What Is A Geofence?

Wikipedia has this to say about geofences:

A Geofence is a virtual perimeter on a geographic area using a location-based service, so that when the geofencing device enters or exits the area a notification is generated. The notification can contain information about the location of the device and might be sent to a mobile telephone or an email account.

Although I think they’re pretty close, I’d like to add that a geofence is really just the area that is defined for a notification trigger (or other event) and the notification isn’t exactly part of the geofence. As an example, you might have a device in your car that is linked to a service and that service has a geofence (that you defined) around your neighborhood. On your way to work the service detects that you’ve exited the geofence (your neighborhood), and shuts off specific devices in your home through a home automation system. When you re-enter the geofence after work, it sends a text message to your wife that reads, “Honey, I’m (almost) home!” or turns on your laptop.

Practical Uses For Geofences

I know the above example may seem a little Jetsons-like, but the technology is actually here today and already in use.

One real-world example is the annual Iron Dog® snowmobile race in Alaska. It wasn’t long after the race began that the first team entered a checkpoint and like many other people, I received a text message on my phone letting me know about it. Making this happen was software developed by Ontec Technologies, the company that has provided real-time tracking and mapping of each racer for the past few years. In the software, every checkpoint was defined as a geofence and each racer was outfitted with hardware from Applied Satellite Engineering that sent data over the Iridium satellite network to Ontec where it gets mapped and triggers alerts for geofences. In this example, friends, families, and fans were able to know very rapidly as their racer hit each checkpoint.

The article, Searching for Real Estate Made Easy: Geo-Fences Plus Mobile Phones from SoftwareAdvice.com describes, in detail, a scenario in which a young couple on a leisurely stroll is alerted that they’re near a home for sale that they may like. It seems the couple’s tech-savvy realtor entered their search criteria and cell phone number into a system that has geofences around properties and when their phone’s GPS location entered the geofence, it triggered an alert. The story is just a made-up scenario, but the reality of such a service is just over the horizon. We already have the technology in the phones and all it will take is for someone to build an app for the iPhone, Android, and Windows Mobile 7 and the web service to pair it with.

The practical uses for geofences are numerous and I’m certain we’ll see them in use more and more. Imagine an alert on your phone when your young child wanders off your property, or a friend is near the coffee house you’re sitting at. A system that turns on a couple lights when I get within 50 yards of my house is entirely possible right now with a little hardware and some programming.

Possible problems

Any really good technology that makes use of your personal location information brings with it concerns about misuse of that information. However, if used with consent and in the proper applications with these concerns in mind, the advantages far outweigh the unlikely possibilities of misuse.

If you could geofences for anything, what would it be?

Disclosure: I am a part owner/founder in Ontec.

As you can see above, I was doing pretty well with four Aces. Those other Joe Techs never knew what hit ‘em. In all seriousness, I’m definitely wearing this shirt to my next poker game.

About The Affiliate.com Shirt

The shirt they sent out this year is really comfortable (100% cotton), but what stands out is the design. I have a lot of conference and affiliate company shirts and I like most of them a lot, but this one is my new favorite. The edges are frayed slightly for that popular worn-in look. The front design looks like a King of Diamonds and the back is branded, but in a very tasteful way. I will be wearing this shirt out a lot. For a better view, take a look at my little fashion shoot below (and feel free to poke fun at me in the comments).

I can’t say enough how awesome it is that they’re donating the money for Haiti and even if I don’t win, I’ve gotten a really nice t-shirt out of the experience. However, I’d also love to win. If you think I should win the contest let me know in the comments by telling me what you think I should do with the $1,000 prize.

What Is EKS Otus?

The Otus is a way to get more hands on with your digital DJing. I see a lot of DJs with software and many with traditional decks, but how many mix the two? I don’t know, but that’s just what the Otus does. For DJs comfortable with their craft and who have good software to mix their music, the Otus gives them hands on control. For people like me, it makes DJing easier.

What It Does And How To Us It

EKS has some pretty user-friendly instructions on their web site to get everything set up, but I still had some problems getting it going, even after I realized that I needed to map all the channels per the instructions. Eventually, I found that I just needed to make sure I started the EKS Midi Agent first, then Deckadance, then plugged in the Otus via USB. The USB is also the power source, so my testing consisted of just my laptop with it’s power cable, headphones, USB to the Otus, and the Otus, itself. For such a device, it’s really portable for a DJ who travels. The Otus should fit nicely in a backpack with a laptop.

Some of it’s capabilities, it seems, are going to depend on the software you pair it up with. As long as you have the right software, however, it does just about anything I could imagine a DJ needing to do with music. The most prominent feature is the 7.5 inch jog wheel that lets you adjust pitch by touching on the outside or scratch by touching the surface while spinning. To the left of the jog wheel I found the master volume and cross-fade control knobs. Above those were the left track control knobs for bass, mid, treble, and headphone volume. The top right of this device has the same four knobs for the right track. Below the right track control knobs are seven loop control buttons to trap or release a loop and control how long or short it is. Below these knobs is a pitch ribbon with a button to adjust the scale. On the bottom left, opposite the pitch ribbon is a set of general playback control buttons, including three to remix on the spot. Dead center at the bottom is the layer control button and directly above it at bottom center is a touch pad with two mouse buttons and a set of six programmable action buttons. On the back is the USB connection, headphone jack, analog RCA outputs for both virtual decks, and S/PDIF outputs for both virtual decks, as well. The whole thing rests on four pointed rubber feet to minimize vibration interference.

For this review, I downloaded and installed something called Deckadance (per instruction from the EKS web site), which was only a time-limited demo. I’m not sure if it’s the Club or House version, but either way, the purchase price of $99 or $179, respectively, seemed worth it. It would be nice to see some basic free software packaged with the Otus, but I imagine this device’s target customer will already have something like Deckadance in use. A professional DJ might also have been able to do a lot more than I did with the Otus, but I still got plenty of action out of it.

Of course, there’s the basics, like messing with the EQ controls, cross-fade and cue points, but there’s also some pretty cool controls like the three buttons to the left of the play/pause button that accessed randomly configured reloopers which could also be mapped out very specifically if needed via the software. I was able to program each differently for varying effects. With Deckadance, I was able to have six different reloopers set up, three for each deck. The loop control buttons also made it very easy to set up a loop, and adjust the length as it loops. Between the reloopers, the jog wheel, and the loop controls, I was able to create some familiar effects that actually sounded decent, if I do say so myself.

Everything is lit up green or red, depending on what track you’re controlling, and looks pretty cool. It would also be very helpful in a dark club, especially since some of the control buttons are pretty small and close together. One of the more unique features of the Otus is the four control wheels placed handily at its corners. They can be programmed to meet your own needs such as rapid movement through a track, file and folder selection, pitch and volume. While I didn’t use these a lot in my testing, they came in handy when I did use them with one exception. I found myself turning to the track pad to mouse through my track lists rather than use one of these control wheels because it was faster and felt more natural.

Also programmable, as mentioned previously were the six action buttons. I used these for recalling cue points, but they had far more possibilities, many I didn’t even have time to touch on. These were actually touch pads rather than buttons, so you had to either hear what you expected or watch for it on your laptop. Similarly, the pitch ribbon was a touch sensitive pad, which made precision a little tricky.

Final Thoughts

Although I was able to keep the EKS Otus for a lot longer than expected, holidays and other circumstances prevented me from giving it the time it really deserved and after using it, I really wanted to hold on to it longer. What I did experience was nothing short of magical, even if it could use a couple minor adjustments like the placement of the headphone jack or the tiny loop control buttons. For the price, it’s worth it, but only if you’re going to put it to good use as a pro or just have the money to spend. Portable, powerful, and good looking, I’d say any professional DJ should add this to his or her arsenal.

A Robotic Kind of Pretty

I had seen the DROID in photos and commercials but not really up close. What shocked me was that several times, I saw people referring to blog posts claiming this was an ugly phone. It’s not curvy like the iPhone and it’s not quite as shiny as the LG Chocolate Touch, but it’s definitely better looking than the G1. DROID pulled off just the look you would expect from a personal assistant robot phone. It’s hard, cold metal. It’s not a warm elegant aesthetic. It’s a robotic kind of pretty. While I prefer the soft roundness of the iPhone, I don’t dislike the DROID at all.

(Click here to see all the photos)

One of the notable features of this phone is the built-in keyboard. It’s something that many iPhone owners have complained about the lack of, so it’s welcomed with DROID. In addition to the slider keyboard is a slick little navigation pad. Both the face and the back of the phone are completely flat. There isn’t one button sticking out. There are four buttons on the face of the DROID, Back, Menu, Home, and Search. Under the battery cover is the SIM card, the microSD card and, of course, the battery, another “does feature”. I would rather have the microSD slot more easily accessible, but at least it’s tucked away safely. The sides of the phone include the standard volume buttons, micro USB connection and a dedicated camera start/shutter button. The power button is located at the top, where I like it, but I found it harder to use than other phones. I really had to try to get it to turn on or off. I don’t want a phone that will turn off or on unexpectedly through an accidental brush of the power button, but it shouldn’t be too hard to do, either.

The touch screen was very slick and easy, unlike most touchscreen phones, and it surprisingly seemed brighter than my iPhone’s screen (which I keep at full brightness). The screen and its response to human touch is very important in a phone of this caliber and DROID really impressed here.

A Good Smart Phone Makes You Forget It’s A Phone

Smart phones aren’t for everyone. All the features would probably be more in the way for my mom, for example, because she’d never use them. For everyone else a smart phone is an extension of their online or work life. It allows us to continue to check email, tweet, update facebook and browse the web while on the go. A smart phone is really just a super-portable computer that makes phone calls, so it should feel a little like one. The DROID does a pretty good job of this. With the built-in slider keyboard, software keyboard, GPS, 5 MP camera, WiFi, integrated turn-by-turn (which I loved, by the way), and everything else, it really lives up to the claims in the commercials that it will help you with just about everything.

One of the things I noticed as well was the notifications for new emails, tweets, etc were tucked up out of the way in the status bar at the top. We iPhone owners were happy to finally get push notifications, but they’re still often in the way. When I get a text, it jumps up in front of whatever I’m doing on my iPhone. If I’m sniping an eBay auction, too bad. With DROID, any new text messages, emails, or tweet notifications are placed visibly at the top where I can see them and deal with them on my own terms. Well done, there.

Because the DROID marketing campaign was centered around the idea that it “does” what (presumably) the iPhone doesn’t, I tried to do things on it that I couldn’t with the iPhone. One such example (and the only one that failed me, really) was Adobe Flash elements in web browsing. I hate that I can’t view/use Flash in my iPhone browser and really had my hopes up for DROID, but Flash was not available at the time of my review. At least there’s a planned date for it. I also was a little disappointed to find no “pipe” (|) key on the keyboard. For those of us who work on unix/linux servers, it’s sorely missed. The other 99.9% of you will never even notice it.

The web browsing experience was very smooth. Not only was the scrolling seamless, but it also pops up a sneak peek of the complete page shrunk way down so you can see where you are in the page and if you need to scroll up or down to get to what you’re looking for. I need that on my desktop, too! The browser offers up all the typical options like bookmarking emailing a page, etc. The zooming was not all I’d hoped for. It worked, but just wasn’t as intuitive as on the iPhone’s pinch-zoom. The screen is a good size, and pretty clear, so zoom isn’t that much of a concern, though.

An original concern I had with the Android platform and the phones that run it was the selection of applications. While there’s still room for growth, the Android application marketplace is now full of all kinds of apps for most needs. There’s a few missing gems still, but all the basics are covered, including a few I’ve never seen on the iPhone. I loved the bar code scanner (an early Android app) and one that acts as a metal detector. I’m not sure how it did it, but it could detect metal objects I placed over the phone. I was showing that off to several people. Needless to say, my original fears about the app marketplace are no more. The ones that don’t yet exist soon will and the open platform development opens the door to all kinds of possibilities.

Should I Buy A DROID?

I already have an iPhone (and the contract that comes with it), so I won’t be shelling out the money to move just yet. However, DROID has me thinking about my options. I moved to the iPhone after years with Verizon and definitely noticed a drop in coverage. DROID is on a great network, for sure and is a great buy for anyone looking for a hot smart phone on a reliable network. A friend of mine wanted to buy the review phone I had and eventually ended up buying a DROID in the store to replace his iPhone. Verdict : If I didn’t have a phone right now, I’d probably be in the Verizon store buying a DROID.

In September, I posted an article about Secrets, Hints, Tips, and Tricks to Succeed in FarmVille on Facebook. Having only played the now amazingly popular Facebook farming game for less than two weeks, I had already gathered lots of helpful tips. I’ve been asked so many times for more tips that I thought it was time for Part 2.

Get More Eggs And Other Special Items

Even if you’ve never used Twitter before, I’m sure you’re aware of what it is by now. Even if you don’t have a Twitter account, you should grab a Twitter client because it’s very useful in helping you snatch up those coveted lost animals and chicken eggs. Chicken eggs go especially fast because they hatch to reveal gold, brown, black, and white chickens as well as other cool stuff like hot tubs, pink flamingos, or even fuel. The problem is that people grab lost animals and eggs so fast you almost have to be on Facebook all day for a chance at one. I have to work all day, but I have a secret weapon. I use a program called TweetDeck for my Twitter accounts, but I also added Facebook, and that includes all those freebies that go by. I keep it minimized while I work or browse the web and when updates are found, it pops up a little notification with a preview. If I see an egg, I just click on it and it opens in a new tab in FireFox while I continue to work. More often than not, if eggs are made available by one of my FarmVille friends, I’ll get one, and I barely have to be on Facebook at all during the day.

This works almost as well with another program called Seesmic, which I use at home. As you can see in the image above, I have Seesmic in single-column mode, just showing Facebook. This way, it takes up a small portion of the screen, leaving the rest for what I’m working on. You may notice that while I was starting this very article, I snagged an egg and some free coins.

Get More Out Of Your Chicken Coops

Generally, you’ll wait a day for a chicken to lay an egg. This means you’ll wait about a day for a coop to be ready to harvest. You can, however, speed up the process. Drop in a chicken that is already ready to harvest. Make sure the coop is then ready to harvest. Now drop in 19 more chickens that are not ready to harvest and then harvest the coop. Empty your coop and do it again and again. It’s a lot of work, but your friends will love all the eggs produced.

Get Multiple Chicken Coops

So many FarmVille players have been asking, “How do I get multiple chicken coops in FarmVille?” and the answer is pretty simple, actually. First, if you have a chicken coop, move all your chickens out of it and then sell it. Now, with no coops on your farm, take advantage of one of the tools mentioned above to snatch up eggs. You’ll get a chicken coop every time because FarmVille doesn’t see one on your farm. Don’t hit OK on the page that gives you the coop. Just keep collecting them until your gift box is full. I got 14 of them before I decided to stop (not enough room on my farm). When you’ve decided you have enough coops, just start placing them on your farm from the gift box and filling them with chickens to hatch eggs.

Level Up Faster

Sometimes the only thing holding you back from the next crop in the marketplace is your Level. Often, I would harvest my whole farm of crops and be wishing I could buy the next crop, but not having the XP to level up and not wanting to wait a day for the next harvest to get those needed XP. Fortunately, I didn’t have to wait. I noticed all the XP floating around for sale in the marketplace.

While you can’t just buy XP, you can buy items that give you a lot of XP. Take a look at the image above. My favorite is the windmill, because it gives me 1,000 XP and takes up hardly any room on my farm. It’s not cheap, but if you don’t want to wait, this is a good way to level up past your friends while they wonder how you did it.

Make More Money

Now that I’ve just told you a sure-fire way to blow through a lot of your coins, I’m sure you’d love to find out how to get more of those coins back faster. The fastest way to get coins is typically by just farming the more expensive crops. Pay attention to the harvest times and plant according to your ability to later harvest before anything withers. Remember, every crop that withers is just money (and time) down the drain, so don’t plant strawberries (4 hours) and then go out all night.

You can also make more money with gifts. The more friends you have that play FarmVille, the more gifts you end up with. I get easily 100 gifts a day and have no room for all of them, but I certainly won’t turn them down. Now that FarmVille has the “Sell All” feature in your gift box, you can just pick the items you want and put them on your farm and then just “Sell All” the rest. A lot of times, it’s an easy 6,000+ coins per day.

Finally, celebrate the achievements of friends and use TweetDeck or Seesmic to celebrate every achievement. You’ll get 50 to 500 coins each time and that adds up. The achievements of others often leave me with an extra 10,000 or so coins a day.

Get The Real Deal

You may have noticed a lot of pictures of eggs or gifts popping up on your wall, in friends’ updates, or with your regular FarmVille gift request notifications. Unfortunately, many of these are worthless in as much as they can’t be used in the game at all. While they may be fun to pass back and forth, they won’t contribute to your FarmVille play at all. Personally, I ignore all of them.

Take A Break Once In A While

Hi. My name is Joe and I’m an addict. No, really. This game is a lot of fun, but you can get burned out on it if you play too much. Once in a while, plant a three+ day crop and then just don’t log in for a couple days. And even more important to note is the opportunities for a break that are all but forced on you. Like many fast-growing games, FarmVille has its bugs. When you see people complaining that it wiped out their friends or you try to get the game to come up and it won’t, just find something else to do for a while. When you come back, you’ll be far less frustrated than others and will have more fun.

Experiment

FarmVille is software and software is prone to glitches. The methods to get multiple coops or generate eggs faster are based on glitches that someone found through experimentation. Drag a cow to a neighbor’s farm. Pet your horse every day for a week. Just try doing something in a different way and see if something new happens. If you find out a new tip, be sure to come back and post it here.

Please help your FarmVille neighbors by letting them know about this post with the Facebook share button below. It only takes a second.

Get Organized

Qwest partnered up with Microsoft to offer Qwest High-Speed Internet customers Windows Live from Qwest, which they’re calling a customizable, one-stop-shop for those things that matter to you most online. This service brings together your online world all in one space, with everything from news and weather to your calendar, social networks to your blog.

The service is pretty customizable. During my introduction, I was shown how you can move any widget around, add new widgets like weather or a news feed, check your email, get to your bookmarks, etc all from your homepage. It also allows multiple pages for multiple users, work vs home, or just different pages for things like games, blogging, or whatever strikes you. There were a few other features that stood out to me. One was the online storage (with privacy and sharing options_ for photos or just about any files, which could be a handy way to share Christmas photos and videos with family. Others were the online DVR manager that lets you schedule and manage your recordings when you’re not in front of your TV and the ability to purchase and view movies online pretty easily. Everything is intuitive from a user’s standpoint and works pretty quickly, too. To be fair, there are several services like this out there, but only a few do a good job with it and this is one. The additional features I mentioned above make it stand out, as well, and it’s really easy to use. If you already have service with Qwest, try out these features and if you don’t, it’s a nice selling point. For anyone who has any trouble with it, they also offer tips and FAQs.

Win $500!

What better way to liven up the holidays than $500 courtesy of our contest sponsor, Qwest.

First, I’ve got to throw out a big Thank You to Qwest for sponsoring the contest and helping to give one of my readers an extra special Christmas to remember. That said, there’s a lot of details about entering the contest below, and it’s always good to read that stuff, but here’s the basics. To enter, just post a tip in the comments below between now and 12:00 AM, December 21, 2009. Your entry must be written in 50 words or less and should describe how you get your family and/or children’s schedule organized during the holidays. Entries will be judged on : Creativity (50%), Uniquness (25%), Ability to help organize (25%), so give your entry some thought. We might not be able to pick a winner with just one or two entries, so tell everyone about it on Twitter, Facebook, etc. Then come back here right before Christmas, where I’ll announce the contest results.

Qwest “Hectic Holidays Sanity” Contest Official Rules

NO PURCHASE IS NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN.

The Qwest “Hectic Holidays Sanity” Contest (the “Contest”) starts on December 7, 2009 at 12:00 AM MST and ends on December 21, 2009 at 12:00 AM MST (“Contest Period”).

ELIGIBILITY: Contest is open to legal residents of the 50 United States and the District of Columbia who are “readers” of the designated blog and are 18 years of age or older. Employees of Qwest Communications (“Sponsor”), Current Lifestyle Marketing, the publishers or owners of the designated blog, and their respective parents, subsidiaries, affiliates, and promotion and advertising agencies, and members of their immediate family (spouse, parent, sibling, child and their respective spouses, regardless of where they reside) and persons living in the same household of such employees, whether or not related, are not eligible to enter or win. Void where prohibited by law. Contest is subject to all applicable federal, state and local laws.

HOW TO ENTER: During the Contest Period, visit the JoeTech.com (“Blog”) and follow the directions provided to share a tip on how you get your family and/or children’s schedule organized during the upcoming “hectic” holiday season(“entry”). You may be required to register to post an entry via comment post on the blog. Your entry must be written in 50 words or less. All entrants are required to comply with any blogging guidelines of the selected Blog author (incorporated herein by reference). All entries must be received by 12:00 AM MST on December 21, 2009 to be eligible. Entries generated by script, macro or other automated means and entries by any means which subvert the entry process are void. There will be no e-mail or mail entries accepted. All entries become the sole property of the Sponsor and will not be returned.

Each entry must be entrant’s own original work, be in English, cannot be previously published or submitted in connection with any other contest, be in keeping with the Sponsor’s and Blog’s image and may not be offensive or inappropriate, as determined by the Sponsor in its sole discretion, nor can it defame or invade publicity rights or privacy of any person, living or deceased, or otherwise infringe upon any person’s personal or property rights or any other third party rights. Sponsor reserves the right to disqualify any entry that it determines, in its sole discretion, is offensive or inappropriate, not in keeping with Sponsor’s image or that is otherwise not in compliance with these Official Rules.

By submitting an entry, entrant hereby grants permission without payment or other financial consideration being provided for the entry to be posted on the Blog and other websites selected by Sponsor. Entrant agrees that Released Parties (as defined below) are not responsible for any unauthorized use of entries by third parties. Released Parties do not guarantee the posting of any entry.

By submitting an entry, entrant acknowledges and agrees that Sponsor as well as Blog may obtain many entries under this Contest and that such entries may be similar or identical in theme, idea, format or other respects to others submitted under this Contest and/or other contests sponsored by the Sponsor or submitted for other reasons on the Blog, and entrant waives any and all claims entrant may have had, may have, and/or may have in the future, that any composition and/or other works accepted, reviewed and/or used by the Sponsor or the Blog (or their respective designees) may be similar to his/her entry.

JUDGING: All eligible entries received for the Blog will be judged by the author of the Blog on the following criteria: Creativity (50%), Uniquness (25%), Ability to help organize (25%) (the “Judging Criteria”). The entry with the highest score, as determined by the Blog author in his/her sole discretion, will be deemed the Grand Prize winner for that Blog, subject to verification of eligibility and compliance with these Official Rules. [In the event that the Grand Prize winner’s entry (or an entry with the same theme or tip) was posted on the Blog by more than one entrant, the first entry to be posted will be deemed the winner.. Sponsor and Blog author reserve the right not to select a winner for the Blog, if, in their sole discretion, they do not receive a sufficient number of eligible and qualified entries for the Blog. Prize award is subject to verification of eligibility and compliance with these Official Rules.

Winner Notification: Judges’ decisions are final and binding on all matters relating to this Contest. Potential Grand Prize winner will be notified by telephone, mail and/or email and may be required to complete an Affidavit of Eligibility, Liability and Publicity Release (unless prohibited by law), and, if Grand Prize winner, any other documents that may be required by Sponsor, which must be returned within seven days of date appearing on prize notification. Return of prize or prize notification as undeliverable, failure to sign and return requested documentation within the specified time period, the inability to contact the potential winner within a reasonable time period, or noncompliance with these Official Rules will result in disqualification and the prize may be awarded to the runner-up for the Blog.

PRIZE[S]:
Grand Prize (1): $500 awarded as an American Express gift check(s).

General Prize Conditions: All prize details are at the sole discretion of the Sponsor. Prize is awarded “as is” with no warranty or guarantee, either express or implied. No substitution, transfer, or cash equivalent of prize is permitted, except by Sponsor, which reserves the right to substitute a prize (or portion thereof) with one of comparable or greater value, at its sole discretion Any and all federal, state and local taxes on the prizes, and any other costs, fees, and expenses associated with prize acceptance and use not explicitly stated herein as being awarded, are the sole responsibility of the winner.

GENERAL: By participating, each entrant agrees: (a) to abide by these Official Rules and decisions of Sponsor and Blog author, which shall be final and binding in all respects relating to this Contest; (b) to release, discharge and hold harmless Sponsor, Current, Blog author, and their respective parents, affiliates, subsidiaries, dealerships, and advertising and promotion agencies, and the respective officers, directors, shareholders, employees, agents and representatives of the forgoing (collectively, “Released Parties”) from any and all injuries, liability, losses and damages of any kind to persons, including death, or property resulting, in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, from entrant’s participation in the Contest or the acceptance, possession, use or misuse of the awarded prize; and (c) to the use of his/her name, voice, performance, photograph/video, tip, image and/or likeness for programming, advertising, publicity and promotional purposes in any and all media, now or hereafter known, worldwide and on the Internet, and in perpetuity by Sponsor and its designees, without compensation (unless prohibited by law) or additional consents from entrant or any third party and without prior notice, approval or inspection, and to execute specific consent to such use if asked to do so.

OWNERSHIP/USE OF ENTRIES: By submitting an entry, each entrant agrees Sponsor shall own the entry submitted (including all rights embodied therein) and that it and its designees may exploit, edit, modify, and distribute the entry and all elements of such entry, including, without limitation, the names of any persons or locations embodied therein, in any and all media now known or hereafter devised, worldwide, in perpetuity without compensation, permission or notification to entrant or any third party.

Released Parties are not responsible for lost, late, incomplete, damaged, inaccurate, stolen, delayed, misdirected, undelivered, or garbled tips, posts or entries; or for lost, interrupted or unavailable network, server, Internet Service Provider (ISP), website, or other connections, availability or accessibility or miscommunications or failed computer, satellite, telephone or cable transmissions, lines, or technical failure or jumbled, scrambled, delayed, or misdirected transmissions or computer hardware or software malfunctions, failures or difficulties, or other errors or difficulties of any kind whether human, mechanical, electronic, computer, network, typographical, printing or otherwise relating to or in connection with the Contest, including, without limitation, errors or difficulties which may occur in connection with the administration of the Contest, the processing or judging of tips, posts or entries, the announcement of the prize, the or in any Contest-related materials. Released Parties are also not responsible for any incorrect or inaccurate information, whether caused by site users, tampering, hacking, or by any equipment or programming associated with or utilized in the Contest. Released Parties are not responsible for injury or damage to any person’s computer related to or resulting from participating in this Contest or downloading materials from or use of the website. Persons who tamper with or abuse any aspect of the Contest or website, who act in an unsportsmanlike or disruptive manner or who are in violation of these Official Rules, as solely determined by Sponsor, will be disqualified and all associated Entries will be void. Sponsor or Blog may disqualify anyone from participating in the Contest or winning a prize if, in its sole discretion, it determines that such person is attempting to undermine the legitimate operation of the Contest by cheating, deception or other unfair playing practices, or intending to annoy, abuse, threaten or harass any other entrant or Sponsor’s or Blog’s representatives. Released Parties are also not responsible for any incorrect or inaccurate information, whether caused by site users, tampering, hacking, or by any equipment or programming associated with or utilized in the Contest. CAUTION: ANY ATTEMPT TO DAMAGE ANY WEBSITE OR DELIBERATELY UNDERMINE THE LEGITIMATE OPERATION OF THE CONTEST MAY BE IN VIOLATION OF CRIMINAL AND CIVIL LAWS AND SHOULD SUCH AN ATTEMPT BE MADE, SPONSOR RESERVES THE RIGHT TO SEEK DAMAGES AND OTHER REMEDIES (INCLUDING ATTORNEYS’ FEES) FROM ANY SUCH INDIVIDUAL TO THE FULLEST EXTENT OF THE LAW, INCLUDING CRIMINAL PROSECUTION. Sponsor or the designated Blog reserves the right in its sole discretion to cancel or suspend any portion of the Contest should causes corrupt the administration, security or proper play of the Contest and, in the event of cancellation, to select the winner for the Blog at issue from among all eligible, non-suspect entries received for the Blog up to time of such impairment using the judging procedure outlined above. In the event of a dispute as to the identity of an entrant, entry will be deemed to be from the authorized account subscriber of the e-mail address submitted at time of entry, regardless of the name that appears on the official entry form and he/she must comply with these Official Rules. Authorized account subscriber is the natural person who is assigned the e-mail address by the Internet Service Provider (ISP), on-line service provider, or other organization responsible for assigning email addresses.

Request for Winner’s Name: For the name of the winner (available after December 31, 2009) send a self-addressed, stamped, envelope by (date TBD) to: Molly Steinkrauss, Current Lifestyle Marketing c/o Qwest Communications, 440 Pacific Ave., San Francisco, CA 9413.

SPONSOR: Qwest Communications, 1801 California Street, Fl. 50, Denver, CO 80202

Simple Design and Function

The LEvertigo looks pretty simple from the outside. It’s a slim shoulder bag that is very portable. Like the LA besace I reviewed before, it has a gray exterior with a lime green interior that provides a nice contrast. It’s not bad looking from the outside, but you really don’t feel its fashion until you open it up. Be.ez decided to replace the traditional zipper with velcro in the shape of a lower case letter e and a period. It’s the details like this that set the be.ez bags apart. While this makes getting to your notebook faster, it’s louder and not quite as library (or sleeping wife) friendly. For fans of zippers, they managed to include a couple inside the bag. The first is a small pouch in the bottom of the bag, just big enough for a paper back book. The other zipper is found closer to the top, sealing up a larger pouch that might hold CDs, etc.

Also near the top of the bag are three small pockets, each big enough for a cell phone. The bulk of the inside of the LEvertigo is soft, so it’s not likely to scratch up a cell phone. I’m not sure that three of these pockets is as good an idea as, say, two pockets and some pen/pencil slots. Of course, this bag has two large compartments that will be used the most. The first is the larger area for the laptop and had the usual velcro strap to keep it in. This time around, the strap is adjustable to fit your specific notebook. The final area is a large mesh pocket to hold important papers. Where the flap folds over, the sides fold in, as well to create a little more protection from any rain you might come across. Everything hangs off the shoulder with the help of the seat belt like strap that seems to be a welcomed theme for be.ez products.

Conclusions

Another tough bag from be.ez, I can imagine this one faithfully protecting your portable computing for years while being, itself, very portable. It will likely turn a couple heads when you open it and can be purchased in black/pumpkin as well (and additional colors for the non-US version). At about $60, it’s not cheap, but you’ll get your money’s worth, I’m sure. If you know someone who’s getting a netbook for Christmas, this would be a decent compliment to it.

What is Phishing?
Phishing is trying to obtain otherwise guarded information about accounts from someone by fraudulent or deceptive means. Typically, you’ll get an email claiming to be from your bank, PayPal, Facebook, etc., asking you to log in to perform some action. Usually, that action is said to be critical to keep your account open or help with a security audit, etc. Once you’ve fallen for the bait, the scammer either uses your online account in nefarious ways or gains access to your finances and drains you of all that pesky money you had. Either way, these guys have plenty of tricks.

Phishing examples
I get a lot of this kind of thing, so here’s some examples to help you recognize these emails:

The Lottery
I actually won several things online before I ever got one of these. When I got my first one, I was excited, but then I thought, “I never entered any Australian lottery”. I discarded it as a scam and have since seen the same thing ove and over. If I got $100 for every one of these I’ve received, I wouldn’t need to win. This is a pretty simple scam to get you to part with some private information that they can then either sell or use to open accounts in your name.

OFFICIAL WINNING NOTIFICATION FOR CATEGORY “A” CYBER LOTTO DRAWS

Dear Winner

We are pleased to inform you of results of our cyber lottery draw of the Lotto.nl Promotional Draws.

The online electronic-raffle draws was conducted from an exclusive list of 250,000 international emails accounts picked by our Electronic Random Selection System (ERSS) from an exclusive list However, no tickets were sold.

After the automated computer ballot collection, your e-mail address emerged as a winner category “A” with the following numbers attached:

(i) Reference Number:MSP 91104 EL 7612
(ii) Batch Number: 563881545-NL/2009
(iii)Ticket Number: PA 3502 /8707-01

You are therefore to receive a cash prize of 2,500,000.00. (Two Million Five Hundred Thousand United States Dollars) from the total payout sum.

The payout of this cash prize to you will be subject to the final validations and satisfactory report that you are the owner of the winning email address. In line with the Governing rules of claim, you are required to establish contact with your designated claims agent via email or telephone with the particulars below:

Mr. Soresen Holms jr
Foreign claims agent Netherlands Office.

Contact Email: soresenholms09@yahoo.cn

Tel: +31 619 970 279
Fax: +31 847 455 835

You are advised to provide him with the following information:
DATA PROFILE

First name:
Last Name:
Telephone/Fax number:
Nationality:
Age:
Occupation:

We ask that you keep your Winning information confidential until your claims have been processed. This is part of our security protocol to avoid double claiming and unwarranted abuse of this program by some participant.

Endeavour to include your email address when sending a fax for verification purpose. Furthermore, should there be any change of address do inform our agent as soon as possible. Congratulations!!! And thank you for being a user of the World Wide Web.

Sincerely,

Mrs Lizette Van Dendoff
Event Manager

Copyright © 2009. The Netherlands National Lottery Inc

Limited account
This scam lures you in by claiming that your account will is or will soon be suspended for one reason or another. To get things cleared up, all you have to do is log in. The link goes to http://phce.org/westpac/index.html, NOT any bank. In this case, it looks like phce.org was hacked and aren’t aware of it yet. I’m emailing them.

Dear customer,

Please pay attention that your online banking account is suspended because of missing information. In order for it to remain active,please pass the account authorization process.

Login here.

Thank you.

Copyright © 2009 Westpac Banking Corporation ABN 33 007 457 141

Email Support scam
This one just comes right out and asks for your information. It said it came from info@helpdesk.org (that was faked), but the reply-to goes to supportteams2009@live.com, who will surely get lots of passwords before Live.com shuts them down. I’m emailing abuse@live.com just to be sure.

Dear Webmail User,
This message was sent automatically by a program on Webmail which
periodically checks the size of inboxes, where new messages are
received.
The program is run weekly to ensure no one’s inbox grows too large. If
your inbox becomes too large, you will be unable to receive new email.
Just before this message was sent, you had 18 Megabytes (MB) or more of
messages stored in your inbox on your Webmail. To help us re-set your
SPACE on our database prior to maintain your INBOX, you must reply to
this e-mail and enter your

Current User name (_________)
and Password(________ )

You will continue to receive this warning message periodically if your
inbox size continues to be between 18 and 20 MB. If your inbox size
grows to 20 MB, then a program on Bates Webmaiwill move your oldest email
to a
folder in your home directory to ensure that you will continue to be
able to receive incoming email. You will be notified by email that this
has taken place. If your inbox grows to 25 MB, you will be unable to
receive new email as it will be returned to the sender.
After you read a message, it is best to REPLY and SAVE it to another
folder.

Thank you for your cooperation.
Webmail Help Desk

Update Required
This is a common one with MySpace, Facebook, etc. You’re told you need to perform some kind of update to your account to continue using it. Once you give them your login info (by logging into a fake MySpace page), they’ll go in your account and spam all your friends. Many times, they’ll include real site links or email addresses like the privacy@myspace.com address here, just to lend to the credibility.

Dear MySpace user!

Please be informed that you are required to update your MySpace account.

Please update your MySpace account by clicking here:

http://accounts.myspace.com.iioliu.me.uk/msp/index.php?fuseaction=update&code=Q59479QJRU-QQ9F14A-12DEUOO8FC68FN-P42-58QPDXOOI&email=joe@joetech.com

If you’re unable to click on the link above, copy and paste it into your browser’s address bar.

————————-

At MySpace we care about your privacy. This email is never sent unsolicited.

If you think you’ve received this email in error, or if you have any questions or concerns regarding your privacy, please contact us at:

privacy@myspace.com

MySpace, Inc.
8391 Beverly Blvd. #349
Los Angeles, CA 90048
USA

©2003-2009 MySpace.com. All Rights Reserved.

How to protect yourself

1. Type it yourself – Always type the site URL into the browser yourself before logging in. Most of these scams prompt you to click a link to log in or confirm information. Some are crafty and make the URL look pretty close to the URL you would expect for the site you think you’re logging into, but many times, you end up at a .cn or .ru domain or some other variant.
2. Look for your name – Almost always, the phishing email doesn’t have your name at the top but instead has something like “Dear member”. Most of the large social sites and banks will greet you by name in an email. No name = probable scam
3. Don’t Click! – I know it was the first rule, but it’s also the third because it’s THAT important. Never click or open anything in an email you aren’t 100% sure about.
4. Keep private info private – This goes beyond just email. Never give out private information like your home address, phone number, birth date, and social security number in a communication exchange you didn’t initiate.
5. You didn’t win – There’s a reason you don’t remember entering that Euro Lottery you just won 143 million euro in… You didn’t enter. They just want your information to try and steal your identity.
6. Report abuse – Help out the rest of the Internet and forward these emails to the appropriate people. Many sites will have special emails for this. For example, phishing emails that target your PayPal account should get forwarded to spoof@paypal.com. Find out the right address and help stop the scammers.

Have you been the victim of any phishing scam or do you have another tip I may have missed? Drop a comment below and let me know. If you find this article helpful, tweet it or share this link on MySpace or Facebook: http://lnk.gd/qk.

UPDATE:
An email from Microsoft Customer Support showed up today. Here’s the important part:

I have closed the account supportteams2009@live.com that you reported, in accordance with our Terms of Use (TOU).

To view our rules and regulations, visit the following Web site:
http://help.live.com/help.aspx?project=tou&mkt=en-us

This is why you should report it. The scammer will surely find another email account to use, but for now, perhaps the account being closed has stopped the scammer from getting a few username/password combinations that were sent to him.

Vampire Power
The TV TrickleSaver from TrickleStar is a little device that sits between your TV and its power source to stop it from slowly using power throughout the night when it would normally be in standby mode. This standby power is also called vampire power because your devices sit there all night sucking up power. The goal is to stop those power-sucking devices, be more green, and put a little green back in your pocket. But does it work?

Installing TV TrickleSaver
I really shouldn’t use that word, installing. You don’t install a TrickleSaver any more than you would install your dirty laundry in the washer. You just plug the TrickleSaver into the wall (or surge protector in my case) and then plug your TV into the TrickleSaver. It also has a secondary (”slave”) outlet for plugging in an accessory device like a game system or DVD/VCR/Bluray player. On the end opposite the power outputs they’ve placed the Trimmer, which adjusts the threshold (watts of the master device) at which devices switch on and off. The instructions point out a couple very important things. First, you probably don’t need to mess with the Trimmer. It tells you to just try it out first and see if it works at its current setting, and it did for me. This is a big plus because most people don’t want to have to figure out wattage and experiment. If it doesn’t work right off the bat, you can just adjust and test. The second important setup note is about what devices to use with it. Of course, you want toplug in your TV, but which of your accessories? It warns against plugging in devices with hard drives in them. I’d worry that it would interrupt nighttime recording of shows on my DVR, anyway, so I left the DVR alone. I would suggest plugging in some other accessory as the slave. Once everything is plugged in, your done.

(View the rest of the TV TrickleStar product images)

My experiences
As a test, I hooked up my TV and XBox. Unfortunately, I don’t have a meter to watch the electricity usage change on the spot, but my TV is relatively new, so it has a power button that is always lit up. It’s as if it’s constantly reminding me of my power consumption. I set it all up and turned off the TV and off went the power switch light, too. Great. So it works, but what about the hassle of having that in the way and installing? As I mentioned above, the setup is pretty simple, so that’s not a problem for me. It’s doesn’t really get in the way, either. It has a couple mounting holes on the back, so you could put a couple screws in the wall and mount it if you want. Personally, I don’t like to mount stuff any more than necessary. I prefer to just let it sit behind everything else. It’s not tiny, but it’s not so big that it can’t be tucked behind your A/V components.

Being and saving green
This is all about being green for the environment and saving a few bucks while you’re at it. Even the packaging says “Save Electricity. Save $$$. Save Earth.”(tm). I’m sure the first thing you want to know is “how much?”. That was my first question. Luckily, they have a handy little savings calculator. I punched in my TV (42″ LCD), and my XBOX. Then it asked how many hours a day my TV is on during the week (6) and on weekends (8) which I entered and the gears started turning. After some calculation, TrickleStar says I’ll save 1198 kWh and 789 kg CO2 per year. Not bad, but what about my wallet? Here’s the part that surprised me a bit. It says I’ll save almost $180 a year. Of course, that depends on my energy costs from my provider, but even if that’s off by a little, that’s great for a device that costs just under $20.

Conclusions
This was one of those devices that left me checking the site for similar products. I am contemplating picking up another one for the other TV for another $100 or so a year in savings. Paying around $20 once to save upwards of $100 a year is a no-brainer and it helps you be more green. If you’re looking to lower your carbon footprint and your electric bill at the same time, this is a great way to do it.

No paperwork or people
We all need human interaction at times, but there are some times where it just seems unnecessary. Renting a car isn’t always one of those times, but ZipCar seems to have thought through some extra details to help get people renting without a lot of human interface. There’s a couple ways to do it. The first, of course, is the web site. It’s pretty simple to use, but the part I enjoyed the most was the fact that I didn’t have to read through tons of fine print to rent a car. I didn’t have to sign 15 things either. In fact, I didn’t touch one piece of paper throughout the whole process, which I think is part of what ZipCar is trying to accomplish for the environment. They even tell you to not bother with a receipt for the gas.

The second way to reserve a car is via new iPhone app, and it’s smooth. This was how I reserved my car. The only thing I didn’t like about it was that I found myself on a screen with a time and date (current time/date) selected for the reservation and I had to back track a bit to find where to change it. The idea is that you’re walking up to the car, reserving in on the spot, but for me, this was a bit of a pain. Other than that one glitch, it was very fast and intuitive. I was able to find and reserve a car near me in about 2 minutes.

Cost and availability
Let’s talk about the cost first, because it can be much better than a standard rental, depending on your needs. When you start out, it’s $25 to apply and $50 per year, but the cost can go up depending on the plan you want. I think the one I chose would work for most people. The rates start at $8/hour or $66/day and go up. It sounds much better when you throw in the free gas and insurance. That covers 180 miles per day, even if you only rent for an hour. ZipCars become cost effective when you just want to move some furniture for a couple hours or just need to run an errand that you can’t do with public transit. The short term rentals are key here.

While it looks like there’s still some cities ZipCar needs to hit, there’s plenty already covered and they’ve made a really important strategic move connecting with the universities. I had a few location choices for my reservation and I went with the ASU West campus. I don’t think there’s a lot to choose from, depending on location. It looked like ASU West may have only had a couple cars and I imagine other locations (like ASU in Tempe) would have several more based on more need. In any case, I didn’t have any problem getting the car I wanted on the day and time I wanted with just two days notice.

The little details
Those who read this blog often know that I’m a fan of companies who pay attention to the little things that make an experience perfect. ZipCar has won me over in this area with some small details. One of these is the text and email notification system. Email is pretty standard, but I have the option to have a text reminder sent to my phone a half hour before the reservation start time and more importantly, another a half hour before the car is due back. And you can reply to those texts to extend your reservation, cancel it, etc. They really seem to be working hard so you don’t have to.

They want you to play, too. Sure, you could unlock the car with the card, but if you could do it with your phone instead, over the Internet, you know you would. I couldn’t resist. It didn’t seem to work if the car was left alone for a long time, but if you just left it and went back for something, you could use your iPhone to unlock it. In my case, it didn’t work to unlock the car when I came out from and hour or so lunch, but when I had just stopped over at my dad’s and he walked over to poke around in it, I was able to unlock the car (and lock it again) from my phone. The horn option was fun a couple times, but then it’s just a little annoying to run around honking it all day.

ZipCar in action

Yes, I said free gas
If you watched the embedded video above, you may have seen one of my favorite parts of my experience with my ZipCar. I rolled up to a gas station and put gas in the car without spending any of my own money on it. Every ZipCar comes with a gas card and it work unlike any credit card I’m used to using. The card is inserted like a credit card and the system asks for your ZipCard number. You enter that and then the car’s mileage when prompted and it lets you fuel up. Where does the bill go? Who cares. I don’t have to pay to put gas in the car before I drop it off, so I’m happy.

Conclusions
ZipCar is awesome. I loved the free gas, the availability, and the iPhone app, but what really stood out was the all-digital rental experience that left me with no arguments, headaches, lines, hold time, or miscommunications. Instead, I was left with a fast reservation at a good price and that goes a long way. I definitely recommend grabbing a ZipCar if you find yourself in need of wheels for a short period.