I fully blame the invention of RSS Feeds for lost productivity.  (While also bowing to their greatness.)

Technorati Tags: Dilbert, Supergeekblog, Office Humor, Gadgets, Shiny Things

Post from: Supergeekblog

Gadgets while at work

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Let Me Google That For You allows the user to see the search term you used, an animation showing how to hit “search on google,” with the funny quip “was that so hard”, and finally ending with the google results.

Warning - only use this with people who might have a sense of humor. ;

Technorati Tags: Lifehacker, Google, Tech Support

Post from: Supergeekblog

Sick of Googling for people? Try this!

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Intro:

There are enormous amounts of computer and networking products available to consumers. Determining what items are best suited to meet your needs can be a time consuming task. Unless you are directly involved with work in the networking field, I think it is reasonable to assume that you don’t read up on all of the latest network technology products that have come out. Hopefully this article will give you a little bit of background of some of the more common technology that is available so that you can start on the right track at finding the products you need.

Background:

Networking technology has improved vastly, especially within the last several years. Email and VoIP have transformed communication technology. What once took mail days to deliver is now being done in a matter of seconds. Traditional phone calling is now being replaced with cheaper, digital, internet phone calling. Do you have the products you need to stay on the edge of the technology curve?

Products:
Broadband Connection: The connection supplied by an internet provider that gives you access to the internet via a modem and/or network.

Adapters/NICs: Hardware (network interface card) that is added to your networking device (computer) that allows the computer to send and receive information over the network.

Network Cables: Cables that connect the NIC to the incoming internet service provider network. Commonly, NICs connect to your telephone line, or cable/DSL line with networking cables through a modem. A connection to a B-ISDN (fiber optic) line is also available now. While telephone lines offered the first forms of network communication using a dial up modem, cable and DSL networking (Ethernet cables) has pretty much taken over broadband communication since the connection is “always on” and much faster than dial up. Fiber optic networks are even faster but are not available in many areas as fiber optic networking is a relatively new service technology.

Routers/Bridges: Allow multiple users to access the same network. An 8-port router can connect up to 8 computers to the same network. To expand network connectivity, wireless routers are also available.

Wireless/Wi-Fi: Wireless connections can be made in a few different ways. One example is a Wi-Fi network. Wi-Fi enables wireless communication between a network modem and a user network device (computer/laptop). This reduces the necessity of additional cables and increases mobility. You still need to stay within the range of the wireless signal that is being sent from your wireless router and network cables are still needed to connect the modem to the internet provider network. In order to bypass wires altogether, satellite networking is available. Mobility increase with satellite communication, however, a satellite network may or may not be more beneficial as associated costs generally run higher for this service.

VoIP: An effective form of communication (voice over internet protocol) that allows phone calls to be made over the internet instead of over traditional phone lines. It is supposed to reduce the amount of bandwidth a phone call takes up while allowing multiple phone calls to be made over the same internet connection at the same time. VoIP calls can be made using a computer with microphone/speakers or headset, a traditional phone with an adapter, or a special VoIP phone that connects directly to your broadband connection. Special VoIP phones can be expensive. You can opt to purchase used phones or refurbished phones for your VoIP business to save money.

Media Conversion: Devices that convert copper networking (telephone lines) to fiber optic networking so older networking systems (dial up) can utilize and expand the growth of newer, faster, fiber optic networks.

Print Servers: Allows multiple computers and other networking devices to communicate with a printing device.

Security Firewall/Remote/VPN: Multiple security devices are available that keep private networks secure so that outsiders cannot access confidential information about your business or your personal life. Security options are available for both networking through physical network cables or via wireless communication. Security products can help monitor all incoming and outgoing activity sent from individual computers and servers to protect your network from potential threats.

Access Switch: A network access switch automates network access for managed and unmanaged users and devices. It basically makes sure that all of the computers connected to it are complying with specific set policies before granting a connection to other parts of the network or internet.

UPS System: An uninterruptable power supply that allows you to maintain access to your network and network devices during power failure.

Conclusion:
Hopefully this gives you a basic overview of some of the network options available to you. There is a lot of technology available that attempts to mesh the many new forms of networking with older forms in order to utilize and extend the life of infrastructures already in place while promoting the growth of the new tech infrastructure. Having the ability to recognize products and their functions will allow you to make a product decision that can get you the most out of what tech and services are already available to you and what may be available to you in the near future. One thing is guaranteed, effective communication will always be a necessity. Taking the time now to understand networking and how it contributes to faster, more reliable communication and increased productivity will keep you performing ahead of the game in the future.

Technorati Tags: Networking, guest post, supergeekblog, network cables

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Computer Networking Products Overview

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Ever had a drive go bad?  It is an entertaining experiance, unless you haven’t backed up the data yet.  Then it is a really fun roller coaster of panic, tinkering, listening, and waiting.

Check out the sounds… as a “geek horror show.”

Technorati Tags: hard drive, fail, HD fail, Hard Drive fails, supergeekblog

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Hard Drives’ Dying Moans

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As [Lifehacker] mentioned yesterday, the normally $40 firewall and antivirus solution ZoneAlarm Pro is available for free today only, so if you’re interested in some free quality software, consider this your reminder to grab a copy.

Today it is free.  Sign up and in 48hrs you will get a link to the software along with a serial.

Technorati Tags: Zone Alarm, Free Software, supergeekblog

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Zone Alarm Pro - Free Today

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Here are a few links for you to get caught up on:

Official Trek Movie Website

Apple Trek Trailers

io9 has an awesome breakdown of the new trailer (2). They go through it slide by slide picking out points that many of us probably missed.

Intel wallpapers and more - cool site actually.  (My desktop wallpaper at the moment as well.)

Check out the links.  I was initially as leery as a lot of other Trekkies out there… but I am starting to get excited with the glimpses we have been getting.  It has a lot of potential I think.

[tags]Star Trek, Paramount, J.J. Abrams, supergeekblog, reviews, Trek Movie[/tags

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Trek Trailer Breakdown

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There seems to be a basic convention to it, and I have to admit it makes it look more professional/more information/and generally more appealing.

Here are some great resource links that I found while researching this:

Twitter Background Using Powerpoint

Twitter Background Using Photoshop (template)

Twitter Background Image

There are quite a few more out there.  I am thinking I will start with something fairly basic using the PowerPoint methedology, and time permitting work on something a little more flashy via Photoshop.

Technorati Tags: twitter, supergeekblog, olorinpc, template, design

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Twitter Backgrounds

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• 16 Essential PC Applications for Bloggers
  Posted on Friday, November 14th, 2008 in SGB Reviews - Comments: (0)
  Over at ProBlogger, they have a well written article discussing 16 different applications that bloggers should use. Some I have used, some I have not, and some I prefer and alternative.  I wouldn’t say this needs to be limited to bloggers, but anyone who likes to customize their web experience.The first one on the list being Firefox - I couldn’t agree more.
• CyStats - Another WP plugin
  Posted on Thursday, November 13th, 2008 in SGB Software - Comments: (0)
  I normally don’t plug (pun intended) too many Wordpress plugins, but this is the second one I have discovered this week that I installed right away.  This stats plugin impressed me with it’s layout immediately after installing.  It is called CyStats.It integrates right into the WP-Admin section and starts recording data right away.  As a stats junky (my day job is reporting/business advisor/analyist/report development) I really like having this information at my fingertips.
• Moderator - A Wordpress addon
  Posted on Wednesday, November 12th, 2008 in Uncategorized - Comments: (0)
  For fellow bloggers out there, I found a pretty nifty plugin/app.  It allows you to moderate your comments right from your desktop.  (Instead of either logging in manually or waiting for the queue email.)Depending on the volume of comments, may or may not be worth the time.  However it certainly is worth taking a look at to see if it would be useful for you.
• SGB New Theme
  Posted on Friday, November 14th, 2008 in SGB Tech - Comments: (0)
  Well, I have installed and started customizing a new theme here at SuperGeekBlog.The idea is to finally make the jump (like I did on OlorinPC.com) to a theme that supported widgets.  Not totally sure about it yet, as the dividers are doing some funky stuff… but I might be able to find the code that is doing that and tweaking it a bit.
• WP Best Posts Summary
  Posted on Thursday, November 13th, 2008 in Websites - Comments: (2)
  Another WP Plugin, looks to be pretty nifty.  I am actually installing it here at SGB and going to give it a spin.  It is a plugin that does a Daily, Weekly, or Monthly brief summary of posts done on a WP site.Best Posts Summary is a WordPress plugin that automatically generates a summary post of your best posts over a specified period of time based on the most popular posts in terms of number of comments or number of visits.

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Best posts on Supergeekblog from 10th November - 16th November 2008

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The first one on the list being Firefox - I couldn’t agree more.  I have tested Chrome, use IE (as required) for work, but live in Firefox.  I would recommend following through and checking out the list of “25 must have Firefox Addons.”

My personal recommendations: Twitterfox, ColorfulTabs, StumbleToolbar, Greasemonkey, Locationbar2, Scribefire, Search Status, SpeedDial, and TinyURL Creater.

Skipping down to SnagIT - I actually would recommend ScreenHunter 5.0 Free.  Smaller, lightweight, free version that does basic cross-hairs screenshots that I prefer.  A lot less options, but that is what I need/use.

The next item on his list that catches my eye is Digsby.  I have tested it and it works, but I am a big trillian fan.  I have used the software since it’s really buggy early days and it has come along nicely.  I do agree with the importance of having an “all in one” IM application though.  With Friends, Family, Clients, Coworkers, etc all on different networks, logins, groups, etc it is very helpful to only have to run a single app.

RSS Bandit is another one that I am not sure about.  It apparently downloads directly from Google Reader for offline reading.  Perhaps it is a better experience than mixing Google Reader/Gears for offline.  I vote no on that because I use Reader both at work and home.  So I prefer the pure web based version.  That being said, if I was still traveling full time as a software consultant, my opinion might be different.

Of course there are more recommendations.  I encourage you to go to ProBlogger and check out the full list.  Comment there or here if there is an app of choice that you like/prefer.  The key thing to remember is that it *is* possible to custimize your web experience.  Once you do, you will wonder why you didn’t before!

Technorati Tags: ProBlogger, Essential Apps, Blogging, SuperGeek

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16 Essential PC Applications for Bloggers

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The idea is to finally make the jump (like I did on OlorinPC.com) to a theme that supported widgets.  Not totally sure about it yet, as the dividers are doing some funky stuff… but I might be able to find the code that is doing that and tweaking it a bit.

So let me know what you think - I might still try a few others before tearing apart the code… but it is a work in progress.

Technorati Tags: Supergeek, SupergeekBlog, Wordpress, Wordpress Themes

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SGB New Theme

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