Internet technologies to watch
By Shawn P McCarthy -- Logistics Management, 1/1/1999
It's a new year, and that's a great time to look ahead at some of the technologies and trends that will affect online logistics in the months ahead. Here are some of the things I'm keeping an eye on.
* The future of Unix: Sun Microsystems Inc. has partnered with Oracle Corp. to develop a streamlined business client containing just a fraction of Sun's current Unix operating system (OS). The servers it connects to won't need a full OS either. This could lead to cheaper, single-function Internet computers that boost speed and reduce investments, while perhaps even tackling the issue of Unix being tougher to manage than Windows NT. These machines will first appear in Internet commerce and enterprise applications, which means they could have an impact on your supply chain early on.
* Ahead of the curve: Elliptic Curve cryptography, which offers strong protection with 84-, 56-, and 96-bit cryptography keys, now is available on smart cards and should expand quickly into online services in the coming year. Elliptic is less demanding on busy Internet transaction servers than other popular encryption technologies. It also means more flexibility for smart cards, which can hold multiple keys. Can RSA Data Security Inc. respond to this challenge?
* Palming the 'Net: Entrepreneurs are starting to build services that enable users to cruise the Internet easily using wireless notepads and smart phones. The newest 3Com Corp. Palm device offers "Web clipping" when the handheld unit is connected to the new Palm.net service. It can pick up targeted sets of information from an Internet site, stripping out information you're not interested in viewing. Picture marketing managers viewing news clippings on the way to a meeting, or warehouse managers monitoring databases of in-house and in-transit freight from home, the car, or the office.
* ADSL and cable on the rise: Traditional modems are too slow. Leased data lines are too expensive. So more people are upgrading to a faster connection by choosing Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) services. Some are choosing fast cable modem solutions, too, but cable companies are mainly targeting residential customers because most can't offer business solutions for multiple workstations. ADSL is a better solution than Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) because of price. ADSL splits standard copper phone lines into bands for more data traffic, so you won't have to replace all of your wires. Speeds range from 128 kbps to 7 mbps for downloads. Installation is about $1,500. Subscriptions are $300 to $600 per month for service.
* Shifting browser landscape: It looked as if Microsoft might win the browser war. Then Netscape Communications Corp. merged with the 'Net's biggest portal site, America Online. Suddenly the Internet is a different place. What does this mean to you? For the short term, be sure your site is tweaked for proper viewing for the big three: Netscape, Microsoft Internet Explorer, and the AOL browser (which will likely go away soon). For the long term, two things could happen. Products like the Netscape "affinity portal" could ramp up because it can place news headlines and Web search capabilities on your local Web server, mixing with your own news or product content. The other possible avenue is that traditional operating systems like Windows 98 won't be necessary. In a 'Net-centered world, you need a fast client more than you need a local OS. The Unix system mentioned above, combined with specialized Netscape services, could change the PC as we know it.
Tip of the Month
Visit www.supplychainlink.com for pointers to the latest supply chain technologies.
Pointers
* Details about the Sun/Oracle agreement are available at www.sun.com/smi/Press/sunflash/9812/sunflash.981214.2.html
* Canada's Certicom Corp. is a key provider of Elliptic Curve technology. Visit www.certicom.com
* 3Com Corp. offers several ideas for integrating handheld systems into your enterprise at www.palmpilot.com/enterprise/index.html
* Visit the ADSL Forum at http: www.adsl.com/ for answers to questions on ADSL connectivity.
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