Computer Support Blog

Computers truly have become integrated in virtually every aspect of life and work in the United States. Those who used to go outside to get away from electronics, experience something primal, or just wanted to enjoy an outdoor hobby, are now finding technology is inescapable.  Between the psychological pull to check your social networks and the ability to keep in touch at all times using hands free devices like Bluetooth headsets, there is a constant pressure to use all the gadgets you own constantly.  Not all of technology’s incursions into outdoor life are bad, though.  There is a great deal of home improvement software and landscaping software that can actually make your outdoor projects much easier.  To make your garden look beautiful and professional, there is the GardenWorks software as well! Read more »

With the media world moving more from an industry that is based in the physical world to one that is digital, there are very few businesses that remain unaffected.  One of the industries that is experiencing significant shifts in the way it creates and manufactures products is the greeting card industry.  Facing stiff competition from online card companies, traditional greeting card companies like Hallmark Cards are forced to innovate.  Hallmark Cards may have been in a better position to compete, as it had built its brand name into an award-winning multimedia company (with the Hallmark Hall of Fame movies) well before online card companies became a viable threat to their bottom line.  Even now, Hallmark has less to be concerned about because it has Paul Barker. Read more »

The relationship between media – movies, music, and television – continues to get closer and closer.  In fact, one of the most significant channels with which to promote new movies or programs is the Internet.  The Internet has numerous sites that act as repositories for clips, news, and historical archives for film, television, and music.  One of the most prominent sites for cinephiles is the Internet Movie Database, but for those who are much more interested in critiques and analysis, Rotten Tomatoes has rapidly grown into one of the coolest sites on the Internet. Read more »

An alternative to an expensive, high quality, high definition television – for those who have the space – is a digital video projector.  Digital video projectors have progressed to the point that one may get true high definition resolution and even 3-D visuals when connected to compatible equipment (like a 3-D Blu-Ray player).  For those who want to be able to create a true home theater experience and who might want to share their DVD or Blu-Ray collection with others in a larger visual format than even today’s HDTVs, the digital video projector is for you!  One of the premium digital projectors on the market today is the ViewSonic Pro8500. Read more »

When the Apple iPhone 4S was released, there was much ado made over Siri, the talking virtual butler program that was integrated into the new iPhone.  Siri receives input through verbal commands and inquiries and responds in a pleasant, feminine voice.  While Apple has been lauded for the technology (and criticized for its flaws), it is not the only company diligently working on voice recognition and vocal delivery software.  In fact, compared to LumenVox – a company working in the vocal engine software industry for over a decade – Apple is a relative newcomer!  Currently pushing the envelope of all that LumenVox creates is Nigel Quinnin. Read more »

Unlike some of the clone sites of Pinterest that sprouted up when Pinterest’s meteoric rise to popularity began, most notably Shopalong, Pinterest has been stumbling through monetizing the site.  While the executives at Pinterest are not at all resistant to the idea of monetizing, like Facebook’s founders were when they were simply focused on creating something new and cool, Pinterest has been slower than some similar sites to figure out how to make money off its own popularity.  For the last month, though, Pinterest has taken steps to stop others from making money off the site, even as it figures out how to better generate revenue itself.  Some of the ways Pinterest is working, under the guise of stopping spam, to prevent other individuals and sites from utilizing Pinterest include: Read more »

As technology companies try to homogenize virtually all of their products, it is very easy to distinguish the professionals from the amateurs who simply enjoy the novelty of new gadgets.  A professional photographer does not want to take photographs on their smartphone.  A professional filmmaker does not want to rely upon a laptop computer to make their feature film.  In a similar vein, professional interviewers and musicians do not rely upon equipment that does eighteen different things; they utilize digital voice recorders.  One of the premiere digital voice recorders on the market is the TASCAM DR-100mk II. Read more »

Some of the coolest products in the tech sector come from very specific niche markets.  After all, not everyone needs a golf watch that helps them measure from the tee to the hole better or a scanner they can take on an airplane.  But for those who love stargazing or checking out earthbound occurrences through the curtain of night, there are a number of pretty cool products available.  One of the neatest is the Galactic View Star Gazer 60mm Monocular. Read more »

For many people, the idea of teleconferencing was a novelty idea in television shows like Star Trek and Mission: Impossible!  In one of the most pragmatic translations of science fiction into technological fact, communicating virtually instantaneously using both visual images and an audio transmission is now a reality.  One of the coolest pieces of hardware that makes this possible is the Polycom Unified Conference Station. Read more »

About fifteen years ago, the consumer software market was all abuzz over voice recognition technology.  You could buy programs that, after a training session that created a template of your specific voice, intonation, and speech patterns, could (supposedly) recognize vocal commands.  Between tragically slow computer processors and comparatively limited hard drive space relative to the demands of such vocal recognition training programs, many consumers discovered that voice operation of their computers was more of a boondoggle than a benefit.  Now, with applications like Siri from Apple, voice recognition has progressed to the point where it is a practical way to interact with many computer devices.  So, what is the next step; what is like voice recognition was fifteen years ago to push the envelope forward?  That would be thought recognition and it is no longer just a science fiction concept! Read more »