Position of Comcast Corporation in the Environment Assignment

Position of Comcast Corporation in the Environment - Assignment Example This justifies why in its value statement, ‘As we shape the future of media and technology, our 139,000 employees strive to earn the respect and trust of our customers, our shareholders and members of the communities we serve’ has captured major stakeholders including shareholders, employees, clients and the general public. Nonetheless, from this value statement, it is evident that the primary stakeholders of the company are employees, customers, and the public. It highlights what needs to be done to each of these stakeholders based on their diverse demands, interests, and expectations. Actually, the consideration of the welfare of these stakeholders is very important. It is a good decision that was made by the management because it can help in motivating everyone to enable the company to achieve its objectives. Personally, I am convinced that the company’s value statement is in alignment with the demands of its primary stakeholders. By stating that it is committe d to earning respect from them, it is proven that it is not focused on profit-maximization, but cares about each of its stakeholders. I believe that this has been the driving force in the company because it has been taking a lot of measures and initiatives to satisfy its clientele. This has been achieved by offering exceptionally high-quality services at affordable rates at all times. Although it has been accused of focusing too much on profit-making, the truth is that the company treats its stakeholders in a better manner.

Environmentally sustainable business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Environmentally sustainable business - Essay Example o grow; the concerns about social interactions between the industry and its workers, customers, partners etc (Sustainable Aviation Progress Report, 2009). Hence, applying Zadek’s â€Å"Four Stages of Issue Maturity† framework, all issues affecting an industry could be categorised into four different stages: namely, latent, emerging, consolidating and institutionalised (Zadek, 2004). A latent social issue is the one that exists but has not been widely known. An emerging issue is just catching the attention of the public but has not been fully debated or addressed. Consolidating stage reveals that the issue has been recognised but this is the time to test the efficacy of the solutions for it. And such a social issue becomes institutionalised when there are laws and regulations to guide the implementation of its solutions in the concerned industry (Zadek, 2004). Therefore, the environmental and social issues affecting the UK aviation industry are tabulated as follows: All the environmental and social issues affecting UK aviation industry outlined above can be summarized into three main headings: climate change issues; local environmental problems; and economic and social concerns. These issues are of utmost importance in the sense that they exert huge impacts on the environments and the economic situations in the United Kingdom. However, if all these issues receive prompt and efficient responses from the aviation industry players, it will reveal their level or extent of sustainability and social responsibility in the societies. 2. The Sustainable Aviation Progress Report 2009 reveals some strategic approaches taken by UK aviation players in addressing the issues hinted above. These approaches or responses can be best analysed using the Sustainable Value Framework model proposed by Hart and Milstein (2003). The model is made of four major quadrants as shown below: There are Today, Tomorrow, Internal and External quadrants. What this signifies is that Today

Cocaine Abuse Detection with Double Confirmation Technique

Cocaine Abuse Detection with Double Confirmation Technique Introduction Throughout history, natural and synthetic drugs have been used for many uses. The first drugs were based on natural sources [1] and it is common practice to isolate a drug from its natural sources before synthesis. Usage of these drugs is regulated by governmental organizations, in the U.S.A. the Food and Drug Organization achieves this goal, and any use that is not approved is commonly frowned upon. The deviation of the use of drugs from their approved medical practice is termed drug abuse. The practice of drug abuse is as old as drugs itself. Drugs that alter mood have always existed and the approved usage is partially constructed by society. For example, alcohol use is normal, and sometimes excessively celebrated, in western culture but is prohibited in some religious cultures. While there are several other drugs that are abused daily, this review will be mainly focused on cocaine and its abuse [2]. Originally derived from the coca plant, the history of cocaine use can be detailed as far back as 600 AD. It was common practice for Peruvian Indians to digest the leaves for its euphoric effects. In the 1880s, it was first isolated to use in anesthetic agents due to its abilities as a vasoconstrictor. By 1885, coca could be found in various products such as cigarettes and Coca Cola. Other soft drinks and alcoholic beverages also contained cocaine at the time. However, once news surfaced of cocaine addiction, the perspectives regarding cocaine began to shift. Laws were enacted against cocaine use and by the 1950s, the earlier cocaine abuse was forgotten. However, the more potent version of cocaine, crack, became popular in the 80s and a rise of cocaine abuse followed. It was popular to administer the alkaloid via inhalation or intravenous injections. It was also placed under the tongue (oral sublingual), rubbed on the skin, or inserted into the vagina/anus [2]. Due to its rampant usa ge, it became evident that a method to test for cocaine presence in the human body was necessary to curb its abuse. The purpose of general drug testing is to identify and detect the drug in question, and in turn, deter its usage. An unlimited amount of drugs can be detected in drugs and the sample can be re-tested several times. The analytical techniques utilized in drug testing are separated into two classes: assays based on molecule recognition and separation techniques such as gas chromatography with mass spectrometry (GC-MS), liquid chromatography (LC-MS), and capillary electrophoresis (CE). The art of drug testing combines different analytical techniques into a two-tier system where the first step is a quick screening followed by a confirmation step to confirm the results. While the quick on-site screening reduces costs and errors from delays between sampling and analysis, the possibility of false results is lowered with a confirmation step [3]. The biological specimen normally used in these tests is blood and urine; each with its benefits and downfalls. The use of urine as a biological speci men is the cheapest option and as a result, it is most commonly used. However, it is difficult to handle and it is easy to cheat the testing system since people are not watched when the sample is collected. The use of blood offered the advantage of monitoring the patient while the sample is collected. However, blood is also difficult to handle and store and isolating the sample from blood complicates drug testing [4]. As a result, other biological specimens such as hair, sweat, and nasal mucus have been researched as alternatives. In the case of cocaine, this article shows that mucus can be used as an alternative specimen to test for cocaine presence. A two-tier system was developed that utilizes ion mobility spectrometry (IMS) and infrared spectroscopy(IR) to test for cocaine in mucus was developed and refined. Mucus was the specimen of interest because it is a non-invasive collection process and unlike blood and urine, the parent compound is present. IMS is a technique with high sensitivity so it will be able to identify positive samples and IR possesses high selectivity so it will be able to confirm these positive results. As a result, IMS is used to detect if the sample is present and IR is used to confirm the original result. Methods and Results Twelve seized cocaine samples with concentrations varying from 25-80% w/w were utilized in conjunction with mucus specimen collected from cocaine users. These users were male from 25 years old to 40 years old. Cocaine-free mucus was obtained from males and females from 25 40 years old. Note that the seized cocaine samples were utilized to develop the method and the collected samples were used to test the method. A liquid chromatography procedure was utilized as the reference procedure. A LC Dionex P680 system was utilized and an acetonitrile-phosphate buffer was used as the mobile phase. For the IMS procedure, an IONSCAN-LS system was used to analyze the samples. Nicotinamide acted as an internal calibrant in order to collect a plasmagram for the sample being tested. A Teflon membrane was used to insert the sample into the machine and to prevent any systematic errors, a blank Teflon membrane was inserted in the machine beforehand. For the IR procedure, a Tensor 27 FT-IR spectrometer was used to obtain the spectra and this was analyzed using the OPUS program. The transmission cell utilized to insert the sample had an open upper side in order to strengthen sensitivity. As a result, a normal cell with 2 mm windows now had Teflon spacers that were 0.5mm thick [3]. The IMS results comparing cocaine containing samples to non-cocaine samples are shown in figure 1a. The highest peak is from the internal calibrant with a K0 of 1.860 cm2 V-1sec-1 . Despite needing a mass spectrometer to assign the peaks, it can be hypothesized that the main peak present in the cocaine seized samples that is absent in non-cocaine users can be attributed to cocaine. Cocaine presents a peak at 15.07 ms drift time with a reduced mobility of 1.16 cm2 V-1sec-1 which matches the literature values. As a result, the characteristics of this peak were used to formulate a criterion that determines the presence of cocaine. Within each plasmagram in question, one must look for the K0 value, a variability value of 50  µg of the peak drift time, a peak amplitude of 1.5, a threshold value of 20, and a full width value at the 1/2maximul amplitude of the peak of 200  µs. Once the IMS results were formulated, two seized samples that tested positive underwent an IR procedu re. The resulting spectra presented a plethora of absorption bands but three are of interest: the stretching of the carbonyl group causes a band at 1726 cm-1; the mono-substituted benzene stretches and causes a band at 1017 cm-1; and out-of-plane bending vibrations cause a band at 965 cm-1. Therefore, a criterion must also be formulated to determine the presence of cocaine. Within an IR spectrum, one should look for peaks within three regions: 1786 to 1701 cmà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢1, from 1363 to 1257 cmà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢1, and 1166 to 950 cmà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢1 [3]. In order to determine the most effective means in collecting mucus, an artificial sniffer to replicate the nose was developed and two different types of swabs were tested. In these studies, a benzocaine, lidocaine, and lactose mixture was utilized. 50 mg of the mixture was sniffed with the artificial sniffer and different swabs were used to collect the samples. The procedure was repeated thrice in order to determine recovery efficiency. The two swabs tested were a double cotton tipped polystyrene stick and single cotton tipped wood stick. Looking at figure 1b and 1c, it is evident that the double cotton tipped polystyrene stick is better for powdered compounds mixed in with mucus so this stick is recommended for mucus collection [3]. If one is to develop a technique to detect and identify an analyte, thresholds must be determined for these assays. By using successive dilutions of a cocaine standard of 1000 mg/L, the limit of detection (LOD) of the IMS technique was determined to be 15 pg. This means that if cocaine is present at any lower amounts, the IMS technique cannot be used to generate a true positive value. The limit of concentration (LOC) was used to determine the threshold for the IR technique. This value was determined to be 100  µg and if any sample is tested to be below this concentration, it cannot be confirmed to be cocaine[3]. Another factor that must be considered is the time delay between administration of drug and drug testing. As a result, the IMS+IR method was performed on these samples with varying times from 15 minutes up until 120 mins, and then after 24 hours. In figure 2c, cocaine was still identifiable up until 120 mins and even after 24 hours, traces were still detectable via the IMS technique [3]. In order for this new method to be viable, the possibility of interference from other compounds must be ruled out. In street cocaine, the product is cut in order to maximize profit. In other words, other anesthetics are mixed in to reduce the amount of cocaine needed to make a profit. In order to show that these common cutting agents do not interfere with the method, these compounds were analyzed by IMS and IR. Evident in figure 3, almost all cutting agents do not overlap with the distinct cocaine peak except for tetracine that has a peak at 15.25 ms with a K0 of 1.151 cm2 V-1sec-1, oxymetazoline at 14.90 ms with a K0 of 1.165 cm2 V-1sec-1, and xylometazoline at 14.77 ms with a K0 of 1.168 cm2 V-1sec-1. These three were analyzed by IR and their spectra (Figure 3) can be distinguished from cocaines spectra. The correlation coefficents were calculated to be less than 90% so the probability of false positives is close to zero. The worry that competitive ionization would also create false positives was also quenched by evaluating different mixtures of cocaine and cutting agents and in most cases, cocaine was detected. The use of other compounds such as a xylomethazoline-containing nasal spray and a topical ointment were tested using the double confirmation method. The only exception is the 1:5 and 1:10 ratio of tetracaine and cocaine. It seems like when cocaine is diluted, the cutting agent causes a shift in cocaines peak in the IMS plasmagram. However, the IR spectra can confirm the presence of this sample. Throughout this process, only one false positive showed up, the 1:10 ratio of lidocaine and cocaine due it the correlatio n coefficient being less than 90% [3]. Now that the method has been fully developed, it was tested using the cocaine samples collected from individuals. 35 samples were collected, nine samples were from individuals who did not use cocaine and the rest used. It is a bit difficult to quantify the amount of cocaine in the mucus due to the matrix but the purpose of the method to detect and identify the analyte. The samples also underwent a liquid chromatography procedure as a reference for the data. As evident in figure 4, the number of false positives is zero using the double confirmation technique. Even when the nose was cleaned with saline before sample collection, the method was still able to detect and identify the analyte afterwards [3]. Discussion This double confirmation technique has been proven to be a successful method for cocaine abuse. The thresholds for each step has been determined and it is recommended that a double cotton tipped polystyrene stick should be used for extractions. The laboratory equipment used can be found in smaller sizes, in order to use outside of lab. As mentioned earlier, some advantages with this technique include easier specimen collection, high selectivity and sensitivity, low risk of interference, and its ability to generate a true positive response up to two hours of exposure [3]. Other techniques with similar advantages are currently being developed as well. Scientists in Europe have developed a surface mass spectrometry technique that detects cocaine from fingerprints [5]. Researchers have suggested sweat patch testing as an alternative to urinalysis for cocaine abuse [6]. However, the possibility of cheating this new method via nasal irrigation and neti pots raises some questions about its application. In other words, if someone has the ability to flush out the main analyte from their nose, in what cases should this technique be utilized? Is it viable for drug testing for employers since people can just flush out their nose in succession a few days before the test? Is this technique more viable in a forensic sense? These are questions that need further research. References (Note:re-format for all of them to have the same format and re-order alphabetically) [1] Goodman Gilmans: The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics, 12e Eds. Laurence L. Brunton, et al. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill, , http://accessmedicine.mhmedical.com.ezproxy.fiu.edu/content.aspx?bookid=1613sectionid=102124003. [2] Das, Gopal. Cocaine abuse in North America: a milestone in history. The Journal of Clinical Pharmacology 33.4 (1993): 296-310. [3] Noninvasive Double Confirmation of Cocaine Abuse Sergio Armenta, Miguel de la Guardia, Manel Alcalà  , and Marcelo Blanco. Analytical Chemistry. 2013. 85. (23), 11382-11390 [4] Klaassen, Curtis D., and Mary O. Amdur, eds. Casarett and Doulls toxicology: the basic science of poisons. Vol. 8. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2013. [5] Bailey, Melanie J., et al. Rapid detection of cocaine, benzoylecgonine and methylecgonine in fingerprints using surface mass spectrometry. Analyst 140.18 (2015): 6254-6259. [6] Liberty, Hilary James, Bruce D. Johnson, and Neil Fortner. Detecting Cocaine Use Through Sweat Testing: Multilevel Modeling of Sweat Patch Length-of-Wear Data. Journal of analytical toxicology 28.8 (2004): 667-673. Print.

Philosophy of Milton in When I Consider how my Light is Spent and Borge

The Philosophy of Milton in When I Consider how my Light is Spent and Borges in Poema de los dones  Ã‚  Ã‚        Ã‚  Ã‚   Jorge Luis Borges espoused a philosophy that "all men are each other" (Stabb 52). His literature frequents the theme by finding the repetition of events that transpire regardless of the person involved. His becoming blind coincided with his appointment as Director of the National Library of Argentina, and he understood this "splendid irony of God" as another wrinkle in the circular repetition of existence. John Milton's formal use of the Petrarchan sonnet provides a balanced structure for him to blend his experience with the general human experience, but his effort promotes an inward, self-reflective goal of trying to find God's mandate when he becomes blind. While Borges universalizes his blindness in order to convey his idea of transindividuality in "Poema de los dones" ("Poem of the Gifts"), Milton responds to the permanence of his night by ultimately resigning to a justified ascetism, patience, and contemplation as he awaits God's command in "When I Consider how my L ight is Spent."    A graceful tug of war between continuity and schism, a changing fusion of the personal and the universal, and a tone of resignation direct Milton to the difficult acceptance of serving God by standing and waiting. Continuity within a set of lines shapes the theme by urging the poet to continue his faith in God. Contrasts in images and audiences define the differences between the soul-seeking author and the well-meaning orator.    Petrarchan sonnets usually invite the poet to propose a series of distinct statements from line to line. Milton deviates from the anticipated sentence divisions by merging one idea within m... ...Milton: A Structural Reading. London: Edward Arnold, 1974.    Borges, Jorge Luis. Borges: A Reader. Eds. Emir Rodriguez Monegal and Alastair Reid. New York: E.P. Dutton, 1981.    Miller, David M. John Milton: Poetry. Boston: Twayne Publishers, 1978.    Milton, John. "When I Consider how my Light is Spent." The Norton Anthology of English Literature. Sixth Edition. Ed. M.H. Abrams et al. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1996.    Modern Critical Views: Jorge Luis Borges. Ed. Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1986.    Nicolson, Marjorie Hope. John Milton: A reader's guide to his poetry. New York: Octagon Books, 1983.    Stabb, Martin S. Jorge Luis Borges. Boston: Twayne Publishers, 1970.    Wilson, A.N. The Life of John Milton. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1983.      

Remote Desktop

Ever wished you could access your PC from the road? With Remote Desktop inWindows 7, you can. Remote Desktop connects two computers over a network or the Internet. Once connected, you'll see the remote computer's desktop as if you were sitting right in front of it, and have access to all its programs and files. This feature is included with all editions of Windows 7, but you can only connect to computers running the Professional, Ultimate, or Enterprise editions. Use Remote Desktop to access one computer from another remotely. For example, you can use Remote Desktop to connect to your work computer from home. You will have access to all of your programs, files, and network resources, as if you were sitting in front of your computer at work. While you are connected, the remote computer screen will appear blank to anyone at the remote location who sees it. Server and Client Requirements The computing model for thin-client networking means that the horsepower is concentrated on the server end, not the client end. Because the server will be supporting dozens of people — maybe hundreds — this is not the time to skimp on power. Server Hardware The notion of using a bigger server so that you can skimp on client-side hardware isn't new. That's all a file server is: a computer running a big, fast hard disk so that you don't have to buy big, fast hard disks for everyone in the office. RDS servers are designed on a similar principle — if most of the processing takes place in a single location, you can concentrate the hardware resources needed to support that processing in a single location and worry less about power on the client end. Use a Powerful RD Session Host Server Since an RD Session Host server will be serving applications or full desktops to clients, you'll need to purchase or build a powerful server. Processing power and RAM are the most important resources. Depending on the types and number sessions you're supporting, you may also want to consider boosting disk access and network bandwidth. On the surface, calculating the needs seems straightforward. Just follow these steps: 1. 2. Calculate the resources needed for the operating system. 3. . Calculate the resources needed for a small number of sessions (such as five). 5. 6. Multiply the resources needed for your sessions based on the total number of sessions you plan to support. If you planned to support 100 sessions and you measured five sessions, you'd multiply by 20 (20 * 5 = 100 sessions). 7. 8. Add the total session resources needed for sessions to the resources needed for the operating system. Although this seems like simple math, it never seems to work out that way. Synergy is often hard to predict. Synergy (where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts) often results in something unexpected. Additionally, if the deployment is successful and users are happy with what they can do, they may end up using it much more than you anticipated. You don't need to tell this to the budget people, but it's best to add a buffer for the unknowns and to plan for expansion. Additionally, you should do some independent research starting with Microsoft's Remote Desktop Services home: www. microsoft. com/windowsserver2008/en/us/rds-product home. aspx. Core Hardware Resources For the purposes of running an efficient RD Session Host server, the bare minimum required to run Server 2008 R2 won't cut it. Although there are no hard-and-fast specifications for an RDS server, some general guidelines for server sizing follow: Processor Faster is better to a point. More important than a fast processor is one with enough cache so that it doesn't have to reach out to the (slower) system memory for code and data. Faced with a choice between more cache and more speed, go with more cache. Most RDS servers these days have multiple processors, and these processors have multiple cores. Although only multithreaded applications will actually use more than one processor at a time, if there are multiple processors, then threads needing execution can line up at both. Memory RDS servers tend to be memory bound, not processor bound. Get high-speed, error-correcting memory; get plenty of it; and be prepared to add more as you add more users or applications to the RDS server. The amount of memory you'll need depends on the applications that people use, the number of concurrent sessions, and the memory demands of the files opened in those sessions — computer-aided design (CAD) programs will stress the system more than, say, Notepad. Thankfully, the 64-bit operating system goes well beyond the 4GB limit. Start your calculations with at least 8GB of RAM for the server, and start adding based on the of number of users and memory required by the applications they'll run on the server. Windows Server 2008 R2 will support up to 2TB of RAM. Disk Consider Serial Computer System Interface (SCSI) disks on an RDS server if at all possible. A SCSI disk controller can multitask among all the devices in the SCSI chain. Most people believe that SCSI performs much better both Serial Advanced Technology Attachment(SATA) and Enhanced Integrated Drive Electronics (EIDE) disks, though some people are starting to find that high-end SATA solutions perform better than low-end SCSI solutions. Disk performance is an important capability in any server, especially so in an RDS server. Additionally, consider a Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks (RAID) solution to increase the performance and/or fault tolerance of the drives. For a high-end RDS server, a RAID 1+0 solution provides both performance gains and redundancy. Network On a busy RDS server, consider load-balancing high-speed network cards, which can assign multiple NICs to the same IP address and thus split the load of network traffic. Another alternative is a multihomed server with one NIC dedicated to RDS session traffic. As far as network speed goes, sending application output and client-side input back and forth requires little bandwidth, but client-print jobs sent to mapped printers can take quite a bit of bandwidth. Mapped drives may also increase the load by making it possible to copy files back and forth across the RDP connection. Using the Performance Monitor The Performance Monitor (discussed in Chapter 17) can help you get an idea of how RDS sessions are stressing the server. Server load should scale closely with the number of people using the server; therefore, as long as you pick a representative group of about five people, you should be able to extrapolate your needs for larger groups. The key objects and counters for measuring eneral server stress introduced in that chapter will help you size your RDS servers. But a couple of Performance Monitor objects are worth examining to give you detailed information for your RDS server. Performance Monitor Objects Still Called Terminal Services Although the name of Terminal Services has changed to Remote Desktop Services in Windows Server 2008 R2, it's still called Terminal Services in Performance Monitor. It might look like a typo, but the two ob jects are called Terminal Services and Terminal Services Session. First, the Terminal Services object has counters representing the number of active sessions (sessions where the user has connected to the RD Session Host server and successfully logged on), inactive sessions (where the user is still logged onto the RDS server but has stopped using the session), and the total combined. Besides simply monitoring activity, you could use this to alert you when the number of active session reaches a certain threshold. Say you wanted to know when a server hosts more than 100 sessions. You could do this with a data collector set. Chapter 17 discussed data collector sets in more depth, but it's possible to set up a simple user-defined data collector set with an alert. This is done by creating the user-defined data collector set manually (not with a template), selecting Performance Counter Alert, and then setting the threshold for the active sessions. You can then set a task for the alert to notify you with a basic script or log the event to a file. Although you can get some session-level information from the Remote Desktop Services Manager, a performance object called Terminal Services Session provides quite a bit more data. Use the Remote Desktop Services Manager to find the session you want to monitor — sessions are identified in Performance Monitor by their session numbers, not user login name — and then add counters to monitor that session. Each session object has processor and memory counters that should look familiar to anyone who's used Performance Monitor, but it also has session-specific counters such as the ones in Table 25. 1. We haven't included all the counters here, just the ones to show you the kind of information that will be useful when you're calculating the load on the server and looking at the kind of performance the sessions are getting. Table 25. 1: Key Terminal Services Session Performance Monitor Counters Counter| Description| See Also| % Processor Time| Percentage of time that all of the threads in the session used the processor to execute instructions. On multiprocessor machines the maximum value of the counter is 100 percent times the number of processors. | | Total Bytes| Total number of bytes sent to and from this session, including all protocol overhead. | Input Bytes, Output Bytes. | Total Compressed Bytes| Total number of bytes after compression. Total Compressed Bytes compared with Total Bytes is the compression ratio. | Total Compression Ratio| Total Protocol Cache Hit Ratio| Total hits in all protocol caches holding Windows objects likely to be reused. Hits in the cache represent objects that did not need to be re-sent, so a higher hit ratio implies more cache reuse and possibly a more responsive session. | Protocol Save Screen Bitmap Cache Hit Ratio, Protocol Glyph Cache Hit Ratio, Protocol Brush Cache Hit Ratio| Working Set| Current number of bytes in the Working Set of this session. Virtual Bytes, Page Faults/Sec| Wait on the License Server When experimenting with Remote Desktop sessions to find out how many users you'll be able to support for each session, do not set up a license server; let the RDS server issue its temporary 120-day licenses for this purpose. Although this sounds counterintuitive, using the temporary licenses prevents you from unwittingly assigning per-device licenses to test equipment. See the  "Licensing Mode† section for an explanation of how licensing and license allocation works. Client Hardware. When connecting to an RD Session Host server via a native RDP client, you'll most often use a PC with a Windows operating system loaded, a Windows terminal, or a handheld PC using Windows CE. Native RDP Client In this context, a native RDP client means one available from Microsoft and thus implies Windows. Although Microsoft does not support other platforms (except for its OS X Macintosh client, available for download at www. microsoft. com/mac/products/remote-desktop/default. mspx), Hobsoft link sells a cross-platform (Windows, Mac, Linux, DOS) Java client at www. hobsoft. com/products/connect/jwt. sp, and there is a free Linux RDP client available at www. rdesktop. org. Windows Terminals In its narrowest definition, a Windows terminal is a network-dependent device runningWindows CE that supports one or more display protocols such as RDP or Independent Computing Architecture (ICA), the display protocol used to connect to Presentation Server servers. Many Windows ter minals also support some form of terminal emulation. For this section, think of a Windows terminal as any terminal device designed to connect to a Windows RD Session Host server; it can run any operating system that has an RDP client. A Windows-based terminal (WBT) is such a device that's running a Windows operating system locally — CE or (more rarely) Windows XP/Vista for Embedded Systems — and follows the Microsoft system design requirements for WBTs. The main thing defining a Windows terminal is its thin hardware profile: because the main job of most Windows terminals is to run a display protocol, they don't need much memory or processing power, and they don't use any storage. A Windows terminal includes a processor; some amount of memory, network, and video support; and input devices such as a keyboard (or equivalent) and mouse (or equivalent). The terminals don't generally have hard disks, CD-ROMs, or DVD players. The operating system is stored in local memory. Beyond those similarities, Windows terminals range physically from a â€Å"toaster† form factor to a pad to a small box that can attach to the back of a monitor — or even be part of the monitor itself. Some models of Windows terminals are wireless tablets, intended for people (such as doctors and nurses) who would ordinarily use clipboards and folders to store information. Although most Windows terminals are entirely dependent on their RDS server, a small set of them can run applications locally. The devices still don't have hard disks; the applications are stored in ROM like the operating system. The types of applications available depend on the terminal's operating system, since locally stored applications must run locally instead of just being displayed. Generally speaking, however, it's more common for Windows terminals to depend on an RDS server for applications. Windows terminals are most popular in environments where people are using a single application, where supporting PCs would be logistically difficult, or anywhere else that PCs aren't a good fit. However, PCs still outnumber Windows terminals as thin clients. Part of this is because many environments can't depend totally on server-based computing. Companies already have PCs, and unless they're refreshing the desktop entirely, taking away a powerful PC to replace it with a less-powerful terminal doesn't really make sense. PC Clients At this point, people are using more than twice as many PCs as Windows terminals for RDS server client machines. This isn't surprising. First, unless they're starting fresh, people already have the PCs. Even though WBTs are a little less expensive than low-end PCs (not much, though), they're still an added cost. Second, not all applications work well in an RDS server environment. It's often best to run some applications from the RDS server and some locally. Unless you're buying new hardware and don't anticipate any need to run applications locally, you're likely to have to work with PCs for at least some of your terminal clients. To work with Remote Desktop Services, the PCs must be running a Windows operating system, have the RDP display protocol installed, and have a live network connection usingTCP/IP and a valid IP address. Handheld PCs We're surprised that handheld PCs (H/PCs) aren't more popular than they are, given how handy they are. They're a terrific substitute for a laptop — inexpensive, lightweight, and thrifty with their power so that you can actually use them during the entire flight instead of having to give up two hours after takeoff. (You can also use one on a plane without worrying that the person in front of you will suddenly recline their seat and crack your laptop's display. ) Usually, they run Windows Mobile (previously known as Pocket PC). You can use wired, wireless LAN, or dial-up connections to connect to an RDS server. What an H/PC looks like depends on who makes it. Some (mine among them) look like a laptop's baby brother. Others fold into a little portfolio shape or are a flat tablet. Some are small pocket-sized deals that are too small to really work on. Some — the ones we prefer — have keyboards; others have only pointers. What all this comes down to is that an H/PC isn't really in a position to replace a desktop PC. Instead, it's usually used in cooperation with a desktop machine with which it's partnered

Innocence project paper Essay

Since 1992, almost three hundred people in the United States have been exonerated by the Innocence Project. What this means is that almost three hundred people have been acquitted for a crime that they were falsely convicted of committing and were then released back into society. Many of these false convictions were the result of a lack of technology back in the time of the trials which lead to unvalidated or improper use of forensic science. Some additional reasons that people are wrongfully convicted are misidentifications from eyewitnesses and false confessions. In this paper, I plan to write about Kenneth Ireland. His story shows how wrongful convictions and exonerations are issues in the United States. On September 3, 1986, when Kenneth was only sixteen years old, a thirty year old woman named Barbara Pelkey was found dead in the factory where she worked overnight. She had been raped and suffered a massive blow to the head. Kenneth heard about the crime while watching from his bedroom and was stunned that something that horrific could happen to someone in his small town. There was an autopsy done on the victim as well as a rape kit being collected. The rape kit found that there were sperm cells present on the vaginal and anal swabs. The investigation continued for another year without any arrests, but soon after two informants came to the police and accused Kenneth Ireland and two other men of committing the crime. The police said that the two witnesses had claimed that Kenneth and the other men were making statements to them about their involvement in the crime. In addition to that information, these informants had also given additional unpublished details about the crime and had told the police that their knowledge of this information had come straight from Kenneth Ireland. Six months later, a third informant came to the police and told them that Kenneth had admitted to committing the crime. The informant wasn’t sure if Kenneth was awake at the time he had made the statements, nor was she sure that she hadn’t imagined them being said. All she was sure of that night was that she was drunk. Ultimately, because of these three informants, Kenneth Ireland was charged with felony murder, first degree sexual assault and third degree burglary. Despite being one of the three men that were accused of committing the crime, only Kenneth Ireland was tried for the crime. One of the three men had drowned before the trial took place and the other was never tried for some reason unknown to me. The trial was held in 1989, and Ireland’s attorney tried to prove that the initial two informants had presented false information to the police. They were thought to be protecting another potential suspect in the case. This other potential suspect had admitted to making inconsistent remarks to the police while the investigation was still ongoing. However, Ireland’s attorney was stopped by the judge when he attempted to present evidence regarding this other suspect. A police officer had stated during the trial that the fingerprints at the crime scene were not a match to Kenneth’s fingerprints and in addition to that a forensic analyst confirmed that the hairs from the scene were different from those of Kenneth. It was determined via the same analyst that the semen found in the rape kit was from a non-secretor. A non-secretor is a person whose blood type is not exhibited in their bodily secretions. Kenneth Ireland, along with twenty percent of all men, is a non-secretor, and the sample was also consistent with that of the victim. This meant that nobody could be excluded from the crime. During the first round of the deliberations, the jury was split 6-6. After three additional days, the jury had found Kenneth Ireland guilty and he was sentenced to fifty years in prison. It was said that Kenneth Ireland was convicted because he could not be ruled out of the blood or seminal evidence, his lawyer didn’t challenge that evidence, and his lawyer didn’t put Kenneth on the stand. In 1991, Ireland had appealed his conviction, stating that the two informants had been given a twenty thousand dollar reward in exchange for his implication. Ireland also declared that his attorney was unable to present evidence that would indicate another alternative suspect. This appeal would ultimately be denied. They again tried to appeal in 1999, when the biological evidence was put into DNA testing but results were proved nothing. It wasn’t until 207 that the Connecticut Innocence Project started to review Ireland’s case. With the help of new DNA testing methods, they were able to test the DNA evidence and rule out Kenneth as the person responsible for Barbara Pelkey’s murder. It then took another two years for Ireland to get a new trial, where he was proven innocent and allowed to be a free man. He ended up spending nineteen and a half years in prison for a crime he did not commit. As of today, Kenneth Ireland has not been compensated for his wrongful conviction and prison time. However, he and his lawyer have filed an eight million dollar claim against the state of Connecticut for the wrongful conviction. I’m not sure that eight million dollars is enough to compensate for almost twenty critical years of his life. He missed out on some of the most important years in anyone’s life and it is very difficult to put a price on something like that. Some good news is that the real killer has been found. In 2009, the blood evidence at the scene that was tested turned out to be that of Kevin Benefield. Kevin was initially a suspect when the investigation began, but the focus shifted towards Ireland. He worked at a deli near Pelkey’s workplace and was connected to her sexually but he denied the murder. Kevin was convicted in January of 2012 of the murder and felony murder of Barbara Pelkey. Both of those crimes carry twenty five to sixty years of prison time penalties. I think that it will be much harder for things like this happen in the future in the manner that it did in Kenneth Ireland’s case. It seemed to me that one of the major areas of evidence towards his conviction was the semen sample. He could not be ruled out because it was the semen of a non-secretor and he was a non-secretor. With the advances in DNA testing technology, they can test the semen and easily identify whose it is. This would have immediately been great evidence in proving that Ireland was innocent. I don’t really understand how the hair and fingerprint evidence weren’t weighed more heavily. If it was proven that the fingerprints and the hair at the scene of the crime weren’t his, that seems to me that it should have been pretty good evidence in his favor. To me it seems like he wasn’t given a fair chance at being proven innocent. In my opinion, this was a rather unfortunate trial for Kenneth Ireland. The fact that people were being paid off to implicate him was unlucky, and I feel like this is what really pushed him into the situation he was in. Even though his hair and fingerprints weren’t at the scene, because these three people came to the police saying that Kenneth had admitted to committing the crime really set him up for conviction. The blood and semen, which wasn’t able to be thoroughly examined due to the limitations in technology couldn’t save him because he was one of the twenty percent of all men who are non-secretors. Due to this, he could not be ruled out, even though to me it seems that if his hair and fingerprints weren’t present at the crime scene it wasn’t him who committed the crime. It also seems that his lawyer didn’t do a great job either. They had evidence to show the court that was denied that would have been really good for Kenneth’s case and he never had Kenneth go on the stand. I don’t know everything about the rules of a trial, but if there is evidence that can prove someone’s innocence, there must be something that you as a lawyer can do to get the court to see it. It is that important. It is terrible that Kenneth had to suffer for almost twenty years in prison for a crime that he did not commit and I couldn’t imagine what he must have went through. It really is a shame that the DNA testing technology couldn’t have been implemented or used earlier to at least lessen the nightmare that he had to endure. In conclusion, the amount of wrongful convictions that have taken place in the United States is too high. Lying informants, incorrect eyewitness reports, and the improper use of forensic science are many reasons that people are wrongfully convicted. Thankfully, there have been incredible advances in the technology used to test DNA that can now be used to help these wrongfully convicted people get back to the free world. It’s terrible to think of the years that they lost or even the lives that they might have lost if they were given the death penalty, but at least organizations like the Innocence Project are doing what they can to exonerate these wrongfully convicted people. The story of Kenneth Ireland is a sad tale of a young man falsely committed of raping and murdering a woman. He spent nineteen and a half years in prison for a crime he did not commit, missing out on his entire twenties and most of his thirties. These years are critical for people as they go to college, begin a career, and start a family. These are years that he cannot get back, but he is very fortunate to have the ability to move on as a free man as he looks towards the future. Works Cited Davis, Mark. â€Å"Freed by DNA, Ireland Speaks out.† WTNH TV. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Apr. 2013. . â€Å"The Innocence Project – Know the Cases: Browse Profiles:Kenneth Ireland.† The Innocence Project – Know the Cases: Browse Profiles:Kenneth Ireland. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Apr. 2013. . â€Å"Kenneth Ireland.† Kenneth Ireland. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Apr. 2013. . Kovner, Josh, and Alaine Griffin. â€Å"Man Wrongly Imprisoned Plans To Skip Convicted Murderer’s Sentencing.† Hartford Courant. N.p., 21 Mar. 2012. Web. 06 Apr. 2013. . â€Å"Sentencing Today In 1986 CT Murder After Earlier Wrongful Conviction.† CBS New York. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Apr. 2013. .