Articles
Use Your Computer to Save on Costly DVR Services
Did you know you can record television shows using your computer? Hardware and software advances are making it more realistic for noobies than ever before. With a newer television and ample computer hard drive space, you can watch TV shows on the go from your laptop, edit and share clips of memorable TV moments, or simply watch your favorite shows at times more convenient for you. What You Need With so much television programming available on the Internet today—through network’s sites, iTunes.com, Hulu.com and other online resources—you may have decided to bypass the television completely. If not, you can use… Continue reading...
Wikipedia: A Quick-reference, Online Encyclopedia
The Internet can feel like a seemingly endless black hole of information. Thankfully Google and other search engines make information more accessible and findable, but you still have to carefully discriminate fact from almost-fact and fiction. For many topics, Google search engine result pages include links to Wikipedia. It sounds credible enough—almost like an encyclopedia—but exactly what is it? What is Wikipedia? Wikipedia combines the Hawaiian word “wiki,” meaning “fast,” with encyclopedia. Because of the Wikipedia phenomenon, a new meaning for wiki has evolved, and it now can refer to any website or effort that is built through collaboration of… Continue reading...
Closing the Gap between Laptops and Desktops
At one time, laptops were reserved for road warriors and affluent students, but with today’s wide-ranging price points and growing feature sets, laptops may compactly meet the computing needs of nearly every noobie. Loving Laptops Most of the benefits to owning a laptop are obvious. Even if you don’t travel frequently or work in coffee shops, laptops can offer more mobility within your house. If you’ve set up a wireless home network, you can use your laptop to browse the Internet from the couch while watching Monday Night Football or access Rachel Ray’s “Weekly Round-up” of recipes while cooking in… Continue reading...
Weigh the Costs before Ditching Your Landline Phone
“Hi. I’m your landline phone. Remember me? I haven’t heard from you in awhile, and I’m getting lonely. Please call.” Does this sound like your landline phone? If so, are you thinking about kicking it to the curb? Breakups are hard, and breaking up with your landline could mean more breaking up (of a different kind) on your cell phone. However, that’s exactly what 20.2 percent of U.S. households have done, according to a 2008 statistic from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Landline phones that travel through a solid medium of metal wire or optical fiber have been… Continue reading...