Cisco CCNA Certification – Cisco VTP VLAN Trunking Protocol

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 Cisco VTP: VLAN Trunking Protocol VLAN Trunking Protocol (VTP) is a Cisco Layer 2 messaging protocol that manages the addition, deletion, and renaming of VLANs on a network-wide basis.

 

Cisco CCNA Certification – Cisco VTP VLAN Trunking Protocol

By Bob Bello

(VTP) is a Cisco Layer 2 messaging protocol that manages the addition, deletion, and renaming of VLANs on a network-wide basis. Virtual Local AreaNetwork (VLAN) Trunk Protocol (VTP) reduces administration in a switched network. When you configure a new VLAN on one VTP server, the VLAN is distributed through all switches in the domain. This reduces the need to configure the same VLAN everywhere. VTP is a Cisco-proprietary protocol that is available on most of the Cisco Catalyst Family products. VTP ensures that all switches in the VTP domain are aware of all VLANs. There are occasions, however, when VTP can create unnecessary traffic. All unknown unicasts and broadcasts in a VLAN are flooded over the entire VLAN. All switches in the network receive all broadcasts, even in situations where few users are connected in that VLAN. VTP pruning is a feature used to eliminate (or prune) this unnecessary traffic. By default, all Cisco Catalyst switches are configured to be VTP servers. This is suitable for small-scale networks where the size of the VLAN information is small and easily stored in all switches (in NVRAM). In a large network, a judgment call must be made at some point when the NVRAM storage needed is wasted, because it is duplicated on every switch. At this point, the network administrator should choose a few well-equipped switches and keep them as VTP servers. Everything else participating in VTP can be turned into a client. The number of VTP servers should be chosen so as to provide the degree of redundancy desired in the network.

Modes of OperationServer

In VTP server mode, you can create, modify, and delete VLANs and specify other configuration parameters (such as VTP version and VTP pruning) for the entire VTP domain. VTP servers advertise their VLAN configuration to other switches in the same VTP domain and synchronize their VLAN configuration with other switches based on advertisements received over trunk links. VTP server is the default mode.

Transparent

VTP transparent switches do not participate in VTP. A VTP transparent switch does not advertise its VLAN configuration and does not synchronize its VLAN configuration based on received advertisements. However, in VTP version 2, transparent switches do forward VTP advertisements that they receive out their trunk ports.

Client

VTP clients behave the same way as VTP servers, but you cannot create, change, or delete VLANs on a VTP client.

Advertisements Summary Advertisements

When the switch receives a summary advertisement packet, it compares the VTP domainname to its own VTP domain name. If the name is different, the switch simply ignores the packet. If the name is the same, the switch then compares the configuration revision to its own revision. If its own configuration revision is higher or equal, the packet is ignored. If it is lower, an advertisement request is sent.

Subset Advertisements

When you add, delete, or change a VLAN in a switch, the server switch where the changes were made increments the configuration revision and issues a summary advertisement, followed by one or several subset advertisements. A subset advertisement contains a list of VLAN information. If there are several VLANS, more than one subset advertisement may be required in order to advertise them all.

Advertisement Requests

A switch needs a VTP advertisement request in the following situations:

The switch has been reset. The VTP domain name has been changed. The switch has received a VTP summary advertisement with a higher configuration revision than its own. Upon receipt of an advertisement request, a VTP device sends a summary advertisement, followed by one or more subset advertisements.

Configuration To configure an IOS based switch to be a VTP server, issue the following commands: SwitchA# vlan database

SwitchA(vlan)# vtp domain CiscoKits

SwitchA(vlan)# vtp server

SwitchA(vlan)# exit

These commands configure the switch to be a VTP server in the VTP domain CiscoKits. The changes are saved and the revision number is incremented when the exit command is issued. To configure a VTP client, run the following commands:

SwitchB# vlan database

SwitchB(vlan)# vtp domain CiscoKits

SwitchB(vlan)# vtp client

SwitchB(vlan)# exit

To disable VTP, set the vtp mode to transparent as such:

SwitchC# vlan database

SwitchC(vlan)# vtp transparent

SwitchC(vlan)# exit

To monitor the VTP operation and status, use either:

SwitchA# show vtp status

SwitchA# show vtp counters.

Bob Bello, is the owner of http://www.CiscoKits.com At his site you will find over 200 various articles dedicated to Cisco CCNA and CCNP study help, free CCNA and CCNP study exams, step by step labs along with CCNA and CCNP home lab kits.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Bob_Bello
http://EzineArticles.com/?Cisco-CCNA-Certification—Cisco-VTP-VLAN-Trunking-Protocol&id=739778

 

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Cisco Certification – Basics of Cisco Routers

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 This article will help familiarize you with various Cisco routers.  It will describe the various features they support so you can pick the right Cisco router to help you prepare for your Cisco CCNA exam.

Cisco Certification – Basics of Cisco Routers
By Bob Bello

Cisco has a number of different routers, amongst them are the popular 1600 series, 2500 series and 2600 series. The ranges start from the 600 series and go up to the 12000 series (now we are talking about a lot of money). All the above equipment runs special software called the Cisco Internetwork Operating System or IOS. This is the kernel of their routers and most switches. Cisco has created what they call Cisco Fusion, which is supposed to make all these devices run the same operating system.

We are going to begin with the basic components which make up a Cisco router (and switches) and I will be explaining what they are used for, so grab that tea or coffee and let's get going !

The basic components of any Cisco router are

 

  1. Interfaces
  2. The Processor (CPU)
  3. Internetwork Operating System (IOS)
  4. RXBoot Image
  5. RAM
  6. NVRAM
  7. ROM
  8. Flash memory
  9. Configuration Register

 

Now I just hope you haven't looked at the list and thought "Stuff this, it looks hard and complicated" because I assure you, it's less painful than you might think ! In fact, once you read it a couple of times, you will find all of it easy to remember and understand. Interfaces These allow us to use the router ! The interfaces are the various serial ports or ethernet ports which we use to connect the router to our LAN. There are a number of different interfaces but we are going to hit the basic stuff only. Here are some of the names they have given some of the interfaces: E0 (first Ethernet interface), E1 (second Ethernet interface). S0 (first Serial interface), S1 (second Serial interface), BRI 0 (first B channel for Basic ISDN) and BRI 1 (second B channel for Basic ISDN).

You have to connect a digital phone to an ISDN line and since this is an ISDN router, it has this option with the router. I should, however, explain that you don't normally get routers with ISDN S/T and ISDN U interfaces together. Any ISDN line requires a Network Terminator (NT) installed at the customer's premises and you connect your equipment after this terminator. An ISDN S/T interface doesn't have the NT device built in, so you need an NT device in order to use the router. On the other hand, an ISDN U interface has the NT device built in to the router.

Apart from the ISDN interfaces, we also have an Ethernet interface that connects to a device in your LAN, usually a hub or a computer. If connecting to a Hub uplink port, then you set the small switch to "Hub", but if connecting to a PC, you need to set it to "Node". This switch will simply convert the cable from a straight through (hub) to a x- over (Node):

The Config or Console port is a Female DB9 connector which you connect, using a special cable, to your computers serial port and it allows you to directly configure the router.The Processor (CPU) All Cisco routers have a main processor that takes care of the main functions of the router. The CPU generates interrupts (IRQ) in order to communicate with the other electronic components in the router. The routers utilize Motorola RISC processors. Usually the CPU utilisation on a normal router wouldn't exceed 20 %.

The IOS

The IOS is the main operating system on which the router runs. The IOS is loaded upon the router's bootup. It usually is around 2 to 5MB in size, but can be a lot larger depending on the router series. The IOS is currently on version 12, and they periodically releases minor versions every couple of months e.g 12.1 , 12.3 etc. to fix small bugs and also add extra functionality.

The IOS gives the router its various capabilities and can also be updated or downloaded from the router for backup purposes. On the 1600 series and above, you get the IOS on a PCMCIA Flash card. This Flash card then plugs into a slot located at the back of the router and the router loads the IOS "image" (as they call it). Usually this image of the operating system is compressed so the router must decompress the image in its memory in order to use it.

The IOS is one of the most critical parts of the router, without it the router is pretty much useless. Just keep in mind that it is not necessary to have a flash card (as described above with the 1600 series router) in order to load the IOS. You can actually configure most routers to load the image off a network tftp server or from another router which might hold multiple IOS images for different routers, in which case it will have a large capacity Flash card to store these images.

The RXBoot Image

The RXBoot image (also known as Bootloader) is nothing more than a "cut-down" version of the IOS located in the router's ROM (Read Only Memory). If you had no Flash card to load the IOS from, you can configure the router to load the RXBoot image, which would give you the ability to perform minor maintenance operations and bring various interfaces up or down.

The RAM

The RAM, or Random Access Memory, is where the router loads the IOS and the configuration file. It works exactly the same way as your computer's memory, where the operating system loads along with all the various programs. The amount of RAM your router needs is subject to the size of the IOS image and configuration file you have. To give you an indication of the amounts of RAM we are talking about, in most cases, smaller routers (up to the 1600 series) are happy with 12 to 16 MB while the bigger routers with larger IOS images would need around 32 to 64 MB of memory. Routing tables are also stored in the system's RAM so if you have large and complex routing tables, you will obviously need more RAM ! When I tried to upgrade the RAM on a 1600 router, I unscrewed the case and opened it and was amazed to find a 72 pin SIMM slot where you needed to attach the extra RAM. For those who don't know what a 72 pin SIMM is, it's basically the type of RAM the older Pentium socket 7 CPUs took, back in '95. This type of memory was replaced by today's standard 168 pin DIMMs or SDRAM.The

NVRAM (Non-Volatile RAM)

The NVRAM is a special memory place where the router holds its configuration. When you configure a router and then save the configuration, it is stored in the NVRAM. This memory is not big at all when compared with the system's RAM. On a 1600 series, it is only 8 KB while on bigger routers, like the 2600 series, it is 32 KB. Normally, when a router starts up, after it loads the IOS image it will look into the NVRAM and load the configuration file in order to configure the router. The NVRAM is not erased when the router is reloaded or even switched off.

ROM (Read Only Memory)

The ROM is used to start and maintain the router. It contains some code, like the Bootstrap and POST, which helps the router do some basic tests and bootup when it's powered on or reloaded. You cannot alter any of the code in this memory as it has been set from the factory and is Read Only.

Flash Memory

The Flash memory is that card I spoke about in the IOS section. All it is, is an EEPROM (Electrical Eraseable Programmable Read Only Memory) card. It fits into a special slot normally located at the back of the router and contains nothing more than the IOS image(s). You can write to it or delete its contents from the router's console. Usually it comes in sizes of 4MB for the smaller routers (1600 series) and goes up from there depending on the router model.

Configuration Register

Keeping things simple, the Configuration Register determines if the router is going to boot the IOS image from its Flash, tftp server or just load the RXBoot image. This register is a 16 Bit register, in other words has 16 zeros or ones. A sample of it in Hex would be the following: 0x2102 and in binary is : 0010 0001 0000 0010.

Bob Bello, is the owner of http://www.CiscoKits.com At his site you will find over 200 various articles dedicated to Cisco CCNA and CCNP study help, free CCNA and CCNP study exams, step by step labs along with CCNA and CCNP home lab kits.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Bob_Bello
http://EzineArticles.com/?Cisco-Certification—-Basics-of-Cisco-Routers&id=732737

 

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One or Two Part Episodes?

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I am currently wrapping up production on new episodes of The Force Field. The problem is the next episode contains over two hours of interviews that need to be edited down to about thirty minutes. The topic is about women in IT and there is a lot of interesting discussion. I have edited down the interviews to about 45 minutes and could edit about 10 minutes more. I did ask the same questions in case there were different views and the answers were somewhat similar but there were some different approaches to the responses.

The question is, should I keep it tight and try to edit them both into one half hour show or break them up into two parts? I never considered a two part podcast before and I do not know if breaking it up will hold everyone’s interest or would bore them. Since the show is a new type of media for a new type of audience I really do not know if a two part topic would hold everyone’s interest or not.

I could easily just crank out shows with all this content but I believe in quality, not quantity and I want to deliver the best quality show I can. What do you think? I welcome everyone’s feedback as it is your show.

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AMD and Microsoft to Launch ‘Power Together Tour 2007’

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AMD will hit the road again this fall with their latest tech tour and this time Microsoft will be along for the ride. AMD and Microsoft will launch Power Together Tour 2007 for a twelve city road show from October 29 to December 12, 2007.

AMD will promote the new Phenom FX Quad-Core processors, Radeon HD Crossfire graphics and their new 700 series chipsets at the show.  Microsoft plans to promote Windows Vista Acceleration and the launch of Windows Live OneCare 2.0.

 Cities on the list include Minnetonka MN, Itasca IL, Philadelphia, East Rutherford NJ, Burlington MA, Thornhill ON, Seattle, SunnyvaleCA, Irvine CA, Frisco TX and Duluth GA.

Apple releases update to brick iPhone

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Apple, Inc. released a firmware update for their popular iPhone yesterday to disable or "brick" unlocked units. The update, a response to recent hacks which allow the iPhone to be used by cell phone service carriers other than AT&T, apparently not only circumvents the hacks but disables some third party applications as well.

The  iPhone initially  was locked into service only through AT&T but users soon discovered ways to unlock the phone and allow it to function with other cell carriers. The hack helped spur sales of the phone as consumers who were reluctant to purchase the device were able to choose their carrier.

Apple told customers unlocking the device would risk damage and void their warranty. Earlier this week they informed users a firmware update would be released to patch the hacks. Yesterday they made good on the threat.

According to iphonesimfree.com, which provides software and service to unlock the iPhone to resellers the deployment of firmware update 1.1.1 does relock some iPhones but the IPSF hack still functions if the user has an original AT&T Sim card. In addition the block disables third party applications and tools to enhance funtionality of the iPhone, mostly written by open source developers.

 "The thousands of open source developers who have put a cumulative 10s of thousands of man hours into various apps and tools now have no way to get them onto the phone as well." iphonesimfree.com posted in their blog Thursday.  They added, "We are all looking into the jailbreak issue as it affects us all, and we will keep updating our site as well as the open source community at large with any information we can about this."

The latest move by Apple to relock the phone angered users, many of which view it as both arrogant and ironic, especially given Steve Jobs' recent stand against another unpopular locking mechanism, DRM.

 

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New WinRAR 3.71 is Released

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win.rar GmbH announces the release of final version of the new WinRAR 3.71.

Berlin, Germany (PRWEB) September 27, 2007 — win.rar GmbH, publisher for RARLAB software, is proud to announce the release of final version of the new WinRAR 3.71. win.rar GmbH is dedicated to offering the highest level of quality support to its customers, and to constantly improving its software according to their needs and feedback. With the release of this latest version, they have once again ensured that WinRAR continues to be the most complete and technologically up-to-date compression tool. The new WinRAR 3.71 fixes some vulnerabilities that were just recently discovered.

Some of the features which are improved with the release of version 3.71 are:

  • compatibility of high DPI display modes with WinRAR tray icon and inclusion of full path of Archive names in rar.log error log file.
  • WinRAR could crash when decompressing some of corrupt RAR archives; this has been corrected.
  • WinRAR is now able to unpack an individual file from subfolder of ACE archive using the drag and drop without fail.
  • high ASCII names in ISO files using ISO 9660 format without Joliet format extension would now be displayed correctly.

These are just some of the features that were improved. More information on all the improved items can be found here: http://www.win-rar.com/whatsnew.html

Of course, as always, the upgrade to 3.71 is absolutely free for all registered users. Upgrading is quick and easy. Users only need to download and install the newest version of WinRAR to continue using the best compression tool around. No complicated uninstalling of the previous version is necessary.

About WinRAR
WinRAR is a 32-bit Windows version of RAR Archiver, the powerful archiver and archive manager. RAR files can usually compress content up to 30 percent better than ZIP files. WinRAR's main features are very strong general and multimedia compression, processing of non-RARarchives, long filename support, programmable self-extracting archives(SFX), damaged archive repair, authenticity verification, embedded file comments, and encryption. WinRAR is available in over 45 different languages and runs on Windows 95/98/NT/2000/ME/XP/Vista. The command line version RAR is available for Linux, DOS, OS/2, FreeBSD and MAC OS X. Pocket RAR, the free WinRAR version for Pocket PCs and the new WinRAR for U3 complete the compression product range. So WinRAR simply is "The Size Solution".

About win.rar GmbH
win.rar GmbH is the official publisher for WinRAR and RARLAB products since February 2002 and handles all support, marketing and sales related to WinRAR & rarlab.com. win.rar GmbH is located in Germany and is represented globally through its local partners on 6 continents and in more than 80 countries. For more information about WinRAR and
win.rar GmbH please visit www.win-rar.com.

 

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Encouraging a Simpler Path to Green IT

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As green IT products appear on the horizon, IT organizations can first rely on the basics of managing capacity and optimizing their infrastructure to reduce energy costs

Austin, TX (PRWEB) September 27, 2007 — As pressure continues to mount for organizations and their data centers to go green, HyPerformix, the leader in predictive IT management, is encouraging CIOs and IT organizations to remember that environmentally friendly computing doesn't always require additional costs.

Before spending budget on new solutions, IT organizations need to first address the capacity levels of the current server solutions because surprisingly, most companies use only 15 to 20 percent of their current server capacity, according to Gartner research. And the electricity to run these servers accounts for nearly half of an organization's overall energy costs.

  According to Forrester Research, burgeoning data centers and corporate PC populations have driven up IT's power consumption two fold over the last six years, accounting for roughly 3 percent of total U.S. electricity consumption. And nearly half the companies in the S&P 500 are actively reviewing their Corporate Social Responsibility policies.

Taking a proactive approach of managing capacity and optimizing the infrastructure already in place will save an organization millions of dollars, not only from energy and IT resource savings but also in capital expenditures, allowing the budget to be redirected back into innovation.

In response, technology vendors are scrambling to add a touch of green to as many products as possible, from server cooling systems, new processors that emphasize energy management over performance to environmental control devices that affect building heating and cooling conditions.

"The idea behind this approach is so obvious, yet we continue to see IT organizations add more hardware as the business side of the house demands more support for new initiatives," said Bruce Milne, HyPerformix vice president of products and marketing. "It's ironic, actually, that it's the business that generates demand on IT resources, yet complains the most about higher energy costs."

Demand on IT for server support comes from many growth initiatives within the company from mergers, acquisitions, new product releases and major software deployments. In most cases, IT organizations will over-compensate to meet these demands with additional hardware purchases, which only exacerbate the problem of under-utilization and drive up additional energy costs.

More than half of U.S. companies deploy virtualization technologies in the data center to help reduce cost and manage the demand generated by the business. Virtualization is instinctively the right thing to do, but it's too risky to virtualize business critical applications without having some insight into how they will perform under demanding conditions. To have insight that reduces risk, IT needs tools that enable them to predict performance before they make changes to their infrastructure and applications.

By accurately predicting server utilization, IT organizations can effectively cut their carbon footprint by reducing the number of servers in their data centers. This will also increase available space and make data centers more effective, without having to install special cooling features or environmental controls. More importantly, it will save money that can be reallocated for other more strategic initiatives, including environmental products and services, when the time is right. In this case, "green" is good for the environment and the bottom line.

About HyPerformix
The integrated suite of solutions for Predictive IT Management™ enables IT organizations to make informed business decisions to predictably, efficiently, and dependably deliver good business outcomes, productivity and growth.

Headquartered in Austin, Texas, HyPerformix has offices throughout the United States, Europe & Asia. For more information, contact HyPerformix in the US at 1.800.759.6333 and in Europe at 44 870 351 0206 or visit us online at www.hyperformix.com.

HyPerformix and Predictive IT Management are registered trademarks of HyPerformix, Inc. All other trade names, trademarks and registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Website Hosting Provider Flux Services, Inc. Introduces New Ultra UX Plan

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Flux Services, Inc. (http://www.ultrawebsitehosting.com), a website hosting company, has introduced its new Ultra Ux hosting plan.

(PRWEB) September 27, 2007 — Flux Services, Inc. http://www.ultrawebsitehosting.com, a website hosting company, has introduced its' new Ultra Ux hosting plan. The Ultra Ux allows for the hosting of unlimited websites under a single hosting account for a monthly cost of only $9.95 a month. No setup fees or necessary annual contracts are required to receive this offered price.

Features include live support, site builder, website template package, Dual-Core Intel Xeon Servers, a monstrous 150 GBs of disk space and 5TBs of monthly transfer. Other features included are a script installer, daily backups, advanced SPAM protection, automatic web stats, PHP 4.4.x and 5.x support, GD, Imagemagick, Zend Optimizer, Ioncube Loader, hotlink protection, password protect directories, custom error pages, log file accessibility, sub-domains, parking domains, an IP deny manager, Directory Virus Scan, Dreamweaver and FrontPage compatible, website marketing tools and much more. Another offered plan, the Ultra 1x, allows for the hosting of a single website with the above features at a reduced price.

The new plans provide the capability for web designers and developers easier administration with an increased feature set while reducing cost. With the new Ultra Ux plan web designers and developers can add multiple domains and content within seconds. Individual web pages can also receive their own ftp account information used to upload content which allows for micromanagement of accounts as well if required.

With one consolidated interface and one low monthly cost the Ultra Ux hosting plan is an extremely convenient and attractive option for many web designers and developers.

"The Ultra Ux and 1x web hosting plans are the most competitive hosting plans on the market. Without the requisite of an entire year in advance for payment as with most website hosting providers, new clients may sign up for monthly hosting at the same offered price and start using services immediately," explained Mr. David Turner, President and Chief Executive Officer of Flux.

Flux Services also offers to price match competitor hosting plan prices. If a client's existing hosting provider supports the cPanel interface which is a popular control panel for websites provided by many hosting providers, Flux Services also offers to transfer the entire hosting account to their service free of charge. For more information on the Ultra Ux plan visit the following link: http://www.ultrawebsitehosting.com/hosting-plans.php

Flux Services was established in 2002 and provides value website hosting and domain registration services. The company maintains its operations in Seattle, Washington.

 

Visa Unveils New Contactless Payment Device – Visa Micro Tag

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Visa unveils the Visa Micro Tag, a new key fob that allows cardholders to pay by simply waving the device in front of a contactless payment terminal. To celebrate the debut of the new smart card device, Visa Micro Tags loaded with $15 will be distributed to the first 1,000 San Francisco Giants fans entering AT&T Park's Field Club level September 26, 2007.

San Francisco, CA (PRWEB) September 27, 2007 — Visa announced today the availability of the Visa Micro Tag, a new key fob payment device embedded with Visa payWave, Visa's contactless technology feature. The Visa Micro Tag is designed to easily attach to a key ring, and it allows cardholders to pay by simply waving their Visa Micro Tag in front of a contactless smart card reader without the need to physically swipe or insert the device into a point-of-sale terminal.

The Visa Micro Tag allows financial institutions to offer cardholders a companion smart card device to an existing Visa credit, debit or prepaid account. Designed to be small and durable, the Visa Micro Tag makes paying for purchases faster and more convenient.

Visa Micro Tags display the Visa Brand Mark and contactless indicator. A Visa account number is not required to be embossed or printed on the device, providing an additional layer of security for consumers carrying a Visa Micro Tag in visible ways, such as on a keychain.

"Visa cardholders consistently say they would like to use their Visa accounts at more merchant locations and are looking for faster and more convenient transactions," said Pam Zuercher, vice president, product innovation and coordination, Visa USA. "As one of the smallest payment devices, the Visa Micro Tag offers the experience cardholders demand with the added layers of security they expect from Visa."

Visa Micro Tags can be easily manufactured and personalized as part of an automated manufacturing process similar to that of standard cards. This helps issuers control costs while more readily providing an exciting new payment choice to Visa cardholders. The Visa Micro Tag can also be made into a variety of shapes and sizes, from flat to three-dimensional, delivering innovative payment product design options.

Visa Micro Tag Promotion at AT&T Park
To celebrate the debut of the new payment form factor, Visa Micro Tags loaded with $15 will be distributed to the first 1,000 San Francisco Giants fans entering AT&T Park's Field Club level September 26, 2007. In addition to distributing the Visa Micro Tags, Visa ambassadors will educate baseball fans on how the device works and encourage trial at concession stands located throughout the stadium.

Added Zuercher, "After using the Visa Micro Tag, consumers will understand how this innovative device can quickly make their lives easier by speeding them through checkout lines. We believe the Visa Micro Tag will help shape the future of payments."

About Visa PayWave:
Since its introduction in 2005, Visa's contactless technology has grown rapidly in popularity. Customers in the U.S. with Visa payWave cards enjoy the convenience of not having to sign for payments under $25, a feature that also benefits merchant locations where speed is important and where cash has been the traditional means of payment. The technology is already in use at convenience stores, sporting venues, gas stations and fast food restaurants nationwide.

Cardholders with Visa payWave-enabled products receive all the same security protections the industry has come to expect from Visa, including zero liability for fraudulent charges and Visa's industry-leading anti-fraud technology. Cardholders making purchases with Visa PayWave-enabled products enjoy additional layers of security because the payment device never leaves the customer's hand, can only be read at extremely close proximity to a reader, and submits dynamic authorization data to the Visa payment network that is unique to each transaction.

About Visa USA:
Visa USA is a leading payments brand and the nation's largest payments system, enabling banks to provide their consumer and business customers with a wide variety of payment alternatives tailored to meet their evolving needs. Visa USA is committed to increasing the choice, convenience, acceptance and security of Visa payments for all stakeholders — financial institutions, cardholders and merchants. As of March 31, 2007, in the United States, more than 521 million Visa-branded cards have been issued by more than 13,000 financial institution customers.

Visa products generated $1.8 trillion in total volume in the United States during the four quarters ended March 31, 2007. Visa enjoys unsurpassed acceptance around the globe. For more information, visit www.visa.com.

TechHotline Announces Low-Cost Technical Support Service

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The TechHotline, an industry innovator in corporate technical support, announced a $24.95 flat-fee, "fixed or free" service for all consumers nationwide.

Boston, MA (PRWEB) September 26, 2007 — The TechHotline, an industry innovator in corporate technical support, announced a $24.95 flat-fee, "fixed or free" service for all consumers nationwide. From its headquarters in Massachusetts, the TechHotline launched its new number, 1-866-76-FixPC, with radio ads and new website, www.techhotline.us. Opening its support system to the public is part of a bold new strategy to provide home consumers with the same professional level of service that corporate users enjoy at big companies.

"Traditional technical support options for home users are terrible," says Matthew Ferrara, CEO of the TechHotline. "Most manufacturers overcharge for service or provide low quality support. The whole industry charges too much for poor quality support. We think the consumer deserves much better and we can do it at a much lower cost."

  The TechHotline's new public line, 1-866-76-FixPC, supports a wide variety of computer problems, such as operating systems, office productivity software and email, plus accessories like digital cameras, printers, scanners and wireless routers. Special services such as virus removal and spyware elimination offer consumers options rather than doing it on their own.

"Consumers deserve fast, friendly support. We have a proven record of answering the phone quickly and fixing problems by logging on to the customer's computer. They sit back and let us do the repairs. And we charge less than half of most other companies," Ferrara adds.

The TechHotline has been providing support to corporate customers since 1999. Adding the public line was the logical next step in transforming the support industry. "The consumer usually has nowhere to turn. Vendors make them wait on hold forever. Downloading programs from the internet is risky." With home computers in the sub-$500 range, many repair bills end up almost as much as the computer. "That's why we charge $24.95 for almost all of our calls," says Ferrara, "and we fix it, or it's free." Some specialty services do cost more, Ferrara acknowledges, such as networking or a system cleanup, "but we're still cheaper, faster, better all around."

About The TechHotline
The TechHotline, owned and operated by Matthew Ferrara & Company, is located in Massachusetts, serving more than 600,000 business users nationwide. The service was founded because its owners were frustrated with their experiences with outsourced support that didn't care about the customer. The company's core principles are: answer the phone fast, employ friendly technicians and fix the problem. The TechHotline answers 10,000 calls a month, with an average wait time under two minutes, employing the latest support tools at its state-of-the-art call center to deliver a totally different technical support experience to consumers. For more information about the TechHotline, visit www.techhotline.us

 

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