Artefact # 4

Reflection on competing Technologies concerning Transmission

Computer technologies are a double-edged sword; some people love it, some hate it. Because I belong to the lovers holding an MCSE (Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer) equivalent and also worked already over nine years in IT before, I also did the PBDDET (Post-Baccalaureate Diploma in Distance Education Technology). So what would distance education going to be without technology?

The second assignment of MDDE620 ideally embraces technology. The task was:

“Conduct an actual "laboratory" comparison of competing technologies or platforms (e.g. Mac vs. PC; cable vs. ADSL; land-based vs. satellite-based; digital vs. analog, tape or CD-ROM vs. DVD; PDA vs. laptop or desktop), using the ACTIONS model described in the course text. Include suggestions for further evaluation research that might be used to advance or confirm your analysis. Assignment of choice: O”

Here I have chosen cable vs. ADSL, land-based vs. satellite-based and digital vs. analog as they are interwoven, for example, land-based had been analog but switched over to digital. In every case the focus is on data transmission and the table shows how the old systems were working in comparison to the new systems. POTS stands for plain old telephone system; POTS 56k stands for getting at maximal speed analog using a Modem which is a modulator and demodulator for outgoing files and incoming files. ADSL stands for asymmetric digital subscriber line while cable means the broadband cable for example from Shaw cable. Rogers was chosen because I have used it myself and had experience with the mobile rocket hub which is a cell phone access that at the time of use was about 13 times faster than the 56k modem.

As I like to have every fact together I put it in a table. It shows more than thousand words. To support the ePortfolio I put the tables one and two from the assignment in. While table one supports the assignments competing technologies, table two evaluates them using ACTIONS.

The facts are pretty well brought together by Fahy (2013, Study Guide).

The ACTIONS model is a very good system to evaluate the competing technologies and also as decision memo when looking for what system suits me best. The letters of ACTIONS stand for A = access, C = costs, T = teaching and learning, I = interactivity and user friendliness, O = organizational issues, N = novelty, and S = speed.

Interpreting the above table reads as follows:

Analog vs. Digital have both Access everywhere as only the choice of device could place restrictions on the use while a phone line can be placed everywhere and only the mood is responsible for reception. The Costs are quite low in both technologies but the use of them is low in all other disciplines regarding analog while digital causes moderate more Costs but offers high Teaching and learning as well as high Interactivity possibilities and also high Speed. Organizational issues are not to anticipate because Novelty is moderate.

Land-based vs. Satellite-based have both broad Access, land-based with some rural area restrictions. The Costs are low in both technologies with high Teaching and learning and high Interactivity possibilities; Satellite-based faces some weather issues which have an impact on receiving all information in an online lecture. Organizational issues are not to anticipate with Land-based but are possible with Satellite-based systems regarding responsibility for maintenance and environmental circumstances like for example a tree in front of the dish. As the Novelty is low for Land-based with high Speed it is moderate for Satellite-based which is newer but also faces lower Speed.

Cable vs. ADSL have gotten the same evaluation for the following reason: both systems have a very high speed available and the customer/student can choose to pay more for higher speed or less for moderate or low speed. Availability is rather the issue of using one system over the other, sometimes both systems are available. In urban areas mostly both systems are competing with compelling offensive offers. The Access is evaluated lower than Satellite-based as the availability is rurally restricted because both systems go with Digital.

What have I learned about competing Technologies

While the analog telephone is obsolete and just for comparisons, today everything is digital, not only data but even speech and pictures (photographers and sequences). Communication is essential in distance education and from the beginning of the first course in DE till this day the use of the Internet with its apps like email, Skype and Moodle as well as forums is improving communication skills (3.1).

Especially this artefact # 4 uses a table for analysis and for evaluation; the first table is an overview of old and new systems, while the second table is the result of an evaluation (3.2). The technologies have not really been new to me but the use in distance education which is the focus of the MEd program.

The artefact deals with the given telephone and Internet applications first about the transmission which leaves cable, ADSL and mobile lines as respectable instruments and second about the ACTIONS model which shows what to choose (3.3, 3.4, and 3.5).

References

Bates, A. W. (2005). Technology, E-Learning and Distance Education. New York: Routledge.

Fahy, P. J. (2013). MDDE 620 Study Guide. Advanced Technology for Distance Education and Training. Athabasca: Athabasca University.

Table 1: Speed comparison of systems, downloading files

Table 2: Comparison of usability of the respective technology