Geek Choice Blog » networking

Google’s +1 is here

Joseph Ruthaford — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 12:57:17 +0000

In a blog a few weeks back I posted about a possible Social Networking trail that Google was attempting.
This being called +1, and of course you know in Facebook when you are logged in you can like something, well now you will start to see a new button in town labeled +1. We are not sure if this is the start of a new social network that Google is building or if it is just a simply a social layer that Google wanted to introduce but really is not meant to be a real rival to Facebook. As of right now a small % of US Google searchers that search in English will see a +1 button next to the search listings when they are logged into their Google account. What this does is if you +1 a site it will become enhanced in the search results once a search is done again. Part of it will help you see how popular a page might be by +1 users. You will also see +1 next to AdWords, no doubt to help in advertising revenue for Google and make the companies who use it show its popularity to people who may not have seen that company before. Soon +1 is supposed to be as normal as the Facebook like button you see on so many web sites. Who knows what this will mean in revenue for Google in the ad world but when Google puts its stamp on something people do tend to follow.

Tired of Weak or No Signal? Do Something About It!

Gregg — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 01:27:52 +0000

That damn yellow triangle sign where your wireless bars should be has a “!” telling you that the signal is there, but due to a weak signal your internet use is put on hold. Until the signal can regain strength, your first thought might be to sit there patiently and wait it out, but who has time for that anymore? We live in a digital world, a wireless world, one that is very fast and waiting is something the tribes did sending a message to another camp hundreds of years ago. Try a second thought: change the things you can! The power to change the signal is yours, listen up.

If we look at the router, it is really an amazing machine that is capable of fascinating feats for which we should be grateful for, I mean this little network tool makes our lives SO much easier. If we did not have the router, where would we be? Think about it, while you walk across the office to deliver something that could have been handled on a wireless network.

It all started back in Stanford with Bill Yeager who created the first router, which allowed for the wireless internet to blossom, as well as open many doors for the future. Yeager was asked originally to connect various departments at the school, he did much more than that. Back then they were only running on 56kb of memory, look how far it has have come!

Now that you know a little bit more about where router’s come from, let’s talk on improving that sometimes weak signal which is everyone’s enemy if you use wireless.

Place the router away from the wall. The signal that is being given off the router is too high to go through walls very good, and until we start using the television white space which is a much lower signal but can travel through walls, it is best that you position your device to a more accessible spot. Try placing the router in the middle of the room, house or office. It will be able to reach all the computers trying to access it better.
Keep it off the floor. If you put the router on the floor, the signal being sent to other networks will surely be slow because it is not able to receive the data packets being sent back to the router from your computer.
Do not put the router near metal objects. This is self-explanatory, metal objects can deflect signals and interrupt them, causing that annoying warning sign to piss you off.
Use a hi-gain antenna. The router comes with a regular antenna that sends a signal in all directions, if it is placed in your office then half of the signal is going out the window! A hi-gain antenna focuses on a certain direction, a better choice if you have a desktop computer.
Still weak? Try another type of router. This is called a wireless repeater, you still need your router, but the repeater will take the strong signal it gets in the office, and transmits it to the living room to supply the same strong signal to your laptop while enjoying the news.

If all else fails, just turn the router on and then wait for a couple minutes, then turn it on again. Resetting the router will boot it up again, it usually works to get a good signal after reset.

I don’t know about you, but I am sick of that stupid yellow sign that blocks my internet and keeps me from accessing work, finishing emails, and all the basic tasks the internet allows me to do with ease. Thanks to these tips though, I will never have that problem again. After all, ignorance is the only real problem, everything else is just details.

Another Facebook Update

Gregg — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 05:28:38 +0000

I know, if you were just born then this is already old news about Facebook being used for everything except actually living your life. But quit running from the truth and acting like you are too good for such a thing as being social on a network. The truth is that Facebook is instantaneous information in your face internet intensity. The internet is supposed to be all of that allowing people across the globe to communicate with each other easily with fast speeds.

Email has been the first choice for communication, mainly in business, replacing the telephone. This AirTrans commercial is a funny one explaining this trend.

Email Replaces Talking

But there is a figure on the horizon, and it is in the shape of an ‘F’: yes, Facebook is coming out with another idea to make messaging better. Not that it isn’t better already, I mean we have come along way from lighting signal fires and dialing a rotary phone, but how much more can we communicate better, faster, easier?

Well, let’s email Facebook and see what they have to say.

I haven’t heard back from them, but I got an instant response on Facebook, and this reveals the appeal for Facebook to combine email with instant messaging: contact. Everywhere you go online or anywhere that is related to sharing business, videos, music, ideas, advertising, you see a link to put it on Facebook. It is a connection that goes where email cannot go.

So when CEO Mark Zuckerburg remarked about comments concerning the revamp of the social messaging system Facebook and how it will be the ‘Gmail killer’, he said “It’s not email.”

What is it? The new Facebook will allow you to get email on Facebook. Wow, after all the virus and hack breakdowns that Facebook has had, I am surprised they are tempting such a thing. We will probably be hearing about people being hacked and having to call Geek Choice to clean up all the viruses on your computer, but until then if you live life on Facebook then this new edition will fit the bill perfect.

Email and instant messaging are becoming the normal ways to communicate, talking is awkward, email is less personal and you can put your thoughts down easier to communicate better.

By combining the two, the new Facebook will grab multiple types of communication such as email and turn it into a more real-time messaging service. Say you use Gmail to get messages from clients and since you run your business on getting updates from customers instantly online; receiving fast updates beats out regular email since you will get all you need on Facebook.

To wrap this up, Facebook is just looking to pioneer out from the boundaries of their target market, almost like Google has been doing for the past couple years. They are looking at voice-chat and new ways to communicate.

Talking face-to-face is just boring, it is so much more fun writing it down and adding a smiley face!

Privacy Protection: What Privacy?

Sean Wilcoxson — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 13:00:09 +0000

They do not call it the “World Wide Web” for nothing. It is a spider-web, and it is world wide the information that is about you and is out there for everyone to see, if they really wanted to. The spider on the web is anyone who searches your name using different programs or services provided online, and it is amazing what comes up.

Say someone wants to know what you are up to. By tracking the electronic foot prints left behind by email, Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, or even just account activity, they can learn a lot about you in a short amount of time, about the time it takes to load a page. The world of today where there are no walls and information is out there flying around can be a dangerous one, if you are not careful.

The information that is out there can be grabbed by people search engines like Pipl, Spokeo, and CVGadget. It is not illegal, they are doing nothing wrong in the eyes of the internet police, but it does invade our privacy even if the information is out for people to see. It is like putting your dirty laundry out in front of the house, even clothes with small stains, the fact remains that our personal stuff can be easily accessed by anyone. Creepy.

So what can you do about it?

Put a stop to the mountain of information on you that is being collected by these search engines as you read this. First check out for yourself how much is out there by searching your name. Rapleaf is a provider with an open tool to let you see everything, while the other search engines only let you see bits and pieces. By going to that site you can actually manage what people see about you. No more spying from your ex-girlfriend or boyfriend, no more parental espionage, no more privacy pillaging! By ‘Opting-out’ on Rapleaf’s website, you can permanently delete all that saved information that Rapleaf has on you.

Another way to stop prying eyes is to adjust the privacy settings. This means going to all the sites connected to your email address and changing them individually

Amazon: Wish Lists are made public by default. To change that setting, go to this page and select the option to sign in. You can then view any Wish Lists associated with your account and designate them as private.
Facebook: Once signed in, look under the ‘Settings’ tab at the top of the page to find the privacy control panel. Click the Profile option to set parameters regarding who can view your content.
MySpace: Click the My Account button at the top of the page after logging in, then click Privacy to adjust your settings. Bear in mind that your age and location are typically displayed publicly even if your profile is set as private, as was the case in one of the examples cited in “They Know Your Dark Secrets…And Tell Anyone.”
Pandora: Your playlists are public unless you specify otherwise. Once logged in, click Account at the top of the page, and then follow the option to edit your profile info. From there, you’ll see a checkbox that you can select to make your profile (and thus your playlists) private.

By doing this, you prevent search from sites like Pipl and Spokeo from getting into your private information like what music you like, who your girl or boyfriend is, where you live, the list goes on and on. Take back control of your privacy. Don’t let weirdo’s or people who do not need to see your personal life get the best of you. Who knows what people will do with information like that. You can protect your privacy even when you are on the web, these are ways to catch those spiders crawling around looking for trouble.

Remember Netscape? It’s Back!

Sean Wilcoxson — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 18:07:16 +0000

A new internet browser has hit the scene of an already crowded stage. It goes by the name of Rockmelt, and it is a change from the regular browser scheme. What Rockmelt does is use your Facebook ID to log onto the browser, anywhere in the world, and allow you to surf the net faster and easier. Behind the stage of internet browsers is the maker of Netscape. Has everyone forgot about this guy? Well he is back, and it sounds like better than ever.

The future is here. Rockmelt is here to reinvent the web. The primary purpose of Rockmelt is making the browser able to keep up with your friends, consume information, and search faster. It works on Windows and Mac’s right now for desktops and laptops. A Beta version is being released today, you can download it at rockmelt.com. If you go to the site, you will see an icon asking if you would like to be ‘Invited’ to use Rockmelt. Wow, it looks like this new browser is V.I.P. status, and you get on the list until they are ready to let you in.

What is cool is that the CEO of Netscape, Marc Andreeson who helped start the Netscape Communications Corp., is fighting back against the same web browsers that put him out of business. He is doing that by funding these two men who founded Rockmelt, Eric Vishria and Tim Howes, and they are looking to change the way we use the internet.

In an interview with them on YouTube, they gave a sneak peak at the features of Rockmelt and what the catalyst is for the change. Instead of just an ordinary web browser like Chrome or Firefox where you click on a search link, wait for it to load, and then go back to the search page, Rockmelt turns the internet into a magazine enabling you to ‘turn the page’ so to speak. This sounds like a new era in the Internet age. Everything is on the internet, and it seems like everyone is on Facebook, so by integrating these two into one browser, Rockmelt can open the door to new ways to game, commerce, or just socialize.

The test of the browser was actually performed through Google’s web browser Chromium, but it can be used through Firefox or Internet Explorer. One requirement to be able to use the features of Rockmelt is having a Facebook account. If you have an account, and you get invited, then you are able to look at your friends to see who is doing what on a side-panel. On the other side-panel to the right is your favorite sites that you visit the most, and in between is the ‘magazine’ style search engine and a faster way to surf.

Netscape is back in action by sneaking in the back door with a whole new way to browse the web. Do not be surprised to see this type of browser become the main stream of using the internet. Be sure to check out YouTube’s video of Rockmelt, as well as sign up to get into this new and exciting way to use the internet.