I've heard a lot of stories about folks camping out to get the first release of certain products, but this is just ridiculous..."Man Begins Camping for iPhone 5..."
Rob Shoesmith of Britain is camping out infront of a Apple store in London in order to get the first release of the iPhone 5. Now, I can see how this is going to be an exciting release and I'm sure that there will be several people across the world camping out for the new iPhone, but what's ridiculous is that there is no release date set yet! Nobody knows what new features will be on the phone, nobody knows what it will look like, and he's camping out already!
What's also funny is how this man didn't bring any money with him, and is expecting to earn donations on his blog in order to get the phone. That seems selfish to me.
Note: I was excited for Verizon's release of the iPhone 4. All that I had to do was sign up for the presale, wake up at 3am on a weeknight, and order the phone. I had it shipped to me a week before it was released to the public. Jeeze man, go home! Order it online! YOU DON'T NEED TO CAMP OUT!
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Monday, August 8, 2011
Dr. Cloud
Taiwan's Department of Health's (DOH) Minister, Chui Wan-ta, announced over the weekend that CNA, a cloud-based healthcare information system for storing and sharing medical records in Taiwan, will be introduced soon to the country's medical facilities. More than 100 hospitals are expected to join CNA where patient diagnostic records and test results will be able to be shared across medical facilities.
In the past 10 years, there has been a world-wide push to computer-based Health Care Information Systems (HCIS), which makes it easier for patient information and records to be shared hospital to hospital. The move away from paper to computers allows patient information to be shared quickly, and helps to minimize medical errors, which result in several thousand fatalities per year.
Most people would first think that security will be a huge issue with sharing medical information on the cloud. This, though is a viable concern, will apparently not be an issue. Complex electronic signatures will be roadblocks for anybody trying to access information, and it will be hard to break codes.
This seems like a great idea to me. Like I said, hospitals are moving away from traditional paper records. The ability to store information on the cloud makes it possible for hospitals to share information across various Health Care Information Systems, as long as information can be integrated across platforms.
In the past 10 years, there has been a world-wide push to computer-based Health Care Information Systems (HCIS), which makes it easier for patient information and records to be shared hospital to hospital. The move away from paper to computers allows patient information to be shared quickly, and helps to minimize medical errors, which result in several thousand fatalities per year.
Most people would first think that security will be a huge issue with sharing medical information on the cloud. This, though is a viable concern, will apparently not be an issue. Complex electronic signatures will be roadblocks for anybody trying to access information, and it will be hard to break codes.
This seems like a great idea to me. Like I said, hospitals are moving away from traditional paper records. The ability to store information on the cloud makes it possible for hospitals to share information across various Health Care Information Systems, as long as information can be integrated across platforms.
Sunday, August 7, 2011
What's TV?
I realized I don't watch TV anymore.
What's caused this? Is it that the amount of "free time" that I have doesn't exist like it used to? Is it because I'd rather be out with friends after work vs. hanging around at home watching a show or baseball game? Are things on TV not as good as they used to be?
Well, part of the reason is because I'm not a fan of most shows on TV this day, except for Family Guy, of course.
However, I think the main reason is because of how much time I spend in front of a computer each day. At work, I work with computers. I don't actually write programs or do anything creative with computers, but I do service customers who work with computer software that my company sells. This being the case, my job consists of troubleshooting issues and mastering software applications that our customers use.
By the time I get home at the end of the day, I barely want to use my MacBook Pro, which is a computer that I bought about a year ago that I'm still in love with.
This story is coming from someone who uses a computer roughly 9 hours a day during the week. By the end of the day, I'm so tired of looking at computer screens that I don't use my home computer at home, and I also don't feel like watching TV. I can only imagine what kind of effects the computer screen may have on someone who works with computers all day every day for 10+ hours per day. Do these people still have the urge to watch TV or play video games at home? Computers and all that come with them are one of the best inventions of mankind, but what are the lasting effects of staring at computer screen day after day?
If I do watch TV at home at night, it's usually on my computer. I can't remember the last time that I watched TV, not DVR'd, and sat through commercials. It's interesting to think how the world of IT has changed my lifestyle. Now, I don't feel like watching TV after looking at screens all day, and if I do watch TV, I'm not even watching commercials. The marketing campaigns of 2011 are certainly not reaching me. As a result of my lifestyle, I'm consistently out of touch with pop culture and mainstream media. Sure, I go on Facebook, but that's really all I have for connecting to "what's hot".
I'm okay with all of this.
What's caused this? Is it that the amount of "free time" that I have doesn't exist like it used to? Is it because I'd rather be out with friends after work vs. hanging around at home watching a show or baseball game? Are things on TV not as good as they used to be?
Well, part of the reason is because I'm not a fan of most shows on TV this day, except for Family Guy, of course.
However, I think the main reason is because of how much time I spend in front of a computer each day. At work, I work with computers. I don't actually write programs or do anything creative with computers, but I do service customers who work with computer software that my company sells. This being the case, my job consists of troubleshooting issues and mastering software applications that our customers use.
By the time I get home at the end of the day, I barely want to use my MacBook Pro, which is a computer that I bought about a year ago that I'm still in love with.
This story is coming from someone who uses a computer roughly 9 hours a day during the week. By the end of the day, I'm so tired of looking at computer screens that I don't use my home computer at home, and I also don't feel like watching TV. I can only imagine what kind of effects the computer screen may have on someone who works with computers all day every day for 10+ hours per day. Do these people still have the urge to watch TV or play video games at home? Computers and all that come with them are one of the best inventions of mankind, but what are the lasting effects of staring at computer screen day after day?
If I do watch TV at home at night, it's usually on my computer. I can't remember the last time that I watched TV, not DVR'd, and sat through commercials. It's interesting to think how the world of IT has changed my lifestyle. Now, I don't feel like watching TV after looking at screens all day, and if I do watch TV, I'm not even watching commercials. The marketing campaigns of 2011 are certainly not reaching me. As a result of my lifestyle, I'm consistently out of touch with pop culture and mainstream media. Sure, I go on Facebook, but that's really all I have for connecting to "what's hot".
I'm okay with all of this.
Friday, August 5, 2011
Spotify...What an Idea!
Spotify is the newest website out offering music fans a way to stream their favorite music. Users can log in, stream music, and share their favorites with the world. This website is taking off quickly in European countries and is just now making its way to the United States.
For artists, this is a great innovation for them. Spotify offers artists about 1 cent per song streamed, which is better than nothing! Other websites, such as Grooveshark and YouTube do not offer this feature. This is a great alternative to Apple's iTunes, where songs cost a dollar each. I'm sure that artists make more money off of iTunes, but fans do not have to shell out any money for Spotify. Fans can now stream music with no strings attached without feeling like they are committing any crimes.
I checked out Spotify for myself. I'm not able to actually sign up at the moment because I need to be invited by a current member. I'm looking at the features, and it seems like a great service to be a part of:
For artists, this is a great innovation for them. Spotify offers artists about 1 cent per song streamed, which is better than nothing! Other websites, such as Grooveshark and YouTube do not offer this feature. This is a great alternative to Apple's iTunes, where songs cost a dollar each. I'm sure that artists make more money off of iTunes, but fans do not have to shell out any money for Spotify. Fans can now stream music with no strings attached without feeling like they are committing any crimes.
I checked out Spotify for myself. I'm not able to actually sign up at the moment because I need to be invited by a current member. I'm looking at the features, and it seems like a great service to be a part of:
- Music flowing without an online connection
- Ability to listen to songs on your mobile device
- Share music with others
- Create playlists of your favorite songs
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Oracle inquires about Inquira
Inquira, a privately held company in San Francisco, specializes in the creation of Knowledge Management Systems. A Knowledge Management System is a way of storing and creating data within an organization for purposes streamlining business activities, among others reasons. Inquira has mastered the art of designing KM systems for organizations worldwide.
Oracle Corporation, a large company which specializes in designing database management systems and is also located in California, has purchased Inquira at an undisclosed price. One can only imagine that such a purchase must be generating some cash flow.
The purpose of this transaction is to allign similar businesses, who are leaders in their specialities, and design products which can manage knowledge while also using database capabilities. Not only will such a product integrate the two concepts of knowledge management and database use, but the already existing ways in which organizations use each of Oracle and Inquira's products independently from one another will have limitless possibilities in anything they wish to compute. At least, this is what I envision when I think of such a product.
It seems like a great idea for these companies to join up. They both have intelligent employees who are most likely eager to work with one another. Inquira CEO Mike Murphy is excited to join Oracle's team and he offers the same opinion from his employees.
Oracle Corporation, a large company which specializes in designing database management systems and is also located in California, has purchased Inquira at an undisclosed price. One can only imagine that such a purchase must be generating some cash flow.
The purpose of this transaction is to allign similar businesses, who are leaders in their specialities, and design products which can manage knowledge while also using database capabilities. Not only will such a product integrate the two concepts of knowledge management and database use, but the already existing ways in which organizations use each of Oracle and Inquira's products independently from one another will have limitless possibilities in anything they wish to compute. At least, this is what I envision when I think of such a product.
It seems like a great idea for these companies to join up. They both have intelligent employees who are most likely eager to work with one another. Inquira CEO Mike Murphy is excited to join Oracle's team and he offers the same opinion from his employees.
Thursday, July 28, 2011
How's My Face Look?
The discussion in class about Facebook's new facial recognition technology inspired me to research further on this topic.
As you would assume, most people think this is an extremely creepy feature of Facebook. Though I tend to agree, it's not really as bad as it sounds. In fact, it seems like it'll be a time saver for those people who are avid photo posters.
When you tag a friend in a photo, Facebook will remember what the friend looks like, and will suggest tags in the future if it recognizes your friend in future picture posts. Users have the ability to opt out of using this feature, which is good for those people who are creeped out.
Though it is wild to think that technology has advanced so much that computers are able to identify people based on their facial structure, this piece of technology being added to Facebook photo posts isn't that big of a deal to me. To me, it seems like this technology is speeding up the process of tagging photos, which is something that the user was going to most likely do anyway. If the poster of photos isn't happy with the tagged pictures, they can always untag their friend's name. Also, if the subject of the picture isn't happy with being tagged, they can always untag themselves as well.
More is discussed in an article off PC World called Why Facebook's Facial Recognition is Creepy
Did you know that over 200 million photos are uploaded to Facebook per day?! I didn't...
As you would assume, most people think this is an extremely creepy feature of Facebook. Though I tend to agree, it's not really as bad as it sounds. In fact, it seems like it'll be a time saver for those people who are avid photo posters.
When you tag a friend in a photo, Facebook will remember what the friend looks like, and will suggest tags in the future if it recognizes your friend in future picture posts. Users have the ability to opt out of using this feature, which is good for those people who are creeped out.
Though it is wild to think that technology has advanced so much that computers are able to identify people based on their facial structure, this piece of technology being added to Facebook photo posts isn't that big of a deal to me. To me, it seems like this technology is speeding up the process of tagging photos, which is something that the user was going to most likely do anyway. If the poster of photos isn't happy with the tagged pictures, they can always untag their friend's name. Also, if the subject of the picture isn't happy with being tagged, they can always untag themselves as well.
More is discussed in an article off PC World called Why Facebook's Facial Recognition is Creepy
Did you know that over 200 million photos are uploaded to Facebook per day?! I didn't...
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
3G vs. 4G: Is it Worth the Switch?
Talking about the differences between Android and iPhone and the discussion of 3G vs. 4G during class prompted me to research further. I'm interested in the real differences between 3 and 4G and what the benefits are to switching to a 4G network. Can it really be that much of a difference?
Well, in an article from June 2011, Amy Lee discusses her own findings as well as comments from Verizon/AT&T experts: "3G vs. 4G: What You Should Know Before You Switch"
This article seems, to me, make 4G not seem worth the switch as of right now. 4G, shorthand for 4th Generation Wireless, has been on the tip of mobile users' tongues for a while now, but I haven't seen many people with 4G phones yet. 4G is supposed to be faster, mainly, which allows users to download/stream videos, music, and websites faster.
While it may be faster, studies show that the increased speeds and capabilities will also lead to a higher data usage, which cell companies are starting to charge heavily for. For example, AT&T charges $25/month for 2GB of data with an excess fee of $10 for each GB over the limit.
Benefits to 4G:
AT&T released data stating that data volumes for customers on their broadband network have increased data usage by 8,000% in the past four years (one GB equal to 35 hours of music or 5 hours of video streaming).
Though consumers seem to be itching for 4G capabilities, experts say that even by 2015, only about 5% of mobile users will be on this faster network. That's opposing what I previously thought, which was that everybody wants to be on 4G. Personally, I think that 3G is good enough for me for now, and until I see real benefits to switching to 4G, I'm sticking with what I have. It's fast enough to do whatever I want without draining my iPhone battery.
Well, in an article from June 2011, Amy Lee discusses her own findings as well as comments from Verizon/AT&T experts: "3G vs. 4G: What You Should Know Before You Switch"
This article seems, to me, make 4G not seem worth the switch as of right now. 4G, shorthand for 4th Generation Wireless, has been on the tip of mobile users' tongues for a while now, but I haven't seen many people with 4G phones yet. 4G is supposed to be faster, mainly, which allows users to download/stream videos, music, and websites faster.
While it may be faster, studies show that the increased speeds and capabilities will also lead to a higher data usage, which cell companies are starting to charge heavily for. For example, AT&T charges $25/month for 2GB of data with an excess fee of $10 for each GB over the limit.
Benefits to 4G:
- Fast streaming/downloading of media
- Can be up to 10x faster than 3G wireless devices
- Could help broadband access capabilities in rural areas
- Increased data usage makes it easy to exceed monthly data usage limits
- Faster speeds doesn't equate to fewer dropped calls
- 4G is not currently available everywhere on the map
- Switching to 4G service (on Verizon) is automatic, but switching back to 3G is laggy and battery draining
AT&T released data stating that data volumes for customers on their broadband network have increased data usage by 8,000% in the past four years (one GB equal to 35 hours of music or 5 hours of video streaming).
Though consumers seem to be itching for 4G capabilities, experts say that even by 2015, only about 5% of mobile users will be on this faster network. That's opposing what I previously thought, which was that everybody wants to be on 4G. Personally, I think that 3G is good enough for me for now, and until I see real benefits to switching to 4G, I'm sticking with what I have. It's fast enough to do whatever I want without draining my iPhone battery.
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