Hosting Considerations for An E-commerce Business - Security

One particular feature of an e-commerce web site that often sets their hosting requirements apart from those of other brochure sites for example is the fact that they handle, almost by definition, personal and financially sensitive information. Therefore, an e-commerce site’s hosting platform must have measures in place to ensure that this information is kept secure.

E-commerce Risks
E-commerce websites are usually required to process and store customers’ personal details. These details include payment information, names and addresses and even their choice of purchase. The payment details have more obvious financial risks associated with them, but customers’ names and addresses could also be used by criminals for the purposes of identity theft and fraud amongst other things. Even the details of an individual’s purchases may have undesired consequences if they were to get into the public domain (particularly in some product markets).

There are many risks posed to the data that e-commerce sites process; threats from hackers, who are attempting to access the server itself and the data that is stored on it, viruses which may harvest the data or give access to these hackers, and viruses that simply corrupt the data or that cause failures in the platforms where the data is stored. Malicious viruses for example might be written with no intention other than to just wipe a server or computer.

Dedicated Security
As with many of the challenges faced by e-commerce sites, the most appropriate solution for this requirement is to choose a dedicated server. This type of hosting platform offers the most protection against the spread of viruses and against hackers attempting to access the site’s files. Sites which share servers, however, are more vulnerable to such threats from the presence of other sites on the server which may not be well protected themselves, especially where they also share software such as operating systems and database support.

Platforms which use a virtual partition to create virtual private servers, or virtual dedicated servers as they may be described, will introduce greater barriers to viruses and hackers, than simple shared servers. Their operating systems will be distinct, however, because they will still share the same physical server and they will retain some of the vulnerabilities associated with that.

Cloud Security
Many e-commerce businesses who are attracted by the reliability and scalability benefits of cloud hosting mentioned in the previous installment of this article also have concerns over the security of the platform due to its use of a multitude of shared servers across vast networks. However, the growing use of technologies such as MPLS (Multiprotocol Label Switching - a way of transmitting data), Virtual Data Centres (VDC - a network of connected virtualised cloud servers) and carrier clouds (where the cloud is carried on wide area networks, WAN, distinct from the internet) is ensuring that the security of the information stored on the virtualised servers and transmitted between them is reaching higher and higher levels, bringing the benefits of cloud hosting into the reacb of these e-commerce businesses.

Data Center Security
Finally, any server within a data center will benefit from the state-of-the-art security that most data center buildings have installed to prevent anyone, who shouldn’t be able to, accessing the servers in situ. Consequently, one option for companies looking to invest into their own servers rather than renting from a hosting provider, but who still need the security of the data center location, is to choose a colocation hosting option. With this choice they simply rent the space in the server racks from the provider, into which they can house their own servers.

© Stuart Mitchell 2012

Hosting Considerations for An E-commerce Business - Performance

Of course if an e-commerce site has recurring down time or reliability issues, the consumer may be put off using that site due to the expected hassle it may cause them if, for example, they are half way through a purchase when things go wrong. In addition reliability, stability and a lack of error messages can, for many users, be a good indicator of a site’s authority, its trustworthiness even, and those are important factors for a consumer when they are parting with their hard-earned money. What’s more any amount of downtime can be money down the drain, lost sales not to mention lost advertising and exposure.

Scalability
This consideration overlaps considerably with those mentioned in the previous installment of this article - access to bandwidth, disk space and processing resource - but it is a key factor in its own right in that it is important to consider, not just the current activity on the site and the demands it places on the hosting platform but also, potential fluctuations in this activity and the potential demands posed in the future if the business is to grow or diversify. If the site’s demands on its hosting platform are likely to fluctuate day-to-day then the hosting platform should have spare capacity in its hardware resource to ensure that these peaks can be met without performance or downtime issues, whereas if the e-commerce business’s future propositions are likely to place grater demands on its servers, there should at least be a plan in place to scale up the capacity at the right time.

As suggested before, a dedicated server can offer the extra capacity, bandwidth, server resource etc, to cope with fluctuating demands without suffering from the competition of shared servers. Adding a managed hosting element can also ensure that any such fluctuations can be monitored, identified and responded to as quickly as possible whilst future changes in the platform can be planned and implemented effectively.

In terms of responsive scalability however, cloud hosting offers the most suitable option as it allows providers to offer extra resource on demand, instantaneously. Depending on the package the capacity is always there and the e-commerce site can simply tap into it as it is required.

Reliable Support
Due to the complexities of e-commerce sites, the aforementioned demands of traffic levels, dynamic content and secure processing and storage of information, together with the more severe consequences if anything were to go wrong, the ability understand the requirements of the platform, configure it accordingly and then respond to changes is key. That is to respond to changes in demand, reconfiguring the platform or scaling it as described above, as well as responding to failures.

For most businesses, rather than employ their own internal technicians who have the expertise to manage their web servers, the more economical solution is to sign up to a managed hosting platform. The term itself is used by different hosting providers to describe differing levels of support but a typical fully managed platform will offer such advantages as round-the-clock telephone support, site/server monitoring, bespoke configuration and set up, and back up management - all the things that increase the chances of the site being on the right platform in the first place, minimising the scope for failures to occur at all whilst increasing the ability to deal with unforeseen issues that do arise. Ultimately with all the considerations made above, things can still go wrong and so it is certainly worth taking into account not just how the hosting platform responds to changes in demand but also how it responds if problems are unfortunately encountered.

Managed hosting can, by some providers, be packaged up and termed as business hosting to target the enterprise market because this level of management will provide the assurances that enterprise and especially e-commerce operations require.

Reliable Hardware
Packages which are described as managed hosting often incorporate a dedicated server which is ideal for hosting an e-commerce site as mentioned above but it is always worth checking because providers can offer management of hosting platforms for any type of server set up. Dedicate servers do provide the best assurances of a reliable platform. Sites hosted on dedicated servers are not at risk from other sites introducing viruses to the platform or the activities of those sites and their owners causing the software platforms (operating systems etc) or the hardware to fail, as can be the case with shared hosting. Again, as mentioned above, the dedicated access to hardware resource means that spikes in traffic for example would not overload the site and its hosting causing downtime. In contrast sites on shared platforms are not only subject to lower ceilings at which their own fluctuating activity could cause server side issues but they will be affected if other sites hosted on the same servers have their own spikes in activity.

As an alternative to the stability of dedicated hosting, the mechanics of cloud hosting can also provide the reliability that e-commerce sites require. Cloud hosting utilises a pool of hardware resource spread across multiple servers, often multiple data centers, and this ensures that the they do not have single points of failure. If a physical server goes down, the cloud’s virtual server and therefore the site won’t. Even if something were to compromise an entire data center, the site would most likely remain online (depending on the package).

© Stuart Mitchell 2012

The Profile of 2013's Free Schools

The UK Government has recently announced that 102 prospective free schools have been given the go-ahead for 2013. It displays an increase in the adoption of this particular government initiative and so it is perhaps an appropriate time to look at what this means for the landscape of the English schools system.

Now in its third year, the initiative is certainly becoming more popular. The approval system had given permission to 65 schools last year, of which 50 will open this September (2012). The first batch of pioneers in September 2011 , however, only consisted of 24.

Who is Setting Them Up?
Of the 102 new free schools eligible for 2013 there is a mixture as to who is/will be behind their establishment. They are all being set up by either those in the education profession already or local communities but the full break down is as follows:

• 59: Existing education professionals; including teachers, headteachers, educational organisations, existing schools and universities, of which:
• 5 are private schools converting to free schools to access public funding
• 2 are backed by universities
• 43: Local community groups; including charities and, parent groups

What Are They?
The majority of free schools being approved will be defined as mainstream schools, however there are a number of specialist schools being set up alongside these, as would be expected due to the remit of free schools to satisfy particular local education needs. The schools can be defined as:

• 85 mainstream schools, of which,
• 40 are primary
• 28 are secondary
• 10 are all through (primary and secondary)
• 5 are for 16-19 year olds
• 1 is for 14-19 year olds
• 1 is for 5-7 year olds (i.e., reception school)
• 12 alternative provision schools for those who are unable to attend mainstream schools
• 5 special schools, of which,
• 2 are all through
• 1 is primary
• 1 is secondary
• 1 is for 14-19 year olds

Perhaps most controversially for the opponents of free schools in particular:

• 33 are religious schools, of which,
• 20 are faith schools which wil be permitted a degree of selectivity in their admissions based upon religious beliefs

The relatively high proportion of religious schools in the mix can be seen to bear out the concerns that religious groups will be more able and more likely to set up free schools. The belief is that this results from the fact that they are likely to already have access to the infrastructure as well as the organisational structure they need to get them up and running, in contrast to private individuals attempting to form organisations themselves from scratch.

Where Are They?
The largest concentration of schools will be in London (34, 1 in 3), followed by the South East and North West. Although one of their aims is to improve the education possibilities in particularly deprived areas, the North East only has 3 opening despite its higher than average levels of depravity. Interestingly there are pockets of the country where there are no new free schools opening at all such as in: the southern counties of Wiltshire, Dorset, Somerset & Hampshire (including the Isle of Wight); the central midlands (around Warwickshire, Leicestershire, Northamptonshire etc); South Yorkshire down into Derbyshire; North Yorkshires across into Cumbria.

The full breakdown by region is:

• 34 (33%) - London
• 16 (16%) - South East
• 12 (12%) - North West
• 10 (10%) - East of England
• 9 (9%) - South West
• 7 (7%) - West Midlands
• 7 (7%) - Yorkshire and Humber
• 4 (4%) - East Midlands
• 3 (3%) - North East

The DfE’s own research suggests that the Independence awarded to Academy schools in general is yielding dividends with their results seeming to outstrip the rest of the sector whilst the success of their US counterparts in New York also bodes well. However time will tell whether these burgeoning free schools can continue that success and fulfil their remit to plug the specific social and educational gaps in their local areas.

© Stuart Mitchell 2012
If you want to find out more about applying to become a free school or converting to academy status then visit Education Law Solicitors.

A Glossary of Terms Relating to Corporate Law

This article provides an introduction to a few of the key terms and areas of activity in corporate or company law. Corporate lawyers will be required to assist with the complexities of all sorts of reorganisations of business operations, mergers and acquisitions and tax issues and the snippets below are only an introduction to these topics.

Mergers
A merger is to some extent self explanatory. It is process of two companies choosing to join together to form one new company, pooling their assets and liabilities to create efficiencies and increase market share. A merger is distinct from an acquisition (see below) because the companies join forces on a more-or-less equal footing with control of the newly formed entity being shared, rather than one company taking control of the other.

Where two companies that operate in the same market, and are therefore competitors (providing the same service or function), join forces it is known as a horizontal merger. Vertical mergers on the other hand involve companies at different steps in the supply chain, for example a tractor manufacturer and a supplier of components merging.

The opposite of a merger is, logically, a demerger and describes a scenario whereby a company splits in two or a part of a company splinters away to form a new smaller company.

Acquisitions
An acquisition involves the process of one company taking control of another company, often referred to as the target. In relation to publicly listed companies, the process is otherwise known as a takeover, and would be achieved by buying up at least 51% of the target company’s shares. Takeovers can be described as being hostile or friendly. Hostile takeovers occur when the purchasing company do not agree the takeover with the board of the target company, whereas friendly takeovers usually involve offers being made by the purchaser, terms being negotiated and both parties ultimately reaching an agreement.

Subsequently, the two companies can be consolidated to form a single entity in what is commonly referred to as a merger, or, as is often the case, they are maintained as separate corporate entities with the control of the target company passing to its new owners. The collective term Mergers and Acquisitions is used to refer to all such deals because in practice the lines can get blurred between mergers and acquisitions, frequently because acquisitions will be referred to as mergers for PR reasons.

Joint Ventures
This term describes scenarios in which two or more companies partner to form a new company by contributing assets and resources rather than merging the entirety of each company. JVs are usually established to run for a set term and often with a specific strategic aim, for example, to complete a construction project or break into a particular market. The individual companies will share the spoils of the enterprise as well as the liabilities.

Reorganisations
A company can undergo a reorganisation in a number of ways. They can reorganise the structure of shares issued by the company, for example issuing each shareholder with one share priced at £2 for every two they had previously priced at £1. This is otherwise known as a corporate action. Secondly, they can reorganise the company’s structure to, for example, sell off or shut down operations which are less successful and concentrate on those that are. Thirdly they can again reorganise the company’s structure but this time by merging areas of operation within the company.

Corporation Tax
Otherwise known as company tax, it is the tax levied by the HMRC (Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs) on the money that corporations make, in other words their income and any capital gains (known as chargeable gains) they generate. It is roughly equivalent to the income tax and capital gains taxes that individuals are liable to pay.

© Stuart Mitchell 2012

The Attractions of a Stocks & Shares ISA

When stashing your money away into an ISA you have two basic choices as to what type of investment you want your money to go into: a Cash ISA or a Stocks and Shares ISA. The following article looks at what benefits may be on offer for those looking to put some or all of their money into the latter.

The most immediate attraction of a Stocks and Shares ISA above its cash equivalent is the fact that you can subscribe your entire allowance for the tax year, twice the level you are able to place into a Cash ISA. The current subscription limit for a SSISA in the 2012/13 tax year therefore is £11,280 as opposed to £5,640 for the cash element. Theoretically, the more you can invest the greater the possible yields (and losses) that may come your way. There are, however, a few other attractions of putting you ISA allowance into an SSISA.

Most investments available in an SSISA are ultimately based upon company shares and, although past performance is no guarantee of future performance, as any good advisor will always remind you, the long term performance of shares has consistently out-done cash throughout the last few decades. The past indications have suggested therefore that investing in shares will reward those who persist, despite the fact that they may be more volatile and vulnerable to short term losses.

What’s more, SSISAs give you a flexibility in your approach to financial choices that cash investments may not. The key to dealing with any investments is to understand the twin ideas of risk and reward; generally, the greater the potential profit to made on an investment, the greater the risk of making no profit and even a loss. This dynamic is reflected in the natural successes and failure of companies whose shares you may purchase as well as the structure of investment vehicles which are founded upon these.

The ranges of investments that can be available through an SSISA provide the opportunity to vary the risk vs reward ratio that you go for. If you want to invest directly into shares, for example, you could plump for a share portfolio, and use you own expertise to pick your investments, or a discretionary portfolio, where you entrust those decisions to an Investment Manager who will act according to the risk/yield remit you give him. Alternatively, you can have the option of pooling some of your money into collective investments such as investment trusts, unit trusts or OIECs (Open Ended Investment Companies) where you choose fund based upon certain themes (industrial sectors, geographical sectors) which each reflecting a particular risk/yield profile.

In regard to collective investments, fund managers will be using their expertise to ensure that the fund performs as well as possible, despite the problems that the stock markets have had in the last few years. There are always sectors (industrial or geographical etc) that are doing well in any financial climate and so there are always gains to be made for investors. It could be considered for example that investing in the energy sector will still be profitable in the next few years even if sectors such as banking may be less so. For those who are looking for extra security on their investments however, there are also fixed term options, such as bonds (essentially lending money to corporations or the government), where you sacrifice the fact that your money is inaccessible for a set period in exchange for the guaranteed return of your capital investment at the end of that period, together with the promise of a set interest payment.

The returns that a SSISA generates can, depending on the type of investment involved, take the form of cash income (e.g., dividends on shares, income on funds) or be reflected in the growth of that investment (e.g., increase in share price, increased allocation of units in unit trust) which can be realised when the investment is sold. As a very approximate guide, it can be estimated by looking at some of the SSISAs on the market now for example, that well performing funds can yield between 3.5 - 7% cash income into your ISA. This is in contrast to interest rates of around 4% for the better paying Cash ISAs, which in turn are usually heavily restricted in terms of access to the money put into them, as well as being affected by the low Bank of England base rate which is set to remain unchanged for the next couple of years at least.

The recommended approach is ultimately to construct a balanced portfolio of investments taking into account both risk and reward. The options available to investors will vary depending on the ISA provider and so it is important to take this into consideration when weighing up your choices. Anyone investing in a Stocks and Shares ISA though should always seek financial advice before embarking on any complex investments and remember that, unlike some cash investments, they will need to be managed actively to ensure maximum returns.

© Stuart Mitchell 2012

Shared Web Hosting Packages in Brief

This blog is the first of two providing an overview of the various types of web hosting available on the market. The focus in this first part is on the various forms of hosting which rely on shared web servers within data centers to host multiple websites.

The following summaries mention some of the benefits and drawbacks of each type of hosting platform and it is important to bear in mind what you actually need from your hosting provider when you weigh these up. Broadly, the two areas to consider are performance and uptime, whilst of course offsetting these against cost.

Data centres are purpose built facilities which are designed to house servers which meet these aims at affordable costs for the clients. They offer complex security and safety systems to ensure that the servers are not compromised whilst they are running and also have extensive systems in place to generate the optimal conditions (heat and humidity etc) for the servers to run smoothly and efficiently.

Depending on the type of hosting package in question, the other features to consider are:

• the ability to control and customise hardware and software if the site needs bespoke or non-standard configurations.
• the access to bandwidth - high bandwidth connections allow large amounts of traffic to flow quickly to and from the web server and so are more important for websites which experience high traffic volumes (i.e., page requests) or need to display a lot of content
• the amount of disk space (i.e., storage) on offer which will determine how big the site can grow and how much content can be stored
• the digital security of the platform, especially for sites that are obtaining or using sensitive data such as ecommerce sites.

Shared Hosting
The ‘shared’ in shared hosting refers to the fact that the web server that hosts the site is shared between numerous clients and their websites. It is the typical ‘entry-level’ option for small scale non-critical and non-sensitive (data) websites.

Features:

• Client rents a portion of a server
• The shared server also hosts other clients’ websites

Benefits:

• Inexpensive in comparison to other hosting platforms
• Simple hosting platform for clients with limited hosting expertise
• Physical security of data center location
• Physical safety of data center location

Drawbacks:

• Higher risk of security issues spreading from other websites
• Higher risk of software failures caused activities by other clients etc
• Limited physical resources such as bandwidth and disk space
• Limited scope for configuration of the software platform (operating system etc)

Virtual Dedicated Servers
Usually shortened to VPS, this type of hosting still shares a single server across multiple sites/clients but each site has its own operating system partition and so it offers more control and security whilst remaining cost effective.

Features:

• Client rents a virtual partition on a server
• The shared server also hosts other clients’ websites on separate partitions

Benefits:

• Inexpensive in comparison to other hosting platforms
• Allows greater customisation of each operating system
• Physical security of data center location
• Physical safety of data center location

Drawbacks:

• Some risk of security issues spreading from other websites
• Some risk of software failures caused activities by other clients etc
• Limited physical resources such as bandwidth and disk space

Cloud Hosting
Cloud hosting essentially uses a large pool of physical hardware and resource to build virtualised hosting environments which are therefore not restricted to physical limitations. It can provide a solution for those who want a flexible platform where complete control and customisation is not a requirement.

Features:

• Client rents virtual hosting resource
• Hardware resource taken from multiple servers
• Hosting resource (bandwidth, disk space etc) supplied on demand

Benefits:

• Not reliant on one server - less risk of failures/downtime
• Clients only pay for what they use
• Seamlessly scalable - extra virtual resource can be assigned as and when it is required

Drawbacks:

• Limitations on the ability to configure the platform
• No scope for customising hardware
• Risk of security issues spreading from other websites

© Stuart Mitchell 2012
If you are interested in finding out more about shared hosting in the cloud visit Cloud Hosting Provider.

Knightsbridge in Profile

English: Knightsbridge, SW1 (2) Taken at the junction of Brompton Road, and looking towards Hyde Park Corner. The usual heavy traffic is evident here -- this is the A4, a major route out of Central London to the west. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The area of London known as Knightsbridge is a well renowned as a exclusive residential district of London and as home to some of the most famous shops in the UK. The following article provides an overview of this compact, yet significant district of London.

Where It Is
The district of Knightsbridge is located in West London, spanning the edges of the City of Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It has a prime location on the southern edge of Hyde Park, surrounded by Brompton and South Kensington to the west, Belgravia to the east and south with Buckingham Palace just beyond. The area is in fact named after the Knightsbridge Road which roughly forms its northern border, on the edge of Hyde Park. To the east it is approximately separated from Kensington by Exhibition Road and to the west Sloane Street forms its border with Belgravia, although the boundaries of the area are in truth very blurred.

Knightsbridge Road itself is one of the most famous sections of the traditional route to the West of England and Wales, the A4, the Great West Road. As an extension of the Brompton Road it runs towards the centre of London into Hyde Park Corner and ultimately continues past some of London’s most recognisable landmarks. It carries on into Piccadilly, down the northern extent of Buckingham Palace, through Piccadilly Circus, Haymarket and Charing Cross and along The Strand and Fleet Street.

The district sits within Zone 1 of the local transport network in London and is served by Knightsbridge tube station on the Piccadilly line, although Hyde Park Corner tube station is also on the edge of the area.

What’s There
Knightsbridge is world famous for two things, shopping and exclusive homes. In terms of its residential credentials it is up alongside its illustrious neighbours such as Mayfair and Belgravia as home to some of the most expensive and sought after real estate in the UK if not the world. In fact it has been judged that 14 of the UKs 200 most expensive streets are within the small district. What’s more in 2007, the most expensive apartment property on the planet at that time was sold in Knightsbridge for a staggering £100,000,000. Perhaps the most prominent residence in Knightsbridge, however, is actually the towering apartment block of the Hyde Park Barracks, home for the members of the household cavalry.

The district boasts some of the most exclusive designer and retail outlets in the capital too and is home to arguably the two most famous flagship department stores in the UK, Harrods (since 1849) and, just up the road, Harvey Nichols (since 1880). Indeed Knightsbridge has been designated as one of only two international shopping centres in the capital alongside the West End (which includes Oxford Street).

History
The settlement that we now think of as comprising the Knightsbridge area grew from a small settlement founded around a bridge on the River Westbourne, a tributary of the Thames, between the larger villages of Chelsea and Kensington. The river, which is now is now hidden underground in sewage pipes, also shared its name at various stages of its course with areas of London such as Kilburn, Bayswater and Serpentine (in Hyde Park).

The most notable event in the history of the the bridge at Knightsbridge is the fateful meeting between Empress Matilda and the residents of the capital 1141. Matilda was in dispute with her cousin King Stephen for the right to succeed her father, his uncle, Henry I as the ruler of England in a conflict latterly known as The Anarchy. She arrived to claim the throne having captured and deposed Stephen but was ultimately turned away by the Londoners having failed to show enough humility and coalesce on their demands for lower taxes.

For such as small area of London is certainly has a big reputation. Despite being dwarfed for much of its existence by more illustrious neighbours it has now become an internationally renowned hot spot in London for all things associated with an high-end exclusive lifestyle.

© Stuart Mitchell 2012
If you want to find out more about living in Knightsbridge then visit Estate Agents Knightsbridge.

The Colonial Styles of North America - Spanish

The Colonial Cathedral of Mexico City. Some of the richest colonial architecture is found in Mexico. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The final part of this trilogy of articles discussing the colonial architectural styles of the North Americas focuses on the legacy of the first medieval nation to explore, and later conquer, the Americas, the Spanish. They may have concentrated their colonial activities in Southern and Central America but they still made their mark to the North and leave behind a strong cultural presence.

The Spanish style of colonial architecture would have been, and still can be, found in the areas originally conquered and colonised by the conquistadors in the 16th and 17th centuries; areas in the US such as Florida and the south western states (California, Mew Mexico, Arizona) bordering Mexico as well as of course Mexico itself. There were effectively two strains of Spanish colonial architecture: that of the common homestead and that of the public building, in particular churches.

Homes
The oldest and original colonial homes in these territories would have been single story, single room houses with thatched and/or flat roofs. With their characteristic lime mortar whitewashed adobe walls they would have been very reminiscent of the ‘peasant’ homes back in Spain. The Spanish building styles and techniques originated in climates very similar to those subsequently encountered in the New World and so their features were well designed to deal with the heat experienced there. Cooling porches were built to provide shelter from the most extreme of the weather and the temperature within the buildings would have been regulated through the use of the thick adobe or stone walls and wooden shutters on the windows. As the buildings developed, and the settlers became more prosperous, they would have taken on second stories with porches and balconies and even ornamentation on their stucco walls.

Public Buildings
Public buildings such as churches carried much grander and elaborate ornamentation on a far larger scale to reflect the catholic churches and cathedrals of the Spanish homeland. In contrast to the functional homesteads they were built to dominate and inspire the local inhabitants and advertise the power and authority of both the Spanish and the mother church. They therefore reflected the latest European styles of the age, principally Baroque, but also Neo-Classical and Renaissance and were complete with colourful and extravagantly decorated internal spaces.

Town Planning
Perhaps one of the most enduring legacies of Spanish building however was the popularisation of the idea of organised town planning. The idea of laying out streets in predefined grids with open public spaces, such as central plazas, and prominent public buildings.

Towns were planned meticulously to give the key public buildings pride of place as well as to provide space for key social, communal and military functions within the town. Guidelines were even prescribed by the monarchy so that the town’s layout and its buildings therein would all work together to meet these aims. At the heart of these planned towns would be the impressive, dominating and awe inspiring churches and cathedrals that the Spanish built to spread the messages of their mission in the New World.

North America is, in every sense, a melting pot of cultural influences and this can be seen very clearly in its architectural styles. Influences may have travelled across the seas from the Old World of its European settlers but they have evolved and taken on characteristics of their own to suit both the demands of the new environments and the fashions of the inhabitants.
© Stuart Mitchell 2012

The Junior ISA at a Glance

The Junior ISA (JISA) has rarely been out of the news since its launch at the tail end of last Autumn, with many debating its merit as a vehicle for saving for our chidren’s futures and whether it adequately fills the gap left by the late Child Trust Fund. However, for any parent who’s considering opening one for their child it is worth getting to grips with the basic facts before weighing up their options and, to that end, the following provides an at-a-glance view of all the most pertinent information about JISAs.

Who is Eligible for a JISA?

• UK resident children (i.e., younger than 18) born...
• since 1 January 2011
• before 1 September 2002

Children born in the period between the dates above are instead eligible for a Child Trust Fund (CTF), the relatively short-lived precursor to the current Junior ISA, into which the government would contribute a starter fund, typically £250. Unfortunately those who are eligible for CTF cannot have their CTF switched into a Junior ISA.

Who Can Open a JISA?

• Parent/Guardian
• in the name of their child

The parent or guardian who opens the account becomes the registered contact for that account however any monies put into the ISA will always be owned by the child as soon as they are credited to the account, and not the registered contact. The registered contact cannot easily be changed once they have opened the account unless there is a suitable reason, such as the guardianship of the child changing (new foster or adoption parents for example), although the child can become the registered contact themselves when they turn 16.

What Accounts Can Be Opened?

• One Cash ISA
• One Stocks & Shares ISA

A child can hold both elements at the same time (as is the case with an adult ISA) and these can be held with different providers, but they are only entitled to have one of each account type open at any given time. At 16, the ‘child’ can also open an adult ISA themselves which will be completely ring-fenced from the Junior ISA.

How Much Can Be Put In?

• £3,600 per tax year

This is the limit for the 2012/13 tax year and is likely to rise in future tax years as the subscription limit for adult ISAs does. The entire sum can be put into either the Cash or Stocks and Shares elements, or split in any proportions between them.

What are the Investment Options?

• Cash
• Shares
• Collective Investments (Investment Trust, Unit Trusts, OIECs etc)
• Debt Securities (Bonds etc)

The monies within a Junior ISA can be apportioned however you wish amongst these options but, as with an adult ISA, the cash elements must be held within a Cash ISA (unless the cash is awaiting investment within the Stocks & Shares ISA) and the other investments, including Shares and Collectives, must be held within a Stocks and Shares ISA. For a full breakdown of all the investment options you should refer to a financial adviser and/or check the various providers on the market, however the investment opportunities will vary from one provider to another.

What Tax Breaks are Available?

• Income Tax
• including Dividend Tax
• Capital Gains Tax (CGT)

The Junior ISA protects any income on cash savings and investments, including interest and dividends, that would usually be susceptible to tax where the child’s overall income exceeds the standard annual tax free allowance that all individuals benefit from (£8,105 for 2012/13). In addition any gains the ISA makes will not be affected by CGT.

When Can the Monies be Accessed?

• When the child turns 18
• If the child is terminally ill
• If the child has died

Although the child can take over control of the Junior ISA as the registered contact when they turn 16, they will still not be able to withdraw the money until their 18th birthday. If the child is terminally ill the registered contact may apply to the HMRC to withdraw the monies and if the child has died the monies will pass within their estate to the relevant beneficiaries.
© Stuart Mitchell 2012

An Introduction to Fast Ethernet

The following article aims to provide an introduction to the concept of Fast Ethernet, what it is, a summary of how it works, and who can benefit from its implementation.

The basic definition of Fast Ethernet is just that, fairly basic, in that it simply refers to Ethernet cables/connections which carry data at a rate faster than the original Ethernet speeds. This original Ethernet typically carried data at speeds of 10Mbit/s (10,000,000 bits per second) whereas services that are described as Fast Ethernet can reach speeds of 100Mbit/s. In its stricter sense the term actually applies to a number of different standards which deliver this speed although more loosely it is also used to describe the standards which have superseded it with faster transfer rates, including Gigabit Ethernet (1,000,000,000 bits a second) and in the last few years, 10Gbit/s (10,000,000,000 bits a second).

The various Fast Ethernet standards are known as 100BASE-[?] as a progression of the original Ethernet standard 10BASE-T, where [?] varies to designate the medium and method through which data is being transmitted. They are broadly split into two camps, those that use copper cables and those that run on fibre-optic cables. The copper cable variants have a designation of 100BASE-T[?] whilst the optical fibre standards include 100BASE-BX, 100BASE-FX, 100BASE-LX10 and 100BASE-SX (distinguished by the number of strands of fibre, the wavelength and the reach of the signal).

The Benefits
The obvious benefit of Fast Ethernet is the speed at which amounts of data can be transferred across the networks that use it. In a crude sense, for businesses especially, the more data that can be transferred in a given period, the quicker the business processes (that are based upon these computer functions) and the more efficient the business.

However, it’s not just a case of speeding up existing processes. Using higher bandwidth connections such as Fast Ethernet and being able therefore to transfer more data, more quickly also opens up additional avenues of technology and communication which require larger flows of data. These technologies of course have their own benefits. A good example of this is video streaming which has obvious value in terms of conveying information or as a source of entertainment, but which can also be invaluable to businesses as a communication tool using live streams to facilitate video conferencing. Furthermore, Fast Ethernet is a vital component of constructing Wide Area Networks (WANs), networks which stretch over long distances incorporating remote local area networks (LANs). These can be used by providers to offer cross-location connectivity.

Its Uses
In a personal context individuals are utilising Fast Ethernet everyday to connect up their home networks, allowing them to run centralised entertainment systems which are becoming increasingly popular. Users rely on these connections to play gaming software, stream videos and listen to music from central hubs or the internet.

In a commercial context, as mentioned above it can be a vital component of a WAN which in turn can provide businesses and organisations with secure networks across disparate geographical locations. These networks connect LANs together and therefore connect employees as if they were all on the same site. The networks allow organisations to transfer sensitive data at operational speeds and so perform demanding tasks from remote locations. They facilitate efficient, collaborative and real-time communications such as video conferencing ensuring that businesses are flexible, cohesive and responsive.

© Stuart Mitchell 2012

Alternative Cloud Models

In the previous instalment of this article, the two fundamental models of cloud computing, private and public clouds, were described. The following installment introduces two further variations on these models which can be used to add flexibility to an organisation’s IT infrastructure, the hybrid and the community cloud models.

Community Cloud
A community cloud model describes a scenario in which a number of organisations with similar IT demands club together to use the same cloud infrastructure. They are particularly appropriate where the organisations perform similar functions and therefore require the same configurations, especially in relation to security and compliance. In essence it is a half-way house between the private and public cloud models.

The model is similar to that of a private cloud in that it is a ring fenced platform which ensures greater levels of security than the public cloud offers and it can also be hosted internally by the constituent organisations to ensure greater ownership and control (at the expense of some cost savings). However, because it has multiple clients (usually a small number) it also provides economies of scale which are missing in private clouds and therefore greater cost savings than the individual equivalents. Furthermore, in common with a public cloud model, organisations can take advantage of pay as you go pricing structures.

Hybrid Cloud
The hybrid model of cloud computing is also somewhat self explanatory in that it is used to describe any configuration which utilises a combination of the public and private cloud computing models, or indeed a combination involving community cloud models. It comes under the slightly broader categorisation of hybrid IT - that is an IT platform which integrates a mixture of internal and external networks and services so that the resource being used can provide the maximum benefit for each business function.

Hybrid cloud models can therefore give an organisation access to the differing benefits of public and private models, primarily cost/scalability and security respectively, as and when they need them by integrating the different models for the different functions within the organisation. For example, a business that processes and stores sensitive data may do so on a private cloud platform to ensure that it is secure whilst also taking advantage of the scalability of a virtualised environment. It may then use integrated public cloud services for all of the less sensitive functions, such as project planning, in order to benefit from the considerable costs savings and scalability that that can bring.

A hybrid cloud set-up, like hybrid cloud hosting, can be constructed in a couple of ways: either by providers of each model of cloud computing teaming up to provide a hybrid platform which organisations can sign up to to perform their differing IT functions; or by an organisation managing their own internal private cloud or other IT infrastructure and then signing up to an integrated external public cloud service where they can, to handle their non data sensitive functions.

Whatever a client’s computing needs, there will be a cloud based service to meet their demand and provide that client with the benefits of virtualisation and utility style computing; including responsive on-demand scalability, cost efficiencies (including pay as you go and free services) and redundancy. By becoming aware of the potential of using public, private and community clouds as well as the hybrid models which combine and maximise the benefits of each, organisations can ensure that they keep their IT operations as efficient, productive and secure as possible.
© Stuart Mitchell 2012

Public vs Private Clouds

As an alternative to the three tiered classification of cloud based services - Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS) and Software as a Sevice (SaaS) - cloud computing can also be classified based upon how the underlying networks are implemented and accessed by the client. The following article provides and overview of the two principle models Public and Private Clouds.

These models do not describe strict architectures and so a variety of configurations can be employed to achieve each model of cloud computing. Furthermore, each model can be used to offer each tier of cloud service as mentioned above.

Public Cloud
When most people think of cloud computing they think of a typical public cloud model where the services on offer are available to public customers through a public network, usually the internet. The accessibility of this model allows for cloud services to be supplied to a mass market and for the provider to centralise/pool (and share) the physical computing resource they require to offer the services; utilising virtualisation where they need to establish operating environments. As a result, consumers and providers of public cloud services can benefit from considerable economies of scale to reduce their costs as well as sheer scalability to respond to fluctuations in demand.

Public cloud services can often be free to the consumer, funded for example by advertising, however where a charge is applied they usually follow a pay as you go (PAYG) type model - that is the consumer is supplied with the computing resource they need as and when they need it and are only charged for what they use. Many of the cloud services that are most familiar to the general consumer, particularly Software as a Service (SaaS) applications such as Google Docs (cloud based ‘office’ applications), Gmail (web based email) or Dropbox (cloud storage), fall under the public cloud model.

For some consumers, the mechanisms of the public cloud which bring such cost savings and widespread availability can also bring undesired security vulnerabilities. Although the security of these services is always improving, the fact that data is transferred across public networks and stored on shared physical and/or virtual servers may provide obstacles to some clients using the public cloud for processing sensitive data. Instead they might look towards to private cloud services.

Private Cloud
Cloud clients who are handling, processing or storing sensitive data that they need ensure remains private and secure and who want to take advantage of some of the cost, availability and scalability benefits that cloud computing usually offers, can utilise private cloud services as an alternative to the public cloud.

The concept of a private cloud is harder to define than that of public cloud and no strict definition really exists. It is best to categorise private clouds by some of the features that they provide and the issues that they address in comparison to public services, such as data security and ownership control (of servers etc), rather than the mechanisms they use. They will of course also display the tell-tale features of cloud computing in general - virtualisation, instantaneous scalability, PAYG charging and automated allocation of resources on demand.

The entirety of a private cloud will only be accessible by a single organisation (in contrast to multiple clients using services within the public cloud) and some examples therefore also allow the end user organisation to have control over the management of the cloud network and its set-up so that they can tailor it to their own needs. The flip side of this control however is that some of the cost savings generated by the centralised management of public cloud services will be lost in private clouds. Instead the service becomes closer in structure to a traditional local network based service, but with the benefits of virtualisation mentioned above.

The network of servers itself can be hosted internally by the organisation (as required by some regulatory bodies for sensitive data) or externally by a cloud provider (e.g., a Virtual Data Centre, VDC) but access will be restricted to connections made behind the organisation's firewall. To provide the security and control private clouds can employ certain characteristics techniques including closed networks of servers (not shared between clients), hosting of servers on site and leased lines to access these networks where they are hosted off site.

© Stuart Mitchell 2012

The Colonial Styles of North America - English

English: Georgian Colonial home of the Rev. Benjamin Wadsworth in Danvers, Massachusetts, est. 1784. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The first installment of this article looked at the colonial architecture of North America which originated with the imported styles and influences of France, Germany and the low countries such as the Netherlands. Perhaps the most significant cultural influences on the continent however came from the country which previously owned the colonies which now form most of the US and Canada, Great Britain.

The colonial architecture transported from Great Britain is referred to as English Colonial (due to the slightly archaic use of England to refer to the whole of Britain) and can be broken down into a few genres and sub genres. The two principle genres are First Period and Georgian.

English First Period
Otherwise known as late medieval, this architectural style dates back to the first wave of British settlers in North America at the start of the 17th century. It is therefore is prominent along the Eastern seaboard, and particularly the North East of the US around (logically) New England where the first colonisers set up home. As with all colonial styles the architecture reflects an evolution of the styles and techniques that the settlers would have known from Britain at that time, with adaptations to work with local resources and to suit the local climate.

The buildings therefore carried characteristics that would be recognisable in the UK from the Tudor/Stuart era such as steep roofs, large central chimneys and timber frames and an over-hanging first floor. However, the limitation of some resources in the new colonies as well as the availability of others led to other characteristics such as timber clad walls and small windows to conserve the use of scarce glass. The first houses were functional, sometimes resembling little more than a timber shed, and ornamentation only started to creep in later on as the colonies began to prosper.

English Georgian
The Georgian colonial architectural style became popular in North America as subsequent British migrants brought with them the popular Georgian and Palladian fashions from their homelands in the 18th and 19th centuries.

The style coincided with prosperity and wealth in both the colonies and Britain itself, as a result of its successes in the colonies, during the reigns of George I through to George IV. Grand houses were built with influences harking back to the classical architecture of Greece and Rome and as the wealth permeated the social classes more and more home owners looked to ape the fashions of the upper classes, thus popularising the style. The utilitarian simplicity and functionality of the core style also allowed its use on a broader scale for residential dwellings.

Georgian colonial buildings were characterised by square or rectangular shapes and a strong dependence on symmetry throughout. They were typically made up of two stories with the main entrance doorway in the centre of the building’s facade on the ground floor. Windows were larger than those found on First Period houses and were position symmetrically, sometimes accompanied by interior window shutters. The central chimneys of the early styles were gone and instead positioned on each end of the building. Although the style could be simple and functional, ornate plasterwork was often incorporated where the budget allowed, particularly over entrances and within reception rooms, but its use was more restrained than in English counterparts.

The revival of colonial architecture during the 20th century was primarily a resurgence in popularity for the Georgian Style, or Neo-Georgian as it became known back across the pond.

© Stuart Mitchell 2012