Computer Support Blog

Two major players have long dominated online ticketing: Ticketmaster and StubHub.  Ticketmaster controls the market for direct purchase of tickets from venues and performers, while StubHub controls the market for secondhand tickets and resellers.  However, a cool product that has recently popped up that might change the online ticketing marketplace up with some innovative features and concepts.  This cool product is SeatGeek.  SeatGeek does online ticketing, but acts as a search engine rather than a direct seller or reseller.  The company aggregates every ticket deal for any live event that it finds on the Internet.  Users can search for the best deals in live entertainment from the SeatGeek web page.  SeatGeek aggregates ticket deals for sporting events, live music, theater and even comedy shows.  The website provides visitors with a simple interface involving a large search bar, similar in design to major web search engines such as Google and Bing.  All a user has to do is type in what they are looking for and SeatGeek scours the net for the best possible deal for that event, artist, or venue.  It’s unlikely someone will need help to navigate the website with this design, but there are remote tech support services available if someone does have trouble. Read more »

It’s a common phrase uttered to college students: “You should really go abroad.”  It’s true that studying abroad while someone’s in school can open a person up to new experiences and give them insight they otherwise would not have had.  However, not all study abroad programs are equal.  Many students unfortunately go on the recommendation of others but choose a less-than-excellent program.  Cool person in technology Mitch Gordon has created a website called Go Overseas that looks to prevent students from choosing the wrong study abroad program for them.  Gordon’s website is a directory for thousands of different study abroad programs that are available to students.  People can look at abroad programs available for travel all over the world on Go Overseas.  Users can also leave reviews and give third-party advice about specific programs to help anyone who’s searching through study abroad ideas.  The resources that Gordon offers through his website are potentially far more useful to interested students than the usual advertising brochures that different programs distribute.  If someone is looking for honest opinions and the complete picture about different study abroad programs, Gordon’s website provides a comprehensive look at a person’s options.  If a student has problems accessing different areas of Gordon’s website, they should seek help from a computer tech support provider. Read more »

Keeping track of one’s money has never been something people enjoy.  While the act does come easier to some of us, many people struggle with even their day-to-day financial planning and run into trouble all too quickly.

Chext is a cool product available on the web and on mobile devices that helps people who struggle with their money.  Chext provides customers with a web platform for keeping a financial calendar and scheduling payments, but the real innovation from this company involves text messaging.  Chext tracks people’s spending and sends them texts whenever there is an unexpected purchase or when their bank accounts drop uncharacteristically low.  These texts alert clients when something is wrong with their account or when they are simply spending too much money.  Chext provides a way to alert someone automatically when money management has become an issue.  With this cool product, even people who generally struggle with handling their personal finance can have a safety net that keeps their unnecessary spending in check.  Read more »

Working remotely or from home is becoming essential for many businesses.  With all the time many professionals have to spend on their jobs, some of it has to come while they’re not at the office in many situations.  Most remote work comes through desktop applications and remote control of office computers.  However, with the recent boost in the use of mobile devices for professional applications, there is a growing need to be able to use smartphone to access work-related content.  Cool person in technology Israel Lifshitz founded Nubo for exactly this reason.  Nubo is a mobile application that remotely connects professionals’ smartphones to the computers at their offices.  Lifshitz’s app essentially gives workers a remote connection to their work in their pocket or purse at all times. This connection makes completing necessary work functions while away from the office quick and easy.  In fact, given the portability of mobile devices, users can access important files, send e-mails, and set up meetings even while they’re out or traveling.  The remote function in Lifshitz’s software is similar to, but not exactly the same as, technology that remote computer repair companies use to access people’s PCs.  With this cool person’s mobile software, professionals may be able to access work easier than ever before, whether from home or on the road. Read more »

Hiring personal tutors to help students with subjects that they are struggling with in school has been a growing trend for many years now.  With standardized tests carrying so much weight in college admissions as well, an entire sub-industry of SAT preparation tutoring continues to grow as well.  However, despite these trends, there aren’t many online resources for finding a quality tutor when a student needs help.  Cool person in technology Andrew Geant is trying to change that with his company WyzAnt.  WyzAnt offers people a database of tutors in a slew of different available subjects.  Website users can book tutoring services directly through the website.  WyzAnt has tutors available for all primary and secondary school grade levels.  Subjects that Geant’s company provide help for include math, foreign languages, science, English, and test prep.  Geant also offers a limited number of tutors for other, advanced subjects such as economics, finance, accounting, and computers.  WyzAnt even offers some physical education tutors and personal coaches for sports.  Geant wants WyzAnt to be the go-to resource for tutoring help with all subjects so that any student that needs the help can get it.  Those who have difficulty using the WyzAnt website can get computer support to help them use the site and book a tutor. Read more »

Most professionals have to create presentations for co-workers, bosses, or conference-goers at some point in their career.  For many people however, these presentations are few and far between, but that doesn’t make them any less important.  Professionals that don’t get a lot of experience with creating presentation aides such as slideshows often commit design faux pas in their presentation and weaken it.  Deck is a cool product in the tech industry that looks to make it easy for even completely inexperienced individuals to create visually appealing presentations that can help captivate an audience.  Deck makes it possible to create presentations with little experience with the help of their web-based tools.  Deck’s online toolset presents itself to users as an outline of sorts.  Users fill in each line of the outline, just as if they were taking notes on the paper or subject material on which they’re presenting.  People can also attach images to any part of the outline if they want to include pictures with their presentation.  Once an outline is complete, users select a theme from a list of options and Deck creates an animated presentation automatically.  Since Deck is a web-based tool and not a piece of software, any users who have trouble accessing it will need network support to troubleshoot the problem with their Internet connection. Read more »

Reviewing places and things has become an essential aspect of the Internet.  Every major online retailer has a review system for customers to use with the products they sell. Most blogs and news sources on the Internet contain sections for product and entertainment reviews. Even major web companies like Google incorporate reviews into their online services.  However, with so many reviews spread out across so many sites, there is no easy way to get the full picture on the quality of a product without investing significant time into the project.  Cool person in technology Ryan Charles wants to change that with his service called Consumr.  Consumr is a website and mobile app that provides people with a collection of the available online reviews for any packaged good on command.  Consumr is an unbiased third party that simply gathers information about products from reviews that already exist on the web.  This fact means users can trust Consumr to provide a complete and objective picture of a product’s quality based on all of its online reviews.  Charles’s company collects both professional and customer reviews to ensure that people have all the information they need about any given item.  Any user who needs help downloading Consumr’s iPhone app can get Apple tech support to fix the problem. Read more »

Motivating yourself to go to the gym when you’re trying to get in shape is difficult enough.  In many ways, it’s even harder to push yourself to go as hard as possible during your workout routine.  How many people do you think have cut exercises out of their routines, or done fewer reps in their sets because it’s more comfortable to do the minimum?  GymFu is a cool product available for smartphones that gets you to work harder when you work out.  GymFu aims to make sure that you push yourself and intensify your workouts to get the absolute most out of them every time.  If you are someone that constantly gets stuck in the same workout routine and benefits little from it, then this cool product might be exactly what you need.  GymFu helps users increase the reps and sets in their workout routines over time.  On the company website, it says that so far, 40% of the app’s users double the reps in their workouts.  Assuming these numbers are accurate, GymFu is clearly working for the people who have downloaded it so far.  The GymFu app is currently only available on Apple devices.  That means you’re going to need iPhone support if you’re unfamiliar with Apple mobile products and have trouble with them. Read more »

Living with diabetes is no easy task, even with all the advances of medical technology in the last few decades.  One of the most difficult aspects of living with the condition is the need to keep track of one’s body chemistry constantly.  Cool person in technology Erez Raphael wants to make it easier and more convenient for diabetics to track their blood sugar and insulin.  Raphael’s company, Dario, has developed a small mobile phone accessory and companion app that let diabetics check their blood with their smartphone.  Usually, people require separate devices for checking their blood sugar and insulin levels.  Even worse, these devices are often very expensive and invasive to the user.  Dario is a very small device that plugs directly into a smartphone’s headphone jack.  The device holds a number of strip cartridges that provide minimal discomfort when sampling blood.  Users can easily insert and eject cartridges without expending much effort. The lightweight convenience of this device is certainly a preferable alternative to more complicated and painful dedicated devices for the same purpose.  Any user who has a broken headphone jack on their smartphone will need smartphone PC repair in order to use Raphael’s device. Read more »

Skateboarding has grown from a niche interest to a major aspect of pop culture over the last few decades.  With the interest in skateboarding having increased so much for younger kids, there is a need for a stable source of skating instruction.  Cool person in technology Rob Dunfey wants to fill this need with his company Go Skate.  Go Skate is an online web portal that offers skateboard instruction in various formats to anyone who wants to learn.  Dunfey’s company uses the web to offer those interested in skateboarding a convenient resource from which they can acquire lessons and help.  The site has connections to instructors in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and even Ireland.  Users can book lessons on the site directly.  People can search and filter by both price and location.  Dunfey has even created a gift certificate program for his site.  Gift cards sold in stores such as Wal-Mart and Target work universally as payment for skateboard instructing across continents.  Anyone who has trouble booking a lesson on Dunfey’s website or needs help navigating the site in any way can get assistance from a remote tech support provider.    Read more »