local California Community Colleges Skills Panel 

It is important to note that grant recipients must identify and set aside funding within their own budget and obtain funding commitments from program partners sufficient to support the ongoing costs of the program. Additionally, grant recipients will be required to report to the state on the outcome measures of the grant, including pupil and student academic performance indicators; the number and rate of school or program graduates; attainment of certificates, transfer readiness, and postsecondary enrollment; and transitions to appropriate employment, apprenticeships, or job training.

Grant applications are expected to be released this fall, and we will post a notice once available.

—Michelle McKay Underwood and Kathleen O'Sullivan

posted 07/25/2013

 

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Google Offers $35 Chromecast Streaming Video Device

by Karl Bode Thursday 25-Jul-2013

 

In addition to unveiling their latest Nexus 7 tablet, Google yesterday turned heads with the release of Chromecast, a $35 device that plugs into a television's HDMI port and allows users to stream content from their phone, tablet or PC directly to their television. According to the Google blog announcement, the device works with Netflix, YouTube, Google Play Movies & TV, and Google Play Music, with more services on the way.

The device is already on sale over at Amazon, where quite amusingly it already has 42 user reviews despite the fact nobody has really used it yet.

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OECD: U.S. Ranks in Middle of Global Broadband Pack

7/23/13 at 12:24 PM by Joan Engebretson  telecompetitor

Has U.S. broadband subscriber growth stalled?


The U.S. ranked near the middle of 34 developed and developing nations measured by the number of wired broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants, according to new research from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. The OECD is an international organization that promotes policies aimed at improving the economic and social well-being of people around the world.

The U.S. has about 28.8 broadband subscribers per 100 inhabitants, according to the OECD, giving the country a ranking of 15 out of 34 OECD nations, behind 12 European countries, Canada and Korea. The top 5 countries were Switzerland, Netherlands, Denmark, Korea and France, all of which had at least 36 broadband subscribers per 100 inhabitants. Data was collected as of year-end 2012.

The U.S. saw an increase of 1.5% in broadband subscribers per 100 inhabitants between June 2012 and December 2012, ranking it in the middle of the pack there, too. Thirteen European countries, Mexico and Chile saw greater growth. Mexico topped the list with a 5.2% increase in broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants in the six-month study period, followed by Greece, Poland, Slovak Republic and Portugal. All of those countries had six-month growth rates of at least 3.9%.

In looking at broadband connectivity per 100 inhabitants, the OECD also collected data about the type of technology used – and there was considerable variation from one country to another. While the U.S. and Canada had more cable than DSL subscribers, DSL subscriptions outnumbered cable subscriptions in most other countries. Meanwhile Asian countries Korea and Japan had the highest percentage of broadband subscribers using fiber. Both countries have more subscribers on fiber than on all other broadband technologies combined.



Several European countries also have relatively high percentages of total broadband subscribers on fiber. Sweden, Estonia and Slovak Republic had between 30% and 40% of total broadband subscribers using fiber.

In the U.S. that percentage was 7.4%, giving the U.S. a ranking of 21 out 34 OECD countries.

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Akamai: Average Internet speed up 17% year-over-year to finally pass 3 Mbps, while mobile data traffic doubled

By Emil Protalinski Tuesday, 23 Jul '13, 12:30pm, The Next Web


For the first time, global average connection speeds have surpassed the 3 Mbps mark. Meanwhile, the demands of the mobile world are growing very fast, with data traffic doubling in the last year. The latest figures come from Akamai, which today published its quarterly State of the Internet report for Q1 2013.

As always, the firm took a look at global network connectivity and connection speeds, broadband adoption and availability, as well as security. The biggest news, however, is that between Q4 2012 and Q1 2013, the global average connection speed rose 4 percent from 2.9 Mbps to 3.1 Mbps, or 17 percent year-over-year.

Akamai listed 123 countries/regions as experiencing an increase in average connection speeds year-over-year, ranging from 1.4 percent in Oman to 122 percent in Iraq. 117 of them saw their average connection speeds increase this past quarter, ranging from 0.7 percent in Kuwait to 75 percent in Guatemala.

As you can see, eight of the top 10 countries/regions saw double-digit percentage growth year-over-year:



“This quarter’s State of the Internet Report shows continued positive growth in terms of Internet and broadband adoption worldwide,” David Belson, the report’s editor, said in a statement. “We have seen overall increases in average and peak connection speeds along with greater broadband penetration on both a quarterly and annual basis.”

Global broadband adoption, which Akamai rates as speeds of 4Mbps and up, increased 5.8 percent last quarter to reach 46 percent. Global high broadband, rated as 10 Mbps and up, reached 13 percent thanks to a 10 percent increase over the previous quarter.

Despite all this, mobile is where all the interest really lies. Akamai cited data collected by Ericsson, which has a presence in more than 180 countries and a customer base representing more than 1,000 networks, that indicated the volume of mobile data traffic doubled from Q1 2012 to Q1 2013, and grew 19 percent between Q4 2012 and Q1 2013:



As you can see, mobile voice traffic continues to increase as well, though at a slower rate of 4 percent growth quarter-over-quarter. A further breakdown of streaming and browsing would be rather interesting, we think.

In Q1 2013, average connection speeds on surveyed mobile network operators ranged from a low of 0.4 Mbps to a high of 8.6 Mbps. Only nine operators demonstrated average connection speeds in the aforementioned broadband category while 64 more operators showed average connection speeds above 1 Mbps.

In the not-so-distant future, we’d expect mobile speeds to start accelerating. As the number of mobile users continues to explode, so should competition for these potential customers.

Check out the full report for yourself here:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/155497912/Akamai-Q1-2013-State-of-the-Internet-Report

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CSLNET: Reform the Perkins Act

The Perkins Act, which provides over $1 billion to states to support career technical education (CTE), will expire this fall.  A recent report from the U.S. Dept. of Education - Investing In America's Future: A Blueprint for Transforming Career and Technical Education - outlines key reforms to better align this funding to labor market needs in high-growth industry sectors and improve collaborations among secondary, postsecondary institutions and employers. Reforming the Perkins Act could greatly assist the development of strong STEM CTE programming in California and across the nation. Read the report to learn more and let your members of Congress know that reforming and reauthorizing the Perkins Act should be a high priority. 

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FCC Launches E-Rate Reform Proceeding

"[T]he Commission seeks comment on a range of proposals to focus funds on supporting high-capacity broadband, including: simplifying rules on fiber deployment to lower barriers to new construction; prioritizing funding for new fiber deployments that will drive higher speeds and long-term efficiency; phasing out support for services like paging and directory assistance; ensuring that schools and libraries can access funding for modern high-speed Wi-Fi networks in classrooms and library buildings; and allocating funding on a simplified, per-student basis."

FCC   

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ITIF: How to Stop The Billions Wasted Annually On Email Spam

Almost 10 years after the CAN-SPAM Act, email spam is still a worldwide concern, wasting valuable network bandwidth, lowering productivity, and costing businesses and consumers billions of dollars per year. While there have been many attempts at technical and policy solutions to this challenge, spam still remains an ever-present problem on the Internet. Moreover, spam is the symptom of a much larger disease, a flourishing underground Internet economy designed to meet the needs of cybercriminals by exploiting computer security vulnerabilities. In this report, ITIF Senior Analyst Daniel Castro outlines the scope of the spam problem today, the challenges in reducing it, and recommendations for additional steps policymakers can take to combat this problem and related cybersecurity challenges.


Read the report.

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UC Berkeley creates online master's degree in 'big data'

Jul 17, 2013, Steven E.F. BrownWeb Editor- San Francisco Business Times




UC Berkeley's "I-school," one of its newest programs, is based in South Hall, the oldest building on campus.

The University of California, Berkeley has created an online master's degree in information and data science.

This new program, aimed at what the university calls a "national shortage of data scientists," is the first of its kind. It starts in January.

It's offered through Cal's former library school, now known as the school of information. AnnaLee Saxenian, the information school's dean, said, "This new degree program is in response to a dramatically growing need for well-trained big data professionals who can organize, analyze and interpret the deluge of often messy and unorganized data available from the web, sensor networks, mobile devices and elsewhere."

Hal Varian, chief economist at Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) and an emeritus professor at the information school, said, "We are awash with data, but the expertise to analyze and exploit that data is in short supply."

This program consists of 27 units in math, programming, communication to management, statistics and "an ability to translate technical jargon into everyday English," said Saxenian.

There will be one week of in-person work on campus in South Hall, the university's oldest building, where the school is based.

Steven E.F. Brown is web editor at the San Francisco Business Times.

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Silicon Valley NOVA WIB TechLadders Research

I am pleased to report that the Silicon Valley NOVA Workforce Investment Board is entering an exciting new phase of its TechLadder project. As you may recall, TechLadder is promoting access, inclusion, career advancement and economic self-sufficiency for workers in occupations requiring Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) skills. NOVA and the non-profit Economic Advancement Research Institute are leading this initiative.

Next week we will begin career pathways research to better understand career success factors for ICT workers. We will focus on career navigation and seek to learn how and why tech workers move from job to job and career to career, how they employ personal and institutional networks, how they access training and educational resources and how they access labor market information.

Our goal is to conduct a series of online surveys and personal interviews to gain career navigation "collective wisdom" and apply that knowledge to developing programs enabling entry-level and lower skill workers to advance along ICT career ladders.

Would you be willing to participate in a short online survey and/or interview with San Jose State University graduate students?

If so, please let me know your general availability over the next few weeks.

Thanks!!

Luther Jackson
Program Manager
NOVA Workforce Development
408-730-7832 (w)
ljackson@novaworks.org 

 

 

FACT SHEET

Goals

·       Expand access to career ladders at all tech-related skill levels

·       Enhance regional economic competitiveness by preparing talented professionals to fill critical skill gaps

·       Promote a more inclusive tech workforce at all skill levels

·       Foster family economic self-sufficiency

Description

TechLadder is promoting access, inclusion, career advancement and economic self-sufficiency for workers in all occupations requiring Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) skills, while leveraging the strategic advantages of Silicon Valley’s knowledge-based economy.   

 

The initiative will illuminate career pathways that enable entry-level and lower skill workers to advance along career ladders, providing more value to their communities and employers. Target populations will include members of underrepresented groups and low-wage, low-skill workers.

Phases

·       Career pathways research to understand career success factors for tech workers. (Beginning immediately)

·       Demand-side research on industry skill requirements, supply-side research on the existing tech labor pool and an assessment of similar career ladder initiatives.

·       Implementation:  Replicating career success factors for target populations including support for technical, non-technical and career navigation skills.

Supporters

·       NOVA Workforce Development, Silicon Valley workforce board

·       Economic Advancement Research Institute, non-profit think tank

·       Creating IT Futures Foundation, philanthropic arm of CompTIA

·       Cisco Systems, global networking company

·       The Stride Center, non-profit promoting tech career access 

·       San Jose State University program in applied anthropology

Contact:  Luther Jackson, NOVA Workforce Development, ljackson@novaworks.org

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CyberWatch West Digital Forensics Faculty Professional Development Opportunity

Register Now
DIGITAL FORENSICS
...And More

For the Summer of 2013

CWW is pleased to announce an exclusive new program designed specifically with our members in mind (but also open to non-members).

Online Digital Forensics Class
Teaching Digital Forensics Using AccessData FTK
in a Remotely Accessed Virtual Environment

Teaching digital forensics can be challenging, especially with the need to maintain a lab of computers, keep the software up-to-date and have realistic scenarios/evidence to work with. This course will address many of those concerns using the Remote Access Virtualization Environment (RAVE) as a platform to teach Digital Forensics. Each participant will be given an account with access to the machines for the entire duration of the course (including evenings). If participants wish to utilize labs or experiment with the tools and techniques, they may continue to do so even after the course is completed.

July 29 to August 2, 2013
from 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM

$150 - CWW Members
$200 - Non-Members

More information and Registration available Here!
(Clicking on the link will bring you to the Mt. San Antonio College Box Office
home page. Once there, click on the CyberWatch West Tab near the middle of
the top horizontal menu to take you to the class info and registration page.
From the info page, you will be able to select Member or Non-Member price).

Questions: Please contact CWW Office @ 909-274-4614

Additional Training Opportunities Available for CWW Members!

Use the summer months to brush up on your professional certifications. Find out more about the CWW Faculty Certification Program here!

Phone: (909) 274-4614
Fax: (909) 274-2519
Email: info@cyberwatchwest.org

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Forget fiber! Gigabit-boosted DSL standard could be ready next year

Loek Essers, Jul 16, 2013 8:44 AM, PCWorld


A broadband standard that aims to support bandwidth-intensive applications such as streaming Ultra-HDTV movies without the need to install fiber between the distribution point and people’s homes met its first-stage approval, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) said on Tuesday.

The broadband standard is called G.fast and promises up to 1Gbps over existing copper telephone wires. The standard is designed to deliver super-fast downloads over a distance of 250 meters, eliminating the expense of fiber cables to peoples’ homes, the ITU said in a news release.

G.fast passed the first-stage approval of the ITU standard that specifies methods to minimize the risk of G.fast equipment interfering with broadcast services such as FM radio, the ITU said. If all goes well, G.fast will be approved in early 2014, it added.
Faster networks are needed to smoothly handle 4K resolution TV signals.

The standard is expected to be deployed by service providers that want to offer Fiber to the Home-like services, the ITU said. G.fast is meant to enable flexible upstream and downstream speeds to support bandwidth-intensive applications such as uploading high-resolution video and photo libraries to cloud-based storage, and communicating via HD video, it said.

Users should be able to install G.fast themselves without assistance, according to the ITU. Self-installing eliminates further costs service providers or consumers would have to pay for technicians, which will improve the speed of new services rollout, it said.

G.fast was tested by Alcatel-Lucent and Telekom Austria at the beginning of July. During that trial, a maximum speed of 1.1Gbps was achieved over 70 meters and 800Mbps over 100 meters over a single cable.

Consumers could be expecting the first G.fast connections to be available as of 2015, estimated Frank van der Putten, manager of Fixed Access Standards & Regulatory at Alcatel-Lucent and ITU rapporteur in a YouTube video.

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Forrester: $2.1 Trillion Will Go Into IT Spend In 2013; Apps And The U.S. Lead The Charge

Ingrid Lunden  techcrunch

Forrester Research has now released its annual look at the state of IT spend globally, and the analysts project that there will be $2.06 trillion invested across software, hardware, and IT services by enterprises and governments in 2013. Within that, U.S. will be the biggest-spending country by a long shot, and — in a sign of the times — apps will be the single-biggest spending category of all.

Overall, Forrester’s is a more sombre assessment of IT spend compared to Gartner’s, which a couple of weeks ago released its own IT spending estimates (again, not including consumer spend) and put the figure at $3.7 trillion. And it is a more sombre assessment compared to its figures in January, when it noted growth of 5.4% growth for 2013 in local currency terms and 3.3% in U.S. dollars.

As with Gartner, Forrester also puts in the proviso that currency fluctuations are having an impact, specifically because of the strength of the U.S. dollar compared to other currencies. Measured in U.S. dollars, growth has been lowered to 2.3%; in local currencies it’s 4.6%. (Gartner’s figures were 2% in U.S. currency; 3.5% in constant currency.) “The continued recession in Europe and slowing growth in China will offset improvements in the US, Japan, and some emerging markets,” writes analyst Andrew Bartels.

We’re reading through the long report for more insights; for now, here’s a look at some of the bigger takeaways:

Software is eating the world. Forrester’s big-picture look at spending puts software as the biggest general category for investments, at $542 million for 2013. “Software is where most of the big changes in technology are taking place,” writes Bartels. That is to say, while legacy, on-premise investments are “languishing,” those that focus on cloud-based implementations such as SaaS; and “smart computing” in the form of big data analytics and mobile apps are booming — following trends we’ve seen for a while now. Overall, software investments are set to grow 3.3% this year and 6.2% in 2014 — growth rates that he concedes “may not seem impressive [but still] stronger than any other tech category.” A full breakdown of software spend is at the bottom of this post.



Tablets — and Apple — continue to lead the charge in hardware. If you look at the IT spending wheel above, it’s clear that PCs are the single-biggest category for computer equipment, at $134.2 million in 2013. But in fact PCs are a shrinking market. Traditional PCs, Bartels writes, will see “just a 3% rise, despite the launch of Windows 8 operating system.” So what’s growing? Tablets, and specifically the iPad. Forrester projects that sales of tablets to business and government will go up by 36% this year to $21 billion. Again, the big winner here continues to be Apple, taking $14 billion of that this year. Samsung Galaxy and the Surface from Microsoft are “helping to expand the tablet market, without putting much of a dent in the growth of the Apple iPad so far.”

Similarly, Apple, as well as Linux, continue to grow in the traditional PC category against Windows-powered machines, while the rest of the picture is relatively discouraging. There will be $135 billion spent on PCs in 2014, a rise of only $1 billion on 2013, with Windows-based devices down by $7 billion, and Apple Macs and tablets rising by $6 billion. “Elsewhere in the hardware market, spending on storage hardware will be flat, purchases of servers will decline by 1%, and sales of computer peripherals will fall by 3%,” Bartels writes. Indeed, earlier this year Forrester predicted that Apple would sell some $39 billion in hardware over the next two years.

The U.S. is eating the world. The strength of the dollar is one way that the U.S. is impacting global IT spend; the other is the fact that it is very much the biggest consumer of IT, accounting $819 billion in spend this year, according to Forrester’s estimates, rising to $875 million in 2014, inching up to be nearly the size of Western Europe and Asia combined in terms of IT spend.

Impressively for a market its size, of the big three regions, at 5.9% the U.S. also growing the most at the moment, nearly as much as the emerging (and still very small) market of Eastern Europe/Middle East/Africa (at 6.9%). By 2014, Latin America will emerge as the fastest-growing at a a rate of 10.7%. As to the others, Europe appears to be recovering somewhat after a huge, recession-led dip in 2012, spending $487 million in 2013; while Asia has this year taken up the baton as the region most hit by wider economic forces and will spend $492 million on IT across enterprise and government organizations.

Note: Forrester only lets press use one illustration per post, so I’ve had to update the post by cutting out the other graphics and inserting the data into the text instead.

FORRESTER RESEARCH
Company:Forrester Research
Website:forrester.com
Launch Date:1983
IPO: FORR

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Free CSSIA Remote Security+ and VMware Instructor Training

CSSIA Connects...

July 2013

Availability in Summer Train-the-Trainer Courses

Awww, the lazy days of summer are here among us... 

If "lazy" isn't your thing, join the CSSIA instructors for Security+ or VMware trainings ~ we'll help make your summer dreams come true!! CSSIA just made available a few more seats in both trainings to accomodate those that can't get enough of CSSIA. :)

Seats are limited, register today!      

FREE Security + TRAINING

July 29th - August 2nd

Need to prepare for the CompTIA Security + certification?

This Security+ training will do the trick!!! 

"Jesse Varsalone was great! He was very knowledgeable, available and helpful."

"The material and labs were really good stuff."

This 5 day distance-learning training is synchronous and instructor-led with hands-on labs.

Registration ends Friday, July 12th so register FAST!

If class is full, please contact Lynn at lynn.dohm@morainevalley.edu to put you on the waiting list.

REGISTER HERE!


FREE VMware FREE VMware FREE VMware




FREE VMware vSphere: Install, Configure, Manage (ICM) V5.0

August 12th - 16th

Shouldn't your institution be teaching virtualization??? This course is calling your name!!!

"The instructor, John Vos, was brilliant. The level of knowledge he displayed with this technology was along the lines of someone who has been a daily practitioner for the last 20 years.
His delivery of the course was exemplary!"

This 5 day distance-learning training is synchronous and instructor-led with hands-on labs

Seats are limited... register QUICK!

If class is full, please contact Lynn at lynn.dohm@morainevalley.edu to put you on the waiting list.

REGISTER HERE!

www.cssia.org
National Resource Center for Systems Security and Information Assurance (CSSIA) | 9000 W. College Pkwy | Palos Hills | IL | 60465

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UK Five-Year-Olds to Learn Programming and Algorithms in Major Computing Curriculum Shake-Up

V3.co.uk (07/08/13) Michael Passingham 

The United Kingdom's Department for Education (DfE) recently overhauled the country's computing curriculum, removing the teaching of software basics such as Microsoft Word and adding programming and algorithm teaching for children as young as five years old.
The new curriculum will be mandatory starting in September 2014, and spans the breadth of all four key stages, beginning when a child first enters school at age five through age 16. 

Students will be taught to understand what algorithms are, how they are implemented as programs on digital devices, and that programs execute by following precise and unambiguous instructions. 

"We are introducing a tougher, more rigorous national curriculum," says Secretary of State for Education Michael Gove. "For the first time children will be learning to program computers. It will raise standards across the board--and allow our children to compete in the global race." 

The British Computer Society and the Royal Academy of Engineering wrote the original draft of the new curriculum and DfE revised it. Students will be expected to create and debug simple programs by the end of key stage one, and they will be taught how to understand computer networks by key stage two.

View Full Article

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SharkFest tracewrangler Tool

At the recent SharkFest conf a TCP guru, Jasper Bongertz, released a free
utility, tracewrangler, to automate anonymising IP addresses and other
info in trace files so you can use them safely.

Select, run, done - works great, less filling.

www.tracewrangler.com

Add more trace files to your classes to illustrate app and network
operations without giving anything else away.

Unlike other UTs, this works with pcapng files. If you're not familiar
with the new gen pcapng format - this allows you to add comments to
packets. I now use it for assignments - students identify, comment on, the
important packets, export out /only/ those few packets, then send the very
short file to me.

Enjoy -

Best regards,
John Gonder
Las Positas College Cisco Networking Academy
Computer Networking Technologies

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2013 Maryland CCDC Video

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The cloud privacy wars are coming

July 09, 2013

With the recent NSA blowback in Europe, we will likely see the privacy battles heat up in the United States as well

By David Linthicum | InfoWorld

Germany's interior minister, Hans-Peter Friedrich -- the country's top security official -- cautioned privacy-conscious residents and organizations to steer clear of U.S.-based service companies, according to the Associated Press. As InfoWorld's Ted Samson has reported, "Friedrich is by no means the first E.U. politician to issue this type of warning, and as details continue to emerge about the U.S. government's widespread surveillance programs, such warnings are certain to garner greater attention."

The blowback in Europe around NSA surveillance is no surprise. Privacy has always been a huge issue in Europe, as demonstrated by confrontations with Google, among others.

[ InfoWorld's Galen Gruman on how users might win the privacy wars. | Get the no-nonsense explanations and advice you need to take real advantage of cloud computing in InfoWorld editors' 21-page Cloud Computing Deep Dive PDF special report. | Stay up on the cloud with InfoWorld's Cloud Computing Report newsletter. ]

However, the real privacy wars in the cloud have yet to be fought, both in the United States and in Europe. This battle will likely occur in courtrooms and in government regulatory agencies.

The reality is that people who working with cloud-based platforms won't stop using those platforms -- but they will get much better at security and privacy. With such improvements in security and privacy, law enforcement and government agencies won't have ready access to some data. That means legal battles will occur in many countries, with the use of remote data hosting services, such as cloud services, in the middle of those frays.

One result of businesses taking steps to ensure that their data won't be monitored by government agencies will be wider use of both encryption and physical restrictions on access. However, if the government wants to see the data and obtains a court order (sometimes in secret), it will want access to that data. To get that encrypted or restricted-access data in the cloud, the government will need an additional court order to gain access. That's when lawsuits will be filed and all hell breaks loose.

Some people believe these issues can be avoided by not using public cloud providers. But that's naive. If the government wants your data and if there is cause to support their concerns to a judge, it will come after that date whether it's in your closet or a cloud. Welcome to the new world order.

This article, "The cloud privacy wars are coming," originally appeared at InfoWorld.com. Read more of David Linthicum's Cloud Computing blog and track the latest developments in cloud computing at InfoWorld.com. For the latest business technology news, follow InfoWorld.com on Twitter.

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EFF Lawsuit Over Surveillance Moves Forward

Group Aims to 'Restore Americans' Constitutional Rights'

by Karl Bode yesterday Broadband Reports

According to the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), a Federal Judge this week rejected the government's attempts to bury the organization's lawsuit over domestic surveillance, and allowed the EFF's lawsuit to continue (though some of the statutory claims were dismissed). "Over the last month, we came face-to-face with new details of mass, untargeted collection of phone and Internet records, substantially confirmed by the Director of National Intelligence," states the EFF. "Today's decision sets the stage for finally getting a ruling that can stop the dragnet surveillance and restore Americans' constitutional rights."

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Netflix Releases ISP Streaming Rankings For June

Google Fiber, Cablevision Continue to Top Rankings

by Karl Bode Broadband Reports

Earlier this year Netflix began ranking the quality of video streaming performance for each of the nation's largest ISPs. HD streams have variable bitrate but can potentially top out at around 4800 kilobits per second, and the data, gleaned from 36 million Netflix members who view over 1 billion hours of TV shows, provides a bird's eye view by ISP of sustained throughput available from a given ISP over time.




Netflix just released their latest ISP rankings for June and by and large they're unchanged, with Google Fiber in the top spot, Cablevision's Optimum Online in the second spot, and various DSL operators continuing to flouder around the bottom half of the rankings. AT&T's U-Verse in particular continues a fairly poor showing, dropping a spot to tenth in the rankings.

ISPs which in the past had historically improved in Netflix performance because of faster speeds, have the last few months found themselves falling because they're not signing up for Netflix's CDN network. As noted earlier this year, Netflix stated they'd start offering users "Super HD" and 3D streams -- if their ISP signed up for Netflix's new Open Connect Content Delivery Network.

As expected many bigger ISPs, most of whom have had neutrality fights with Netflix previously, have not agreed to Netflix's demand for special CDN treatment (AT&T, Comcast, Verizon, Time Warner Cable, Charter, Brighthouse, etc) and are dropping more and more in the Netflix ratings each month.

ISPs who agreed to sign up (Cablevision, Suddenlink, and obviously Cox) have seen miraculously huge gains. ISPs like Comcast and FiOS have even seen their overall average delivery speeds rise, yet because they've balked at Netflix's proposal have fallen to eighth and sixth place, respectively. Verizon's FiOS had a particularly hard month due to a peering fight with Cogent that resulted in lower performance, though that didn't appear to factor into last month's ratings.

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California Workforce Association Conference - September 2013

Building the New Workforce is our theme for the 2013 Meeting of the Minds Conference (MMM), and it's an invitation to reinvent how we do business in an environment of explosive changes in employment levels, workforce composition, and talent demands in virtually every industry. The Conference explores new trends, innovative concepts and emerging practices in workforce development, especially in light of funding challenges. MMM is about strategic thinking and making our work more relevant and meaningful to our communities--to be doing more of what matters in every way. Not only will we have some great sessions and speakers, but we have set aside specially designated times that will enable you to meet in design groups to take what you are learning and develop innovative approaches that fit your region.

MMM has a long tradition in breaking the mold, and bringing new thinking from other worlds that is relevant to our workforce development efforts. I promise, this year's conference will not disappoint.

See you in Monterey! Bob Lanter



We are pleased to extend early bird registration rates until COBMonday, July 15th. Bring a team of key partners from your community and use dedicated times during design group meetings to develop innovative approaches relevant to your region that you can actually implement. Click here to register.



Effective workforce and economic development strategies require an increasingly detailed understanding of your regional labor market. MMM will feature a Symposium on Real Time Labor Market Information, embedded within the Conference. The Symposium will feature many of the new LMI tools that have been developed to aggregate, summarize and analyze the increasing amounts of available information from (big) data sources. More importantly, the Symposium will also demonstrate how you can use these tools to develop a functional profile of your regional labor market that allows workforce investment boards and community college consortiums to do more of what matters for employers and job seekers. See Conference Agenda for more details.



CWA has reserved a block of rooms at $147/ night. Book online now or call Marriott Reservations at 831-649-4324 and mention the CWA Conference to reserve a room at the discounted rate. The Marriott Hotel cutoff is August 9th for these rates. With no designated overflow hotel, make sure you call now.



CWA takes pride in building long-term relationships with its sponsors, and strives to create maximum exposure opportunities with our members and event participants. Discounts for both sponsorships and exhibitors are available when you bundle two or more of CWA's premiere annual events.

Sponsors and Exhibitors of MMM are featured on CWA's Virtual Exhibit Hall.

Download Sponsorship Information

Download Exhibitor Information

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Free Student Passes to Oracle Open World and Java One

The Oracle Academy is conducting a drawing for students to win a free pass to Oracle Open World and Java One in San Francisco, which takes place September 22-26.  As you know this is Oracle’s premiere annual conference for technical professionals to meet and learn the latest trends in IT.  Here is the link to the drawing:

https://academy.oracle.com/pls/html/f?p=31000:92:0::::P92_EVENT_DRAWING_ID:9358

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