BBF.069 (TR-069) and IPv6: Empowering the Digital Home
As customers continue to introduce additional devices into the home, it becomes critical to satisfy certification test programs and increase end user confidence. This panel will outline the newest tools for the next generation of home networking, the Broadband Forum’s (BBF) .069 certification program and the IPv6 Forum’s IPv6 Ready CE Router Logo. These test programs are important tools for operators and users in order to ensure standards conformance and interoperability. One standard highlighted is the TR-069 outlining the CPE WAN Management Protocol (CWMP). This protocol enables service providers to communicate with customer premises equipment to better manage and troubleshoot problems within the digital home. The University of New Hampshire InterOperability Laboratory (UNH-IOL) is the only approved lab for the BBF.069 certification program as well as an approved lab for the IPv6 Ready CE Router Logo through their Home Networking testing service.

We look forward to working with the OnProcess Technology team!

We are continuing to evaluate additional speakers and will be adding more over the coming weeks. Please check back regularly or sign up for our email alerts.

Please check back regularly, or sign up for our email alerts to get conference information in your inbox. We look forward to seeing you in Dallas!

We’re excited to work with our partners again, the FTTH Council and co-locate our event with the FTTH Conference and Expo in Dallas. Our goal is to provide the best educational and networking experience possible for broadband carriers interested in developing and implementing a successful digital home strategy. There’s lot’s to learn and we’re up to the challenge.

Please check back with us regularly to get the latest updates. Or better yet, sign up for our email alerts to get important information regarding the conference emailed to you directly.

We’re also thankful to CHR Solutions for becoming our latest sponsor. CHR will sponsor the event’s luncheon.

iPad app developers have apparently taken several Alertbox recommendations from last year’s study to heart, including the use of back buttons, broader use of search, homepages, and direct access to articles by touching headlines on the front page. Nevertheless, in addition to new problems rearing their heads, this year’s test group experienced some of the same problems, such as not being able to find their way back to their starting point after accidentally touching something, and difficult and awkward navigation for media apps such as magazines where readers needed multiple steps to access a table of contents.

Alertbox tested 26 iPad apps and six websites for this year’s usability study. In contrast to its initial study, which was made up of iPad users with no experience, Alertbox recruited users with at least two months’ experience for this year’s study. Half of the group of 16 were men, half women. Fourteen ranged in age from 21-50 while two were older than 50. Occupations ranged from personal chef to realtor to vice president of human resources.

Playing games, checking email and social networking sites, watching videos and movies, and reading news were most often cited when it came to how test group members were using their iPads. Web browsing and research related to shopping were also done, though most test group members felt that it was easier to shop on their desktop machines. Some worried about e-commerce security on the iPad.

Problems emerged in this year’s study to do with:

• The use of splash screens–a feature Alertbox emphatically discourages;
• Swipe ambiguity, which often occurred with the use of
• Carousels in apps that relied on swiping to move between pages;
• Squeezing too much information in areas too small, and the related
• Too Much Navigation, which “was so prevalent that it deserves its own acronym.”

Alertbox’s researchers also pointed out that, in contrast to smartphones, iPad and other tablet app developers need to design apps for use on a multi-user as opposed to single-user device. “For example, users might be reluctant to stay permanently signed in on an app, and they’ll still forget their passwords. It’s also important to design recognizable application icons so they’ll stand out in the crowded listings of several users’ apps.”

Less than half-an-inch thick and weighing in at less than a pound, RIM’s answer to Apple’s iPad comes with a 7-inch, high resolution touchscreen. RIM’s touts its tablet, saying that it “delivers professional grade, consumer-friendly that redefine the possibilities of mobile computing.”

“The BlackBerry PlayBook is an amazing tablet that is already being widely praised as a multi-tasking powerhouse with an uncompromised web experience and an ultra-portable design,” said Mike Lazaridis, RIM president and co-CEO. “Given the high level of customer interest in the BlackBerry PlayBook, we are particularly pleased to be working with such an amazing lineup of retail partners.”

On this list are following in the US:

• AT&T
• Best Buy
• Cbeyond
• Cellular South
• Cincinnati Bell
• Office Depot
• RadioShack
• ShopBlackBerry.com
• Staples
• Sprint
• Verizon Wireless
• BlackBerry from Wireless Giant

In Canada:

• Bell
• Best Buy
• Chapters / Indigo
• Costco
• Future Shop
• Mobilicity
• MTS Allstream
• Rogers
• Sasktel
• Sears
• ShopBlackBerry.com
• Staples
• Telus
• Tbooth Wireless
• The Source
• Videotron
• Walmart
• WIND Mobile
• WIRELESS etc.
• WIRELESSWAVE

Clearly, this argues well for home/office and mobile technology providers. PCs will retain a central role as this market grows and evolves while “portable form factors will continue to account for the majority of total annual shipments to this market,” according to IDC’s news release. Sales of single-function printers will continue to decline rapidly as home/office consumers continue to shift to multifunction printers, while nearly 3/4 of networked home households will be wireless-enabled by 2015, according to IDC.

“Home office households continue to spend more on advanced technology than households in general,” said Justin Jaffe, senior research analyst for Small and Medium-Sized Business and Home Office Research at IDC. “With economic conditions continuing to improve, these households will continue to lead the way for technology adoption across a variety of categories from notebook computers and wireless networks to mobile phones.”

Additional findings from IDC’s, “U.S. Home Office 2011-2015 Forecast: Recovery Drives Interest in IT as Home Office Households Adjust to New Economic Realities” include:

• The home office market will add nearly 2.0 million home-based businesses by 2015, with over 450,000 net new home-based businesses per year in 2013 and 2014.
• The need to be more productive is translating into extended workdays for professionals, and the number of home office households used by corporate employees to work outside of normal business hours will surpass 27 million at the end of 2015.
• Telecommuting continues to be an economic bellwether — when times are tough, many return to the corporate office, giving up potential productivity gains for closer daily contact with colleagues and supervisors. Improving economic conditions will lead to a net annual increase of approximately 180,000 telecommuters each year through 2015.