What is the Difference About Mobile Computing

What is the difference about mobile computing?
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Table of Contents TOC \o "1-3" \h \z \u 1.0 Introduction PAGEREF _Toc435699376 \h 21.1 Mobile Computing PAGEREF _Toc435699377 \h 22.0 Fundamentals of Mobile Computing PAGEREF _Toc435699378 \h 32.1 History of Mobile Computing PAGEREF _Toc435699379 \h 43.0 Wireless Data Systems PAGEREF _Toc435699380 \h 53.1 Importance of Wireless PAGEREF _Toc435699381 \h 63.2 Challenges of Wireless PAGEREF _Toc435699382 \h 73.3 Prevalence of Wireless networks PAGEREF _Toc435699383 \h 84.0 Components of Mobile Computing PAGEREF _Toc435699384 \h 94.1 Intelligent devices PAGEREF _Toc435699385 \h 94.2 Data transmission PAGEREF _Toc435699386 \h 104.3 Systems and applications PAGEREF _Toc435699387 \h 105.0 Cellular Growth PAGEREF _Toc435699388 \h 116.0 Wireless Networks PAGEREF _Toc435699389 \h 126.1 Wireless Local Area Networks PAGEREF _Toc435699390 \h 126.2 Wireless Personal Area Network (WPAN) PAGEREF _Toc435699391 \h 126.3 Adhoc Wireless Networks PAGEREF _Toc435699392 \h 147.0 Mobile Computing Enabling Technologies PAGEREF _Toc435699393 \h 147.1 Wireless (data) communication PAGEREF _Toc435699394 \h 157.2 Higher bandwidth PAGEREF _Toc435699395 \h 157.3 Security and authentication PAGEREF _Toc435699396 \h 157.4 Small Form Factor (SMM) PAGEREF _Toc435699397 \h 167.5 Personalization and application choices PAGEREF _Toc435699398 \h 167.6 Machine learning, inference and content awareness PAGEREF _Toc435699399 \h 168.0 Embedded Processing PAGEREF _Toc435699400 \h 179.0 Computing, Interface and Control Issues PAGEREF _Toc435699401 \h 179.1 Interactions Design PAGEREF _Toc435699402 \h 179.2 Security PAGEREF _Toc435699403 \h 189.3 Communication and networks PAGEREF _Toc435699404 \h 189.4 Capacity and responsiveness PAGEREF _Toc435699405 \h 189.5 Error correction and recovery PAGEREF _Toc435699406 \h 189.6 Operating systems PAGEREF _Toc435699407 \h 199.7 Hardware and software Design PAGEREF _Toc435699408 \h 1910. Mobile System Services PAGEREF _Toc435699409 \h 1910.1 Resources utilization PAGEREF _Toc435699410 \h 2010.2 Real time responsiveness PAGEREF _Toc435699411 \h 2010.3 Synchronization of data and services PAGEREF _Toc435699412 \h 2010.4 Dependability PAGEREF _Toc435699413 \h 2110.5 Mobility PAGEREF _Toc435699414 \h 2111.0 Mobile software design issues PAGEREF _Toc435699415 \h 2112.0 SOA Governance PAGEREF _Toc435699416 \h 2213.0 Object Request Brokering PAGEREF _Toc435699417 \h 2314.0 Conclusion PAGEREF _Toc435699418 \h 24
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1.0 Introduction
Mobile computing has become a game changer on how people carry out their day to day lives. Mobile computing importance has continued to increase due to the large number of portable computers now available in the market. The need for continuous network connectivity to the internet regardless of location is one major drive of the new paradigm in today’s world of networked computing systems. With a wider variety of connectivity enabling technology ranging from PDAs enabled with Wi-Fi/Bluetooth, cellular phones, wireless laptops to sensor networks embedded to wireless networks, mobile computing has become an ever-present phenomenon in our daily lives (Deepak et al., 2012). The need for access to information and applications globally has tremendously grown for both domestic and business use. This has become possible due to the enabling technologies in mobile computing. The goal of this paper is to explain what mobile computing is, looking into how the technology has evolved over the years, its importance and the main challenges being experienced.
1.1 Mobile Computing
The technology of mobile computing enables devices to transmit data on computers in absence of a permanent physical connection. Mobile computing is a technology that enables individuals with mobile devices to access, create-process, and store information without necessarily having to be constrained to a specific place (Kumawat et al., 2013). Mobile computing is a technological breakthrough that has made it possible for individuals and organizations to create highly flexible information management platforms that are free from spatial constraints (Mannade & Bhande, 2013).
In mobile computing, information between processing units is transmitted via wireless channels. This frees both the client and server from constrains of having to link to fixed physical links (Dudhe & Ramteke, 2014). The processing unit which is also the client can move freely within the covered space without losing connectivity to the server. This temporal and spatial freedom greatly empowers users to access data sites and processing sites from anywhere. In business, this innovation has enabled organizations to set up offices at any locations without being constrained by geographic factors (Deepak et al., 2012).
2.0 Fundamentals of Mobile Computing
Mobile computing combines the available portable computing devices and infrastructure for wireless communication. This has allowed users of portable computing devices to access information while on the move. Portability is the fundamental perspective in the mobile computing technology. In the past decade, tremendous changes have taken place in the computer usage market. This is due to the realization of the impacts of the internet and enabling connectivity technologies. Since 2010 the Apple Inc. founder predicted that tablets would overtake PCs in the future. This reality has now downed according to Anthony (2014). PCs sales have continued to decline against steady sales in volumes for tablets and smart phones. The post-PC dream was finally realized in 2015 where over 320 million tablets were sold as compared to 316 million PCs were sold during the same period. Traditional desktops and laptops are predicted to continue declining especially with the introduction of premium ultra-mobiles such as the ultra-notebooks. It is also important to realize that PCs even if combined with tablets, they still do not match the magnitude in which mobile phones are taking up the market. In 2015 alone, over 1.95 billion mobile phones are expected to be sold in which 70% will be smart phones. Latest statistics also indicate that mobile media time is now surpassing desktop and other media usage globally. In the U.S. mobile digital media time is higher than 51% compared to desktops that are rating 42% (Anthony, 2014).
2.1 History of Mobile Computing
The need for increased connectivity in the commercialized telecommunication industry dates back to 1946 in St. Lous when AT&T pioneered the Mobile Telephone Service to hundreds of towns in the U.S. The subscriber rates grew even faster that it was anticipated and even overwhelmed to technology that was only able to handle three radio channels. Improved Mobile Telephone Service (IMTS) was later introduced by the AT&T in 1965 and the service had more radio channels and higher capacity. In the 1960s the Radio Common Carrier (RCC) technology was introduced as a service by independent companies to compete with AT&T. These were systems that utilized corresponding frequencies of UHF 454/459 MHz which were in use until the inception of cellular AMPS in 1980s. This was also considered to be the first generation of technology in the mobile radio telephone industry. It was referred to as 0(Zero) Generation. The system had a transceiver, dialer, a display and a handset (Mousa, 2012).
In the 1950s new inventions were developed which include the Tactical Digital Information Links (TADI) that enabled bit oriented digital information to be transmitted. It was used mostly by the U.S. Navy and NATO as bit encoded message transmitting (Tolk, 2012). The effort to enable the U.S. to effectively communicate with other countries in distant continents led to the birth of communication satellites that enabled long distance calling and television and radio transmission (Whalen, 2015). Advancements in the aviation industry led to the invention of broadcast technologies such as the Automatic dependent surveillance broadcast (ADS-B). This was a surveillance technology that helped to determine the position of aircrafts via satellite navigation and the data was broadcasted to the stations on the ground traffic controllers (Rockwell Collins, 2012).
In 1981, the Advanced Mobile Phone system (AMPS) was developed in North America. It was, however, embedded with technical challenges such as long charging hours, weight and low talk time. It only lasted till 1990 when the Digital cellular networks were invented, also referred to as 2G. The two systems that pioneered the digital market were the GSM standard and the CDMA standard (Farooq et al., 2013). This is what led to the IBM Simon invention in 1993, the world’s first Smartphone. New communication ways were then invented which include the SMS messaging. Since the 1990s, the mobile technology has rapidly grown from the introduction of the 2.5G systems such as the CDMS2000 and the GPRS, Mobile broadband data 3G, to the current EDGE systems, High Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) and the Native IP Networks -4G (Patil, Karhe & Aher, 2012).
3.0 Wireless Data Systems
Data communication is critical in computer networks. It is through data communication that data can be exchanged between devices via a transmission medium such as a wire cable. However, new ways of transmitting data have continued to emerge which include the commonly used wireless data systems (Banerji & Chowdhury, 2013). When it comes to propagating data through air, light or radio waves are normally used by wireless networks. This technology was pioneered at the University of Hawaii as ALOHAnet also known as ALOHA Systems in 1971. Wireless data systems comprise of Wide Area Data Systems and Wireless Local Area Networks (WLANS). The Wide Area Data Systems provide support services that have low speed such as messaging, paging and e-mailing. Common Wide Area Data Systems that have been in use for years include the paging systems, Mobitex system which is a packet-switched system that was developed by Ericsson. Others include the Ardis that was developed by Motorola and IBM and the Multicellular Data Networks (MCDN) that were developed by Metricom to enable internet access (Papadimitrious e al., 2012).
Wireless Local Area Networks (WLANS) on the other side are also used to provide high sped connectivity within smaller regions such as commercial buildings, homesteads, apartments, hotels or in schools and colleges. The standards have over time been standardized by organizations such as the IEEE which formed the IEEE Working Group 802.4, 802.11a and 80811b al using the Mediaum Access Control (MAC) protocol. The 802.11a provided higher data rates of up to 54 Mbps. The IEEE 802.11 is also known as the wireless Ethernet can operate in both ad hoc and centralized mode networks (Banerji & Chowdhury, 2013). The Wireless ATM (WATM) which is another common type of wireless data system is a 1996 concept that supports freedom of movement of wireless networks. Another type is the Personal Area networks (PANs) which is a step down from the LANs and is used for short range communication (Papadimitrious et al., 2012).
3.1 Importance of Wireless
Wireless networks play a central role in people’s day to day lives and even how organizations function. Wireless networks have proven that they are responsible for increased productivity and increased information sharing. Individuals both at home and in working environments are now able to access documents, emails, applications and many other network resources from where they are making it possible to carry out their daily work effectively (Patil, Karhe & Aher, 012). Wireless networks have made it possible for people and organizations to increase mobility and collaboration. People are now able to roam freely without losing connectivity. People are also able to work together more effectively. Wireless networks also help businesses to improve their customer service delivery functions by connecting their employees to the information they need all the time (Kooser, 2015).
Wireless networks have improved responsiveness through ensuring continuous connection to information needed in a timely manner. People in areas with poor network coverage are now able to be reached through wireless networks. Businesses are now able to access areas that are difficult to be wired. This has also made is easier to expand networks making it easier to increase the number of users and grow network cost effectively. It is more economical to use wireless networks in sharing resources such as printers, single internet connection, and even information both at home and in workplaces. Through wireless networks, computers and other portable devices one can easily share media and even games without having to physically connect them. Devices such as laptops and PDAs can be carried around without having to sit in fixed placed to be able to access the internet or share media (Kooser, 2015).
3.2 Challenges of Wireless
As much as wireless networks have continued to provide unlimited success in terms of connectivity and effective resource sharing, wireless networks being affected by various issues. Wireless networks demand high bandwidths to be able to transfer real-time videos. The capabilities to compress such high volume data content without interfering with the quality has yet to be invented (Kooser, 2015). The increasing need for seamless connectivity over heterogonous wireless networks is a dilemma with the current available Wi-Fi networks. It is still difficult to easily switch between different available networks such as WiFi, WiMax or the 3G or 4G networks using the same subscription. Energy optimization and harvesting is still a challenge in devices used in wireless networks. The current battery life of many mobile computers still fall short of the users expectations. The continuous need for power supply is one disadvantage that wireless devices have making it difficult to operate in remote areas for longer hours. It is still difficult to integrate cognitive radio into wireless networks (Sigh et al., 2014).
There are many challenges in terms of self-configurations of nodes to form networks. Unlike wired media, signal in wireless networks fade and is also easily distorted or weakened by obstructs. This is due to the fact that they are propagated over unprotected open media (Leary, 2012). Dispersed signals due to distractions, reflections and refractions may take different durations to reach the receiver. It may be difficult for the receiver to get the exact data as it was transmitted from the transmitting node. Security is also a major issue in wireless networks. In e-commerce, there is high risk of exposing user’s information to unauthorized persons. Despite the set IEEE 801.11 standard and IP network level security, hackers have continued to get smarter which is forcing wireless security features to be continuously updated (Sigh et al., 2014).
3.3 Prevalence of Wireless networks
Wireless technology has continued to be more efficient over the years. Wireless technology is now widely spread across the globe and is mostly now being used in cellphones and radios. It is now possible for wireless technologies to be combined as a way of increasing frequency. Among the many types of wireless technologies that are now commonly used in the market are WiMAX, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and infrared technologies (Keenan, 2015). Wireless technologies are now being enabled through as number of spectrums such as radio, infrared and microwave communication mediums. WiMAX being the most efficient technology currently with capability to cover over 50 kilometers, Bluetooth technology has made it even better for users to be able to connect devices and share network resources within Wi-Fi networks, successfully replacing wires in LAN networks. Bluetooth is now used in most digital devices such as PDAs, iPods, all mobile phones, speakers, notebooks (Hayes, 2014).
The technology is also gaining popularity in other industries such as motor vehicle technologies, sporting gears, security systems such as keyless entries. It is now possible for devices such as cell phones to charge their batteries via Bluetooth charging stations (Hegenderfer, 2013). In school and college setups, wireless solutions have become critical in enabling teachers and students to interact seamlessly within the same network. It is argued that wireless technology has helped in transforming customers shopping experiences, increase customer service efficiency and accuracy (Chemtov, 2013). Physical loyalty cards are now increasingly being replaced by smartphone apps that customers only need to download and signup. Customers are also now able to check out products on their own and make payments right from their smartphones making the shopping process even shorter. Wireless technology solutions have therefore come in handy to offer these much needed solution (Keenan, 2015).
4.0 Components of Mobile Computing
4.1 Intelligent devices
An end to end solution that is complete for mobile computing includes hardware, software and a wireless network. Laptops are basically smaller models of personal computers but with a combination of the monitor, the CPU, keyboard and mouse. It also has an inbuilt speaker and built in microphones and webcams. The leading brands of laptop makers are IBM, Apple, Compaq, Dell and Toshiba. Laptops run windows operating systems apart from Apple brands that run on Mac OS and the OS, the rest use Windows operating systems ranging from Windows XP to Windows 10 (Norsati, Karimi & Hasanvand, 2012).
PDA (personal digital assistant) devices are small mobile handheld devices that have computing capabilities such as information processing, storage, and retrieval capabilities. Tablets are similar to laptops but way smaller and do not have keyboards. All operations are undertaken on the screen. They run on android OS and iOS for Apple tablets. Smartphones are cellular phones that are able to perform many functions due to the components they are built with such as high speed processors and large memory capacities. They have touch screens and can access the internet with an installed browser (Gu & Chen, 2012).
4.2 Data transmission
Mobile computing relies on mobile telephony for data transmission. Mobile telephony is the telephone services that are provided to phones enabling user to move freely. A terrestrial cellular network forms cell sites or base station that mobile phones connect to. It is a public switched telephone network that connects subscribers to a wider telephony network (Norsati, Karimi & Hasanvand, 2012). Data over cellular is also used in mobile computing to allow data transmission. This is the use of data network for communication in cellular networks. Data over cellular is used when users are out of Wi-Fi coverage range and has unlimited range (Sandu, Mann & Kaur, 2013).
Mobile computing also highly depends on WiFi. WiFi enables computers and smart devices to connect to the internet and to other devices through wireless networks in a particular area. WiFi is basically a radio frequency used to wirelessly connect devices to each other (mitchelle, 2014). Wireless infrared is also a key connectivity medium in wireless networks enabling mobile computing and connectivity. Infrared wireless communications involves free-space propagation of light waves as a transmission medium for communication (Carruthers, 2012).
4.3 Systems and applications
Mobile computing systems involve a number of handheld and wearable devices. The most important features in the technologies used in the mobile computing industry mostly concentrate on level of technology in terms of weigh reduction, power management and ergonomics challenges. Compatibility with other systems such as software’s and network interfaces is also critical in mobile computing. Mobile computing devices are now being enabled to automatically adjust to different networking conditions such as LAN, WAN and ISDN connectivity. Now even more devices are being enabled with high speed cellular over data connectivity to support the wireless capabilities when out of range (Satyanarayanan, 2012).
5.0 Cellular Growth
Mobile cellular subscriptions to public mobile telephone service providing access to PSTN through cellular technology have grown tremendously over the past decade. Mobile usage and adoption has in the past two years overtaken fixed access. Ownership and usage of smart phones, mobile phones, and mobile advertising has surpassed traditional desktop usage that is now on a decline. Latest data according to Hamblen (2014) indicate that as of end of 2014, mobile digital media time in the U.S. alone exceeded 51% compared to desktop usage which declined to 42%. It is now evident that 91% of the world population has access to mobile phones with 56% owning smartphones. Almost half the number of people that use mobile phones accesses the internet through their phones. It is estimated that the time spent on apps is 80% of all time spend online. 72% of all tablets owners purchase online from their devices every week. Africa is leading the way being the second largest after Asia and fastest growing mobile market in the world growing at 65% per year. By 2014 smartphone users across the globe reached the 1.75 billion mark with connectivity to 3G and 4G networks spreading out in wider areas in both developed and developing countries. Over 4.5 billion people worldwide use a mobile phone. Mobile phone penetration is expected to increase up to 69.4% from 61.1% in the period of 2013 to 2017 (Emarketer, 2014).
6.0 Wireless Networks
6.1 Wireless Local Area Networks
Wireless local area networks (WLAN) have become increasingly popular for their capability to link multiple devices using wireless distribution or spread spectrum radio within limited enclosed areas such as homes, schools, colleges, and office buildings. The IEEE 802.11 group of standards has specified the technologies for wireless LANs. The IEEE 802.11 standards use the Ethernet protocol and CSMA/CA for path sharing and encryption (Brown, 2014). The WiFi/802.11 consists of a family of specifications developed by IEEE used for the WLAN technology. There are a number of 802.11 family specifications which range from 1 Mbps transmissions in the 2.4GHz band that use the direct sequence spread spectrum (DSSS) hopping spread spectrum (FHSS). The 802.11a which is an extension of the 802.11 provides up to 54Mbps in the 5GHz band using orthogonal frequency division multiplexing encoding. There is also the 802.11b wireless that provides 11 Mbps transmission in the 2.4GHz band using the DSSS. Other specifications include the 802.11e, 802.11g and the 802.11n that are more advanced than the 802.11 family (Beal, 2015). There are, however, advancements that are being made in the 802.11 to increase the amount of data transmission. Already the 802.11ac is entering the market with 150Mbps and is expected to boot transmission up to 450Mbps per spatial stream. It will work on a 5GHz band with channels over 80MHz wide (Brown, 2014).
6.2 Wireless Personal Area Network (WPAN)
Wireless personal area networks (WPAN) connect devices that surround an individual’s working space in which devices are interconnected vial wireless connections. The range is normally within 10 meters. The WPAN use technologies such as Bluetooth as a basis of the IEEE 802.15 standard family. WPAN operates in frequencies starting from 2.4 GHz in digital modes. WPAN enables devices to plug into each other when within proximity range. The WPAN Task group has divided the IEEE 802.15 into various standards which include; IEEE 802.1 which is a new standard derived according to the Bluetooth v1.1 Foundation specifications. It is specifically developed to identify physical layer (PHY) and Media access control (MAC) specification for wireless environment. It works with fixed and portable connections as well as moving devices that are within the PWAN range (Jawad, et al., 2014).
The IEEE 802.15.2 is a coexisting standard technology used for linking wireless personal area networks with other wireless devise operating within WLAN range. There is also the IEE 802.15.3 also referred to as the high rate WPAN. The PHY and MAC standards are used in high rate WPAN rating from 11 to 55 Mbps. The IEEE 802.15.2 is has also been advanced into IEEE P802.15.3a which intends to provide high speed Ultra wideband PHY, the IEEE 802.15.3b which is developed to improve interoperability of the MAC and the IEEE 802.15.3c is a millimeter wave based alternative PHY created for the 802.15.3 WPAN standard. It is a short-range standard covering maximum 10 meters enabling real-time streaming at a high-speed internet based on content download (Lee, 2014).
There is also the IEEE 802.15.4 which is described as a low rate WPAN but with long battery power life. It defines the physical layer and the data link layer of the OSI model (Arphitha & Ramesh, 2014). Other standards that are also critical include the IEEE 802.15.5 also referred to a mesh network standard which provides the architectural capabilities for devices to operate in a stable way in a wire mesh wireless network., the IEEE 802.15.6 also known as the body area networks that focus on short range wireless environments and low power. There is also the IEEE 802.15.7 which is the visible light communication standard used for free space communication via visible light (Jawad, et al., 2014).
6.3 Adhoc Wireless Networks
Wireless adhock networks (WANET) are wireless networks that are decentralized since they do not rely on any preexisting infrastructure such as cells, routers, or access points. Unlike other wireless networks that rely on stationed dist...