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Looking for bandwidth? That can be a daunting and frustrating task even in the best of situations. There's lots to consider in order to make the right decision for your needs. Below you'll find some help when evaluating OC3 vs OC12 vs OC48. Factors covered include Technology, Speed, Description, Application, Pros, Cons, and Cost.

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Technology: OC3

Speed: 155.52 Mbps

Description: Optical carrier (fiber) connected by equipment capable of speeds up to 155.52 Mbps.

Application: Large enterprise or ISP backbone.

Pros: Extremely high speed and throughput.

Cons: Extremely high cost.

Costs: Expect cost of an OC3 to start at around a $10-30,000 for a stable, reliable system (e.g. from a Tier 1 provider).....not including local loop or extensive setup. However....the pricing for these connections can vary widely depending on the carrier, location of service and the application for which the connection is being used. For example...Tier 1 providers may cost more than local/regional Tier 2 and Tier 3 providers but are much more stable and reliable. A Tier 1 provider should always be the provider of choice for any business serious about the quality of their OCx network.

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Technology: OC12

Speed: 622.08 Mbps

Description: Optical carrier (fiber) connected by equipment capable of speeds up to 622.08 Mbps.

Application: Large enterprise or ISP backbone.

Pros: Extremely high speed and throughput.

Cons: Extremely high cost.

Costs: Expect cost of an OC12 to start at around $1-300,000+ for a stable, reliable system (e.g. from a Tier 1 provider)..... plus several hundred thousand dollars in setup costs. However....the pricing for these connections can vary widely depending on the carrier, location of service and the application for which the connection is being used. A Tier 1 provider should always be the provider of choice for any business serious about the quality of their OCx network.

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Technology: OC48

Speed: 2.488 Gbps (Gigabytes per second)

Description: Optical carrier (multiple strands of fiber) connected by equipment capable of speeds up to 2.488 Mbps.

Application: Large enterprise or ISP backbone.

Pros: Extremely high speed and throughput.

Cons: Extremely high cost.

Costs: Expect cost of an OC48 to start at around $3-500,000 for a stable, reliable system (e.g. from a Tier 1 provider)..... plus several hundred thousand dollars in setup costs. However....the pricing for these connections can vary widely depending on the carrier, location of service and the application for which the connection is being used. A Tier 1 provider should always be the provider of choice for any business serious about the quality of their OCx network.

Michael is the owner of FreedomFire Communications....including DS3-Bandwidth.com and Business-VoIP-Solution.com. Michael also authors Broadband Nation where you're always welcome to drop in and catch up on the latest BroadBand news, tips, insights, and ramblings for the masses.

A Picture Archiving and Communications System (PACS) is integral to the smooth, timely, and quality delivery of health care in every medical setting today. Not only are they integral but they are crucial to the clinical and business aspects of radiology practice as we know it. However, PACS have long faced challenges in delivering this digital imaging support to such diagnostic modalities as X-ray, ultrasound, computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging [MRI], Positron Emission Tomography (PET), and Teleradiology. The main issue has always been the availability of sufficient bandwidth (load and speed).....at a reasonable cost.....to support the growing demand for quick easy web-based access by medical providers. As Medical Imagery becomes more and more digitalized....with bandwidth improvements, communication will be faster and easier, and it will be possible to transmit heavier studies in less time and with high quality.

An internal (facility owned) PACS leverages a common infrastructure for all the digital imaging modalities and provides image storage and archiving....with recall as needed....for an entire medical facility or campus. By instituting a web enabled distribution system a facility PACS is able to provide ready image access to the immediate radiology department as well as the full range of clinicians and specialists, especially surgeons and referring physicians. To ensure functionality at the high level required means facing the heavy bandwidth appetite of the modalities supported.

Even an Application Service Provider (ASP) company that hosts applications, manages them and rents access to images from a centrally managed facility is not immune to the bandwidth concern. ASP providers allow an institution to outsource information technology applications infrastructure, management, support and maintenance. As defined by the ASP Industry Consortium, ASP service is designed to “deliver and manage applications and computer services from remote data centres to multiple users via the Internet or a private network.” therein lies they're challenge....a high bandwidth requirement delivered over often a subtantial difference on an on-demand basis.

PACS manufacturers have developed numerous solutions to get around the bandwidth problem. They've compressed images, supported standard network interfaces and protocols such as Ethernet and TCP/IP, and deployed local area networks (LANs) with high bandwidths to link hospitals or referring physicians in a contained environment. But how do they handle bandwidth when institutions are separated by tens or hundreds of miles, especially since images have become larger and more complicated?

Some PACS vendors rely on the communications infrastructure in an area, which varies with the bandwidth that is available from the local telephone company and the price a hospital is willing to pay, said Frederick Wagner, manager of PACS for Toshiba. Other PACS providers offer streaming technology that transports high-quality images in real time over any bandwidth, including telephone lines and enterprise-wide LANs.

Another contributing solution is a technology called Pixels-on-Demand by Real Time Media. This technology speeds processing by capturing images from archives or PACS storage without waiting for preprocessing, immediately streams data from selected regions of interest, and delivers the most visually important features of an image to the viewer first.

The underlying solution to the bandwidth issue goes beyond even system technologies, network interfaces, image compression, and infrastructure protocols. It lies with the provision of the appropriate bandwidth capacity (circuits)....at a reasonable cost....via leveraging the fiber-optic infrastructure available throughout the United States. Enabling direct fiber-optic connectivity internally, or between hospitals and distant data centers, is the most cost-effective application of bandwidth. Use of Optical Carrier (Sonet Ring) bandwidth (likely OC3 or OC48) or Gigabit Ethernet allows a medical facility to optimize it's Local Area Network (LAN). While ASP organizations can scale their application service provider (ASP) service to small imaging centers as well as large, far-flung health systems.

To find a fiber optic infrastructure provider which can deliver the right bandwidth solution for your medical imaging application.....I strongly recommend that you take advantage of the free consultation available from an independent bandwidth broker such as DS3-Bandwidth.com.

Michael is the owner of FreedomFire Communications....including Business-VoIP-Solution.com. Michael also authors Broadband Nation where you're always welcome to drop in and catch up on the latest BroadBand news, tips, insights, and ramblings for the masses.

Virtual Private Network is a network within a network. This is very popular with businesses that have people working remotely. Basically what we have here is a utilization of the network already provided by the internet. The internet infrastructure can be used as the network for remote employees to access their corporate systems.

Corporate environments have a far greater need for tight security. This is achieved by creating a VPN (virtual private network) on top of the normal internet connection. This type of connection allows for greater security and encryption. Only authenticated users can access the corporate network and the data being transferred cannot be intercepted.

So this VPN (virtual private network) connection is being run through the internet public network.

Two components are needed to make this scenario work. First, there needs to be a corporate server setup which has the server VPN software installed (and a good router with a firewall). The next would be to have the client VPN software installed on the remote employees machines. Once the client machine is on the internet, they would use the VPN client software to communicate to the corporate server VPN where authentication occurs. Once the server identifies the connecting client as a valid machine, access to the network is granted. From then on all information to/from the client to the server is traveling along this virtual private network and is protected by the additional layer of encryption and security provided.

Finally, there can be a cost savings if determining whether a leased line or VPN is for you. Leased lines can increase in price based on the geographic distance between sites. A virtual private network does not and in fact is more scaleable. (This is a general statement ONLY. It's best to consult with your communications broker prior to making this decision. A broker will be able to provide much more information when compared to speaking with a specific vendor)

VPN is definitely a viable option for businesses small and large that have remote employees, need site-to-site access with remote offices or secure dial-up connections.

This article is just a very general overview. You should use this only as a starting point to even determine whether or not this type of technology is for you. During your evaluation of this technology, you should consider what type of implementation your looking to do; remote access, site-to-site, secure dial-up. Additional areas to research would be security, firewalls, encryption, server type and IPSec (internet protocol security protocol).

Michael Weaver - http://www.fullservice-broadband-provider.com

The full service broadband provider is a service offered by Try Right Technology, Inc. This service provides unbiased informative information on broadband technology as well as local/long distance and cellular service. Copyright 2005

Quite often either due to a lack of FM frequencies available, cost constraints, or as a way of testing the waters before committing to a FM radio station installation, it is possible to start up an online streaming radio station rather than a traditional broadcasting station. An online streaming radio station can be as basic as a completely computer based system, where music is simply played back along with occasional station IDs. Alternatively you can opt for a more in-depth setup, which could include other equipment such as a mixing desk, microphones, music, audio equipment, compression gear, audio cables, cd player, phone in system, headphones, microphone stands, etc. As a minimum, the equipment you will require is computer with a high speed internet connection.

When it comes to how to start up a online streaming radio station you have available a wide range of options to choose from. You need to consider what format you want to broadcast, as well as the sound quality you want. The higher the audio quality, the more data you will use. Bear in mind that a stream radio station is in operation for 24 hours a day, every day of the month, so even on a rate of 24 kbps, this adds up to be quite a considerable amount of data being used. Note also, that if you are going to use your existing internet connection for downloading files whilst you are also streaming, to ensure that you have sufficient bandwidth available. If you run out of bandwidth, your streaming station may be affected.

When it comes to the equipment for your online streaming radio station, it is possible to get it set up with very basic equipment, which is not possible when setting up a station broadcasting on an FM frequency. For a somewhat more advanced, professional sounding streaming radio station, the equipment you may have in your studio could include: computer, automation software, mixing desk, microphones, device to take phone calls on air, CD player and compression equipment.

The monthly cost for keeping your online streaming radio station on the internet is also fairly low. Bear in mind that in most countries there are fees payable to the music licensing organisations to cover royalties for the music you play on air. Aside from this, your only other likely costs are going to be electricity, internet connection, stream hosting and website hosting costs.

The way streaming works is you run the station, play music, talk into the microphones, etc. This audio is then relayed into your computer and then sent from your computer to the stream hosting company server. When people listen to your station online, they are actually receiving the audio not directly from your computer, but rather from the streaming server. This approach substantially improves your performance and means your connection speed will not slow down when you have multiple listeners. When people want to listen to your station they simply go to your website and click on a link to activate the stream.

For further information on how to start up an online streaming radio station please visit http://www.themulcher.com or email radio@themulcher.com