NFC for dummies by robert r sabella

NFCForDummies®
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NFCForDummies®

Visittoviewthis
book’scheatsheet.
TableofContents
Cover
Introduction
AboutThisBook
FoolishAssumptions
IconsUsedinThisBook
BeyondtheBook
WheretoGofromHere

Part1:GettingStartedwithNFC
Chapter1:IntroducingNearFieldCommunication(NFC)
PresentingaQuickHistoryofNFC
DefiningtheNeedforNFC
DiscoveringWhereNFCWalletsAreUsedMost
PresentingaSimplifiedViewofNFC

Chapter2:ConsideringtheNFCDifference
UnderstandingtheNFCForumGoals
ConsideringNFCWirelessCommunicationSpecifics
UnderstandingHowNFCComparestoOtherTechnologies
FollowingtheEvolutionfromSmartCardstoSmartphones
CreatingaSecureEnvironment

Part2:UnderstandingNFC
Chapter3:DefiningNFC
UnderstandingtheNeedforStandards
InvestigatingtheTwoMainNFCStandards
ConsideringCardEmulation

DefiningtheFiveTagTypes
DefiningtheNFCDataExchangeFormat(NDEF)
LocatingAdditionalResourcesontheNFCForum

Chapter4:ConsideringNFCHardware
UnderstandingNFCHardwareBasics
ConsideringNFCCommunicationModes
ConsideringNFCOperatingModes


DifferentiatingBetweenInterrogatorsandTags
UnderstandingtheTransferofPower
CommunicatingBetweenDevices
AddingNFCtoanExistingDevice

Chapter5:ConsideringNFCSoftware
DiscoveringtheKeyPlayersinNFCDevelopment
TurningOnSmartphoneNFCSupport
PerformingCardEmulationTasks
UsingEncryptiontoSecureCommunications
WritingTags
ManagingNFCTags
MakingNFCPartoftheInternetofThings(IoT)
DifferentiatingBetweenWebAppsandMobileApps

Part3:UsingNFC
Chapter6:UsingNFCforPayments
UnderstandingMobileWalletSecurityRequirements
ConsideringthePotentialMobileWalletSolutions

Chapter7:EmployingNFCforIdentification
UsingNFCforWorkplaceMonitoring
AuthenticatingUsers
UsinganNFCPhone
PersonalizingNFCUse
ReplacingYourCarKeys
AutomatingVehicleInteractions

Chapter8:UsingNFCinHealthCare
DealingwithPrivacyIssues
PerformingHospital-relatedTasks
WorkingwithLoggerTags
MonitoringPatientsRemotely
InteractingwithPatientMonitors
AddressingAccessibilityNeeds

Chapter9:ConsideringOtherNFCUses
PerformingMarketingTasks
HavingFunwithApplications
ManagingEvents
InteractingwithCustomers
CreatingNFCWearableDevices
WorkingwithAppliances
DevelopingNFCSmartPosters


Part4:AvoidingNFCIssues
Chapter10:AvoidingtheNot-Used-HereMentality
WorkingwithBusinessesthatDon’tUseNFC
DevelopingAppsthatWon’tWorkWithoutNFC

CreatingaBusinessPlanShowingNFCAdvantages

Chapter11:UnderstandingtheHardwareIssues
EnsuringthattheDeviceisReady
UsingtheDeviceCorrectly
UnderstandingOddDeviceBehaviors
FindingtheDevice’sSweetSpot
ConsideringOtherTagIssues

Chapter12:UnderstandingtheSoftwareIssues
InstallingNeededSoftware
KnowingtheModesYourDeviceSupports
ProvidingBiometricAuthentication
GettingAppsfromReliableSources

Chapter13:ConsideringNetworkingProblems
UnderstandingtheCostofUsingWi-Fi
UnderstandingtheCostofUsingBluetooth
DealingwithEnvironmentalFactors
ConsideringPotentialSecurityIssues

Part5:ThePartofTens
Chapter14:TenPlacestoFindNFC-SpecificInformation
NFCForum
SmartCardAlliance
GroupeSpecialeMobileAssociation(GSMA)
NFCWorld
NFCTimes
NearFieldCommunication.org
Pymnts.com

EverydayNFC
Gartner
IHSTechnology

Chapter15:TenReallyCoolNFCImplementations
HarvardMedicalSchoolandBrighamandWomen’sHospital
BlueBite
Galatea:JewelrybyArtist
NFCRing
KhushiBaby


RémyMartin
TrackingtheThingsYouLove
LondonHistoryMuseum
Oxfam
SkylandersSuperchargers

Chapter16:TenNFCTrends
MovingfromTap-to-PaytoTap-to-Buy
EnhancingtheGamingExperience
ImprovingHealthcare
CreatingNewMarketingStrategies
ManagingEvents
EnhancingtheEffectsofMobileCommerce
MakingtheMostofWearables
InteractingwithSmartAppliances
AuthenticatingProducts
ConsideringB2BTrends

Chapter17:TenNFCCompaniesYouNeedtoKnowAbout
BlueBite
NXP
Flomio
Smartrac
HIDGlobal
Poken
Cellotape
AdvancedCardSystems(ACS)HoldingsLimited
Thinfilm
Smartwhere

AbouttheAuthors
CheatSheet
ConnectwithDummies
EndUserLicenseAgreement


Introduction
AskmostpeoplewhatNFCstandsforandtheywillprobablyanswer“theNational
FootballConference.”ButtheNFCinthisbookisfarmoreimportantthanfootball.It
standsforNearFieldCommunication,atechnologythathasthepotentialto
significantlychangehowyouinteractwiththepeopleandthingsaroundyou.The
excitingnewsaboutNFCisthatwehaven’tevenscratchedthesurfaceyetofhowthis
technologyisgoingtochangeourlives.That’swhyyouneedNFCForDummies.This
bookisyourintroductiontothelargerworldofNFC,andithelpsyouseewhythis
technologyissoamazing.


AboutThisBook

NFCForDummiesbeginsbyintroducingyoutoNFC.YoudiscoverthatNFCis
alreadyusedallovertheplace,andyoumightnothaveevenrealizedit.
Discoveringhowthistechnologyhasbeenhidinginplainsightisagoodstartingpoint.
ThesecondpartofthebooktellsyouhowNFCactuallyworksandwhyitneedsto
workinthisspecificway.Youmayinitiallyfindsomeofthismaterialalittletechnical,
butifyouwanttouseNFCtothefullestextentpossible,youneedtoknowwhatmakes
itspecial.
AfteryouknowhowNFCworks,it’stimetoseeitinaction.Thenextpartofthebook
discussesmanyofthewaysinwhichyoucanuseNFCtoperformusefultasks.Each
chapterintroducesanotherareainwhichNFCisinusetoday.Amazingastheseuses
are,they’rereallyjustthetipoftheiceberg,andthelinksinthesechapterswilllead
youtostillmoreresources.
Everytechnologycomeswithafewimplementationissues.Somesetoftechnical
circumstancesinevitablycausesproblems.Fortunately,thisbooktellsyouaboutthose
issuesandtellsyouhowtofixthem.Youenduplookingreallysmartbecausewhile
yourbuddiesaresittingtherenotdoingmuch,you’vealreadyfixedtheproblemand
aredoingsomethingusefulwithNFC.
Asinglebookcan’tevenbegintotellyouabouteverythingNFChastooffer.Infact,
youcouldprobablyreadseveralbooksandstillnotbegintoexhaustthistopic.That’s
whythePartsofTenisthere.Itgivesyouaccesstoresourcesthatwillkeepyou
readingforquitesometimetocome.Whenyoufinishitall,you’llbecomeanNFC
guru,andeveryonearoundyouwillbelookingtoyouastheNFCexpert.
Tomakeabsorbingtheconceptseveneasier,thisbookusesthefollowingconventions:
Whenyouseetermsinthetextinitalics,thesurroundingtextprovidesadefinition
forthatterm.
Webaddressesappearinmonofont.Ifyou’rereadingadigitalversionofthisbook
onadeviceconnectedtotheInternet,notethatyoucanclickthewebaddressto
visitthatwebsite,likethis:.

FoolishAssumptions
YoumightfinditdifficulttobelievethatI’veassumedanythingaboutyou—afterall,
wehaven’tevenmetyet!Althoughmostassumptionsareindeedfoolish,Imadethese
assumptionstoprovideastartingpointforthebook.
Ofcourse,youdoneedtohavesomedesiretoworkwithNFCtosolvesomesortof
problemoraddressaneed.Inmanycases,theproblemorneedisbusinessortask
specific,butyoumightbeamazedatthewaysinwhichyoucanuseNFCtoaddress
personalneedsaswell.Thepointisthatyouneedtohavesomeanticipatedpurposefor
usingNFCtogetthemostoutofthisbook.
Youshouldalsounderstandsomebasicsoftechnology.Forexample,ifyouaren’ton
speakingtermswithyoursmartphone,thisbookmightnotbeagoodfitforyou.You
doneedsomeleveloftechnicalsavvytomakegooduseofthematerial,eventhough
thebarisn’tsetveryhigh.
ThisbookalsoassumesthatyoucanaccessitemsontheInternet.Sprinkledthroughout
arenumerousreferencestoonlinematerialthatwillenhanceyourlearningexperience.
However,theseaddedsourcesareusefulonlyifyouactuallyfindandusethem.


IconsUsedinThisBook
Asyoureadthisbook,youseeiconsinthemarginsthatindicatematerialofinterest(or
not,asthecasemaybe).Thissectionbrieflydescribeseachiconinthisbook.

Tipsarenicebecausetheyhelpyousavetimeorperformsometaskwithouta
lotofextrawork.Thetipsinthisbookaretime-savingtechniquesorpointersto
resourcesthatyoushouldtryinordertogetthemaximumbenefitfromNFCorin
performingNFC-relatedtasks.

Idon’twanttosoundlikeanangryparentorsomekindofmaniac,butyou
shouldavoiddoinganythingthat’smarkedwithaWarningicon.Otherwise,you
mightfindthatyourNFCapplicationfailstoworkasexpected,yougetincorrect

responsesfromseeminglybulletproofconfigurations,or(intheworst-case
scenario)youlosedataordamageequipment.

Wheneveryouseethisicon,thinkadvancedtiportechnique.Youmightfind
thesetidbitsofusefulinformationjusttooboringforwords,ortheycouldcontain
thesolutionyouneedtogetanNFCsolutionrunning.Skipthesebitsof
informationwheneveryoulike.

Ifyoudon’tgetanythingelseoutofaparticularchapterorsection,remember
thematerialmarkedbythisicon.Thistextusuallycontainsanessentialprocessor
abitofinformationthatyoumustknowtoworkwithNFCsuccessfully.


BeyondtheBook
Thisbookisn’ttheendofyourNFCexperience—it’sreallyjustthebeginning.I
provideonlinecontenttomakethisbookmoreflexibleandbetterabletomeetyour
needs.Thatway,asyousendmeemailaboutthebook,Icanaddressquestionsandtell
youhowupdatestoNFCaffectbookcontent.Infact,yougainaccesstoallthesecool
additions:
Cheatsheet:Yourememberusingcribnotesinschooltomakeabettermarkona
test,don’tyou?Youdo?Well,acheatsheetissortoflikethat.Itprovidesyouwith
somespecialnotesabouttasksthatyoucandowithNFC.Youcanfindthecheat
sheetforthisbookatItcontainsreally
neatinformationsuchastheNFCoperatingmodesandtagtypes.
Updates:Sometimeschangeshappen.Forexample,Imightnothaveseenan
upcomingchangewhenIlookedintoourcrystalballduringthewritingofthis
book.Inthepast,thispossibilitysimplymeantthatthebookbecameoutdatedand
lessuseful,butyoucannowfindupdatestothebookat
/>Inadditiontotheseupdates,checkouttheupdatedcontentat
/>NFCBootcamps:Afterreadingthisbookandcheckingoutalltheupdatesonline,

youmaywanttotakeyourNFCknowledgetothenextlevel.Forthat,Iconduct
NFCBootcamps—one-andtwo-day,hands-ontrainingseminarsinlocations
aroundtheworld.Ifyouwanttoattendoneofthese,justcheckouttheNFC
Bootcampwebsiteat.


WheretoGofromHere
It’stimetostartyourNFCadventure!Ifyou’recompletelynewtoNFC,youshould
startwithChapter1andprogressthroughthebookatapacethatallowsyoutoabsorb
asmuchofthematerialaspossible.
Ifyou’reanovicewho’sinanabsoluterushtogetgoingwithNFCasquicklyas
possible,youcanskiptoChapter3withtheunderstandingthatyoumayfindsome
topicsabitconfusinglater.SkippingtoChapter4ispossibleifyoualreadyhavesome
experiencewithNFC,butyoumayfindthatsometermsareconfusingifyoudo.
ReaderswhohavesomeexposuretoNFCandalreadyhaveagoodideaofhowit
workscansavereadingtimebymovingdirectlytoChapter6.Youcanalwaysgoback
toearlierchaptersasnecessarywhenyouhavequestions.StartingatChapter6willget
youmovingwithNFCasareal-worldsolutiontoyourparticularneed.Ofcourse,
skippingallthepreliminarychaptersmayalsomeanthatyouskipsomereallyamazing
informationaboutNFCthatyoudidn’tknowexisted.


Part1


GettingStartedwithNFC



INTHISPART…

DiscoveringhowNFCcameintobeing
UnderstandingwhyNFCissuchacooltechnology
ObtainingabriefoverviewofhowNFCworks
SeeingNFCfromtheuserperspective
DifferentiatingNFCfromotherwirelesstechnologies


Chapter1


IntroducingNearFieldCommunication
(NFC)
INTHISCHAPTER
IntroducingthehistoryofNFC
DiscoveringwhyyouneedNFC
ConsideringhowyoumightuseNFCwallets
GettingthesimplefactsabouthowNFCworks
NearFieldCommunication(NFC)isanamazingtechnologythathelpsyouinteract
withboththepeopleandthingsaroundyouinwaysthatyoucan’treallyimagineuntil
youstartusingthetechnology.WhenusingNFCtotapthings(physicallyplaceyour
NFC-enableddeviceagainstsomethinglikeanNFCtag),yougainadvantagesin
efficiencythatsavebothtimeandmoney.Inaddition,youcanrelyonNFCtohelp
reducecostlyerrorsthatcancauseproblemsforbothyouandyourorganization.
Unlikeoldertechnologies,NFCisalsoquiteflexibleandcanbefoundinalmostall
newsmartphonestoday,soyoucanuseitinmorewaysandplacesthanyoumight
initiallythink.EveryonecanuseNFC—developers,hobbyists,andtheaverageperson
onthestreet.ThischapterhelpsyougainanunderstandingofhowNFCcametobeand
howitcangiveyourorganizationacompetitiveadvantage.Throughoutthisbook,you
gaininsightsintohowyoucanuseNFCtoperformusefultasks.Thischapterbegins
withtheconceptofusingNFCtoenabledigitalwallets—atopicthatisinallthe

headlines.UsingNFCmeansthatyoucanmakepurchaseswithgreaterconfidenceand
withasmallerchanceofhavingtodealwithissuessuchasidentitytheft.Infact,you’ll
beamazedatallthewaysinwhichyoucanuseNFCwalletstomakeyourlifeeasier.
So,althoughyoumightinitiallythinkaboutallthewaysyoucanuseNFCtomake
thingseasierforyourorganization,youalsoneedtothinkofallthewaysyoucanuseit
tohelpyourself.Afterall,youdohavealifeoutsideofworkthatNFCcanandwill
affect!
ThischapterendsbyprovidingyouwithaquickoverviewofhowNFCworks.You
don’thavetoendurealonglectureaboutallthebitsandbytesofNFCtechnology,nor
doyouhavetobecomeanelectricalengineer.Rather,thischapterprovidesan
introductiontothetechnologysothatyoucantalkaboutitwithotherpeopleandmake
afewsimpledecisionsabouthowyoumightuseNFCasanindividualorwithinyour
organization.Inaddition,yougaininsightsintohowNFCcanmakeyourlifesimpler
becauseyounowhaveabetterideaofwhereyou’vealreadyseenNFCusedinrealworldapplications.


PresentingaQuickHistoryofNFC
Aswithmosttechnologies,NFCdidn’tjustappearonthehorizononeday.Various
companiesspentagooddealoftimeputtingthespecificsforNFCtogether.Inaddition,
thesecompaniesusedexistingtechnologies,inthiscaseRadioFrequencyIdentification
(RFID),asastartingpoint.(RFIDwasa1983inventionofCharlesWalton,butits
originscanbetracedbacktoWWII.YoucanfindanexcellenthistoryofRFIDat
NFCisactuallyatechnology
thatoverlapsRFID—itusesashorteroperatingdistanceforthesakeofsecurity.
Figure1-1showsthekeydatesforNFCmilestonesthathaveaffectedhowthe
technologyhaschangedovertime.EventhoughtheNFCeffortstartedin2002,the
InternationalStandardsOrganization(ISO)didn’tapproveNFCasanacceptable
standarduntil2003.

FIGURE1-1:SignificantaccomplishmentsinNFCtechnology.

AsshowninFigure1-1,NFCtags—smallsticker-likedevicesusedtostore
informationordatainamannerthatanNFC-enableddevicecanreadoroptionally
write—didn’tcomeinastandardizedformuntil2006.WhenanNFC-enableddevice
movesoverthetag,itcanretrievetheinformationthetagcontains.However,don’t
worryabouthowthehardwareworksfornow.Allthatisimportanttorememberatthis
pointisthatNFCtagsuseastandardizedformsothatanyNFC-enableddevicecan
interactwithanyNFCtag—makingNFCexceptionallyeasytouse.
OneofthetechnologiesthattrulydistinguishesNFCistheuseofSmartPoster
technology(akindofvisualdisplaythatincorporatesbothtraditionalpostercontent
anddigitalcontentthatanNFC-enableddevicecanreadoroptionallywrite).This


standardizedtechnologyalsoappearedin2006.Youuseittoprovidedigital
informationinaphysicalprintedposterforpeopletoaccess.Passingasmartphoneor
otherNFC-enableddeviceoverspecificallymarkedareasoftheposterprovides
viewerswithdetailstheycantakewiththem.ThefirstuseforSmartPostersthatcomes
tomindisforpublicvenuessuchastradeshows—nomoreneedtowastemoney
printingtake-awaybrochuresthatendupontheflooranyway(seecompaniessuchas
Poken,andITN,forexamplesof
thisuse).However,SmartPosterscanappearinallsortsofplaces,suchasbusshelters,
malls,andairports(seeBlueBite,atforanexampleof
theseuses).
February2006sawtheintroductionofthefirstNFC-enabledcellphone,theNokia
6131NFC.(NotallversionsoftheNokia6131provideNFCsupport.)Thisphone
startedthewholeideaofbeingabletopassthephoneoveratagandobtaininformation
fromit.BythetimetheSamsungNexusSappearedonthescenein2010,NFCsupport
becameastandardfeatureandthecapabilitiesofNFChadimprovedsignificantly.
OneofthesignificantadditionstoNFCisitscapabilitytoprovidepeer-to-peersupport.
Inadditiontoreadinginformationfromtags,youcanexchangeinformationwith

anotherpersonbybringingyourNFC-enabledsmartphonescloselytogether.Insteadof
havingtodealwithbulkybusinesscards,NFC-enabledsmartphonesletyoukeepyour
connectionsinaplacewherethey’reeasilyfound,used,andmanaged.Inadditionto
businessconnections,yourpeer-to-peerconnectioncanalsoexchangedatasuchas
pictures,movies,andmusic.

NFCisgrowingsignificantly.It’spredictedthatwithinfiveyears,halformore
ofallphonesmadewillhaveNFCsupport.Withintenyears,peoplewilluseNFC
dataexchangeasapreferredmethodforobtainingpubliclyavailableinformation
fromphysicalobjects;although,theuseofNFCwillremaincompletelyoptional.


DefiningtheNeedforNFC
NFCsolvesallsortsofproblems,andthroughoutthisbookyougetintroducedtoalot
ofthesesolutions.However,beforeyouspendtimereadingaboutNFC,youmightlike
toknowhowyoucanuseittomeetyourneedsimmediately.Infact,youmightbe
surprisedtolearnthatyoualreadyuseNFCandsimplydon’tknowit.NFCappearsall
overtheplace.Thefollowingsectionsprovideyouwithaquicksummaryofsomeof
themostinterestinguses.Asyouprogressthroughthebook,youfindadditionaluses
describedinmoredetail.

Interactingwithdevicesusingsimplermethods
ImaginebeingabletointeractwithanydevicejustbytappingitwithanNFC-enabled
devicesuchasyoursmartphone.Forexample,youtapyourportablespeakers,andthe
musiccurrentlyplayingonyoursmartphonestartsplayingoutofthespeakersinstead.
Yougetthefulleffectofthosehigh-qualityspeakersyoupurchased,butwiththemusic
thatyoulikefromyoursmartphone.Bluetoothpairingofdevicesisnormallyapainful
processwhendonemanually.NFCmakesthepairingpossiblewithasingletap.Even
thoughthemusicstillreliesonBluetoothtogetfromthedevicetothespeakers,the
pairingisdonewithNFC.

Thesameconceptsholdtruewithyourtelevision.Asingletapisenoughtomakea
connectionwithyoursmartphonesothatyoucanseethepicturesorvideocurrently
displayedonthesmartphone,butattelevisionsizeandresolution.Sonyandother
companiesarecurrentlyengagedinmakingNFCconnectivityhappeninallsortsof
ways.YoucanreadaboutsomeofthelatestSonyofferingsat
/>
Buyingproductswithease
Youwalkuptothecashregisterwithacartfulofgoodsyouwanttobuy.Whetherthe
cashregisterisactuallymannedbysomeoneisunimportant(somestoresarenow
experimentingwithself-servecheckoutsthatreallydosavethestoremoneyandmake
theshoppingexperiencemuchfasterformostpeople).Thegoodsareswipedacrossthe
scannertogetprices.Whenyouhaveacouponforanitem,yousimplytapyourphone
toaddittotheregister.Youcanbesurethatthecouponactuallyreducesyourcost
becauseyoucanseethereductionimmediatelyafteryoutapthephone.Whenitcomes
timetopayforthegoods,anothertapofyoursmartphoneisallyouneedtopayfor
themusingyourcreditordebitcard.Nomorepaperexchanginghands,andthelevelof
convenienceisamazing.

Eventhoughallthesetaskscanbeperformedwithothertechnologies,the
importantissueishowNFChandlessecurity.WhenusingNFC,thecards,fobs,


phones,stickers,watches,andotherNFC-enableddevicesalltalktothePointof
Sale(POS)terminalusedforpaymentintheexactsamewayusingtheexactsame
security.

RememberthatnoteveryNFCtransactioniscompletelysecure.MIFARE
transitfaresandNFCpaymentaresecurebecausetheapplicationsuppliesthe
requiredsecurity.However,readingatagisn’tinherentlysecure,exceptforthe
naturallevelofsecuritythatNFCprovides(suchasashortreadingdistance).

Securityconcernsarecoveredinlaterchapters,suchasChapter6,whereyoucan
readaboutmobilewalletsecurityrequirements.
Productscanalsoextendtoservices.Forexample,acommonuseforNFCistopayfor
atrainorabus.LondonusestheOystercard(togivepeoplethecapabilitytotaptheircardtogainaccesstothe
requiredtransportationservices.NFCmakesusingtransportationofallsortsalot
easier.

Launchingamarketingcampaign
Gettingpeopletobuyyourproductisanessentialpartofanybusinessventure.After
all,ifnoonebuysyourproduct,you’llquicklybeoutofbusiness.Theproblemis
makingyourproductstandoutfromalltheotherproductsoutthere.Ofcourse,you
couldpaysomeonetorideinoneofthosecheesytrucksandblareoutoverasound
system,“Buymyproduct!”butthatstrategyisboundtofail.Abetteroptionisto
providepeoplewithinformationsourcestheycaninteractwith,suchassignsand
kiosks.Whenpeoplecanenterastore,seethebigposterwithyourproductonit,and
touchtheirsmartphonestoittolearnmore,yougainasignificantadvantageoveryour
competitionthat’srelyingonsignsalone.
Foramerchant,theNFCadvantageisthatfullinteractivecommunicationwithyour
customer,includingtrackingandaccountability,canbeinitiatedwithasimple,digital
gesturethat'sasnaturalaspointingataproductordisplay.Thismeansthatyoucan
determinehowmanypeoplehavecheckedoutyouradandknowwhichlocationsare
bettersuitedtosellingyourproduct.Also,youcandeterminehowpeopleinteracted
withyouradsothatyouknowwhichsalespitchesworkbetter.Andyoucanlearn
whichadsconvertedtosales.Therefore,it’snolongeramatterofputtingupasignand
hopingitsellssomethingforyou.UsingNFCmeansthatyoucandetermineprecisely
howamarketingcampaignisprogressingandmakechangesasneededtoensure
success.

Buildingyourpersonalnetworkquicklyandeasily
Networkingisessentialintoday’sworld.Lookattheemergenceofonlinesitessuchas

LinkedIn(Somepeoplegetmostorevenalltheirwork


basedoncontactstheymakewiththesekindsofsites.Havingalistoftherightpeople
atyourfingertipsmakesyoumoreefficientandbetterabletoreacttochanging
conditions.Inshort,youneedconnectionstodaytobeasuccessinbusiness.Withthis
inmind,NFChelpsyoucreateapersonalnetworkintwoimportantways,discussed
next.

Exchangingbusinesscards
OnereasontouseNFCistomakeinteractingwithpeopleeasier.Ofcourse,youhave
theoptiontoexchangeinformationsimplybytappingsmartphones.Informationcan
includemorethanjustname,address,andtelephonenumber.Youcanexchangeall
sortsofinformation,includingmediaofanysortthatyoursmartphonecanhandle.

Exchangingothercontactinformation
Thinkingoutsidetheboxisimportantwhenexchanginginformationwithsomeone
else.Forexample,youmightdecidetocreateapresentationthatfitsonasmartphone.
Tappingyourphonewiththatofapotentialclientcreatestheconnectionthattransfers
thepresentationandletstheclientplayitlateratherleisure.Nolongerdoyouhaveto
relyonaquicksalespitchtodoalltheworkforyou.Nowyoucanconcentrateon
gainingtheotherperson’sinterestandthenmakethesalespitchlaterusingafull
multimediapresentationthroughwhichyoucanconveyallthefacts.

Creatingad-hocwirelessconnections
Intimespast,youoftenneededtojumpthroughhoopstoconnecttwodevicesina
securemanner.YoucanusethesecuritythatNFCprovidesfortaskssuchasbanking
becauseitcarriesonlyalowriskofeavesdroppingandoffersnopracticalwayforan
outsidertoinfluencethecontentofyourNFCtransmissions(evenifhe’sstandingright
therewithyou).NFCoffersyouthesimplicityofawirelessconnection,butitslimited

rangeoffersaddedphysicalsecuritynotavailabletootherformsofwireless
communication.Withthisinmind,justaboutanythingyoucandowithawired
connection,youcanalsodowithNFC.However,unlikeawiredconnection,youdon’t
havetodoanythingspecialtoaccomplishthetask—simplybringtheNFCdevice
closetoatagorotherdevice.

Havingfunwithgames
Interestinglyenough,youcanevenuseNFCtoenhancethegamingexperience.For
example,Skylanders(atoys-to-lifegameseries
publishedbyActivision,integratesinteractivefigurinesthatyouusetoplayagame.To
useafigurine,youplaceitonthePortalofPower,whichhasanNFCreaderinit,to
registerit.ThePortalofPowerreadsthefigurine’sNFCtagtodeterminethe
characteristicsthatthecorrespondingcharacterhas.Theseareconsolegamesthatuse
thegamingconsoleforconnectivitysothatyoucaninteractwithotherplayers.
Theoretically,thegamingconsoleyouusedoesn’tmatter,andyoucanevenconnect
thePortalofPowertoyourPC.