Notification system
Encyclopedia
A modern notification system is a combination of software and hardware
that provides a means of delivering a message
to a set of recipients. For example, notification systems can send an e-mail
when a new topic has been added to Wikipedia
. The complexity of the notification system is often dependent on the types of messages that must be sent. An e-mail noting when a page has been inserted into Wikipedia is adequate for such a straightforward task. However, notifying individuals when a building
is on fire
would require real-time interaction
, escalation
, scheduling
, rosters, and fail-over
scenarios.
) and unwanted calls (do not call list), notification system providers are wary of violating existing laws and/or blacklisting by 3rd parties who carry the notification. An opt-in process of collecting data harbors the provider from unlawful use, because each recipient is giving the notification provider permission to contact him or her.
intervention, notification systems can provide a way of accepting feedback
. The feedback can be used to determine what tasks the system should perform. For example, a chief firefighter
, when notified of a pending fire, must acknowledge that the truck is en route, thus eliminating the need for further notifications.
may trigger a chain of failures that can lead to events that require immediate attention. For example, an e-mail that fails to send is not a significant error, and may be classified as a warning. However, the original incident that noted the e-mail failure may spawn a ping
of the mail server responsible for relaying the e-mails. If the ping fails, the event may be escalated to a severe level, to indicate that a more important issue requires resolution.
in which a recipient can be notified. Someone working a midnight shift may be available for handling emergencies between 11:00pm and 7:00am. The system should make no attempt to notify this person outside of those hours. A notification system could take into consideration vacation
times, weekends, holidays, and so forth, to prevent notifying people when they are not available.
Computer hardware
Personal computer hardware are component devices which are typically installed into or peripheral to a computer case to create a personal computer upon which system software is installed including a firmware interface such as a BIOS and an operating system which supports application software that...
that provides a means of delivering a message
Message
A message in its most general meaning is an object of communication. It is a vessel which provides information. Yet, it can also be this information. Therefore, its meaning is dependent upon the context in which it is used; the term may apply to both the information and its form...
to a set of recipients. For example, notification systems can send an e-mail
E-mail
Electronic mail, commonly known as email or e-mail, is a method of exchanging digital messages from an author to one or more recipients. Modern email operates across the Internet or other computer networks. Some early email systems required that the author and the recipient both be online at the...
when a new topic has been added to Wikipedia
Wikipedia
Wikipedia is a free, web-based, collaborative, multilingual encyclopedia project supported by the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation. Its 20 million articles have been written collaboratively by volunteers around the world. Almost all of its articles can be edited by anyone with access to the site,...
. The complexity of the notification system is often dependent on the types of messages that must be sent. An e-mail noting when a page has been inserted into Wikipedia is adequate for such a straightforward task. However, notifying individuals when a building
Building
In architecture, construction, engineering, real estate development and technology the word building may refer to one of the following:...
is on fire
Fire
Fire is the rapid oxidation of a material in the chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction products. Slower oxidative processes like rusting or digestion are not included by this definition....
would require real-time interaction
Interaction
Interaction is a kind of action that occurs as two or more objects have an effect upon one another. The idea of a two-way effect is essential in the concept of interaction, as opposed to a one-way causal effect...
, escalation
Escalation
Escalation is the phenomenon of something getting more intense step by step, for example a quarrel, or, notably, a war between states possessing weapons of mass destruction. Compare to escalator, a device that lifts something to a higher level...
, scheduling
Scheduling
Scheduling is the process of deciding how to commit resources between a variety of possible tasks. Time can be specified or floating as part of a sequence of events.The word may also refer to:...
, rosters, and fail-over
Failover
In computing, failover is automatic switching to a redundant or standby computer server, system, or network upon the failure or abnormal termination of the previously active application, server, system, or network...
scenarios.
Opt-In
A notification system is only as good as the contact data contained within. Uploading recipient data is not ideal, as data can be wrong (miskeyed number or letter), false (purposely wrong data), or invalid (phone number has changed). Therefore, notification systems with opt-in data collection can validate data in realtime for all said errors and more. In addition, due to the escallation of unwanted email (spamE-mail spam
Email spam, also known as junk email or unsolicited bulk email , is a subset of spam that involves nearly identical messages sent to numerous recipients by email. Definitions of spam usually include the aspects that email is unsolicited and sent in bulk. One subset of UBE is UCE...
) and unwanted calls (do not call list), notification system providers are wary of violating existing laws and/or blacklisting by 3rd parties who carry the notification. An opt-in process of collecting data harbors the provider from unlawful use, because each recipient is giving the notification provider permission to contact him or her.
Real-time interaction
In the event of a fire, or any emergency situation that requires humanHuman
Humans are the only living species in the Homo genus...
intervention, notification systems can provide a way of accepting feedback
Feedback
Feedback describes the situation when output from an event or phenomenon in the past will influence an occurrence or occurrences of the same Feedback describes the situation when output from (or information about the result of) an event or phenomenon in the past will influence an occurrence or...
. The feedback can be used to determine what tasks the system should perform. For example, a chief firefighter
Firefighter
Firefighters are rescuers extensively trained primarily to put out hazardous fires that threaten civilian populations and property, to rescue people from car incidents, collapsed and burning buildings and other such situations...
, when notified of a pending fire, must acknowledge that the truck is en route, thus eliminating the need for further notifications.
Escalation
The criticality of an event might change before the event is finally resolved. Sometimes a small failureFailure
Failure refers to the state or condition of not meeting a desirable or intended objective, and may be viewed as the opposite of success. Product failure ranges from failure to sell the product to fracture of the product, in the worst cases leading to personal injury, the province of forensic...
may trigger a chain of failures that can lead to events that require immediate attention. For example, an e-mail that fails to send is not a significant error, and may be classified as a warning. However, the original incident that noted the e-mail failure may spawn a ping
Ping
Ping is a computer network administration utility used to test the reachability of a host on an Internet Protocol network and to measure the round-trip time for messages sent from the originating host to a destination computer...
of the mail server responsible for relaying the e-mails. If the ping fails, the event may be escalated to a severe level, to indicate that a more important issue requires resolution.
Scheduling
When deciding the list of recipients to notify of an event, a notification system might take into consideration the hoursWorking time
Working time is the period of time that an individual spends at paid occupational labor. Unpaid labors such as personal housework are not considered part of the working week...
in which a recipient can be notified. Someone working a midnight shift may be available for handling emergencies between 11:00pm and 7:00am. The system should make no attempt to notify this person outside of those hours. A notification system could take into consideration vacation
Annual leave
Annual leave is paid time off work granted by employers to employees to be used for whatever the employee wishes. Depending on the employer's policies, differing number of days may be offered, and the employee may be required to give a certain amount of advance notice, may have to coordinate with...
times, weekends, holidays, and so forth, to prevent notifying people when they are not available.
Rosters
If a notification system cannot contact the intended party, often it is not sufficient to let the matter drop. In the previous example, the chief firefighter was informed of a pending fire. However, if the chief was assisting a tree-bound cat, the notification might not reach its target. Consequently the system must find another person to notify, typically by scanning a predefined roster.Fail-over scenarios
Highly available systems that include incredibly large pre-arranged percentages of time may not be even able to allot for minimal, yet inherently required scheduled maintenance windows which result in some form of downtime of the systems itself. To mitigate this scenario, these systems typically incorporate levels of redundancy to ensure continued operation in the event part of it cannot. To achieve the goal of high availability (HA), notification within these systems must be taken into consideration for the failure of its redundant parts when it occurs, as further failures will likely compromise availability unless the initial partial failure is first recovered or if proactive actions need to be taken first. Failures can be as easily recoverable as a physically disconnected networking connection, or as catastrophic as a hard drive crash. The redundancy tyically consists of distributed systems that may be able act independently albeit lacking redundancy. The role of notification would also be redundant, at which point the responsilibity would be delegated somewhere within the remaining operational parts.Interactive media
The number of ways a person can interact with technology has steadily increased. Advanced notification systems support at least one and sometimes all of the following communications media:- Text MessagingText messagingText messaging, or texting, refers to the exchange of brief written text messages between fixed-line phone or mobile phone and fixed or portable devices over a network...
(SMSShort message serviceShort Message Service is a text messaging service component of phone, web, or mobile communication systems, using standardized communications protocols that allow the exchange of short text messages between fixed line or mobile phone devices...
) - VoiceVoice messageVoice message refers to a message that could be sent to a destination using voice media. Voice itself could be 'packaged' and sent through the IP backbone so that it reaches its marked 'address'. In a technical sense, the process of sending 'voice packets' is a semi passive way of communication...
(telephoneTelephoneThe telephone , colloquially referred to as a phone, is a telecommunications device that transmits and receives sounds, usually the human voice. Telephones are a point-to-point communication system whose most basic function is to allow two people separated by large distances to talk to each other...
, cellphone, VoIP, outdoor loudspeaker, indoor PA system) - E-mail (POPPost Office ProtocolIn computing, the Post Office Protocol is an application-layer Internet standard protocol used by local e-mail clients to retrieve e-mail from a remote server over a TCP/IP connection. POP and IMAP are the two most prevalent Internet standard protocols for e-mail retrieval. Virtually all modern...
, IMAP, SMTP) - Desktop alert (dialogAlert dialog boxAn alert dialog is a colloquial term for a particular type of dialog box that occurs in a graphical user interface. It is also known as an alert box, alert window, error dialog, alert popup or plainly alert.The typical alert dialog provides information in a separate box to the user, after which...
, balloonBalloon helpBalloon help was a help system introduced by Apple Computer in their 1991 release of System 7.0. The name referred to the way the help text was displayed, in "balloons", like those containing the words in a comic strip...
, modal windowModal windowIn user interface design, a modal window is a child window that requires users to interact with it before they can return to operating the parent application, thus preventing the workflow on the application main window...
, toastToast (computing)In software engineering, a toast is a small, informational window displayed by certain kinds of software, especially instant messaging clients such as AOL Instant Messenger, Windows Live Messenger, XFire and Trillian...
) - PagerPagerA pager is a simple personal telecommunications device for short messages. A one-way numeric pager can only receive a message consisting of a few digits, typically a phone number that the user is then requested to call...
(SNPPSimple Network Paging ProtocolSimple Network Paging Protocol is a protocol that defines a method by which a pager can receive a message over the Internet. It is supported by most major paging providers, and serves as an alternative to the paging modems used by many telecommunications services. The protocol was most recently...
) - Instant MessagingInstant messagingInstant Messaging is a form of real-time direct text-based chatting communication in push mode between two or more people using personal computers or other devices, along with shared clients. The user's text is conveyed over a network, such as the Internet...
(AIMAOL Instant MessengerAOL Instant Messenger is an instant messaging and presence computer program which uses the proprietary OSCAR instant messaging protocol and the TOC protocol to allow registered users to communicate in real time. It was released by AOL in May 1997...
, XMPPExtensible Messaging and Presence ProtocolExtensible Messaging and Presence Protocol is an open-standard communications protocol for message-oriented middleware based on XML . The protocol was originally named Jabber, and was developed by the Jabber open-source community in 1999 for near-real-time, extensible instant messaging , presence...
, MSNMSNMSN is a collection of Internet sites and services provided by Microsoft. The Microsoft Network debuted as an online service and Internet service provider on August 24, 1995, to coincide with the release of the Windows 95 operating system.The range of services offered by MSN has changed since its...
, ICQICQICQ is an instant messaging computer program, which was first developed and popularized by the Israeli company Mirabilis, then bought by America Online, and since April 2010 owned by Mail.ru Group. The name ICQ is a homophone for the phrase "I seek you"...
) - RSSRSS-Mathematics:* Root-sum-square, the square root of the sum of the squares of the elements of a data set* Residual sum of squares in statistics-Technology:* RSS , "Really Simple Syndication" or "Rich Site Summary", a family of web feed formats...
(RSS reader, digital signage) - Web page (JavascriptJavaScriptJavaScript is a prototype-based scripting language that is dynamic, weakly typed and has first-class functions. It is a multi-paradigm language, supporting object-oriented, imperative, and functional programming styles....
, XMLXMLExtensible Markup Language is a set of rules for encoding documents in machine-readable form. It is defined in the XML 1.0 Specification produced by the W3C, and several other related specifications, all gratis open standards....
) - FaxFaxFax , sometimes called telecopying, is the telephonic transmission of scanned printed material , normally to a telephone number connected to a printer or other output device...
Industries
Notification systems are used throughout the following industries:- FinancialFINANCIALFINANCIAL is the weekly English-language newspaper with offices in Tbilisi, Georgia and Kiev, Ukraine. Published by Intelligence Group LLC, FINANCIAL is focused on opinion leaders and top business decision-makers; It's about world’s largest companies, investing, careers, and small business. It is...
institutions (bankBankA bank is a financial institution that serves as a financial intermediary. The term "bank" may refer to one of several related types of entities:...
s, stockbrokersStock brokerA stock broker or stockbroker is a regulated professional broker who buys and sells shares and other securities through market makers or Agency Only Firms on behalf of investors...
, credit unions) - Emergency services (policePoliceThe police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
, fire departmentFire departmentA fire department or fire brigade is a public or private organization that provides fire protection for a certain jurisdiction, which typically is a municipality, county, or fire protection district...
, ambulanceAmbulanceAn ambulance is a vehicle for transportation of sick or injured people to, from or between places of treatment for an illness or injury, and in some instances will also provide out of hospital medical care to the patient...
) - ManufacturingManufacturingManufacturing is the use of machines, tools and labor to produce goods for use or sale. The term may refer to a range of human activity, from handicraft to high tech, but is most commonly applied to industrial production, in which raw materials are transformed into finished goods on a large scale...
(computer hardware, motorcycles, televisionTelevisionTelevision is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
) - SCADASCADASCADA generally refers to industrial control systems : computer systems that monitor and control industrial, infrastructure, or facility-based processes, as described below:...
(power generation, water treatmentWater treatmentWater treatment describes those processes used to make water more acceptable for a desired end-use. These can include use as drinking water, industrial processes, medical and many other uses. The goal of all water treatment process is to remove existing contaminants in the water, or reduce the...
, refiningRefiningRefining is the process of purification of a substance or a form. The term is usually used of a natural resource that is almost in a usable form, but which is more useful in its pure form. For instance, most types of natural petroleum will burn straight from the ground, but it will burn poorly...
) - Information technologyInformation technologyInformation technology is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications...
(help deskHelp deskA help desk is an information and assistance resource that troubleshoots problems with computers or similar products. Corporations often provide help desk support to their customers via a toll-free number, website and e-mail. There are also in-house help desks geared toward providing the same kind...
, networks, software monitors) - WeatherWeatherWeather is the state of the atmosphere, to the degree that it is hot or cold, wet or dry, calm or stormy, clear or cloudy. Most weather phenomena occur in the troposphere, just below the stratosphere. Weather refers, generally, to day-to-day temperature and precipitation activity, whereas climate...
(storms, earthquakeEarthquakeAn earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. The seismicity, seismism or seismic activity of an area refers to the frequency, type and size of earthquakes experienced over a period of time...
, tsunamiTsunamiA tsunami is a series of water waves caused by the displacement of a large volume of a body of water, typically an ocean or a large lake...
) - GovernmentGovernmentGovernment refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...
- EducationEducationEducation in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
- Sports
- Healthcare
See also
- Emergency telephone numberEmergency telephone numberMany countries' public telephone networks have a single emergency telephone number, sometimes known as the universal emergency telephone number or occasionally the emergency services number, that allows a caller to contact local emergency services for assistance. The emergency telephone number may...
- Emergency alert systemEmergency Alert SystemThe Emergency Alert System is a national warning system in the United States put into place on January 1, 1997, when it superseded the Emergency Broadcast System , which itself had superseded the CONELRAD System...
- Emergency broadcast systemEmergency Broadcast SystemThe Emergency Broadcast System was an emergency warning system in the United States, used from 1963 to 1997, when it was replaced by the Emergency Alert System.-Purpose:...
- ePrompterEPrompterePrompter is a freeware e-mail notification program that, along with POP3, supports most popular webmail services as well as many older or less popular ones. It automatically checks multiple email accounts at regular intervals- the default period is 15 minutes, or manually at any time...
, an e-mail notification system