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What’s WiMAX? WiFi on steroids, of course!

It’s similar to WiFi, in that it provides broadband wireless internet access, but it goes further, faster, and is more stable under load and more secure. That’s what they say “WiFi on steroids.” It’s already rolled out in some countries, but we have to wait a little longer here in the US. Device makers are already planning for its adoption; Intel is planning WiMAX enabled computers for example.

The strengths of WiMAX and it’s relatively inexpensive infrastructure (no cable to lay) should make it a popular option. Keep an eye out for more WiMAX news!

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Happy Holidays!

Who got the best gadgets???

I wish everyone all the best in the new year.

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You’re looking for a home theater system. You want something that provides quality image and sound, but you don’t want to pay through the nose for it. You also don’t know all the technical jargon or what makes a good system. Do you need those bells and whistles? How good is the system equipment you’re considering?

You may want some Home Theater System advice. Phil Taylor offers just that. He’s worked with audio, video and home theater technology for 28 years, and he has quite a few tips on home theater systems. Phil doesn’t just provide advice on the equipment, he also gives you tips on home theater room design so that you can best incorporate your system into your existing rooms, or even how to arrange a dedicated entertainment room. Phil’s advice is geared towards the beginner or novice, so you can get appropriate guidance on what sort of system you need and the equipment you might want. Stop by Phil’s Home Theater System Advice site to get education and information for your project. He may save you some headaches and money.

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In the world of online gaming, there are a lot of important aspects that need to be in place for any gaming network to function in a smooth manner. As such, Game Servers play an important role. These are designed to ease gaming needs and are trusted. The Ventrilo Servers have a purpose to serve and they do their job well. They keep the system functional at all times.

In order for the system to be up and running at all times, these Dedicated Servers have to be on an up time at all hours. They work in unison to ensure that all aspects of online gaming are concluded in an uniterrupted manner and ensure a smooth flow. So gaming can continue to be fun at all hours and continue to intrigue so many more only because there’s such a solid back up system that ensures that the gaming system doesn’t collapse all at once.

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Small businesses can benefit tremendously from many of the recent advances in computing technology, namely in areas such as networking, mobile computing, service software, and the dizzying array of feature-rich smartphones. But the high turnover and even higher price tag that many of these items come with, can keep many small businesses out of the market.

Large companies keep personnel on staff to constantly review and implement any changes in information technology. They also have more resources to invest in new equipment and upgrades.
Small businesses, on the other hand, especially those that are newly established or are rapidly growing, usually do not have the resources needed to invest in either a full time IT consultant or in new equipment.

So how can your business keep up with and benefit from advances in computing and mobile services? Here are a couple tips to keep in mind:

• At least once a year, review the structure, operation, and goals of your business, and evaluate your current equipment’s performance next to it. Also, pay attention to any comments from either your customers or your employees. This will help you to keep in touch with the needs of your business, and will give you an idea of what features to look for before settling on any computing or mobile services equipment.
• Stay in touch with your budget. What will it help your business if you buy the most high end equipment, but you go bankrupt from the expenses?
• Consider a computer lease that has an option to upgrade. Computer equipment leasing is especially good for newly established or small businesses because it means that you do not have to make an initial lump sum investment. Maintenance costs may also be included in the lease. With the option to upgrade, you can also take advantage of any changes in technology.

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In the world of today most of us spend about 8 hours a day (or even more if you’re a workaholic like me) sat at desks slaving away at our PC’s so it’s really no surprise in the up-surge in brand new stunning USB gadgets now being made available. Ranging from things that are quite useful (such as USB Fridges), to items whose sole aim is obviously to distract from that work deadline that is looming ever closer (such as USB Remote Controlled Cars).

Whatever their purpose, desks all over the world are becoming more colourful, noisy, and cluttered with amazing small devices. I believe in some offices it now actually gets quite competitive with everyone wanting the most novel, new, funky usb gadget on their desktop.

With its charging capability negating the need for batteries it’s certainly an attractive ‘format’ for manufacturers and consumers alike. The low cost of a lot of these items ensures they tend to be great novelty items, ideal for Secret Santa gifts around the workplace at Christmas. Alternatively some of the more useful and better quality items are also suitable as more acceptable presents for friends and family.

With the widespread appearance of Wireless USB not too far over the horizon, the current problem of trailing wires could soon be a thing of the past and will almost certainly spawn a whole new range of usb toys and novelties in the not too distant future. On the other hand it surely would negate the advantage of not requiring batteries or an external power supply, which is a benefit some of the more ‘novel’ items rely on to make them attractive to the consumer. Usb gadgets producers are so innovative that I’m sure it won’t take them long to come up with a solution to this problem.

For a great range of USB Christmas presents for friends and family of all ages, including an entire section devoted to cool usb gadgets, check out Gadgets.co.uk, the UK’s leading online gift retailer.

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The 6300 is a great looking mobile phone from Nokia that combines a sleek design with excellent functionality. While not the most advanced phone ever created, it still performs very well indeed, is not too complicated and is great for the mainstream user.

The first thing you notice about the Nokia 6300 is the smooth, polished, stainless steel design. The surprisingly large screen is top notch, a full 2″ in length and supporting 16 million colors. Once you get past the technical beauty of the product, you can take advantage of stunning new features such as the 2 mega-pixel camera with an impressive 8 times digital zoom.

If you are looking for a means of entertainment, the 6300 will do the job nicely. A built-in FM radio, music player and video player will provide enough multimedia entertainment to liven up any boring moments. With up to 2GB expandable memory, you will be able to store plenty of music and videos on the phone.

This lightweight 91g mobile phone even lets you check your email; an increasingly popular feature on today’s mobiles. If you are looking to manage your life more efficiently then throw away your Organiser. The Nokia 6300 includes a ToDo list, notes, personal calendar, alarm clock, count down timer, and supports up to 1,000 contacts in its address book.

If you are looking for connectivity, the phone supports the latest Bluetooth technologies so that you can take advantage of the latest trends and if you are looking for a camera phone that won’t set you back as much, but still performs very well for everyday-users then this phone is the best in its class.

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Yahoo! Tech has a review of the Vudu Movie Player that was announced back in April of this year.

The Vudu Movie Player is a set top box that you connect to the internet via broadband (no PC needed) and download movies to play on your TV. You can rent or buy the movies, and there’s over 5000 titles available to watch (a lot more than iTunes and Apple TV). At $400, it includes a 250 GB hard drive, enough for 100 hrs of standard definition movies. You don’t have to wait to download movies, because popular titles come pre-downloaded for the first 30 second snippets, and peer-to-peer networking enables a faster download (all the live Vudu boxes work to share the load).

So how did the review turn out?

Pretty good overall, but there was a concern about sound quality on some titles. Also, you don’t have the option to rent OR buy on all titles; sometimes you have to buy to view the movie, and sometimes you’re just allowed to rent it. Still, this is a pretty nice little setup that should improve as more titles and features are added (the software can update from its broadband connection).

Other Vudu reviews:

• Laptop Magazine’s review
• ZDNet’s review
• CNET’s review

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Technewsworld has a nasty Halloween Security Horror story (scroll down a bit to see the story):

Beginning about three years ago, and for two-and-half years, a bot master worked on penetrating a very large company. Always keeping well below the threshold for the in-place security systems, this guy compromised almost every computer in the company.

I won’t spoil the outcome for you, you’ll have to read the story yourself! It’s truly a nightmare scenario for both employers and employees.

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