Gone are the days when television and printed media were only sources used by the advertisers. It is time for the static billboards to move out and give way to digital signage. Digital signage is the most effective “out of home advertising” that is now being preferred by all the major advertising firms.

Digital signage makes use of electronic displays like LCD or plasma screens to showcase messages at public places. China tops the list of users for digital signage. This advertising technology could be used effectively for

• Brand building and promotion
• Displaying public information like news flash, weather reports, local information
• Are the great replacements for billboards and are also used for providing directions to the customers like fire exit etc.
• Being used to help customers in busy restaurants and banks by showing their order number or coupon numbers

Digital signage's are gaining popularity as they refresh easily and no additional money has to be spent on printing new advertisements. Moreover digital signage can easily be modified based on the type of the audience and can also be used to display animations and presentations. Digital signage is here to stay because of its high return on investment as compared to conventional methods of using printed signs.

According to the research finding of Frost and Sullivan Bluetooth industry in US have touched to figure of 3.3 billion dollars in 2006 which speaks in volume about the popularity of this technology. Developed in 1994 at the Ericsson research center this technology has seen a tremendous growth in just one decade.

Bluetooth is basically a short range wireless communication technology that enables easy transfer of data between devices located on personal area network. In other words Bluetooth synchronizes various devices and allows transfer of information between various Bluetooth enabled devices like laptops, mobiles, GPC receivers etc.

Bluetooth 2.1v is currently ruling the market and the connectivity range for the devices vary from 10-100 meters. The advancements in Bluetooth technology are nothing short of miracles. It was earlier used in mobile devices for transferring music, videos and other data from different devices but now this technology is practically being used everywhere. For example you can buy a Bluetooth enabled wrist watch that gives you the option of rejecting or receiving the call. And the next in line is Bluetooth umbrella that helps you make a call without even getting wet in heavy rains.
Bluetooth technology is surely going places.

The growing terror threat has surely made the technology leaders take a harder look at Biometric technology. For those who are not aware this technology helps us to identify an individual based on his physical features and behavioral pattern.

Past and Present of Biometrics

Earliest use of biometric technology can be traced back to China in the 14th century, where it was used for fingerprint recognition. Physical biometrics which involves measurement of various body parts of an individual for recognition was used first by the Paris police in 19th century.

Beginning of 20th century saw biometric signature technique gaining popularity in all financial institutions and finger printing technology being used extensively by all the law enforcement organizations.

Presently human iris, face, handwriting, vascular patter, voice and other features are being used for providing security access at various places.

Future of Biometrics

Besides being an essential part of the security industry, biometric technology can be used effectively for car surveillance and mobile tracing to bring about a decrease in the theft. Booming e-commerce industry will make use of this technology to ensure safety against identification thefts while making online purchases.

Specially fitted surveillance cameras could be used in all the office buildings to prevent unauthorized access and call also issue warnings and alerts during security breech.

Biometrics field has a tremendous potential for growth in the near future.

The fear of depleting ozone layer giving rise to increased greenhouse effect and global warming is making industries look towards greener and environment friendly options. The concept of paperless office was geared towards the same goal and green printing technology could surely be an ultimate approach to global warming.

Though one should avoid taking unnecessary printouts and should use both the sides of the sheet while printing, here is a list of green printing technology options that can be utilized for saving our environment:

Select post consumer waste paper for printing that has been made using renewable energy sources such as solar or wind energy. Now hemp and kenaf treeless papers are also available in market that will support your ‘go green’ initiative

Rather than using petroleum based ink utilized inks made from soy or vegetable dyes which are free from metallic ingredients and are also cost effective. Try using a printer that can be operated using any renewable energy source like wind power or solar energy.

While packaging the printed papers avoid using foils, bindings or adhesives. You can drastically reduce the ink usage by using standard sized papers for printing and going for just one or maximum two color prints.

These green printing technologies could well be our attempt towards saving our mother earth.

Aviation industry has come a long way from the first flight taken by the Wright brothers in early 19th century. There has been a constant evolution in the field of aviation with focus being laid on innovative techniques that can improve performance and the electronic capabilities of these beautiful men made birds. Latest trends in aviation technology is vast and huge which are discussed below.

Development of next generation military aircraft's that can fly automatically without requiring any human pilots. These aircraft's will be able to negotiate their way in the battle field by being controlled by the air traffic control rooms.

In civil aviation emphasis is again being laid on unmanned aerial vehicles that can be used in variety of fields like pollution monitoring, forestry, policing, and rescue operations and for conducting aerial investigations.

Soon we can see the launch of self flying shuttle services and air taxis which will ferry the growing number of air passengers efficiently. The talks are on for the developed of zero visibility corporate jets that can now make a landing without having the visibility of the runway.

The other technological advancements in aviation sector that appears to have been lifted from sci-fi movies include flying cars, blended wing bodied aircraft's, hypersonic flights and use of light aircraft building materials like nano tubes made of carbon.

Digital technology can be considered as one of the most important inventions of the photography world and offer numerous benefits over conventional cameras.

Immediate preview of the clicked photos and the ability to click larger number of photos because of large memory space as compared to conventional cameras. Motion pictures could also be taken using digital cameras and they also give you the option to collect and store large number of pictures on your USB or computer hard disc without even printing them thus proving to be extremely cost effective.

Also photographs doesn’t have to be scanned and even meta tags can be inserted in images using various software like photoshop. Besides numerous other benefits digital photography is making further advances by:
• Providing options to create 3D models by using simple images.

• Development of high dynamic range cameras with powerful sensors of value more than 120 decibels.

• By using flutter shutter it is now possible to remove motion blur.

• Advanced dust reduction system to protect your camera screens.

• Now it is possible to capture the spectacular reflection of any object using computerized sensors and lights.

• Other noticeable advancements include exceptional gamut displays, computer controlled lights and improved sensors.

With numerous advantages digital photography is here to stay.

Laser and OLED ( Organic Light Emitting Diode) are the two emerging technologies being used by the television vendors to deliver better picture quality. Both these technologies are targeting different segments. If OLED is being seeing as an effective alternative to flat screen display technologies like LED and plasma, laser technology is being used to create alternatives for rear projection televisions such as DLP.

Here is the comparative study of the features of these two emerging technologies:

Laser TV

Laser TV can display wider gamut of colours and better image quality than other high definition televisions. These TV’s will have higher life span and will be extremely cost effective as they will consume lesser power. Laser TV’s also weight almost half of the currently available HDTV.

OLED TV

These TV offers amazing picture quality and colour contrast ratio of 1000000:1 which is at least 1000 times higher than any other option available in market. This TV also offers almost 180 degree view angle and has a thickness of just about 3mm weight just couple of pounds.

Though laser TV’s have already hit the stores in 2008, consumers will have to wait slightly longer for OLED screens which are currently being used in small hand held devices like mobiles and MP3. OLED offers greater flexibility and is more cost effective than laser TV.

On the other hand Laser TV scores higher on durability and better life span. The coming time will only be the best judge to suggest the winner among both these great technologies.

Do you know that the US ecommerce industry showed a tremendous growth of 17% in the year 2008 even when the economy was going through its worst nightmare? All the major ecommerce companies like eBay, Amazon and Netflix have announced positive quarterly results which is again the testimony of the success that the ecommerce enjoys just after 15 years of its introduction.

According to comScore Amazon saw an increase of 10 million visitors in the year 2008, which shows that the world of e-commerce is sure to grow. So here is what the future of e-commerce looks like.

If you want to show your friend the latest Gucci bag you just bought, take a snap and clip it on any social bookmarking site Kaboodle and let your friends and others admire your buy and order on of their own.

If you are unable to decide which dress suits you the best, take advantage of virtual dressing rooms and see how the dress will look on your own 3D model. Surely an innovative way to shop. E-commerce sites can make shopping experience a pleasure with a buttery smooth shopping cart and checkout process that makes online shopping experience safe and enjoyable.

With excellent delivery options like night parcels or pick and drop at multiple location e-commerce technology is all set to make your life easier.

The latest buzzword in telecommunication and computer networking world is MPLS or Multiprotocol Label Switching that is fast replacing the widely used frame relays. MPLS switches are being used to transfer data across wide area networks with super efficiency regardless of the data type. Also using MPLS it is extremely simple to establish links between network nodes irrespective of the protocols being used. Due to following advantages MPLS is considered to be the future of communication business:
• MPLS switches are extremely cost effective and help the company in saving more than 10 to 25% as compared to other data services like frame relays and ATM
• With high end QoS capabilities MPLS is a big hit with companies making use of voice and data transfer.
• MPLS services are also being used because of their fast response time that increase the performance of any application
• Great backup and restore mechanism offered by MPLS services makes them extremely useful at the time of disaster recovery. In case of emergencies MPLS allows remote sites to establish quick connection with the backup locations.
Being cost effective with high performance MPLS is being preferred by communication businesses worldwide.

Robert Morrow, an engineering professor of the ex Air Force Academy believed that the Wi-fi will be soon replaced by Wi-MAX. Yes, soon the world will be flooded with laptops supporting WiMax modems that can be used anyplace anytime even on roads but the payment has to be made to the telecom companies for using these services.

WiMax is the acronym used for Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access makes use of licensed bandwidth. This ensures uninterrupted connection that can be used exclusively without the threat of interference from other services.

In a nutshell wiMax devices can use greater power than its Wifi counterparts. Also this will result in better connectivity with WiMax being available everywhere if there is a mobile tower network.

Also unlike Wifi that makes use of unlicensed bandwidth which often affects the kitchen appliances like microwave, WiMax is totally safe. WiMax is set to hit the market in next couple of years as soon as computer modems becomes WiMax compatible.

The speed of WiMax connection will depend on the local weather condition and the distance of the user from the base tower. WiMax will have a speed slower than Wifi and also would prove to be a bit more expensive. Still better connectivity will surely make WiMax popular among business travellers.