Eight helpful apps for teachers and educators :)

There are lots of advantages to be had by employing tablets in the classroom at various levels of education. You can encourage greater student engagement and an expansion of the learning environment beyond school hours. Hardware is only part of the jigsaw, though. You also need the right software to help engage those eager young minds. If you’re using tablets with your students then you’ll appreciate great educational apps.
We’ve already looked at the best back to school apps for students to help them keep organized, but what about teachers? How about a communication network built with teacher-student relations in mind? Apps for scheduling and recording attendance could prove handy. There are also some great options for creating tutorials and accessing information on different subjects. Let’s take a look at the best apps for teachers and educators.
We’ve already covered Evernote and Dropbox in the student app roundup, but before we begin it’s worth mentioning that both are great tools for teachers as well. Evernote allows you to create notes of all types and there is a version of Evernote for schools. Dropbox is ideal as free cloud storage for safely backing up and sharing your files.

Edmodo (Free)

The advantages of having a safe, closed social network for your class are obvious. This completely free app works with the iPad or Android tablets and it allows teachers and students to stay in touch outside the classroom in an appropriate way. It is completely free, easy to set up, and it allows the discussion to continue after that bell rings. Teachers and students can share content, it can be used as a conduit for new information or notifications, and it even allows students to submit assignments and receive grades.
The ability for teachers to post assignments, give students access to digital libraries of relevant resources, post messages, polls and quizzes, and create calendars is invaluable. It’s also possible to set up specific learning groups or even set up groups for discussions with other teachers or parents. A public Edmodo API is in the works which will allow the platform to be integrated with other systems and apps and will no doubt make it more useful. There’s already a Chrome extension for quickly adding resources to your library.
It can be adapted for a variety of uses and potentially replace a learning wiki or a moodle site. As a completely free resource, Edmodo is definitely worth a look.
Android | iOS

Teacher’s Assistant Pro: Track Student Behavior ($10)

You have to stay organized in the classroom, but it can be very difficult to accurately remember everything and keep a record of student behavior without some help. Teacher’s Assistant Pro allows you to keep a set of records for each student in your care and offers a solution for quickly and easily recording any important information about them. Good or bad behavior can be accurately noted so the information is at your fingertips for the next parent-teacher meeting.
Contact details are there if you need them and you can email specific incidents directly from the app. You can also add photos and notes, and filter the student list using various parameters. This app really allows you to cut down on paperwork and it keeps vital information available. If you have security concerns, don’t worry, because you can PIN protect it to prevent snooping students from getting a look when your back is turned.
Sadly there is no Android version of this one, but teachers with Android tablets could try Teacher Aide Pro for similar functionality.

ScreenChomp (Free)

Creating tutorials has never been easier. The clever idea behind ScreenChomp is that you can record your iPad screen and your own narration as you sketch out and explain an idea. You can sketch on a plain background or choose an image from your camera roll. As you sketch, you can explain what you are doing, and then you can share the video with students or other educators by sending them the unique URL.
It’s a really smart idea and very easy to use, but there is no Android version right now.

Educreations (Free)

This is another interactive whiteboard app that allows you to create easy to follow tutorials for students. You can also record audio to narrate your actions and it even supports simple animations. Create diagrams, commentary, or instructions for any topic and then share the videos through email, Facebook or Twitter. There’s no Android version of this either.

Splashtop Whiteboard ($20)

You can use this app to turn your Android tablet or iPad into an interactive whiteboard. You can control presentations via Wi-Fi from anywhere in the classroom. You can also use the app to annotate content and create tutorials. It is basically a remote desktop app designed specifically for educators using interactive whiteboards and it integrates seamlessly with most existing whiteboard technology.
Android | iOS

TED (Free)

An unmissable educational resource featuring fascinating lectures from industry and subject matter experts on a very wide variety of topics, you can’t go wrong with TED. You’ll find hundreds of TED Talks in video and audio form through this free app. Some of them are perfect for showing to students and sparking discussion and debate, others can serve as inspiration for educators creating new lesson plans or lectures.
Android | iOS

Zite (Free)

Here’s a free app that allows you to create a personalized magazine for a specific topic. Tell it what you’re interested in and the app will suck in relevant blog posts, news articles, videos, and articles. It learns about your preferences over time and serves up more of the content you want. This app is ideal for teachers who want to stay on top of a subject and find the latest news to share with students without having to spend hours scouring the Web.
Android | iOS

Blackboard Mobile Learn (Free)

The idea here is to allow educators and students to easily access all the courses and content they need through a smartphone or tablet. It can also be used to send out notifications and assignments, and like Edmodo, it can be good for sharing information and discussing topics. If your school supports the app you’ll be able to take full advantage of the feature list, but you can also get a personal license which costs $2 per year or $6 for life.
The app ties in with Dropbox and, for many educators, it simply provides a great way of accessing relevant documents outside the classroom.
Android | iOS
Do you know of any other great tablet apps for teachers? Post a comment and share them.

Microsoft updates requirements for 7- and 8-inch Windows 8 tablets made by partners :)

Microsoft has finalized the requirements its partners must meet to create 7- or 8-inch tablets running Windows 8 or Windows RT. According to the company’s March 2013 Windows Certification Newsletter, the devices must have a minimum resolution of 1024 x 768 pixels, which is down from the previously mandated 1366 x 768 pixels. The change is intended to offer more flexibility for partners that are “exploring designs for certain markets.” Based on the popularity of inexpensive  7- and 8-inch tablets in the past year, from iPad minis to the Galaxy Tab 2 to the Kindle Fire, this is probably the market Microsoft has its eye on.
There will be one notable absence with these partner-made tablets: they won’t support Microsoft’s snap feature, which allows users to run two Windows 8 apps side by side. Not only will the feature not be on the tablets, but they must have disclaimers that state as much. While snap is certainly handy for multitasking and has a “cool factor,” it seems unlikely that its loss will be enough to alienate customers. The reduced screen size would probably make the feature less useful anyway. Plus, if shoppers are looking for a low price point, they most likely will be ready to make some sacrifices on features.
The big question Microsoft and its partners will need to face is whether the same people who are interested in small tablets made by Apple, Amazon, Samsung, or Google will also want to see a petite tablet powered by Windows 8. Sales of the Surface RT and Surface Pro haven’t been stellar, so it’ll be a crapshoot whether the new options in size and manufacturer will be enough to turn a bigger profit for Microsoft.

Using Windows Phone 8: Helpful tips and tricks :)

Windows Phone 8 launched in late 2012. It was another roll of the dice for Microsoft in the mobile space and it was fairly well received by the tech press. It’s a slick platform that’s packed with features and customization options. We’ve already discussed how to take a screenshot on a Windows Phone and we recently looked at five ways to customize your Windows Phone 8 start screen, but there’s always more to uncover.
In this roundup we’ll explore some Windows Phone 8 tips and tricks. Feel free to add your own suggestions in the comments at the end.

How to Customize your Start Screen

You can change the size of tiles by holding your finger on them to activate edit mode. You can drag it around and tap the arrow at the bottom right to change the size. You can change the background color in Settings > Theme. Be sure to check out our recommended ways to customize your Start Screen, as well.

How to use your Unified inbox

With WP8 you have the ability to merge your email accounts into one manageable inbox. Go to your Mail app and tap the ellipses in the lower right hand corner and choose link inboxes. You can choose to link as many as you like, so it’s possible to merge a bunch and still keep some separate. You can always unlink them again.

How to use built-in Shazam-clone ‘Name that tune’

You don’t need the Shazam app to recognize a tune you like. Windows Phone 8 has music recognition built-in. All you have to do is tap Search and then choose the music icon (it’s a musical note) and it will listen for a few seconds and then tell you what song is playing and provide you with a link to buy it in the Windows Phone Store.

How to enable Kids Corner

There’s no need to install a parental control app because WP8 has Kid’s Corner. You’ll find the option in the Settings menu and it allows you to dictate exactly what content is available when Kid’s Corner is activated. It allows you to give your little angel your smartphone without fear that they’ll send a text or email, phone someone, or do something else crazy.

How to conserve battery life

If your battery is getting dangerously low, you can head into Settings and select battery saver. It closes background apps and puts a stop to automatic syncing so that you can squeeze a little extra time out of that battery. If you tap the Advanced option in battery saver then you can set it to come on automatically when your battery dips below a certain percentage.

How to share your location

When you write a text, you can actually add your current location to the message. Simply tap the paperclip icon and choose your location. If your friend has a WP8 device it will open in their Maps app, otherwise it will open in their browser.

How to use keyboard shortcuts

When you are typing, you can hold your finger down on a key to get more options to pop up instead of jumping into the symbols keyboard. You can also double tap the space bar to create a period and a space for the next sentence. You’ll find word suggestions pop up as you type. If you type a word that isn’t recognized you can always add it to your dictionary by holding down your finger on it and choosing the plus symbol when it pops up.

How to stop accidental photos

Having a hardware button for quick camera launch can be handy, but you might also end up with some pocket interior shots. If you want to disable the button you can do it in the Photos app settings where you’ll find an option to prevent accidental camera launch when the phone is locked.

How to scan QR codes, Microsoft tags, or translate text

If you press the Search button on your phone you can also use it to scan QR codes or Microsoft tags. All you have to do is tap the Vision icon (it’s an eye) and then point your phone’s camera at the code in question. You can also use this function to scan text and then translate it into a new language, so it’s potentially handy for trips abroad.

How to quickly send out apologies if you’re running late

If you’ve entered appointments into your calendar along with attendees then you can quickly send messages when you are running late. Just go to the relevant appointment in your calendar and tap the rushing person icon. A draft message will pop up and you can edit it and set the recipients, or just hit send.

How to hide your caller ID

You can decide who should see your caller ID when you make calls – everyone, your contacts, or no one at all. To change this just go into your caller history, tap the ellipses at the bottom right, and hit Settings. Then choose who gets to see your caller ID by default.

How to change the text size

If you find yourself squinting at the screen of your Window Phone then you should really consider resizing the text. Go into Settings > Ease of access and you’ll find five different size settings for the text.

More Windows Phone 8 tips

That’s it for now, but if you have any more handy Windows Phone 8 tips to share then please post a comment and tell us about them. We’ll update this article with new tips from time to time.

This week in Facebook :)

Facebook’s press invite for an event on April 4, which we think has to do with an HTC Facebook phone, is bound to overshadow all other things Facebook, but that doesn’t mean all the other Facebook news from this week isn’t important. So here are all this week’s Facebook stories, rounded up to keep you in the loop.

Anchored navigation bar with status updates

Here’s a new feature we’ve noticed for those of you with the new Timeline. If you scroll down the page, the Status, Photo, Place, and Life Event tabs will suddenly follow you. That’s because these tabs are anchored to a navigation bar that includes buttons with your name, “Timeline,” and “Now” on the left of the bar. To encourage users to share content on Facebook even if we’re scrolled all the way down the page, the anchored navigation bar will give you a quick way to post a status update or photo. You can also attach multiple photos in one fell swoop.

Nested comments roll out to Pages

 

We’ve seen nested comments and the ability to reply before, but that was only made available inside of Facebook’s commenting widget used in blogs. But starting with Facebook Pages that have more than 10,000 followers, the social network is turning on the ability to reply to comments come July 10 of this year. In addition, the most “active and engaging conversations” within posts on these pages will bubble up to the top of the post “ensuring that people who visit your Page will see the best conversations,” Facebook’s Journalism Program Manager Vadim Lavrusik writes.
The feature was in the testing phase since November, and while it has rolled out to these eligible pages and some user pages as well, it’s only available on the desktop app. You’ll have to wait before threaded comments pop up in its mobile apps and added into Facebook’s Graph API.

Mark Zuckerberg is forming a political group in his free time?

What does the man that has everything do with his spare time? Jump into politics, apparently. Bloomberg reports that Facebook’s CEO is calling other dignitaries within the tech community to form a political group with him. Zuckerberg has shown an interest in politics before, holding a town hall meeting for Obama in 2011 and a political fundraiser for New Jersey Governor Chris Christie (note he donated $100 million to Newark schools in 2010) – he also “Liked” presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s Facebook Page, and Facebook’s PAC spent $267,000 on political donations in 2012 (between January and September).

Facebook retiring “Facebook Credits” in favor of local currencies

How much is a Facebook Credit worth? Not many people would be able to answer that. If you’re curious, a single Credit is valued at $0.10. Developers were forced to charge in-app purchases based on Facebook’s $0.10 increments, says Facebook Engineer Yongyan Liu, so Facebook is meeting its developers’ needs and rolling out local currency payments. What this means is that developers can now charge as much as they want (reasonably we hope) for in-app purchases in the gamer’s preferred currency, whether that’s in USD, Euros, or Yen. The local currency payment structure will take effect starting sometime in Q3 2013.

DT

Facebook is – finally – unveiling the Facebook Phone April 4 :)

Mark Zuckerberg has done a good job, thanks to the help of his PR team, of brushing off Facebook Phone rumors to a point that we in the media just haven’t given up on. But lo and behold, Facebook has sent out invitations to a press event on April 4 to “Come See Our New Home On Android.” Speculation says we can expect to see an Android OS tweaked to Facebook’s liking on an HTC handset.
Deny as Facebook may, the social network stole away key Apple iOS developers and just about every “Facebook insider” can’t keep their mouths shut. And at the same time, looking at Facebook’s recent releases should more than hint it’s going all-in on mobile: Poke, Facebook Messenger, and the Instagram acquisition. This upcoming announcement likely has something to do with Facebook pushing its Web app to the wayside and forcing developers to access Facebook through their mobile devices to concentrate on its mobile products. The Facebook’s future hinges on mobile, and clearly we’re about to see to what extent.
Recent reports have pretty much figured out what the phone will look like. 9to5Google’s sources say it will feature a beveled design with rounded edges, something of a nod to Apple’s iPhone, and that there will be a Facebook home button. The last feature shouldn’t be news to you if you’ve ever seen previous (failed) smartphone collaborations with HTC and Nokia. Earlier “Facebook phones” like the HTC ChaCha and Nokia Asha 205 both had a prominent Facebook home button. The size of the display is rumored to be 4.3 inches.
The phone is suggested to run a 1.5Gz processor, 1GB of ram, 16GB of storage, along with a 5 megapixel rear camera and 1.6 megapixel camera on the front. according to UnwiredView.
Hardware is likely an afterthought of the Facebook phone, however. What Facebook wants to do with this device is sell is the experience and solidify itself as a lifestyle brand.
It also gives Facebook an unprecedented amount of access to even more of our data and user habits. It has access to your calendar, contacts, what time you’re most active on your phone (maybe to ping you with alerts), location, along with mounds and mounds of other data. This is information that Facebook has been trying to get us to provide – but with the phone, it wouldn’t have to try. It would already have it all.
This resurrects the digital age old question of how willing we are to let Facebook into our lives. The social network is no stranger to privacy concerns, and handing over all our mobile data is asking quite a lot. The device’s success will hinge on what Facebook can offer us in return.

BlackBerry wants you to come out and play :)

BlackBerry

The times, they are a changing.’ It wasn’t all that long ago that RIM (now operating under the name BlackBerry) was the handheld device for business, and only business. The Canadian-based telecommunications company seemed to be perfectly content to control the enterprise side of things while Apple and Android battle over the average consumer. But then a funny thing happened on the way to controlling the market.
Where five years ago RIM was standing atop the smartphone world, it has since fallen to the combined market assault of its competitors and gone from leader to a distant third.
There are many reasons for this, but the obvious one is that RIM painted itself into a corner. Its reliance on business customers gave Apple and Android makers a wide open field to expand into. Once they were established, also appealing to business users was an easy step, especially as both Apple and Android continued to nurture their own software for home and businesses. RIM on the other hand, has had a tougher time of going the other way and appealing to the average smartphone user who may be interested in the handset for business, but only as a part of the overall experience.
Part of that overall experience includes games, something that RIM has never really been big on, to say the least. So it is something of a surprise to see BlackBerry at GDC, appealing to game developers to check out the new BlackBerry 10. So why the change of heart?
“Because games matter,” Volker Hirsch, Director, Global Head of Business Development told us.
Hirsch and BlackBerry know which way the proverbial wind is blowing. The days of trying to appeal to a single market and still retain a healthy market share are over, especially when it comes to electronic devices. Manufacturers like Apple, Samsung, and HTC make phones that offer something for everyone, whether that person is into business features, media apps, games, or more likely, all of the above. Phones and tablets need to be powerful and efficient, and they need to do everything.
“The days where you’d say this is a handset for a working mom, and this is a handset for a 10 year old kid, and this a handset for a business person, and this is a handset for a gamer, are over,” Hirsch said.
The BlackBerry 10 is a powerful device, powerful enough to attract mobile gaming  developers that have helped to push the technology forward. And beyond the power of the hardware and OS – which is at least comparable to other smartphones in general terms – the code is clean and simple, which makes it easy for developers to work with it and add to their own games thanks to the functionality of the OS.
For example, the new OS has the ability to add in BlueTooth gamepads. Other devices have the option to use some game peripherals, but it is usually a difficult process to adapt – or at least one that takes time. BlackBerry has the ability to use console quality gamepads with minimal fuss. That helps convince developers that BlackBerry has something to offer that others may not. At the very least, there is no reason not to work with the company.
The goal is to re-introduce BlackBerry as a flexible device that anyone can use. When the new OS launched, it contained 70,000 apps. Of those, more than 30-percent were games. But will it be enough to change the image?  After the release of the BlackBery 10, BlackBerry’s subscriber base fell. It is far from being out of the competition, but it will need a major comeback to come anywhere near its earlier market dominance.
The ability to play most mobile games won’t win fans over on its own, but it will help. The biggest issue BlackBerry may face is that it has a perception problem among potential users. It needs to convince adopters that BlackBerry 10 is the complete package.
“It’s not only about games,” Hirsch said. “We have a very powerful package all round. And now it actually comprises the greatest games as well.”

AMD plans for the cloud, once again teases the fastest graphics card you can’t buy :)

AMD wants to capture the hearts and minds of gamers, wherever they are.
The semiconductor maker has been on a roll lately in the console game arena, with design wins on all three major systems. The PlayStation 4 is running an AMD APU (accelerated processing unit) – which combines GPU and CPU functions on a single chip – while the Wii U is using AMD graphics for its realtime rendering. And if the rumors are correct, the next generation Xbox will also sport an APU.
On the PC gaming side, AMD’s recent launch of the budget-friendly Radeon HD 7790 gives gamers with stock 1080p displays access to reasonably good PC game performance in modern games at a $150 price point.
However, gaming is going to the cloud in a big way. Straightforward game download services like Steam or EA Origin, or full-on games delivered from the cloud like OnLive and  CiiNow (and soon the PS4 via Gaikai technology), mean cloud-based gaming is here to stay. Hardcore gamers may not be interested in the 720p interactive video streams delivered by companies like CiiNow, but more casual, on-the-go gamers might appreciate access to current generation titles on their tablets, thin-and-light notebooks, or HDTV sets.
However, it’s not a simple problem to solve. The companies that are delivering cloud gaming simply can’t use a standard PC graphics card to deliver these services. That would mean each gamer they serve would need their own, dedicated card, which is cost prohibitive in multiple ways. In the large data centers needed to serve up cloud gaming, a single card per user would require more servers, more racks, and more power.
The answer is a concept known as virtualization. Many games don’t require all the potential horsepower of even a single GPU. Imagine if a single, high-end GPU could deliver games to two, three, or even more users.
That’s one of the key ideas behind AMD’s new Radeon Sky series GPUs. The Sky isn’t a product that end users will buy for their home PCs. Instead, it’s a solution for large server farms, allowing cloud gaming services to integrate multiple graphics cards into a server chassis, and therefore increase the overall GPU density in a server farm. AMD will be delivering three different Sky products:

• The dual GPU Sky 900, offering 3584 total stream processors and 6GB of GDDR5 graphics memory (3GB per GPU).
• The single GPU Sky 700, with 1792 stream processors, which includes 6GB dedicated to that one GPU. Both the 700 and 900 GPUs are very similar to the high end desktop GPUs used in AMD’s Radeon HD 7950 and 7970 products.
• The Sky 500, with 4GB of GDDR5 and 1280 GPUs.

All three are capable of rendering multiple games for different users at the same time, while also handling the critical task of converting game frames to a compressed, H.264 video stream that’s delivered to gamers wherever they might be. The Sky products are also passively cooled, which improves power usage and heat efficiency in server farms.
The problem is that AMD is a little late to the party. Nvidia has already begun delivering complete server solutions for cloud gaming with its GeForce Grid products, and has been delivering GPUs with virtualization for cloud gaming for over a year now. AMD hopes that it’s passively cooled solutions will prove more attractive in the long run, but it will be an uphill battle.
AMD further claims it has the fastest PC gaming graphics card on the planet with its Radeon HD 7990 dual GPU graphics card (pictured at the top of the article). The HD 7990 uses to Radeon HD 7970 GPUs along with 3GB of fast GDDR5 memory for each GPU (6GB total.)
The problem: you can’t buy one today.
AMD has been talking up the 7990 for months now in various techn media sites, but no actual products have been forthcoming. Asus did ship a card with dual Radeon HD 7970 GPUs in its Ares II card, but that required specialized cooling and cost a bundle.
AMD trotted out the 7990 once again at GDC, and once again discussed its fabulous performance, but refused to disclose pricing or a delivery date. So at this point, the Radeon HD 7990 is simply vaporware. Nvidia has been shipping its dual GPU GTX 690 since May, 2012, and has had good success with its recently released behemoth single GPU GTX Titan card.
When will gamers actually be able to plunk down real money for a real HD 7990? It’s likely that AMD is still working out kinks with clock rates, power and cooling. But the company can’t afford to wait too long, or it’ll risk letting the competition take an insurmountable lead in the market.

What does the future of Facebook look like? :)

Facebook, despite any criticisms, is still the social network - but its engagement problem is no secret. We’ll cut to the chase: Facebook needs to provide users more value to keep us coming back – before it’s too late.
The problem is that Facebook has always been a passive listener of everything we’re sharing, and sometimes that’s leading to regurgitation. That’s why the company has been busy pulling out all the stops with feature updates that are trying to keep everyone happy. The result? A Facebook we hardly recognized. Think back to when you originally opened your account – if it was more than two or three years ago, you know what we’re talking about.
The Facebook of 2004 looks nothing like that Facebook of 2013 … so what is the Future Facebook going to look like? Consider this a look into the Internet’s crystal ball, full of hypotheses about what the Future Facebook is like.

Death of the Like, rise of the social signal

If there’s anything we’ve learned about Facebook, it’s that Likes don’t always translate to … well, likes. We’ve all Liked things to enter a contest, get a free meal, or out of pity for a friend’s new business. They’re a sort of bargaining tool that brands use, and this means they are less useful when it comes to signaling real interests.  
Recognizing this, Facebook has tried to move outside the Like. The Open Graph introduced verbs like “Want,” “Watch,” and “Read.” From these, Facebook is able to get a better understanding of our relationship with media or products in a much better, more finite way. Think of it this way: If you liked the Facebook Page of To Kill a Mockingbird would Facebook know why you’ve liked it? Not really. So if Facebook isn’t able to tell you why you’ve liked the book, it has to guess how much value that book has to the user. Now if you use Open Graph to indicate you’ve bought and read the book, that’s a significant difference.
Still, Open Graph actions don’t tell the whole story – they’re really just an evolution of the Like. The next phase is contextually understanding this social data.
Social ad firm Salorix also says the datasets Facebook could be capable of analyzing and using in some way include: “Time of Post/Update, Location, Content Used, Followers, Following, Source/Device used, Clustering of Posts/Updates – Verticals Attribution, User Profile, Designation, Industry, Demographic, Behavioral, and Psychographic Traits of User data.”
Facebook might also be able to tell where you’re Facebooking from¸ be it your living room or a crowded train. Using your device’s built in features like its microphone to listen to the ambient noise; Facebook might benefit from these soundscape signals, determine your environment, and adjust accordingly (for instance, if you’re at home with TV on, maybe more info in your News Feed about what’s on TV would be useful).
As for visual signals, a handful of social media experts and developers believe will build an image recognition algorithm.
Photo sharing is an important vertical for Facebook. In addition to being a popular social trend, images are also full of signals that Facebook could use to better target content and ads. Expertmaker’s CTO and founder Lars Hard explains that even a very rudimentary form of an image recognition algorithm, like being able to tell whether a photo is light or dark, would do Facebook wonders. The difference between light and dark could tell Facebook whether the photo was taken indoors or outdoors and provide geographical context.
This is why our News Feeds are littered with ads that don’t really seem to have any contextual relevance to our true interests. Hard says that Facebook in its current state has “simple recommenders running through a network that understands all connections, and runs statistical models of it and makes recommendations.” In other words, Facebook is stuck with Likes and other type of Open Graph signals users feed Facebook that determine what ads and stories show up in our News Feeds.

Graph Search 2.0

Graph Search hasn’t even been entirely rolled out yet, but the early implications point to this being a huge endeavor for Facebook and one that’s going to greatly impact how future users will use the platform.
“There is need for people to find a variety of other people, and often the greatest value for individuals is finding people they don’t know already to benefit their lives, whether those connections can benefit their career, home life, family life, or entertainment,” says people search site MyLife CEO Jeff Tinsley.
Future Facebook could turn this into a tool for engaging and interacting with other users in real time – say you’re looking to go hiking on a certain weekend, Facebook might be able to tell you who to contact and why. Or you’re trying to find people that also really like animated GIF blogs – things that maybe people do outside of Facebook that they aren’t sharing there. You could start knowing these things.
To do this, Facebook might starting looking at signals like Web browsing habits (since Facebook tracks this already), or similarities in the types of content matched users like to publish on Facebook. It might even look at parallels in the cliques of friends that you tend to interact with to figure out if you might be a good fit with the person you’ve been recommended.
And eventually, Future Facebook will roll out Graph Search to mobile. Obvious utilities for this would be for searching for highly recommended or rated restaurants nearby, friends you can hang out with within 10 miles of your current location, or even simply finding out more about a popular landmark you’re visiting and places to shop around the area.
An alternative utility that Salorix CEO Santanu Bhattacharya finds in Graph Search is as a “one stop platform for users to buy and search any products based on friend’s recommendations and reviews.” So if you’re looking to buy something, Facebook might be able to tell you how good or bad the product is. Taking this a step further, Bhattacharya adds that this feature can easily tie into mobile via a Facebook mobile wallet like Google Wallet or Apple’s Passbook for “one-touch” purchases of these items. So maybe the physical card was just a warm up, eh Future Facebook?

A real-time News Feed

The News Feed is a constant source of frustration – and maybe that’s because while we change all the time, the way it responds to us never does. What if you’re from the east coast, but go to school on the west coast? Why couldn’t Facebook read your location and provide you more relevant updates depending on where you are?
Responding to us in real-time is another way Future Facebook could update the News Feed. YieldMo software engineer Alex Gallego, reasons that Facebook is or will be hard at work on real-time notifications as it’s tied into the mobile app. He explains to me that the days when Facebook was about what people have done in the past is outdated. The future is in “what people are doing now.”

Bhattacharya agrees. “[Context and intent] need to be delivered in near real-time as the ‘half-life’ [where engagement drops by 90 percent] of people’s interest in a context and their intent can be as little as couple of hours for most categories for products and services.”
Products like Highlight, Google Now, Field Trip, and even Twitter are trying to understood that everything its users say or do has a purpose. These apps are meeting our needs not just by listening, but by understanding and adapting to our objectives, and they’re doing it in real-time.
Gallego goes as far to suggest that Facebook should start mimicking the Twitter stream and microblogging. An early hint we’re heading in this direction? Facebook’s considering the hashtag.

Mass introduction of the posting prompts

Lately Facebook is exposing an aggressive nature to get users and brands to publish more content. It’s an effort to improve its relatively withering engagement levels. You may have noticed a new pen icon in the upper right hand corner, near your name, on the desktop homepage encouraging you to post your Timeline.
In this new pop up, and for a while now, Facebook has been asking you, “What’s on your mind?” But lately some administrators of brand pages have spied a prompt in their Facebook Pages that not only asks brands what they’ve been up to, but also throws in suggestions of what they should post.
Future Facebook could employ this strategy to everyone. For example, let’s say you’re visiting a foreign country; Facebook’s prompt (whether via a push notification or prompt) might ask “Why don’t you share your photos from [country]?”

Here today … here tomorrow

Very likely, yes. The naysayers will predict that Facebook is doing itself if, the nimbler apps are eating away at its users base and that in the years to come, Facebook will be a distant memory with the likes of Friendster and Myspace (though that comparison hardly makes sense anymore – but for old time’s sake …). But the reality is Facebook is different than the other networks that have faded into the past, and it holds much of lives and social data hostage, for better or worse. We can only muse on what the Future Facebook looks like, but there is one thing for certain: In some way, shape, or form, Facebook will exist – very likely beyond our lifetimes.

Sony rumored to be re-introducing Cyber-shot and Walkman branding to its mobile phones :)

Back when Sony produced phones with Ericsson, it regularly rolled out hardware wearing the Cyber-shot and Walkman brand names. It produced some great phones too, including the now legendary Sony Ericsson K800, equipped with a 5-megapixel Cyber-shot camera, and the 9mm thick W890 Walkman phone with its brushed aluminum chassis.
When rumors of Sony Ericsson splitting started to circulate in 2009, so the Cyber-shot and Walkman phones started to disappear, with sources inside Sony at the time calling the decision to use the branding on Sony Ericsson hardware, “a strategic error.” Since then, the Walkman brand has been re-invented as a software tweak included in Sony smartphones. As for Cyber-shot phones, they died out long before Sony and Ericsson went their separate ways back in 2011.
Now, if the latest rumors are correct, Sony may be planning to bring the Cyber-shot and Walkman brand names back to its phones. According to PhoneArena, an anonymous tip has provided details on three new phones coming from Sony later this year. The first is a new Cyber-shot phone equipped with a 5-inch touchscreen, plus a camera with a Carl Zeiss lens and a sensor large enough to challenge the Nokia 808 PureView.

Codename Xperia A and Xperia UL?

The second is a new Walkman phone which will have an integrated amplifier, along with the Walkman software, for improved audio. This is a similar strategy to HTC, as it has incorporated an amplifier into several of its Beats Audio phones, including the Droid DNA and the Windows Phone 8X. Finally, the rumor mentions another Cyber-shot phone, this time with an iPhone-sized form factor and presumably, a 4-inch screen.
These devices fit in with previous rumors regarding two Sony smartphones known as the Xperia A and the Xperia UL. The Xperia A may be the Walkman phone, and is said to have a 4.6-inch screen and a Snapdragon 600 processor, while the Xperia UL could be the Cyber-shot device, as it’s supposed to sport a 5-inch, 1080p screen. If the rumor pans out, we can apparently expect these to appear after the summer and just in time for the holiday season.
In their day, the original Cyber-shot and Walkman phones were among the very best you could buy, and hardware such as the K800 attracted the same adoration that the Lumia 920 or 808 PureView’s camera performance does today. So, if Sony really is planning to re-introduce these two internationally recognized brands to its range of mobile phones, it had best do it properly.

Maps: Apple hiring ‘ground truth managers’ around the world to fix app :)

Apple’s woes regarding its Maps mobile app have been well documented, with the company taking a lot of flak from a lot of (lost) people, especially in the weeks following the app’s launch in September last year.
In the clearest sign yet that the Cupertino-based company is set on making the app something you’ll want to actually tap on and open, Apple has posted job ads on its site for “Maps ground truth managers” at seven locations around the world. If only it’d done that, like, before the app launched.
With so many reports – especially in the early days – of misplaced locations and lack of detail, a bit more ground-related honesty is exactly what Maps needs just now.
According to the job ad, the position would essentially involve managing a team of map specialists charged with the task of testing new releases of map code, gathering “ground truth data”, making use of local mapping experts and comparing Maps locally with competing products such as Google Maps.
Positions are listed for the US, Europe, the Asia Pacific region, Japan, the Americas, the Middle East and Africa. In other words, the whole darn world (it put up the same ad for Australia and New Zealand posts last week).
With all the resources Apple has at its disposal, no doubt Maps will one day be a force to be reckoned with – and may even give Google Maps a run for its money – but clearly it isn’t going to happen overnight.
However, Apple’s Maps team is already busy rolling out updates, with Japan getting a makeover and a bunch of new flyover imagery added for many locations around the world.
Once the ground truth managers are installed, things should really get moving for Maps.

Apple sings praises of iPad in second part of iDevice Web campaign :)

At the beginning of last week, Apple added a ‘Why iPhone’ page to its website listing reasons why the tech giant thinks its handset is so special. On Thursday, it followed up with a Why iPad page featuring both iPads – the 9.7-inch version and the Mini.
The new page is in the same format as the Why iPhone page, requiring you to do a substantial amount of scrolling to get a look at all the reasons (there are 11 in all) why the iPad is, in Apple’s considered opinion, the best tablet on the market today.
As with its Why iPhone page, the iPad version kicks off by mentioning research from 2012 conducted by J.D. Power and Associates that found “Apple ranked highest in customer satisfaction among tablets.”
Apple is also keen to push the fact that there now more than 300,000 iPad apps available in the iTunes store, which “aren’t merely scaled-up versions of phone apps that lack features designed for a larger screen.”
The page also mentions the screens of the two iPads, though of course, only the larger iPad has the high-definition Retina display. Still, Apple does its best to put a positive spin on the situation, saying that each of the two iPads has “a display that’s beautiful in its own right” and that the iPad Mini’s screen is “bright and vivid, and a perfect canvas for all the apps made for the iPad.”
Battery power, the iSight camera, iCloud and “real people” who can help you with any Apple-related issues also get a mention on the new webpage.
When Apple launched its iPhone page, some observers commented that the Cupertino company looked like it was on the defensive as it came just days after Samsung launched its flagship Galaxy S4 smartphone to great fanfare. And a few days before that Apple marketing chief Phil Schiller laid into Android handsets, saying they were “often given as a free replacement for a feature phone and the experience isn’t as good as an iPhone.”
It’s less obvious why Apple has decided to add the iPad page now, though in recent months the company’s marketing arm has certainly been busier than usual pushing out ads for its iDevices, a move which may have come as a response to news that last year rival Samsung spent a hefty $401 million on ads in the US in 2012, $68 million more than Apple.

Amazon snaps up book recommendation site Goodreads

E-commerce giant Amazon has been shopping. The Seattle-based company said Thursday it’s set to acquire book recommendation site Goodreads, a move it hopes will help drive more Web traffic its way and ultimately help it to sell more books, both print and digital. The deal, the value of which was not disclosed, will be finalized in the coming weeks.
Goodreads CEO and co-founder Otis Chandler said the acquisition would help his site to “move faster in bringing the Goodreads experience to millions of readers around the world”, adding that he looked forward to integrating the Goodreads and Kindle experiences, something he said many of the site’s 16 million users have long been asking for.
Commenting on the deal, Russ Grandinetti, Amazon’s vice president of Kindle content, said in a release, “Goodreads has helped change how we discover and discuss books and, with Kindle, Amazon has helped expand reading around the world.”
He continued, “In addition, both Amazon and Goodreads have helped thousands of authors reach a wider audience and make a better living at their craft. Together we intend to build many new ways to delight readers and authors alike.”
The deal is all the more interesting for the reason that it comes just over a year after Goodreads stopped using Amazon’s API to source basic book data. In the book recommendation site’s opinion, Amazon’s terms of use had become too restrictive, forcing Goodreads to link back to Amazon books exclusively. While Goodreads continues to link to a number of online retailers, one wonders what changes are on the horizon now that Amazon’s pulling the strings.
Goodreads, a social network for book lovers, began life in Chandler’s living room seven years ago. Together with wife Elizabeth, the pair worked to build a community of readers passionate about books. Today, the San Francisco startup has more than 30,000 book clubs on its site and holds information on more than half a billion books, with some 23 million reviews added by bookworms from all around the world.
In a message posted on the Goodreads blog on Thursday, Chandler reassured members of the site that it would continue in much the same way as before, and despite moves to integrate the Goodreads and Kindle experiences, would not be abandoning print readers.
“It’s incredibly important to us that we remain a home for all types of readers, no matter if you read on paper, audio, digitally, from scrolls, or even stone tablets,” Chandler wrote.
Goodreads’ headquarters will remain in San Francisco, Amazon confirmed.

How to root your Android phone or tablet :)

Is the allure of being a superuser tempting you? Android rooting opens up a world of possibility, but it can also void your warranty, or even leave you with a bricked device. The important thing is to be careful. Read up about what you are going to do before you begin. Make sure that you backup your data. Follow the instructions to the letter. Manufacturers and carriers have a vested interest in dissuading you from rooting. If you’re careful, the risk is minimal, and the potential benefits are impressive. Let’s take a closer look.

What is rooting?

If you’re an Administrator on a Windows machine, you have access to the entire operating system and you can do whatever you like. That’s essentially what happens if you root your Android device. With root access, you can get around any restrictions that your manufacturer or carrier may have applied. You can run more apps; you can customize your device to a greater degree; and you can potentially speed it up in a variety of ways.
The process involves backing up your current software and then flashing (installing) a new custom ROM (modified version of Android).

Why would you root?

One of the most obvious incentives to root your Android device is to rid yourself of the bloatware that’s impossible to uninstall. You’ll be able to set up wireless tethering, even if it has been disabled by default. You can also access your entire file system, install special apps that require a root, and flash custom ROMs, which can add extra features and streamline your phone or tablet’s performance. A lot of people are tempted by the ability to completely customize the look of their phones. You can also manually accept or deny app permissions.
You won’t find a lot of amazing must-have apps when you root, but there are enough to make it worthwhile. For example, some apps allow you to automatically backup all of your apps and all of their data, completely block advertisements, create secure tunnels to the Internet, overclock your processor, or make your device a wireless hotspot.

Why wouldn’t you root?

There are essentially three potential cons to rooting your Android.

• Voiding your warranty: Some manufacturers or carriers will use rooting as an excuse to void your warranty. It’s worth keeping in mind that you can always unroot. If you need to send the device back for repair, simply flash the original backup ROM you made and no one will ever know that it was rooted.
• Bricking your phone: Whenever you tamper too much, you run at least a small risk of bricking your device. This is the big fear everyone has. The obvious way to avoid it happening is to follow instructions carefully. Make sure that the guide you are following works for your device and that any custom ROM you flash is designed specifically for it. If you do your research and pay attention to feedback from others, bricking should never occur.
• Security risks: Rooting may introduce some security risks. Depending on what services or apps you use on your device, rooting could create a security vulnerability. For example, Google refuses to support the Google Wallet service for rooted devices.

How to root your Android

Before you actually try to root your device, make sure that you do some reading. The best place to find discussions about rooting, guides, and custom ROMs is definitely the XDA Developers Forum. Look for a thread on your specific device and you’re sure to find a method that has worked for other people. It’s worth spending some time researching the right method for your device.

Preparation for root

You’ll want to ensure that your device is fully charged before you begin. You’ll also need to turn USB debugging on. On the Galaxy S3 you’ll find it in Menu > Settings > Developer options and then check the box next to USB debugging. You will likely be plugging your device into your computer in order to root it.
Most Android rooting methods require you to install some software on your computer. It’s likely you’ll need to install the Android SDK. You may find other software is required. Make sure you follow the instructions and install all of it before proceeding.

One-click rooting

One of the easiest methods of rooting, which also supports a long list of devices, is SuperOneClick. You’ll find clear instructions, including a video, on how to use it at this XDA Developers SuperOneClick thread.
You will need to install some software to prepare, but the actual rooting process is one click. It will only take a few minutes to complete and then you’ll need to restart your Android device.
There is software out there that claims to provide one click rooting with no extra installs, but you should not have to pay to root your device and it’s very important to be wary about the method you choose. If in doubt, do more research. The XDA Developers forum is the most trustworthy source for rooting guides.

Your specific device

The reason rooting isn’t more straightforward is that all Android devices are not created equal. There are significant differences between Android smartphones, between manufacturers, and even between carrier specific versions of the same phone model. Make sure that any rooting guide or custom ROM you intend to use does support your specific device or you are asking for trouble.
Once you have found the right guide for your phone or tablet, it’s simply a case of working through the listed steps methodically. It can be a complicated procedure and it can take a while. Here’s an example guide for rooting the Samsung Galaxy S3. It can appear intimidating at first glance, but provided you follow it step-by-step, it should be a pain-free process. You can post questions in the XDA Developers forum if you run into trouble.

To root or not to root

Gaining full root access to your Android device can be thrilling, especially if you want to tinker with settings and customize your device. How much it changes your experience depends largely on the device you have. If you have a shuttered device, like a Kindle Fire tablet, then it’s a great way to get the full Android experience.
The potential benefits for all Android users include improved battery life, root-only apps, custom ROMs, overclocking, an end to bloatware, improved performance, and the ability to upgrade your phone when you want. If you aren’t excited at the prospect of any of these things, rooting probably isn’t for you.
Have you tried rooting your Android? Did you have a positive experience? Would you recommend rooting to others, or do you think it’s pointless? Post a comment and share your thoughts.

Common Windows Phone 8 Problems and Potential Solutions :)

Microsoft’s Windows Phone 8 platform is chasing third place behind the ever popular Android and iOS. It is a decent option for anyone seeking an alternative to the big two, but it’s not without its flaws. In this roundup, we take a look at common WP8 issues that have been reported by users, and we try to find good workarounds or solutions. If you’ve encountered any of these Windows Phone 8 problems and you know of a good solution that hasn’t been mentioned, then please post a comment and we’ll add it just as soon as we can.

Problem: Random rebooting

Toward the end of last year a number of WP8 users began to complain about random rebooting. The issue seemed to be common on the HTC 8X and Nokia Lumia 920, although it didn’t affect every handset. The smartphones would simply reboot without warning. There was also some suggestion that a syncing problem was related.
Solutions:

1. Microsoft investigated and then released an OTA update in North America in December, known as ‘Portico,’ which fixed the random rebooting issue (this is still rolling out to other markets). To make sure you have the latest update go to App list > Settings > Phone update > Check for updates and follow the prompts.
2. Some users reported the issue persisting, even after the update. It’s always worth trying a restart. Press and hold the Power button and then slide down when you see Slide down to power off. Turn it back on again and see if the problem repeats. You could also try removing the battery and replacing it.
3. Your final option is to try a factory reset. Make sure you backup first by going to App list > Settings > Backup and choose App list + settings and then Back up now. Then go to About > Reset your phone and tap Yes and Yes again when prompted.

Problem: Auto-brightness bug

A number of WP8 users with Nokia Lumia 920 handsets reported wildly fluctuating screen brightness, possibly due to the Portico update. It seems a bug may have been introduced that impacts on the auto-brightness and causes the screen to flicker as it struggles to find the right brightness setting.
Workarounds:

1. You could disable auto-brightness and set the phone to Medium brightness just to prevent it from changing repeatedly.
2. Some users reported success, or at least a reduced fluctuation, by turning on the phone in a completely dark environment and allowing the sensors to calibrate to the darkness.

Problem: Screen freezing

If you find your WP8 device just freezes and the touchscreen is unresponsive then you are not alone. This issue could have various causes, but the methods to fix it are the same.
Potential solutions:

1. Press and hold the Volume down and the Power button simultaneously for 10 seconds. Your device should restart and work as normal.
2. If the problem persists, check that you have the latest updates via App list > Settings > Phone update > Check for updates.

Workaround:

1. Some people have reported that turning Wi-Fi off solves the freezing problem, but obviously it also deprives you of Wi-Fi, which is no good as a long-term fix.

Problem: Fast battery drain

Some users have complained that their WP8 device is running out of battery juice very quickly. This could be caused by poorly optimized apps, syncing problems, or something else entirely. There are a few things worth trying to see if you can solve the issue. Obviously turning off NFC, Wi-Fi, mobile data, and other phone features when they aren’t needed is a good start.
Potential solutions:

1. Try uninstalling and reinstalling the Skype and Facebook apps. Some users have reported both apps as major battery hogs, but insist that uninstalling and reinstalling results in improved performance.
2. A number of apps have been cited as potential drains including Nokia Drive Beta, various messenger and music apps, and even some games. Nokia advised people to exit apps using the back button so that they close rather than continue to run in the background. You can also go to Settings > Applications > Background tasks and block any apps you don’t want running in the background.

Problem: Sync not working, can’t send or receive emails or texts

Reports of problems syncing email accounts and also sending or receiving texts or emails have cropped up. For some WP8 users this issue has also affected their contacts and other accounts on the device. It seems to have been caused by the Skype app.
Potential solutions:

1. Uninstall the Skype app and then force a sync of all problem accounts. This should resolve the issue and you should be able to reinstall the Skype app without further problems.
2. If step 1 doesn’t work then try turning off Wi-Fi and mobile data and then reboot the phone and turn them on again.
3. If you still have problems, try unlinking your Microsoft account from your Skype account and repeat the process from step 1.

More Windows Phone 8 problems

These are the main WP8 issues we’ve come across so far and the potential solutions and workarounds you’ll need to deal with them. If you’ve encountered any other Windows Phone 8 problems then feel free to post a comment and share them. We’d also love to hear from anyone with a solution for any WP8 issue that has worked for them. Check back often, as we’ll be sure to update this article over time.

Prepare to be Underwhelmed, as Report Hints at Incoming Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini :)

The Galaxy S4 is still making headlines, after it was confirmed for its U.S. debut on May 1 by T-Mobile, and all UK networks putting the phone up for pre-order with an April 26 release date. However, a lengthy report on Samsung’s rise to dominance published by Bloomberg has given us a clue as to what could be next on the company’s agenda – a Galaxy S4 Mini. It explicitly mentions the unofficial phone after singing the praises of the Galaxy S4, calling it “another huge hit for Samsung,” before going to to say, “as will the S4 Mini that will go on sale soon after.”
You may remember the Galaxy S3 Mini, which was announced in October last year, to almost universal disdain. The device has a 4-inch screen with a 480 x 800 pixel resolution, a dual-core NovaThor processor and a 5-megapixel camera. Compared to the Galaxy S3, it was terribly ordinary, but it did keep the S3’s winning design. Despite the hatred, the Galaxy S3 Mini is correctly named, as everything about it is smaller than the full-size Galaxy S3.
So, a Mini spin-off from the Galaxy S4 is highly likely, as it allows Samsung to trade on the S4’s good name in countries where cheaper phones are more popular. A shameless cash-in? Yes, but hardly a surprise.
This isn’t the first time the Galaxy S4 Mini has been discussed. Previous rumors suggest the phone will have a 4.3-inch display, a dual-core processor and Android 4.2.2 as its operating system. We’d also expect it to share a similar design to the Galaxy S4. According to SamMobile, the S4 Mini will be announced in early summer.
If these specs are accurate, the Galaxy S4 Mini won’t be winning many fans either. Don’t despair though, as ultimately, if you want a Galaxy S4 with a little less power, a slightly smaller screen and a considerably lower price tag, then just buy the Galaxy S3.

                                                                            

How Threadless adds a Wink and a Nod to Product Photography :)

For many trained, creative photographers, taking product shots may seem like the equivalent of earning a culinary degree only to flip burgers at a fast-food chain. It’s not exactly the most stimulating environment, nor does it push one’s talents to the limit.
Sean Dorgan, photo manager for the Chicago-based online apparel brand Threadless, said he’s heard it all before.
“I used to tell people that I work at this T-shirt company,” Dorgan said. “And they’re like, ‘Oh, that sucks.’ Because they think it’s boring.”
But as anyone who has ever shopped for one of Threadless’ shirts or stepped into the graffiti-laden warehouse of its mother ship, SkinnyCorp – which sources its designs from, helps expose the work of, and puts the printing choices in the hands of a community of artists – already knows, Threadless is no ordinary company. And its photography department has elevated the generic product shot to an art form in and of itself, and could be credited for much of the company’s appeal.

The boys and girls of Threadless’ photo team (clockwise, from top left): Craig Shimala, Nicole Carlson, Jen Lemasters, and Sean Dorgan.

The fact that there is even a photography department – consisting of Dorgan, photographer/retoucher Nicole Carlson, photography assistant Jen Lemasters, and Bandit, a dog that “doesn’t have much to say, but [is] awesome,” Dorgan said – is a sign of the immense success the company has experienced since being founded in 2000. Six years ago, Dorgan was the sole staff photographer.
“When I started here, when it was just me, there were maybe nine new designs released per week,” Dorgan explained. “And now, it can be hundreds. That’s quite an exponential growth of releases…every week there’s literally 10-20 times the amount of stuff than we used to put out about five or six years ago.”

Google updates Chrome with Improved Spelling and Grammar Checker

The newest stable version of Chrome will soon be available for download. According to Google Software Engineer Rachel Petterson, who announced the news on the official Chrome Blog yesterday, it’s a minor update, so you don’t get a slew of new, exciting features. However, what you will get is better in-browser spell checking. The “Ask Google for suggestions” feature can now check for grammatical inaccuracies, and uncapitalized and misspelled proper nouns. It can even detect homonyms and do some context-sensitive spell checking. For example, it will tell you if you need to use “affect” instead of “effect,” or vice versa. 
Additionally, dictionary support was added for Tamil, Albanian, and Korean, so you don’t have to stare at squiggly red lines underneath your words if you frequently type in any of those languages. Dictionary tweakers will also be glad to know that you now only have to add words to the dictionary once and then simply sync your settings so the Chrome browser on your phone, tablet, or second computer can also recognize the words. 
The new version of Chrome will start rolling out in the coming weeks for Windows, Linux, and Chrome OS users; Mac users will have to wait a bit longer. Simply click “Customize and control Google Chrome,” and choose “About Google Chrome” from the menu to download the update.
If you don’t like the thought of Google Chrome monitoring every word you type, you can temporarily disable the spell-checker by right-clicking the text field and selecting “Spell-checker options” (PC) or “Spelling and Grammer” (Mac). Then, unclick “Check the spelling of this field” (PC) or “Check spelling while typing” (Mac). 

Intel: Expect $599 Ultrabooks to hit the Market this Holiday Season :)

Chances are that many of you have considered buying an Ultrabook as your new computer but were deterred by their hefty price tags. The higher-quality versions of the super-thin computers are usually nowhere near being considered in the “budget” category, so it’s no surprise that a lot of people choose to get something else, like a tablet. This holiday season, however, according to Kirk Skaugen, senior vice president and general manager of Intel’s PC Client Group, you might be able to get your hands on a powerful Ultrabook with prices on par with other quality laptops.
Speaking at the Intel Solutions Summit in Los Angeles, Skaugen told top manufacturers that, thanks to Intel’s upcoming Haswell chip, it’s very much a possibility to make and sell $599 Ultrabooks by this year’s holiday season. “We designed this chip from the ground up for the Ultrabook,” he said. In addition to giving manufacturers the capability to create more affordable Ultrabooks, a Haswell-based device could theoretically come with more features, including high-speed SSDs, high-res touchscreen displays, facial and voice recognition, and even a 24-hour battery life (we’re a bit skeptical of that last one). We’re guessing these $599 Ultrabooks won’t look as fancy as their more high-end counterparts (those in the $1,000 and above range), but if they include the updated features that Intel mentioned, they might be worth looking into.
A lower price tag’s sure to make those who’ve been looking to purchase an Ultrabook happy. The question is, if you’re not really looking to get an Ultrabook in particular, will the lower price entice you to get one when there’s a gamut of tablets and even cheaper laptops to choose from?

New pill bottle concept comes equipped with smartphone technology :)

Do you sometimes have a hard time remembering to take your daily prescription medication at the right times? Or that it’s time to renew that prescription so that you don’t have to go without for a few days?
According to a report from Wired, there is a new pill bottle in the works from a company called AdhereTech, which will actually do the reminding for you. The bottle, whose design is still being worked on, is constructed using a Makerbot 3D printer. While that’s a cool, modern way to manufacture them, what’s really impressive is what the bottle can do.
Each bottle will have lights, speakers, a battery that can last up to 45 days – plenty of time for the average prescription – and, what’s more, they will have 3G and LTE connectivity. Tiny sensors inside the walls of the bottle can even measure how many pills are left.
The company will get prescription information supplied by each patient’s pharmacist, so it knows exactly how many pills a person should have, how frequently they should be taken, and whether or not a renewal is needed at the end.
Patients can cater the alerts to their liking. The bottle can either shoot a reminder text to a cell phone, light up or sound an alert when it’s time to take a pill, and, if it notices that you haven’t taken your meds in a reasonable amount of time, it will send a message to your doctor or relative.
The final prototypes of the bottles should be available by the end of next month, at which point they’ll be tested extensively by the University of Pennsylvania, Wake Forest University, and Walter Reed Army Medical Center. If the studies show that the bottles actually make in a difference in getting patients to take their meds at the proper time, the bottles will be introduced to the market, starting first with conditions like cancer, HIV, pulmonary hypertension, and rheumatoid arthritis.