PicnikThis is a image editing website. This website allows you to upload images from anywhere that has a web browser. Then you can edit them by cropping, removing red eye or adding effects to it. It has all kinds of features and fonts that you can use. It also has the ability to make slides. It had a free version and a paid version.http://www.picnik.com
PhoneviteThis is a free website that allows you to use your own voice to record messages and then you can set times when you want the alerts or messages to go out. They will send the message to all the people on your contact list whenever you designate it to. You can use it for special alerts or weather cancelations. I was actually pretty impressed and can see a lot of uses for this program. My Old school used something similar.http://www.phonevite.com/
Virtual Tours for Vacation spotsThis is becoming more and more popular. While some of the big companies already use these kinds of tours so you can see maybe a nice room you want to stay in it is becoming mainstream vacation advertisement. With these tours you can see what kind of place you will be going to and decide whether or not that is where you want to go. I chose this site as an example because they have a lot of tours and it is free. http://www.inisrael.com/3disrael/index.cfm
Weather Widget/GadgetI personally am not a fan of the side bar but I used to have a program that stayed on my screen that would tell me the weather. I think the weather widgets are probably some of the most useful ones because like the one I will link some show radar and multi day forecast.http://www.wunderground.com/download/vista.asp
IP Tracker While I have personally used this in games to find out where someone lives or if it is the same person I had just banned this tool has a lot of uses. Anybody can use this ranging from someone just wanting to see who someone was that sent them an e-mail to a company that needs to know who is accessing their information.http://www.ip-adress.com/ip_tracer/
Monday, May 3, 2010
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Security? What Security?
I always like to post about things that hit close to home with me and this couldn't hit any closer. Stores like Walmart and Gamestop go to big measures to keep from having their merchendise stolen. How many security devices do they have inside games now? Anybody that has bought a DVD, Video Game or multiple other devices know they have security strips along with other security locks.
For Gamestop that is not enough they take the games out of the case and leave the empty box on the shelf. The problem with that is when someone like me goes and buys a game that has an activation code and when they get it home the activation code has already been used. How hard is it for an employee to write down the number? I contacted the game manufacturer and Gamestop support. Gamestop said that it is a practice to prevent theft and that I would have to talk to a regional manager. Of course he never returned my calls so I was just out the money.
I guess my question is this. They have prepaid phones, phone cards, gift cards that will not work without activation. If companies are so concerned about security why can games not be made the same way. The Windows operating system requires online activation. Make games the same way and it will cut down on theft without opening merchandise and selling opened stuff.
http://www.joystiq.com/2009/04/11/law-of-the-game-lawyer-explores-gamestop-used-vs-new-controve/
For Gamestop that is not enough they take the games out of the case and leave the empty box on the shelf. The problem with that is when someone like me goes and buys a game that has an activation code and when they get it home the activation code has already been used. How hard is it for an employee to write down the number? I contacted the game manufacturer and Gamestop support. Gamestop said that it is a practice to prevent theft and that I would have to talk to a regional manager. Of course he never returned my calls so I was just out the money.
I guess my question is this. They have prepaid phones, phone cards, gift cards that will not work without activation. If companies are so concerned about security why can games not be made the same way. The Windows operating system requires online activation. Make games the same way and it will cut down on theft without opening merchandise and selling opened stuff.
http://www.joystiq.com/2009/04/11/law-of-the-game-lawyer-explores-gamestop-used-vs-new-controve/
Monday, April 19, 2010
Technology Privacy
I always check CNN everything to see what is happening in America or the world. I came across a article this morning about a texting privacy case that is going to the supreme court. Pretty much to some it up a government employee a cop in this story was using his phoen to make racy texts. His job got the text records from the phone company and he got in trouble for it.
The debate is can your phone service provider give out your personal texts to your employeer without your permission. I am kinda split on the issue. In this case he was using a company phone for personal texts and excedding the limit. He did pay for the overages but I can understand where the police department is coming from. On the other hand they were able to retrieve his personal text messages without his permission and that may fall under the illegal search and seisure. I do believe we must have some sort of privacy especially on things liek text messages that are ment for a 1 person to 1 person contact.
I feel that there needs to be a really extreme circumstance for your employeer to be able to pull your records without your consent.
Check out the article http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/04/19/scotus.text.messaging/index.html
The debate is can your phone service provider give out your personal texts to your employeer without your permission. I am kinda split on the issue. In this case he was using a company phone for personal texts and excedding the limit. He did pay for the overages but I can understand where the police department is coming from. On the other hand they were able to retrieve his personal text messages without his permission and that may fall under the illegal search and seisure. I do believe we must have some sort of privacy especially on things liek text messages that are ment for a 1 person to 1 person contact.
I feel that there needs to be a really extreme circumstance for your employeer to be able to pull your records without your consent.
Check out the article http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/04/19/scotus.text.messaging/index.html
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Automated Life
More and More the Military uses unmanned predators during war and now they have an unmanned helicopter they use for drug busts on the ocean. One thing that comes from all the money we put into our military in america is they test these new technologies and then down the road it becomes something that the public will use.
From unmanned aircraft to vechicles that drive without a driver you can already see the things in place for us to have a life where robots do alot of our work for us. I watched a TV show where they have races with vehicles that require no drivers and nobody controlling them remotely. There are so many instances where we have prototype robots that I believe will one day be the main work force. I doubt that day will come in my life time but I do not believe that alot of the science fiction movies are that far off. A computer can do anything it is programmed to do and as we find new ways to store more information in smaller spaces and new ways to give that information to computers such as infrared or voice recognition we will move closer and closer to that Robot age.
http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2010-04/video-navy-helicopter-drone-makes-first-coke-bust-high-seas
From unmanned aircraft to vechicles that drive without a driver you can already see the things in place for us to have a life where robots do alot of our work for us. I watched a TV show where they have races with vehicles that require no drivers and nobody controlling them remotely. There are so many instances where we have prototype robots that I believe will one day be the main work force. I doubt that day will come in my life time but I do not believe that alot of the science fiction movies are that far off. A computer can do anything it is programmed to do and as we find new ways to store more information in smaller spaces and new ways to give that information to computers such as infrared or voice recognition we will move closer and closer to that Robot age.
http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2010-04/video-navy-helicopter-drone-makes-first-coke-bust-high-seas
Monday, March 29, 2010
Home Security
Honestly I don't know why the past 3 days I have been on a home security trip but I really want to get a security camera for my grandmothers house. With all of the drama details aside I think it would be beneficial to have a camera in her house that I can view online so I started doing research and seeing how much it costs to do such a thing.
While it wasn't as pricey as I thought it was going to be the options are still our of my range for a camera that isn't very detectable. The biggest problem I found is the cheaper cameras are bulker and easier to see. Also the web hosting of the security camera costs and so that is additional fees. I did find some other interesting stuff such as fake cameras that might help keep people on the straight and narrow. I was surprised that alot of the nice outside cameras only ran around 65 dollars. While that is just for the camera I think that is a pretty good price and for a few hundred dollars you could set up your security system.
http://www.homesecuritystore.com/
While it wasn't as pricey as I thought it was going to be the options are still our of my range for a camera that isn't very detectable. The biggest problem I found is the cheaper cameras are bulker and easier to see. Also the web hosting of the security camera costs and so that is additional fees. I did find some other interesting stuff such as fake cameras that might help keep people on the straight and narrow. I was surprised that alot of the nice outside cameras only ran around 65 dollars. While that is just for the camera I think that is a pretty good price and for a few hundred dollars you could set up your security system.
http://www.homesecuritystore.com/
Monday, March 22, 2010
Google Chrome OS
I am not sure whether to laugh at google or jump on their bandwagon. I already use google search engine for everything and have even set it to my homepage. Google launched Chrome browser and I tried it but didn't really see a real reason to switch from Explorer and FireFox. Now here Google comes wanting to bring out a Chrome Operating System.
It is clear that Google is here to challenge Microsoft in the near future and probably for the next ten years. I think healthy competition is good for the consumer so on one hand I want to applaud them for their effort. On the other hand I want to look at Mac and Apple and say is it really worth investing your money into. Microsoft is actually making great strides to improve their OS and despite the problem with Vista I am very happy were we are since the release of Windows 95. I think any company looking to challenge Microsoft Windows is going to have to do it top down. They are going to have to convince the business world that it will be better for them because in my opinion people go with the known. People don't like change and are used to windows.
As for me I will have to sit back and decide whether I will try it out or not. I think I will but I'm pretty sure I will stick with windows in the end.
http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2009/07/introducing-google-chrome-os.html
It is clear that Google is here to challenge Microsoft in the near future and probably for the next ten years. I think healthy competition is good for the consumer so on one hand I want to applaud them for their effort. On the other hand I want to look at Mac and Apple and say is it really worth investing your money into. Microsoft is actually making great strides to improve their OS and despite the problem with Vista I am very happy were we are since the release of Windows 95. I think any company looking to challenge Microsoft Windows is going to have to do it top down. They are going to have to convince the business world that it will be better for them because in my opinion people go with the known. People don't like change and are used to windows.
As for me I will have to sit back and decide whether I will try it out or not. I think I will but I'm pretty sure I will stick with windows in the end.
http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2009/07/introducing-google-chrome-os.html
Monday, March 15, 2010
Cell Phones
Remember when a cellphone was just a cellphone. I think I could handle the blue tooths and the camera phones. Even the ring tones that are actually songs. I just don't understand the phones of today though. Most of my friends have phones that surf the web, play games, and do tons of other stuff and it makes me wonder what is the point.
Its a cellphone made for talking and isn't supposed to be the main highlight of your day out. I mean I got friends that can check their mail, transfer money and order things right from their phone. The prices on these phones are ridiculous as well as the service it takes to use them. I guess I don't see the need to be able to do all of that one a cellphone when I rarely have something I can't wait to get home for. Maybe I am just old fashioned at a young age but I think I will be keeping my old phone with just numbered keys. If I ever do buy a phone like that I will probably treat it likes its a baby and not get a good use out of it anyways.
http://www.apple.com/iphone/
Its a cellphone made for talking and isn't supposed to be the main highlight of your day out. I mean I got friends that can check their mail, transfer money and order things right from their phone. The prices on these phones are ridiculous as well as the service it takes to use them. I guess I don't see the need to be able to do all of that one a cellphone when I rarely have something I can't wait to get home for. Maybe I am just old fashioned at a young age but I think I will be keeping my old phone with just numbered keys. If I ever do buy a phone like that I will probably treat it likes its a baby and not get a good use out of it anyways.
http://www.apple.com/iphone/
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