USB Connectors

As mobile devices get increasingly slimmer, so too will their corresponding USB connectors. Even better, you won't have to flip the cable when you try to slip it in upside down. Finally. Just when you thought that jamming that cable to the fax machine was too much, along came internet fax. Now we have cables that are even better. Personally, it might be a great thing that not everything is going wireless simply because of the ability to intercept it or it not working properly. To pack the powerful punch of the USB 3.1 standard, which can move data at 10 gigabits per second, into a smaller cable, it will closely resemble the USB 2.0 Micro-B. But it has a few advantages over existing models: Specifically, it's reversible, meaning users no longer need to worry about plug orientation. The plug design is similar to Apple's Lightning cables and will take away one of USB's main frustrations. The downside is that the new cables won't work with existing connectors. With innovations of the cables, the ports need to be able to keep up.

Trading In Old Gadgets

There's a newer, sleeker iPad in town, which for many, means it's time to throw their old garbage iPad into the street while running to the nearest Apple store. Does this feel like it happens several time a year and somewhere in the middle there are people getting beat up. Seriously there is really no need to camp out in front of a store, or hire someone to do that for you for that matter, just to get the newest iGadget. The only problem is that the shiny new iPad Air will cost you between $479 and $929 depending on what features and data storage you choose. Thankfully there are a few ways to get money for your old iPad to put towards your new one. Or, you know, your bills. This raises an interesting question, do you really need that new iPad? If you are one of those that feel nauseous at the thought of not being connected there are options. You can trade in a working iPad of any model for a Target gift certificate of $200 or more. You are guaranteed at least $200 before Nov. 9 and the gift certificate can be used for any Target merchandise. You can also trade it in at Amazon, Walmart, or an Apple store but the amount that you get back will depend on the software and the condition.

Super Senses

Technology can be a wonderful thing and really creepy as the same time. Our fingers are pretty good at feeling the things they're currently touching, but not so good at feeling everything else. Scientists have designed a glove that'll allow your digits to feel virtual sensations, like the soothing skin of an alpaca, or the smooth surface of a brand new car, or whatever your imagination might think up. The applications for this are numerous, from highly precise surgery to contact sports. Not only can this thing theoretically transmit different sensations like hot or cold, but the article also mentions that it "could restore sensation to people who have lost their natural skin," like burn victims or amputees. The software developers have really come up with a very useful and relevant idea. But imagine a future where you can't just browse the Internet, but actually touch it. Imagine scrolling down your Tumblr feed and being able to feel the fur of that LOLcat. Oh the possibilities!

Skype Latest

Microsoft says Skype, its voiceover-IP service, will be included with its Windows 8.1 operating system update when it's released in October. Around 300 million people use Skype on a range of devices. The upgraded OS is expected to have tight integration with Bing, Skype, Internet Explorer, SkyDrive, Outlook.com, Xbox Music, Video and Games. Skype is one of the best internet phone services because it has many features and is available on several different platforms. Another great thing about Skype that the basic services are offered free of charge. This will enable a lot more people to be able to connect with others using the service. It is also extremely popular because it has a variety of applications ranging from just internet phone chatting to business meetings to even interviews. You can try other services but I think that you will find that Skype is one of the best when it comes to voice over internet protocol.

Control-Alt-Delete

We have all used it. Do you happen to know how it actually came about? Engineer David Bradley, a designer on early IBM computers, said he invented the combination as a shortcut during the software development. It was not supposed to be available any place else but software companies got wind of it and it spread. Gates said that the keys to log on or access the control panel should not have been that complicated and the reason for it was that it required users to use both hands and was intended to avoid accidental keystrokes from rebooting a computer. Personally it might be a good thing that it requires the use of two hands because clearly they were thinking ahead of game to make sure that anyone can use computers without messing anything up or changing things that they accidentally did not want to change.

Trust for Facts

Who do you trust when it comes to getting facts and information? After the events of the past week with the Navy Yard shootings and the Kenya mall massacre, new outlets jump the gun, so to speak to be the first with the breaking news and it constantly changes. In the case of the Navy Yard shooting, the facts kept coming in, overlaying the misstatements and flat-out lies that had been generated only hours before. Security clearance questions arose; a history of mental illness popped up; the Department of Veterans Affairs was implicated for failure to see the carnage to come, as was the Department of the Navy for failing to pass along important police information about the shooter. The Virginia gun dealer took a few hits before the truth came out that nothing untoward or illegal had transpired when the shooter purchased not an assault rifle but a shotgun. Journalism has become a race to get the "facts" first, cleaned up by corrections later. It also seems like the slew of internet phone services and social media, we still cannot get the facts right. What are your thoughts on the subject of trust?

Get The Most Out of the Weekend

It's a sad fact of life that vacations -- that precious time off reserved specifically for the purpose of relaxing -- can often cause us additional stress. It’s not surprising that even though your body might be comfortably prone on a beach towel, your brain is still scrolling through to-do lists back home and all the unfinished papers at work. With the long weekend coming up, it might even be worse because of the stress leading up to it and then Monday is spent worrying about the following week. Some of the things that you can do, if you have not already, is disabling the internet fax and email notifications. If unplugging for the weekend is in the realm of possibility for you, consider going off the grid and disabling your work email -- you'll be guaranteed to come back to work on Tuesday feeling more refreshed than if you had spent the weekend glued to your phone. If you cannot unplug, make sure to really prioritize, and be reasonable about it. You will have a more sustained sense of progress over your task load, and will also lose the sense of foreboding that often leads to procrastination of important tasks.

Collaboration

When it comes to science, collaboration is one of the best things that you can do because yes, two heads are better than one. In my experience, I have found that no matter the subject, we do not do research or create in a vacuum. With website development, there needs to be many people coming together to create something that is great and to come up with even more ideas. Scientific research has evolved from comprising primarily simple, well-controlled studies to complex, multi-faceted ones. If scientific collaboration is so useful, why then do not all researchers do it? For some, it may be difficult to find collaborators at their institution that are interested in the same area of research. In this case, an effective strategy is to form technique-based collaborations, in which colleagues share technical expertise with one another with the goal of enhancing the impact of each other's research. On the other hand, one way to meet colleagues that are interested in similar research questions is to attend small, focused conferences where most other attendees are studying the same disease process.

Best Deals on Smartphones

If you’re in the market for a new smartphone, you may be surprised to know that you don’t have to buy from your carrier to get a deal. Online retailers like Amazon and Wirefly offer a variety of phones that are ready to work with your existing carrier and can save you up to $150. Even with the phone service contracts, it might be a good idea to shop around for the right phone at the best price. Another great thing you can do with your old phone is trade it in for some cash. Many of the big retailers offer great deals for the more recent phones that are in great working condition. And, your carrier will likely give you credit toward your next phone as well. Or, you can use a trade-in service to get cash for your old phone and then shop wherever you can get the best deal. One of the biggest things to pay attention to is the most current prices because they have a tendency to change without notice. What are the best deals that you have seen?

LinkedIn Expanding

LinkedIn Corp. will soon open up its online professional networking service to high school students as part of an effort to help steer their collegiate careers. Effective Sept. 12, the new minimum age to create a LinkedIn account will range from 13 years old to 16 years old in most countries where LinkedIn operates. This might be a good thing to get the students involved in networking at an earlier age so that they can have an advantage when they go off to college or even get a job right out of high school. It will also give the kids a chance to experience a professional social network as opposed to Facebook, where they will be able to learn what is socially acceptable in the workforce and higher education realm. LinkedIn said it will limit what information can be seen on juvenile accounts and will set up a special customer support system to help members under 18. They should also consider having these restrictions on VoIP services on any social network.

Benefits of Cloud Computing

If you are a business professional, you have probably heard a lot about cloud computing if you do not already have some sort of system. Some of the benefits include reduction in costs, flexibility to expand the business, and the elimination of set up and maintenance costs. An internet phone service is much more cost effective because it can be managed off site without any extra hardware. Also, the application development is so advanced that many employees can use their smartphones as the business phones which can save the business even more money. With amazing interfaces, it is easy to use and even manage the systems. The administrator is able to track all of the activity such as the calls made and received. Moving to the cloud is also extremely easy if you go with RingCentral. Their system is set up in such a way that you will be able to keep your 800 number and your existing hardware. What are you waiting for?

Office Habits

The way that people work is changing and it is mostly due to the fact that workers are embracing the available mobility. More tools such as business applications are becoming more popular and more used. In order to keep up with the changes, software development and web development have to be able to keep up. We are all toting around laptops, tablets and smartphones to make every place a workplace. And so office software is changing. These days, what is important is collaboration, small screens, fast turnarounds, social media and, most of all, mobility. In a mobile world, where everyone is in nearly constant contact, speed and ease of use are more important than lots of font choices. An important part of mobile design is fewer choices: keyboard commands are often favored over icons to preserve screen real estate for the text. Have you changed the way that your office functions?

Illegal Internet Phone

So you know that lovely conversation that you just had with you best friend over Skype a couple minutes ago? Well, if you were in Ethiopia, the internet phone call would probably have cost you a very uncomfortable 15 years in prison. You read that right, 15 years in jail. Earlier this year, Ethiopia criminalized the use of VoIP for commercial use. Lawmakers are suggesting a penalty of up to 15 years of jail time for violators. Unfortunately, Ethiopia isn’t the only country that’s cracking down on internet call services. Kuwait, Oman, Belize and the UAE have all, at one time or another, banned VoIP. The officials in those countries say that it is about national security but that statement is as transparent as it gets. They are really protecting the phone companies which bring in a large percentage on the countries revenue. I guess the question is if it is right to make laws restricting VoIP calls. What happened to "the internet for everyone everywhere"?

VoIP Info

Poised as the next model of telephony, VoIP actually had its beginnings almost a century ago. In 1928 Bell Labs unveiled a technology they called the vocoder. It analyzed speech, transforming it into electronically transmitted information, and recreated it at the other end of the transmission. In principle very similar to today’s VoIP, where signals are converted into packets, sent across a network, and reassembled when they reach their destination. Data from IDC indicates that more than 1.7 billion mobile phones were shipped globally in 2012. Business was a big driver of those sales, and now more companies are looking for ways to save money and gain features by switching their mobile workforce to VoIP phone systems. VoIP can enable services on almost any mobile device, and in these days of BYOD, the workforce wants to connect on their favorite platform. The ability to choose a platform is a big plus for businesses because every employee has different preferences and needs to be able to seamlessly integrate the devices.

Cybersecurity Improvements

With all the technological advancements, it is important for there to good internet and computer security, especially in government. There has been a bill passed in congress that aims to improve the security of the internet infrastructure of the States. It is an important bill that was passed because it reaches more people than the current laws about security in place. Since more people are using the internet and internet phones, there are more chances of breaches to security. The text of the legislation has not yet been released, but the Los Angeles Times reports that it would require power-grid companies and other infrastructure utilities to disclose their information security procedures, and also provide legal immunity to all companies that inform the government of network intrusions and other threats. Do you think that these new laws are for the better or worse?

Be Kind

It has certainly been a while since I have written or went on a rant but I am definitely back. So here goes. We have all heard that kindness can go a long way but I do not think that we ever realized just how much of an impact it can have on our health. Of course, it is always a good idea to draw the distinction between being kind and not giving people enough direction. When it comes to web development, there is a lot of creativity that goes into the site but there also has to be a certain format. Though kindness and compassion can be applied almost everywhere. It can even help your physical health. There was a study done that pointed to the vagus nerve that was stimulated when people were kind but as with any study, more research needs to be done. Being a good friend, and being compassionate toward others, may be one of the best ways to improve your own health.

Leap Motion

The computer has come such a long way in such a short period of time that web development and software development companies, such as AB Soft, had to really put in an effort to stay current and ahead of the technology. Now, with computer interfaces going part the keyboard and mouse, there are certain major overhauls that have to be made for the interfaces to work. Enter natural input. Our eyes and the space around us may be the next big innovations on that front. For the past few years, a handful of companies have been working on eye-tracking and gesture control for computers. Now, there are signs that these natural input methods are almost ready for prime time. The future is still murky for these technologies. Microsoft could always spoil Leap Motion’s ascent with a better version of Kinect that could be embedded within future PCs and tablets. Any one of these smaller companies could be acquired by a tech titan like Apple or Google, and have its plans changed. In all cases, the success of these input methods depends on whether app developers embrace them — a shaky proposition when they’re not baked directly into the platforms they run on. Still, the launch of actual consumer-facing products is a good start.

Future of Tech in Cars and Outlandish Ideas

As we embark on a new year, most people will be looking to the future and trying to predict the new technology. For example, the CEO of Google Larry Page believes that computers will be the new norm when it comes to driving and beyond that. There are already plenty of driverless cars that roaming the streets of California. For a purely engineering point of view, it will enhance the safety of drivers. Throw in some more application development and the sky in the limit for tech. Picture this: your car could drop you off and then go park itself somewhere else and then whenever you need it, our phone notices that you're walking out of the building, and your car is there immediately by the time you get downstairs. Outlandish ideas and effective, pragmatic management rarely go hand in hand. What's remarkable about Page is that while he's been pushing his engineers and executives to pursue big dreams, he has also been running a complex $38 billion business of 53,000 workers with surprising efficacy. When he took over in April 2011, Google's once-phenomenal innovation engine was showing signs of age, and bureaucracy was beginning to take root. Page quickly reorganized the company to give top executives more responsibility and accountability and to sharpen Google's focus on a handful of product areas.

What Sets AB Soft Apart

Website Design is much more than code and graphics. There needs to be an extensive knowledge of the consumer and the customer base. The developers need to be able to put themselves in the shoes of the person who will be browsing that web site, looking for information. They also need to realize that the average person is not as tech savvy as they are. Designing a website takes not only knowledge, but passion as well. Whether it’s a simple website or a corporate e-commerce website design, all of the  website designers at AB Soft devote every ounce of effort to their projects. They are able to create websites that fit your business perfectly and are very dynamic which is important in the changing markets today. They also know how to reach out on an international scale and this is the reason that AB Soft is set apart from the other web development services. Go with them and you will never look back.