Klout recently announced that it raised a new round of funding led by Kleiner Perkins as the company prepares to make a big splash in 2012, but does your Klout score matter? I look at the future of Klout and the impact it may (or may not) have on the individual.
Want a quick and easy way to sell digital content online? Look no further then Gumroad. Gumroad is a web service that allows its users to sell digital content such as music, blog posts, graphics, website designs, and more with the click of the mouse.
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Found this infographic interesting and thought it was worth sharing. Is starting a business safer than a job? Definitely a worthwhile topic to examine with unemployment still above 9% and still a somewhat bleak immediate future. Obviously, starting a business may be difficult for someone with not much experience, but I still think it’s doable.
I started BestTechie when I was 13, granted I didn’t incorporate and really sit down and make a business plan until later on, but it goes to show you that it can be done and learning as you go isn’t something that should be frowned upon. In fact, that’s the best way to learn I think.
Nonetheless, let me know what you think in the comments!
For a business, providing the most fool-proof security system available to your network isn’t always feasible. Information security systems are often incredibly expensive, and difficult to set up and maintain. However, not spending the extra time and money to have the security that you need is a huge risk.
Having your information hacked into can literally put you out of business. Some of the biggest and most detrimental consequences to having your business’ information hacked include:
Ruined Reputation
Once you put something on the web, you can bet that it will forever live on – no matter how hard you try to erase it. If you send something through email that you would rather not have the public know, it could easily be made public if your account is hacked. If you keep private documents online, they could easily be made public if your computer is hacked.
In just a few days, Rockmelt, the “social” or “Facebook” web browser which launched on November 7th, 2010, will be celebrating its first birthday. The browser which is backed by Marc Andreessen (Netscape founder), got off a hot start and was placed on Twitter’s list of top tweeted tech trends for 2010. However, has since appeared to have cooled down. I hadn’t heard much about the social browser in quite sometime until recently when I was having a discussion with a friend of mine, Devon Zdatny, who when I asked, “What browser do you use?” replied with “Rockmelt,” my response followed along the lines of “Really? I didn’t know anyone still used that.”
Which then led me to check BestTechie’s analytics for the past year to see how many Rockmelt visitors we received. The number wasn’t that impressive: 538 which equated to less than 0.05% of total visits that came to BestTechie. Now, we aren’t an extremely large site, so I’m not sure how representative that sample may be, but it’s still interesting. I’d also be curious to know the statistics for larger sites, if you have any, feel free to leave a comment with them.
There is no doubt that apps for smartphones, whether they be traditional or prepaid phones, are becoming incredibly popular and highly important. Smartphone usage is expected to grow exponentially in the next few years, and more and more individuals are turning to their apps to guide them through and entertain them in their daily lives. For web developers, this means choosing to switch gears and start developing apps that have the potential to be highly lucrative.
However, developing apps isn’t so easy. Most web developers lack business savvy, which can become prohibitive when trying to get your app picked up. Never fear, there are a few easy tips any app developer can follow to make obtaining success in the app development process easier:
It appears now that Google will now inform you of your current IP (Internet Protocol) Address if you query the search engine with “what is my ip.” For years, sites like WhatIsMyIP.com and IPChicken would help Internet users learn their IP address — well, now they are really no longer necessary as Google looks to help inform users looking for an answer to that age-old question.
When you type the query into the search box, it will return your IP on top of the results and also provide a “Learn More” link that further explains what an IP Address is and what it is used for on the Internet. Simple, yes, but very useful. Little things like this are why I love Google. I’ve included a screenshot below of the feature in action.
These days, with new tech products regularly being released and an almost limitless number of websites dedicated to them online, it’s no surprise that the internet is brimming with reviews of the latest technology. Trying to decide which new smartphone to purchase? There are many people online willing to offer you input and advice. Looking for laptop reviews? A quick Google search will bring you thousands upon thousands of results.
Of course, this saturation of information is largely a good thing. Without ever seeing a product, the consumer can learn all of its specs, see pictures of it from every angle, and gauge the opinion of both normal customers and technology experts. A person with very specific interests or needs can almost certainly find someone out there who directly addresses those issues. From a free market, capitalistic, consumer-oriented perspective, the mass of available online reviews is incredibly beneficial.
Did you update to iOS 5 and are now experiencing this error message when using your iPhone to send/receive text messages?
“Your SMS mailbox is full. New messages cannot be received until you delete some messages.”
You’re not alone. I learned about this issue from a friend of mine who updated her iPhone 4 to iOS 5 and that message popped up on her screen. At first I thought it was an AT&T issue, but then I learned it was affecting other carriers as well. Next I thought something may have occurred with her backup while updating to iOS 5 due to Apple’s server issues, only then to see someone say they were having the issue on a brand new iPhone 4S after restoring to a backup of their iPhone 4. However, there is an explanation and a fix.
I was just walking home from the gym and I ran into my UPS delivery man on my way up the stairs to my apartment, so of course, I ask him “so how many iPhone’s did you deliver today?” to which he replied, “a lot!” He then went on to tell me that UPS is delivering 800,000 iPhone 4S devices today company-wide. That’s a lot. And remember, those are just pre-orders that made it into the “Delivers by October 14th” grouping. So, yes, that is a lot of phones.
Am I surprised? Not really, especially considering over 1 million iPhone 4S’s were sold in the first 24 hours. I’m curious to know how many were sold in store throughout the day today. Guess we will have to wait and find out.
Just as quick as it appeared, Qwikster has been killed off by Netflix. You may remember our thoughts on the launch of Qwikster being skeptical. It seemed to be a rushed and reactive launch and it was. According to the Netflix blog, in a post by Reed Hastings (CEO of Netflix), they have canned Qwikster and will be keeping DVD rentals on Netflix.com.
It is clear that for many of our members two websites would make things more difficult, so we are going to keep Netflix as one place to go for streaming and DVDs.
This means no change: one website, one account, one password… in other words, no Qwikster
You think? These are some of the exact reasons we highlighted as being a potential problem in our article.
So you’re not eligible for the subsidized pricing on the iPhone 4S yet? I feel your pain. I’m not either. Granted, some of you may have it worse than I do as I only have to wait until November 25th, 2011. So I’m kind of close to being able to get my hands on the newest and sleekest iDevice — the iPhone 4S. My girlfriend however, who got her iPhone 4 on launch day (the same day and time I got it — we waited in line together) is eligible. Riddle me that.
This is a similar situation I have noticed appearing on Twitter, “my so and so got their iPhone 4 after me and is eligible, but I’m not. How does that make sense?” Exactly, how does it make sense? Frustrated and upset like many people who want the latest iPhone but don’t want to fork over an additional $250 for the same phone that costs everyone who is eligible for an upgrade $250 less, I called AT&T.
