Linux Applications

Smart phone with the use of mobile technology performs multiple roles of a music player, computer, digital camera, calendar, TV, etc.  Smartphones are handheld electronic devices with functionality of PDA and cell phone. Its smartness is not only its outlook but also being very efficient. It is specially designed as a business friendly device and as an all-time office assistant. One of the significant differences of the smartphones with the other phones is the self-configuration. The manufacturer already configures the other standard handsets and the user cannot modify them. Smartphones permit the users to configure and the applications can be selected according to their needs. For example you don’t have to stick to the calendar application and it can be changed to your taste. WiFi feature is another advantage of some smartphone users as this permits broadband connectivity to the user through wireless network. It has got expanded Personal Information Management (PIM) that can be perfectly used by you for certain options. This helps you to get reminded of your engagements at the time you have chosen. Another remarkable smartphone application is its communication with desktops and laptops.The smartphone applications allow you to send instant messages, e-mail etc. It supports applications of video games but video files and audio files can be played in some accepted formats. Latest smartphones introduced in the market are designed with a new feature Viz. Near Field Communication (NFC) and this application allows the user to the smartphone similar to a credit card that is wireless. So while buying smartphones, look for its applications and read the particular smartphone model’s technical reviews, as this will help you to choose the best featured smartphone. The applications mainly used by users are ringtones, games themes, wallpapers, calendars, email and cameras.A smartphone has an operating system like a PC or a laptop. The various operating systems available are Symbian, Blackberry, Palm, Windows mobile, Linux etc. Nokia Symbian smartphone has the largest software availability. Microsoft and Symbian operating systems are widely used in the smartphones and they dominate the market also. Smartphone applications offers information features like wireless e-mail, fax, intercom, online banking, PIM, LAN connectivity, Web browsing and data entry in graffiti style. They permit the users to transfer data between computers and phones. Smartphones are great choice for traveling and business professionals as they need frequent access to calendar, e-mails, Internet and other applications during movement.A Smartphone application offers you convenience in making calls and allows you to take notes at the same time. You can plug in your smartphone earpiece for jotting down notes easily on this hybrid device. The smartphone application allows you for accessing all information in one place and reduces your work of synchronization of PDA and mobile phone. But working on spreadsheets applications on a smartphone drains your battery and the smartphone cannot be used till it’s charged. The smart functions of smartphones are QWERTY keyboard, securing access to e-mail and touch screen. Smartphone in essence is a voice centric instrument offering PDA capabilities. In smartphones the primary function is voice and secondary function is data. The other features are address book, contact list, to-do list and advanced access for informations etc. With the launch of iPhones in the market, our perception will change and can elevate the smartphone’s application image to a higher level.

Ensuring a computer is not only displaying the correct time but that it is being maintained accurately is not as straight-forward as it first sounds.

Most Linux systems have two clocks. The hardware clock, also known as the CMOS of Bios clock, is usually a simple crystal oscillator with battery back-up that maintains time when your system is off or boots up. This clock is usually located on the motherboard and will run all the time, however these clock chips tend to lose time as the computer ages and the battery weakens.

The other clock, the system clock, is a software clock and it starts when you boot up your system often getting an initial time from the hardware clock. System clocks keep time by adding seconds on to a prime epoch, a base time that for Linux and Unix, began at midnight on January 1, 1970.

However, the hardware clock is a cheap electronic oscillator and cannot maintain time to any useful degree of accuracy. They often drift several seconds a day which for day-to-day process is probably adequate but with time sensitive applications it can cause serious problems.

A better way is to set the system clock using the time from a NTP (Network Time Protocol) time server. These dedicated time servers get a UTC (Coordinated Universal Time) time from an atomic clock which are the most accurate time keepers in the world, not losing a second in time in several millions of years.

Dedicated NTP servers use either a radio receiver to pick-up a radio time and frequency broadcast which are transmitted by several national laboratories or by using the timing signal broadcast from the GPS network.

Linux uses a NTP service called NTP Daemon (ntpd). This uses NTP to adjust the system clock for any drift in time as it frequently check the UTC time source.

To configure the NTP daemon the ntp.conf file in the /etc directory can be used. From here more than one time server can be used as a reference and also the frequency it is checked can also be altered.