At High School track and field events, scoring of timed events is often conducted manually with individuals using stopwatches.  These fine folk stand at the finish line and are told to press the watch's start button when they see the smoke from the starter’s pistol – not when they hear the pistol’s report.  This is due to the inherent lag of time taken for the sound to traverse the distance between the starter’s block and the timer’s position.  Really?  I mean, sound travels at 767mph!  It can’t take THAT long for sound to get across the distance of a normal field… can it??  Well considering that light travels at about 186,000mph, and this is a race, maybe it would be a good idea to go with the visual indicator over the audio one.

*1https://www.scienceabc.com/nature/what-is-the-speed-of-electricity.html

One answer that is being researched today, which would absolutely solve this latency issue, involves Quantum Entanglement.  In a nutshell, if two particles are made to become “paired” at the Quantum level (and yes, we are able to do this today, though not easily or economically) then they will remain paired, no matter the distance that is placed between them!  The particles can be paired, then split apart and separated by ANY distance.  Absolutely ANYTHING that is done to disturb either of the particles, and its effects will instantaneously be witnessed in the removed, paired particle!  There is NO latency!  There is no diminishing of the effect; it is identical in scope and strength!  The particles are "communicating" with no time lapse between sending and receiving.  Amazing!

What Axis has built into their software and hardware is Smart technology that can collect and then assess the data at the sensor level.  Any data crunching necessary for the device to make decisions to comply with your analytic's programming are made immediately.  There is no need for the device to wait for the system's controller, located downstream in the data center, to conduct its analysis and then respond.  Also at the device, the decision is made as to what is needed to send on its way down the data stream and what can safely be ignored.  This means less data, thus less need for ultra-fast transmission speeds, and less computing time in the cloud and data centers.  In this sense, decisions are made with much less latency.

In 1973, while writing dialogue for a fictional tv show which featured Albert Einstein as the main character, Ernest Kinoy supplied the line: “Any fool can KNOW! The point is . . . to understand!”

In the scene, Einstein was voicing this reason as to why he had just declined an offer of the final solution to what was his true-to-life quest - an equation which tied EVERYTHING together.  You see, the offer was just for that – the equation, and only the equation; not the means by which the equation had been derived.

So often today, the answers that you and I seek are handed to us by our cell phones.  While truly wonderful tools, when used incorrectly, these devices are the harbingers of the end of that very knowledge that they seek to supply.  They, along with all of the other computing devices at our fingertips, turn each and every one of us into something less than what we were pre-destined for.

And today, I’m writing to defend that position! Sort of...

You may have noticed that I specifically wrote: “…when used incorrectly,…”.  As any reasonable body is aware, there are, contrary to Mr. Einstein's assertions, factions of life where we do not need to understand how something works… we just need to know how to make it do what we want!  Many of the IT systems that DataCom Inc. installs naturally fall into this category.

Allow me an example or two: You don’t need to know how your Surveillance system is able to alarm you after it has determined that it was a human and not a raccoon that lingered at the back entrance of your office at 3a.m.; and you now have a screen shot of the active camera feed at that back door on your cell phone.  But you do need to know how to make the system do that.  You don’t need to know how your Access Control System does not allow entry to your gymnasium doors after school hours – except on nights they are needed to be open.  But you do need to know how to make it do that.  You don’t need to know how your Surveillance system interfaces with your Access Control system to let it know that a disgruntled ex-employee’s vehicle has entered your property.  It then locks the doors, calls - and sends an email - to your security personnel and lets them know to be on the look out in case of trouble.  But there might come a time where you really need to know how to make it do something like that.

So yes, please use your computing devices “correctly” when seeking answers.  Use them diligently - when you truly need to - as the amazing research tools that they can be.  And use them to contact DataCom Inc. to install and program your new IT systems, and allow us to train you on How To Make It Do That.

Recently, realizing that the housing “Seller’s Market” was beginning to wane, my best friend decided that, despite it being before his actual retirement date, it was the right time to sell his home.  In November of 2023, he listed the Jacksonville, FL house and property, and it was sold within a very short time.  The new buyer was kind enough to allow my friend and his wife to remain in the house until January 1st, 2024.  That coincided almost perfectly with his retirement date.

Unfortunately, their time spent packing the home to leave, as well as preparing for his retirement, while continuing to work full-time up to his last day did not afford them any time to search for a new home.  While discussing their plans for post-retirement in the last year or so, they had decided that they would leave the bustle of Florida and move to Alabama.  During previous trips, they had learned that there were parcels available there that offered a more variegated property than they were used to in Florida, while still avoiding the colder weather of a Northern clime.

Deciding that they would travel a while before settling after retired, they purchased a Class “A” motor home that could pull their Wrangler, and parked at a Military-affiliated campground within easy driving distance of his job.  He commuted between the campground and his employment for his last month.  Jacksonville, for those that are unaware, is at the northern tip of Florida.  While winter there is usually temperate, it isn't unheard of for it to occasionally take the form of rain, wind and immoderatly cold temperatures.  This is what they experienced – twice - in the extreme – with the winds reaching 60-70mph on one occasion.  Surely not ideal weather for anyone, let alone in a camper!

After my friend had completed his last actual day at work, they then moved their wheeled abode down the road to another camp site in Pensacola.  The day that they arrived was a beautiful sunny day.  As was the next.  Then, not so much.  Winter in the Panhandle had returned.  Deciding that their bad luck couldn’t possibly continue, they ventured further west to Gulf Port, MS.  This is just outside of Biloxi and, with not much goings on happening outside, they sought out the local casino.  I don’t know which side of luck that they landed on, but they returned to Pensacola after only one week.  This was just a short respite-stop before heading on up to Alabama.  I haven’t talked with my friend yet, but I’m guessing that their relatively short stay in a camper this winter has taken its toll and they are ready to begin earnestly seeking a more permanent homestead.

It is not my business, and I am not judging in any way; but this is a very good Life Lesson.  I believe that my friends, in cutting short their travels, were overcome with the stress of normal eventualities, whether these were unexpected or not.  Four years before they sold their home in Jacksonville, they had completely renovated it.  This involved the major project of adding a second story to the original Ranch style home as well as enclosing the garage to include that space in the first-floor footprint.  It was a two-year project with my buddy doing much of the renovating by himself.  The project had only been completed for two years when they decided to sell.  Then they entered the camper world; a completely different life unto itself.  Couple that with adjusting from living in their recently-acquired extra space in the house to living in the, though large as far as campers go, somewhat cramped space of a motorhome.  Another stressor, my friend had never driven anything as large as this rig before.  I can tell you, it takes some getting used to; navigating rush-hour traffic, narrow lanes, low over-passes, 2-lane bridges, small parking lots with no clear, easy to negotiate exits, low fuel mileage, etc…

I know my friend very well.  He does not sit idle very well.  At a campground with nothing to do, the pending decisions regarding acquiring a new permanent house had to be grating on him.  But, having already made the decision that they wanted to travel for a bit before settling down, was weighing on them as well; were they really going to admit that they may have been premature in purchasing the motorhome and attempting travel?  Should other choices have been made?  I’m guessing about all of this, but I can well imagine that, having enjoyed a 2-year hiatus from serious decision-making regarding the home renovation, and then jumping right back into living the life where life-altering decisions are weighing on you – heavily – had to be almost maddening.  And, obviously, it’s not over yet.

All of this brings me to today’s point – that, often, Business Owners and Managers are faced with similarly difficult scenarios to contemplate.  Having escaped (though probably not entirely) their personal-life decisions at home, decision-makers are now faced with their daily work decisions.  And in today’s climate, the decision on whether or not to pull the trigger on a needed IT upgrade, can be quite daunting.  The Tech world changes rapidly and often.  "What tech is going to remain viable for the life of my investment?"  "Will unforeseen circumstances (like a pandemic?) change virtually every scope of my organization?"  "Is enough of the work force back in place that I may receive the material for my upgrade in a timely manner?"  "Will it be any less expensive if I wait?"

This is my point!  What DataCom Inc. offers is to take a huge part of that burden off of your shoulders.  Let us answer these questions – and many, many more - for you! And you can rest assured that our answers are from a knowledgeable, experienced professional.  We’ve put in the time, having been in this business for almost 30 years.  We’ve done our due diligence - our Management staff and our Design team “wore the tools”.  They know, from having done the job themselves, not just how to sell the job – not just which parts tend to go together, but how to design it for your specific needs, install it, and how to Make It Work! 

We stand ready to alleviate you of the stress and provide you with the needed information, that you may enjoy your upcoming IT project.  We are specialists in Camera and Access Control Systems offering state-of-the-art Cameras, Storage Devices, and Entry/Exit Hardware and systems.  We offer traditional as well as VoIP Paging systems.  Also, Intrusion Alarm and Shot Detection systems.  We can provide either an On-premise or a Hosted telephone system.  All of our infrastructure cabling carries a life-time guarantee as an option.  We choose only top-rated manufacturers for all of our Switchgear and Access Points – both physically wired, as well as wireless.  We use American-Made products as often as possible.