With Computer Security Always a Hot-Button Issue, Demand Is Growing

Multiple Choice

With computer security always a hot-button issue, demand is growing for technology that authenticates and authorizes computer users. The following table gives the authentication software sales (in billions of dollars) , including projections, from 1999 through 2004. (Here, x = 0 represents 1999.) Find an equation of the least-squares line for these data. Please round the coefficients in your equation to three decimal places. Use the result to estimate the sales for 2005, assuming the projection is accurate.

A) y = 0.749x + 2.262; $6.779 billion
B) y = 0.735x + 2.273; $6.683 billion
C) y = 0.735x + 2.273; $6.720 billion
D) y = 0.749x + 2.262; $6.756 billion