A Serious Post

This post is a little different from what you’ll usually find here on WhatAboutBlog, it’s a serious topic, and something that is very important to me, so I hope you’ll read on. While it’s easy to get wrapped up in our busy lives, naively seeing things the way we wish to, we can certainly be snapped back to a cold reality when one of our loved ones develops an addiction.

The problems of addiction aren’t isolated to the addict, but rather effect their entire family, friends and often even coworkers - anyone who is around their behavior can be affected, especially those who care for the individual.

If you, or someone you know is battling with addiction, you will want to check out the Narconon drug rehabilitation programs, and receive help. This is a company with a proven track record of helping their clients transition to a drug-free lifestyle. One thing that is important regarding this drug rehab center is that if after leaving their program, a person relapses, they will be re-admitted at no extra cost. Drug rehab centers work, and for those who are truly looking to get clean, you owe it to yourself to invest the time and money into taking care of yourself.

Intel Goes Medical

Here’s a unique twist from Intel: the company is set release a line of computer related wellness products geared toward the elderly and chronically ill.

Full details have not yet been released, but the expected launch date is this coming November eleventh, with the star of the lineup likely to be a touch-screen laptop with strong medical-technology features. The laptop will will be capable of receiving health information from the user, as well as providing medical analysis of such information.  All of this can then easily be transferred from the laptop to the patient’s health care provider.

Communication is possible in both directions, as the health care provider is able to send instructions to the machine, and also includes voice chat with the patient. Intel went the extra mile to make this laptop a viable medical device, including compatibility between laptop and medical devices, such as glucose readers.

Altering Our Brains Via The Internet

The internet has not only changed the way we live, play and work, it’s also had a significant impact on how our brains operate. According to a researcher out of UCLA, named Gary Small, use of the internet for web searching has caused our brains to be become better equip for filtering data and making on-the-spot choices.

The researcher professes that those of future generations will be likely to have a stronger level of technological as well as social abilities due to our new high-tech lifestyles. The study included two dozen persons with differing internet experience levels. Results were that when compared to new web users, those who are considered advanced internet patrons displayed two times the activity in the parts of the brain that manage decision-making and high-level reasoning.

However, the results were not all positive. Gary Small also reported that those considered to be advanced internet users tend to have higher rates of ADD diagnosis. This could be in part because those persons are so used to consistently scanning for new information. Of course, a lot more research needs to be done in order to validate these claims.

Cellphones As A Payment Method?

Does technology ever fail to surprise? As if people aren’t already addicted enough to their wireless phones, a trio of companies are trying to make cellphones even more indispensable, by further integrating the devices into our daily lives. How? By making cellphones a viable payment method. Really.

Big name companies Visa, RBC, and Rogers Wireless are launching a wireless phone payment trial where a select group of Canadians will begin paying for purchases with a swipe of their mobile phone. The trial is scheduled to begin sometime in the middle of 2009, and is based in Canada.

Of course, special phones (from Motorola) with special chips will be issued to those participating, and, to begin, it will only be a payment option at selected participating stores. Basically though, the user will swipe their phone for an instant payment, sort of like some of the fast-pay credit cards that are currently available.

Personally, while it’s certainly an inventive use for wireless phones, I find the concept a little worrisome if it should become mainstream. I mean, what if you lose your cellphone, which is much more common than misplacing a wallet? Will a waive a thievery result? Anyhow, it is an interesting idea, and if carefully implemented, will be one to watch.

Blogosphere, I Love Thee

The other day while working, I came to realize that I really adore blogging. I know, it sounds funny, but blogging really is unlike anything else. It’s different than say, a diary, because a diary is generally only about personal matters, nobody else reads it, and there’s obviously no sense of community.

So then, as much as I enjoy writing, maybe it’s not actual blogging I enjoy the most, but more so the blogosphere itself. The internet, and particularly the blogosphere is always evolving, always being updated, and always producing news. It’s never stagnent and there’s always a new website, tool, or plug-in to get excited about. And that’s not even mentioning that we get to write and inform others about all these changes.

The blogosphere encompasses every topic, and almost every possible viewpoint out there. I feel like when I read blogs, more than when I read newspapers or watch tv, I am opening my mind and eyes to many different viewpoints on an endless variety of subjects. It’s sort of a way to become more worldly, without even leaving my apartment. If you care to, feel free to share why you love the blogosphere in the comments below.

FriendFeed Makes Tweeting Easier!

All of you micro-blogging, social network gurus will probably find the news out of FriendFeed interesting. The company has introduced a new feature which allows users to broadcast their FriendFeed messages directly to their Twitter account. This is attractive for those who use, or wish to use both services, as now, instead of posting in both Twitter and FriendFeed, you only need to use the latter.

Of course, FriendFeed is for more than just small messages, and incorporates a variety of activities (some including Flicker photos, and YouTube videos) into their capabilities. All of these are available for the new service as well. Meaning, you can provide your followers the same information through Twitter as you would through FriendFeed, inclusively. For example, when Tweeting a YouTube video the user had posted, it would show it as a link within the tweet itself.  Of course, these are optional choices, and it will be up to the user to decide which features they would like to post to Twitter.

However, those who believe Twitter is already chalked full of spam, and “tweethappy” individuals, may become even more disenchanted with the service, as moves like this will create more and more excessive Twitter noise. But, then, isn’t noise the whole point of Twitter in the first place?

A Good Deal From Nikon

As a technology enthusiast, I love a good deal, as we all know how expensive gadgets can run. With that in mind, I want to share with you all a great promotion that is being run by Nikon. From now, until the end of December, when you purchase eligible Nikon ATB Binoculars, you will receive a $25 or even $50 dollar gift card.

Keep the gift card for yourself and get free ATB Pro Gear, or perhaps gift it to a friend for the upcoming holiday season. Either way, you’ll want to stop by NikonHunting.com to check out their variety of quality Nikon Binoculars.

LinkedIn Lets Others In

LinkedIn is making some changes to how it operates by beginning to accept applications which are produced by third party sources.  On Wednesday, the first eight outside applications were released, with more expected to follow in the future. Applications released so far include offerings from both Google and Amazon.

This is a move that LinkedIn clearly hopes will improve their long-term popularity as well as viability, by improving and expanding the ways their userbase can remain in touch with colleagues. This is especially important now, as LinkedIn is seeing an increase in popularity, as more and more weary workers keep a close eye on their career options. Infact, the company reports that they now boast over thirty million users. More than 30 million people worldwide have created a LinkedIn profile.

Of course, the site is business oriented and while considered a social network, is of a different breed than say, Facebook. Applications are required to have a professional feel, and are likely to be closely inspected before approval.

Google Chrome Beta Three - Any Day Now

For those of you who have been hesitant to try out Chrome, preferring to wait until the bugs are worked out, you might consider giving the web browser a try in a few days time. Google is expected to release their baby browser Chrome’s third beta any day now.

If you already use Chrome, no need to worry, as all current versions will be automatically updated. If you’re wondering, the main benefits of this update are security related, and better integration with plug-ins. As far as the security is concerned, no longer will Google store information from private, password protected sites, which was a major concern for many would-be users. Also, the update fixes an issue that  had the potential to cause surfers undue risk via popups from third party sites.

All in all, a solid update that should make Chrome a better, more secure browser choice.

Looking For A New iPod

I’ve been considering buying a new mp3 player lately, as downloading music from the internet (iTunes) is so much more convenient and cheaper than buying it in store. While many mp3 players are now offering performance and features similar to the iPods, I still think the Apple iPod is the cream of the crop. In a few ways, such as ease of use, an abundance of available accessories, and stylish appearance, iPods, in my opinion, are still unparalleled.

Also, with the different types of iPods available, there is almost certainly one that meets your specific needs. Personally, I am leaning toward the iPod Touch 32GB, as I have never owned anything with a touchscreen before, and find the technology to be particularly cutting edge and exciting. However, part of me likes the idea of a new iPod Nano, as its compact size would be convenient while exercising.

A site I have been using for my research, and what I consider to be the best price comparison site out there, is called Savebuckets. If you’re looking for cheap iPods, you’ll want to visit this site, too. Savebuckets specializes in comparing electronics prices, notably iPods, in order to find the absolute best prices online. The site really plays to convenience, as it can be tedious visiting site after site looking for a deal. I’d rather just go right to Savebuckets and save myself time, money and frustration.