Dear IT Pros, whether you are a Mac a PC, a *nix or
somewhere in between (like yours truly), I wish you the best for
2011. Technology brings the best in everybody and it brings us
together and not the other way around because technological
diversity is what makes it most interesting. H4PPY N3W Y34R!
Thanks to the plethora of competition for your Christmas bonuses, a wide variety of web sites dedicated to track offers has erupted.
Long gone are the days of Pricewatch where you had to go and check for the best deals yourself. Nowadays you can subscribe to very specif alerts and even browse and buy the deals from your smart phone.
Here’s my pick of the best new emerging sites:
I am sure you have many more to share, so I invite you to do so in the comments section of this post.
Geek on!
In a very poor PR move from Toyota, the onece-supreme-king-of-quality they call people “lame” and “dorks” because of not buying their cars -which have been crippled with recalls.
That’s no way to treat your customers Toyota, and I am offended that it was on air for so long before having to, well, recall their own stuff once again.
But hey, on the flip side, for Black Friday it is rumored that Toyota will have a 2×1 special. Buy 1 Toyota, get a 2nd one free (just in case one gets recalled), nah, just kidding 
See a fellow blogger’s take on the issue:
via Just Words
Apple has applied for a patent that will allow it to take measures if “unauthorized” users get a hold of someone’s device. With its new patent application Apple is trying to become proactive in deterring theft, and cracking of its devices.
What does this mean for rightful owners could mean good news, if you have an untouched device or in other words a device that has not been hijacked or jailbroken.
If, on the other hand your device has been jailbroken could mean you may not be able to use after Apple disables the device. Using some sort of “listening” or interactive application Apple could determine if an unauthorized user has gotten a hold of a device and disable it remotely alerting the owner and even authorities of the location of such device.
This method however will disable purchased devices that had been tampered to allow applications other than those sold by Apple. Learn more HERE
Wow!
I haven’t enjoyed a World Cup this much since 1986 when I was just 12 years old and Mexico was the host. I used to played fútbol a lot growing up, and that year I played almost every day. Family and friends gathered around our TV and had parties. It was awesome hearing the neighborhood scream in every goal scored.
What made it so special for me again this year, and almost 25 years later was technology!
WiFi
At my office they transmitted some of the games in our cafeterias in giant flat-screen monitors. The cafeterias also have WiFi access to our corporate network which allowed us to work while watching the games.
Smart Phones
On the go, the variety of mobile apps available to follow the World Cup was amazing! My favorite 2 apps were: 1) ESPN’s FIFA 2010 app for the iPhone which had a ‘live audio’ feature and allowed to me listen to a game while the dentist was getting my wisdom tooth out, and other times while I was driving, at work, or at the grocery store; and 2) the virtual Vuvuzela.
Home Tech: HD, 3D, DVR
At home, the ability to record games on DVR-capable devices blows away the technology of 25 years ago (VCR recording on tape), thanks to HD quality, faster speed, better playback, surround sound, and even 3D broadcasting by ESPN on 3D-capable TVs!
The Internet
Add to all of the above, the ability to watch live games on an internet connection, twitter updates, live commentary and coverage around the world. Facebook played a major role in organizing parties, sharing photos and displays of fanatics.
Ecommerce
$70 bucks for an original jersey? I don’t think so. Me and my buddies ordered cheap knock-offs for $20 bucks a piece from China and got them delivered on time for the World Cup.
Closing comments
I can truthfully say that looking back at my experience of 25 years ago, I feel like we are living the future.
If you are a soccer fan (or “fútbol” if you are a purist), and a geek, then you must know about these 2 apps for iPhone and iPad:
ESPN 2010 FIFA World Cup
This is an iPhone-only (not optimized for iPad) app which comes in both free and paid versions.
The version I installed on my iPhone was the free one, which offers: schedules, reviews, scores, and other content.
The paid version offers push-notifications and video content.
Univisión Fútbol Copa Mundial 2010
For my Spanish-spoken fellows, this app is definitely a killer app. I installed it in both the iPhone and iPad and it has not only FIFA content but soccer from every major league and cups around the world, so it’s also a keeper app after the World Cup is over.
The app features the same features as ESPN’s but you don’t have to pay for push notifications, video and other rich content.
I wish there was an English-equivalent of this app because I haven’t found one that is as good.
Do you have an app suggestion? Post in the comments and I’ll give it a try and post a review as well.
I overheard someone at work yesterday talking about how a person who contacted her about an item she was selling on Craigslist kept harassing her with idiotic comments on email about how she didn’t honor a sale (which was clearly marked as first-come-first-serve).
In another story a person gave out his real cell phone number to a potential buyer just to find himself annoyed to death with never-ending calls at crazy hours of the night.
A last story to share, a seller was contacted by a buyer via email claiming he was seriously interested, which prompted the reply from the seller’s email. There was never another response but to the seller’s surprise, the buyer added him to a set of email distribution lists where the “buyer” sent weekly emails promoting the gigs where his shoddy band will play.
I am sure you have your own stories to share (please post in the comments), and so this post will give you some simple tips to avoid being harassed or spammed:
Tip # 1: Protect your email address with disposable aliases
You can argue that spam-blocking is good enough, but I still hate receiving crap on my busiest email account and having to go and mark spam messages.
Some email services (like Yahoo, Google and MobileMe) allow you to create free email “aliases” which you can use for signing up for online subscriptions, and whenever you get fed up, spammed or are victimized of email abuse, you can simply discard the alias and problem solved.
Tip # 2: Protect your real number with Google Voice
Don’t give away your real number, especially your cell phone number! Instead, get a Google Voice account and create a number that you can use to make and receive calls under this number.
Tip # 3: Block spam/unwanted callers with Google Voice
The other great advantage of Google Voice is that it treats calls received the same way your email service treats messages so you can actually mark the number that called you as spam and redirect them to an ‘out of service’ message. Pretty nifty!
Rich Anderson has come up with 23 new ways to use your laptop, while none of them is really safe these are so hilarious I thought I share with you
Check the Tech Republic Photo Gallery with the pictures
Check as well my Examiner page
If you are looking for the latest and greatest deal on gadgets, food, clothing, furniture, and pretty much anything you can think of (or even for those things you never thought of) you need to visit Dealspl.us “Deals Plus” (www.dealspl.us).
This site has coupons, codes, discounts and offers from all around the web, and it’s community-driven!
You can subscribe and post your own deals, or follow the on twitter @dealsplus. Whichever way you want to go, you won’t be disappointed!
<Geek-endorsed>
Google announced today their latest invention, “Google TV”, an experience where users can get “all the channels and shows you normally watch and all of the websites you browse all day including your favorite video, music and photo sites.”
It uses Google Chrome and lets you switch back and forth between your TV programming and web browsing… mmmh (so does that mean that we don’t have to put up with those loud commercials anymore?).
Google TV promises to turn your TV experience into a combination of photo slide show viewer, gaming console, music player and then some.
A Google search feature lets you quickly find content online and a DVR feature.
The Google TV SDK to be released soon after launch will run on Android and Google Chrome.
Read their official Blog Post and watch their YouTube presentation below:
