M MESA (= Manufacturing Enterprise Solutions Association) The goal of MESA (Manufacturing Enterprise Solutions Association) is to deliver valuable knowledge around operations-centric enterprise solutions. The association defines manufacturing-industry standards, methodologies and approaches with the goal of promoting best practices in manufacturing. It uses industry events, symposiums and publications to spread its ideas.MES (= Manufacturing Execution System) A Manufacturing Execution System (MES) is a system used to control and optimize the production process. Mainframe A mainframe is a large and highly complex computer system whose key features are reliability and high I/O performance. A mainframe can be operated in online mode to server a large number of uses (via time sharing), in batch-mode, and to perform complex, time-consuming tasks.Managed Desktop Services Managed Desktop Services (MDS) are designed to manage and control decentralized IT infrastructure at employee desktops. This includes computers such as PCs, notebooks or thin clients, and devices such as Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), printers and other peripherals (scanners, USB sticks). An MDS service typically covers management of hardware and the software installed on it, configuration of user settings, user authorizations, etc. It generally also includes end-user support via hotlines or online help resources, and remote maintenance of equipment.Managed Security Services Outsourcing of IT security tasks. Under an MSS agreement, the service provider performs ongoing monitoring and where necessary, configuration and adaptation of customers' security systems.MDA (= Mobile Digital Assistant) An MDA (Mobile Digital Assistant) or PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) is a small, portable computer mainly used for personal calendar, address and task management. Many MDAs double as cell phones.mIDentity A USB stick that permits highly secure, mobile access to a company's data. MIPS Abbreviation for "million instructions per second". Measure of processor performance. Depends, among other things, on the internal clock speed and the size of processor structures (measured in microns).Monitoring In the context of strategic management, Monitoring denotes the ongoing observation of phenomena or projects. The term Monitoring is often used in conjunction with relevant metrics and indicators.MP3 MP3 (short for MPEG-1 Audio Layer 3) is a very popular file format for lossful compression of audio data. MP3 exploits the findings of psychoacoustics by only storing audio signals that are consciously audible to human beings.P PAL-Format (= Phase Alternating Line) PAL, short for Phase Alternating Line, is a color encoding system used in analog television broadcasting. It was developed to resolve the irritating problem of color tone errors in the NTSC system.PDA (= Personal Digital Assistant) An MDA (Mobile Digital Assistant) or PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) is a small, portable computer mainly used for personal calendar, address and task management. Many MDAs double as cell phones.Peering Data exchange between two providers at a common network transition point. With respect to the Internet, this refers to extended IP connectivity achieved by connecting the IP (Internet Protocol) backbones of various Internet Service Providers with the goal of enabling communication between all Internet users. The legal framework is provided by Peering agreements between the cooperating ISPs.PKI A P ublic K ey I nfrastructure is an arrangement that provides encryption and digital-signature services based on public key algorithms. In this security set-up, the public key of a certificate holder, along with identification information, is authenticated by the digital signature of a certification body.Plug and Play In other words, connect up and get started. Usually refers to the automatic recognition, installation and configuration of ICT equipment as soon as it is plugged in or connected to a network. This allows equipment to be used right away without specialist skills.Podcast A blend of iPod (Apple's MP3 player) with broadcast. Refers to an audio file that is available as a download from the Internet and can be played back on a computer, MP3 player or suitable mobile phone. There is no clear distinction between an audio Podcast and its video equivalent, although the latter is generally termed a Webcast.Point of Sale In a general sense of the term, and in marketing, the Point of Sale, or PoS, is the place where something is sold. In a narrower sense, it refers to the cash register and related equipment (PoS terminal, PoS scanner). In the specialized field of Merchandise Management, the term Electronic Point of Sale (EPoS) is used for an application-based, value-added communications service for cashless payment, e.g. by debit or credit card.Product Lifecycle Management PLM is the process of managing the entire lifecycle of a product using a dedicated IT system to store and manage all data that arises between the product's conception and its sale or disposal. Ideally, all departments and systems that come into contact with a product have access to a common database that covers all phases from planning, design, costing and manufacture to sales and service. In light of their complexity, PLM systems are not products that can be purchased; PLM should be regarded rather as a strategy that requires appropriate technical and organizational support.Provider A supplier or vendor of goods or services. In an ICT context, the term is used for suppliers of services relating to information and communications technologies. The relevant market segment and/or stage of the value chain are often indicated by additions, e.g. Service Provider, Network Service Provider (NSP), Internet Service Provider (ISP), Internet Access Provider (IAP), Application Service Provider (ASP), or Internet Content Provider (ICP).Public Private Partnership In a Public-Private Partnership (PPP), private-sector capital, knowledge and skills are employed to provide a government service. In a broader sense, the term can also refer to other types of collaboration between government and business. In many cases, a PPP goes hand-in-hand with the partial privatization of public-sector tasks.R R/3 An Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system that supports end-to-end management of a business. One of SAP AG's main products. The current version of this software is called mySAP ERP.Real ICT ICT refers to the convergence between IT and telecommunications technologies. Real ICT from T-Systems goes one step further by offering end-to-end support for entire business processes, covered by a single service-level agreement.Retail In the telecommunications industry, retail refers to the end-customer market, with products and services offered to consumers, i.e. private customers, SMEs and key accounts. The wholesale market segment, in contrast, refers to business-to-business sales of so-called upstream products to competitors, such as alternative landline operators, Internet Service Providers, and mobile telephone companies, i.e. resellers.RFID R adio F requency Id entification technology is employed to remotely retrieve information using radio waves An RFID system comprises a transponder and a data reader. A transponder receives incoming signals and automatically responds to them. In conjunction with RFID, transponders are known as tags, which can be active or passive. Tags are affixed to an object in such a way that the information stored on them can be retrieved remotely. Tagged objects can be unambiguously identified.RIS A Radiology Information System is a computer system that assists radiology services in storing and managing medical and administrative information.Road Charging Charging for road use by vehicles.Roaming Roaming refers to the use of a communications device or just a subscriber's identification in a different network (visited network) from the home network. This is possible if the two network operators have signed a roaming agreement and have implemented the necessary connections between their networks. Roaming is typically employed by cell phone users when travelling in other countries.Router A router acts as a junction between two or more networks. Routers can also be used to extend the boundaries of a network and to control data traffic by rejecting faulty data packets.RSS R eally S imple S yndication refers both to a method and a file format, both of which are used as a particularly effective way to publish information on the Internet. RSS is primarily employed to publish or exchange news. An RSS file is a brief, machine-readable description of a document such as a current news article. It generally includes the article's headline and a brief summary of its content. It also includes a link to the Internet location from which the document described can be accessed. RSS is mainly used where Website content is frequently updated.RSS Feed RSS feeds are also provided as a subscriber service, with subscribers automatically being sent new RSS files as they become available. Some of today's Web browsers are able to display the RSS feeds the user has subscribed to. Websites that offer RSS feeds draw attention to this service via symbols, usually in the form of small buttons labeled "XML" or "RSS", or sometimes "RDF" or "Channel".
