Parking - March 2010 - 13

incorporate different types of media: cables (fast Ethernet!), fiber-optics (no more lightning strikes!) or even wireless (now without wires!). But as you would expect, using a network infrastructure comes with network-sized challenges: routers and firewalls, packet-shaping and bandwidth. So you need the IT guys again to navigate through these challenges and get on the network “backbone.” So that’s how it happened: you’re now dependent on your IT staff for two of the three key components of your ARC solution! And most IT Nerds don’t know much about parking—they know about IT. So you’re thinking, “no big deal, I’ve just outsourced the infrastructure – IT handles the technology while I’m still running parking.” Perhaps. But what makes this even more challenging is that the Nerds don’t view the world the same as normal people. IT people view the word in this sort-of-logical-ones-and-zeros way that is inherent in their profession. Normal people don’t just see black or white; they see many shades of gray. Like most specialists, the IT folks have their own language, sort of like how doctors or lawyers or scientists might speak, with their own vernacular. Terms and words have very specific meanings for describing things that the layperson wouldn’t really consider significantly different. And therein lies the challenge for a parking manager—to communicate effectively with the IT staff. To be continued next issue… Blake Laufer is a self proclaimed “technology nerd” who just happens to have fallen into the world of parking. He leads Product Development at parking technology provider T2 Systems. He also writes (very occasionally) about technology and parking at www.parkingplanet.com. He can be reached at blaufer@T2systems.com. Our Latest Additions New Members Regular Diamond Executive Services, LLC Overland Park, KS Student Haaziq Gragg Washington, DC CPPs Re-Certiﬁcations Jim Myhers San Diego County Regional Airport Authority Thomas Thorpe Riverside County, CA Mark Mock Impark Charles “Chuck” Cullen Integrity Parking Systems, LLC www.npapark.org PARKING March 2010

Parking - March 2010

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Parking - March 2010