Deepak Sivakumar

Fire is a boon to mankind and a killer too. There is no limit to the uses of fire in our society but safety must come first during the course of it. Fire safety must be made a necessity and not a luxury.

A fire can occur absolutely anywhere, at a factory, a hotel, a garage or maybe even in a toilet. Necessary precautions and steps must be taken to ensure safety to prevent loss of human life and wealth. Every building, house or any other establishment of any kind must compulsorily have fire safety and that would include smoke detectors, fire alarms and water sprinklers.

Many of the apartments and other private buildings might have a smoke detector but that wouldn’t help much since the damage would be done while the fire engine is on its way. The reason is the absence of water sprinklers. In some cases there would be a smoke detector installed in a house or a building premise and might be in excellent shape. And during the outbreak of a fire, the alarm would turn on and the people would be warned. But what if the people of that house were out on a vacation or wherever, this is where technology plays its part and people should be aware enough to see to that their homes are connected to the local fire department.

Posted by Deepak Sivakumar at 11:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Other Services
Some of the other services are Photo/image viewers, Music/audio players (both offline and streaming), Movie/video players (both offline and streaming), Imaging functions like a handset camera, Blogging applications, Infotainment applications, Games and Multimedia communications. (Hannu Verkasalo, 2007)

Streaming is a technique for transferring data such that it can be processed as a steady and a continuous stream. (Webopedia, 2007) The music players can be both offline and streaming, the music or song can be downloaded and can be stored for later use or can be heard to online which buffers the file first and then plays it. Examples for audio streaming are internet radio, Virgin Radio etc. Similarly when it comes to videos, there is both offline and streaming videos. Orange TV, Real player are examples of video streaming.

The Imaging functions consist of handset devices such as cameras and camcorders which can be used to capture audio and video data. We can also take still or moving pictures and can be broadcasted over a network.

When we move towards the interactivity portion of mobile multimedia, we have blogging. This is the place where people come together to express their views or opinions and it can be social networking sites where they upload pictures for photo sharing or they can just write an article. Infotainment covers all the entertainment and at the same time informative part, the weather, traffic news, global updates can be accessed through the web. Mobile Multimedia games such as snake, card games and bounce are also very popular games that are compatible with almost any phone. (International Multimedia Telecommunications Consortium, 2007)

Multimedia Communications consists of e-mail, Bluetooth, MMS and IP Multimedia subsystem(IPMS). IPMS is a technology which converges Voice over IP and multimedia systems. (International Multimedia Telecommunications Consortium, 2007)

References
1. VERKASALO, HANNU (2007). Empirical Observations on the Emergence of Mobile Multimedia Services. Retrieved November 25, 2007, from delivery.acm.org/ Web site: http://delivery.acm.org/10.1145/1190000/1186658/a3-verkasalo.pdf?key1=1186658&key2=1014106911&coll=ACM&dl=ACM&CFID=7671264&CFTOKEN=97308997
2. (2004). IMTC Forum. Retrieved November 25, 2007, from 2. International Multimedia Telecommunications Consortium Web site: http://www.imtc.org/search.asp?search=mobile+multimedia/events/forum events/forum_2004/presentations/day_2/d2eaksu18.ppt
3. (2007). Advanced networking for leading edge research and education. Retrieved November 25, 2007, from Multicast Web site: http://abilene.internet2.edu/services/multicast.html
4. (2007). Webopedia. Retrieved November 25, 2007, from What is Streaming? Web site: http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/s/streaming.html

Posted by Deepak Sivakumar at 04:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Mobile Multimedia Applications
The many applications of Mobile multimedia are Media player applications, Streaming server applications, SIP Clients or servers, Content Authoring Tools, Instant Messaging applications, Video Telephony, Media recorder and development tools. The media player applications such as Windows media player and quick time are used for this purpose and they can be downloaded from streaming server applications. There are also some authorizing tools which permit certain content to be published or not. The instant messaging applications such as Irc chat, yahoo chat and msn messenger are used to instant messages to and fro. Some applications allow us to record shows and programs over the internet, they are the Media recorders. Video Telephony is the process of having a live audio visual communication between end users. (International Multimedia Telecommunications Consortium, 2007)
Services

These are solutions which run in the network and provide value added to the customer. The two parties included in providing service are the service provider and the service user. Some of the services are Media On-Demand, Multicasting, Broadcasting, IM & Presence, IMS, MMS, SMS, VoIP, Media portals, Mobile games and Visual Radio.
Media On-Demand is one of the services that offer total customization to the user and the user gets to choose the channel type he/she would like to receive form the content provider. An IPTV is an example where the user chooses the channels according to his convenience. (International Multimedia Telecommunications Consortium, 2007)

Multicasting is a set of data that enable efficient delivery of data to many locations on a network. (Advanced networking for leading edge research and education, 2007) IPTV is an example for this one too where the provider supplies this service to many households. Broadcasting is delivering data to all the locations on a network. For example: If there happens to be a tornado alert in a place, then the mobile service sends out a warning broadcast message to all the users. MMS or Multimedia Messaging Service is the type of messaging where high resolution pictures and videos can be sent via the web to different users. This came later on after SMS which is Short Messaging Service which can be used to send texts or picture files to other users. VoIP is Voice over IP where calls can be made for a cheaper rate and uses packet switching networks. Mobile gaming has overwhelmingly increased as there are more multimedia games which can be played on mobile phones.

Posted by Deepak Sivakumar at 04:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Multimedia is audio, video and data coming together and Mobile is to be “on the go”. So in simple terms, Mobile Multimedia is nothing but having access to multimedia information at any given point of time or at all times. It is also the process of sharing, discovering and consuming multimedia content at any time any place in a secure way.

Security is an important aspect since no one wants their information to be accessed by a third party and this could lead to some grave concerns such as privacy issues. It all started with the SMS Short Messaging Service which was one of the simplest communication oriented network based application and this worked primarily on circuit switching but then people started hyping about content oriented services and even after the dot com boom, technologies such as WAP and MMS which were doing well , went down the scale. Now with the rising advent of multimedia applications, there is a tremendous change in the mobile market. With regards to the IP based services such as IP Multimedia subsystems which use ip technology and 3G technology.

Multimedia services are more complicated than just circuit switching networks since there is actual computing taking place. There is an interaction between the environment and the phone which is used such as a Smartphone acquires the networks and services around it and subsequently gains access to the different services provided by the content provider. There are applications that can be run on the Smartphone without any connectivity to the content providers. And there are many services that reply primarily on the handset and do not depend on the cellular access network. For this purpose, there is handset-based monitoring technology which is a suitable method of measurement. (Hannu Verkasalo, 2007)

Content
The two types of Multimedia Content are Static, Live and Dynamic Pre-stored Content. Static content consists of applications such as jpg files and txt files, these are fixed or static and not moving pictures. The Dynamic Pre-Stored Content consists of applications such as mp4, 3gp, avi files. Content which is streamed continuously as the event is taking place is the live content. (International Multimedia Telecommunications Consortium, 2007)
Network
The handset that is used should be able to sync with these networks in the environment so that the user can make use of the services such as entertainment, access information and communicate too. Some of the networks used are 2G, 2.5G, 3G, WLAN, LAN and IP based networks. (International Multimedia Telecommunications Consortium, 2007)
Devices
There are plenty of ways to access services from the network, but it is necessary that the right device be used for the right purpose and also some of the applications completely depend on the features of the phone to be compatible. Some of the devices that can be used for this purpose are Mobile phones, Imaging Devices, PDA’s, Laptops, Recorders, Media Storage & Playback Devices and Media Server and Gateway equipment. Mobile phones such as Smart Phones which has computing functions have multiple features and are compatible with different networks. Personal Digital Assistants (PDA) are handheld computers and have many features such as clock, calendar, spreadsheets, games and browser facility. There are also media servers where all the content can be stored and acts as a server which would provide the required content to the users. Laptops are also used for this purpose and can logon to different networks based on the features and compatibility of the laptop. (International Multimedia Telecommunications Consortium, 2007)
All these above devices can be connected wirelessly or wired and can be synchronized with the networks. They can also be customized to the user’s convenience. Some of the devices also have (GPS) Global Positioning System which is used for automobile navigation.

Posted by Deepak Sivakumar at 03:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Abraham Lincoln, Jack Welch and Mark S Walton understood a common language, the language to manage and lead both people and organizations; they used the language of Buy-in and Leadership. And this language is something that helps us produce the results we desire with faster and better efficiency. One of the major tools in the industry other than competent technical expertise is Communication, and we can niche this down to Strategic communication. It is necessary that we analyze the communication situation at any given point of time, be it a party, an official meeting or even a station.

Motivation is the first step to Strategic communication and this is where the purpose is explained so the future steps can be planned wisely. Stories are a way of doing this since people always like to be in places they have never been and would like to explore further. The next step is to know the type of employees or audience we are dealing with because it is necessary that we know what the audience don’t need to know and need to know. This is vital since the communication should have some effect on the audience and they should be able to plan action items based on the communication. The communication between the audience and the speaker comes together at some point where there is comfortable communication and this is possible only if the speaker has that certain level of charm and style which makes the audience want to converse more. The speaker should know the level of formality in their tone and should adjust accordingly to the situation. The tone of voice, the structure and the delivery are important tools of effective communication too.
The last step would be the application or putting together all the previous steps. There would be times when all the planned steps fail and chaos shows up. This is when we need to turn the negative into positive by finding some value and adding more value to it. The efficiency to come out of a crisis like this would in turn help the company, its customers and its employees gain more confidence in the person leading the show. The easiest way to do that is to show the audience that the company cares about the audience’s future and to make a feasible link between the company’s future and their future too. People should understand that they are not golden stars in a sky but are just another speck in the sky but their time and commitment when shown effectively will be reciprocated generously by the company to help them fulfill their dreams.

Posted by Deepak Sivakumar at 02:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

There is a famous quote that says “In Business, you don’t get what you deserve, you get what you negotiate”. China does exactly that with their employees and other businesses, be it Chinese or International. America has been leading all the way in the International market not knowing that China has been steadily growing by eating out of America’s hands. A reason being that businesses in America has been growing making more short term gains, but the businesses in China have been supplying products to America in a very cheap and substantial way putting American Business competitors out of business.

If one of the business in America had a requirement, a Chinese company would quote a price much lesser than any other American company and hence they end up acquiring the deal. Unlike the wages an American would possibly get, a Chinese would probably get only one fourth the amount. To add to this, Chinese companies hire by the dozen and have a huge workforce which is their biggest asset. The Chinese are extremely good at emulating, be it a roadster, a rolex or a rug they do a good job of copying other company designs and structure and they do a good job out of it. And these products are in turn sold for only one- third of the original price. This turns out to be a fantastic deal for customers but there are businesses that are put to jeopardy and this can be disastrous for the employees.
China has also been held responsible for the rising oil prices and plummeting DVD prices in America. The Chinese are human beings just like the Americans and the rest of the world and they can be naïve, smart or corrupt but whether the Chinese be communist or capitalist, they have definitely understood how lucrative trading with themselves and the rest of the world works.

Posted by Deepak Sivakumar at 09:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)