4 Effective Local Mobile Marketing Strategies

Local mobile marketing is a growing concept in the marketing world today. There is a fundamental change in the way people communicate and use the internet.

People go out with items like car keys, house keys, wallet and mobile phones. Communication by mobile phones is now the order of the day. Recent statistics show that people now communicate more and more through SMS than by conventional phone calls.
People no longer stay by their computers to surf the web. Tablets and smart phones now provide a platform for users to surf the web on the go.
The recent advances in mobile technology and the increased use of mobile devices have brought about the concept of local mobile marketing. Local Mobile Marketing is the usage of mobile technology to promote products and services of companies. Firms now take advantage of this type of technology to establish a strong mobile presence and get more customers to buy their products.
There are some steps to take to achieve local mobile marketing success. These steps are listed below.
Make a Mobile Version of your Website
The majority of people browse with their smart-phones and tablets. This means that firms need to have a mobile version of their website so that customers can easily patronize their goods and services.
It is very frustrating to browse a desktop website on a mobile device. For this reason, it is important for firms to create a version of their website for easy navigation by customers.

Do You Need a Mobile Version of Your Web Site?

More and more people are accessing the Internet using their mobile phones and tablets. So how do you make your Web site work effectively when accessed from mobile phones and tablets? Don't automatically assume you need to create a completely new site - or even a phone app. Those might not be the best options.

Broadly, there are three options - from easiest to hardest:



1.Mobile-friendly Web site: Make sure your existing site works well when viewed on a mobile device.
2.Mobile Web site: Build a separate site specially for use on mobile devices.
3.Mobile app: Create a mobile app instead.

1. Mobile-friendly Web site
A Web site is "mobile friendly" if it works when viewed on a mobile phone. It means you don't have to design and maintain a separate site or app; your main Web site just works.
This isn't as hard as it seems, unless your site uses fancy graphic design techniques or complex technology. But if it's designed well, according to the rules of good, solid Web design, it should work.

Here are some things that could "break" a site on mobile devices:
Flash: Your site won't work on iPhones, iPads and other Apple devices.
Certain kinds of drop-down menus: These won't always work on mobile devices.
A design that's too wide and can't be shrunk: This will be clumsy to use on a mobile device, especially if it involves horizontal scrolling.
Font too small: A small font is OK, as long as the user can enlarge it. But some sites don't allow this, and this will make the site difficult to read.
Buttons and links too small: Apart from being difficult to read, this can make them difficult to click.
Lots of graphics: Web sites load slower on mobile devices, so use fewer graphics and smaller graphics.
If you have a site already, simply load it on as many mobile phones and tablets as possible, and just try reading and clicking your way around as if you were a first-time visitor. If it works well, that's a good sign. It's not a 100% guarantee, because there are so many mobile devices now, and you can't possibly test all of them - but it's a good start.

From Typewriters to Tablets

When I was in college during the early 80's, we had to type our term papers on type writers or pay someone else to do it for us. OK, so now you know that I am not a spring chicken. Anyway, as I ponder the proliferation of various "smart" devises used by everyone today, and I mean everyone, I can't help but to reflect upon the how we did things without smart phones, computers, laptops, and tablets and how that has changed as the technologies advanced.
Less than 30 years ago, only the elite may have had early forms of these technological devises that have changed the way we do many things in our lives. At that time, even a mobile phone was only affordable to the very few. I can recall, in the 90's, when my employer announced that he bought a car with a phone in it. The phone had a cord permanently attached to the inside of the center console of his car. He thought he was on top of the world, no longer having to stop at phone booths to call the office for messages, or respond to customers' needs.

Bag phones, cordless phones and beepers
Next came the bag phone, which weighed about 10 Lbs., but was portable with a battery that lasted a couple of hours. Imagine actually trying to a carry a bag phone around with a small shoulder strap. Well I never did. I just left it in their car. Soon after that, came the cordless phone for conventional land lines. Most of us have those today, if we still have a land line installed at home. The early versions now seem like bricks with an antennae attached. This also is around the time that beepers became popular. Anyone could dial my beeper number and no matter where I was, and I would know that somebody wanted to speak to me. Of course, I would likely have to find a pay phone in order to return the call.

HTC Butterfly

OVERVIEW

The HTC Butterfly is a pretty interesting device with some really great technology in it. Its screen is one of the fortes as it uses that new screen technology - Super LCD3. It's a pretty rare screen type which hasn't really spread all that much as of yet. What it's particularly great at is being able to make 5.0 inch screens support 1080p full HD resolutions and it generally has a pixel density that is unlike anything you've ever seen. Also, the hardware of the Butterfly is extremely powerful, even for today's standards. However, with all things considered, this device being one of the strongest out there and such, it will mean that it costs a little bit more to purchase. While an estimated price was of 600 euros, the true price will actually depend a lot on the carrier and provider, as most add a bit more to the price in order to generate a profit for themselves.

GENERAL
This phone, depending on the market in which you purchase it from, can be a 4G phone with LTE enabled, or one with regular 2G and 3G networks. The SIM of this device is a Micro-SIM, so if you have one of those good for you, otherwise you will have to go to your local network provider and change your SIM into a Micro one. This phone was initially announced in December of 2012 and it came out the next month in January 2013. It is currently available for purchase and depending on where you get it from, certain offers and deals may apply for it.

BODY
The phone is pretty massive, so if you're uncomfortable with phones that have 5.0 inch screens, this may not be the best alternative. Personally, it doesn't really bother me that the phone is 5.0 inches big (screen-wise). I personally find even the Note 2 of a decent size, despite people claiming that it's too big to be a phone. Then again, some people even use 7.0 tablets which have SIM support as phones (I have seen it with my own eyes, and it's a pretty amusing sight). Back to the point: the specific size of the phone is 143 x 70.5 x 9.1 mm big (or 5.63 x 2.78 x 0.36 in, if you prefer this system) and it weighs around 140 g (or 4.94 oz, if you'd rather have this system).

5 Staggering iPhone Apps That Will Change the Way We Work

It is no doubt that iPhone apps offer enhanced user experiences and customized services to its valuable users. These apps are easy to download and provide a secure platform, to corporates and individuals alike. As per a report published by Apple, The App Store has over 500 million active accounts and had a record-breaking December with over two billion downloads during the month. Besides this Apple saw 40 billion unique downloads excluding re-downloads and updates. Needless, to say, that iPhone apps are will redefine the app market in times to come.

Let's take a look at the 5 staggering iPhone apps making way to The App Store in 2013:

Qwiki
This is a free app that lets you turn your personal pictures and videos into striking movies. You can share or post these movies with your friends around via Facebook, Twitter, email or SMS. Your friends can post comments, like or follow your Qwiki movie just like any other regular post on social networking site. The app can be embedded as an icon on any web page. The new version of Qwiki has improved stability features and offers enhanced scrolling to its users. Moreover, every movie you create can be easily customized as per your liking with options like drag and drop, filtering and song choices. You can share even more pictures using Instagram and share it in your circle using SocialCam.

The app is compatible with iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPhone 5, iPod touch (3rd generation), iPod touch (4th generation), iPod touch (5th generation) and iPad. It requires iOS 5.1 or later. This app is optimized for iPhone 5. This is a great tool for people who like to click pictures with their mobile.

Samsung Chromebooks: An Overview

Chromebooks are portable, laptop-style personal computers that run Google's Chrome OS operating system. It is based on Linux, and inherits much of the stability and security that Linux is famous for.

ChromeOS supports a variety of USB devices, including cameras, mice and flash drives, and employs a verified boot feature, which enables the system to check for system integrity and potential security breaches at startup.

However, as Chromebooks are intended to be used while connected to the internet, their user interface consists of a variation on Google's Chrome web browser, with a media player and file manager built in. No other native applications are provided, and, as a result, their offline capabilities are somewhat limited compared to a standard laptop.

Rather than installing native software onto the Chromebook, as they would on other types of operating system, users are expected to take advantage of online services - such as Google's GMail email service, for example - or install web apps from the Chrome App Store.

This approach ensures that the user is always automatically presented with the latest version of their favourite software, without being constantly prompted to install updates. It also means that a lost, stolen or damaged Chromebook need not cost the user their important documents, as, in most cases, files are stored in online repositories, like Google Drive, rather than on the machine itself. The user need only obtain a new Chromebook, then sign in with their Google account, to have virtually instant access to their documents, settings and apps.

The Best Apps For Valentine's Day

For most of us Valentine's Day can be very stressful unless it can be planned successfully. There can be so many things to arrange like arranging a home cooked meal, knowing what is on at the cinema so that you can book it, buying a present and sending flowers. And if you are not up to cooking then it is helpful to have a few apps you can investigate to let you know the best places to eat, Take the strain out of the day by letting the following apps do all the work, which will allow you to sit back and revel in all the praise.


Valentine's Day Recipes by Aimfire LLC
Sometimes a home cooked meal shows your loved one that you are prepared to go that extra mile to show them that you care. Great! But then the question is 'what do you cook'? This app has over 140 recipes and displays each menu in a step by step way so that even the most inexperienced cook will not fail to impress. It also has a good menu of starters, desserts and drinks to mix with the meal.

Slacker Radio by Slacker, Inc.
If you need the right music to set the mood for your romantic meal then Slacker Radio is the app you should choose. Slacker radio has over 250 themed radio stations that will provide you with just the sort of music you are looking for. You will find yourself dancing the night away in your own front room or any room you want to take advantage of.

Movies by Flixster, with Rotten Tomatoes by Flixster
If you fancy going to the pictures on Valentine night, Flixter will show you the closest theatres and cinemas in your area and let you see all the films that are being shown there. It will also allow you to see trailers of selected movies and let you book tickets.

Advancements in IT in the Workplace

It is impossible to think what the workplace would be like without an IT infrastructure. It doesn't matter whether you work for a small business with just a few employees or a huge multi-national with thousands of employees, information technology is a very key part of the day to day workings. Many companies have a managed IT structure to their business which works tirelessly to make sure the systems are supporting the workings either running their computer systems or the building environment they work in.
There is a very interesting series on Television called Man Men which depicts an Advertising Agency in the 1960's. Their technology extended to a switch board controlled by several operators who put calls through to various offices in the building. There was also a Xerox photocopier which took up a whole office by itself, but not one sign of a computer anywhere as this was way before the IT industry boom. The security was a guard at the desk in the foyer and the heat of the office controlled by fans.
Back then it would have been impossible to imagine how the modern day office of 2013 would look. The things we are able to do these days seems only limited by the imagination as we are able to communicate and collaborate on projects with each other instantly irrespective of where we are based in the world. We have limitless information at our fingertips and we can feel safe in the knowledge that the buildings we work in are secure from intruders whether they are cyber intruders or the real thing.
Buildings can be designed to create the optimum working environments with the technology installed managing lighting and temperature. Workers can simply plug in their laptop or tablet pc into the network and access their desktop from any workstation in the building or even at other locations where the network is enabled.

Cloud Computing, More Than Just Hype

As head of Operations and Technology at my current company, I have personally seen the explosion of the term "Cloud" from every vendor who contacts me. But like any other clever marketing term, you have to look behind the hype to see what exactly is being offered and what value it has to you as a business.
Cloud Computing refers to the hosted offering of infrastructure and development platforms, made possible by the Internet, or "Cloud." It is not a new concept, as Software as a Service (SaaS) providers like Salesforce, have offered Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software in the cloud for the past decade. But it grew in popularity as virtualization technology improved to the point that vendors could easily spin up, and support virtual servers, at a cost effective model for themselves and their customers.
Cloud Computing can be divided into three major categories being provided by vendors: Infrastructure, Platform and Software. Infrastructure is the provisioning of virtual servers, firewalls, load balancers and network switches. It is in this area that most executives and business stakeholders have taken notice. Because of the delays and costs associated with getting physical or virtual servers setup internally in the organization, the prospect of be able to create a virtual server from a provider in a manner of minutes is incredibly attractive. Add to that the concept of "pay what you use" where you only pay for server processing time, and which allows you to grow and shrink environments at will, and you've gotten senior leadership's attention. We had a development project where the estimated internal infrastructure costs were around $500,000. Instead we chose to use Amazon Cloud at the cost of $4,500 per month.
Platform offerings go further to offer application, database and web tiers on top of the infrastructure. Some platform offerings like Microsoft Azure are proprietary. Others are open platforms that allow you to develop in the language you are comfortable in. Many providers make the offering especially attractive by providing services like high availability, or deployment tools and processes, so you as the customer don't have to worry about having that internal expertise.

How Technology Is Changing the Face of Education

Technology is a facet of society that is constantly changing and when these changes take place the members of a particular culture have to be willing to make adjustments. This particular fact is especially true for people who are employed within the field of education. Technology has infiltrated the educational system rather quickly and its usage is expected to significantly increase in the coming years. Teachers can (and still do) instruct students without the use of computers, laptops and tablets but sooner or later they will have to make some adjustments for the use of digital equipment as part of the learning environment.
The Department of Education and the International Society for Technology Education (ISTE) have developed technology standards that have been adopted by the majority of states within the U.S. These standards encourage the use of computers, smart boards, laptops and tablets within the classroom. Laptops and computers have already been implemented in school buildings across the country. Tablets are the latest form of computing technology that is now being adapted for the learning environment.
Many teachers currently use smart boards to instruct their pupils especially on the lower grades. Smart boards provide teaches with the ability to use computer software and media presentations in order to instruct their students.

Electronic Point Of Sale (EPOS) Identifying The Right Fit Of EPOS Software

Your choice in an electronic point of sale (epos) system is essential to the success of your business. Your epos system and epos software basically serve as a hub to which everything around the business revolves. In picking the right epos software and system, you need to have confidence in its performance because the system will be solely responsible for customer transactions, inventory management, and all the other actions involved in your business. The task of picking an epos software and system is a critical because choosing the wrong point of sale (POS) system can cost you a thousand dollars to replace.In choosing an epos software or system, the first thing you need to look at is the needs of your store. You need to identify the particular needs of your business. There are basically hundreds of epos software products and packages available in the market. Some are specified for large establishments like groceries and supermarkets, while some are designed for fast-moving businesses dealing with thousands of transactions in a day like fast-foods and restaurants. Make sure that you research the right fit of system and epos software for your business. One way of researching is by asking feedbacks from your customers about the things that has to be improved in your business. Get their perspective on their shopping experience to determine the features needed in choosing your system. Researching on the right epos system will also help you establish a budget for the system and the epos software. A standard POS system includes a point of sale terminals, devices, and an internet connection.

Is Windows 8 A Fit For Your Business?

The new Windows 8 operating system has received little of the hype usually associated with the introduction of a major new product from Microsoft.
Launched over three months ago, the usual publicity stunts and saturation type television advertising seem missing from what is basically a relatively quiet coming out party.
Many industry experts surmised that the 2013 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas would be the optimum launching point for the new operating system. Yet, despite the fact that many hardware companies had installed the system on their display PCs and tablets, reports from the show about the effectiveness of "8" as a business tool have been mixed.A test of Windows 8 by this writer generated more doubts than an endorsement. It raises the question of not only when a business should convert to the new OS but if they should do so at all.
Why? Unlike past versions of Windows, The User Interface (UI) is in a tiled format. This takes some getting used to such as the "Start" page. It also seems to works best in a touch-screen implementation.
Most businesses do not use touch-screen applications across the enterprise. To take advantage of the new system companies would have to not only purchase the software for the end-user but also budget for new hardware. This can involve investing in dozens of new machines depending upon the size of the business.
Another issue involves the system itself. It is exactly the same for use on PCs and tablets. Unlike other providers such as Apple, that has two distinct operating platforms-one for its iPad and one for its Macs, Microsoft has designed the same program to work with both mobile devices and PCs. Many users who like to utilize these devices for different tasks may not be enamored with similar implementations.

Digital Dictation Recorder Designed For Professional Use

Voice recorders have been an important gadget to professionals for many years. This is particularly true to those who rely on the transcription of information to documents. Lawyers, researchers, media men and medical transcriptionists are just some of these professionals. However, analogue recorders use tapes for recording and do not allow users to automatically edit or upload recorded information to computers. Digital dictation recorders were developed after that. Soon enough, professionals were conveniently recording their works and easily transcribing them into documents. Digital dictation is the recording and editing of spoken words using a digital recorder. These are then formatted to MP3, WAV or WMA. Ideal for professional use, the digital dictation recorder has proven its many benefits in improving data transcription works.
User-friendly - Digital dictation recorders like the analogue models work with the same function. The difference lies in the added features that make it easier and convenient to use. For one, it makes possible hands-free recording or one-thumb operation. This recorder is featured with easy to read indicators for low battery and storage space. Thus, gives users warning for possible loss of recordings. Moreover, it is also designed compact which makes it easier to carry around and handle. The recorded files can also be edited and deleted real time or it can be uploaded on a computer through smart menu buttons which makes it a more diverse gadget than any recorders.

Flexible OLED Screens - A Bright and Colourful Future for Digital Advertising

In early Jan 2013, Brian Berkeley, senior vice president of Samsung's display lab, announced at CES what is to become the future of display technology with it's OLED flexible screen called Youm. While other manufacturers are in advanced design stages of their own flexible screens, Samsung are the players who are making the industry moves, and it's not just mobile devices that will be part of this revolution - indeed the whole of the way we advertise products is about to change dramatically too.
Clearly smart phones will be one of the first places we see this tech available to the consumer, but there is another industry buzzing about this - digital marketing.In digital marketing we've already been thorough massive advances in recent years - essentially the low cost and high availability of broadband speed internet connections mean we are increasingly streaming more and more content into our home via the web than our regular TV service. For the consumer it offers far greater choice & flexibility of viewing habits - watch live or schedule your programmes to suit your lifestyle. We are also seeing increasing quantities of interactive content, and integration with social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter. In terms of how the merging technology will change the face of digital media as we know it - flexible screens will have far greater and further reaching impact than today's mobile web access and smart phones.

Why It Is Advantageous To Outsource Your Computer Support And IT Network Needs?

The Benefits of Outsourcing Computer Support and IT Network Needs
The main benefit of outsourcing computer support and IT services is savings. Let's face it, for a fledgling company hiring a staff that takes care of one's IT needs can be a bit expensive. It is also not that practical since you will be hiring staff that you may not need all-year round. There are computer support and IT services that aren't needed on a daily basis. Imagine the cost of having to pay for staff on a daily basis when you only need their services on a need by need basis.
Another benefit of outsourcing is maximizing your office space. Hiring an in-house IT support is not ideal if you have a small business because these professionals need to be housed or have to have their own room, which means that they will take up some of your well-needed office space. If you outsource, you won't have a problem with space. In fact, you can focus on hiring other staff that you really have to have in the same office space.
Another thing, your IT staff is not expected to know everything there is to know about computer support and IT services, which means, they may be inadequate in meeting your needs. This is just one of the reasons why it is more practical to outsource your computer and IT networking needs. If you outsource your IT needs, you will be able to have access to a number of skilled and knowledgeable IT specialists and technicians without having to hire additional staff. The outsourcing companies have a number of skilled people that have their own areas of expertise and specialization. It's more than likely that they would be able to help you with your specific needs.

The Distinction Regarding Web Application Development And Software Development

Web development and software development are two widely used idioms that individuals, who are not involved in the computer field, tend to mix up. Software engineering or design is basically the process of creating any software product whereas web application development pertains to the coding necessitated to produce any form of web site or program for the world wide web or private networks.
Software development is a comprehensive term with various fields and expertise, incorporating the various forms of web application development. A Software Development Company will typically provide more than one software related solution. It engages specialists in both web-based applications and desktop apps.
Previously, web developing incorporated less coding skill and pretty basic practice and courses could authorize individuals for the work. However, at present the online applications require advanced functions and frameworks, larger systems and demand an extensive knowledge in several computer languages and operating systems. As a result, the historical differences between software and web development are blurring. The main difference left is the interface being used.

Simple Tips for Dealing With TV Signal Interference

On a daily basis, TV salespeople are dealing with customers returning their TVs citing faulty tuners - as they are unable to tune in any or all of the Digital TV channels. Here are a few basic approaches to take before hitting the panic button..
In earlier days of analogue TV a poor signal would result in a fuzzy picture or ghosting. Annoying as that may have been, at least the image was still watchable if you were desperate enough. The upgrade to digital eliminated these issues, but (unknown to many) the downside is that you generally have a perfect picture - or NO picture at all. There is no middle ground; a less than perfect signal can leave you with no image at all!
While the solution may sometimes have to be a new Aerial, it isn't always the only option. There are plenty of scenarios to try first before resorting to that expense.

Signal Amplifiers
On paper, the thought of boosting your signal seems like a logical step to take. The stronger the signal, the better the result, right? Not really. Using an amplifier from places like Dick Smith or Jaycar might work if there is a slight drop in reception on some channels, but it's quite likely that you will make the problem worse. Most reception issues are not caused by weak signal strength, but rather interference. Therefore, you should do everything you can to reduce interference and improve the quality of your signal before you try to amplify it, because most of the time you're just amplifying your interference too.

A booster may work great if you are running two or more TVs in the house from the same antenna and the shared signal between the two drops as a result. This means that the signal is clean (i.e. interference free) to begin with, but when it is shared across two TV tuners it drops to a level which causes break up or loss of signal. Boosting it back up to its original strength at both points will certainly be the right thing to do, and this is exactly what signal boosters are made for.

Is a Home Based Office Right For You ?

There are many things to consider when creating a business. One of the big things to consider of course is whether to run a business from home, or from an office/store location. Some advantages for the home based business include cost, scalability and more freedom with time. With a home based business your costs are typically less with more scalability, and more freedom of time. The disadvantages include increased isolation, less then ideal for high profile meetings, and makes boundaries within personal relationships tougher. All of these things have to be considered when deciding whether to work from home or work out of a business.
For many start-up companies, the biggest issue is cost. Most start-ups do not have much money and as a result need to save wherever possible. This is a major advantage for a home based business. An office that is rented or leased elsewhere can cost big money. The most obvious advantages for cost savings on a home office is the rent/lease of an office elsewhere. A small, basic office in the suburbs can easily cost minimum $600, and usually cost much, much more then that. When doing work from home, your only rent/lease is the mortgage payment you were already paying. You also end up saving on gas, wear and tear on the car and the stress of commuting. You can also never forget to pack a lunch at home, because the kitchen is just steps away. This results in a much lower food bill for many people.

Another big advantage of a home office is scalability. You can hire/fire employees as needed without much worry of having too much or too little work space. If you run into a down time and don't need as much space, or employees. Or on the flip side you're experience growth and need more space/employees, you've got a whole house you can use as work space for whomever may work with you. This gives you a lot of flexibility to scale up or down without having to worry about still being on the hook for a lease payment for somewhere that may be way too big or small. Not being locked into these payments allow you to be as nimble as possible with how you operate your business, and as a result can save you a lot of money.

The Advantages of Using a Bluetooth Gaming Headset

With today's video game titles, it's common to have many players part of the game. Whether this is Xbox live, popular PC titles, the Play station network, or others. Being able to communicate with other players is extremely important. That is why most will choose a Bluetooth gaming headset. While most wireless headsets will do the job of picking up your voice for other players to hear, some prefer to use a Bluetooth gaming headset because of the advantages that it tends to offer over other types. Find out what these are and why they are useful.

First of all, a Bluetooth gaming headset is not going to have all the extra cords that tend to get in the way or the problem of having cords that are too short. Thus, a Bluetooth headset uses a wireless technology that doesn't require cords. This is helpful when playing so that other people in the room won't trip over their own cords and won't get in the way of the keyboard or mouse when on a computer. This alone makes a Bluetooth headset worth the extra money.

Bluetooth headsets work with all consoles and computers. Since most computers today and consoles have Bluetooth technology, these types of headsets will work with the devices that you already own. Since Bluetooth is a standard for most devices these days, you won't have to worry about it not working. If you go to a friend's house who owns a different console than your own, you won't have to worry about your headset not working. You can also choose to use the Bluetooth technology when chatting online with programs like Skype.

How the National Broadband Network Will Affect the Way Australians Communicate

How the NBN Will Affect the Way Australians Communicate.

Australia is on the cusp of a major change in the way its citizens communicate and do business. 'Cisco' is an internationally renowned company involved in measuring the uptake of new internet and communications technology.

Australia will experience a large increase in uptake of internet communications technology with an upsurge in networked devices as well as mobile and video Internet traffic. Such an increase in internet usage can only be properly supported by an integrated infrastructure that uses state of the art technology, to facilitate high speed broadband connections.The existing copper wire based infrastructure, will simply be unable to cope with the demands that will be placed on it by the Australian community.
Australia's decision makers are faced with a dilemma:
'Do we continue to prop up and patch up an ageing, increasingly outdated system to avoid the initial enormous financial outline involved with the proposed NBN, or do we invest now in a new system at significant financial cost, in a climate of international financial volatility?'

History has repeatedly shown that societies taking up new technology when it becomes available, gain economic, political and strategic advantages over those that delay. On those grounds alone, there would appear to be sound arguments for investing in the NBN. Experience also tells us that the cheapest time to invest in improved technology is now, not in a few years time when inflationary pressures have had time to work on the original cost estimates, and the pressure for services from consumers has also increased.

Use the Latest Technology Surveillance Products to Protect Your Property

Finding the right equipment to guard your home while you are away can be challenging if you have never shopped for technology surveillance equipment before. Instead of running out to purchase the first things you see, take a little time to research and learn about your protection options. This can help you save a ton of money and ensure that you are getting the right equipment for your needs.
Even though you want to think that your home is a fortress and no one would ever dare set foot on your property without your permission, you need to be aware that crime is something that can happen at anytime. It doesn't matter if you live in what appears to be the safest area in town, it is in your best interest to have some type of technology surveillance equipment protecting your home. Consider investing in other forms of theft deterrent materials as well. Signs and even outside cameras can offer you way more protection than just having a regular burglar alarm in place.

Take a walk around your property and try to look at it with new eyes. You may want to enlist a close friend or family member to help you with this task. Your goal is to find the different spots in which your home may be vulnerable. Even if there is someone home most of the time, you can't afford to rule out any possibility. Windows, pet doors, and even in door mailboxes can pose a threat to the safety of everyone and your possessions. This doesn't mean you have to get rid of those things if you don't want too. You just need to make sure you have the right technology surveillance system in place that offers you protection against these vulnerabilities.

Organizational IT Training Is Crucial To Success

The purpose of IT training in any organization is to ensure that workers are fully capable of performing their daily tasks. These tasks are directly related to the work that has been assigned. However, there are organizations that provide little to no training and rely on other workers to bring a new hire up to speed with business processes and how to use specific equipment.
Organizations that are forward-looking will view their employees as specialists who are experts at the work they perform. These workers are seen as an asset that helps a business achieve predetermined goals. This is a practice that can be incorporated into any organization when adequate training is in place.
There are four basic goals that are met by the training of staff or personnel. One goal is to see improvements in productivity, efficiency, and effectiveness by increasing skills and employee potential. A second goal is to help employees to become better qualified to perform additional job duties. Managers and anyone in a supervisory role are given tools to help meet predefined objectives and goals. The fourth goal is to have adequate staff to reduce employee turnover.
Organizations that engage in IT training will not see results overnight. This process will take time for it to develop as employees who are not fully trained need more attention. The first task will be to create a plan of attack for any new training program. A business can use many types of training materials offered by an off-site technology vendor, such as DVD videos or online interactive training. A social media site, such as YouTube, also provides a source of training material.
Companies can also offer in-house training to new hires or existing employees. Internal resources are a good way to provide this training by implementing mentoring programs. A mentoring program is a way to assist others who are less experienced. In-house training is also a good option to cross-train employees in other areas of an organization.

IT Consultants Help Companies Outsource IT Support Services

When executives are asked to identify the most important aspect of their business, most will pick their information technology (IT) configuration. While these configurations provide businesses of all sizes with benefits, they can also be very costly to acquire and maintain. Business owners are always looking for ways to cut costs. Fortunately, there are ways that businesses can reduce the cost of running an IT configuration without sacrificing performance and capabilities. Executives that hire IT consultants will receive tips and advice for minimizing the cost of the IT infrastructure, as consultants use their years of experience and training to analyze current configurations and make recommendations. Companies can also choose to outsource services related to IT maintenance to IT management services firms that eliminate high administrative costs associated with completing these services internally. By outsourcing these services, businesses are able to cut costs and can allocate resources more efficiently to only perform the responsibilities that do not need to be outsourced.

A number of responsibilities can be outsourced to IT management services firms, who are able to complete these tasks at a highly efficient level while reducing costs. Frequently outsourced responsibilities and services are:

Data back-up: information is protected in the event of a crisis when a IT management services firm is hired to back-up important data.

Reasons Why Linear Algebra Should Be Taught In Any Engineering Course

Linear algebra is the branch of science that deals with linear equations, vectors, vector spaces, linear transformations, and systems of vectors. It has many applications that spread from science and engineering to the natural and social sciences.

Analytical geometry can express three dimensional space i.e. a graphs can not have more than three dimensions. Nevertheless, with linear algebra one can express a space with more than three dimensions and represent it in the form of data sets then computer simulations can be used that use certain techniques to represent and manipulate multidimensional systems without the need to represent data visually.

This subject's applications in science and engineering are not only restricted to modeling but extend a lot further than that. This subject has many other applications for example the analysis of rotation in space, curve fitting techniques and the differential equations solutions. It has more advanced applications like the engineering modeling of satellite and airplane engines. This is just a small example of linear algebra applications in science and engineering. There are many books written only on its engineering applications.

In arts, humanities, and social sciences, on the other hand, linear algebra has a saying. Imagine a musician or an artist playing on an instrument or a singer tuning his or her voice to make a pleasant sound that is appealing to the ear. Sound is all about wave frequencies. When a sound appeals to the ear this is because it is tuned in a certain frequency range and it has specific wave characteristics. By analyzing the frequency domain of the sound that appeals to the ear one can produce the desired tones at will and become in control of making the sound desirable to the ear. The knowledge of the frequency spectrum is used in the tuning of musical instruments.

Frequencies have many interesting applications in our every day lives. There is a very interesting story I heard about and I would like to share. In the nineteenth century in Manchester soldiers were marching on a bridge and the bridge suddenly collapsed. The reason for this was because the frequency of the waves produced by the soldiers as they marched across the bridge was equal to the natural resonance frequency of the bridge this caused the bridge to oscillate and collapse. In our day today soldiers are required to cut the rhythm of their march while crossing bridges.

Why Business Needs to Be Involved in Implementing an IT Solution

Companies are often in trouble when they realize afterward that the IT solution that they implemented was not what they really wanted. This is usually an afterthought in which prior events were they sunk millions of dollars into the technical solution which was branded as the next big thing for the company. When the organization realizes that the technical solution was not the case then this leads to high ranking officials taking the fall for the lack of planning that was not performed to select the best solution to meet the company's needs. This is a common theme in business which is worth repeating because of the number of failed projects which are still occurring in the information technology discipline. This is a very common problem to implement enterprise solutions when IT is decentralized in organizations.

All too often we hear about a technology product that someone has experienced in working in the past and they bring it into an organization without any system review procedures in place to only fail in the organization. Organizations need to develop processes, build governance, and use an enterprise architecture approach to getting the right stakeholders involved in developing a solution that would optimize the business. We need to connect the business strategy of the organization with the technical recommendations that makes sense for the organization.

PHP MySQL Development - Best Blend for Website Development

In order to meet with the high preset standards of competition, a website must be well developed and well designed... because let's face it, online sales and businesses can rocket only by power packed websites! The fusion of PHP website development along with MySQL has materialized an easy and powerful way to create dynamic web pages. PHP development and MySQL development, as a combination, help develop well formatted - interactive web pages. They also allow end users to make Boolean choices, calculate and carry out various such tasks. The only drawback they come with is that to develop such exceptionally operational websites using the combination of PHP website development and MySQL requires a skilled and experienced developer!

Some of the noteworthy features of PHP MySQL development include:

Compatibility with all operating systems
Runs smoothly on Apache and IIS
Multi-lingual, multi- browser support
Multiple database support
Maintains content and designing part separately
Both, PHP as well as MySQL are open source software and thus are free for installation and use. It is a widely known fact that PHP is considered to be among a developer's preferred languages to generate dynamic and interactive web pages. MySQL, on the other hand is a highly popular database management program which is mostly used with the combination of PHP. MySQL is an excellent RDBMS (Relational Database Management System), which supports flat files too for database integration allowing easy modification in database.

Web Crawlers: How Do They Work?

Web Crawlers or spiders are nothing but a computer program that crawls the web from a given seed page. For example, once a web-crawler is initialized for a web page it'll fetch all the links present on this page. After fetching these links, it'll push these links to the list of to_visit which internally is being implemented as a stack. Each link is popped from the stack and all the links are pushed one by one onto the to_visit stack. The link which was popped is being added to a list named visited. Similarly the web crawler goes on and on until the to_visit stack is empty.

Following is the stepwise function performed by the web spider:

Visit the given web page and the get the source code of the page.
From the source code extract all the links present on the web page
Add the visited page's link to the list named "visited".
Push the extracted links onto a stack "to_visit".
Pop the link from the stack "to_visit" and repeat the procedure from step 1 until the stack "to_visit" becomes empty.
By understanding the concept of a web crawler one gets to know a lot about the various concepts of computer science. You have a number of languages at your disposal to build a web-crawler. However, the Python language is mostly used and for obvious reasons. Python constructs are easy to understand as they are very much English like. Python is portable and extensible i.e. it is platform independent. Suffice is to say that Google's uses Python as the development language for most of it's products.

Using Python we can easily build a web-crawler with indexing feature in a couple of dozen lines. The keywords are mapped to it's respective link and maintained in a Dictionary type. Dictionary type is a built in data structure provided in Python. the Dictionary type stores value mapped to it's respective key. Therefore, the Dictionary type can easily be used to store the links(values) mapped to it's respective keyword(key). When searching for a specific keyword(key) the Python runtime extract the links(values) associated with that key.

Search Engine Friendly AJAX Navigation

AJAX is an excellent technology for providing interactive responsive websites. Most popular websites today use AJAX in one form or another. However, AJAX is an organic technology that has grown out of a need to lever more interactive techniques into a system that was never designed to work this way.

The fundamentals of the world-wide web are quite simple. The web is composed of web sites which in turn contain pages. All these pages are linked together in various ways by interconnecting links between each other. The address of a web page describes its exact location, and returning to that address should give you the same page.

The problem comes because AJAX moves significantly away from that paradigm. With AJAX, pages are modified on the fly by a combination of client side code and requests to the server for additional information. Obviously this means that the page available at a particular URL is fluid and constantly changing. This moves us away from the original World Wide Web idea of static pages linking themselves together.

So the problem we need to address is, how do we make our page's URL reflect the contents that our user is seeing? Firstly, if the modifications are slight and down to a user selecting various options, it may not be important to you that users returning to that URL see exactly what was on the screen when the URL was recorded. For example, a holiday site allowing users to select dates, times, number of people travelling, etc., would wish to have users start afresh without seeing the data that another user had entered.

However, if a site made fundamental modifications, for instance navigating between pages using AJAX, then it would more than likely be preferable for someone following that URL to see exactly the same page. For example, you may have designed a site where navigation between the pages uses some funky client side code that requests the page and fades it into a central area on the screen. In this instance, for all intents and purposes the user experience is one of having navigated to a different URL.

Ways To Learn Coding IOS Apps

There are tons of great ways out there to learn iOS these days. The great thing is that most of those resources are free and available instantly online!

In the early days, the only resources out there were books that you had to buy and read through. In fact, that's how I learned iOS. I wouldn't recommend learning this way today because one of the greatest learning resources available today are the Stanford iPhone Programming Course videos that are free on iTunes. There are about 50 videos and they are basically the course lectures taped and provided for free so that you can download them and watch them as if you were sitting in the classroom at Stanford University!

Even with this great resource, make sure that you do some actual coding and practice exercises throughout watching the videos. When I learned iOS development, I read through the whole book from front cover to back and realized that when I sat in front of the keyboard to write code, I didn't know where to start!

Just like reading the book front to back, if you watch all the lectures without ever doing any exercises, you won't absorb the material and at the end of the lectures, you'll have a deceiving confidence in yourself.

Only when you sit down in front of XCode (the development environment where you write code to build iOS apps), you'll realize that watching video lectures is not the same thing as actually doing the coding!

Everyday Heroes and the Theatre of Cunning

In Timothy Findley's novel The Wars, a young officer, Robert Ross, defies orders and releases horses and mules confined in a barn. It is WW1 and he is in an area of France being shelled by Germans. Releasing the animals is a way of saving them as the structure is an obvious target for the enemy. Ross is with the CFA - the Canadian Field Artillery - and it's his love of animals and justice that motivates him. It's also his last act before desertion. Afterwards, he tears the lapels from his uniform and goes AWOL.


Days later Ross is walking along train tracks and he discovers a lone mare and her companion, a mixed-breed dog. When they lead him to a convoy of boxcars carrying horses bound for the western front, Ross releases them too and travels north, leading them all to safety. When he passes a military encampment and a private tries to stop him, Ross shoots him. He is not court-marshalled, however. In the following standoff, he sustains burns so serious he is deemed unfit to be tried. He dies six years later, in England, of complications from those injuries. Having brought shame on his wealthy family, none save his father will ever visit his grave.

The point of The Wars, of course, is to assert that Ross' actions were heroic in context. His liberation of the horses is cast against the shadowy psychopathy of WW1, a psychopathy so hideous it kept high-ranking military men from touring the front. Had they done so, the carnage of the Somme, Ypres and Passchendaele might not have materialized. More soldiers, from all forces involved, might have made it home.

I taught Findley's novel for many years and the poignancy of its message was rarely lost on my students. Its depictions of war are rendered through the voice of a historian calmly sifting through documentary evidence. Via transcripts, interviews and photographs, Findley's characters come to life and we see that war's damage, its pathology and momentum. These forces are felt as far away as Toronto and are powerful enough to cause Ross' mother, a society matron, to stomp her way out of a "bloodthirsty" sermon to sit in the snow outside her church. To the dismay of her companion, she gets out her flask and starts sipping.

Mrs. Ross adjusted her veil but did not put the flask away. "I was afraid I was going to scream," she said. She gestured back at the church with its sermon in progress. "I do not understand. I don't. I won't. I can't. Why is this happening to us? What does it mean-to kill your children? Kill them and then... go in there and sing about it! What does that mean?

Top Six Trends That Will Power The Travel Industry In 2013

Consumers are evolving and the travel industry will need to keep up with their evolution with respect to the demands they have, their changing interests, and the technologies they are using to make certain travel decisions.

So, let's take a look at the top trends that I believe will define the travel industry in 2013.

Increased Digitizing of Marketing

The travel industry will digitize their marketing efforts. Not that they aren't already doing it, but now their digital marketing efforts, will get even more pronounced. More importantly, the travel industry will start using the power of mobility to target their customers. So, you will increasingly see in-app travel ads staring right at you out of your mobile devices.

This is just a small example of how marketing will and can get even more digital in its outlook.

Innovation will be about the Consumer

Again, this is something that has been happening in the travel industry for quite some time now, but now it will become even more so. A consumer like you and me wants a lot of choices; he wants the ability to make that choice in an environment of his choosing, and he wants to make that choice backed by solid information. What's more, he also wants to know whether he is making the right choice or not and the kind of travel choices others are making.

Well, for this consumer, focused innovation will be the key and more importantly this innovation needs to be convenient and integrated with social media. 2013 will be about going all out to meet the customers through a platform or channel of his choosing.

The Best Way To Find An IT Support Company That Suits Your Needs And Budget

Questions To Ask When Choosing An IT Support Company

Choosing an IT support provider that can provide solutions to your business needs can be quite complicated, especially for the uninitiated. It will help to have a checklist or a list of questions to ask the provider prior to hiring:

1. Do you offer a wide range of IT Support services that are adaptable enough to suit our needs and cater to our company's potential growth?

2. Will our business be entitled to unlimited support, or any discounts to any of your services?

3. Will our network be constantly monitored and will there be other relevant services offered to us, such as updates, server administration and maintenance?

4. Can we expect to receive a guaranteed response times whenever we encounter issues with the IT support you provide?

5. What industry standards, competencies and accreditations does you IT company have and are they certified by Microsoft?

These are but the questions that you need to ask the company you are considering to hire.

A prospective IT company which is in tune with clients' expectations is one that has been in business long enough and has been trained well in relevant disciplines. It should also have worked with both large and small enterprises finding viable solutions to their every need.

How Outsourcing IT Support Can Benefit Your Business And Turn In More Profit

Why Outsource Your IT Support Needs


When running a business, it can be tough making a decision regarding whether to hire an in-house IT support department or outsource instead. There are instances when it is far easier to just hire an in-house IT department, but as you will see within this article, there are more benefits in outsourcing IT support.
At a glance, here are some of the outstanding benefits in outsourcing your IT needs:

• It is easier to find experienced and cost-efficient technicians via outsourcing
• Outsourcing allows call sorting which gives more time in dealing server side and smaller side aspects
• Higher saving potential, as there is less overhead in outsourced IT support, compared to the financial downsides in supporting an in-house team and the equipment necessary
• Outsourced IT support teams may be able to provide 24/7/365 support

While it may not seem like a logical choice from the get-go, outsourcing IT support can actually do a lot to transform a business for the better. Below are much more concrete examples on how it can do that.

Cost-Efficient

Outsourcing IT services can mean a huge reduction in operational costs for the business. Today's outsourcing trends usually involve outsourcing work to countries abroad, who, more often than not, have lower costs of living. Because these countries do enjoy a lower cost of living, then it will mean that the company who pays for these employee's jobs end up spending less, while still being able to give them fair rates. This is where companies who choose to outsource can save a lot. One can employ an IT team abroad with the exact same number of workers, but spend significantly less on their salaries.

Microsoft Windows Evolution

MS-DOS 1.0

On Aug. 12, 1981, IBM introduces its personal computer with Microsoft's 16-bit operating system, MS-DOS 1.0. The "Microsoft Disk Operating System" or MS-DOS was based on QDOS, the "Quick and Dirty Operating System" written by Tim Paterson of Seattle Computer Products.

Windows 3.0

On May 22, 1990, Microsoft launches Windows 3.0 with GUI graphics, VGA support, and 3D effects similar to those in current versions of Windows. The OS introduces Program Manager and File Manager and is the first real OS success for Microsoft.


Windows NT 3.1

Microsoft launches Windows NT Advanced Server 3.1 on Oct. 24, 1993 as a continuation of its NT project under architect Dave Cutler. The OS launched the company into the LAN server market and introduces the Win32 API. "Windows NT represents nothing less than a fundamental change in the way that companies can address their business computing requirements," said company chairman Bill Gates when the OS was released.