Department of Information Resources
Networking Equipment Contract Number DIR-SDD-229

LAN-COMM Technologies, Inc. is selected by 3Com and the State of Texas as a fullfillment agent for 3Com Networking Equipment and related Services under the DIR Contract Number DIR-SDD-229.

3Com DIR Product Price List 9/9/2009 - 97 KB

3Com DIR Maintenance Price List 9/9/2009 - 75 KB

Effective September 1, 2006 state agencies and institutions of higher education shall procure products which comply with the State of Texas Accessibility requirements for Electronic and Information Resources specified in 1 TAC Chapter 213 when such products are available in the commercial marketplace or when such products are developed in response to a procurement solicitation.

Who can purchase from this contract:

DIR’s key service populations include the Office of the Governor, Texas Legislature, and oversight agencies; state agencies, universities, and their boards; school districts; political subdivisions; and the citizens of Texas. In 2005, the 79th Texas Legislature authorized state and local government entities from other states to purchase information technology products and services through DIR cooperative contracts, making government entities outside of Texas part of DIR’s service population.

During the past biennium, DIR’s role has expanded to include the provision of innovative technology solutions to meet critical human service delivery needs; for example, technology solutions to expedite hurricane disaster relief and increased information technology security requirements in a post-9/11 environment.

Texas state agencies, unit of local government, institution of higher education as defined in Section 2054.003, Texas Government Code, and those state agencies purchasing from a DIR contract through an Interagency Agreement, as authorized by Chapter 771, Texas Government Code, any local government as authorized through the Interlocal Cooperation Act, Chapter 791, Texas Government Code, and the state agencies and political subdivisions of other states as authorized by Section 2054.0565, Texas Government Code.

The voice over IP (VoIP) integrated circuit market has continued to grow as increasing numbers of vendors integrate VoIP features in customer premise equipment.

According to In-Stat, the VoIP IC market will expand more than 600% from $208.7 million last year to $1.3 billion in 2009. Though revenues from VoIP IC sales have grown slowly on the infrastructure side, due to what the firm describes as "extreme price pressure," In-Stat expects wireless handsets to emerge as a key market for the chips over the next few years.

"By the end of the forecast period, VoIP functionality will be integrated into a high percentage of new wireless handsets," In-Stat analyst Norm Bogen said in a statement. "From a revenue perspective, the IP Phone sub-segment (wireless and wireline combined) represents the smallest revenue market today, but will be the largest one by 2009. This reversal will occur due to high growth in business-oriented IP PBX/hosted PBX phones and dual-mode wireless handsets."

Once-dominant VoIP IC maker Texas Instruments has seen its market share slip, despite increases in units shipped. According to In-Stat, vendors without production facilities are finding themselves in increasingly stronger positions to take advantage of the market.

November 21, 2005

By Phil Britt Networking Pipeline

Broadband over power lines (BPL), which was first touted in the late 1990s as a way to deliver high-speed communications to homeowners and businesses, is finally becoming a reality as pilots and tests abound. And firms, including Google, smell broadband gold, and are pouring money into the new technology.

According to Steve Bridges, vice president of Aon Technology and Professional Risk Group, Chicago, Ill., broadband over power lines revenue growth has been predicted to increase from $57 million in 2004 to $4.4 billion in 2011. In addition, sensing the promise of the technology, a number of large technology companies, including Google, IBM and Motorola, have decided to heavily invest in BPL service. Notably, Google, Hearst Corp. and Goldman Sachs have recently made a combined capital investment of $100 million in Current Communications, a broadband over power lines service provider.

Despite those investments, the promise of several years ago of a technology that would compete head-to-head with cable and DSL broadband services isn't likely to ever come to fruition, according to technology experts. It's not that broadband over power lines doesn't have a spot in the broadband communications marketplace. It's just that the spot is, and will likely, remain small, according to many technology experts, though others see promise in the technology (see sidebar).

In the last five-plus years, cable and DSL providers have spent countless dollars investing in their technologies and have upgraded both the speeds that can be provided and the accessibility of their technologies, according to Young-Sae Song, director of corporate marketing for Redback Networks, San Jose, Calif. In addition to those seasoned technologies, broadband over power lines would also need to compete with WiMax, which is also starting to compete in the high-speed communications market.

"I wouldn't even call [broadband over power lines] a niche," Song says. "For most, it would be the second or third choice behind cable and DSL."

Song and others expect broadband over power lines to primarily be deployed in rural or smaller communities, where DSL and cable service are limited or non-existent. Another use could be utility-company specific, to communicate throughout its physical network, including headquarters, power plants, sub stations, etc.

However, broadband over power lines could become a more widespread option in Europe and Asia, according to Song. The 220-volt power supply system on those continents is better suited to provide high-speed communications than is the power supply system in the United States.

Broadband over power lines faces technology and business challenges, though. As the technology exists today, broadband over power lines offers a maximum capacity of about 4 MB, according to Ted Demopoulos, an IT business consultant based in Durham, NH. While this is fine for many of today's applications, it's too slow for providing video over IP, which many see as the next step in the evolution of broadband delivery.

Even that maximum speed is theoretical and could drop quickly if many people are accessing the broadband service at the same time, Song adds. While cable and DSL have had the same sharing issues, those technologies and infrastructures have been upgraded, so adding more users to the system isn't as noticeable to legacy users.

Broadband over power lines uses radio signals, so it also interferes with some emergency communications and can have noise issues of its own, according to Demopoulos. "The power lines were never devised to carry this type of signal."

The competing technologies don't have these noise issues.

From a business perspective, the cable and DSL providers have been aggressive in building their customer bases and physical infrastructures, while power companies have largely concentrated on their core businesses over the past several years, according to Song.

Nov 18, 2005

The Future Of Windows
A sneak peek at Vista, Blackcomb, and beyond.

Network Computing By George Jones

With a brand-new iteration of Windows scheduled for next year, and two other intriguing product launches also promised, the future of Windows promises to be interesting. Here are some quick forecasts on what you can expect over the next few years.

Windows Vista
Formerly code-named Longhorn (which, rumor has it, was named after a bar at the Whistler Blackcomb ski resort in British Columbia, Canada), Windows Vista is currently scheduled for release in the second half of 2006. Since Windows XP is beginning to feel long in the tooth, this is a major release for Microsoft.

Key improvements in Windows Vista, Microsoft says, will include faster performance, a more powerful interface, more effective file searching, improved security, and more intuitive home networking. This release will also feature a new version of Internet Explorer. One feature that will be conspicuous in its absence is WinFS, a powerful new file storage system that Microsoft had to drop due to time constraints.

Longhorn Server
Scheduled for release in 2007, Windows Longhorn Server will likely be named Windows Server 2007. Microsoft has indicated that it will stick with its year-based naming scheme for these OS variants.

TechWeb's Scot Finnie has spent numerous hours with the most recent beta of Windows Vista, and reports that, thus far, the OS looks promising, with significantly faster boot times and improved search functionality, among other good signs. For a detailed hands-on view of the most recent Vista build, read our latest preview or other stories from our in-depth Vista coverage.

Longhorn Server will be the server equivalent of Windows Vista, and should add new features aimed at high-end corporate users to the improvements in the consumer-oriented version of the OS. It's also likely that when Longhorn Server ships in 2007, it will include Microsoft's new WinFS file storage system. This version of Windows Server will also include 64-bit support.

Windows Blackcomb
Not many concrete details about the next next-generation version of Windows have been made public. Code-named Windows Blackcomb, this OS will replace Windows Vista.

Blackcomb (also named after that Canadian ski resort) was originally scheduled to be the successor to Windows XP, but the company decided to release Windows Vista in the interim while they focus on more ambitious changes for Blackcomb.

According to Internet rumors, Microsoft sources have indicated that Blackcomb's goal will be nothing short of a radical rethinking of the way users interact with their PCs. This will probably entail a complete replacement of the Start menu and Taskbar, as well as the entire Explorer shell.

Blackcomb should feature two technologies originally planned for Vista but removed because of time constraints: the WinFS file storage system, and a new command-line scripting language known as the Microsoft Command Shell (code name Monad). Not surprisingly, the OS will also include bolstered security features.

The current release date for Blackcomb is thought to be somewhere around 2011 or 2012, but Microsoft isn't saying for sure.

April 27, 2005

AT2 Communications, Inc. Announces Sale of Integration Division To LAN-COMM Technologies, Inc.

Press Release April 27, 2005 For Immediate Release

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS—AT2 Communications, Inc. – Dba Advantage Telcom, announced today it has entered into an agreement for the sale of it’s Integration Division, to LAN-COMM Technologies, Inc.

LAN-COMM Technologies, Inc., will be based in San Antonio, Texas, and will be owned and operated by Ray Clark, formally Director Of Integration and Rod King, formally Director Of Engineering for the AT2 Integration Division for the past six years.

"This transaction is positive for both AT2 and LAN-COMM ," said John Stephenson, AT2's president and chief financial officer. The sale will allow each of us to focus completely on its core business, in AT2’s case Wholesale Distribution to the Carrier space, and it will create expanded business opportunities for LAN-COMM in the integration to end-user space.

"Our Integration Division has been a profitable, well-managed component with outstanding teammates, and we appreciate the significant contribution they have made to our business for the past 6 years," Stephenson added.

Ray Clark CEO of LAN-COMM, adds: "we have developed a strong foothold in the VOICE, DATA, and VIDEO market place and presently service thousands of customers in an extraordinarily efficient manner. We believe there is an excellent opportunity for expansion and growth providing communication solutions for the workplace that reside primarily on the Local Area Network."

LAN-COMM Company president Rod King said, "We have thoroughly enjoyed the years spent with AT2, and are equally excited about the opportunities this change in ownership will create for our future. We see this event as very positive for our customers, supply partners and teammates."
See complete Press Release