Digital Ecosystems: Connecting Digital Lives, Business, and Society

Digital Ecosystems

Chapter Seven Overview

This chapter explores digital ecosystems, focusing on connectivity as the key to communication in the digital age. It covers advanced connectivity, wireless networks, security, digital lives, business applications, and efforts to close the digital divide.

Section 7.1: Connectivity - The Key to Communication in the Digital Age

Learning Outcomes

• Explain a digital ecosystem.

• Identify the components of a digital network.

• Explain how 5G and Wi-Fi 6 are changing business with streaming.

• Identify security concerns with digital ecosystems.

Digital Ecosystems Defined

• Digital life: Connecting globally using social media, messaging apps, and video conferencing.

• Digital ecosystem: A complex network of interconnected entities (organizations, individuals, platforms, technologies, and data) interacting and collaborating within a digital environment.

  • Participants: Individuals, organizations, or entities involved in the digital ecosystem.

  • Digital business platform: Infrastructure enabling the exchange of goods, services, or information (e.g., social media, e-business marketplaces, cloud computing).

Key Characteristics of a Digital Ecosystem

• Data-driven: Data is crucial for insights, decision-making, and innovative solutions.

• Interconnectivity: Entities are connected through digital networks for seamless interaction and information exchange.

• Interdependence: Entities rely on each other's contributions to create value and achieve mutual goals; collaboration and partnerships are standard.

• Scalability and flexibility: Ecosystems can scale and adapt to changing needs and technologies.

Advanced Connectivity

• Protocol: Rules and standards for data transmission over networks.

• IP address: A unique number identifying computer locations on a network (virtual location).

• Application Programming Interface (API): A set of routines, protocols, and tools for building software applications.

Types of Computer Networks

• Local Area Network (LAN): Connects computers in close proximity (e.g., office, school, home) for sharing files, printers, and resources.

• Wide Area Network (WAN): Spans a large geographic area (e.g., state, province, or country).

• Metropolitan Area Network (MAN): A large computer network spanning a city.

Measuring Network Performance

• Bandwidth: The maximum amount of data that can pass from one point to another in a unit of time.

• Bit: The smallest element of data, with a value of either 0 or 1.

• Bit rate: The number of bits transferred or received per unit of time.

Bandwidth Metrics

• Kilobit (Kb): 1 \text{ Kbps} = 1,000 \text{ bps}

  • Example: Traditional modem = 56 \text{ Kbps}

• Megabit (Mb): 1 \text{ Mbps} = 1,000 \text{ Kbps}

  • Example: Traditional Ethernet = 10 \text{ Mbps}

• Gigabit (Gb): 1 \text{ Gbps} = 1,000 \text{ Mbps}

  • Examples: Fast Ethernet 100 \text{ Mbps}, Gigabit Ethernet 1,000 \text{ Mbps}

Wireless Networks - The Key to Mobility

• Mobile: Technology that can travel with the user.

• Wireless: Operation without hard-wired connections.

Mobile Business (mbusiness) Services

• Mobile entertainment: Downloads for music, videos, games, voting, and ring tones, as well as text-based messaging services.

• Mobile sales/marketing: Advertisements, campaigns, discounts, promotions, and coupons.

• Mobile banking: Manage accounts, pay bills, receive alerts, and transfer funds.

• Mobile ticketing: Purchase tickets for entertainment, transportation, and parking; includes the ability to feed parking meters automatically.

• Mobile payments: Pay for goods and services, including in-store purchases, home delivery, vending machines, taxis, gas, and so on.

Wireless Network Components

• Connectivity: The ability of devices to connect and communicate.

• Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi): Portable devices wirelessly connect to a LAN using access points that send and receive data via radio waves.

• Wi-Fi infrastructure: Inner workings of a Wi-Fi service, including signal transmitters, towers, or poles, and additional equipment needed to send a Wi-Fi signal.

• Router: An intelligent connecting device that examines each data packet and decides where to send it.

• Wireless Access Points (WAP): Enables device connections to a wireless network for communication.

• Radio Signals: Electromagnetic radiation used for wireless communication.

• Wi-Fi Standards: Wi-Fi operates based on specific Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) standards.

• Service Set Identifier (SSID): A unique identifier or name assigned to a wireless network.

• Data Transmission: Connected devices can exchange data wirelessly within the network.

Wireless Broadband

High-speed Internet access via wireless communication technologies, allowing Internet connection without physical wired connections.

Wi-Fi Network Identification

The SSID serves as the name of a wireless network, broadcast by the WAP or router.

Cell Technology

Each cell is typically sized at about 10 square miles and has a base station that consists of an antenna or tower to relay signals.

Wi-Fi Bands

A Wi-Fi band refers to a specific frequency range that is used for wireless communication in Wi-Fi networks.

• Gigahertz (GHz): The number of billions of CPU cycles per second.

  • Gigahertz measures electromagnetic wave frequencies, including those used in various technologies like Wi-Fi, radio, and computer processors.

• Bluetooth: Wireless technology for short-distance signal transmission between devices.

• Hotspots: Publicly available Wi-Fi access points.

• Smartphones: Offer more advanced computing ability and connectivity than basic cell phones.

5G and Wi-Fi 6 - The Power of Streaming

• 5G: The fifth-generation wireless broadband technology.

Technical Benefits of 5G

• Low latency: Small data packets exchanged instantly.

• Fast connection speeds: Data transfer capacity boosted by four times by leveraging wider bandwidths and advanced antenna technologies.

• Device connections: Millions of IoT devices connected.

• Wi-Fi 6: The next generation of Wi-Fi expected to operate at 9.6 \text{ Gbps}

Streaming

A method of sending audio and video files over the Internet in such a way that the user can view the file while it is being transferred.

Streaming Data

Data that is generated continuously by thousands of data sources, which typically send in the data records simultaneously, and in small sizes (order of kilobytes).

Satellites

A space station that orbits the Earth receiving and transmitting signals from Earth-based stations over a wide area.

Wireless Security Best Practices

• Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP): An encryption algorithm designed to protect wireless transmission data.

• Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA): A wireless security protocol to protect Wi-Fi networks.

Mobile Information Management

Key Security Considerations for Wireless

• Start with the right equipment.

• Make security an ongoing process, not a one-time event.

• Understand that not all threats are purposeful.

Section 7.2: Digital Lives, Business, and Society

Learning Outcomes

• Describe augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR).

• Explain the three primary business applications of wireless technology.

• Explain mobile enterprise management and its importance to a business.

• Identify the ethical concern associated with the digital divide.

Digital Business Ecosystem

• Value creation: Increasing or enhancing the worth, utility, or desirability of a product, service, or business entity.

Technologies Driving Digital Transformation of Business Ecosystems

• Augmented reality

• Virtual reality

• Immersive reality

Augmented Reality

• Augmented reality (AR): Lets businesses overlay digital content (3D models, information, interactive interfaces) onto the physical world, providing real-time, context-aware information and interactions.

• Smart glasses: Wearable devices that feature integrated displays, sensors, and computing capabilities.

Virtual Reality

• Virtual Reality (VR): A computer-generated simulation that immerses users in a three-dimensional, interactive environment.

VR Components

• Head-Mounted Display: Contains two small screens for each eye that displays separate images to create a stereoscopic 3D effect.

• VR Motion Tracking: VR systems use various sensors and tracking technologies to monitor the user’s movements and translate them into the virtual environment.

Immersive Reality

• Mixed Reality (MR): Combines elements of both VR and AR, allowing users to interact with virtual objects while maintaining awareness and interaction with the real world.

  • MR technology integrates virtual content into the user’s environment in a way that appears anchored or integrated with the physical surroundings.

Business Wi-Fi Apps

Areas Experiencing Growth Using Wireless Technologies

• Radio-Frequency Identification (RFID)

• Global Positioning System (GPS)

• Geographic Information System (GIS)

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID)

• Radio frequency identification (RFID): Uses electronic tags and labels to identify objects wirelessly over short distances.

RFID Components

• RFID tag: An electronic identification device made up of a chip and antenna.

• RFID reader (RFID interrogator): A transmitter/receiver that reads the contents of RFID tags in the area.

Global Positioning System

• Global positioning system (GPS): A satellite-based navigation system providing extremely accurate position, time, and speed information.

GPS Applications

• Automatic vehicle location (AVL): Uses GPS tracking to track vehicles.

• Geocache: A GPS technology adventure game that posts the longitude and latitude location for an item on the Internet for users to find.

• Geocoin: A round coin-sized object, is uniquely numbered and hidden in geocache.

Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

• Geographic information system (GIS): Consists of hardware, software, and data that provide location information for display on a multidimensional map.

• Cartography: The science and art of making an illustrated map or chart.

• Spatial data: Identifies the geographic location of features and boundaries on Earth, such as natural or constructed features, oceans, and more.

• Location based services (LBS): Applications that use location information to provide a service.

Closing the Digital Divide

• Internet Accessibility: The ability for all individuals, including those with disabilities, to use the Internet effectively.

• Digital divide: A worldwide gap giving advantage to those with access to technology.

• Digital inclusion: Efforts to reduce the digital divide by providing equal opportunities and access to technology.

• Digital literacy: The ability to use digital technology, communication tools, or networks to locate, evaluate, use, and create information.