Connecting remote employees
4. Many businesses are using virtual private networks to connect remote employees. According to the Gartner group, of Stamford, Conn., small businesses rate security technologies among the top three IT initiatives in the past year. More small businesses will increase their spending on security software this year than all other software categories, according to Forrester.
5. Small businesses can use the VPNs to access their IT systems remotely in a secure manner, says Anil Miglani, senior vice president of AMI Partners, of New York, a research company. “Thus, employees can connect to their e-mail as well as other business applications and also download data from their company servers even while traveling or working from home,” he says. “Similarly, small businesses can transfer data to and from their branches in a safe and secure manner. This increases productivity and also lowers the total costs.”
6. VPNs allow only authorized users to access the company data and also prevent the data from being intercepted by unauthorized third parties. “In an era when businesses are trying to increase their productivity while also ensuring the security of their data, VPNs have emerged as a critical tool,” Miglani says.
What to look for in VPNs
7. VPNs come in different forms. Small businesses can install either a software-based VPN on their servers or install an appliance that requires minimal IT skills for installation and maintenance. Also, businesses can forgo on-site VPNs altogether and subscribe to VPN services offered by third parties.
Miglani offers advice for what a small business should look for when deploying a VPN:
‑ Ease of use. There are many vendors that offer easy-to-use plug-n-play appliances that don't require sophisticated IT skills to install and maintain them;
‑ Security. Install a firewall to increase the security. Most VPNs do come with firewalls;
‑ Monitoring. Make sure that your VPN service provider offers 24x7 monitoring and management;
‑ Customer support. Make sure that the service provider offers 24x7 customer support. You are using VPNs because you want round-the-clock access to your company data. If something goes wrong, you shouldn't have to wait for the problem to be resolved;
‑ Capacity. Make sure that the solution will support the number of users your business has and will also support the required bandwidth to support all those users;
8. In addition, telecom companies offer VPN services as a subscription. “Subscribing to VPN services allows small businesses to minimize their upfront costs and also eliminates the need for any internal IT staff to manage the VPNs,” Miglani says.
7. Read paragraph 3 and explain how a VPN ensures the security of information.
8. Look through paragraph 7 and say what a small business should take into consideration when deploying a VPN.
9. Match the letter of the correct answer to the following questions.
1. Why are VPNs getting a good option for small businesses?
a) because the prices rise;
b) because VPNs are attractive for employees;
c) because the costs decrease.
2. What do small businesses use VPNs for?
a) to hire new personnel;
b) to increase productivity;
c) to invest money in modern IT technologies.
3. How can a VPN provide secure access to the company servers?
a) by encrypting data;
b) by decrypting data at the receiving end;
c) by the interception of the incoming information.
4. What does subscribing to VPN services allow small businesses to do?
a) to use VPN services free of charge;
b) to lower their upfront expenses;
c) to have quick but limited access to the company data.
10. Read the following statements and say whether they are true or false.
1. A virtual private network can provide secure, cost-effective remote communication.
2. A VPN, using the Internet, makes the operation more expensive and more affordable for small and mid-size businesses.
3. Privacy of VPNs is ensured by encryption technology, tunneling protocols and security procedures.
4. The protocols send only the properly encrypted data through the channel.
5. Only authorized users have access to the company data via VPNs.
6. Few VPNs are sold with firewalls.
11. Match the parts to complete the sentences.
| 1. Many businesses are using virtual private networks | a) you want round-the-clock access to your company data. |
| 2. Make sure a VPN will also support | b) applications and documents back on the company network. |
| 3. You are using VPNs because | c) while traveling or working from home. |
| 4. To do business you need access to | d) to connect remote employees. |
| 5. Employees can connect to their e-mail and other business applications | e) 24x7 monitoring and management. |
| 6. Make sure that your VPN service provider offers | f) the required bandwidth to support all the users. |
12. Make an outline of the text.
13. Using the information from the text speak about a VPN and its importance for a small business.
Part B
14. Look at the title. Make your predictions about the contents of the text.
15. Read the text and write out key words and phrases revealing the contents of the text.
16. Divide the text into logical parts. In each part find the key sentence.
17. Find sentences which can be omitted as inessential in each logical part.
Why Wi-Fi?
By Anne Stuart
Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past year or so, you’ve seen the term “Wi-Fi.” You’ve probably figured out that it’s shorthand for “wireless fidelity.” You may even know that it's got something to do with accessing the Internet or a private network through the air instead of through cables.
What you’re probably still wondering is: Why should I care?
Because chances are that, within the next year or so, you’ll use Wi-Fi regularly at work, at home, or on the road. You may well depend on Wi-Fi as much as you do on your cell phone, your laptop computer, or your personal digital assistant (PDA1).
In fact, all those devices increasingly come ready to work with Wi-Fi. That means the next time you invest in hardware, you’re likely to invest in the Wi-Fi label aswell. So it makes sense to learn what Wi-Fi does well – and where it still needs work.
Wi-Fi refers to products certified to work with the high-tech industry’s global standard for high-speed wireless networking. Hardware carrying the Wi-Fi logo has passed rigorous testing by the Wi-Fi Alliance, a trade association based in Mountain View, Calif. Certification means that, regardless of which company manufactured it, the equipment should play nicely with other Wi-Fi devices and networks.
As Wi-Fi compatibility grows – to date, the alliance has certified nearly
865 products – so has its popularity. Currently, about 4.7 million Americans regularly use Wi-Fi, according to Stamford, Conn.-based research group Gartner Inc. In four years that figure will grow to 31 million users in the United States alone.
Why is Wi-Fi so widespread and what's in it for businesses?
It’s fast.Wi-Fi’s latest version is many times faster than DSL or cable connections, and literally hundreds of times faster than those old dial-up connections. That’s particularly handy when you’re working on the run, on the road, or from home. If уоu’ve ever watched seconds tick by while watching Web pages load, you’ll appreciate the potential productivity gain.
It’s convenient.As soon as a Wi-Fi-equipped device is within range of a base station, it’s online. With no wires, you can move your laptop computer from place to place – for instance, from your office to a conference room down the hall – without losing your network connection. When traveling, you can set up shop any place equipped with a Wi-Fi network: another company’s office, a hotel room, or a convention center.
It’s everywhere.Public Wi-Fi access sites ‑ or “hot spots” ‑ are spreading very fast. They’re in bookstores, airport lounges, fast-food restaurants (including some McDonald’s and Schlotzky’s Deli outlets), and coffee shops (including many Starbucks outlets). In addition, local merchants from Cincinnati to Athens, Ga., to Portland, Ore., are footing the bill for bigger hot spots, accessible throughout a business district or neighborhood.
Some companies charge for hot-spot use; others offer free access. All hope they’re creating environments where tech-savvy customers will linger – and, presumably – spend more money on coffee, books, sandwiches, or whatever the hot-spot host sells. Does the idea pay off? Overall, it’s too early to tell. Ultimately, the answer will affect how fast the public hot-spot market heats up. Recently, IDC, the Framingham, Mass.-based research company, estimated that the number of commercial Wi-Fi sites would grow 57 % annually over the next five years – but warned that the market is young, volatile, and based on unproven business models. In other words, if hot spots don’t generate revenue, expect that growth rate to stall.
For all its wonders, the Wi-Fi world comes with some drawbacks. Among them:
Range:Although you lose the wires, you’re still limited to the base station’s range, typically 75 to 150 feet indoors and a few hundred feet outdoors, depending on equipment, radio frequency, and obstructions.
Power drain:Networks using early versions of Wi-Fi technology tend to quickly gobble power – a disadvantage for battery-dependent laptop users.
Interference:Nearby microwave ovens and cordless phones, particularly older models, can slow down Wi-Fi transmissions.
Security:Here’s the downside of providing fast, easy access: outsiders can sometimes get into your wireless networks as fast and easily as you can. Check with hardware vendors about the latest security precautions and products. The Wi-Fi Alliance currently recommends using Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA2) technology, which both authenticates users and encrypts data. Look for even tougher security measures within the next year.
Notes:
1PDA ‑ personal digital assistant – персональный секретарь, карманный компьютер.
2WPA ‑ Wi-Fi Protected Access – защищенный беспроводной доступ в Интернет.
18. Explain what Wi-Fi means and why it is so widespread.
19. Make questions to the text.
20. Name the disadvantages of Wi-Fi at the present moment.
21. Say what new information you have learnt from the text.
22. Sum up the text using the key words and word combinations and the topical sentences.
Part C
23. Look through the following text, define the information presented in it and entitle the text.
Text C
More than 50 percent of small companies operate local area networks to help them do business more efficiently. Should you invest in a LAN or outsource?
A local area network (LAN) is a collection of computers and other devices connected to each other to enable communication and sharing. Small and mid-size firms that outgrow a few PCs and the physical sharing of disks often upgrade to LANs in order to facilitate collaboration and the sharing of business tools.
LANs started in the early 1980s as a way to share documents and printers easily. On a LAN, not every worker needs his or her own printer – one printer can serve a workgroup or office. By hitting “print” from within Microsoft Word, for instance, the print request travels across the network to the shared printer.
In the same fashion, an application running on one computer – dubbed a server – can be shared among computers, sometimes called clients. The server becomes a location where files are stored, applications are centrally managed, and access to files and resources is granted only to those who have the proper rights.
A LAN has the distinction of being in a smaller area – hence the name local – and that makes it ideal for a small business. When a computer network extends beyond a building or a campus or a small area via telecommunication lines, it becomes a wide area network (WAN).
Before wireless technology made untethered communication possible, LANs were created by using cables to connect computers to each other. Now, LANs are often a combination of wired and wireless connections.
A LAN comprises the software that allows the sharing of applications and devices, and also the hardware, meaning the physical connections. Most networks are linked using Ethernet cable, which operates at various speeds, from ten megabits per second to up to ten gigabits per second. Other hardware components of a LAN are hubs, bridges, and routers. A hub consolidates the connection of various computers into a central location.
Ethernet cable has physical limitations – the signal traveling over the wires can lose its integrity if the distance is too far. Bridges help extend and segment the network. And routers determine where requests are going and speed them to their destination.
More than 53 percent of small businesses have adopted some form of a LAN, says Laurie McCabe, vice president of AMI Partners, a New York-based research firm. Of those small businesses that are using LANs, 76 percent are using a server-based network, as opposed to a peer-to-peer network, where PCs are connected and share resources without a central server.
At some small businesses, a LAN is built the way it has been for decades: a server or servers run software and manage user accounts. But the notion of a LAN is changing, says Michael Dortch, principal business analyst with the Robert Francis Group. Businesses are considering moving away from physically running and managing applications on a server in the office, and instead paying someone to run the applications for them. The concept of a server is still there, only the server may be in another city or country. The connections from desktop PC, or client, to the server are Internet connections, not wired ones.
“SMBs1 don't want or need LANs, any more than they want or need PCs,” Dortch says. “What they want and need is simple, consistent, affordable access to the IT-empowered tools and resources that help them to do business effectively and successfully. Growing numbers of SMBs are looking to hosted services as alternatives to physical LANs they have to implement and manage themselves.”
Notes:
1SMB – small-to-medium business – малые и средние предприятия.
24. Find the following information in the text:
1) what LAN is;
2) how LANs work;
3) why LANs work for small businesses.
25. Say what you have learnt about LANs.
Unit VIII