My Appearance on WGST's "The Sully Show" 10/10/14 Atlantic City and Tech News of the Week

Rick is back home from being in Atlantic City this week. Atlantic City is one of the most active cities on social media

Check them out on the web at www.doatlanticcity.com

·         Facebook – www.facebook.com/AtlanticCityNJ

·         Twitter – www.twitter.com/VisitAC

·         YouTube – www.Youtube.com/DoAtlanticCity

·         Foursquare – www.foursquare.com/VisitAC

·         Instagram – www.instagram.com/DOAC

·         Pinterest – www.instagram.com/DoAtlanticCity
 
News topics:
Have a listen:

listen to ‘The Sully Show October 10, 2014’ on audioBoom

1.  Hartsfield-Jackson top-ranked for airport amenities

Free Wi-fi, play areas, walking paths (such as the underground walkway between concourses), water bottle filling stations, spas, automated passport control kiosks, MARTA access, the Plane Train people-mover and a cell phone lot.

The Atlanta airport has interactive charging stations with cameras that travelers can use to share a photo with family and friends via social media while charging their phones.


2. The "Smart Wheelchair"  
or maybe iWheelchair

If you're in a wheelchair, wouldn't it be nice to have your chair automatically alert a caregiver if changes in your heart rate or another vital sign showed that you might be having a problem? And how about helping you rate sidewalks and handicapped parking spaces to help fellow wheelchair users get around more comfortably? Steven Hawking endorses the idea, and the Connected Wheelchair Project, in this short video. This is an Intel project, in conjunction with Wake Forest University, run by student interns. | Besides helping wheelchair-dependent people live a better life, the Connected Wheelchair Project may help prevent Medicare fraud, says Hughes in our video interview with him. Falsified requests for durable medical goods are a huge drain on Medicare's budget. What if a connected wheelchair spent all of its time far from the home of the person to whom it was assigned? That would be a red flag, and investigators could follow up to see if that wheelchair was in legitimate hands or was part of a scam. |

The Connected Wheelchair is still proof-of-concept, not a commercial product. Will it see production? Hard to say. This may never be a profitable product, but Intel CEO Brian Krzanich has said that that this project is an example of how “the Internet of Things can help change lives.”

 

3.  Chrome 38 Released: 159 Security Fixes

If you use the Chrome browser on your computer or any device, get the newest update. It fixes a ton of security flaws.

4.  Belkin Router Owners Suffering Massive Outages

If you use a Belkin router at your home or office, you may have noticed some outages or problems over the last week.  Belkin is working on an update they can push to routers to eliminate future problems.


5. Studies Conclude Hands-Free-calling and Apple Siri Distract Drivers

A story at the L.A. Times that echoes some previous research on the relative risks of hand-held vs. hands-free phones by drivers, and comes to an even grimmer conclusion:
In many cars, making a hands-free phone call can be more distracting than picking up your phone, according to a new study from AAA and the University of Utah. In-dash phone systems are overly complicated and prone to errors, the study found, and the same is true for voice-activated functions for music and navigation. A companion study also found that trying to use Siri — the voice control system on Apple phones — while driving was dangerously distracting. Two participants in the study had virtual crashes in an automotive simulator while attempting to use Siri, the study's authors reported. In response, Toyota said the study did not show a link between cognitive distraction and car crashes.

"The results actually tell us very little about the relative benefits of in-vehicle versus hand-held systems; or about the relationship between cognitive load and crash risks," said Mike Michels, a Toyota spokesman.

Meanwhile, many states treat hand-held devices very differently from hands-free ones; in New York, for instance, both texting and talking on a hand-held mobile phone are put in the same category, while talking on a hands-free device is covered only by more general distracted driving laws. If the Utah study is correct, maybe that's backwards. (And some evidence suggests that phone use in cars is not quite the straightforward danger that it's sometimes presented as, despite the correlation of phone use with accidents.)
 

My Appearance on WGST's "The Sully Show" 9/26/14 Talking the Tech Topics of the Week

Rick and Sully will look at some of the current tech news topics

*** 10 million iPhone 6 and 6 Pluses sold

****Apple Inc. pulled an update for the iPhone operating system after the new software caused some people to lose cellular service.

After rolling out the latest version of its iOS 8 mobile software on Wednesday, the Cupertino, California-based company withdrew the update when scores of customers experienced dropped cellular service so they couldn’t make calls. The fingerprint reading Touch ID feature also wasn’t working.

Have a listen to this week's segment:

listen to ‘The Sully Show September 26, 2014’ on audioBoom

1.  1.2 Billion Smartphones Will be Shipped in 2014

Leading mobile analyst firm Juniper Research estimates that the number of smartphone shipments will approach 1.2bn this year, an increase of 19% from 985m in 2013. The market is expected to be driven by growth in emerging markets, due to a continued surge in sales and adoption of low-cost Economy ($75-$150) and Ultra-Economy (sub-$75) smartphones.
See: www.juniperresearch.com
 

2.  The word "Google" is trademarked, but only as a noun

Even though "googling" and "Google it" are now common phrases, a federal court ruled that the "Google" trademark is still a valid trademark instead of a generic term (unlike former trademarks such as escalator, aspirin or yo-yo). The court distinguished between consumers using Google as a verb (such as "google it"), which didn't automatically make the term generic, and consumers using Google to describe one player in the market, which 90%+ of consumers still do.

3.   Men are much more likely than women to lose their smartphone

New data reveals something many women have suspected all along: men can be much more irresponsible than women when it comes to losing their electronic devices.

In fact, nearly half of employed men (46%) admit to being likely to lose the electronic device they use for work and all the important company files on it, compared to only 27% of employed women. Young employed men are the most likely to lose their electronic device, with a whopping 60% of men ages 18-34-years-old owning up to, compared to 30% of women in the same age group, according to a new study released by TeamViewer, which examined the behavior and attitudes of American office workers and how they affect on-the-job data loss.

Nearly half of employed men (46%) admit to being likely to lose the electronic device they use for work and all the important company files on it, compared to only 27% of employed women. Young employed men are the most likely to lose their electronic device, with a whopping 60% of men ages 18-34-years-old owning up to, compared to 30% of women in the same age group.

Executives in many organizations may frown upon the news that more than one-third (37%) of employed Americans in all say they are likely to lose the electronic device (smartphone, tablet or laptop) they use for work. The most common places to lose devices include:

⦁    A car (15%)
⦁    A restaurant (13%)
⦁    A hotel (13%)
⦁    On a train or bus (11%)
⦁    A plane (10%)

 4. Microsoft Paid NFL $400 Million To Use Surface, But Announcers Call Them iPads

Those tablets NFL teams are using on the sidelines are the Microsoft Surface.  
Microsoft and the league ran into a problem during weeks one and two of the season when at least two television announcers mistakenly referred to the tablets as iPads, giving a huge rival some unexpected exposure. The announcers were John Lynch and Trent Dilfer.

5.  The eBay iOS app gets a refresh

Free app

For anyone that used to try and use the ebay app for iPhone years ago, they know that it was clunky.
That is not the case anymore.
• Find the perfect item faster with larger photos, product reviews and improved search results
• Stay on top of your eBay buying and selling with in-app notifications
• Take advantage of bonus offers from eBay sellers
• Donate a percentage of your sales to your favorite charity
• Check a buyer's location when reviewing a Best Offer
• Ability to send a payment reminder
 

My Appearance on WGST's "The Sully Show" 9/19/14 Rick in Studio With the iPhone 6 Plus

Rick went in studio with Sully to show him the review unit of the iPhone 6 Plus he received earlier in the day and they talk various topics for the better part of two segments.

My Appearance on WGST's "The Sully Show" 9/12/14 Talking the Apple Announcements

The Big Apple announcement took place this week.

Rick and Sully talk about that.

An iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, Apple Pay and Apple Watch

Have a listen:

listen to ‘The Sully Show September 12, 2014’ on Audioboo

1. iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus

The new iPhones, meanwhile, will have 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch displays, larger than its current four-inch screen. Apple said it expects the new phones—to be called iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus—to go on sale on Sept. 19.

"Today, we are launching the biggest advancement in the history of iPhone," Mr. Cook said.

Apple said it plans to sell the larger 5.5-inch model starting at $299 with a two-year carrier contract, higher than the $199 price for its current high-end iPhone 5S. The company said the 4.7-inch iPhone will start at $199 with a contract. The company said the new phones come with many hardware improvements, including a sharper display, better battery life and improved camera performance.

2.  Apple Pay

Apple Inc. on Tuesday introduced a digital-payments service tied to its iPhone 6 handsets and new Apple Watch that will allow consumers to make purchases using just their phones or watches, marking the company's first big push into brick-and-mortar payments.

Apple said it hopes to speed up the checkout process, make credit-card payments more secure and ultimately, to replace physical wallets. The company said it is using a technology known as near-field communication, or NFC, that works by transmitting a radio signal...

3.  Apple Watch

Apple Watch, represents the company's first new product in more than four years. Apple said the watch will start at $349 and be available in early 2015.

Apple said the Apple Watch would have a strong focus on health. It highlighted an app called Fitness that it made to track statistics for different exercises, like bicycling or running. An accelerometer tracks the movements, and a heart rate sensor helps measure the intensity of the workouts.

The wearable computer has a rectangular screen for a face with a flexible display and comes in two sizes. It has a crown on the side that acts as a digital dial, which can be turned to zoom in; tapping the crown returns to the main menu. The watch can be attached to six strap styles, including stainless steel and leather.

Similar to a smartphone, the smartwatch can run a variety of apps. Tapping on the home screen zooms in on a “neighborhood” of apps. From there, the user can tap on the app. Apple demonstrated apps for a calendar, map navigation and a music player.
 


4. Health Tracking

The iPhone 5’s A7 chip was already a key technological step in allowing anyone to track their daily step count with just the phone. But the Apple Watch will include some key, proprietary apps and sensors for tracking fitness too.

The Activity app monitors a wearer’s movements throughout the dray, while the Workout app will track workouts, and they appear to incorporate simple colored rings to judge how well a wearer has done throughout the day – simple, graphical judgments are hard to get across on wearable trackers but this could be one way Apple manages to go further than early movers like Fitbit, Jawbone or Samsung’s Gear Fit. The company claims that “some of the world’s most respected health and fitness experts helped developed Apple Watch.”

5. iOS 8

The iPhone 6's new operating system, iOS 8, will give you predictive typing and App Store parental control, among other features.

6. U2's free album on iTunes

Critics giving not so favorable reviews.

Apple, its C.E.O., Tim Cook, announced that the new U2 album, “Songs of Innocence,” was being added automatically to everyone’s iTunes library. That’s right, even if you didn’t ask for the new U2, it showed up in your iTunes music library. Or did it?

On the new album:
As a free sample, it’s fine: it has its moments among the longers, enough of them to suggest U2 aren’t a spent force. But what Songs of Innocence isn’t is the grand return the band obviously crave. Perhaps that’s to come.
 

My Appearance on WGST's "The Sully Show" 9/5/14 Talking Mobile and Tech Topics of the Week

Rick and Sully talk about the tech news of the week and Rick is wrapping up 3 1/2 weeks of travel this week in Mobile, AL.

Mobile is getting ready to open a new maritime museum focusing on the Gulf of Mexico called GulfQuest.  Mobile also offers Alligator Alley - where Rick roamed the grounds with hundreds of gators and the new

Ark of India exhibit that will open at the History Musuem of Mobile.
 


www.mobilebay.org for more information

Have a listen to both parts and don't call Atlanta "Hot-lanta"

listen to ‘The Sully Show September 5, 2014 Part 1’ on Audioboo

listen to ‘The Sully Show September 5, 2014 Part 2’ on Audioboo

1.  Apple with Big Announcements Next Week
(iPhone6 and maybe a smartwatch)

On Tuesday, Apple is set to come back to the centre to unveil a set of long-anticipated products: twoiPhones with larger screens, and a wearable computer that the media has nicknamed the iWatch.

The so-called smartwatch will be the first brand-new product unveiled under Apple’s new chief, Tim Cook, who took the helm after Jobs died nearly three years ago.

It is expected to come in two sizes and combine functions like health and fitness monitoring with mobile computing tasks like displaying maps, said people knowledgeable about the product. It will have a unique, flexible screen and, like the new phones, will support technology that allows people to pay for things wirelessly.

With its first wearable computer, Apple will enter a growing market for fitness-tracking accessories and smartwatches filled with gadgets from Samsung Electronics, Fitbit and Nike. And with the two larger phones, the iPhone will fight back against Samsung, whose big-screen Galaxy smartphones have wrestled sales away from Apple over the past few years.

2. U.S. "Outperformed" When it Comes to Customer Service

With its 15 trillion dollar economy, great marketing and big companies, you’d expect USA to be the country where customer satisfaction is at its best. Surprisingly, not only American customers aren’t the most satisfied in the world, but the US is not even among the top 10 countries with best customer satisfaction rating!

The U.S. is only at 15th position among the top countries with the best customer service
We used the latest ZenDesk Benchmark Q1 2014 Report to create an infographic about trends in global customer satisfaction and its importance for business. You can see which country has the happiest customers here: http://crm.financesonline.com/countries-with-best-customer-service-how-crms-improve-client-satisfaction/.
 
From the infographic you will also find out:

    Which industry has the highest customer satisfaction rating (95%)

    By 2020, customer experience will overtake price and product as key brand differentiators

    86% of buyers are willing to pay more for better customer experience

    70% of buying experiences are based on how customers feel they’re treated

 
 
3. Apple Reveals Why Your App Might Get Rejected for App Store

One of the great mysteries of the App Store is why certain apps get rejected and why others don't. Apple has let a surprising number of ripoffs and clones through the store's iron gates, yet some developers face rejection for seemingly innocent apps. "Before you develop your app, it's important to become familiar with the technical, content, and design criteria that we use to review all apps," explains Apple on a new webpage called "Common App Rejections." Rejections include: Apple and our customers place a high value on simple, refined, creative, well thought through interfaces. They take more work but are worth it. Apple sets a high bar. If your user interface is complex or less than very good, it may be rejected; Apps that contain false, fraudulent or misleading representations or use names or icons similar to other Apps will be rejected.


4. The "Selfie Friendly" Camera

Olympus' PEN E-PL7, which was just announced. The company is positioning it as a step-up camera for smartphone photographers, and true to that billing, it has a 180-degree flip-down touchscreen for framing and shooting selfies.

Of course, you don’t have to use this camera to take selfies, but the tilting 3-inch touchscreen is a unique twist on an existing design. In “selfie mode,” which is automatically enabled when the LCD screen is tipped all the way down to face forward, you get a pared-down UI that lets you tap the screen to focus and shoot quickly. By flipping downward instead of upward, the hotshoe and control dials don’t obscure the lower portion of the screen

 

5.  Radioactive Wild Boars Still Roaming the Forests of Germany
I did a double-take with this headline

28 years after the Chernobyl accident, tests have found that more than one in three Saxony boars give off such high levels of radiation that they are unfit for consumption. In 2009 almost €425,000 ($555,000) was paid out to hunters in compensation for wild boar meat that was too contaminated to be sold. "It doesn't cover the loss from game sales, but at least it covers the cost of disposal," says Steffen Richter, the head of the Saxon State Hunters Association.