Mobile computing - Business

Technical and other limitations of mobile computing br Insufficient bandwidth br Mobile internet access is generally slower than direct cable connections using technologies such as GPRS and EDGE and more recently 3G networks These networks are usually available within range of commercial cell phone towers Higher speed wireless LANs are inexpensive but have very limited range br Security standards br When working mobile one is dependent on public networks requiring careful use of VPNs br Power consumption br When a power outlet or portable generator is not available mobile computers must rely entirely on battery power Combined with the compact size of many mobile devices this often means unusually expensive batteries must be used to obtain the necessary battery life br Transmission interferences br Weather terrain and the range from the nearest signal point can all interfere with signal reception Reception in tunnels some buildings and rural areas is often poor br Potential health hazards br More car accidents are related to drivers who were talking through a mobile device Cell phones may interfere with sensitive medical devices There are allegations that cell phone signals may cause health problems citation needed br Human interface with device br Screens and keyboards tend to be small which may make them harder to use Alternate input methods such as speech or handwriting recognition require training br GH Forman J Zahorjan Computer 1994 doi ieeecomputersociety org br David P Helmbold A dynamic disk spin down technique for mobile computing citeseer ist psu edu 1996 br MH Repacholi health risks from the use of mobile phones Toxicology Letters 2001 Elsevier br Landay J A Kaufmann T R user interface issues in mobile computing Workstation Operating Systems 1993 br T Imielinski BR Badrinath mobile wireless computing challenges in data management Communications of the ACM 1994 portal acm org br Mobile computing in vehicle computing and fleet comput ing br Many commercial and government field forces deploy a ruggedized portable computer such as the Panasonic Toughbook or larger rack mounted computers with their fleet of vehicles This requires the units to be anchored to the vehicle for driver safety device security and user ergonomics Ruggedized computers are rated for severe vibration associated with large service vehicles and off road driving and the harsh environmental conditions of constant professional use such as in Emergency medical services fire and public safety br The Compaq Portable br Other elements that enables the unit to function in vehicle br Operating temperature A vehicle cabin can often experience temperature swings from 20F to 140F Computers typically must be able to withstand these temperatures while operating Typical fan based cooling has stated limits of 95F 100F of ambient temperature and temperature below freezing require localized heaters to bring components up to operating temperature based on independent studies by the SRI Group and by Panasonic R amp D br Vibration Vehicles typically have considerable vibration that can decrease life expectancy of computer components notably rotational storage such as HDDs br Daylight or sunlight readability Visibility of standard screens becomes an issue in bright sunlight br Touchscreens These enable users to easily interact with the units in the field without removing gloves br High Temperature Battery Settings Lithium Ion batteries are sensitive to high temperature conditions for charging A computer designed for the mobile environment should be designed with a high temperature charging function that limits the charge to 85 or less of capacity br External wireless Connections and External GPS Antenna Connections Necessary to contend with the typical metal cabins of vehicles and their impact on wireless reception and to take advantage of much more capable external tranception equipment br Several specialized manufacturers suc h as National Products Inc Ram Mounts Gamber Johnson and LedCo build mounts for vehicle mounting of computer equipment for specific vehicles The mounts are built to withstand the harsh conditions and maintain ergonomics br Specialized installation companies such as TouchStar Pacific specialize in designing the mount design assembling the proper parts and installing them in a safe and consistent manner away from airbags vehicle HVAC controls and driver controls Frequently installations will include a WWAN modem power conditioning equipment and WWAN WLAN GPS etc transceiver antenn mounted external to the vehicle br Portable computing devices br This section may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia s quality standards Please improve this section if you can February 2009 br There are several categories of portable computing devices that can run on batteries but are not usually classified as laptops portable computers keyboardless tablet PCs Internet tablets PDAs Ultra Mobile PCs UM PCs and smartphones br A Nokia N800 Internet tablet br A Portable computer is a general purpose computer that can be easily moved from place to place but cannot be used while in transit usually because it requires some setting up and an AC power source The most famous example is the Osborne 1 Portable computers are also called a transportable or a luggable PC br Systel Inc 17 Industrial All In One Portable Luggable Computer br A Tablet PC that lacks a keyboard also known as a non convertible Tablet PC is shaped like slate or a paper notebook features a touchscreen with a stylus and handwriting recognition software Tablets may not be best suited for applications requiring a physical keyboard for typing but are otherwise capable of carrying out most tasks that an ordinary laptop would be able to perform br An Internet tablet is an Internet appliance in tablet form Unlike a Tablet PC an Internet tablet does not have much computing power and its applications suite is limited and it can not replace a general purpose computer Internet tablets typically feature an MP3 and video player a web browser a chat application and a picture viewer br A Personal digital assistant PDA is a small usually pocket sized computer with limited functionality It is intended to supplement and to synchronize with a desktop computer giving access to contacts address book notes e mail and other features br A Palm TX PDA br An Ultra Mobile PC is a full featured PDA sized computer running a general purpose operating system br A Smart phone is a PDA with an integrated cellphone functionality Current smartphones have a wide range of features and installable applications br A Carputer is a computing device installed in an automobile It operates as a wireless computer sound system GPS and DVD player Also contains word processing software and it s bluetooth compatible br A Fly Fusion Pentop computer is a computing device the size and shape of a pen It functions as a writing utensil MP3 player language translator digital storage device and calculator br Boundaries that separate these categories are blurry at times For example the OQO UMPC is also a PDA sized tablet PC the Apple eMate had the clamshell form factor of a laptop but ran PDA software The HP Omnibook line of laptops included some devices small enough to be called Ultra Mobile PCs The hardware of the Nokia 770 internet tablet is essentially the same as that of a PDA such as the Zaurus 6000 the only reason it s not called a PDA is that it doesn t have PIM software On the other hand both the 770 and the Zaurus can run some desktop Linux software usually with modifications br See also br Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mobile computers br Enterprise digital assistant br Location based service br Mobile ad hoc networks br Mobile Computing and Communications Review br Mobile development br Mobile Device Management br Mobile identity management br Mobile software br Mobileers users of mobile rigs br Ubiquitous computing br Further reading br B Far Reza 2004 Mobile Computing Principles Designing and Developing Mobile Applications with UML and XML Cambridge University Press ISBN 0521817331 160 br Poslad Stefan 2009 Ubiquitous Computing Smart Devices Environments and Interactions Wiley ISBN 0470035609 160 br Rhoton John 2001 The Wireless Internet Explained Digital Press ISBN 1555582575 160 br Talukder Asoke Yavagal Roopa 2006 Mobile Computing Technology Applications and Service Creation McGraw Hill Professional ISBN 0071477330 160 br References br http www engadget com tag carputer br http www geardiary com 2007 10 07 the fly fusion pentop computer review br v 160 160 d 160 160 e br Computer sizes br Classes of computers br Larger br Super 160 Minisuper 160 Mainframe 160 Mini Midrange 160 Supermini 160 Server br Micro br Personal Workstation 160 Desktop 160 Home 160 SFF Nettop 160 Plug 160 Portable br Mobile br Desktop replacement computer 160 Laptop 160 Subnotebo ok Netbook 160 Smartbook 160 Tablet Ultra Mobile PC 160 Portable Mobile data terminal 160 Electronic organizer 160 E book reader 160 Pocket computer 160 Handheld game console br Wearable computer br Calculator watch 160 Virtual retinal display 160 Head mounted display Head up display br PDAs IAs br Handheld PC 160 Pocket PC 160 Smartphone 160 PMPs 160 DAPs br Calculators br Scientific 160 Programmable 160 Graphing br Others br Single board computer 160 Wireless sensor network 160 Microcontroller 160 Smartdust 160 Nanocomputer br Categories Mobile computers Automatic identification and data captureHidden categories Articles to be merged from November 2009 All articles to be merged Technology articles needing expert attention Computing articles needing expert attention Articles needing expert attention from May 2009 All articles needing expert attention Articles lacking sources from July 2008 All articles lacking sources All articles with unsourced statements Articles with uns ourced statements from June 2009 Articles needing cleanup from February 2009 All pages 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