The Internet is a big industry now, and so many companies and individuals have money to spend on an excellent web hosting provider but wind up choosing the wrong one. The truth is that there are a lot of fly-by-night web hosting providers, who scam you.
Thankfully, a site like WebHostingRating.com has compiled the web hosting rating for each major company like Bluehost, InMotion Hosting, Globat, and others.
You can see which hosting plan and features best serve your needs, from best forum hosting, best Unix hosting, best blog hosting, and much more.
So if you are dissatisfied with your current web hosting company, be sure to read the web hosting articles, reviews, and rankings.
Blaze Media Pro Multimedia Software: video and audio converter
Finally, the all-in-one video and audio converter is here: Blaze Media Pro. It's sleek, simple to use, and all-encompassing for all your audio and video needs. I highly recommend this program because of the smooth interface and multiple options. It is perfect for remixing songs, music, and video. You can make your own music video. It's great for professional use or hobbies.
How about:
Audio, video, and CD, DVD, VCD, and SVCD burning and copying.
Video capture, video creation, combining, extraction, video editing, audio and video merge (joining), MusicID audio recognition, lyrics search, audio tag editing, and much more.
Video frames can be extracted to images files.
Don't worry about if your favorite format isn't supported. Download the free trial and see for yourself: CD, MP3, WAV, WMA, OGG, MPEG-4, AIFF, M4A, AAC, AC3, FLAC, and ALAC, and two-way conversions with MPEG-1, MPEG-2, AVI, WMV, ASF, Flash (SWF and FLV), iPod, PSP, 3GP, and MOV.
Tired of not being able to work with AVI files? Well this software can work with all AVI files (uncompressed and compressed using codecs), MPEG-1, MPEG-2, WMV, and ASF.
You can also delete frames and selections, crop, resize, rotate, mirror, flip, trim, text overlay, adjust audio volume
I know, you couldn't resist buying the original iPhone. But if you were afraid of the price tag, you went ahead and bought the iPhone 3G. Of course, since AT&T's mandatory 2-year plan has increased by $10/per month (and if you aren't "upgrading"), there is no price break. That's something Apple doesn't advertise.
So, let's say you got duped and bought it anyway. I assume (tried) to cancel your existing cell phone, otherwise it would be awfully redundant to have two cells phones, right? Can't get out of that Verizon contract, huh? Awww...
Well, by now (assuming you got past all the red tape and stress to actually sign up and ACTIVATE your new iPhone) you should have noticed that although the interface rocks and is simple, the consumer irreplaceable BATTERY loses power awfully quickly.
I keep reading and hearing about a struggling economy, yet it seems so many people are quick to use their credit card to "upgrade" and fork over $200 (8GB) or $300 (16GB), with 24-month AT&T contract worth around $70-$100 per month.
It is very important to note that if you aren't upgrading than the price is actually 400 dollars. And if you do not want to hack the iPhone (see various message boards) and use it on another network the price of no-commitment contract is $600 dollars. WOW.
Also consider this: there are cheaper clones and more capable touch screen phones out there.
There is no doubt there are cool applications on the iPhone, and it's very easy to surf (but do you REALLY think all your favorite web pages will display properly? Not.) But you really need to take a long hard look at yourself in the mirror to justify why it would be that important.
I mean, I'm sure you HAVE Internet access at home. So why pay twice? I'm sure you already have a cell phone. You may even have a REAL GPS (iPhone doesn't have real-time- it uses Google Maps- HA!) And a better camera. And an iPod or mp3 player that can display photos and video. Or a laptop.
But you just HAD to get this, don't you. (By the way, be sure not to DROP this little guy.)
You don't care that Apple is using you like a tool with an upgrade and "price drop" every 6 months, right? Who says peer pressure is dead?
You know, I could understand it if you're making $70,000 and your wife is too.
But you're probably not, and if you are, you probably have so many expenses that you still live from paycheck to paycheck.
Do you REALLY need portable Internet at your office?
I could be persuaded to understand it if you were on the road all the time.
Other than that it seems more of a vanity thing than a practical thing.
Hey, I'm just trying to save on your monthly bills every month.
Because I really do care about you and the economy.
Just chew on this, for something that suggests it's an all-encompassing entertainment (Internet/phone/music/GPS hand held computer):
No Flash player for rich media content (Apple hates Adobe?) Can’t send pictures in instant messages No mobile TV No replaceable battery No flash memory card No Linux compatibility You're going to be dropping hundreds of dollars on upgrades for years
PC's can be very frustrating- from computers freezing up, crashes, the Blue Screen of death, booting issues, not finding the temp file you downloaded from e-mail, and to being forced to look for certain drivers to make a computer game install correctly. A personal computer is supposed to be fun, and for a small business it's supposed to be efficient, secure, and user friendly without the technical problems.
Microsoft is not denying that when Windows Vista was first released there were some compatibility and performance issues. Over the last 18 months, the Microsoft team has reviewed all of the issues, and has taken steps to improve and help your computer experience.
When you buy a new PC with Windows Vista Business or Windows Vista Ultimate, you will get free support, compatibility assistance, and coaching from Microsoft to help ensure the smooth transition. (Microsoft has stopped selling Windows XP as of June 30.) Windows Customer Support is ready and willing to help you get things going.
Finally, Windows Vista supports 77,000 printers, cameras, speakers and other devices and components that many people had problems installing (this is double the amount from launch). When you plus a device in, it will install and work properly- without a CD.
Did you ever watch a YouTube video of your favorite TV show, movie, cartoon, or music? Well, Google stored that info, and a judge forcing Google to turn over millions of videos your user login IDs, when you watched videos, your computer's IP address, and numbers that identify the videos. The order applies to videos watched on YouTube and to videos embedded on other Web sites, like this blog and other websites you may accidentally stumbled upon.
Fact: It is not illegal for us to WATCH copyrighted material on the Internet, however it IS illegal to UPLOAD copyrighted material in the U.S.
Fact: Google should not have allowed users to monitor their own content.
Fact: Your private viewing history will be in the hands of two billion dollar corporations, and possibly law enforcement agencies.
Fact: Viacom is the old guard media, and Google wants everything to be open source. (Google has controversial views about privacy.) However, both companies need to make profits at our expense. Users are used to, and expect, having free copyrighted content at their fingertips. Sites like Hulu.com are a step in the right direction because NBC and FOX have limited free content. YouTube is totally unregulated, and forces a New Age of free information.
Here's a great clip about a case of mistaken identity, how the Internet makes everything a small world, and how people make snap judgements. Actually, it's pretty scary, and opens wide legal ramifications of posting incorrect information on the Internet. It also shows how people use search engines like they drink beer- it's a natural instinct now.
For those of you who are sending David Lawson hate mail...think twice about it before you hit send.
Just to show you how popular some sites are, once word got out that Firefox was releasing Mozilla 3 today, their site was overloaded and crashed.
The Mozilla blog said:
The outpouring of interest and enthusiasm around Firefox 3 has been overwhelming (literally!). Our servers are currently feeling the burn and should be back to normal shortly. Download day will officially commence once the site goes live. The 24 hours period will be clocked from that moment. Thanks for your continued support.
Mozilla had a great marketing campaign: on May 28 they set out for the Guinness World Record for the most software downloads in 24 hours with its Firefox 3 browser. Of course, there is no world record for software downloads, Mozilla just wanted the pubclity- and it worked, probably a little too much- server down!
Rumor is that Ianare hit their site 1,323,499 times today...with no 'bot!
The Internet crowd was truly in a state of panic today, as the U.S. Amazon.com site was down for around 2 hours. Second to ebay in sales, Amazon is one of the cornerstones of daily Internet traffic. The panic was so widespread that it's stock dropped.
In today's New Economy, with so many businesses using the Internet for sales, you would think servers wouldn't go down, but they do. It's the nature of the game, and by Saturday everyone would have forgotten about it. Now, if amazon was hacked, that's a different story.
I'm glad I'm not an IT guy working for Amazon, though.
Former WCW professional wrestler Disco Inferno was on Main Event Radio and had this to say about Internet message board fans:
All Internet wrestling fans are basically critics. You don't see a lot of praise online. Not even only wrestling forums, but you look at political forums, sports forums, any type of message boards and it just breathes a very negative atmosphere. I'm convinced that what people do is that they cut promos against each other. A message board or forum is a free way to go online and basically argue and cut promos on each other. The problem that I have is that some of the ideas that people talk about online have a snowball effect and so many people start writing about them that they become fact. To me, they become erroneous facts.
The fact is...he's right. I have a lot of hobbies (probably too many), and every time I go on a message board forum or blog (including my own), I see some similar themes and patterns:
1) There are apologists and bootlickers who support the website administration. 2) There are posters full of hate, anger, and frustration. 3) They usually get into illogical "SHOUTING" debates with the apologists. 4) No one actually wins these "arguments". 5) The "facts" are all wrong, and generally change as you keep reading a thread. 6) Tony Vahl and Damian Hospital believe that most of the posters are sock puppets. 7) Being anonymous is an addictive feeling, and leads to people to be impolite, sarcastic, and mean. The person that rants, raves, and is "confrontational" online is teh same geek that can't even look at you straight in the eye in real life. 8) Having an "online identity" HAS to be hazardous to one's health. 9) The atmosphere is extremely negative. 10) If there is a positive thing about message boards, it's that they easily unravel scams and tear apart conventional or mainstream thinking: NOTHING and NO ONE is sacred from criticism. Although most of the time, it is unwarranted, occasionally it can be very helpful. 11) Another positive aspect is that people with similar interests can swap information and get questioned answered very quickly, and it's a great place for like minds to stroke each other's ego. However, back in my day, people did this in "real life". We as a society are headed down the road (or may already be there) where human interact becomes secondary.
The next time you're driving on the highway or languishing in traffic in a city or town, you may be watched...by a billboard.
No, this is not a conspiracy by George W. Bush, President McCain, or the other reptilian overlord, it is being done by high-tech advertising agencies such as Quividi and TruMedia Technologies.
Consumer habits are tracked on the Internet, no matter what your security is, so within advertising circles, these billboard camera systems are seen as a long-awaited answer to the problem of how to measure the effectiveness of billboards, and how to figure out who is seeing them.
Of course...if the general public knew about this, they would protest their rights to privacy.
One driver that passed it was then interviewed by a reporter and had this to say:
“I didn’t see that at all, to be honest. That’s disturbing. I would say it’s arguably an invasion of one’s privacy.”
Indeed, having one's face stored on a computer network and used for marketing purposes does sound weird. Also, law enforcement agencies can issue a court order to review the digital images. I'm not surprised, but I just wanted to give this Public Service Announcement so everyone knows. Like I've been telling everyone- advertisers rule this world, and they can- and will- do whatever they want. No reptilian conspiracy necessary.
Comcast.net got HACKED today. Rumors are that their webmail security failed, too. For those of you who wonder why anyone would hack such a company like COMCAST, let me list the reasons:
1) They illegally disrupt P2P sharing and uploading. 2) False advertising. 3) Limit bandwidth to stop filesharing and downloading. 4) Lobbying- they are everything wrong with United States politics. They are BIG CABLE and BIG ISP. 5) HDTV lies. 6) One of the WORST customer service setups. 7) Mets fans in NY can't see games if they have Comcast. How well do you think that went over with them? 8) Dropped the ball on the Big 10. 9) Their commercials SUCK. 10) Their prices are insane.
Check scanners have been in existence since around 2004, but now they are inexpensive. With the soaring price of gas in the United States, you should calculate the numbers to see how much money you could be saving if you could deposit checks from the comfort of your own home or business office.
DepositNow has perfected this scanner, and has made the price affordable: it's only $225 (AND you take $25 off if you use my blog name skew.dailyskew.com as your promo code!!!). If you plug the numbers, you can see that you can save money on gas, and save yourself the time and hassle of going to the bank.
DepositNow provides all the software and security assurances you need to make a safe transaction.
Now, if you run an online business, like if you are an eBay Powerseller or run Amazon auctions, this scanner is an item that will help you out a lot. DepositNow has different model scanners, which are half the price of other scanners on the market. And unlike those other scanners, DepositNow's machines can scan other paper besides checks.
The software and electronic transfers work with United States banks, and there is no need to change banks, create a new account, or anything else that is inconvenient. In fact, the interface is web-based, simple, easy, and 100% secure. If you can read this blog post, you can make a digital check transfer.
If you work at an office or small business, wasting time and money on driving to the bank to deposit checks is ridiculous. The technology is here and affordable; let's use it.
For those of you who do not know, Japan has strict immigration laws, elderly are retiring at 65, and women have a very low fertility rate. With this shrinking work force, scientists and government officials are SERIOUSLY projecting robots to be added to Japan's workforce as soon as 2025.
The Japanese have always had an edge when it comes to robotics and electronics, so it should come to no one's surprise if this works. Many Westerners can't comprehend the Japanese culture. In fact, even other Asian countries just don't understand the Japanese.
In the U.S. robot workers taking over jobs is a nightmare; in Japan, it would help their culture survive. In fact, you may read other articles making fun of the Japanese or even protesting this, but my sources in Japan view this as a positive and good scenario.
I was pretty frustrated that all of the Dailyskew's subdomains were down this weekend. I had to submit a trouble ticket and spoke with someone via live technical chat from IX Web Hosting's webpage before we got back up this afternoon (all of Dailyskew's sites were going on and off). IX Web Hosting had allegedly moved some servers, and the outage was supposed to have been fixed by 9:00AM Sunday. Sunday and Monday, Dailyskew's sites were down and up, before the situation was resolved around 2:00PM Monday.
Anyway, sorry for the inconvenience; it wasn't our fault.
It's official: Toshiba has called it quits with their HD DVD, and yielded to Sony's Blue Ray DVD.
TONY VAHL SAYS:
Unlike VHS vs. Beta, it would seem the better technology has won this time. You could also argue that the guy in the photo should have used The Point (tm), instead of waving his hand towards a screen.
DAMIAN HOSPITAL SAYS: The final nail in HD DVD's coffin was when Time Warner decided to go with Sony's Blue Ray. The bottom line is that it is SO hard to demand an "either-or" market/loyalty from studios and consumers. Yes, the best parallel is VHS vs Beta, no doubt. Looking back through electronics history, that sort of competition is cut-throat and generally "one shall stand, and one shall fall". Look what happened to Sega's hardware systems. Now, Sonic and Mario are in the same game, and there are only a HANDFUL of video games that AREN'T ported over on all 3 systems.
For the record, I am not a technophile, and never bought into "higher definition" anything. As someone who is legally blind without my glasses, I'm used to not seeing every pixel. I think it's all a gimmick anyway. EVERY time a new type of media is introduced, it claims to give you the "movie theater" or "arcade" experience. I simply ride the old media I have until they break, and then I'll pick up a new technology when the price drops.
We truly live in a new technological era where the court systems are setting new precedents.
It has been ruled that sending a MySpace friend request is a violation of an order of protection, which states "no contact allowed".
It is amazing that one click of the left mouse can cause criminal charges like that. For those of you not in the social networking world, a friend request in Myspace, Friendster, Facebook, or wherever is one of the most mundane things on the Net.
Google says Microsoft would "take over the Internet"
"Microsoft's hostile bid for Yahoo raises troubling questions," David Drummond, Google's chief legal officer, wrote. "This is about more than simply a financial transaction, one company taking over another. It's about preserving the underlying principles of the Internet: openness and innovation."
"Could Microsoft now attempt to exert the same sort of inappropriate and illegal influence over the Internet that it did with the PC?"
Short answer: No.
Although Microsoft WILL try to create a stranglehold on search engines, advertisements, components needed to view webpages, etc., Google, Apple, Mozilla and other open source organizations, and others will always provide alternate applications, search tools, etc.
If Google was as truly altruistic as they claim to be, they'd lay off trying to control forms of competitive Internet advertising (blogger pay per posts). In many ways, Google's almost communistic approach to a free, shared, pure Internet makes them look like the Internet Police.
I support Google over Microsoft when it comes to best business practices, but Google is coming off being very threatened about battling an amalgamation of MSN+Yahoo! But I believe in free competition. Survival of the fittest. Quit crying. After all, Google made acquisitions of its own- Youtube, DoubleClick, Zingku, Postini, blogspot (blogger), Grandcentral, and much more. They are actively working with the TV network bigwigs, and Hollywood. Sounds to me they want to become the monopoly.
Don't get me wrong- I love Google; it is revolutionary...BUT...they are doing everything Microsoft is.
Obviously the huge news today was the announcement that Microsoft wants to "merge" with Yahoo by taking it over. Yahoo has been laying workers off, and not performing as expected. Ultimately, if MSN takes over Yahoo, the war against google may be in Microsoft's favor. When it comes to an average computer user yahoo and hotmail are THE ways to go, no matter how many cool people you know who use gmail. Don't even bring up Yahoo Messenger or MSN's IM vs google's- no contest in terms of an average user.
I'm all for Microsoft buying out Yahoo. All of this stuff is virtual anyway. We truly live in a great era. Advertisers will pay anything to be featured on MSN, hotmail, or yahoo's homepage or instant message programs. The e-mail addresses of "free" subscribers is extremely valuable as well.
When will everyone realize that it is not the MEDIA or an elite group that runs the world, but advertising.
E-commerce is here to say, and thousands have already chosen Ashop Commerce, who hosts and supports their all-encompassing shopping cart software. If you are thinking about opening up your own online shop, or want to change the way your business currently sells and markets it products, you need an ecommerce software that is customizable, simple to use, and is hosted by a company that believes in customer satisfaction.
The list of features for this shopping cart software is numerous- you have an entire internal storefront at your fingertips. The list of options and feature from setup, inventory, layout and design, payment options, shipment and tax, web optimization, sales analysis, repeat customer accommodation, affiliates, SMS alerts, database, hosting, and security gives you everything you need to start selling- TODAY.
Yes, there is other shopping cart software, but when you compare the features, overall package, technical support, and trials for this web-based application (there is NO disk to install), you will see that Ashop Commerce leads the pack.
Many people don't know how easy it is to become a merchant online. Thanks to shopping cart software created by Ashop Commerce, you can open an online shop for your business or products right now.
This ecommerce software is the total package, with no fine print or hidden fees. It's real simple, you control and customize your online storefront over the web. You have 100% control over the design, templates, inventory, reports, tracking, alerts, featured items, gift certificates, currency, product reviews, large image views and thumbnails, store searches, real time shipping methods, and so much more.
Your products or business will look 100% professional because of the layouts and features of this web optimized ecommerce shopping cart system.
Ashop Commerce loads the software with reports as well, so you can track sales, analyze search engine visitor data, and all data is fully integrated with accounting software like Quickbooks, Quicken, and the other name brands.
Ashop also provides free technical support, and has all the SEO hints and tips you need to be an online presence.
If you are tired or frustrated with your small business struggling when it comes to e-mail hosting, spam filters, virus protection, or taking the first step to becoming a presence on the World Wide Web, it's time to take a look at Concentric Business Solutions, a leading provider of shared web hosting for small businesses.
Their shared web hosting solutions include getting your business its own domain name, registration services (including private domain registration), and e-mail hosting. Every hosting account gets a free domain name. From subdomain names, firewalls, web mail, auto-responders, forwarding e-mail, and distribution lists to UPS backup, 24/7 security, and diesel generator backup, Concentric Business Solutions has everything your business needs to become more efficient and competitive in today's marketplace.
Research, sponsored by mobile phone companies themselves, revealed that using the cell phones before bed causes people to take longer to reach the deeper stages of sleep and to spend less time in them, which in turn interferes with your body's ability to repair damage suffered during the day.
This was published by MIT's Progress in Electromagnetics Research Symposium and funded by the Mobile Manufacturers Forum.
Dr William Kohler of the Florida Sleep Institute said:
"Anything that disrupts the integrity of your sleep will potentially have adverse consequences in functioning during the day, such as grouchiness, difficulty concentrating, and in children hyperactivity and behavior problems."
As Tony Vahl and Damian Hospital have been saying for years- mobile phones is this generation's cigarette smoking, meaning that the physical damage done is horrific, but the general public casually engages in this behavior with no regard to the consequences.
Great place for laptop, cell phone, and camera batteries
Why deal with the inconvenience of driving down to the mall, cell phone dealership, computer store, or pharmacy when you need batteries (not to mention dealing with their high prices?) Shopping at AllBatts.com is easier and cheaper. They are the premier marketplace for cell phone batteries, laptop batteries, camcorder batteries, power tool batteries, digital camera batteries, and much more. The bottom line is that AllBatts has all the batteries you need for the latest gizmos, gadgets, and cool technology we use every day.
I plan on buying my wife digital camera batteries from AllBatts.com since we enjoy taking hundreds of pictures every weekend. We also travel, and are always looking for reliable batteries.
It seems like anytime a scientist works on another cloning breakthrough, the MEDIA, Christian Wright, George Bush and company, and the masses in general make condemning or ignorant comments about the science of cloning. The general consensus is that mankind "shouldn't play God". MEANWHILE, we play God every day. Is not God supposed to be around us and one with us anyway?
You know darn well that people want to live longer and not suffer from sickness and diseases. Well cloning cells or growing new organs can help with that.
Don't people want to prevent more animals from becoming extinct?
A few pet peeves of mine:
All of a sudden people campaign for the rights of "cellular material". All I have to say about that is- eggs and sperm are wasted all the time.
People have this Hollywood and sci-fi notion that cloning is bad, like Dr. Frankenstein's experiments. But when has Hollywood ever lead us straight in terms of predicting future technologies? Sci-fi (ironically enough) generally warns against the abuse of advanced technology. Hollywood and sci-fi books have been feeding us giant computers that rebel against their masters, artificial intelligence that takes over, and aliens that are humanoid and speak English. With clones, they've been feeding us clone armies, clone harvesting, and clone impostors.
Enough is enough.
The benefits of clone research outnumber any of these riduculous fears.
The question of ethics always arises as well- does a clone have rights? Of course he or she would have rights! Twins are clones of each other- their genetic material is duplicated, but they have different personalities (or as some would say, souls).
Besides, it costs so much money to do clone research, it would be impractical and impossible to build a clone army, harvest a human body, or replace people. Why would you even harvest a full body when you can grow new organs just by taking a tissue sample or DNA from yourself?
ANYWAY, enough with this mass hyseria...or dare I say- sheep-like mentality?
Cadre Technologies created a warehouse management system which converts an average warehouse operation into a connected logistics and fulfillment business. Cadre's warehouse management logistics software lets you to take orders over the web, process them in real-time- including voice directed operations, and automates shipping. This logistics software will increase your business' efficiency, and allow to expand it.
Cadre Technologies was founded in 2001 by warehouse management and logistics professionals that already had decades of experience in distribution technology. They built a unified suite of applications that has processes such as: order management, warehouse management, transportation management,financial management systems, and wireless communications, speech and remote computing technologies.
Fast-teks provides on-site IT service to homes or small to mid-sized businesses. Their certified technicians can assist residential homes with virus removal, wireless networking, data recovery, troubleshooting and repair, software training, and more. Fast-teks business services include professional web design and hosting, managed services, data backup, network security, e-mail server and mobile device support, and much more.
PresentationMart.com is an excellent online provider of high quality yet low priced LCD and DLP business projectors, projector replacement lamps, projector cases, projector mounts, bulbs, lenses, cables, air filters, screens, and more.
Presentation Mart is your one source for digital video and all kinds of projection equipment and LCD accessories. They can keep a huge stock of products, so you can find all the equipment you need here, even if it is rare. Their products come from well-known manufacturers, such as Panasonic, Epson, and others.
If you need a projector for a business presentation, worship service, educational project, classroom, nightclub, or for your home theater, they can assist you right now.
0.16-0.76 inch (0.4-1.94 cm) high by 12.8 inches (32.5 cm) by 8.94 inches (22.7 cm), 3.0 pounds (1.36 kg), with a 13.3-inch widescreen TFT panel capable of 1280 by 800 resolution, and a full-size backlit keyboard.
The system is based on Intel’s Core 2 Duo processor, and comes as a 1.6 or 1.8GHz or 2GB of DDR2 RAM. There is an 80GB drive or a 64GB solid-state drive.
Now the bad-
The price is around $ 1800 to $3100 and-
There is only a a single USB port, an audio out port and a micro-DVI port. There is no Ethernet, no modem (sold separately as USB adapters) No optical drive. The battery is not user replaceable. (Apple's new trend.)
I'm sure everyone will continue to jump on the Apple bandwagon again and get this.
By the way, ya gotta love how Steve Jobs boasts that Air is 56% less volume than MacBook, trying to make MacBook owners feel...a little inadequate, so they put down $2000 + for a MacBook Air.
Performance Data Resources has been providing IBM AS/400, iSeries and eServer i5 customers with hard to find, new and refurbished midrange hardware, and have been assisting with issues ranging from device address and cabling problems to more difficult system tuning & troubleshooting assistance since 1991.
Their actual technical staff has over 30 years of experience, and can offer your business so many different services and solutions to meet your ever changing needs with today's technology business requirements.
PDR, Inc. have helped so many clients with spam filters, networking, data collection, tape drives, IBM services, routers and hubs, UPS, modems, printers, and more that it's no wonder over 88% of their business is done with repeat, satisfied IT directors.
TASHMAN IT DEPARTMENT DEMATERIALIZES Special Report
Tragedy falls on Tashman Technologies, when after a trial test on a new teleportation procedure, the entire technologies department was dematerialized into the outer atmosphere.
"It was supposed to be a standard, test," said one shock employee.
"No one ever thought that this could happen."
The error seems to have been caused by a line of code that by default was set to 0, thus not accounting for the constant shift in the Earth's rotation. When the machine misfired and struck the outer wall of the Technologies building the entire section of building was dematerialized.
The big news this morning is that Indian automobile motor giant Tata unveiled the world's cheapest car, a four seater which will sell for around $2500 or so, but not in the West. The Tata Nano's nickname is the People's Car.
I doubt the majority of citizens in the United States or England would be interested in a car with hardly any bells and whistles (the Tata Nano has no power steering, and the dashboard just has an oil light, fuel gauge, and speedometer. Getting extras may bump the price up more , if they are available.) Air conditioning is said to be available.
I'm sure U.S. automakers are thinking about the "$3,000 car". Truthfully, I think our environment has enough cars anyway...
For those not keeping up to date with the car industry, Tata is in line to buy the Jaguar and Land Rover marques from Ford in the next few weeks.
Everyone is buzzing about online Presidential candidate matching programs. They are just fun games, which attempt to match issues like abortion, gun control, the Iraq War, Iran, the death penalty, and other issues to each candidate and compare them to your own beliefs. Most of these "programs" then give you a score showing which candidate closely matches your values and beliefs.
Many serious minded journalists, bloggers, and talking heads seems to be against this because they are afraid that people will cast their votes on something that is so unscientific.
Of course, a question of ethics may occur if the "programmers" decide to rig these calculators or assign incorrect weights to each value system and issue. But..who cares? This is the Internet. No one checks facts. EDIT: I heard the Fox News Candidate Calculator doesn't exist, and they use this candidate calculator.
Personally, I don't see what the whole controversy is. It's ultimately the responsibility of the voter to make his or her decision based on numerous factors.
By the way, I was an 82.98% match to Obama. Guess I know whom I'll be casting my vote for. {JOKING.}
On a couple of occasions, child pornography was found, and these men were arrested.
Due to the fact that only child pornographers were harassed, no one is complaining or rushing to defend them.
But as you can see, this is a serious and huge issue with the potential to make coming back to the U.S. even harder than it already is, in addition to violating your privacy.
In one case, thankfully, a judge ruled that the seized evidence could not be used against the man:
"Electronic storage devices function as an extension of our own memory. They are capable of storing our thoughts, ranging from the most whimsical to the most profound.”
Unfortunately, his decision is being appealed, and there is a huge right-wing push to have laptops and other electronic devices searched and seized at U.S. borders.
For those of you who haven't traveled out of the U.S. and back again since 9/11, you have no idea how hard it is to return to the U.S. now. My wife and I were interrogated and disrespected in October 2006 in Detroit.
This is a major issue that damages the U.S. tourist industry, violates the Constitution, and causes more delays at the airport.
If you are an amateur golfer, in a golf club, or participate in USGA tournaments, you may not know that you can get your USGA Golf Handicap Index card online through the leading online sports golf software from NetHandicap.com. You can use this USGA handicap card at official golf events. This site is used by over 130,000 golfers, clubs, associations, and organizations. In addition to handicap calculation, NetHandicap provides golf tips, leading golf statistical information, tracks league data, trends and analysis, and has modules.
NetHandicap was established in 1999 as an alternative to golf handicap software, in that it provides a web-based online golf service which connects golfers with clubs, and enhances the golf experience.
Last year, my wife and I freed up some money to get second computer, since we are both heavy users, and we travel. I got an awesome model, but I was forced to have Vista on it, so I said, "Why not?"
Well, here are my pros and cons:
Pros:
Basic Networking- YES, I was able to actually able to hop on the Internet in other countries. YES, I actually used WiFi (where available).
In previous Windows operating systems, it is a chore to do certain tasks, and it looks like Microsoft took that into heart when redesigning some commonly used functions.
Interface makes things simple for idiots.
Automatic updates don't have to restart your computer like XP until you tell it to.
It's a great multi-media system. So if you are just a basic Internet surfer or movie watcher, it's fine, and recommended-although XP works just fine to do that (generally speaking).
Plug and play works most of the time, and will even get the drivers it needs quickly and automatically.
Cons:
I am so used to Windows XP (as we all are) that I actually feel like an idiot doing a simple task, especially in Windows Explorer. Some of it is just so non-intuitive. But that's minor, I guess, and I'll take the blame for that if need be.
Now a major problem? How about the fact that your computer becomes a full security lockdown prison. Have fun using filesharing, or even installing Firefox.
There are so many "helpful" applications running in the background it's not even funny.
Administrative permissions not "allowing" me to move a file out of Program Files- huh? It seems like Vista just wants you working out of MyDocuments to keep everything simple.
Incompatibility with games, software, applications and databases. All of the programs you currently use are guaranteed to work under XP, not Vista.
Your taskbar has so many irremovable icons, I just laugh every time I boot up. Do we really need Synch Manager, InstallShield, Defender, etc?
Try burning CDs or DVDs. First of all, it operates under the "files can be moved from and to your disk" system, like everything is rewritable. I'm sure I'll have no issues playing it in my car CD player now, right?
Speaking of CD/DVD creating, it's awfully cumbersome moving files around in Vista, not be mention the bundled software is third party, and can't just do a simple task.
You constantly have to download new drivers, updates, patches, etc.
My wrestling sim game can't work on it.
I can't even get CIV IV: Beyond the Sword to run, even though it says "Windows Vista Compatible".
My baseball sims worked- after a few patches.
Direct X patches--oh, lordie.
The option to Run a program in a Windows XP environment is a lie.
Try putting your own video card in. Go ahead. Try it.
Can't even use Outlook correctly.
Memory leaks.
Uses way too much drive space AND memory resources, so you have to spend time disabling and unistalling.
I hear that reinstalling from scratch is a living nightmare.
Users are reporting the need for Ram upgrades to run programs that should meet your specs.
Like I said, if you are a user with basic needs (surf and watch DVDs), and doesn't mind slow performance or annoying messages telling you that you suck, due to background programs "protecting" your computer, it's fine. It's perfect for taking your laptop on vacation with you, or traveling on business.
If you play games, burn a lot of discs, or need to be in Windows Explorer for any reason, and don't want your system to be bogged down by Microsoft's mandatory programs or "helpful" Microsoft third-parties-forget about it.
If you are an advanced user who uses databases, programming, applications, VB, etc...well, I know you're not using Vista anyway.
The Inside Scoop on Solar Cycle 24 Seems like the Internet and radio outlets are BUZZING about a phenomena called Solar Cycle 24. Thanks to Coast to Coast AM radio, the panic is beginning to spread, as the term solar cycle will soon reach a full peak in upcoming months.
What shows like CoastToCoast do is capitalize and cash in on speculation about the end of the earth, a giant government conspiracy, or how reliance on technology will lead to your undoing. You'd think that with the X-Files having been off the air for a while now, shows like this wouldn't still be in vogue, but...heck, it's great to listen to if you work 3rd shift.
Anyway, here is the straight dope on solar cycles and the infamous "Solar Cycle 24":
According to the Associated Press, all the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration saidwas that the first sunspot of a new 11-year cycle has appeared in the sun's northern hemisphere. Based on previous stats, it can be predicted that sunspot activity will increase. (This does NOT necessary mean that Solar Cycle 24 has officially begun.)
It doesn't help that the NOAA spokesperson Conrad C. Lautenbacher, Jr said that an intense solar storm could create magnetic disturbances on earth, and hamper the effectiveness of "electrical grids, airline and military communications, GPS signals and even cell phones".
It's amazing that solar cycles have happened since the beginning of the earth's formation, yet we are supposed to be concerned now, in 2008.
For the record, all of this comes from an April, 2007 panel of "solar experts" forecasting that Solar Cycle 24 would start in March 2008, "plus or minus six months", and the "panel" was split between those predicting a strong or weak cycle.
