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CURRENT TRENDS IN TECHNOLOGY

There are many jobs that are done exclusively on the computer; the only thing that forces the
employee to travel to the workplace is the fact that the job entails working with files on the
office network. However, with todays technology a person can work files on a remote
network. Telecommuting takes advantage of this technology to reduce unnecessary
commuting to and from the office.
Telecommuting
It is the term used to refer to when an employee works off-site (usually
at home) using a computer and a communication channel to
communicate with the office network/computer. All that is required is
a connection to the office network via a communications channel. The
most common method of doing this is with a modem, telephone line
and remote networking software.
Advantages
Reduced costs from commuting to and from work
Less stress (from not having to put up with rush hour traffic) and is more convenient
for the employee.
The employee can work in the comfort of his/her home at his/her own pace
Disadvantages

The employee may have to absorb resulting additional telephone and electricity costs.

The initial cost of setting up the computer systems, both at home and at the office, to
support telecommuting will be expensive

Lack of supervision since the employee can work when he/she wishes, and may be
distracted by things such a telephone calls, the internet and television

There may be a loss of productivity

Reduced social interaction between employees

Employees will lose out on the possibility of obtaining a promotion

Videoconferencing and Teleconferencing

Both videoconferencing and teleconferencing use the same principle
as telecommuting they use computer technology and
telecommunications channels so that businessmen and
businesswomen can reduce the need to travel.
Video conferencing is the use of computer, video, audio and
communications technology to enable people in different locations to
see and talk to one another.

It is used by organizations to conduct meetings involving individuals who are located at

various locations in the world. All that is needed are computers with microphones and
digital video cameras (or webcams) and a communications channel from each location to
the next. The communications channel is usually established using a modem and telephone
line.
Advantages of video conferencing
Videoconferencing offers people the advantage of convenience
Productivity gains
Reduced travel time and costs.
Disadvantages of video conferencing
It leads to increased telecommunications costs and a loss of personal contact.
If the connections are slow, the video and audio may not be of a very high quality.
Teleconferencing is similar to videoconferencing except that there is no video.

Electronic Commerce (E-Commerce)

You were introduced to this term when we looked at the internet but we
are going to look at in more details.
Electronic commerce is the buying and selling of goods and services
using electronic means to conduct the transactions. However, the term is
commonly used to refer to the process by which commerce is done over
the Internet. An example of e-commerce is Amazon.com. E-commerce
generally takes place as follows:
A person goes to the website belonging to the person/company offering the desired
goods are services.
On that site he/she would be able to browse through the various products and see
descriptions of them. There may also be additional features, such as links to similar
products to the one in which you are interested.
Once the product(s) are selected, the customer chooses from among two main
purchasing options:
1. Paying via traditional methods such as cheque or money order
2. Paying with a credit card, which is done by entering your credit card number
when you are prompted to
Advantages:

Customers enjoy increased convenience since they can complete transactions from the
comfort of their homes.

It is also very easy to compare prices from various companies websites.

E-commerce also offers features that arent offered in most stores. At some sites,
potential customers can read reviews of products form people who purchased them.
Other sites allow you to download clips from songs on music CDs so you can decide if
you like the CD.

There are many cases where e-commerce can lower production costs, e.g. in the case of
software manufacturers.

Disadvantages:

The first thing a consumer should worry about is fraud. It is fairly easy for a person to
create a website and pretend to be a legitimate company.

Internet companies have a tendency to shut down without warning so you may pay
money but still not get your product.

A skilled hacker may steal your credit card number when you type it in at a website. The
hacker can then use your credit card number to make several purchases before you
discover that something is wrong. Fortunately, most large companies have measures to
address these issues.

When making purchases at home it is difficult to judge the quality of many products
without going to the store and holding or touching the item.

There is also a reduction in social interaction (even though some people would not see
this as a disadvantage). You also do not get immediate customer service.

Telemarketing
Telemarketing is the use of the telephone as an interactive medium for promotion and sales.

Advantages:

Increases your sales territory (you can win customers

nationwide or globally without leaving your home or
office) while reducing the cost of sales visits.
Increases your efficiency because you can reach more
prospects per hour, day and week by phone than you
can with in-person sales calls.

Provides an effective way to perform relationship

marketing. You can use the phone to stay in touch with
existing customers, introduce new products to them and make additional sales.

Allows for interaction and personal selling. You can immediately respond to feedback from
prospects while you are engaged in the sales process. This differs from less interactive sales
methods, such as direct mail.

Disadvantages:

There is a high acquisition cost per sale for purchased prospect lists that typically contain
many unqualified prospects. For example, if you purchase a list of home owners in a
particular area you will most likely have a low number of interested and qualified prospects.
So, you will be making lots of calls that have no yield.
Telemarketing has become a nuisance to many consumers, and has legal ramifications that
must be strictly followed.

Computer-Aided Design (CAD)

A computer-aided design (CAD) system uses computer hardware and
software in the drawing of engineering or architectural designs. A CAD
package is designed to make it easier to produce detailed plans and
accurate technical drawings. It contains software that provides a set of
basic elements such as points, lines, circles, shapes, solids etc., from which
all CAD drawings are constructed. This offers a considerable advantage
over the pencil and paper equivalent, since you would not have to erase or
redraw any lines in order to accomplish this. Also, it is easy to undo any
changes that you do make, simply click the Undo button. CAD programs
can produce three-dimensional drawings that can be rotated and viewed
from many different angles with the push of a button. In addition, the computer keeps track
of design angles with the push of a button and it keeps track of design dependencies, so that
when a value is changed all other dependent values are automatically changed.

A CAD package can be run on most PCs but needs a high-resolution

graphics monitor to show detail. The input devices required for a
CAD system include a mouse, light pen or digitizing tablet for
drawing. A special printer or plotter is required for printing design
specifications.
CAD has considerable advantages:

Designs can be done faster, hence reducing cost.

It is easier to make changes to the original design
It is easier to make duplicates.
Documentation is generated with the design.

Disadvantages:
The software is expensive
Persons using this software must be competent or have some knowledge in order to
be able to manipulate the software
AutoCAD, SolidWorks and TurboCAD are examples of the cad software.

Computer- Aided Design and Drafting (CADD)

This is similar to CAD, except that it can be used to
produce detailed two-dimensional pictures of objects in
addition to the technical drawings produced through CAD.
Unlike the technical drawings, these 2D drafts are not used
as blueprints for the creation of physical objects.

Computer-Aided Manufacture (CAM)

Computer-aided manufacture refers to the use of a computer to
control manufacturing plant and equipment in a production system.
It is used in application where precision and accuracy are important,
including processors such as welding, paint spraying, cutting and
polishing.
CAM software generates instructions for the computerized control
of machines. These CNC (computerized numerical control)
machines include computerized lathes for turning and drilling and
machines for cutting and polishing large stones for building
purposes.

The advantages of CAM include:

Faster production of parts and products
Production of a more consistent product
The ability to better control and maintain the quality of a product.
CAM is often used in association with CAD.

Hardware

Robots
Process controls, for example, Temperature regulator, flow meter and viscometer
Mainframe, minicomputers and microcomputers
Graphics plotters

CAD/CAM systems
These systems are used in the design and manufacturing of products. Engineers use the
system to create the product designs, and then to control the manufacturing process. Two
CAD/CAM software packages currently available are SolidWorks and MasterCAD. They
can create drawings, model trajectories (develop and work out the movement) of cutting tools
and develop numeric-control and processing centre programs. They support 3D modelling, sheet-metal punching and bending, and plasma and laser cutting.

Computer-Aided Engineering (CAE)

CAE systems analyse engineering designs produced by CAD systems, by simulating a variety of
conditions to see if the design actually works. CAE features are found in most CAD packages. Two
CAD/CAM/CAE packages currently in use are Unigrapics and hyperMill.

Expert Systems
Consider what happens when you go to the doctor. The doctor asks you a
few questions and runs a few tests and uses the information obtained from
these to make a diagnosis. Doctors can do this because their minds act as a
sort of database that has information about which symptoms correspond to
which illnesses.
Definition: expert system is software that imitates experts such as doctors
by comparing responses to certain questions to those in a database in order
to make a diagnosis or recommendation. An expert system is useful in
providing support for making decisions and can also suggest alternatives
or other issues to be considered.
It consists of two parts: the knowledge base and the inference engine.
The knowledge base contains a large volume of information in a particular
field for example, the different types of diseases, symptoms and possible
treatments. The inference engine of an expert system analyses the input
data using reasoning methods and the knowledge base to arrive at a
conclusion. It also provides the user with an explanation of how it arrived
at its conclusion by showing the concepts that are used.
Advantage
Expert systems do not make biased decisions or incorrect decisions based only on the
information supplied.

Disadvantages
An expert system is incapable of making moral judgments.
They are limited to certain areas of expertise and cannot adapt as a human would in light of
new medical developments (without first being reprogrammed). An expert system is
therefore no substitute for human intelligence.

Hardware

Sensors

Process controls

Software

Simulation software

Software for the expert systems

A medical expert system has the following advantages:

It gives support in making decisions about which a doctor may be doubtful because of a lack
of knowledge or lack of experience.
It can help experts arrive at an accurate solution much faster.
It can show the concepts it used to arrive at its conclusions.

It also has the following disadvantages:

It lacks intuition, which is sometimes vital in decision-making.

It cannot learn from mistakes
It could have disastrous effects if used by unqualified individuals

Robots
Robots are computer-controlled machines that include functions such as
locomotion, mobility, grasping and recognition. A robots central processor might
be a microprocessor embedded in the robots shell, or it might be a supervisory
computer that controls the robot from a distance. In any case the processor is
functionally identical to the processor found in a personal computer, a
workstation, or a mainframe computer. The most important hardware
differences between robots and other computers are the input and output peripherals. Instead
of sending output to a screen or a printer, a robot sends commands to joints, arms, and other moving
parts. Most modern robots include some kind of input sensors. These sensing devices allow robots to
correct or modify their actions based on feedback from the outside world.
At present robots are mainly used in the following areas:
manufacturing industries
automotive industry
robots are used in assembly lines for welding, paint spraying,
assembling and loading.
In the electrical and electronic industries, they are used for assembling and installing various
parts in the manufacture of video cameras, personal computers and many other devices.
Advantages
Robots are excellent at performing repetitive tasks that require high precision and accuracy.
They can perform more work with fewer errors, and they dont get sick, complain or take
strike action.
Robots are also able to operate in extreme environments where it might be difficult or
impossible for human beings to operate.

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Specialised robots have been developed for a number of tasks.
Remotely-operated vehicles (ROVs) are able to perform tasks such as searching for and
recovering ship and plane wreckage, specialist scientific studies and the burial and repair of
underground telecommunication cables.
Other robots clean up hazardous waste sites and handle wastes that might be too dangerous
for humans.
Robots decontaminate and dismantle radioactive devices, and measure levels of radioactivity
at waste sites.
Robots mine for metal and coal.
Robots deactivate bombs