Cloud based tool tutorial

For my cloud based tool I chose to cover Dropbox. I started using Dropbox just last year and have installed it on all my mobile devices as well as my laptop. It allows me to access my photos and documents from virtually anywhere and also share them with friends and family. Hopefully the tutorial linked below will guide you to setting up and using Dropbox as well.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BznqLTNqykhWeE1mUmZCR1FURlU/edit?usp=sharing

Week 14- Google Car

Today, my friends, we are one step closer to the future man has been dreaming of for years; self-driving cars. That's right Google has apparently been testing their automated driving system, imaginatively titled Google Car, out in California and have logged over 700,000 miles so far (2014, Miners). So far they seem to be getting better at identifying road hazards associated with city streets such as construction, stopped cars, cyclists, and those oh-so-evil pedestrians. What this means is that Google is still making strides to one day automating the driving experience so that people don't have to stop playing Flappy Birds, Tweeting their lunch plans, or taking selfies.
I personally would love to see this happen if not for the reasons others would. The ability for a car to drive an injured person (or someone that had a heart attack while driving) to the hospital even if they are unconscious, or prevent someone from swerving into oncoming traffic because they fell asleep at the wheel; these are the scenarios that I am most interested in taking advantage of Google Car. Convenience will always be a factor, but the possibilities for a safer driving experience should always come first.



Miners, Z. (2014, April 28). Google's self-driving cars are cruising through neighborhoods. Retrieved from InfoWorld website: http://www.infoworld.com/d/consumerization-of-it/googles-self-driving-cars-are-cruising-through-neighborhoods-241468

Useful Cloud Based Tools

Below are some cloud based tools/apps that I think could be useful. I haven't used all of them, but if I had need of what they offer I certainly would.

Evernote- http://evernote.com/evernote/
Evernote is the cloud replacement for post-it notes. It is an app that saves information such as to-do lists, reminders, notes, and more. Anything that a person might would do to make a note of something is available from audio to video. All of this information is stored on the cloud and is accessible either from their website or through a free app available on most mobile platforms. Information can be shared with friends who also have and Evernote account. Limits are placed on the data uploaded per month for the free account, but the premium and business versions (which you pay for) increase this.

Mint- https://www.mint.com/what-is-mint/?cid=ppc_gg_b_stan_Main-Mint&kw=mint&srid=sr3_1906961_go
Mint is a cloud based financial tracking tool. It allows you to collect all your financial information to one secure spot on the cloud and track it from anywhere. Mint can be used to establish budgets, payment reminders, account alerts and more. Information is secured by the same means as regular online banking and is available on their website or through a mobile app.

Amazon Kindle Cloud Reader- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/ref=sa_menu_karl?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771
Amazon offers a free e-book reader app for mobile devices and computers that allows you to read or sync e-books from the cloud. This requires you to create a free Amazon account (or link an existing one), and books must go through Amazon to be read on the app. E-books can be bought, but there are a number of books available free on the Amazon marketplace (mostly classics) or through local library programs such as Overdrive.

Dropbox- https://www.dropbox.com/
Probably one of the most well know cloud storage programs in the world, Dropbox is also one of the most popular. While it's true that you only start with 2Gb of storage for the free service, it is relatively easy to expand this by adding friends through shared folders, downloading the Dropbox interface app to a computer, and syncing up with a mobile app. I was able to more than double my available storage within minutes simply by doing things I was already planning to do. Shared folders can be secured so that only the owner can alter them or other users can be allowed more privileges.

Google Cloud Print- https://www.google.com/cloudprint/learn/
Google Cloud Print allows a user to connect a networked or internet connected printer to the cloud and print to it from anywhere they have internet access. This works best with printers already designed for cloud use, but is usable with all printers. Google Cloud Print is limited to a certain list of apps (Chrome first and foremost) that are compatible with the service, but that list is rather long and includes items from every variety of device.

Week 13 - Nanotechnology

Growing up I was always fascinated by science fiction. Between Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica, and Star Wars my imagination was catapulted into the future and the amazing things we might one day be capable of. Over the past 30 years, I have seen a steady progression towards that future (minus stupid flying cars) and this past week we have taken another step through nanotechnology. Nanotechnology is a science developed around microscopic machines or items that work towards a specific purpose and often self-replicate. In science fiction they perform microscopic surgery from the inside of the patient, rebuild space ships, and destroy civilizations; but today we are talking about batteries. An Israeli company called StoreDot has created a crystal NanoDot that acts as a capacitor for improved electrical flow. At a recent industry event in Tel Aviv, they were able to fully charge a dead Samsung battery to full charge in less than a minute. (Lomas, 2014) There appear to be many more possible applications of the technology and my inner geek can't help but get excited about another piece of my childhood dreams coming true.

Lomas, Natasha. (2014, April 7). "StoreDot’s Bio-Organic Battery Tech Can Charge From Flat To Full In 30 Seconds." Techcrunch.com Retrieved from http://techcrunch.com/2014/04/07/storedots-bio-organic-battery-tech-can-charge-from-flat-to-full-in-30-seconds/

Check out this link for an interview with the CEO of Nanotronics Imaging:
http://techcrunch.com/2014/04/07/keen-on-nanotechnology-how-it-changes-everything/

Week 12 - Thunderbolt

Like most of us, I am used to plugging almost everything into my computer via USB. It was only as I started researching components for a new computer that I discovered that USB (currently on version 3.0) is not the only game in town any more and I don't mean Firewire or SATA either. In the past few years Intel has released a new I/O connector called Thunderbolt. Currently on its second version Thunderbolt 2 Technology boasts an amazing transfer rate of 20 Gbps (Shah, 2014). This is in comparison to USB 3.0 which has a transfer rate of 5 GBPS. USB is trying to catch up, but their new release for later this year, USB 3.1, is only rated at 10 Gbps which is equal to the original Thunderbolt (USB, 2014). So the question is, "Why haven't we heard more about this amazing technology?"

The answer is simple and comes down to two reasons:
First is cost. Like any new technology the starting cost is higher that existing technology. As time passes new technology will become cheaper as production costs improve and streamline into better methods and materials.
Second is inertia. The market is saturated with USB. Any new tech that might displace USB is fighting against all the companies and manufacturers that already have invested in USB and don't want the expense required to change their products. You are also struggling against the public and their perception of USB as the best I/O connection out there. People are often slow to change, especially if they don't see a problem with the existing technology.

Since the creator of Thunderbolt is Intel, it is starting to make a big push. As of right now we are only seeing Thunderbolt in a few areas, though it is growing. Thunderbolt can be found in some Apple computers and peripherals, newer high end motherboards for Intel processors, external hard drives, express docks, and more. If you don't have a motherboard that supports Thunderbolt you can purchase a expansion card by third parties such as ASUS.

Shah, Agam. (2014, March 11.) "Intel bides time on faster Thunderbolt connector." PCWorld. Retrieved from http://www.pcworld.com/article/2106680/intel-bides-time-on-faster-thunderbolt-connector.html

(2014, April.) "SuperSpeed USB." USB.org Retrieved from http://www.usb.org/developers/ssusb

https://thunderbolttechnology.net/

Week 11

This week I want to address one of the biggest problems facing IT departments across the country if not the world...the users. Maybe this is coming out of my own experience, but probably eighty to ninety percent of the issues I deal with every day are not problems with the computers or other devices it's the people using them. This isn't to say they are doing anything on purpose to mess with the computer. The majority of issues are because they don't know what they are doing. This is especially the case amongst older tech users. They didn't grow up with computers and depending on their career may never have had to use one. Suddenly they are faced with a plethora of devices that confuse and sometimes frighten them (not in the horror sense but more the "Oh my god, I don't know what to do with this!" sense). Luckily ignorance is something that we as IT personnel can fix. A large part of my job is sitting down with people and showing them how to use their new laptop, Ipad, Kindle or other device. I also spend a significant amount of time teaching grandparents how to go online and email their families or fill out applications.
This is to say that even though we complain about the insane things we see the people around us do to their computers, one of our most important jobs is to educate and train the people we support so that they don't keep opening up strange emails and downloading viruses. To that end I would like to share a couple of links to sites that I use on a fairly regular basis when working with the public. Both are free and contain both videos and activities to help with training.

 
www.gcflearnfree.org
This link is to the Goodwill Community Foundation Learn Free website. They have an amazing selection of videos and tutorials on topics from internet or computer basics to how to use Facebook.

http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/training/
Microsoft's very own site for training for Office products. This includes previous versions of office like 2007 and 2010 as well as Office for Apple devices.

Week 10 - Youtube

Like most of my generation I spent many an hour everyday, often 3 or more, in front of the television. That number has shifted more or less over the years until one day several years ago I discovered YouTube. YouTube is a website where anyone can create and upload videos to share with the public. While viral videos of cats, babies, vlogs and people hurting themselves continue to be ridiculously popular; product reviews, news and how-to videos are heavily represented. As someone who has tried to help people over the phone with technical issues or any number of other problems, it brings a great deal of joy to my day when I can go on YouTube and find a video of a professional demonstrating exactly how to solve the problem. I am seeing this very heavily in the IT profession as well. There are entire series on various technology related issues and how to handle them your self. I personally learned years ago how to use a soldering iron properly. I have included a few links below to examples of this amazing trend, including one put out by YouTube on how to use YouTube, and I hope to see it continue.

https://www.youtube.com/user/YouTubeHelp

https://www.youtube.com/user/iyogi

https://www.youtube.com/user/CNETTV