Forex Trading - Using Neural Networks for Huge Profits

Today, we are seeing the increasing use of neural networks in financial markets to help forecast prices with greater accuracy and the complexity and research is mind boggling. This article will look at the use of neural networks in financial trading and their profit potential.

The Human Brain V Computers

The human brain is one of the most complex objects if not the most complex object known to man. It is not just its superior processing speed and storage space that make it extraordinary, but more importantly, its ability to learn and adapt.

Neural Networks Defined

Computer scientists have tried to write software that allows computers to mimic the learning power of the brain (computers already have superior storage and processing speed) and neural networks aim to help a computer learn and adapt.

A neural network is essentially a system of programs and data structures that approximates the operation of the human brain. A neural network consists of a large number of processors operating in parallel, each with its own sphere of knowledge and access to its own databank.

A neural network is "trained" by being given large amounts of data and a set of rules.

A computer program can then tell the network how to react in response to an external event and initiate reactions based on the knowledge it has access to.

Therefore in forex trading, neural networks can learn how to trade based upon the data fed to them.

Do They Work?

The answer is at present the human brain is and always will be superior, due to the fact it can THINK independently. A computer can never achieve the learning power of the human brain as it can only work with the rules it’s programmed with.

A computer program can trade, but do you need a neural network.

There are computer programs today, that don’t use neural networks, that have rules that make money and neural networks don’t have any advantage at all.

People think that technology can solve everything, but the markets are one area where simple systems can and do work best.

An Investment Fact

The fact is that 50 years ago 95% of forex traders lost and today the same ratio applies.

This is despite all the advances we have had in market research, computers and speed of information delivery. Keeps this point in mind if you want to win at forex trading:

Trading is an odds game and the application of science to predict is doomed to failure.

There will never be a neural network with the power to learn and adapt like the human brain, as it has to be programmed by a human and there are endless variables.

Keep it Simple For Success

If someone tries to sell you a program or service based upon neural networking, ask for their real time track record and see if you get one – chances are you wont.

People are always looking for science to help but in the markets forget neutral networks and play the odds.

Either with your brain or with a currency trading system, that’s simple with just a few rules – that’s all you need, don’t look for more.

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Applications of Neural Networks

Neural Networks in Practice

Given this description of neural networks and how they work, what real world applications are they suited for? Neural networks have broad applicability to real world business problems. In fact, they have already been successfully applied in many industries.

Since neural networks are best at identifying patterns or trends in data, they are well suited for prediction or forecasting needs including:

• sales forecasting
• industrial process control
• customer research
• data validation
• risk management
• target marketing

But to give you some more specific examples; ANN are also used in the following specific paradigms: recognition of speakers in communications; diagnosis of hepatitis; recovery of telecommunications from faulty software; interpretation of multimeaning Chinese words; undersea mine detection; texture analysis; three-dimensional object recognition; hand-written word recognition; and facial recognition.


Neural networks in medicine

Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) are currently a 'hot' research area in medicine and it is believed that they will receive extensive application to biomedical systems in the next few years. At the moment, the research is mostly on modelling parts of the human body and recognising diseases from various scans (e.g. cardiograms, CAT scans, ultrasonic scans, etc.).

Neural networks are ideal in recognising diseases using scans since there is no need to provide a specific algorithm on how to identify the disease. Neural networks learn by example so the details of how to recognise the disease are not needed. What is needed is a set of examples that are representative of all the variations of the disease. The quantity of examples is not as important as the 'quantity'. The examples need to be selected very carefully if the system is to perform reliably and efficiently.


Modelling and Diagnosing the Cardiovascular System

Neural Networks are used experimentally to model the human cardiovascular system. Diagnosis can be achieved by building a model of the cardiovascular system of an individual and comparing it with the real time physiological measurements taken from the patient. If this routine is carried out regularly, potential harmful medical conditions can be detected at an early stage and thus make the process of combating the disease much easier.

A model of an individual's cardiovascular system must mimic the relationship among physiological variables (i.e., heart rate, systolic and diastolic blood pressures, and breathing rate) at different physical activity levels. If a model is adapted to an individual, then it becomes a model of the physical condition of that individual. The simulator will have to be able to adapt to the features of any individual without the supervision of an expert. This calls for a neural network.

Another reason that justifies the use of ANN technology, is the ability of ANNs to provide sensor fusion which is the combining of values from several different sensors. Sensor fusion enables the ANNs to learn complex relationships among the individual sensor values, which would otherwise be lost if the values were individually analysed. In medical modelling and diagnosis, this implies that even though each sensor in a set may be sensitive only to a specific physiological variable, ANNs are capable of detecting complex medical conditions by fusing the data from the individual biomedical sensors.


Electronic noses

ANNs are used experimentally to implement electronic noses. Electronic noses have several potential applications in telemedicine. Telemedicine is the practice of medicine over long distances via a communication link. The electronic nose would identify odours in the remote surgical environment. These identified odours would then be electronically transmitted to another site where an door generation system would recreate them. Because the sense of smell can be an important sense to the surgeon, telesmell would enhance telepresent surgery.


Instant Physician

An application developed in the mid-1980s called the "instant physician" trained an autoassociative memory neural network to store a large number of medical records, each of which includes information on symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment for a particular case. After training, the net can be presented with input consisting of a set of symptoms; it will then find the full stored pattern that represents the "best" diagnosis and treatment.


Neural Networks in business

Business is a diverted field with several general areas of specialisation such as accounting or financial analysis. Almost any neural network application would fit into one business area or financial analysis.

There is some potential for using neural networks for business purposes, including resource allocation and scheduling. There is also a strong potential for using neural networks for database mining, that is, searching for patterns implicit within the explicitly stored information in databases. Most of the funded work in this area is classified as proprietary. Thus, it is not possible to report on the full extent of the work going on. Most work is applying neural networks, such as the Hopfield-Tank network for optimization and scheduling.


Marketing

There is a marketing application which has been integrated with a neural network system. The Airline Marketing Tactician (a trademark abbreviated as AMT) is a computer system made of various intelligent technologies including expert systems. A feedforward neural network is integrated with the AMT and was trained using back-propagation to assist the marketing control of airline seat allocations. The adaptive neural approach was amenable to rule expression. Additionaly, the application's environment changed rapidly and constantly, which required a continuously adaptive solution. The system is used to monitor and recommend booking advice for each departure. Such information has a direct impact on the profitability of an airline and can provide a technological advantage for users of the system. [Hutchison & Stephens, 1987]

While it is significant that neural networks have been applied to this problem, it is also important to see that this intelligent technology can be integrated with expert systems and other approaches to make a functional system. Neural networks were used to discover the influence of undefined interactions by the various variables. While these interactions were not defined, they were used by the neural system to develop useful conclusions. It is also noteworthy to see that neural networks can influence the bottom line.


Credit Evaluation

The HNC company, founded by Robert Hecht-Nielsen, has developed several neural network applications. One of them is the Credit Scoring system which increase the profitability of the existing model up to 27%. The HNC neural systems were also applied to mortgage screening. A neural network automated mortgage insurance underwritting system was developed by the Nestor Company. This system was trained with 5048 applications of which 2597 were certified. The data related to property and borrower qualifications. In a conservative mode the system agreed on the underwritters on 97% of the cases. In the liberal model the system agreed 84% of the cases. This is system run on an Apollo DN3000 and used 250K memory while processing a case file in approximately 1 sec.

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Architecture of Neural Networks

Feed-forward networks

Feed-forward ANNs (figure 1) allow signals to travel one way only; from input to output. There is no feedback (loops) i.e. the output of any layer does not affect that same layer. Feed-forward ANNs tend to be straight forward networks that associate inputs with outputs. They are extensively used in pattern recognition. This type of organisation is also referred to as bottom-up or top-down.

Feedback networks

Feedback networks can have signals travelling in both directions by introducing loops in the network. Feedback networks are very powerful and can get extremely complicated. Feedback networks are dynamic; their 'state' is changing continuously until they reach an equilibrium point. They remain at the equilibrium point until the input changes and a new equilibrium needs to be found. Feedback architectures are also referred to as interactive or recurrent, although the latter term is often used to denote feedback connections in single-layer organisations.

Simple feed forward network Complicated Network


















Network layers

The commonest type of artificial neural network consists of three groups, or layers, of units: a layer of "input" units is connected to a layer of "hidden" units, which is connected to a layer of "output" units.

* The activity of the input units represents the raw information that is fed into the network.

* The activity of each hidden unit is determined by the activities of the input units and the weights on the connections between the input and the hidden units.

* The behaviour of the output units depends on the activity of the hidden units and the weights between the hidden and output units.

This simple type of network is interesting because the hidden units are free to construct their own representations of the input. The weights between the input and hidden units determine when each hidden unit is active, and so by modifying these weights, a hidden unit can choose what it represents.

We also distinguish single-layer and multi-layer architectures. The single-layer organisation, in which all units are connected to one another, constitutes the most general case and is of more potential computational power than hierarchically structured multi-layer organisations. In multi-layer networks, units are often numbered by layer, instead of following a global numbering.

Perceptrons

The most influential work on neural nets in the 60's went under the heading of 'perceptrons' a term coined by Frank Rosenblatt. The perceptron turns out to be an MCP model ( neuron with weighted inputs ) with some additional, fixed, pre--processing. Units labelled A1, A2, Aj , Ap are called association units and their task is to extract specific, localised featured from the input images. Perceptrons mimic the basic idea behind the mammalian visual system. They were mainly used in pattern recognition even though their capabilities extended a lot more.

In 1969 Minsky and Papert wrote a book in which they described the limitations of single layer Perceptrons. The impact that the book had was tremendous and caused a lot of neural network researchers to loose their interest. The book was very well written and showed mathematically that single layer perceptrons could not do some basic pattern recognition operations like determining the parity of a shape or determining whether a shape is connected or not. What they did not realised, until the 80's, is that given the appropriate training, multilevel perceptrons can do these operations.

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Human and Artificial Neurones - investigating the similarities

How the Human Brain Learns?

Much is still unknown about how the brain trains itself to process information, so theories abound. In the human brain, a typical neuron collects signals from others through a host of fine structures called dendrites. The neuron sends out spikes of electrical activity through a long, thin stand known as an axon, which splits into thousands of branches. At the end of each branch, a structure called a synapse converts the activity from the axon into electrical effects that inhibit or excite activity from the axon into electrical effects that inhibit or excite activity in the connected neurones. When a neuron receives excitatory input that is sufficiently large compared with its inhibitory input, it sends a spike of electrical activity down its axon. Learning occurs by changing the effectiveness of the synapses so that the influence of one neuron on another changes.












Components of a neuron The synapse


From Human Neurones to Artificial Neurones

We conduct these neural networks by first trying to deduce the essential features of neurones and their interconnections. We then typically program a computer to simulate these features. However because our knowledge of neurones is incomplete and our computing power is limited, our models are necessarily gross idealisations of real networks of neurones.

The neuron model

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Introduction to Neural Networks

What is a Neural Network?

An Artificial Neural Network (ANN) is an information processing paradigm that is inspired by the way biological nervous systems, such as the brain, process information. The key element of this paradigm is the novel structure of the information processing system. It is composed of a large number of highly interconnected processing elements (neurones) working in unison to solve specific problems. ANNs, like people, learn by example. An ANN is configured for a specific application, such as pattern recognition or data classification, through a learning process. Learning in biological systems involves adjustments to the synaptic connections that exist between the neurones. This is true of ANNs as well.

Historical background

Neural network simulations appear to be a recent development. However, this field was established before the advent of computers, and has survived at least one major setback and several eras.

Many importand advances have been boosted by the use of inexpensive computer emulations. Following an initial period of enthusiasm, the field survived a period of frustration and disrepute. During this period when funding and professional support was minimal, important advances were made by relatively few reserchers. These pioneers were able to develop convincing technology which surpassed the limitations identified by Minsky and Papert. Minsky and Papert, published a book (in 1969) in which they summed up a general feeling of frustration (against neural networks) among researchers, and was thus accepted by most without further analysis. Currently, the neural network field enjoys a resurgence of interest and a corresponding increase in funding.

The first artificial neuron was produced in 1943 by the neurophysiologist Warren McCulloch and the logician Walter Pits. But the technology available at that time did not allow them to do too much.

Why use neural networks?

Neural networks, with their remarkable ability to derive meaning from complicated or imprecise data, can be used to extract patterns and detect trends that are too complex to be noticed by either humans or other computer techniques. A trained neural network can be thought of as an "expert" in the category of information it has been given to analyse. This expert can then be used to provide projections given new situations of interest and answer "what if" questions.
Other advantages include:

Adaptive learning:
An ability to learn how to do tasks based on the data given for training or initial experience.

Self-Organisation:
An ANN can create its own organisation or representation of the information it receives during learning time.

Real Time Operation:
ANN computations may be carried out in parallel, and special hardware devices are being designed and manufactured which take advantage of this capability.

Fault Tolerance via Redundant Information Coding:
Partial destruction of a network leads to the corresponding degradation of performance. However, some network capabilities may be retained even with major network damage.

Neural networks versus conventional computers

Neural networks take a different approach to problem solving than that of conventional computers. Conventional computers use an algorithmic approach i.e. the computer follows a set of instructions in order to solve a problem. Unless the specific steps that the computer needs to follow are known the computer cannot solve the problem. That restricts the problem solving capability of conventional computers to problems that we already understand and know how to solve. But computers would be so much more useful if they could do things that we don't exactly know how to do.

Neural networks process information in a similar way the human brain does. The network is composed of a large number of highly interconnected processing elements(neurones) working in parallel to solve a specific problem. Neural networks learn by example. They cannot be programmed to perform a specific task. The examples must be selected carefully otherwise useful time is wasted or even worse the network might be functioning incorrectly. The disadvantage is that because the network finds out how to solve the problem by itself, its operation can be unpredictable.

On the other hand, conventional computers use a cognitive approach to problem solving; the way the problem is to solved must be known and stated in small unambiguous instructions. These instructions are then converted to a high level language program and then into machine code that the computer can understand. These machines are totally predictable; if anything goes wrong is due to a software or hardware fault.

Neural networks and conventional algorithmic computers are not in competition but complement each other. There are tasks are more suited to an algorithmic approach like arithmetic operations and tasks that are more suited to neural networks. Even more, a large number of tasks, require systems that use a combination of the two approaches (normally a conventional computer is used to supervise the neural network) in order to perform at maximum efficiency.

Neural networks do not perform miracles.
But if used sensibly they can produce some amazing results.

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Cisco live! 09 - 20 Years of Networkers

Cisco Live is Cisco’s annual IT and communications conference and this year is the 20th Anniversary of the Cisco Networkers program.

“This year marks the 20th anniversary of Networkers, which has grown into Cisco Live, our annual IT and communications conference. Much has changed since that first conference in 1989. But one thing remains as true today as it was then: knowledge is power. That simple phrase is the perfect theme for Cisco Live 2009. Innovative, creative, and knowledgeable people and businesses will always have a powerful competitive edge. In a challenging economy, it’s even more vital to hone the skills that can help you weather today’s uncertainties and prepare for new opportunities in the future.

We realize the value of your time and have designed this year’s conference to be the most relevant and worthwhile event you will attend this year. Our curriculum of more than 400 sessions is organized by functional tracks, so you can focus on the technical training, certification programs, and education most relevant to your needs, or you can expand your knowledge base by exploring new and emerging technologies.

The reasons that made Networkers a smart idea in 1989 hold strong for Cisco Live 2009. The more you know, the more powerful and successful you and your company will be, today and in the future. Cisco Live isn’t just a wise investment, it also promises to be a lot of fun. We’re excited about hosting this year’s event right in our backyard. I look forward to seeing you in San Francisco.” said John Chambers, chairman and CEO, Cisco.

Program Highlights

John Chambers Keynote: Hear directly from Cisco’s Chairman and CEO about the company’s vision for a new era of networking solutions and the ways in which information technology can help companies survive and thrive in a challenging economic climate.

Networkers Technical Program: Topics at the Networkers Technical Program range from security to mobility to unified communications and collaboration. The information, training, and certification opportunities in this program can help IT professionals at all experience levels and specializations hone their skills and add value to their organizations.

Super Sessions: Don’t miss these one-of-a-kind sessions on the ideas shaping today’s business and technology climate. You’ll gain the broader perspective from Cisco partners and customers that can help you better understand the impact of emerging trends on your own business.

IT Management Program: The business of IT continually evolves as IT managers strive to complete a growing number of projects with limited resources. The IT Management Program provides broad overviews of current and emerging technologies, including discussions of the management implications of new solutions, suggestions on best practices, and insight into managing change and market transitions.

Developer Services Program: Today’s networks do more than help organizations share data. Voice, video, and mobility applications are now critical to the ways businesses communicate and collaborate. Take an in-depth look at the next generation of network applications and the way they support new business methods and paradigms.

Ask-the-Expert Panels, Meet the Engineer, and Technology Solutions Clinics: Want to hear the latest on Cisco® solutions directly from the source? You’ll have several opportunities to pick the brains of Cisco’s top engineering talent and find out the how and why behind Cisco technologies.

World of Solutions: The innovation and creativity of more than 140 Cisco partners is on display at the World of Solutions. Here’s your chance to explore solutions from Cisco’s partner ecosystem and tap into the expertise and insight of Cisco representatives.

Service Provider Program: Networks are the fabric that knits businesses together. This new program addresses the unique concerns of service providers and the technologies they rely on that enable their clients to communicate, collaborate, and innovate.

Social Events: You’ve heard the age-old wisdom about all work and no play. Give your brain a break by attending Monday’s 20th Anniversary Welcome reception, Tuesday’s World of Solutions reception, Wednesday’s Customer Appreciation Event—and watch for the networking opportunities throughout the week.

Events and Activities

Cisco Challenge: Think you’re the ultimate network expert? Now you can prove it. Put your individual knowledge to the test for a chance to win great prizes, or choose sides and join the team competition.

Cisco Booth: Cisco experts will be on hand to answer your questions and share their insights on the latest networking trends and technologies.

Ask-the-Expert Panels: Join the interactive discussions with Cisco’s panel of experts in a lively group setting.

Cisco TelePresence: Encounter the next level of collaboration with a realistic, “in-person” experience that helps organizations all over the world do business faster, better and more cost-effectively.

Solutions Theater, Cisco Booth: See live demonstrations of Cisco and partner solutions that are ready to improve the way you do business today. Presentations run throughout the day, so visit the Cisco booth for the latest schedule.

Cisco Powered Partner Pavilion: Want the latest networking capabilities at a lower cost? See how service providers – including members of the Cisco Powered Program – can help you use your IT investment more strategically.

Meet the Engineer: Schedule some quality one-on-one time with a Cisco engineer, Cisco Fellow, or senior Cisco development engineer to explore specific solutions to your unique challenges.

Technical Solutions Clinic: Drop by for an informal whiteboard discussion with Cisco technology experts on network implementations, applications, solutions integration, and more.

Passport Program: Sharpen your knowledge about solutions from Cisco Partners—and earn a chance to win. You’ll accrue points every time you have your badge scanned at a partner booth in the World of Solutions. You can also earn extra points for completing session evaluations and activating your Cisco Live Virtual account.

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Welcome to Cisco Live!

Don't miss the year's premier education and training event for IT, networking, and communications professionals. Join us in San Francisco June 27-July 2, 2009, for the 20th anniversary of Cisco Networkers.

Networkers

Businesses everywhere are looking to their IT professionals to help extract more value from their networks. Cisco Live 2009 is the industry’s premier educational and training event for the people who help their organizations innovate and collaborate by sharing information more effectively.

Service Provider

What challenges will service providers face in delivering richer voice, video, and data experiences in a world of tightening budgets and evolving technologies? The Service Provider program at Cisco Live 2009 offers an in-depth look at trends and technologies in key areas such as mobile and fixed access, distribution and core transport, and application optimization.

IT Management Program

Today’s IT managers juggle a continually changing array of technologies and business challenges. Cisco Live offers a strategic look at the impact of trends such as globalization, Web 2.0, cloud computing, and “green” initiatives and explores how to use IT budgets and resources for more effective approaches to cost management and business productivity.

Cisco Live

Help us celebrate the 20th anniversary of Cisco Networkers! Cisco Live is Cisco's annual IT and communications conference. The conference features Networkers, our premier education and training program, and other special programs designed to meet the diverse needs of today's IT and communications professional from increasing technical proficiency to understanding the impact of technology on business.

San Francisco, California
June 27 - July 2, 2009

Cisco Networkers

Cisco Networkers are Cisco's annual user conferences that serve the global IT and communications community through local offerings that combine technical training with networking opportunities and the latest products and information from Cisco and Cisco Partners.

At Cisco Networkers, Cisco engineers and developers will give you the intensive, comprehensive technical training you need to turn today's change into a competitive advantage.

We look forward to seeing you at one of our exciting events around the world.

Brisbane, Australia
September 28 - 1 October, 2009

Acapulco, Mexico
September 2-4, 2009

Networkers at Cisco Live 2010

Following many years as the IT industry’s leading educational, training and networking conference, Europe's flagship technology event Cisco Networkers will join the Cisco Live family in 2010. Continuing to meet the complex requirements of IT and communications professionals, Networkers at Cisco Live will equip delegates and their organisations with the technical knowledge needed to stay competitive in today's challenging economy. This must attend event takes place in the vibrant city of Barcelona and is not to be missed by anyone wanting to learn about smarter, more powerful approaches to the way we work, live, play and learn.

Barcelona, Spain
January 25-28, 2010

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Forex Network

Forex. For what? To some, the Forex network is shrouded in mystery. But what is it, exactly? (Hint: it’s not an ultra-secret international WAN maintained by the Fantastic Four and the X-Men.)

Forex, also known simply as the “FX,” is the commonly accepted abbreviation for the over-the-counter Foreign Exchange market.

The currency volume on Forex is huge — exceeding a trillion dollars each day. Forex exists on a 24-hour-a-day global network that spans corporate, banking, and individual interests. There is no central trading floor. Currency is traded around the world and around the clock, with fluctuations responding to speculation on the latest news as it happens.

The lion’s share of Forex trades involve the Major currencies: the Australian Dollar, British Pound, Canadian Dollar, Euro, Japanese Yen, Swiss Franc, and US Dollar.

Currencies are bought and sold simultaneously on Forex. For instance, a US Dollar/Japanese Yen (USD/JPY) trade would buy US Dollars while selling Yen.

The Forex was traditionally a playground for the monolithic international banks and substantial corporations. Times have changed, however, and it’s now possible for the small investor to enter the speculative waters of currency trading.

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Latency becomes critical for Forex brokers

With latency becoming a key issue now that Forex brokers move to STP execution rather than Market Making it is interesting to see the results of the latest StreamBase survey.

latency: (computer science) the time it takes for a specific block of data on a data track to rotate around to the read/write head.

From Forex perspective that means execution time: how long it takes from the click on order execution and until you receive a confirmation that the order was actually executed. It is also probably the issue that gets the most complains from Forex traders.

For Market Makers this issue doesn’t exist as they choose whether to accept the trade or not, and are not dependent on latency issues.

StreamBase announced today the results of its “FX Trading and Technology Trends in 2009” survey. Participants included over 200 buy- and sell-side individuals who are actively trading FX.

“The survey results indicate that innovation in electronic FX trading is on the rise and that more and more firms are looking to improve their speed of trade executions, largely through the implementation of low latency technologies,” said independent analyst Bob Giffords. “Spending in these areas appears to be increasing as firms begin to connect to more venues and advance the sophistication of their trading infrastructure,” he explained.

Key findings of the 2009 FX Trading and Technology Trends report include:

- 89.6% of firms plan to increase spending on low latency technologies in the next 18 months
- 64.6% execute FX trades electronically in order to improve execution speed
- 47.7% of firms plan to change or add electronic FX venues, primarily for better pricing
- 68.7% use algorithms for their FX trading or plan to do so
- Access to liquidity is the single most important selection criteria for choosing an FX trading platform

“This survey confirmed that electronic trading in foreign exchange is rife with opportunity. A technology arms race has begun in FX and automated, low-latency trading is the main battlefield in that race,” said Mark Palmer, Chief Executive Officer of StreamBase Systems. Palmer continued, “CEP is rapidly becoming the defacto application development platform to quickly build, deploy, and evolve automated FX trading applications. We’re seeing a broad range of CEP applications in FX including those for real-time, aggregated market data management, FX price targeting, algorithmic trading and multi-venue FX execution.”

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Is Social Networking The New Wave In Forex Marketing?

This morning, Ideal World Forex, a full-service Hong Kong broker, announced the formation of a new online Forex Trading Room where clients can interact, share ideas and continue their ongoing trading education.

Ideal World traders will have access to a platform where participants can chat, post charts and interact via VOIP. In addition the Forex Trading Room will allow traders to draw and illustrate in the room on actual trading charts in real-time.

Currensee, a Boston area company, created the first Forex decision-making network where like-minded traders could connect with each other and share unique insights based on the actual trading activity of the community. Currensee traders, like Ideal World traders, can collaborate based on real trade activity and can share trades and positions with their teammates in real-time.

Currensee and Ideal World are pioneering a new way for Forex traders to look at the market to make trading decisions.

So, who will be the next to jump on this feature-rich, marketing bandwagon?

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Forex Trading Software - Trading Desk Pro

Trading Desk Pro is a forex trading software which incorporates all of the front end and back office functionality required to provide information and dealing / trading capabilities on Forex market to individual investors across the Internet.

Trading Desk Pro's forex trading software windows based format allows easy navigation and customization of pages to suit your requirements.

You can place market orders on real-time prices and execute your trade with a click of a mouse.

You can set a "stop order" which can automatically close a trade if it reaches the value you specify, in case the market moves in the direction opposite of what you accepted.

You can set a "limit order" which can close the trade when it reaches the profit value you are targeting.

Any of these and other options can be changed at any time. And all of this is done through your Trading Desk Pro over the Internet in seconds.

A comprehensive records of past and present trading activity enables you easily monitor positions and orders combined with margin account management.

You have access to real-time charts for major FX instruments, and comprehensive charting facilities. There are different technical studies available, including: Moving Averages, Bollinger bands, RSIs, stochastics, Elliot waves etc..

You can also make and run your own indicators with our script language identical to EasyLanguage, or use your favorite indicators from TradeStation.

Download new Trading Desk Pro v 4.5.1 e forex trading software from http (~ 2.8 Mb)

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High Street Networking

High Street Networking was founded in 1998 with the only objective - to provide for all professional needs of Forex Traders all over the world via internet-based trading system Dealing Desk 2005^TM.

From 1998 HSN is using internet trading software system (client terminal, brokerage system and so on) called Dealing Desk from our partner Forex Euroclub Ltd., the biggest Russian brokerage company. HSN is using this system because it was the first dealing software that has integrated internet dealing, charting, news and money transfer modules in the world in 1998.

High Street Networking was the first company in the world that offered mini forex servicies (10 000 base currency trading lot) via internet based trading system.

To make money transfers for clients easier HSN was established as off-shore company and was based in UK, Virginia Islands, Tortola, Road Town.

Our service Bank (POPULAR BANK) is based in Cyprus, Nicosia, Elephteria Square, 2. and is the member of Laiki Banking Group that provides forex and banking services in UK, Greece, Australia, South Africa and so on. From 1998 till 2005 we have provided mini forex service nearly to 6 000 clients from various countries from US to China and Iran.

The Activity of High Street Networking is regulated by the Trading Rules integrated in the Dealing Desk 2005^TM.

Each member of System, is using the client interface, has its own level of the access to information and functionality of the Dealing Desk 2005^TM system.

There are three levels of membership:

Administrative Level – Forex Dealers (brokerage accounts)

Trading Level – Forex Traders (real accounts)

Study Level – Students (demo accounts)

Forex Dealers – are Market Makers of Dealing Desk 2005^TM system with their own aggregate accounts which allows them to open individual trading accounts for their clients and provide them with access to their dealing room. Executions of all clients orders are passed under the direct control of the High Street Networking.

Forex Traders – Clients of the Forex dealers. Traders, can open or reopen their individual trading account(s), deposit their marginal funds and trade currencies on forex market.

Students – Can be anyone interested in trying a demo account of the Dealing Desk 2005^TM free of charge. Also, anyone who'd like to take a part in the competition and try his own high profitable strategy based on forex trading.

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Cisco Courses

CCNP Courses 1 through 4

The Cisco CCNP® curriculum includes four modules, which align with the four exams required for CCNP certification. The CCNP curriculum builds on Cisco CCNA® courses with more complex network configurations, diagnosis, and troubleshooting. The curriculum is intended for those interested in continuing their post-CCNA preparation to become network administrators, Level 2 support engineers, Level 2 systems engineers, network technicians, or deployment engineers. Students interested in this course should have completed CCNA 1-4, or the equivalents. CCNA certification is also desirable; however, it is not a prerequisite. The new CCNP courses can be taken in any order. However it is recommended that students take Building Multilayer Switched Networks before taking Optimizing Converged Networks. The four courses include: Building Scalable Internetworks, Implementing Secured Converged Wide-area Networks, Building Multilayer Switched Networks, and Optimizing Converged Networks.

CCNA Courses 1 through 4

CCNA Courses 1 through 4 of the Academy program, equivalent to 280 hours of instruction, provide students with a basic foundation in networking. Students who successfully complete this portion of the program are eligible to earn Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA™) certification. The first four courses are available at the secondary and post-secondary levels.

CCNA Exploration

The Cisco CCNA Exploration curriculum provides a comprehensive overview of networking; from fundamentals to advanced applications and services. It is based on a top-down approach to networking that is popular in many colleges and universities. This course emphasizes theoretical concepts and practical application, while providing opportunities for students to gain the skills and hands-on experience needed to design, install, operate, and maintain networks in small-to-medium businesses, as well as enterprise and service provider environments.

CCNA Exploration offers in-depth theory, challenging labs, and a detailed overview of protocol operations. It is designed for students with advanced problem-solving and analytical skills, such as degree candidates in engineering, math, or science, or for working professionals who would like to advance their careers or gain certification. CCNA Exploration was designed to be integrated into technology curricula or continuing education programs at post secondary institutions such as technical schools, colleges, and universities.

CCNA Discovery

The Cisco CCNA Discovery curriculum provides foundational networking knowledge, practical experience, opportunities for career exploration, and soft-skills development to help students prepare for entry-level careers in IT and networking. The curriculum offers a hands-on approach to learning, and uses interactive tools and easy-to-follow labs to help students learn the general theory needed to build networks.

CCNA Discovery is designed to be offered as an independent, standalone curriculum or combined with programs offered by secondary schools, technical schools, colleges, and universities. Students who enroll in CCNA Discovery are not expected to have any previous technical skills or knowledge, aside from basic PC skills.

CCNA Curricula Overview

Studies around the world show a growing demand for IT professionals and a critical shortage of qualified candidates to fill the positions. In today’s global economy, skills need to be transferable across borders to meet these market demands. The Cisco Networking Academy provides these skills with a learning experience supported by high quality curricula, assessments, instructor training, hands-on labs, and classroom interaction delivered consistently worldwide.

And with our CCNA curricula, CCNA Discovery and CCNA Exploration, a world of possibilities opens up for individuals looking to gain a competitive edge and be successful in a wide range of networking careers today and in the future.

Designed to meet the diverse needs of students from secondary schools, technical schools, colleges, and universities, our CCNA curricula offer an alternative to a “one size fits all” approach. We help students successfully learn the content by using different teaching methodologies for different types of students. Both CCNA Discovery and CCNA Exploration provide students around the world the opportunity to discover their career passions, explore their career options and enjoy the ‘Mind Wide Open’ possibilities.

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Cisco Catalyst switch

Catalyst is the brand name for a variety of network switches sold by Cisco Systems. While commonly associated with Ethernet switches, a number of different interfaces have been available throughout the history of the brand. Cisco acquired several different companies and rebranded their products as different versions of the Catalyst product line. The original Catalyst 5000 and 6000 series were based on products originally developed by Crescendo Communications. The 1700, 1900, and 2800 -series Catalysts came from Grand Junction Networks, and the Catalyst 3000 came from Kalpana in 1994. [1]

In addition, Cisco increasingly offers routers with switching capabilities, and indeed Cisco's 7600 router line and 6500 switch line have interchangeable parts. Even Cisco's smaller routers, including their newest "ISR" series, can have switch modules installed in them - basically making Cisco's smaller switches fully integrated devices.

Operating systems

In most cases, the technology for the Catalyst Switch was developed separately from Cisco's router technology. The Catalyst switches traditionally ran software called CatOS rather than the more widely known Cisco IOS software used by routers. However, this has changed as the product lines have merged closer together. In some cases, particularly in the modular chassis switches, a configuration called 'Hybrid' has emerged - this is where the layer 2 functions are configured using CatOS, and the layer 3 elements are configured using IOS. 'Native IOS' can also be found with newer software versions that have eliminated CatOS entirely in favor of IOS, even on hardware that originally required CatOS.

The latest version of IOS for the Catalyst 6500 series is 12.2(33)SXI which enables ISSU via IOS Software Modularity.

Some newer Catalyst switch models (with recent versions of the Cisco IOS) also allow configuration via web-based graphical interface module which is hosted on a HTTP server located on the switch. The IOS config-mode command 'ip http-server' will enable this style of configuration. In series 12.x IOS, 'ip http-server' is always on as a factory default. The Catalyst 3750-series of switches is an example of a Cisco Catalyst switch that allows this style of GUI configuration via HTTP.

Some newer models of Catalyst switches (called Catalyst Express) no longer allow access to IOS or CatOS at all - these switches can only be configured by using a Graphical User Interface (GUI).

Interfaces

As Catalyst devices are primarily Ethernet switches, all modern Catalyst models have Ethernet interfaces, ranging from 10 Mbit/s to 10 Gbit/s depending on the model. Some models can accommodate Asynchronous Transfer Mode interfaces which can be used to bridge Ethernet traffic across wide area networks. Other models can support T1, E1, and ISDN PRI interfaces to provide connections to the PSTN. Legacy models supported a variety of interfaces, such as token ring, FDDI, and 100BaseVG, but are no longer sold by Cisco Systems.

Most models have basic layer 2 functions and are capable of switching Ethernet frames between ports. Commonly found additional features are VLANs, trunking (Cisco proprietary ISL or IEEE 802.1Q) and QoS or CoS. The switches, whether IOS or CatOS, are fully manageable.

Many Catalysts that run IOS are also capable of functioning as a router, making them layer 3 devices; when coupled with TCP and UDP filtering, these switches are capable of layer 2-4 operation. Depending on the exact software image, a Catalyst that runs IOS may be able to tackle large-scale enterprise routing tasks, using router technologies like OSPF or BGP.

Most chassis-based Catalyst models have the concept of field-replaceable "supervisor" cards. These work by separating the line cards, chassis, and processing engine (mirroring most Cisco router designs). The chassis provides power and a high-speed backplane, the line cards provide interfaces to the outside world, and the processing engine moves packets, participates in routing protocols, etc. This gives several advantages:

* If a failure occurs, only the failed component needs to be replaced (typically a line card or supervisor). This means faster turnaround than having to uncable, unbolt, pull out, replace, re-bolt, and re-cable an entire switch, which may be as large as a quarter-rack, weigh over 150 pounds, and service over 500 cables.
* A redundant supervisor engine may be installed to rapidly recover from supervisor failures. This is subject to restrictions (as some switches don't support redundant supervisors), but typically results in restoration times under 90 seconds.
* A supervisor engine may be upgraded after purchase, increasing performance and adding features without losing any investment in the rest of the switch.

Additionally, most high-end switches off-load processing away from the supervisors, allowing line cards to switch traffic directly between ports on the same card without using any processing power or even touching the backplane. Naturally, this can't be done for all traffic, but basic layer-2 switching can usually be handled exclusively by the line card, and in many cases also more complex operations can be handled as well.

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Cisco Switch Commands

The Cisco switch IOS have different EXEC modes with distinctive prompts. You can use these modes for executing different Cisco switch commands. Each mode has a set of specific commands.

The fundamentals of Cisco IOS User Interface are as follows :

• Uses a command line interface
• Operations vary on different series of switches
• Type or paste entries in the console command modes
• Enter key instructs device to parse and execute the commands
• Two primary EXEC modes are user mode and privileged mode
• Command modes have distinctive prompts
  
  

Cisco IOS Software Exec

There are two main EXEC modes for entering the Cisco switch commands:

User Mode

Limited examination of switch

Command prompt on the switch is switch

Privileged Mode

Detailed examination of switch

Enables configuration and debugging

Prerequisites for other configuration modes

Command prompt on the router is switches#

Cisco Telnet Commands

There are two primary methods for accessing a Cisco manageable switch to use command line interface.

Out of band Console connection

Via Ethernet through Telnet

Telnet is a utility used for remotely login to a device. To telnet a Cisco IOS switch from your computer, you have to type the following command on the CMD terminal of your computer:

Telnet ip address of the switch Just like:

Telnet 192.168.0.253

Cisco Catalyst 1900 Switch Commands

Followings are some basic commands of Cisco Catalyst 1900 switch commands:

Show running-config:
This command displays the memory status of the Cisco Catalyst 1900 switch

Show interfaces:
This command displays the detailed information about all the interfaces of Cisco
Catalyst 1900 switch.

Show interfaces Ethernet 0/1:
This command displays the detailed information about a specific 10baseT Ethernet interface of the Cisco Catalyst 1900 switch

Show interfaces Fast Ethernet 0/26:
This command displays the detailed information about a specific 100baseT Fast Ethernet interface of the Cisco Catalyst 1900 switch

Show ip:
This command displays the ip configuration of the Cisco Catalyst 1900 switch

Show Mac-address-table:
This command displays the Mac addresses of the devices that are currently connected to the Cisco Catalyst 1900 switch.

Show Mac-address-table security:
This command displays the address table size and the addressing security of each interface of the Cisco Catalyst 1900 switch.

Show VLAN:
This command displays the status of current VLANs enabled on the Cisco Catalyst 1900 switch.
Show VLAN-membership: This command displays the VLAN membership of all the ports on the Cisco Catalyst 1900 switch.

Show Spantree 1:
This command displays the complete information about the spanning tree protocol 1 that is by default enabled on the Cisco Catalyst 1900 switch.

Copy nvram tftp: //host/dst_file:
This command is used to send the configuration to a TFTP server.

Copy tftp: //host/src_file nvram:
This command is used to download the configuration from a TFTP server.

Delete nvram:
This command is used to reset the system configuration to factory defaults.


Show Cisco Switch Commands

Here are some show commands of Cisco switches:

Show version:
This command displays the hardware and software status of the Cisco switch

Show flash:
This command displays the files and directories in the flash of the Cisco switch

Show interfaces:
This command displays the detailed information about all the interfaces of the Cisco switch

Show interfaces fast Ethernet 0/x:
This command displays the detailed information about the specific interface of the Cisco switch

Show interfaces VLAN 1:
This command displays the ip address configuration of VLAN 1

Show running-config:
This command displays the status of RAM

Show startup-config:
This command displays the status of NVRAM

Show-mac-address-table:
This command displays the MAC address of the devices that are directly connected with any port of the switch.

Show port-security: [interface] [address]:
This command displays the port security options on the interface

Show history:
This command displays the last ten commands that are executed in the switch configuration

Show line:
This command is used to view the brief information about all the lines of the Cisco switch

Show line console 0:
This command is used to view the detailed information about the specific line of the Cisco switch Erase startup-config: This command is used to erase the nvram of the Cisco switch

Cisco Switch Configuration Commands

Configure terminal:
This command is used to enter in the global configuration mode of the Cisco switch

Hostname:
This command is used to assign the hostname of the Cisco switch

Enable password:
This command is used to set the enable password of the Cisco switch

Enable secret:
This command is used to set the encrypted password of the Cisco switch that is used for entering in the privileged mode

Interface VLAN 1:
This is a global configuration command used to configure the VLAN interface of the Cisco switch

Interface fast Ethernet 0/x:
This command is used to configure the specific interface of the Cisco switch

IP address:
This command is used to configure the ip address of any interface of the Cisco switch

IP default-gateway:
This is an interface configuration command to set the default gateway

Speed:
This command is used to set the speed for the interface of the Cisco switch

Duplex:
This command is used to set the duplex setting for the interface of the Cisco switch

Line console 0:
This command is used to enter in the specific line configuration mode of the Cisco switch

Password:
This command is used to set the password of any line of the Cisco switch

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Cisco Switches

Cisco 3000-8TC Industrial Ethernet Switch
Part #: IE-3000-8TC

The Cisco Industrial Ethernet 3000 (IE 3000) Series Switches are a new family of switches that provide a rugged, easy-to-use, secure switching infrastructure for harsh environments. The Cisco IE 3000 family features industrial design and compliance, tools for ease of deployment, management, and replacement; and network security based on open standards. The Cisco IE 3000 is an ideal product for industrial Ethernet applications, including factory automation, intelligent transportation systems (ITSs), substations, and other deployments in harsh environments.

Cisco Catalyst 3750 Metro Switch
Part #: ME-C3750-24TE-M

The Cisco Catalyst 3750 Metro Series is a line of premier, customer-located switches that bring greater intelligence for metro Ethernet access, enabling the delivery of more differentiated metro Ethernet services. The switches feature hierarchical quality of service (QoS) and traffic shaping, intelligent 802.1Q tunneling, virtual LAN (VLAN) translation, Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) and Ethernet over MPLS (EoMPLS) support, and redundant AC or DC power. They are ideal for service providers seeking to deliver profitable business services, such as Layer 2, Layer 3, and MPLS VPNs, in several bandwidths and with different service-level agreements (SLAs). With flexible software options, the Cisco Catalyst 3750 Metro Series offers providers a cost-effective path for meeting current and future service requirements from enterprises and commercial businesses. As an addition to Cisco's metro Ethernet access switching portfolio the Cisco Catalyst 3750 Metro Series provides enhanced QoS, broader Layer 2 and Layer 3 VPN offerings, and power redundancy for carrier-class metro Ethernet services with service-quality guarantees. By using Cisco Catalyst 3750 Metro Series switches for metro access along with Cisco Catalyst 6500 and 4500 series switches and Cisco 7600 Series routers in the aggregation/core layers, service providers are able to build a flexible, integrated network with intelligence from end to end.

Cisco EtherSwitch Service Gigabit Ethernet Interface Module
Part #: NME-16ES-1G-P

The Cisco EtherSwitch service modules provide Cisco modular access routers the ability to stack Cisco EtherSwitch service modules as Layer 2 switches using Cisco StackWise technology. The Cisco EtherSwitch service modules are supported by either the IP base image (formerly known as standard multilayer image (SMI)) or the IP services image (formerly known as the enhanced multilayer image (EMI)). The IP base provides Layer 2+ features, including access control lists (ACLs), quality of service (QoS), static routing, and the Routing Information Protocol (RIP). IP services provide a richer set of enterprise-class features, including Layer 2+ features and full Layer 3 routing (IP unicast routing, IP multicast routing, and fallback bridging). To distinguish it from the Layer 2+ static routing and RIP, IP services include protocols such as the Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (EIGRP) and the Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) Protocol.

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Configuring Cisco Routing

IP routing is automatically enabled on Cisco routers. If it has been previously disabled on your router, you turn it back on in config mode with the command ip routing.

ExampleName(config)#ip routing
ExampleName(config)#ctrl-Z

There are two main ways a router knows where to send packets. The administrator can assign static routes, or the router can learn routes by employing a dynamic routing protocol.

These days static routes are generally used in very simple networks or in particular cases that necessitate their use. To create a static route, the administrator tells the router operating system that any network traffic destined for a specified network layer address should be forwarded to a similiarly specified network layer address. In the Cisco IOS this is done with the ip route command.

ExampleName#config
ExampleName(config)#ip route 172.16.0.0 255.255.255.0 192.168.150.1
ExampleName(config)#ctrl-Z
ExampleName#show ip route

Two things to be said about this example. First, the packet destination address must include the subnet mask for that destination network. Second, the address it is to be forwarded to is the specified addres of the next router along the path to the destination. This is the most common way of setting up a static route, and the only one this document covers. Be aware, however, that there are other methods.

Dynamic routing protocols, running on connected routers, enable those routers to share routing information. This enables routers to learn the routes available to them. The advantage of this method is that routers are able to adjust to changes in network topologies. If a route is physically removed, or a neighbor router goes down, the routing protocol searches for a new route. Routing protocols can even dynamically choose between possible routes based on variables such as network congestion or network reliability.

There are many different routing protocols, and they all use different variables, known as "metrics," to decide upon appropriate routes. Unfortunately, a router needs to be running the same routing protocols as its neighbors. Many routers can, however, run mutliple protocols. Also, many protocols are designed to be able to pass routing information to other routing protocols. This is called "redistribution." The author has no experience with trying to make redistribution work. There is an IOS redistribute command you can research if you think this is something you need. This document's compagnion case study describes an alternative method to deal with different routing protocols in some circumstances.

Routing protocols are a complex topic and this document contains only this superficial description of them. There is much to learn about them, and there are many sources of information about them available. An excelent source of information on this topic is Cisco's website, http://www.cisco.com.

This document describes how to configure the Routing Information Protocol (RIP) on Cisco routers. From the command-line, we must explicitly tell the router which protocol to use, and what networks the protocol will route for.

ExampleName#config
ExampleName(config)#router rip
ExampleName(config-router)#network aa.bb.cc.dd
ExampleName(config-router)#network ee.ff.gg.hh
ExampleName(config-router)#ctrl-Z
ExampleName#show ip protocols

Now when you issue the show ip protocols command, you should see an entry describing RIP configuration.

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Configuring Cisco router interfaces

Cisco interface naming is straightforward. Individual interfaces are referred to by this convention:

media type slot#/port#

"Media type" refers to the type of media that the port is an interface for, such as Ethernet, Token Ring, FDDI, serial, etc. Slot numbers are only applicable for routers that provide slots into which you can install modules. These modules contain several ports for a given media. The 7200 series is an example. These modules are even hot-swapable. You can remove a module from a slot and replace it with a different module, without interrupting service provided by the other modules installed in the router. These slots are numbered on the router.

Port number refers to the port in reference to the other ports in that module. Numbering is left-to-right, and all numbering starts at 0, not at one.

For example, a Cisco 7206 is a 7200 series router with six slots. To refer to an interface that is the third port of an Ethernet module installed in the sixth slot, it would be interface ethernet 6/2. Therefor, to display the configuration of that interface you use the command:
ExampleName#show interface ethernet 6/2

If your router does not have slots, like a 1600, then the interface name consists only of:

media type port#

For example:
ExampleName#show interface serial 0

Here is an example of configuring a serial port with an IP address:
ExampleName#config
ExampleName(config)#interface serial 1/1
ExampleName(config-if)#ip address 192.168.155.2 255.255.255.0
ExampleName(config-if)#no shutdown
ExampleName(config-if)#ctrl-Z
ExampleName#

Then to verify configuration:
ExampleName#show interface serial 1/1

Note the no shutdown command. An interface may be correctly configured and physically connected, yet be "administratively down." In this state it will not function. The command for causing an interface to be administratively down is shutdown.

ExampleName(config)#interface serial 1/1
ExampleName(config-if)#shutdown
ExampleName(config-if)#ctrl-Z
ExampleName#show interface serial 1/1

In the Cisco IOS, the way to reverse or delete the results of any command is to simply put no infront of it. For instance, if we wanted to unassign the IP address we had assigned to interface serial 1/1:

ExampleName(config)#interface serail 1/1
ExampleName(config-if)#no ip address 192.168.155.2 255.255.255.0
ExampleName(config-if)ctrl-Z
ExampleName#show interface serial 1/1

Configuring most interfaces for LAN connections might consist only of assigning a network layer address and making sure the interface is not administratively shutdown. It is usually not necessary to stipulate data-link layer encapsulation. Note that it is often necessary to stipulate the appropriate data-link layer encapsulation for WAN connections, such as frame-relay and ATM. Serial interfaces default to using HDLC. A discussion of data-link protocols is outside the scope of this document. You will need to look up the IOS command encapsulation for more details.

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Configuring your Cisco Router

If you have just turned on the router, it will be completely unconfigured. If it is already configured, you may want to view its current configuration. Even if it has not been previously configured, you should familiarize yourself with the show commands before beginning to configure the router. Enter privileged mode by issuing the command enable, then issue several show commands to see what they display. Remember, the command show ? will display all the show commands available in the current mode. Definitely try out the following commands:

Router#show interfaces
Router#show ip protocols
Router#show ip route
Router#show ip arp

When you enter privileged mode by using the command enable, you are in the top-level mode of privileged mode, also known in this document as "parent mode." It is in this top-level or parent mode that you can display most of the information about the router. As you now know, you do this with the show commands. Here you can learn the configuration of interfaces and whether they are up or down. You can display what IP protocols are in use, such as dynamic routing protocols. You can view the route and ARP tables, and these are just a few of the more important options.

As you configure the router, you will enter various sub-modes to set options, then return to the parent mode to display the results of your commands. You also return to the parent mode to enter other sub-modes. To return to the parent mode, you hit ctrl-z. This puts any commands you have just issued into affect, and returns you to parent mode.

Global configuration (config)

To configure any feature of the router, you must enter configuration mode. This is the first sub-mode of the parent mode. In the parent mode, you issue the command config.

Router#config
Router(config)#

As demonstrated above, the prompt changes to indicate the mode that you are now in.

In connfiguration mode you can set options that apply system-wide, also refered to as "global configurations." For instance, it is a good idea to name your router so that you can easily identify it. You do this in configuration mode with the hostname command.

Router(config)#hostname ExampleName
ExampleName(config)#

As demonstrated above, when you set the name of the host with the hostname command, the prompt immediately changes by replacing Router with ExampleName. (Note: It is a good idea to name your routers with an organized naming scheme.)

Another useful command issued from config mode is the command to designate the DNS server to be used by the router:

ExampleName(config)#ip name-server aa.bb.cc.dd
ExampleName(config)#ctrl-Z
ExampleName#

This is also where you set the password for privileged mode.
ExampleName(config)#enable secret examplepassword
ExampleName(config)#ctrl-Z
ExampleName#

Until you hit ctrl-Z (or type exit until you reach parent mode) your command has not been put into affect. You can enter config mode, issue several different commands, then hit ctrl-Z to activate them all. Each time you hit ctrl-Z you return to parent mode and the prompt:

ExampleName#

Here you use show commands to verify the results of the commands you issued in config mode. To verify the results of the ip name-server command, issue the command show host.

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CISCO Modes

Modes

The Cisco IOS command-line interface is organized around the idea of modes. You move in and out of several different modes while configuring a router, and which mode you are in determines what commands you can use. Each mode has a set of commands available in that mode, and some of these commands are only available in that mode. In any mode, typing a question mark will display a list of the commands available in that mode.

Router>?

Unprivileged and privileged modes

When you first connect to the router and provide the password (if necessary), you enter EXEC mode, the first mode in which you can issue commands from the command-line. From here you can use such unprivileged commands as ping, telnet, and rlogin. You can also use some of the show commands to obtain information about the system. In unprivileged mode you use commands like, show version to display the version of the IOS the router is running. Typing show ? will diplay all the show commands available in the mode you are presently in.
Router>show ?

You must enter privileged mode to configure the router. You do this by using the command enable. Privileged mode will usually be password protected unless the router is unconfigured. You have the option of not password protecting privileged mode, but it is HIGHLY recommended that you do. When you issue the command enable and provide the password, you will enter privileged mode.

To help the user keep track of what mode they are in, the command-line prompt changes each time you enter a different mode. When you switch from unprivileged mode to privileged mode, the prompt changes from:
Router>

to
Router#

This would probably not be a big deal if there were just two modes. There are, in fact, numerous modes, and this feature is probably indispensable. Pay close attention to the prompt at all times.

Within privileged mode there are many sub-modes. In this document I do not closely follow Cisco terminology for this hierarchy of modes. I think that my explanation is clearer, frankly. Cisco describes two modes, unprivileged and privileged, and then a hierarchy of commands used in privileged mode. I reason that it is much clearer to understand if you just consider there to be many sub-modes of privileged mode, which I will also call parent mode. Once you enter privileged mode (parent mode) the prompt ends with a pound sign (#). There are numerous modes you can enter only after entering privileged mode. Each of these modes has a prompt of the form:
Router(arguments)#

They still all end with the pound sign. They are subsumed within privileged mode. Many of these modes have sub-modes of their own. Once you enter priliged mode, you have access to all the configuration information and options the IOS provides, either directly from the parent mode, or from one of its submodes.

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Getting started with Cisco

Initially you will probably configure your router from a terminal. If the router is already configured and at least one port is configured with an IP address, and it has a physical connection to the network, you might be able to telnet to the router and configure it across the network. If it is not already configured, then you will have to directly connect to it with a terminal and a serial cable. With any Windows box you can use Hyperterminal to easily connect to the router. Plug a serial cable into a serial (COM) port on the PC and the other end into the console port on the Cisco router. Start Hyperterminal, tell it which COM port to use and click OK. Set the speed of the connection to 9600 baud and click OK. If the router is not on, turn it on.

If you wish to configure the router from a Linux box, either Seyon or Minicom should work. At least one of them, and maybe both, will come with your Linux distribution.

Often you will need to hit the Enter key to see the prompt from the router. If it is unconfigured it will look like this:
Router>

If it has been previously configured with a hostname, it will look like this:
hostname of router>

If you have just turned on the router, after it boots it will ask you if you wish to begin initial configuration. Say no. If you say yes, it will put you in the menu interface. Say no.

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Virtual PBX phone system

A hosted PBX phone system is variously referred to as a virtual PBX, virtual receptionist, auto attendant, or virtual phone system. PBX stands for private branch exchange, an old fashioned on-premise hardware based phone system. Now you can get all the most sophisticated features of an expensive PBX phone system without the expensive hardware. Tie your virtual workforce together with a virtual PBX phone system.

Small business owners want to present a large, professional image—no matter how many employees they have. We will assist you in writing and recording a customized greeting, and we have many templates to choose from. The virtual PBX recording makes it sound like you are all sitting together in an office tower (even if it is just you, wearing many hats).

With a virtual PBX phone system you can have the sophisticated features of a Fortune 500 company, without expensive equipment. A virtual PBX comes loaded with features such as voicemail, fax mail, auto attendant and find-me/follow-me call forwarding. We provide toll free numbers and local phone numbers with area codes available in major cities, as well as many smaller or rural areas. You can also use your existing phone numbers.

A Virtual PBX system allows your callers to hear an initial outgoing greeting, choose an extension, and transfer directly to a staff member.

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Virtual Phone System Features

A virtual phone system brings incredible telecommunication capability and features to your existing office, home, or mobile phone lines. By using a virtual phone number, which forwards to any existing phone line anywhere in the world, you can be reached no matter where you are located. Your incoming phone calls will literally follow your every step.

Virtual phone systems have some very powerful communication features that bring a whole new level of telecommunication capability to your existing phone lines. These include virtual auto attendant, call forwarding services, call screening, call queuing, voicemail and Internet fax capability.

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Small Business PBX Virtual Phone System - Virtual Phone Number

Grasshopper was founded in 2003 by two undergraduate business students who wanted a better way for small businesses to communicate with their customers. The result is a powerful virtual phone system designed for today’s small businesses.

While Grasshopper offers some great features, it comes up short in several areas when compared to the competing virtual phone system. More about this later in the review.

Hosted PBX Phone System

Grasshopper virtual phone system is an Internet-based, hosted PBX phone system that allows your small business to sound more professional and streamlines your communication with customers. Grasshopper does this by creating a hosted PBX phone system that allows callers to dial one main number to reach any employee, regardless of where in the world they are, or what kind of a phone they have access to.

By combining a unique toll-free or local number with many advanced features, Grasshopper virtual phone system allows your small business to sound its best.

No extra hardware or software is required to take advantage of Grasshopper’s features. In fact, all you need is your existing telephone lines and you are on your way to making your small business phone system perform like a much larger corporation.

Virtual Phone Number System

The virtual auto attendant answers incoming phone calls to your Grasshopper virtual phone system, thus functioning as a receptionist. Callers hear a custom greeting of your choice and are given options to be transferred to any employee or department.

Once the caller chooses who they want to talk to, Grasshopper forwards the call to the appropriate extension. You are able to designate extensions for virtually any purpose – employees, departments, or company information such as store hours, location, or a marketing promotion.

You can choose to have callers listen to hold music or a marketing message as the Grasshopper virtual phone number service transfers their call to any phone number in the world. You have complete control of the extension’s ultimate destination and you can change the outbound phone numbers at anytime.

Customizable Virtual Phone System

Grasshopper is a customizable virtual phone system for one or more employees and works with any phone, anywhere in the world. You can have calls forwarded to office phones, home phones, mobile phones, or Internet phones. The choice is up to you.

If it is after business hours, or the particular extension is not currently available, Grasshopper SOHO PBX virtual phone system has a fully functioning, customizable, voice mail systems. And once you receive a voicemail, you can access it via any phone, the Grasshopper virtual phone system online interface, or have it delivered to your email as an audio attachment. The delivery and notification methods for each extension are individually customizable.
This Virtual Office Phone System is Missing Many Key Features

Grasshopper does not offer the same full service Internet faxing capability that RingCentral does, which is our top rated virtual small business telephone systems. Grasshopper only accepts inbound faxes and has extremely limited outbound faxing capability. For example, if you need to fax a document to a client, you cannot do so with Grasshopper. You will need to use a stand-alone faxing service.

There are several other key features missing from the Grasshopper virtual small office phone service which are available with RingCentral. These include rollover minutes, answering rules, and an online call controller.

Grasshopper does offer more included minutes, in all but their least expensive plan, but does charges a higher per minute charge for additional minutes, in all but their least expensive plan.

Grasshopper also does not offer a free trial. They do have a 30-day money back guarantee, but you have to pay for the service upfront, unlike the competition. Also, Grasshopper requires a $25 activation fee, where the competing virtual PBX phone system has no activation or setup fee.

Grasshopper Virtual Phone Systems - Final Thoughts

While the Grasshopper virtual small business phone service has some great features that give you the ability to effectively and efficiently run your small business, it comes up short when compared to other virtual phone systems. You may be better served with RingCentral, which offers several key, advanced features not found in Grasshopper. Grasshopper does offer more included minutes than RingCentral in all but their least expensive plan, so if this is the most important feature for you, Grasshopper is your choice. Otherwise, take a hard look at the RingCentral hosted PBX phone system.

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Here are a few things to consider when planning a phone system

How many phone lines do you need initially?

Most businesses use several (or many) phone lines tied together as a "hunt group" by the phone company. Fax lines and modem lines are not a part of the phone system and should not be considered here. This way you publish one company telephone number and incoming callers are automatically routed in on any available line in the "hunt group." Generally, you will use the lines in this group for your outbound calls as well. This gives you the most available use for your lines. So how many lines do you need? This is determined by estimating the maximum number of simultaneous calls you think your business will have going at one time. For example, you may have 8 desks with telephones in the office, but maybe only a few people are ever on a call at the same time. In this case, a "hunt group" of 4 or 5 lines is probably adequate to begin with.

How many phone lines do you want room to grow to?

Do you anticipate your call volume to increase over time by enough that adding more phone lines to the "hunt group" may be warranted? If so, you will want to make sure that you begin with a business phone system that can accommodate that growth. Be aware that systems come in different sizes and that cost rises with a system's maximum growth size. For example, a dental office may need 4 lines to start with and might anticipate the need to add a couple of lines in the future maybe. A system with a maximum growth size of 8 (or maybe even 12) lines would be appropriate. Anything larger would probably cause the system to be more expensive than was necessary.

How many telephones do you need to start with?

You will want to consider every place in the business that needs to have a phone available for answering and making calls. Each office or desk area, reception area, sales counter, work room, file area, warehouse, shipping desk, and even break room should be considered. At this point, just consider the minimum number of phones you will need for now. If you will want wireless handsets, we will include those in a later question.

What is Auto Attendant?

When you call a company and the first thing you hear is a recorded message giving you choices and asking you to make a selection on your dial pad, you have reached an Auto Attendant. You listen to the message, make your choice and then get transferred to the correct person to assist you. That's the plan, anyway. Each company must decide if Auto Attendant is right for them. It can save time and get calls handled more efficiently, but it can also detract from a personal touch. Many companies use an Auto Attendant to serve as a backup to answer calls that a receptionist or other staff don't have an opportunity to answer after the first few rings. Auto Attendants can be configured to allow callers to hear information such as directions or business hours and other time consuming repetitive tasks while always giving them the option to reach an "operator." Voice Mail is almost always used in conjunction with an Auto Attendant to make sure that all calls get answered and dealt with.

What is Voice Mail?

Voice Mail is simply a means to allow callers to leave someone a recorded message that can be retrieved and responded to at a convenient time. Some companies use a standard answering machine or phone company voice mailbox for very basic message use. These options work for catching unanswered calls and putting all messages into a single mailbox. A more flexible alternative is to include a business Voice Mail system as part of your phone system hardware. This will provide individual mailboxes for everyone who needs one. It can be set up to catch unanswered calls and direct callers to their desired party's extension or mailbox. Furthermore, it allows callers to be transferred to an individual mailbox by whoever answers a call. You will be notified of a message by a message light on your phone. You can also set your mailbox to call your pager or cell phone to notify you of new messages. Messages in your mailbox can be transferred to other mailboxes and you can also set up group mailboxes.

What is Caller ID?

Caller ID is an optional fee based service that you can order with your phone line service from the local telephone company. When your telephone system is properly equipped, this allows the incoming caller's name and phone number to be displayed on your phone as the call rings. It will also capture the phone number as part of a voice mail message. This feature is completely dependant upon the information being sent by the phone company. Often, callers have blocked their information or the information will display "out of area."

What is a wireless handset?

A wireless handset is essentially a nearly full featured cordless phone that allows you to make calls, take calls, hold calls, transfer calls, intercom, page, transfer to voice mail, and almost everything you can do at your desk phone. The wireless handset can be configured to work as its own extension or to be in parallel to your desk phone. They can use an optional standard cellular phone type headset for hands free operation. This is not the same as a wireless headset. A wireless headset is an industry standard device that connects to your desk phone and allows you to take a call and walk a short distance from your desk. You must return to your desk phone to hold or transfer the call. The wireless handset gives you complete control whether you are near your desk phone or not.

What is ACD and UCD?

This is Automatic Call Distribution or Uniform Call Distribution. Often referred to as a Call Center, it is primarily used in applications where you would have incoming calls distributed among "agents" in an even manner. If no agents are available, callers can be stacked in a holding queue where they hear a recorded message informing them that their calls will be answered in the order received. The agents can log in and out to adjust the number of staff available to take calls. A supervisor can monitor how many calls are in queue, how many agents are logged in, average wait time, and other functions to improve productivity.

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