RAID

RAID stands for Redundant Array of Individual Disks. It is a type of storage technology that allows an increased level of reliability through redundancy.

There are two different types of implementing RAID, either hardware or software.

Software RAID
Software RAID uses host-based software in order to access the RAID functions. When compared to hardware, software RAID offers benefits such as cost and simplicity.

Hardware RAID
Implementation of hardware RAID involves a specialized hardware controller either on the host or on the storage array. A controller card can be used as host based hardware RAID. The controller then interacts with the hard disks using a PCI bus.

A RAID set is a group of disks. WIthin each disks there are disk blocks called strips. The strips aligned across all the disks within the RAID set is called a stripe.
There were originally 5 RAID levels. Over time there have been more due to the evolution of technology. By utilizing variations of the mirroring and parity methods development of the RAID levels. The most common levels are RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 3, RAID 4, RAID 5, and RAID 6.





Source:

• Infomation Storage and Management. EMC Education Services.

Favorite Open Source Product: Mozilla Firefox

Looking over my favorite open source product, it has reiterated my interest in the open source story. It has led to many successful products and projects in the past. My favorite open source product would have to be Mozilla Firefox. Mozilla Firefox stands today as one of the most widely used open source products. As well as one of the most widely used internet browser. Mozilla works with other major companies such as google to create the most comfortable and accessible internet browser.

Firefox 1.0 was released in 2004. Today, Mozilla Firefox is the second most used web browser and accounts for approximately 30% of worldwide usage share of web browsers. Some of Firefox's main feature include tabbed browsers, a download manager, spell checking, private browsing just to name a few. Its also uses google services for the search engine and its geolocation aware browsing service. It is also highly utilized more often by more tech-savvy users. Firefox allows addition of functions through a application called extensions to be created by third-party developers.


The reason I chose this as my favorite open source product because I am a user of the web browser. It is compatible with all of the major operating systems and is also compatible with a plethora of web-based applications that families, students, or employers can use to explore the internet and all of its features.

Source:

•Mozilla

• Tech Pluto

•PingDom

Ensuring reliabilty in voice/data network

Recently I sat down to read an article from techtarget.com. The article was written by Paul Kirvan, a board member of the Business Continuity Institutes's US Chapter. He discussed some of what he believes are the best practices in ensuring reliability in an organizations voice/data network. When asked how do you ensure reliability in a voice/data network during a power outage he replied by saying that "a private voice/data network has a very good chance of being run over what might be called 'traditional' phone lines. He also adds that access from a local telephone company exchange to a company is most likely going to be over copper or fiber-optic facilities provided by the local telephone company. He believes that the likelihood of a telco-centered power outage small to none. He describes a few techniques one could incorportate to insure resillience. First he suggests installing a diversely-run local access network to a different local telco with no overlapping cables routes and manholes. Second, use free-space communications, such as point-to-point microwave to bypass the local loop. These two techniques along with others explained in the article will allow an organization to have better prepared for the storm.

When asked what kind of IT infrastructure is needed for a robust voice/data network he answer by suggesting that a fully-meshed network is an ideal configuration if money is not an object. He says that backing up power systems for all critical infrastructure hardware is essential and locating network equipment in secure equipment areas is also important.

It seems to me that ensuring reliability in voice and data networks are very important. It's also equally important to understand why.







Sources

• SearchDisasterRecovery

Amazon Kindle v. Ipad 2

In the world we live in today it is now very easy to communicate and socialize. We can send messages, emails or share photo's all from a smartphone. We can edit and share photos and videos from our smart phones on our laptops. Now a new era of tablets are among us. Where we can view videos and photos as if they were the size of a sheet of paper. Leaving us with unlimited opportunities to make life more easier to enjoy. The Ipad 2 was released by Apple on March 12, 2011. The Ipad 2 is the second generation of the ipad suite from Apple. The sleek and mobile design, packed with a lot of power leaves the Ipad 2 easily amongst the best tablets of today. Another option for future tablet users would be the Amazon's new Kindle reader. This tablet has yet to be released but is said to be the best competition for the Ipad 2. The product-service integration along with the affordable price has made Amazons Kindle a top choice for tablet users.

The Matchup
The Ipad 2 has a 1 GHz dual core chip processor called the A5. It has 512MB of RAM. The specifications are not exact at the moment for the Kindle tablet. Although there has been talk that the 7 inch will run a single core chip. While the 10 inch will run a dual core chip. The Ipads screen is the same as the proceeding model. The 1024 x 768, 9.7 in In-Plane Switching display. The Kindle Tablet will come out in two versions, 7 and 10 inch. The screen for Kindle will be multi-touch capable. Allowing 2 finger multi touch, while the Ipad 2 allows 10-finger. Both the Ipad 2 and the Amazon Kindle Tablet will be WiFi friendly. For the Ipad2 one can grab a Verizon 3G or AT&T/GSM version. Both tablets also have bluetooth capabilities. Other highlight features for the Ipad are built in ambient light sensor, an accelerometer and a three-axis gyroscope. The kindle does not come with any cameras. The Ipad 2 on the other hand has 2, one on the front and one on the back. The Ipad 2 comes in either 16gb or 32gb. The Kindle tablet comes only in 6gb. The price tag on the Kindle is looking to be around $250 which I believe is a reasonable price. The Ipad 2 starts at $499. Although that is a little pricy and cost is a very important factor, the Ipad 2 software along with all of its other features its safe to say you get what you pay for.

Conclusion
In conclusion the Kindle should be a nice new low priced tablet to have for what ever personal use you may need it for. There just isn't much competition for the Ipad 2. Many see the Ipad 2 to be in a league of its own. The Ipad 2 is not a perfect product but little to anything having to do with technology is. It is safe to say that the Ipad 2 wins the battle win it comes to being compared to other tablets in discussion of top performing tablets.

Sources

• InfoSync

• Engadget

• Gizmodo

• TechCrunch