Article 43
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Alcatel-Lucent - Not Dead Yet
Can it be true?
The former BELL LABS led by a management team of HEAD-CHOPPERS, rather than insipring creativity and innovation - is TURNING AROUND - and inventing again?
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Alcatel-Lucent Supercharges DSL With 30 Percent Speed Boost
IT Wire
January 31, 2008
Alcatel-Lucent has introduced a new technology option into its range of IP-DSLAM products that it claims has the potential to boost bandwidth by 30 percent, and improve performance on problem lines that are unable to support demanding services like IPTV.
According to the company’s WEB SITE, the technology, known as Smart DSL, is a unique solution that allows operators to stabilise DSL lines that are not operating at optimum performance, without compromising their usable bandwidth. The traditional means of getting a problem DSL line to function correctly has been to increase signal-to-noise ratio, but this reduces bandwidth significantly.
Alcatel-Lucent Smart DSL consists of new features in the ISAM DSL Access Manager family (Alcatel-Lucent’s DSLAM) combined with support for these features in the line testing and quality management system. According to the company, “combined these technologies can be used to troubleshoot and remedy problem lines (eg after a customer complaint), or to pro-actively optimise line performance.” Alcatel-Lucent claims that this optimisation can increase throughput by as much as 30 percent.
The main cause of line instability in DSL lines is crosstalk from other lines. According to Alcatel-Lucent, in a typical operator network, up to 25 percent of lines are potentially unstable because of crosstalk, which limits a carrier’s ability to deliver high revenue earning premium services such as IPTV.
Alcatel-Lucent says it has developed a technology known as Artificial Noise and Virtual Noise (ANVN). Virtual Noise is an optional part of the VDSL2 standard so ANVN works with any VDSL2 standard-compliant CPE that supports VN, and Artificial Noise will work with every existing ADSL modem or any flavour, according to the company. Alcatel-Lucent has a very significant share of the global DSLAM market, which means this technology should have a large deployment potential.
Another emerging technology that promises to significantly increase the throughput of DSL on twisted pair copper phone lines is DYNAMIC SPECTRUM MANAGEMENT, and online newsletter ScreenPlays this week quoted Marcus Weldon, CTO of Alcatel-Lucents Fixed Access Division, saying that sample DSM Level 3 chipsets for integration into Alcatel-Lucent products should be available in late 2008, and that some makers are beginning to build chipsets as external elements and in an evaluation stage ғFor a real integrated commercial product, I would guess a year from then, taking into account all the use environments, he said.
DSM involves the modem hardware (ADSL transceivers) automatically adjusting transmission settings in order to achieve the best signal. These adjustments could be to modulation technique, power levels or both. At its simplest DSM (level 1) enables these parameters to be adjusted for each copper pair so as to improve performance on that pair regardless of others. At the next level the parameters on every pair in a multipair cable would be individually adjusted to as to give an overall optimum performance on all pairs.
DSM Level 3 is akin to multiple input multiple output (MIMO) technology in wireless where the system makes use of multiple paths to deliver optimum data throughput. In DSM level 3 all pairs are managed individually so as to optimise total throughput on the multipair cable. A detailed technical explanation can be found in this Alcatel Lucent WHITE PAPER, dated June 2005. At that time, according to the authors, DSM Level 3 was too complex for implementation on the available DSL digital chips. Progess has clearly been rapid.
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Alcatel-Lucent Intros VDSL2 Bonding, Sleeping Modems
By Ed Gubbins
Telephony Online
July 1, 2009
Alcatel-Lucent today announced two new innovations in its DSL product line to be available in next years first quarter, including support for VDSL2 bonding and modems that power down when not in use to save energy.
Release 4.0 of the vendor’s INTELLIGENT SERVICES ACCESS MANAGER platform includes support for bonding VDSL2 lines, a technique it says could double bandwidth speeds for some customers, depending on their proximity, potentially allowing 50-megabit-per-second downstream speeds.
Alcatel-Lucents biggest VDSL2 customer, AT&T, has talked about the promise of line bonding for some time while REPEATEDLY PUSHING BACK IT’S TIMETABLE for deploying the technology. And though the carrier initially talked about the bandwidth-boosting powers of line-bonding, it has more recently emphasized its potential to extend broadband over longer distances instead.
For example, AT&T has talked about offering 37 Mb/s over distances of 3,000 feet. And this month a Telephony reader and AT&T customer REPORTED being told by a sales rep that the carrier was doing VDSL2 bonding today for distances up to 3200 feet.
“Pair bonding isn’t necessary for all customers, nor are things like two [high-definition video] streams or faster Internet tiers dependent on pair bonding,” an AT&T spokesperson said last December. “Rather, we’ll use pair bonding where needed as a way to expand our U-verse service area to customers at longer loop lengths. It will allow us to reach a broader customer base.”
Alcatel-Lucent said its line cards could be used to deliver 20 Mb/s up to 1400 meters (or nearly 4600 feet).
In an INTERVIEW last year, Pieter Poll, chief technology officer for Qwest Communications, which is trialing VDSL2 gear now, called 2009 “probably the right time frame to deploy bonded lines.” Alcatel-Lucent said it is shipping its gear to select customers now and more generally in next year’s first quarter.
By several accounts, the main gating factor on the deployment of VDSL2 bonding is the availability of customer premises equipment (CPE) that supports it. In fact, Alcatel-Lucent said its gear has supported VDSL2 bonding for several months and that it is now testing the first CPE for the North American market starting with two modems in its own CELLPIPE PORTFOLIO.
Some have attributed the lack of CPE support to a lack of demand for VDSL2 bonding in the market. When asked this month why Zhone Technologies doesn’t sell bonded VDSL2 gear, Steven Glapa, the vendors vice president of marketing and product management, said, “We havent seen anyone looking for it.”
The technology is limited by a few factors, including the simple requirement for extra pairs of existing copper. Thus far, most residential DSL bonding has involved ADSL2+. For example, last fall, SureWest Communications LAUNCHED 10-Mb/s and 6-Mb/s broadband services over a bonded ADSL2+ network in its incumbent territory.
In addition to VDSL2 bonding, Alcatel-Lucent also announced a new ADSL modem that switches into low-power mode when not in use. When traffic levels drop, the modem automatically lowers its bit rate and cuts its power consumption by 25%. The technique is based on industry standards but hasnt been widely employed, the vendor said, because re-activating the modems from low-power mode can cause power fluctuations, leading to crosstalk and destabilizing the network. Alcatel-Lucent is offering the products now because it has overcome those issues, the company said.
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Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Job Searching? How To Stand Out
By Andrea N. Browne
Washington Post
Give Yourself an Advantage When applying for that dream job, it’s important to stand out from the dozens of other applicants. Job-hunting, however, can be difficult to do properly. There are several things that can either help you land an interview right away or prolong your search.
We’ve asked the experts for advice on the dos and don’ts of effective job searching and here is what they had to say:
Do… Look for the Right Fit.
Select positions carefully, says Susan Heathfield, president of Heathfield Management Consultants and writer for About.com’s human resources section. You aren’t looking for just a job, she adds, but rather the best match for your skill set and experience. When preparing for preliminary interviews, ask questions that will help assess whether you and the company are a good fit. This allows you to tailor the search to your wants and needs.
Do… Use Good Manners.
Whether networking or at an interview, be courteous to everyone you encounter, says Patricia Mathews, president of human resources consulting firm Workplace Solutions. “This includes everyone from the receptionist to the vice president of the company.” When networking, you never know where your next opportunity may come from. During an interview, the hiring manager may ask everyone you spoke with that day for feedback, so it is important to be on your best behavior.
Do… Establish Next Steps.
A common mistake many job seekers make is leaving an interview without knowing what’s next. Before it’s over, ask specific questions, says Tory Johnson, president and CEO of Women for Hire. Remember to ask when a final decision will be made. Applicants should also find out when an appropriate time would be to follow-up. This will help job seekers manage expectations and eliminate any ambiguity in the hiring process.
Do… Stay in Touch.
Be sure to obtain e-mail addresses for everyone you interviewed with. Send individual thank-you notes reiterating your qualifications and highlighting key points discussed during the interview. Here is where you should also mention any additional information that helps to reinforce why you are the ideal candidate, Johnson notes.
Do… Proofread Before You Hit Send.
While handwritten thank-you notes are best, suggests Mathews, if you decide to send one via e-mail, be sure to proofread it. This may seem obvious, but is a common mistake made by job applicants. “Writethe e-mail, print it and re-read for grammatical errors.” This will help avoid any accidental mistakes that could hurt your chances of making it to the second round.
Don’t… Be Generic.
The cover letter is usually the deciding factor in whether or not a hiring manager will look at your resume. Job hunters want to stand out from other candidates, Johnson suggests. Many will use a generic cover letter and resume and this is a mistake. “Use language that expresses a specific interest in the position you are applying for.” Mention the job title, how you learned about the opening and how your skill set fits the position requirements.
Don’t… Dress Inappropriately.
Not dressing in a professional manner for your interview leaves the interviewer with an impression that your work ethic may also be unprofessional, says Washingtonpost.com’s How to Deal columnist Lily Garcia. Liken this to dressing sloppy for a first date: If you don’t care enough to make a good first impression, an employer may wonder if that translates to job performance, she adds.
Don’t… Chew Gum.
Doing this in any setting requiring a measure of formality and decorum (interviews, court appearances, etc.) is rude, says Garcia. You would not show up to an interview eating food, would you? With that said, an applicant should apply the same discretion to gum chewing.
Don’t… Get Too Personal.
For job seekers in transitional phases of their personal lives, it’s important not to turn the interview into a sob story. Mentioning things such as seeking employment as the result of going through a messy divorce can be an immediate turn-off, Johnson says. This is not appropriate during the interview process, she adds. It may lead a hiring manager to remember your “baggage” rather than your experience. Instead, focus on the task at hand—demonstrating your skills and proving that you are the best candidate.
Don’t… Waste Anyone’s Time.
When job searching, it’s not uncommon to apply to a few jobs that aren’t exactly what you want, as a back-up plan. With that said, you may end up with several interviews at once, says Mathews. If you have to skip an interview, it’s never acceptable to not show up without explanation. “Call the company and cancel the interview ahead of time. Politely say that you’ve found another opportunity you feel is a better fit.”
Credit: JOB SEEKER WEEKLY
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Tuesday, January 29, 2008
The Next Recession Part 15
The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundnce of those who have much, it is whether we provide enough for those who have too little.
- Franklin Delano Roosevelt
Sales of New Homes Fell by 26% in 2007
By Micheal M. Grynbaum
NY Times
The housing industry, caught in a maelstrom of sinking demand, rising foreclosures, and bulging inventories, is in its worst slump in decades, a growing body of economic evidence shows.
Sales of new homes fell last year by 26 percent, the steepest drop since records began in 1963, the Commerce Department said on Monday.
Last week, the National Association of Realtors reported that sales of previously owned single-family homes, a large portion of the overall housing market, suffered their biggest annual drop in 25 years. And the median price of those homes fell for the first time in at least four decades, and possibly since the Great Depression.
“Some economists predict the market may start to recover in the summer. Others are less optimistic. There is no sign of a bottom in any of these data,” wrote Ian Shepherdson, a London-based economist at High Frequency Economics.
Last month alone, sales of new homes tumbled 4.7 percent, to a 604,000 annual rate, the smallest monthly sales figure since February 1995.
Prices also fell sharply. In December, the median price of a new home fell to $219,200, down 10.9 percent from December 2006.
No matter which way you look at it, the December new home sales report is simply awful,Ӕ wrote Dimitry Fleming, an economist at ING Bank.
December capped off a painful year for home builders, who have watched demand dry up as buyers abandon contracts or stay on the sidelines with the expectation that prices will fall further. For the year, the median price of new homes rose just 0.2 percent, to $246,900.
A wave of foreclosures and tightened lending standards have made it more difficult to obtain a mortgage, even for buyers with good credit ratings. And banks have been more reluctant to lend in light of the subprime mortgage crisis.
Builders are now trying to lure buyers by dropping prices and throwing in incentives like new appliances. They have also cut back on new construction.
But the strategy has failed to make a dent in inventories: the backlog of new homes on the market ticked up last month to 9.6 months supply based on the current sales rate, the Commerce Department said.
Sales of new homes were down in most regions of the country, with the steepest declines in the South and West. There was a slight sales uptick in the Northeast.
The Commerce Department also revised down its estimate for new home sales in November, to a 634,000 annual pace. It has originally estimated a rate of 647,000.
Section Dying America • Section Next Recession, Next Depression •
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Monday, January 28, 2008
The Man Behind The Curtain
By Chuck Baldwin
Chuck Baldwin Live
January 25, 2008
“Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain!” is the famous quote from the wizard in the movie classic, The Wizard Of Oz. However, when it comes to national and international affairs, many, if not most, Americans seem to have taken the mythical wizard’s advice. They seem oblivious to the man behind the curtain. And make no mistake about it: there is a man (or group of men) behind the curtain.
The American people seem mesmerized by the smoke and mirrors of the political and media elite. For the most part, the people of this country seem totally unaware that while the global elite who run this country passionately promote the “war on terrorism,” those same elite are also violently attacking the liberties of the heartland. While they create a gargantuan Department of Homeland Security for our “protection,” they are using that very same department to eviscerate the constitutional protections of our republic. While they insist that we are dependent upon oil from Saudi Arabia, they are ignoring giant oil and natural gas discoveries located under the frozen tundra of our 49th State (and other places). The elite have brilliantly turned the drumbeats of war against Islamofascism into a giant smokescreen to hide their insidious plans to wage a different kind of war against the American people.
The war against the American people is waged on a hundred fronts and with a hundred agendas. But one word seems to best describe the heart of the strategy. And that word is FEAR. The problem is, the man behind the curtain has misdirected people’s fears.
The American people are continually besieged with the imminent threat of what little, pipsqueak, piss-ant countries such as Iraq and Iran pose to the safety and security of America. Hogwash! Iraq was never an imminent threat to these United States and George W. Bush and rest of his globalist neocons always knew it. Neither is Iran an imminent threat to America. And the Bushkies know this too.
Iran does not even have the capability of inflicting serious damage upon Israel, much less the United States. It has a ragtag army. No navy. No air force. No nuclear weapons. No really sophisticated weapons of any kind. Oh, they harbor several thousand fanatical sand people who live in caves and who huddle together in antiquated forts. They carry AK-47’s, and some short-range shoulder-fired missile launchers. Yet, the Bush propagandists have conservatives worked up into a frenzy, all prepared to support a nuclear attack against Tehran. Believe me, if Israel thought that Iran was a serious threat to its security, it has the ability to take that country further back into the Stone Age than it already is.
Beyond that, if Bush believes that we are TRULY FIGHTING A WAR against terrorists in Iraq, why does he give $20 billion worth of military weaponry to Saudi Arabia? Have you ever seen or even heard of a Saudi army? How about a Saudi navy? A Saudi air force? You haven’t heard of it? Neither has anyone else.
What we do hear from former CIA insiders is that much of any military hardware shipped to Saudi Arabia often winds up in the hands of Muslim terrorist organizations such as al-Qaeda. In addition, readers are aware that many, if not most, of the al-Qaeda insurgents that are shooting and killing our soldiers and Marines in Iraq do not come from Iraq--they come from Saudi Arabia! So much for Bush’s “war on terrorism.”
What the globalists behind the curtain are doing is using the “war on terrorism” to distract the American people from the war they are waging--against us!
How else can one explain the fact that, while the neocons are waving the war flag against a schizophrenic but impotent Iran, they totally ignore the very real threat posed by the People’s Republic of China. If the American people want an enemy to be concerned about, China, not Iran, is the place to look.
But do not ask Defense Secretary Robert Gates whether we should be CONCERNED ABOUT RED CHINA. He recently said, “I DON’T CONSIDER China an enemy.” Pray tell, is Gates entirely stupid or just unbelievably nave? Or, is he trying to deliberately deceive us?
Besides the commonly reported foibles of Red China selling the United States tainted food, poisoned toys, and crappy automobile tires, not to mention all the junk Americans are forced to buy (produced with slave labor, no less), the communist nation is also known to be sending hordes of spies into our country. They are using a multi-billion dollar trade surplus with the United States to build a modern army and navy. In fact, they have developed a very sophisticated submarine fleet capable of delivering nuclear missiles (including some with multiple warheads) anywhere in the world. They routinely track our submarines and use satellite technology to track our troop movements.
And speaking of satellites, when is the last time you heard any notable media personality or government spokesman acknowledge the fact that Red China is now even using advanced weaponry to shoot satellites out of the sky? In fact, experts predict that by 2010 China will be able to knock out most of our satellites in low-earth orbit. You mean the man behind the curtain did not tell you that? I wonder why?
Plus, do not lose sight of the fact that China’s growing military is underwritten by American corporations along with the political establishment within both major parties. It is American technology, American materials, and American wealth that is enabling Red China to create a very sophisticated and menacing global threat. But, again, the man behind the curtain does not want you to know that.
Instead, the man behind the curtain--along with his water boys Giuliani, Romney, Huckabee, McCain and members of the media--are facilitating Red China’s usage of the Panama Canal and the new NAFTA superhighway to allow China to increase its foothold in the government and commercial markets of the U.S. And don’t overlook the fact that the communist country is not only buying up vast amounts of the U.S. debt, it is buying up vast amounts of private debt. And we hear nary a peep from the man behind the curtain.
The other thing the man behind the curtain does not want us to see is the impact that the forever war is having upon our economy. America is being pushed to the brink of recession, maybe even depression. The chief culprit of our economic woes is excessive federal spending. And the biggest hole into which all this deficit spending is being dumped into is none other than the forever wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Nearly $1 trillion dollars has already been spent or is in the process of being spent, and conservative estimates of an additional $1 trillion will be spent to fight this forever war in the near future.
In addition, Bush’s oil buddies have successfully manipulated the economy to the point that Americans are paying over $3 a gallon for regular gasoline. Diesel is running even higher than that. (Gas was $1.25 a gallon when G.W. Bush became President.) And economists are predicting that gasoline will rise to over $4 a gallon in the very near future.
At the same time, however, it is very likely that we discovered enough oil and natural gas reserves beneath the surface of Alaska (and other places) to supply all the oil and natural gas needs of the United States for the next 200-300 years. But, guess what? Not only are we not bothering to drill for these resources, our government and oil industry moguls will not even acknowledge that such resources exist. Once again, the old wizard creates his smoke and mirrors and implores us to ignore that man behind the curtain.
Ladies and gentlemen, I have just scratched the surface. But the bottom line is this: we have been had! Furthermore, the only Presidential candidate who understands any of this is Congressman Ron Paul. But don’t expect any of our media or political elite to get behind Mr. Paul. Why? The man behind the curtain doesn’t like Ron Paul, and that is putting it mildly. He knows that Ron Paul threatens the global elites’ Machiavellian plans more than any other single political figure today. This disdain for Dr. Paul does not apply to other Republicans, of course.
The truth is, if the man behind the curtain has his way, he would much prefer an establishment Republican to be elected this November. Oh, don’t get me wrong: neither Hillary nor Obama will provide much resistance to the globalist goons that are hiding behind the curtain. It is just that when a liberal Democrat is in the White House, conservatives and Christians seem to come out of hibernation and actually start resisting some things. But when a Republican is in the White House, the little goblins behind the curtain are free to wage their war of globalism and elitism against an unsuspecting and sleepy electorate.
Therefore, it does not matter to a tinker’s dam whether it is Giuliani, McCain, Huckabee, or Romney who wins the election this November. The man behind the curtain will still produce his smoke and mirrors and create more fear and panic over any and every convenient distraction in the hopes that the Munchkins will not wake up in time to realize that the one who needs to be feared (and fought) is none other than the man behind the curtain.
Section Dying America •
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Sunday, January 27, 2008
RIP Our Best Chance For Democracy In 2008
Dennis Kucinich Quits Race
Newsmax
January 24, 2008
Democrat Dennis Kucinich told a newspaper on Thursday he would end his race for the U.S. presidency after registering little voter support in the early state contests.
Kucinich, 61, a liberal member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Cleveland, Ohio, told the Cleveland Plain-Dealer he would make his withdrawal announcement in that city on Friday.
“I want to continue to serve in Congress,” he said.
His campaign issued a statement saying he would announce plans on Friday for “transitioning out of the Democratic presidential primary race.”
Kucinich is an outspoken Iraq war critic who has consistently voted against funding the war and led anti-war efforts in Congress.
He said he would not endorse another candidate in the race for the Democratic nomination to contest November’s presidential election.
Kucinich attracted ardent supporters and stayed in the race even after it became clear that his campaign was going nowhere. His 30-year-old wife, Elizabeth, who stands a head taller than her husband, was generally at his side on the campaign trail.
Kucinich was ridiculed for saying at a Democratic debate that he had seen a UFO, a fact that was revealed in a book by actress Shirley MacLaine.
THE DEMOCRAT’S DEMOCRAT
DEMOCRACY HOLLOWED OUT PART 18
Section News • Section Dying America •
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