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Business Travelers Lighten Up 出差族轻松上路

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The latest ideas in technology are sure to lighten your load  科技新创意让你轻松上路！

Charles Emnett recently took a leap of technological faith – he left his laptop at home on a business trip. The health care consultant now uses his Treo smartphone to manage e-mail and calls, and handle basic document and spreadsheet work. He loads files that he needs on a flash drive that can be plugged into a PC at a client’s office or the hotel business center.

察尔斯．艾姆奈特最近突然对科技产品非常信赖──他出差时，把膝上型计算机留在家里，因为这位医疗保健顾问如今使用Treo智能型手机来管理电子邮件和电话，以及做基本的文书和电子表格处理。他把需要的档案存到随身碟里，就可以插入客户办公室的个人计算机，或在饭店商务中心使用。

“Five days a week on the road is a short week for me. That schedule provides a lot of motivation for me to pack efficiently,” he says. “Giving up the laptop was a liberating experience. To be honest, I was a little hesitant to do it, but I really don’t think that I would go back.”

「一周出差五天，对我来说算蛮短的一周，而这紧凑的时程是促使我必须有效率地打包行李的一大动机，」他表示，「不带膝上型计算机上路，是让人解脱自在的经验。说实话，起初我还有点犹豫，不太敢这样做，但我真的不认为自己还会再走回头路。」

Even if they’re not embracing such dramatic changes, other business travelers are echoing similar sentiments, as the new advances in mobile computing rapidly change their work habits. The industry’s latest products aimed at the road warrior are being eagerly snapped up by savvy consumers who want to replicate the office experience while zipping through airports and rental car counters.

其他商务差旅人士即使没有像艾姆奈特那样做出大幅改变，但也有类似回响，因为行动运算新科技的进步，正迅速改变他们的工作习惯。锁定商旅人士的业界最新产品，往往被精明的消费者急切地抢购到手，因为他们希望能在脚步匆匆奔走于机场和出租汽车柜台之际，也能复制和办公室相同的经验（译注：指和办公室一样能上网、收发电子邮件等）。

It’s all in the phone  一机在手，妙用无穷

The snazziest smartphones, such as Apple’s iPhone and the BlackBerry 8800, provide real-time corporate e-mail, full Internet browsing and office productivity software, while also working as a GPS navigation and digital camera. Meanwhile, wireless cell networks’ ability to handle streaming data has improved so dramatically that many travelers are forgoing the often-annoying task of sniffing for Wi-Fi signals.

像「苹果」iPhone和「黑莓机8800」这类最时髦的智能型手机，都配备了实时企业电子邮件、全屏幕网页浏览和办公室生产力软件，此外还兼具GPS导航和数字相机的功能。同时，无线行动通讯网络处理串流信息的能力也有大幅改善，使许多商旅人士迫不及待地摆脱过去往往要四处搜寻无线局域网络讯号的恼人差事。

“Everyone has a mobile device. And it’s just the tip of what’s happening. You’re going to have a connection everywhere you go,” says Norm Rose, who runs Travel Tech Consulting.

「大家人手一支行动装置，而这还只是目前发生的现象的小例子而已。你将会见到无论走到哪里都能联机的景况，」「行旅科技顾问公司」负责人诺姆．罗斯如此说道。

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lighten up 减轻（重量、负担等）make lighter or brighter 别那么严肃; 别抱怨; 别担忧; 使生动活泼Informal to take matters less seriously

lighten the load 减轻负担 to make something easier to deal with

flash drive 随身碟 a small, lightweight device used to store computer data and is typically removable and rewritable

sentiment [ˋsɛntəmənt] n. 意见，观点

road warrior【俚】花很多时间在作商务旅行的人 a person who travels frequently, especially on business; someone who travels frequently on business

snap up 抢购 to acquire quickly

zip [zɪp] v. 有力而迅速地行动（或移动）

real-time【计算机】实时的，联机立即反应的 of or relating to computer systems that update information at the same rate they receive information

forgo [fɔrˋgo] v. 放弃，抛弃

sniff [snɪf] v. 发觉 to perceive or detect by or as if by sniffing

Wi-Fi 无线区域网路(= Wireless Fidelity) a high-speed wireless networking technology that provides wireless access to the Internet at broadband speeds in offices, homes and cafes

tip [tɪp] n. (事物的)端倪，表面一小部分，冰山一角 an indication of potential opportunity

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Much of the industry’s initiatives to help boost productivity while lightening the load revolve around the following areas:

业界致力于提高生产力、同时减少机体重量所采取的大部分创新策略，以下述领域为主：

Mobile Technology  行动科技

To be sure, most business travelers are still deeply attached to their laptops, given the physical limitations of smartphones. Leslie Fiering of research firm Gartner says smartphones are mostly for “content consumption and not for content creation.”

诚然，由于智能型手机机体本质上的局限，以致于大多数商旅人士仍旧对膝上型计算机依依不舍。研究机构「嘉特纳」的莱斯利．菲尔林表示，智能型手机大多作为「内容的使用，而非制造内容之用。」

But Darrel DesRochers, a marketing executive and frequent traveler, has noticed a subtle shift in his computing habits while on the road. He now rarely turns on his laptop when not working directly with clients, and he no longer scrambles for an Ethernet connection between flights or in hotels.

不过，经常出差的营销主管达若．德洛契尔斯注意到，在出差期间，他的运算处理习惯已经出现微妙的转变。如今，如果不是直接和客户进行接洽的话，他就很少启用膝上型计算机，而且在搭机途中或在饭店时，他也不再手忙脚乱地搜寻可以连上以太网络（译注：为一种局域网络架构）的地方。

Instead, he flips on his BlackBerry to keep in touch with the office, check in for flights, e-mail his colleagues and Google for information. “The biggest change I’ve experienced is the minimization of the laptop’s importance,” he says.

相反地，他改浏览黑莓机来和办公室保持联系，而且也查询班机信息，和同事以电子邮件联系，以及利用「谷歌」查数据。「我体验到的最大改变就是，膝上型计算机的重要性大减，」他如此表示。

Emergence of wireless data networks  无线数据网络的出现

Daniel Adam, a technology executive, says he’s accessing the Internet more through his cell network. It keeps him connected to the Internet whenever he wants since he doesn’t have to be physically in range of hotspots. Adam says he gets DSL-like speeds in most cities.

科技主管丹尼尔．亚当表示，他如今更常透过手机的行动通讯网络来上网。如此一来他就不再必须身处无线上网据点（译注：或译热点）的范围内，随时随地都能上网。亚当表示，他在大部分城市都能有和数位用户回路（简称DSL）类似的传输速度。

Ultralight computing  超轻运算

Competition for sub-notebooks – 10.6-inch to 13.3-inch screen sizes and weighing less than 4 pounds – remains robust as road warriors look to shed their traveling weight. Several breakthroughs in the last couple of years – faster chips, improved LED display, thinner batteries and more reliable data storage drives – are finally allowing manufacturers to come up with lightweight laptops that don’t ask customers to sacrifice on key functions, says Sam Dusi, a marketing executive of computer maker Lenovo.

鉴于商旅人士莫不希望能减轻行李重量，因此业界对次笔记本电脑的竞争也日趋白热化，所谓次笔记本电脑指的是屏幕大小介于十点六吋至十三点三吋间、重量少于四磅的计算机。计算机厂商「联想」营销主管山姆．杜希表示，近几年来出现的一些突破性发展──像是更快速的芯片、改良的发光二极管显示器、更薄的电池，以及更可靠的数据储存磁盘等──终于能让制造商研发出轻盈的膝上型计算机，却不会牺牲掉计算机的基功能。

Meanwhile, the push to drive the laptop size even smaller continues. If these, “mini-notebooks” ever achieve their designers’ goals – turn on instantly, surf the Internet through wireless networks and run popular productivity software – even more business travelers could be looking to ditch their heavy laptops, at least on short trips.

在此同时，朝更小型的膝上型计算机迈进的努力仍持续进行着。如果这些「迷你笔记本电脑」最终能达成设计者的目标──也就是能立即开启、透过无线网络来上网浏览、也能应用普及的生产力软件──那么未来一定还会有更多商旅人士宁愿抛弃笨重的膝上型计算机，至少在短程商务旅行中会是如此。

−by Roger Yu

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revolve around 旋转; 以...为中心 to center upon someone or something or to be primarily concerned with someone or something

attached [əˋtætʃt] adj. 依恋的[（+to）]

given [ˋgɪvən] prep. 考虑到 granted as a supposition; acknowledged or assumed

subtle [ˋsʌt!] adj. 微妙的

scramble [ˋskræmb!] v.（乱糟糟地）争夺，抢夺[Q][（+for）]

Ethernet [ˋiθənɛt] n. 以太网(一种以基频通讯技术为基础的高传输网络硬件标准。是一个很受欢迎的局域网络) a type of networking technology used for exchanging messages between computers on a local area network

hotspot ['hɑtspɑt] n. (线)热点 a location where wireless Internet access is available

DSL 数位用户回路 digital subscriber lines that are provided by telephone companies and used to carry data at high speeds

robust [rəˋbʌst] adj. 强劲的

display [dɪˋsple] n. 显示器

ditch [dɪtʃ] v. 【俚】抛弃，丢弃

单词发音

Vocabulary Focus

leap of faith 大胆一试; 一百八十度转变，改弦更张 an act of believing something that is not easily believed; to do or believe in something or someone even when the circumstances are not visible or touchable

liberating [ˈlɪbəreɪtɪŋ] adj. 令人感到解脱的 making you feel free and able to behave as you want

echo [ˋɛko] v. 重复; 附和 to repeat details that are similar to something else

savvy [ˋsævɪ] adj. 精明的; 有见识的 having practical knowledge and ability; shrewd; clever; sensible; smart

snazzy [ˋsnæzɪ] adj. 一流的；很时髦的 modern and stylish in a way that attracts attention

initiative [ɪˋnɪʃətɪv] n. 主动精神，创造力 a new attempt to achieve a goal or solve a problem

limitation [͵lɪməˋteʃən] n. 限制，限制因素；局限 disadvantage or weakness in something that make it not as good as it could be

emergence [ɪˋmɝdʒəns] n. 出现；浮现；露头 the process of something appearing or becoming known

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