Wi-Fi Dangerous?

A week or two ago I was watching a program about the dangers of Wi-Fi. I honestly could not take the topic seriously. They interviewed people that did research on Wi-Fi and its apparent dangers. They did speak to some children that did get headaches after their school installed Wi-Fi. I can understand the concern of a small group of children getting headaches and it is unfortunate that some people feel sick because of it. I don't think that because of this that Wi-Fi is dangerous to the general population. These children may just be allergic to the Wi-Fi or in better words more sensitive to radio frequencies. I find people saying Wi-Fi because of some people that are affected by it saying the equivalent of peanuts are dangerous because some people are allergic to them. Wi-Fi is a great internet solution why would school boards decide to string Ethernet cable all around which is a lot more expensive solution when they are already strapped for cash. For the apparent dangers of Wi-Fi to actually be taken seriously more people need to be affected by it because the majority of people aren't affected and aren't even aware of its existence. We definitely shouldn't worry; after all it may just be the people with these symptoms that are the problem not the Wi-Fi.

Google Sketchup

Google sketchup was released four years ago now and it is a great free 3D drawing program. Sketchup does take practice to become good at but once you have some skills it is amazing what you can create. There are many help videos on the Google sketchup site that explain what the tools in the program and how to use them. There are also guided activities on the help site to help you become familiar with sketchup. Sketchup is time consuming if you plan to create complicated objects like some houses. Google Sketchup is also pretty cool because you can upload building to Google earth and to the 3D buildings warehouse on the sketchup site. Google sketchup does take some getting used to but once you have experience with all the tools in Google sketchup it becomes an easier and more rewarding experience because you are able make more complicated buildings faster and with better end results.

Google

Google is arguable the most popular search engine in the world. There are competitors but you don't hear anyone "say Bing or Yahoo it". Without search engines it would be a lot more difficult to research and find answers to questions. Many times researching a simple question you can find answers quickly but it often takes a lot longer when searching using Yahoo or Bing. Google isn't just a great search engine though, Google has released free software. Google has released Google earth so you can see a satellite view from of the earth and be able to zoom in and see your house. Google also released Google sketch up which is great tools if you want create 3D models of buildings. Google is also has created a mobile phone operating system called android. Google is a rapidly growing company and it will be interesting what Google's next product or website will be.

iPad Clothes

I few days ago I did a post about iPads. Today I am going to write about some accesories for carrying the iPad.The iPad is an awkward size it is too big to put in your like you can with the iPod touch and iPhone. There are some companies that want to make pockets big enough for the iPad.

This is an interesting idea but I don't know how many people are going to want a back pocket that big and not to mention what would happen when you sit down.

This company created an whole clothing line with a pocket for the iPad. In this add it shows a vest for the iPad. I think this is slightly more practical than the iPad pants pocket. This would also be a good idea if you are in a colder climate to keep the iPad warm since being cold for long periods of time isn't good for any electronics. Steve Jobs did say that the iPad isn't a mobile device but for those people that want to take their iPad with them (even with its awkwared size) or you use there iPad for work there are clothes that have iPad pockets.

Relying on Computers Too Much?

These days computers are used all the time. Computers are used for creating documents and keeping track of data. Computers make many tasks easier and are able organize information more efficiently. This is great except when it comes to computer failure and data loss. Businesses try to avoid catastrophic effects by backing up information. Backing up information is a great idea because you don't want to suffer precious data loss. This is especially important for anyone who uses their computer for work and has information that if lost could financially effect them. It is also a good idea to back up pictures on to CDs. Backing up pictures on to CDs is great for printing off pictures since it is usually cheaper to print off pictures at photo kiosks at places such as Wal-Mart. Computers aren't always 100% reliable so it is important to back up data that you wouldn't want to lose.

iPad?

The iPad was released a while ago and unlike the iPod touch and iPhone it is a unique product. An iPad wouldn't replace your laptop and you wouldn't want to carry as your iPod. The iPad does resemble a large iPod touch but it does have some things the iPod touch doesn't. The iPad is faster than an iPod touch so it is faster when searching the web so over all it is more enjoyable doing using the iPad because of this increased speed. The larger size also makes the iPad easier to use than the iPod touch and iPhone because now the keyboard is bigger and you don't have to zoom nearly as compared to browsing the internet on iPod touch or iPhone. The more expensive iPad you can sign up with a mobile internet provider so you can get mobile internet on your iPad. This way you can browse the web anywhere and you don't have to worry about being connected to Wi-Fi. The iPad also has an accessory that you can buy separately to you can connect a camera to it so you upload photos. The iPad does have many similar features as the iPod touch and many iPod touch apps are compatible with it. In a lot of ways it is just a big iPod touch but the size does make it easier to do many tasks.

Cell Phone Cameras

These days it is hard to find a new cell phone that doesn't have a camera. Cell phone cameras are great because you can take pictures and videos whenever you want. You are able to capture things that you wouldn't normally be able to. Now on the news even when there wasn't any cameras from the news channel there to capture the event but they can still show what happened because someone was able to capture the footage on their cell phone. Cell phone pictures and videos tend to vary in quality and most aren't as good as taking pictures or videos with a camera. Cell phone cameras tend to vary in mega pixels depending on the cell phone or smart phone. Smart phones like iPhones have more mega pixels than cheaper cell phones. A lot of low end cell phones have only a bit more than a mega pixel. A lot of times even if you take a picture of something you can't make out what the picture is of. Some low end cell phones don't have the ability to zoom so this also makes it difficult to take a good picture.

Cell Service At Summit of Mount Everest

A Nepalese company is soon going to make it possible for climbers to use their cell phones at the summit of Mount Everest. The company is constructing towers to create a 3g tower on Mount Everest so soon climbers are going to be able to check the weather forecast, check emails and call family and friends. This is interesting that even at the highest point in the world you are going to be able to be connected. This will be helpful for communication so climbers can get help in case of an accident. Climbers will just have to take cell phones instead of bulky satellite phones, which don't allow the features that cell phones have such as internet connectivity. I also wonder if this would take away from the whole "Everest experience" and the feeling of not being connected to the world. I suppose it will now be possible for climbers to post and tweet while climbing Everest. The company says that only one third of Nepal has cell reception and they want to change this with erecting more towers all over Nepal. This just probes that you can be connected in even the most remote places.

Halloween Malwater

There have been viruses circling lately that friends have been sending to scare other friends. After accidentally downloading the virus the user will be told that there computer is infected. These viruses come in a online greeting card or a link to the video. These viruses are just pranks and they don't actually cause any harm to your computer but if you don't know that these is a prank this can really scare you if you think you lost your precious data. The best way to avoid these viruses is not to open links if you suspect that whoever sent the email to you may want to scare you be sending you a prank virus. Never fear though if you get it it does go away after a while and causes you no harm there are just lots of windows that open up and will slow you down if you are in the middle of doing something. This prank virus can be described as the computer equivalent of toilet papering.

Worms

Worms are one of the fastest spreading computer infections. Worms are particularly nasty because they have the ability to self replicate without human interference. Worms can send themselves to other computers. Some worms do this by sending emails without knowing it to contacts in your address book and they can also send themselves through instant messaging. Worms are not always dependent on a user opening a file. This is true with the internet worms that scan the internet for vulnerable computers. These worms attempt to make contact with vulnerable computers and gain full access of them. Worms easily penetrate most firewalls and other networks security measure. Anti-virus software does attempt to battle worms but the success of this depends on your anti-virus and what worm is trying to infect your system. The best way to protect your computer against worms is to have anti-virus software that regularly updates itself and to not open suspicious emails. You should also be cautious when opening email attachments because even a word document can be infected with worms. Like any other infection if you get it there is always a chance that it may crash your computer.

Limewire No More

Today the popular music sharing network was ordered to shut down their file sharing network. Limewire has been fighting with the music industry for years and the music industry finally won. Now I'm sure there will be many more ITunes downloads, not like there wasn't millions before. I'm surprised that this case turned out the way it did and that Limewire was forced to shut down but then again the music industry would have more power over a relatively small software company. The Limewire website now has a notice saying that Limewire was forced to shut down because of a court order. Limewire being forced to shut down their file sharing network won't stop people from downloading free music though there is still many other file sharing networks out there. Limewire does say that this won't permanently put them out of business though and that they are working with the music industry and making the necessary changes. It will be interesting in the future if Limewire bounces back from this court order and what Limewire will be like if it comes back. 

Trojan Horse

Beast

a Trojan Horse program

Many people mistake Trojans as but they often don't spread from computer to computer. Trojans are spread by the user downloading a piece of software that looks legitimate before that install and looks like a legitimate piece of software but instead lets another user access to your computer. Some Trojans may change the user's desktop to display advertisements and some Trojans just install a toolbar in the web browser of the user. Other Trojan Horse infections the computer so person controlling the Trojan software can steal personal information, view the computer screen, download or upload files or log your keystrokes. Hackers don't have to be the person who distributes the virus they can scan a network to see if any computers have the Trojan installed so they can gain access to the computer. Some Trojans can be computer virus by asking a user on an instant messaging network to install the virus. There are Trojans that infect the computer and send messages to instant messenger contacts saying "here is a funny photo of you click on the link to see it" or something similar. Trojan type malware use is becoming more and popular and 83% of all viruses detected are Trojan-type malware. Luckily most times the Trojan infection is detected by anti-virus software before the software is installed so it can't cause any damage. If you suspect you accidently downloaded a Trojan and your anti-virus didn't detect it you should not open the file and have you have your anti-virus do a complete scan of your computer.

Mac or PC

People always debate if Macs or PCs are better. The truth is they are very similar, after all how different can computers be. Many people do have a preference of operating system. Some people prefer to have a Mac for many reasons.A benefitof having a Mac is that they aren't as virus prone as PCs because there are less Mac users. The lesser number of Mac users can also be a disadvantage because of some programs that aren't compatible with Macs. This is not as big of a deal any more now that there are more Mac users there are more compatible software you often just have to look harder than if you were buying software for a PC. If you want to buy a Mac you should also expect to pay more than if you were buying a PC. Macs do also boast to be more user friendly than PCs. I did find that apple tries to stick by there products being self explanatory when I got my IPod touch and there was only a small pamphlet outlining some of the futures of my IPod touch and there not being a users manual. Some people argue that PCs crash more than Macs but the truth is all computers can and do have problems.More have PCs so there may be some compatibility issues when creating a program on a Mac and then opening it up on a PC. Macs and PCs are very similar and it is there are less compatibility issues with Macs with more Mac users. 

Computer Infections

Most people who own a computer connected to the Internet have most likely experienced the frustration of getting a computer infection. Depending on the infection it can wreak havoc on your computer and possibly corrupt your operating system files so your operating system has to be reinstalled. Some viruses can just be more of an annoyance than anything others can crash your computer and steal your personal information. In this blog a use the phrase "computer infection" because not all infections are considered viruses in order for an infection to be considered a virus it has to spread from the infected computer to another and not all infections do this. An example computer infection that is not considered a virus is the Trojan Horse infection because it is spread by one user and is not spread from the infected computer to other computers. There are ways to prevent against viruses one of these ways is to download anti-virus software another way is to only download programs and files from reputable sources. This week each day I am going to write about computer infections and there effects and how to avoid them.

Great Blogging App

It was hard finding a blogging app so I could easily blog on the go, but after searching the app store for a while a finally found a great blogging app called blog booster. I had a hard time finding a free blog app because many you have to pay for or didn't have all the features I was looking for. Many apps didn't have landscape keyboard feature or didn't sync with your blog to show drafts that you already started. The blogbooster app have these features though it does sync with your blog and has you can use the keyboard in landscape and is also great because you can choose not to save the draft on your blog so you can even work on your blog if you aren't connected to Wi-Fi. Another great feature is you can upload pictures that you saved in your photos, but you have to be connected to Wi-Fi in order to do this. This app does support multiple blog providers but in the free version you can only have one blog provider at a time. You can choose to delete a blog and add your other one but it will only store one at a time. This app is great for blogging on the go so you have other options to write your blog other than going on the computer.

Netbook or Laptop

Netbooks were released about a year and have been increasing in popularity since. Netbooks don't have all the features a laptop or desktop computer has and are mainly meant to be used as a web device. There are some things about Netbooks that are disadvantages though. Due to their small size they aren't very ergonomic. Some examples of this is the do have smaller screen size, 5 inches or smaller, and smaller keyboards so it can be harder to type depending on your hand size. Someone who is deciding between a netbook and a laptop has to think about what they are going to be using it for. If they want to just surf the internet and occasionally do word processing than a netbook would be a good choice. If someone wants to use it mainly for word processing and be able to burn and use CDs than they would want to buy a laptop. Another plus about netbooks is they are cheaper than laptops but then again they don't have all the features of laptops. Netbooks are great but they probably won't replace your desktop or laptop computer.

GPS Tracking Apps on Cell Phones

Quite while ago google released an app so you can track your friends and they can track you. This app is quite amazing it uses either GPS, Wi-Fi or cell tower technology to determine location. This app works on google android, Blackberry, IPod touch and IPhone. You do have to sign up with google to use this app.The app does give you the option whether to show your location and how detailed the location data is like if you just want the city your in displayed. Many cell phone companies have tracking applications for parents to track there children. The ability for parents to track their children may even encourage parents to get cell phones for their children. There is definitely a lot of potential with phone tracking applications and I'm sure it will get even more popular.

The Internet The New Frontier

Many people describe the Internet as the new frontier because of the lack of laws that govern it and the fact that no one owns the internet. Many countries also have varying laws so someone doing something illegal in Canada or the U.S. can't be prosecuted if it isn't illegal in the country the person resides. One issue with the Internet is copyright laws. Copyright laws have recently been affecting YouTube a lot lately. TV networks often take down videos from TV shows and music labels take down videos that people have made that have copyrighted music in them. There is also lots of issues with music sharing and if it's illegal. The arguments that music sharers have is that it's not illegal to lend someone a CD so why is it illegal to get music off programs like limewire. When people share music though they aren't just renting and if you are sharing music it is likely that more than one person is downloading it. Many people are also watching and downloading pirated movies which the film industry is trying to deter by having warning messages on DVDs. The music and film industry is pressuring governments to have stricter laws and prohibit music and video sharing. France has in the past year have made more laws so ISPs can view what their customers are doing so they can detect when someone is downloading illegal content so they can be prosecuted. Many other governments are not doing this because it is not a high priority. After all the music and film industry aren't suffering. For governments to be more concerned the music and film industry will have to be in financial trouble. For as much music sharing there is ITunes is still having millions of music and video downloads every day.

Bluetooth

Blue Tooth has been getting more and more popular lately due to laws in many states and provinces prohibiting talking on your cell phone while driving unless it is connected to a hands free system. Bluetooth has also become more popular because IPod touches now are Bluetooth enabled and can now wireless stream music. There are also other mp3 players that are Bluetooth enabled like the ZuneHD and the Sony X-Series Walkman. IPod touches and other Bluetooth enabled mp3 players can connect to Bluetooth enabled car stereos and head phones. There are also Bluetooth enabled laptops so things such as keyboards and printers can be connected wirelessly. Bluetooth is making it easier to connect devices and is great because you don't have to worry about cords that you would otherwise need to connect devices. I am sure in the future more devices that don't already have Bluetooth will have it. It would be great if one day DVD players, satellite receivers and cable boxes would be Bluetooth enabled so there wouldn't be a mess of cables behind televisions.

Are We Too Connected?

With many social networks we can be connected to many people. It can be beneficial because you able to stay in touch with people that live far away. It can be annoying though hearing everything that people do. Some celebrities constantly tweet about where there eating and what they are doing and other details about their lives. This interests some people that are celebrity crazed and want to know what celebrities are doing every minute. The only benefit that I can think of for following a celebrity is finding out about concerts or what movies there are going to be in. I do admit though much rather hear about celebrities fantastic lives and travelling around the world though then one of my facebook friends posting some boring everyday activity like eating lunch. There are benefits and negatives of being connected but probably more benefits, after all why would people choose to be part of social networking sites like facebook, twitter and MySpace if there weren't benefits. In this connected world you just have to watch what you post and the pictures that others upload of you because a lot of things can't be easily deleted. 

3D Movies and 3D TV

Over the past few years there has been more and more 3D movies at the theaters. Now it seems now every other kids movie is in 3D. For me at least 3D movies aren't as thrilling as they used to be because of seeing so many and it isn't a big deal when a 3D movie is released because so many are being released. 3D effects are not as thrilling. The 3D is definitely used more used in kids movies but more adult movies are taking advantage of this technology. Many movies look great in 3D such as Avatar which was a box office hit due to the amazing effects in the movie. Watching Avatar at the theaters you felt as if you were in the movie flying through Pandora. Many 3D movies are released on DVD in 3D but this does not have the same effect as when you see a 3D movie at the theaters. 3D at home does work better if you have a bigger TV but there is still not the same 3D effects present.

 

Companies are taking advantage of at home 3D movies not having near the 3D effects of seeing a 3D movie at the theater. This TVs are very expensive a lot of them are at least two times as more as a 2D TV of the same size. The glasses that you have to buy for the 3D TV are often at least $100 too. These 3D movies don't just have 3D features for a 3D movies, you can watch anything you watch on TV in 3D, or there is also a 2D mode. This is pretty amazing but it is too bad these TVs are so expensive but with all new electronics the price goes down as the technology ages. The future is definitely bright for 3D with so many 3D movies being released and the release of 3D TVs.

Great Music Video App For IPod and IPhone Touch

With copywrite laws many music videos on youtube, even the ones posted by record companies won't play on IPod touch. I found a solution for this problem when I was looking to watch a music video a few days. I found this great app called Vevo. Click on the logo below to download app.

Google Testing Self Driving Cars

Google has been testing self driving cars lately in California. The cars are never totally unmanned though there is always a back up driver in the car who monitors the software and is ready to take over at any time. The cars have been tested on many roads and even hard to navigate curvy roads and even on the cliff-hugging Pacific Coast Highway. Google says the want to 'help prevent traffic' accidents, increase the efficiency of cars and free up people's time. The cars use video camera, radar sensors and a laser range finder to detect other traffic and navigate cars using detailed maps which are created from information collected by manual cars. The cars have logged a lot of mileage, so far the cars have logged over 225, 308 kilometers (140, 000 miles) and an impressive 1, 600 kilometers (994 miles) without a human touching the controls. Only one accident has occurred with the self driven cars and it was due to a car being rear-ended. This is definitely very exciting news. Similar technologies have also recently been appearing in Lexus cars. The technology in these cars automatically stops the car if the vehicle in front of you abruptly stops but this is nothing like the self driving cars Google is testing. Only time will tell if this technology will become commercially available.

Never Fear More Rural Internet Solutions

As little as 5km out of town it can be very difficult to be able to get high speed. You call all the internet providers you know of but no luck. You try the internet provider you had in town and they say that high speed will be coming to your area in 3 months. You wait and call in three months but they say in another three months. Broadband never comes to your area. After this you give up hope and figure you'll have to just have dial-up and wait twenty minutes for a three minute video to load. You miss any calls you get when you are on the internet and waiting ten minutes for graphics to load on sites such as the apple home site. Never fear though there are more rural internet providers they often just take a lot of research to find.

1. Hubs

In Canada Bell and Rogers have hubs that use the 3g network (mobile internet) to provide you with internet service. This is what I have for internet and I have it through Rogers and it is pretty fast. This is great if you have a good cell phone signal where you live. Through Rogers or Bell it is $150 to buy the hub and $400 not on contract. There is a data usage plan which isn't particularly great so the amount you pay a month depends on how much data you use. The data usage plan is in tires the first is $35, the second is $45 and the third is $60. The data use plan is stricter than broad band internet in town.  A plus for the hub though is that up to 10 computers or other devices can connect wirelessly and there are also four Ethernet cables in the back.

2. Internet Stick

This is not the most ideal home solution but it will work well if you don't use a lot of data. There is usually no start up fees but the monthly plans aren't good if you use the internet a lot. The plans are very most services have the first tier of their plan only allowing you to have 500mb of data for $30 or $35 a month. The speed depends on your cell phone reception but if you do have good cell phone reception it can be a fast connection.

3. Wireless Broadband
There is quite a few companies that are investing in wireless broadband. In some areas there are local services that provide wireless broadband. The speed of the service does vary; some services only provide less than a megabyte. Most services do have quite an expensive start up fee, at least $150.

4. Satellite
If nothing else works or is available this may be a good solution. Well this is often less than a megabyte in speed it is still faster than dial-up. Satellite internet is usually quite expensive though and a big start up fee.

Note: A lot of times even if you are with the same ISP as before watch to see if the new service uses mobile internet. If it does use mobile internet a lot of times you will have to change your email if you had an email address with your internet provider before.

  

Instant Movies Netflix and Pay-per-view

More and more people are choosing not to make the trek to the video store to rent a movie. Many people choose to order movies instantly using Net Flix or ordering pay per view movies via satellite receiver or cable box. There are more and more devices that this is possible on for example now after getting a Netflix disc for the Wii you can order Netflix movies any time using a Wii tha is connected to the internet. Netflix is also available on play station 3, soon the XBOX 360, IPod touch, IPhone, on new HD TVs that can connect to the internet and on the computer. The popularity of pay-view movies and instantly being able to watch movies hasn't been good for video stores now many are going out of business. Now with some services such as renting movies from apple you can watch the movie for up to 48 hours or with a Netflix account, which is slightly more than renting a movie, you can rent movies as much as you want. With pay-per-view you also don't have to worry about late fees or there not being any copies of the video being available. There are also more options than a video store for many pay-per-view and other services. The world is coming more and more instantaneous with pay-per-view and Netflix and other services video stores are going to have to lower their prices and have more specials and deals to compete.

City Story Game Centre Compatible

When game centre was released there was only one free game with game centre capabilities which was Farmville. Now there are multiple games including City Story. City story has the best game centre capabilities for a free game I found yet. City story allows you to play mini games against random players or you can choose friends from game centre.

To play a mini game you first have to find the mini game function. You can find the mini game function in the main menu

You are then directed to this screen where you can choose if you want to invite friends to play or play against random players in auto-match. In auto-match you can choose how many players you want to play against. It takes at least 30 seconds to connect to other players. The waiting time depends on how many players you invite (more takes longer),If you are playing against a friend or friends it takes longer depending how fast they respond to your request. If you are not inviting friends you can tap the play now button. You can choose how many random players you want to play against too. It does take longer to connect to three other players by then just one so if you want a quick game just connect to one other player in auto-match or just invite one friend to play.

The screen will then look like this while loading

 You will then see this message.

There will then be a final connect to the other player/players. There will then be a countdown once the other player is ready.

 Then you will receive a message telling you what job you get. For some reason I seem to always get a fire fighter. I've only got a doctor once when I played against a group of my game centre friends. If you are a fire fighter you put out the fires. If you are a doctor you click on the buildings with band-aids on them. If you are a police officer then you click on the buildings with police tape on them.

The game then starts. You have a one minute time limit for two players. The time limit does increase and there is a bigger reward when you play with more people. I have played the game a few times and haven't yet got the river and won the game. This seems to be very challenging to get the needed 75 points in tow player games and 150 in three player games

Note:
In game centre in the games you can go to city story and by tapping on the played recently section you can see who you recently played and add them to your game centre friends.

my city I just started so it's still pretty empty




Apple Releases New iPod Nano and Shuffle

Apple has released the new iPod nano and shuffle in the past week. The new iPod nano now was a touch screen. This wasn't a surprise to me considering the success of the iPod touch. The touch screen does make navigation easier on the iPod touch and it will probably make navigation easier on the new iPod nano too. The new iPod is also smaller this is partly to do with the absence of the navigational wheel which has been replaced by the touch screen. The nano does not however have Wi-Fi capabilities. This was a bit of a surprise to me but the new iPod nano does have a pretty small screen and surfing the internet would be considerable more difficult. If people do want devices that have internet capabilities than apple would want them to buy an iPod touch because it is considerably more expensive. Some other new features that the new iPod nano has is that it was a clip on the back which is beneficial to people who use it when they working out and also supports nike+ iPod Another new feature of the new iPod nano is it can play fm which is also a helpful feature. The iPod shuffle hasn't gone through any major hardware changes like the iPod nano. The only main update with the shuffle is the software. The shuffle now says the name and artist for the song you are listening to and now has the ability to have more than one playlist. There is only a minor hardware change and that is the buttons which are apparently bigger.

The First Cell Phone, Oh How Far We Have Come

Dyna-Tac



The first cell phone was invented by in 1973 by Dr. Martin Cooper. Dr. Martin Cooper worked for Motorola and worked on inventing portable products. Dr. Cooper and his team at Motorola made handheld radios for the Chicago police department. Then ten years later Dr. Cooper and his team made the first mobile phone, which was at the time called a portable phone which made more sense due to its enormous size compared to today's cell phones. There was also another company competing to make the first portable phone this other company was Bell labs. On April 3, 1973 Dr. Martin Cooper made the first cell phone call on a Motorola Dyna-Tac near the Manhattan Hilton Hotel in New York City. The phone call was rumored to be made to his rival Joel Engel who was the leader of the Bell Labs research team. The first cell phone was bulky  it was 2.5 pound, 5 inches wide, 9 inches long and 1.75 inches thick. The phone also had to be charged 10 hours for only talking 35 minutes. The first cell phone and many models after that could not send text messages and didn't even have screens. The cell phone was invented in 1973 but cell phone's didn't become popular until the late 1990 when they weren't bulky and had screens and better battery life.

 

Dr. Martin Cooper (inventor of first cell phone) with first cell phone (Dyna-Tac)



The Dyna-Tac dwarfs modern day cell phones



Anesthetic From Half Way Around the World

I first heard about this while watching Daily Planet on Friday where they talked to the doctors involved. On August 30, 2010 the first transcontinental Anesthetic took place. Dr. Thomas Hemmerling and his team at Mc Gill's department of Anesthetic in Montreal used a program called 'Teleseanesthesia' to administer anesthetic to a patient in Pisa Italy who was undergoing thyroid gland surgery. This program controls the drugs that are being administered intravenously remotely. Even if there is internet failure the automated system continues administering the drugs. The program displays video cameras of the patient and also shows breathing rate, heart rate and other vital signs. Before the surgery takes place there is also video conferencing discussing the patient's airways and medical history. This program is still in the works and much more testing needs to be done. Dr. Hemmerling's team from McGill University is working with Dr. Zaouter and his team from the Department of Anesthesia of Pisa University. On Daily Planet they discussed possible application of this new technology one of these was in Africa where anesthesia is performed by nurses who aren't qualified (of course these places would have to have internet connectivity). Many remote places would also benefit from this technology such as northern Canada or other places where there are not many medical personnel. I have heard about heart surgery being performed remotely, but this remote anesthesia is less risky and it wouldn't be as much of a problem if there was internet failure, because of the automated system taking over.

The Burj Dubai

This article isn't as much about computer and computer device related as my other posts but I still thought I'd write about it because it is technology related. The Burg Dubai is the tallest building in the world, standing at 828 meters (2,717 feet); it replaced the CN tower in the record books as the tallest free standing structure a few years ago during construction. It is more impressive than the CN tower too because unlike the CN tower it is a multi-purpose tower and not just used to transmit radio signals. The building of the Burj Dubai started on January 4, 2004 and was finished on January 4, 2010. It has an enormous number of floors, a total of 162 and many of the higher floors are residential, these people must have quite a view. The Burj Dubai is now named the Burj Khalifa to honor the president of the UAE Khalifa bin Zayea. The Burg Dubai has a total of 54 elevators; the elevators are one of the interesting things in this enormous sky scraper. The elevators are double-decker so more passengers can fit and they are very fast, travelling 10 meters per second. To cut time the computer controlling the elevators assigns people to elevators based on what floor they are going to. Passengers first enter what floor they are travelling on a key pad or a touch screen and then are assigned to a specific elevator according to floor number. In the Burg Dubai there is also extremely fast internet speeds up to 21mb/ps. This enormous tower is going to have a large population too there are 1,044 apartments in the Burj Dubai and many hotel rooms. In total 21,000 people are expected to live and work in the Burj Dubai. It is amazing something this big can be built and I'm sure there are amazing thing that contributed to building this monster too such as the advanced computer system that designed it. I'm sure too that there are computer systems too that control the air conditioning to keep this monster cool considering the enormous size and the desert heat.

IBooks also great PDF Viewer

 

White a while ago apple released the IBooks app. This was almost a month ago when apple released the 4.0 firmware upgrade. There are many free books that are available in the IBooks store. There are many classics such as "Little Women" and "Through the Looking Glass". On IBooks you also have the ability to view PDFs and they automatically save so you can view them anytime, anywhere even offline. This is great especially if you want to be able to view manuals. You can quite easily find a lot of electronic manuals on the internet by simply googling the product. Once you find the manual all you have to do once you have the PDF in view in safari is tap on the view in iBooks button on the top right. Once in iBooks you can see the PDF now you can view it anywhere anytime. Viewing the PDF in iBooks you can quickly and easily find information by searching the PDF by tapping on the magnify glass. The only thing I don't like about this application is the speed it isn't the fastest but it is still a great PDF viewer.

ITunes 10 and Ping

Apple has released has released ITunes 10 and with it Ping. Ping is a music based social network Ping resembles twitter in a way because you can follow artists and see their recent updates and also slightly resembles facebook in its layout. You can also follow not just celebrities but other users like you. You can also choose to have people not follow you and there are other privacy options like this. You can access Ping with the new iPod touch 4.1 firmware upgrade by enabling Ping on ITunes 10 and then syncing your iPod. You can add your favorite music and it will be displayed on your profile and music you recently bought will also be displayed on your profile. I don't believe though that it will display music that you just added to your library that hasn't been bought from ITunes. It is surprising how many musicians are already part of Ping and post regularly. It is beneficial for musicians to be part of this new music based social network so they can get their name out there and have their voice heard. The benefit of Ping is probably why so many musicians are already part of this recently released social network. Ping is fairly easy to sign up for if you already have an apple account it just takes about thirty seconds since a lot of information is already filled out. The only things you really have to do are choose the music you want to display on your profile (if any) and your privacy settings. When you add people as friends you can see the music they have bought and what music they like just like they can see the music you like and the music you bought. It will be interesting if and how much this social network increases music sales on ITunes and if new artists are discovered by using Ping.