I have many friends who live in developing countries.  It is easy for we Americans (if you are an American) to believe we have everything in terms of technology and development.

I received an email from a friend the other day who works in some very poor areas of the world.

This paragraph struck me:

One man we met in the corridor, was a father with two kids.  He asked me to turn my mobile-phone Bluetooth on so I could beam him the pictures we had just taken together.  I had never done such a thing before, but was instructed step by step, in perfect English, by someone half my age but with double the smarts in the area of techno-gadgets.  It was a learning experience for (me), and an eye-opening revelation for my students….Poor does not mean stupid.  Educated  does not necessarily mean techno-savvy.  Most everyone we spoke with spoke three languages and some spoke six fluently!  I felt like (soon to be) Dr. Idiot.

 

Just imagine what might happen in developing countries if they don’t have to take the path we (in the West) took to see our economies grow.

Technology Leaps: What Might Happen is a post from Thad Thoughts

Keeping your home safe for yourself and your family is always a top priority. To that end, there are many things you can do and buy that will amp up your home security at comparably low costs—especially when compared to the emotional cost of having something precious stolen from you. From pets to security installations, there are many smart purchases that will make you feel more secure.

Get Yourself a Digital Guard Dog

Image via Flickr by digital-dreams

It really does help to have a dog, and it isn’t necessary to have a large breed, either, but when a dog isn’t an option you can still get the benefit of one without all the hair and slobber. What you need is an electronic “guard dog”: an electronic device that replicates the sound of an angry, defensive large breed. These usually work by sensing motion, and deliver a loud warning bark whenever the sensor is tripped. Former burglars themselves say that both loud dogs and trained guard dogs are deterrents. Simply the sound of a dog can be very effective for a skittish would-be burglar. If you already have a dog that enjoys barking at anything fishy, give that pooch a treat. If not, you might want to go the digital route and save yourself some future headaches.

A Digital Lock Down

Image via Flickr by ASSA ABLOY

The more locks you have on your doors, the better. These old devices are taking on a more futuristic approach, as the introduction of digital, electronic locks have started to seriously compete with standard, mechanical locks. Just remember, heavy-duty locks are much more durable—so always make sure the lock you buy is high quality.  Digital locks will generally come with a keypad, but some have been introduced that can be locked with a keychain remote like you use for your car. These locks are generally better, because they make it easier for you to lock your doors. Never again will you get into your car and wonder if you did indeed lock the door behind you. A simple push of a button can solve this question. Carrying a lot of groceries and need to unlock the door? Simply hit the button and viola—open door. While this option is more expensive than a traditional lock, it will save you time, energy and give you peace of mind.

Install a Home Security System

Image via Flickr by Olivier H

Sometimes it’s better to get a little more comprehensive. A full-out security system that arms your doors and windows on every floor in your home is a foolproof way to keep your family and your valuables safe. Shop for home security alarms at LifeShield to find what works best for your home. Make sure the keypad is well-hidden, so that it’s not visible through front windows or glass panes inside the door. You want burglars to know you have security, such as through a sign, but never let them see if your system is currently disengaged.

Keep an Eye Out with Security Cameras

Image via Flickr by michael.paul

If you’d like to supplement your security system or simply want something high-tech but low-key, security cameras can help. They are particularly helpful if you have nice cars or valuable items outside, such as expensive grills or patio furniture. You can even use them to keep an eye on the neighbors’ kids, who enjoy sneaking into your backyard and making use of your pool. Remember to install them in unobtrusive spots that still let you see everything.

You have to keep your home safe, no matter what it takes. Have you ever dealt with a robbery or do you have a security system in place?

4 Smart Tech Purchases that Make Your Home Safer is a post from Thad Thoughts

In recent years, it has become a necessity for anyone trying to promote themselves to have a Facebook and a Twitter. The share and tweet button on an article has become commonplace. However, we are now seeing one more omnipresent button on webpages: The plus one button. You never hear people talking about Google Plus like they do Facebook and Twitter. Yet somehow, Google’s social network has more users than Twitter. How did Google manage to make their social network so large?

The Power of Google

In 1998, you could have been using any number of search engines including Altavista and Yahoo. By 2000, Google was already a viable alternative to the big names. Their interface was minimalist, and their results seemed somehow better than the rest. Not much has changed since then. To perform an Internet search is to Google something. Search, YouTube, Android and their endless list of services have combined to make them an integral part of the technology world. Not using a Google product is something that seems almost impossible in today’s world.

This complete dominance by Google is the very reason Google Plus will stay if they want it to. While there are not too many facts about Plus’ effect on SEO, it seems clear that Plus is relevant to your search engine visibility. When the biggest search engine in the world makes Plus an important part of search that means people are going to use it.

Google Authorship

Google Authorship is quite likely the most powerful player in encouraging Plus connectivity, at least for those trying to promote themselves via the social network. Beyond the theories of Google Plus having an effect on your actual PageRank, Google Authorship provides a concrete way to get people to look at your content.

Authorship is simple: You connect your content to Google Plus, thereby verifying its authenticity. Doing this creates some pretty obvious results. Content verified with Google Authorship shows up with a hyperlinked byline and a small picture. Whether Authorship actually makes you rank higher is irrelevant. The fact that there is a small picture next to a search result will probably make you more likely to click on it.

Benefits As A Social Network

Beyond all talks of how Google can coerce people into using Plus, what of its actual values as a social network? While it seems unlikely that Plus can completely conquer Facebook, it has its own set of unique benefits. The circles feature, allowing you to categorize your friends into groups such as work and family. While you can approximate this in Facebook, it isn’t a central part of the interface. In addition, it has Google Hangouts, a logical extension of chat. Plus has many of the features you would expect from a modern social network.

When we look at the accounts we have throughout the internet, invariably some of our more important ones are Google based, such as Gmail. We all probably have tens of accounts, so having our social network integrate with our email is a welcome offering. The prospect of Plus being a hub for our Internet presence is an attractive one.

In appealing to the average user, one of the biggest hurdles Plus has to deal with is the fact that it is redundant. Everyone has already added the people they know to Facebook. Who wants to do it again?

Guest Post from Ryan Harris.  To quote Ryan’s Twitter profile, he likes to “talk tech news and moon landings, but mostly tech news.”  Ryan is currently a copywriter with a few websites – including HighSpeedInternetProviders.com – who’s working to expand where his writing can be found.  If Twitter isn’t your thing, please feel free to send Ryan an email with your questions.

Google Plus: It’s Here To Stay is a post from Thad Thoughts

You know the kind of mail I am talking about:  real mail.  Snail mail.  Plain old junk.  The kind you throw away immediately.

How do you tame that stuff?

Here are 10 tips for managing the beast called junk mail.

• Sort it as you go.  If it piles up, it becomes an even bigger problem to manage.  What might take minutes takes hours when it sits for weeks.

• Write and dump em.  Virtually all marketing mail can be stopped cold by writing to a mail preferences service.

• Shred the ones that matter.  Remember, identity theft started with snail mail first, and junk mail made a contribution to the problem.  Those credit card offers?  They can be used by identity thieves to open credit cards in your name without your knowledge.  It’s always best to shred them.

• No Shredder? No Problem!  If you work at company with a shred box, chances are they will be amenable to you bringing in your shred pile.  In most instances they don’t pay by weight, so your additions won’t matter.  But, to be safe, be sure to clear it with your employer first.

• Move it from the post office to your email inbox!  If you need some of the content in your postal mail, but you hate having to actually open it, you may want to checkout Outbox.com. This online service offers to pick up your postal mail at the post office (before it gets delivered!), scan it, deliver it to you online, and then shred it.  They will even work with you to make dumping the junk mail a snap, enabling you to remove yourself from advertiser mailings super easy.

What other ideas do you have for taming the junk mail beast?

5 Ways to Tame the Junk Mail Beast is a post from Thad Thoughts

Apple’s World Wide Developer Conference starts in just in a few days at San Francisco’s Moscone Center. What’s coming this year?

Here are a few choice rumors making the rounds about what’s on the way.

iRadio – Free ad-supported internet radio. Not a new idea, but Apple, if they do anything, tends to get the user experience right.

iOS 7 preview – This will be the first look at Jony Ives inspired OS for Apple phones and tablets. Incidentally, iOS 6 is on 93% of all iOS devices. Has any Android release ever passed 10% (I honestly don’t know).

OS X 10.9 preview – again, a look at what Jony Ives will have inspired in the ux and ui.

iPhone 5s or 6 – take your pick as to which number. Mid year is when Apple previews the next phone. Should be out in the fall. My guess is that it will be a quad core processor in the device, and Siri will be extended to much more of the OS.

Got some wild guesses about what’s coming from Apple? Why not share them below in the comments?

What’s Coming from Apple This Week? is a post from Thad Thoughts

Technology has become the meeting point of car sellers and car buyers. Buyers have the jump on dealerships who still rely primarily on the floor salesman courting the wandering customer. But smart dealerships are becoming aware of the importance of technology to their business now and in the near future. The changing technological landscape is just beginning to alter the way we buy and sell cars. Where will it go from here?

The Internet Drives New Buyer Habits

Generation Y is a new breed of car buyer — at least the ones who are even interested in owning a car at all, Time Business has stated. These young Americans are the tech-savvy generation who carry a tablet or smartphone full of automotive information with them into the dealership. They know what they want and how much they want to pay. The changing consumer base presents a dilemma for dealerships. Potential buyers come in with more information than some of the sales people have on a particular make and model of car. Reviews, performance stats, safety records and maintenance costs are all available with a few online searches. Car dealerships will need to better understand and accommodate the buying habits of this generation if they have any hope to stay profitable. These new buyers don’t want help selecting a car, they don’t want the upsell and they definitely don’t want to negotiate price. Where once the floor salesman was the one creating the value proposition for the buyer, these buyers have likely sold themselves on the car before they walk into the showroom.

Social Media Creates a Car Community

Social media sites, such as Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest, have created a way for car buying to move out of the individual space and into the community. One use of social media is to solicit feedback about dealerships, Business 2 Community points out. It can also provide the buyer with useful information about vehicle performance and history from others who drive a particular car. Dealerships are making changes to their websites to become a hub for information about their cars. The goal is to draw buyers to their sites instead of having them search other random sites for information, thus building customer loyalty. The challenge is opening up the websites to two-way communication. When a business uses social media to capture customer comments, they open themselves up to some potential risks. A site could collect more negative comments than positive ones about a car, salesman or service. Unfortunately for the dealerships, people tend to remember negative reviews more often than the positive comments.

Dealers Adopt New Technology and Sales Model

Fifty-six percent of Americans now own smartphones, according to a recent study by Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project. Email and text alerts about new car releases and availability is one way to tap into this market. QR codes are another increasingly popular form of business to consumer interaction. Twenty-seven percent of consumers aged 18-24 activate QR codes, according to a Pitney Bowes survey, and that percentage will likely continue to increase.

Despite many dealerships’ reluctance to cater to millennials, there are some that are using new technology to streamline the car buying experience. One of the Phx dealerships found great success implementing an iPad to expedite automotive transactions, according to the Phoenix Business Journal. They created an app that integrates product, sales and financial information. Everything the salesman —and customer — needs is right at their fingertips.

Currently, the buyer has the edge when it comes to the use of technology when buying a car. To be able to support this next generation of car buyers, dealerships will need to come up with new ways to incorporate mobile devices, social media and versatile websites into their sales model.

How Mobile Technology Is Changing The Way You Buy A Car is a post from Thad Thoughts

The following is a guest post.  If you are interested in guest posting at ThadThoughts.com, please visit this page.

Cloud computing is easily becoming all the rage in the IT world. If you don’t know what cloud computing is, you might as well live under that rock you’ve been hiding under. For those who are still trying to figure it out, cloud computing will just revolutionize the way the world does things. In the ever changing face of technology, cloud computing will simplify it and make it all the more accessible.

Just imagine this for your line of work, being able to access the same data, the same programs, the same interface not just from your laptop, but through any computer in the world. Simply put, cloud computing will allow you to  access things that were generally confined to a singular desktop or laptop from ANY available device. Think of your external hard disk, and multiply that exponentially. That’s what cloud computing can do. And companies nowadays are really looking at joining this learning curve and are at the moment trying to get their companies ready for this new boom in technology. They are in the process of getting the best people in preparation for this inevitability. And if you are a very enterprising IT person, then you have to brush up on particular skills that will make you very valuable, very in demand, and possible, even very rich.

Here are Top 5 Cloud Skills that are in demand world-wide:

1. Desktop Virtualization- If your skill set is in making a virtual new desktop, then you have a very good chance of making it big by riding the cloud computing wave. Desktop virtualization is not merely sharing the same applications by several people in a particular network. Desktop virtualization is making sure that each user has their own running application and managing this through a hypervisor.

2. Hadoop- This is important for any company that is serious about growing. They will see that this is a certainty and that data management and handling the enormous amounts that a company can produce is a very taxing yet essential job. This is something that most cloud computing practicing companies will be on the look out for.

3. SOAP- This is essential for communicating in real time and being able to address issues as soon as one presses “enter”. Creating an instant messaging framework is very important to any company that is serious about cloud computing.

4. Storage Engineering- This is a very large problem when it comes to cloud computing. Of course, the actual place where one stores ones data is with the company that provides the cloud computing service. But there is an option to provide a similar service in remote storage systems. This is one viable skill set that one can pursue.

5. PHP- or personal home page is the server-side scripting language that is mostly used on the web today. The focus on programming is really felt as more apps are created to address the needs of a cloud computing company. There are many opportunities for those who are in this line of work.

Cloud computing although still far off in the distant future is not complete removed from the reality of what is going on now. There are alot more opportunities that one can explore in terms of career and skill set in the cloud computing industry. The possibilities are endless. It is important to note though that while the emergence of cloud computing is still a long way off, the foundations for such a certainty must be built now. That is why it is best to build on one’s skill set and get more experience or even a certification in a particular strength that can be used for cloud computing. This will really set you apart for the rest of the self-taught experts and those who just join the bandwagon.

Author Bio:

Vanessa Parks is a Freelance Systems Analyst and Cloud Storage Consultant. She has been an advocate of Desktop virtualisation and unified computing for improved work efficiency and performance. She also has a passion in dancing, cooking and playing golf.

Top 5 Cloud Skills That Are in Demand World-wide is a post from Thad Thoughts