Jul 4, 2014 | internet
What’s the biggest threat to the Internet of the next 20 years? According to Pew’s Internet and American Life Project, it’s not criminal hackers. It’s not sextortion. It’s not cyber bullies. According to this study, it’s governments and major corporations.
This project includes top technological leaders, workers and teachers. There’s a great concern in this community about government surveillance, censorship, and corporate greed. There’s a concern these aspects could cripple or evil kill freedom on the Internet. And it doesn’t even have to be dictators, like what you saw in Iran back in 2009, or Turkey’s attempt to block online freedom to protect it’s prime minister from scandal. And here in the US, we’ve had controversies from the NSA revelations to net neutrality. Some say the biggest threat is social media, with their major banks of user information.
When it comes to social media, I think it’s a wonderful tool, when used for the right reasons. When you start discriminating against people for jobs, education and housing just because of their social media posts, that can be a threat and lead to trouble. The Internet has been a great tool for good over the past 20 years. But when high ranking people and institutions use it for spying or close it up to competitors, that can be a threat. Our nation was founded on free market enterprise. Shouldn’t everyone be given that chance? So yes, I see their concern. But I think criminal hackers and other less desirable elements pose just as big as a threat. Remember Target last December?
Jul 3, 2014 | Computer technology, networking, Wireless
The technology wearable contest intensifies. Samsung started the revolution. Then came Apple. Google and Android started collaborating. You knew it was only a matter of time before Microsoft was getting in on the action.
Some sources are saying Microsoft will release a fitness band with smartphone technologies. This isn’t expected to be a watch, just a wristband. This mystery device could be released in fall 2014. But here’s the advantage of a potential Microsoft wristband: It will work with all devices, not just click with the same brand. In addition to this, it will offer the same thing as other wrist technology does, checking heart rates, calories burned and other health apps. I’m sure they’ll be other cool apps coming. Remember, this is Microsoft here.
Maybe this is why they’re doing this spectacular move of all devices working with this potential wristband. That is a huge one up on the competition. Some say they’re giving too much away to their competitors, but this is genius. I’d love it to have a device that respects other companies. The price is expected to be the same as other fitness bands. And frankly, who cares if it doesn’t have a watch. It’s 2014. Aren’t there watches and clocks all around you now?
Jul 2, 2014 | internet, networking
Songza is a free music streaming group, heavily based on consumers’ playlist. They could play anything from your favorite workout songs to your favorite decade. Now they’re playing to Google’s tune.
Google has purchased Songza. Rumors are flying about how much: some say $15 million and some say $39 million. What make Songza different from most online radio is that Songza uses lots of data about what people like to listen to, down to the time of day, location, even activity of the consumer. Some speculate Google had to increase their generosity because others are interested in this music streaming group. Google insists nothing will change about Songza…yet. But Songza is expected to supply their knowledge to Google franchises like You Tube. Songza has approximately five and a half million active users.
I find this intriguing they make this deal not long after Apple made it’s three billion dollar deal with Dr. Dre’s Beats. This goes to show you how competitive the music/social media avenue is getting. I think Google is doing a great thing here, and I don’t even like mergers very much. But this one makes a lot of sense. On my You Tube account, it recommends videos for me a lot, according to what I already subscribe to. So it makes perfect sense to hook up with a music streaming group that gives you playlist that does the same thing according to your music list. To me, that sounds like a combination that can’t be beat. Does this acquisition make you want to use Songza or avoid it?
Jul 1, 2014 | Computer Repair, General
In this day and age, computers are becoming more and more a necessity than a luxury. Nowadays, you can go to a department store and buy a cheap computer for as little as $300. The problem is that most consumers do not live by an old adage, which is you get what you pay for.
Which begs the question: How much should I actually be spending on a new computer? That question can only be truly answered by you and what you plan on doing with your machine. You have people who just want to play games like solitaire and surf the Web and check email and think a cheap $300 department store computer will do. Which in fact, it probably would, but I wouldn’t bank on it lasting more than the warranty period. We need to educate the consumers on what they should be spending on a computer based on their needs. It is true that computers aren’t made like they used to be. Most computers have an average shelf life of 3-5 years, and that is based off getting quality machines. The basis of a quality machine will most likely run you between $500-800, without a monitor.
Geek Choice does computer repair in Boston and has helped hundreds of consumers find the right computer for their needs. Not only that, but we offer onsite computer repair if something ever happen to those machines. With the consumers that have purchased the $300 computer, they feel as though it is not worth fixing their machine, so they would typically opt to get a new one. But what about the data they have stored on that machine? How do they get it off to the new computer they purchased? When a person comes to Geek Choice in such a dilemma, we explain to them the ability to get a quality machine and go over what we must do to try and get the data off their old machine. If a client believes that the cost may be too great for their pocket, Geek Choice offers a plan to help the consumer. This plan is known as the diamond plan.
If you’re interested in a new computer, please feel free to call Geek Choice at 800-433-5435. If you’re interested in saving some money, please look at our diamond plan page for more information on how to save on the cost of our onsite service.
Jun 30, 2014 | Computer technology, News, Security
Are you traveling through Newark’s International Airport soon? If you’re flying through Terminal B, then look up. Smile at the lights; they might be taking pictures of you.
I’m not crazy, and this is no Hollywood script. Newark, New Jersey’s Liberty International Airport has installed 171 LED ‘smart lights’ in Terminal B. These lights are supposed to last longer and save energy, but that’s just the beginning. Each and every LED light contains a security camera. This was the idea of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Starting last year, they started testing cameras intertwined with LED lights. The footage collected by these lights/cameras are expected to be used for security purposes, monitoring foot traffic, the ticketing area, other activities, and eventually, catching unattended baggage.
Now on the surface, it’s meant to keep us safe. Bur keep in mind, smart lights can literally track your every move within their reach. That’s why privacy rights groups and civil libertarians are already crying ‘big brother’. In this case, at least we know what to expect when we step into Newark Airport’s Terminal B. Think of all the times our privacy was compromised and we weren’t told a thing until after the fact. No matter what side you’re on, you must admit this isn’t the world people my age grew up in. Even ten years ago, I never thought an LED/security camera combo was even possible. But here we are. I just hope they’re not installed in bathrooms. Please give us some dignity with this. But they’re already talking about moving these smart lights from parking lots even to schools. So I don’t see this trend shutting down anytime soon. Will smart lights be coming literally near you? And isn’t there a better way to keep us safe?
Jun 29, 2014 | internet, networking
I once heard a news report saying Facebook can make you more depressed. The reason is other people’s lives look perfect while your life seems to be falling apart. Is this report onto something?
In one week, a team of researchers led by psychologists Adam Kramer, studied Facebook accounts of over 600,000 people. They saw people who saw more negative posts tended to be more negative and those with positive posts tended to be more positive people. They studied these people for over a week. My question is: Is this ethical? I’m hoping they at least got the approval of the 600,000 people, or at least, these people knew they were being subjected to such an experiment. But you never know.
I’m wondering why Dr. Kramer and his team did this. I seriously doubt it was for the health and welfare of the Facebook users. I can see them using the information that was gathered for maybe marketing and promotional purposes. Oh, I almost forgot, the US government sponsor this study. Now I’m really skeptical.? Don’t get me wrong: I like Facebook. I’m thankful for the reconciliation that it’s gotten me with hundreds of people over the years. And in my three plus years of using this social medium, it has never made me depressed. But what’s the real purpose of this study?
Jun 28, 2014 | Computer technology, Wireless
There’s a smart watch out there called Moto 360, made by Motorola. From a distance, it may look like a cheap watch you had in childhood, but don’t let the look fool you.
That look is done intentionally. The intention is comfort. It fits on very smoothly, easy to put on, and feels like you’re wearing air. The pictures I’ve seen of it are great. Imagine being at the airport and your watch telling you what time your flight leaves and out of what gate. The up/down and right/left commands are easy, fast and smooth. It’s simple to read, navigate and handle.
But there are a few things that bother me abut Motorola’s Moto 360. There’s so much we don’t know about. We don’t know how much this will cost. We don’t know what’s on the back of the watch; they won’t let us know. It’s been speculated it’s a heart rate monitor. It needs to be if they want to compete in this smart watch game. But I like what I see so far. I like how the Moto 360 makes technology look simple. When some people think smart watch they think hard steel, expensive prices, and complicated technologies. I hope the Moto 360 proves people wrong. How much do you think this smart watch will cost?
Jun 27, 2014 | Entertainment, internet, networking
In nine years, YouTube went from an start-up website of sharing videos to being the king of online viewership in the world. And they’re not stopping there.
At a meeting at YouTube headquarters, they’re coming up with ways to make You Tube more creative. Under YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki, tools are being created in hopes of a better YouTube site and reach a wider audience (if that’s even possible). Let’s look at some of these new tools. The Creator Studio will help producers analyze and and manage their videos. The library sound effects will give video producers freedom to add cool special effects, royalty free, without the copyright police bearing down. Creator credits give your collaborators credit and possibly spin off another channel. And they plan to replace annotations with cards.
But the one that caught my eye is fan funding. Like Kickstarter, this app that allows people to donate to your YouTube video, project or cause. I want to believe this will be a great way to help struggling video producers get off the ground. This could fund someone’s dream of being the next YouTube star. I fear this could be take advantage of. But I’m liking all these changes. Most you have to wait for, but some are already running. Creator Studio is already available on Android, and coming out on Apple. Why they wouldn’t be released on both at the same time is beyond me. Do these changes make you want to watch more YouTube, or make videos through this medium?
Jun 26, 2014 | Backup, Computer Repair, Law Blog, Malware
You may have heard of the crypto locker virus. This virus came about late last year and has affected thousands of people and businesses. One of the business types that has been infected is the law. Police offices, lawyers and the bunch have been hit hard by this infection.
Back in December, Geek Choice was featured in a news report from WBZ news to talk about the experience that people have with this virus. Geek Choice is focused on not only removing the virus, but saving your data. Typically people infected with this virus have a one percent success rate of recovering their data and even paying the ransom may not guarantee you get your files back. Because of this, Geek Choice recommends a data backup solution. This solution can be as easy as an external hard drive that you back up to on a scheduled basis or going up into the cloud and using a source like Carbonite to back your data up securely.
Geek Choice IT support for law firms has been helping many lawyers not only to protect their data but also prevent infections such as the crypto locker virus. Geek Choice also recommends a brand new product that we offer through Carbonite. This new appliance is set up to give you onsite data backup and cloud storage for redundancy of your files.
Please note that most people don’t think about how valuable their information is until it’s lost. This isn’t just for consumers, but businesses as well. Putting the focus on IT support for law firms, think about how tragic it would be if you lost your case files, client data and other vital information. Now that you’ve taken a minute to think about it, isn’t it worth contacting Geek Choice to find out how you can protect that data with just a simple phone call?
Jun 25, 2014 | Entertainment
The traditional book industry is in trouble, due to consumers’ technological changing habits. In 2009, book giant Barnes & Noble came up with Nook, an e-book device to compete with Amazon Kindle and others. It doesn’t seem to be working.
That’s why Barnes & Noble wants to split up with it’s child company Nook. The separation is expected to be complete in early 2015. They say Nook has about ran it’s course. In the last quarter, Barnes & Noble book, magazine and coffee sales increased nearly two percent. In the same quarter, Nook sales fell nearly two percent. Back in August 2013, they called for a Nook separation. In fact, rumbling started even before that. Nook was only created in 2009. Willie Lynch, Barnes and Noble CEO, who was a strong Nook advocate, resigned in January 2014.
I think this is a bad move on the part of Barnes and Nobles. The e-book craze is going nowhere but up. So why kick Nook out the door now? Just because you had a bad quarter? I can see if sales were down 20% or even 10%. But a 1.8% drop in one quarter tells me there is hope for Nook. Word on the web is they’ve invested in educational tools and toys. Why can’t they invest in Nook? Let’s say they separate Nook from Barnes. Let’s say Nook takes off and does extremely well. Barnes and Noble will be kicking themselves and rightfully so. What if other computer tech giants threw their creations away before they took off?
