This is a common occurrence. You heard people say that ‘the real
estate sector is hot’ or ‘the internet sector is growing
rapidly’ or ‘let’s buy the oil sector now. Energy price will
rise again’ next year. Sounds familiar? It is. This is because
these people encouraged you to invest in specific sectors.
What is wrong with sector investing? There is a common believe
that rising tide will lift all boats. Therefore, when internet
search is hot, then every companies in the field from Google to
Looksmart will rise two to three folds, right? Wait a minute.
Have you looked at the graph of Looksmart lately? If you
haven’t, here is the two year graph of Looksmart Ltd. Let me
show you another example. Everybody knows about the rising
energy price, most notably oil. Therefore, if you look at the
five year chart of energy companies from Chevron and the like,
you would expect similar upward trajectory movement, right?
Wrong. Take a look at a five year chart of an energy company
IvanHoe Energy Inc. here.
So, should we look at sectors when investing? Absolutely. Sector
search is very useful during your preliminary research. Auto
sector is down. This might be a good place to find stock
bargains, right? Yes. Should we blindly invest in any stocks in
the auto industry? The answer is no. This goes back to the
purpose of an investor. Investor exists to make the greatest
return of assets possible while minimizing risk. The sensible
way to do that is to compare investment alternative and pick the
investment vehicles that may give investors the highest return.
In the case of stock, we are looking at the expected profit of a
company with respect to its stock price. This is the basis of
the return on investment of stock investors.
Therefore, once you identify that the auto sector is a bargain,
your homework continues. You should find companies that can give
you higher return than the risk free ten year treasury bond.
Currently, the ten year is yielding 4.52%. Since 4.52% is risk
free, we need to find stocks that can yield more than 4.52% for
the foreseeable future. Yield on a common stock can be
calculated by dividing earning per share (EPS) with the stock
price. If you invert this ratio, you will get the most commonly
discussed ratio in the investment community, Price Earning (P/E)
ratio.
Sector search is very useful in identifying future investment
prospect. However, do not just blindly invest in stocks in
specific sector. In the long run, stock price is correlated with
the amounts of profit it can produce. Stock price does not
correlate to the performance of other peers in the industry.
When you’re studying to pass the CCNA exam and earn your certification, you’re introduced to a great many terms that are either totally new to you or seem familiar, but you’re not quite sure what they are. The term “broadcast domain” falls into the latter category for many CCNA candidates.
A broadcast domain is simply the group of end hosts that will receive a broadcast sent out by a given host. For example, if there are ten host devices connected to a switch and one of them sends a broadcast, the other nine devices will receive the broadcast. All of those devices are in the same broadcast domain.
Of course, we probably don’t want every device in a network receiving every single broadcast sent out by any other device in the network! This is why we need to know what devices can create multiple, smaller broadcast domains. Doing so allows us to limit the broadcasts traveling around our network - and you might be surprised how much traffic on some networks consists of unnecessary broadcasts.
Using the OSI model, we find devices such as hubs and repeaters at Layer One. This is the Physical layer, and devices at this layer have no effect on broadcast domains.
At Layer Two, we’ve got switches and bridges. By default, a switch has no effect on broadcast domains; CCNA candidates know that a switch will forward a broadcast out every single port on that switch except the one upon which it was received. However, Cisco switches allow the creation of Virtual Local Area Networks, or VLANs, that are logical segments of the network. A broadcast sent by one host in a VLAN will not be forwarded out every other port on the switch. That broadcast will be forwarded only out ports that are members of the same VLAN as the host device that sent it.
The good news is that broadcast traffic will not be forwarded between VLANs. The bad news is that no inter-VLAN traffic at all is allowed by default! You may actually want this in some cases, but generally you’re going to want inter-VLAN traffic. This requires the use of a router or other Layer 3 device such as a Layer 3 Switch. (Layer 3 Switches are becoming more popular every day. Basically, it’s a switch that can also run routing protocols. These switches are not tested on the CCNA exam.)
That router we just talked about also defines broadcast domains. Routers do not forward broadcasts, so broadcast domains are defined by routers with no additional configuration.
Knowing how broadcasts travel across your network, and how they can be controlled, is an important part of being a CCNA and of being a superior network administrator. Best of luck to you in both of these pursuits!
Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage (www.thebryantadvantage.com), home of free CCNA and CCNP tutorials, The Ultimate CCNA Study Package, and Ultimate CCNP Study Packages.
For a FREE copy of his latest e-books, “How To Pass The CCNA” and “How To Pass The CCNP”, visit the website and download your free copies. You can now get a FREE CCNA and CCNP exam question sent to your email inbox every day! Get your www.thebryantadvantage.com/”>CCNA certification with The Bryant Advantage!
The passing of a legacy and a chance to say goodbye
I still remember that day in May of 1989 as the ER doctor
turned off the life support equipment and whispered the words
that shook my life, “It’s over, record the time of death.” “He
lost his mother three weeks ago.” “I’m not going to tell him,
you tell him.”
The voices were a blur as the realization struck me; my father
had died. My mentor and best friend had left me. I was still
just a young kid despite being married with a baby of my own. We
were supposed to have longer than this, Dad.
The door to the operating room opened and a young woman came
out. Her eyes were red and full of tears as she struggled to
find the right words to tell me what I already knew. ‘Save it.”
I told her, “I heard.”
The doctors and nurses filed out quietly and I walked into the
room where my Dad’s body lay partially covered. His gentle heart
had stopped beating; eyes that sparkled with deep wisdom were
dark and closed to me now. I wept uncontrollably. I had just
left him 20 minutes ago and he was fine. My despair turned to
rage as my fist smashed through a small coffee table. The pain
was too much, first Mom and now Dad, all in under a month. This
wasn’t happening it couldn’t be happening! Oh God, let me wake
up from this nightmare.
I stood in disbelief as I was handed the veterans flag at his
funeral, I watched as people were leaving the cemetery but I
couldn’t move my legs, I couldn’t leave him.. alone, in a
cemetery. My wife and my aunt guided me away toward the awaiting
limousine. Everything after was a fog and haze of apologies and
sympathies from people I knew and some that I didn’t. I just
wanted it to be over so I could come to grips and figure out how
to cope with the fact that I had lost both my parents.
Time passed and the burdens of my own family weighed heavily
upon me. I felt alone and isolated. I looked at my son and my
new baby daughter and felt the pang of loss because they would
never know their grandparents, they would never experience the
warmth of that special house that I was privileged to grow up in
or hear the stories about their father as only a grandparent can
tell. They would be less for not knowing my parents and there
was nothing I could do to replace that void not only in their
lives, but in mine as well. Like all painful things, time and
life causes us to bury the hurt and move on with life’s drama. I
became bitter and resentful at my loss and had placed a wall
around myself isolating me from my wife and children. I had lost
so much and was so angry and had nowhere to vent my pain or my
frustration.
My son was five years old when he came across an old photo
album of black and white pictures. Tommy, my son, having never
seen a black and white picture before, brought the album to me
and began asking questions as only a five year old can. The
album belonged to my parents and contained memories from my
childhood. There were pictures from Christmas Eve 1967 and up to
the late 70’s; my childhood. I saw pictures of my parents as
young vibrant adults just beginning their family and their lives
together; I saw pictures of me as an infant and a toddler. I
explained to Tommy that these were my parents. I remember him
asking the question about where they were and the flood gate of
painful emotions that quickly followed. Even now, five years
later it still hurt. I felt the warm tears run down my cheeks as
I explained that my parents were in Heaven and the he wouldn’t
be able to see them or visit with them, but that they were
looking down at him always. I explained what a great man my Dad
was and what a patient and caring role model he was for me. I
told him about my mother and how she used to keep me in line and
some of the funny things I did as a kid growing up. As I talked
about them and shared the memories, the pain and heaviness of my
heart eased somewhat. I spent a great deal of time with that
photo album and my son on my lap paging through my childhood
captivating him with stories of my folks and my memories. It was
at that point my son made an observation that I’ll never forget.
He looked up at me and said the following.
“Daddy, they’re not really gone, you still have them in here,”
He said pointing to my heart. I looked at my son and smiled
warmly. Out of the mouths of babes.. I patted him on the head
and told him that he was right, as long as they were in our
hearts they would always be with us. I could keep my Dad alive
by passing on what I learned from him to my son and by emulating
my dad’s wisdom and compassion.
My son is a young man now, seventeen. We’ve had our ups and
downs over the typical teenager issues. Life has thrown some
curves and sliders, as it does to all who take life’s journey. I
find more and more of my Father in me as I deal with my
children, its funny how he’ll surface in the most unusual ways.
I was ranting at my two oldest about the lost art of turning off
a light when leaving a room. I was deep into my lecture about
how I don’t want to support Mass Electric when I had a flashback
to my father saying the exact same thing to me. My smirk didn’t
fit with my lecture and I chuckled to myself as I simply walked
away convincing my kids that I was fit for the funny farm. Even
now, he was still inside me, popping up when I least expected it.
About two months ago I was facing a serious crossroads in my
life. I needed advice and didn’t know where to turn. I found
myself at the cemetery talking to my dad and asking all the
questions I would be asking if he were still alive. I told him
how funny it was that at 42 years of age I still hadn’t learned
all the answers to all the questions; I still needed help with
the big things. I went home hoping that I’d be able to figure it
all out and went to bed frustrated at my inability to solve my
problem. I can’t explain what happened or why, but I remember
walking into the house where I grew up. The kitchen was as I
remembered it from my childhood, the paisley wallpaper and the
hideous white linoleum tiles and my mother’s annoyingly loud
clock. I sat at the kitchen table taking in the surroundings and
questioning my state of mind. My father walked into the kitchen
and poured me a cup of coffee and then poured one for himself
and sat down at the table across from me. He began discussing
the problem I had discussed at his headstone. Part of me
questioned the reality of the situation, part of me knew it was
a dream and then something else was elated at the sight of the
man I’d missed for seventeen years. My Father was like the
pictures in my photo album, portly with jet black hair like I
remembered him from my early teen years; he always had that
happy grin and the sparkle of deep intelligence in his eyes. My
dad talked in detail about my issue, examining the problem from
every conceivable angle and presenting multiple solutions. I
soon dismissed the sense of disbelief and surrendered to the
dream, the coffee was heavenly and I relished our discussion. A
half hour on the kitchen clock had expired and I had my answers.
I looked at my dad in disbelief, it had all come so easily for
him and he had seen solutions where I had only seen obstacles.
Again, I marveled at his genius.
We talked about growing up, my kids, my childhood and several
other topics. I look back now and it all seems jumbled. He
glanced up at the clock and I saw a flash of regret and longing
in those eyes. He stood up, took my coffee cup and placed it in
the sink. I heard the sound of my Mother’s voice, calling him
from the bedroom in the back of the house. “My times about up,
son,” he said sadly. I chuckled; Mom was still nagging him even
in the after life. “I’ve missed you, so much.” I said as I felt
my eyes water. We hugged briefly and said our goodbye, the
goodbye I never got to say all those years ago. As he walked
away he turned. “I’m always watching, we’ll talk again.” He
whispered as he vanished from my sight. I looked at the kitchen
that had seemed so real only moments ago, begin to fade. The
sound of the alarm clock shattered my fading dream and dragged
me back to the plane of consciousness. I awoke instantly and
began questioning the content of my experience; was it a dream?
Was I crazy? I remembered the contents of our discussion and the
solution to my situation. I also had awakened with that bitter
coffee aftertaste in my mouth that came from drinking my
father’s brand of coffee, a taste I hadn’t experienced for
several years. I still had his legacy and I got the chance to
say goodbye. My Father said we would talk again; I believe it
and look forward to another discussion in the old kitchen where
I grew up so many years ago. I realized how right my son’s words
were so many years ago, we always have our loved ones with us in
our hearts and in our minds, as long as we love and remember
them they’ll always be alive within us.