Computer Support Blog

The concept of a social network is actually a very simple one: you log into a network, provide information about yourself and develop a channel to share interests and information with other people in your life.  As well, you may use a social network to expand your circle of friends by starting conversations with likeminded people who share some of the same interests as you.  One of the coolest products on the Internet, is expanding the perception of what a social network can be by offering options that make for a very real photo network!  The service is the Ceiva PicturePlan Photo Delivery Service and it is innovative, fresh, and very cool. Read more »

Virtually anyone with a real talent not directly related to their field of employment who has friends will be told “you should do that professionally!”  While friends mean well by such compliments, they seldom realize that starting a business is a huge task, often involves a skill set entirely different from the skill or product that their friends love, and they are asking their friend to take something they love doing and become dependent upon it for income.  Very few people have the wherewithal to go through with such an endeavor.  However, Julie Degnan not only made a business out of her hobby, she had all the business skills to make it a success! Read more »

Style and fashion can be a tough sell using the Internet.  The Internet is great for presenting images of cutting-edge styles and connecting users to sales points, but many style shoppers have discovered that products hardly seem as glamorous as the digitally touched-up images they saw online make them look.  Fashion shoppers frequently find that colors are not as precisely rendered on their computer monitors, resulting in negative shopping experiences that can leave them out of the current trend.  But one woman has found a very effective way to synergize online shopping, social networks and the in-person shopping experience.  That business visionary is Jessica Herrin! Read more »

This year will see some exciting new sites and developments on the Internet and in the world of mobile computing.  As Microsoft prepares to return to the tablet computer market, Apple leaks rumors of its iPhone 5 and the giants of technology sue one another repeatedly over alleged patent violations, many exciting new start-ups are readying for public launch.  One of the applications that is generating a great deal of buzz already is Vizify, a service that will cull your social networking information to allow you to create an uber-profile that puts the best of you at the forefront of the Internet.  Vizify is nearing completion and taking it the last steps to launch is what Eli Tucker is entirely focused on these days! Read more »

Good ideas are only executed as viable business endeavors when the founder of a start-up assembles a team that can make that vision become a reality.  Recently, Vivian Rosenthal won a Next Generation Award for being one of the top five female leaders in the tech industry as honored by L’Oreal.  Rosenthal won her award for founding and managing GoldRun, a website that allows users to place images of real world people and objects into a digital setting based on GPS technology.  The ambitious project has allowed users and advertisers to interact in exciting new ways.  Rosenthal’s vision created GoldRun, but people like Tiffany Grace Ng built and maintain it! 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 »

When one thinks of online social networks, the names that tend to be on the tip of the tongue are Facebook, Twitter, the emerging Google+ and (usually in the past tense) MySpace.  Very few people remember or consider LinkedIn a social network.  While LinkedIn’s slogan is “The World’s Largest Professional Network,” few consider it a social network. Most LinkedIn users utilize the site as a place to learn about potential employees or employers and to have a centralized place for one’s resume on the Internet.  LinkedIn, however, is working hard to change that; it wants to be a social network that users use for all manner of social networking activities. Read more »

Strategic partnerships are, largely, built upon the needs of groups, companies, or individuals at the time the partnership is made.  As is frequent in the business world and tech sector, times change and the needs of companies in both fields are dramatically altered.  As a result, strategic alliances between tech companies and prominent businesses are occasionally dissolved.  One of the latest partnerships to call it quits is the alliance between Microsoft and NBC which resulted in the MSNBC news channel and website. Read more »

Even though Facebook continues to grow and dominate the social network market, the Internet giant has had a pretty rough first half of the year.  The Facebook stock offering was fumbled and the value of the company remains below where it was when the IPO occurred.  Even before Facebook went public, one of the nagging concerns to both the corporate executives and potential investors was how Facebook was monetizing on mobile platforms.  No company, Facebook included, has yet produced a reliable, consistent, and strong revenue stream from advertisements launched on smartphones and tablet computers.  However, Facebook may be prepared to change that, which is making Facebook users wary. Read more »

Since the founding of the United States, one of the fundamental freedoms of the nation has been Freedom of the Press.  Made possible by Freedom of Speech, Freedom of the Press was intended to keep the citizenry educated and informed, the theory being that such measures could prevent tyranny.  It is a great theory.  However, over the years, political machinations (yellow journalism), business interests (media consolidation) and sloth have weakened the Fourth Estate of the United States.  The final blow to Freedom of the Press may well come from the tech sector as the tech sector is currently eroding some of the last definitive standards of the mainstream press. Read more »