All posts by The Artist

Technology

LDR With True HD Quality Webcam

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This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of faceVsion Technology USA. All opinions are 100% mine.

Keeping a long distance relationship is never easy and I am sure anyone who is in this situation could sympathize.

I have a friend who related to me that he used to have a very beautiful girlfriend. Unfortunately, even though they had been in the relationship for quite a few years, it could not be sustained when she was transferred to work in Paris. Back then, everything was expensive. Air travel was luxury and phone calls ran up killing bills.

Nowadays, with the advancement of technology, it’s a whole lot easier. Almost everyone is connected to the internet via fast internet services which makes video calls part of out daily internet activity. Video calling through chat programs like Skype, Windows Live Messenger and Yahoo! Messenger is no longer a fuzzy experience thanks to FV touchcam N1 which is only one of the handful cameras that could stream true HD quality internet video calls. The touchcam N1 is built with H.264 hardware encoder, you see.

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Of course, internet video calling isn’t just for personal use as it is an excellent communication tool in a business environment. In that case, surely faceVsion‘s touchcam N1 is a must have.

If you have been searching for webcams that care able to stream true HD quality video calls over the internet, then look no further. You should check out FV ExpressCombo at faceVision on line store. They are currently running a Back to School promo whereby you will enjoy 10% discount on your purchases. This promotion ends on 30th September, 2010. Remember to use the coupon code FVTBTS2 upon checkout.

Visit my sponsor: faceVsion TouchCam N1 HD Video Streaming Webcam

Computing & Internet

Google UK Cleared By ICO

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The British Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has cleared Google UK of collecting “meaningful personal details” using their Street View cars.

Remember the uproar sometime around May when Google announced that they had accidentally collected data of wi-fi users through their Street View cars? Google apologized, claiming it was an accident even though it happened in over 30 countries that Google have Street View cars, and said that they will trash whatever data they collected.

Representatives of British Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) visited Google office to examine data samples to verify that the data collected could not be linked to any individual person and they said:

“The information we saw does not include meaningful personal details that could be linked to an identifiable person…it is unlikely that Google will have captured significant amounts of personal data. There is also no evidence as yet that the data captured by Google has caused or could cause any individual detriment.”

So this means there is no case against Google. This will probably be the same outcome for all the other countries that are probing Google, including France and New Zealand.

Computing & Internet

Cheaper Web Hosting

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My friend, Amy, told me that it is getting increasingly difficult to make money online. She said that it’s a burden just up-keeping her slew of blogs and websites and in fact, made the difficult decision last month to terminate her subscription to Virtual Private Server hosting.

This month, things have continued to be slow for her and since her web hosting is due for a renewal, she is looking for a company that could offer her cheaper web hosting without compromising on features.

Amy actually asked me to recommend her the “best” web hosting company but to tell you frankly, I am out of touch already. I have been with my current web host for years and happy with the services so I didn’t think that I would be moving to another web hosting company anytime soon.

However, Web Hosting Choice has a very useful list of Top 10 web hosting sites which anyone looking for a good web host should look through. The reviews are very helpful as once committed, it would be quite difficult to move to another host so soon.

What I find extremely convenient is the one-page price comparison view. I am sure pricing is one of our main concerns when looking for a web host. The most expensive doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the best!

*** This post has been sponsored.

Technology

Some Free Google Android Apps Collecting User Personal Data

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Although I do not own an Android powered smart phone, I read with concern that according to Lookout, a US-based security firm, some free Google Android applications are collecting users’ personal data secretly and sending them off to a Chinese-registered server.

A friend recently purchased a Samsung Galaxy S smart phone and he has been raving about the free apps that he could download, install and use, much like Apple iPhone’s App Store, except that Andriod apps are more open in the sense that they are not restricted to a “controlled” store like Apple’s and are available from other sources.

One of such apps that Lookout pointed out is a series of wallpaper apps developed by “callmejack” and “IceskYsl@1sters!” but Lookout could not pinpoint what they are doing with this data and have stopped short of calling these apps malware or malicious in intent.

Anyway, if you have an Android phone and love downloading the apps, especially free Android apps, do check out the sources first.

Computing & Internet

Facebook Questions

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Facebook rolled out a new feature called Facebook Questions which is similar to Yahoo! Answers. It allows us to post a question not only to our circle of friends but also to the whole Facebook community.

If you don’t have a lot of friends, or if you have a local question but don’t have many friends who live in your area, I am sure you would have found it difficult to get an answer to your question. The thing with Facebook Questions is that you can now post your question to your friends and everyone else and I’m sure someone out there would have an answer to your question.

How many times have you taken a photo of a bird or butterfly or flower and would like to know its species? Just post your photo up. Easy. I have a lot of photos of birds and butterflies that I shot visiting KL Bird Park and Taman Rama-Rama Kuala Lumpur in March this year. I think I am going to try out this feature with these photos.

Technology

Telephony Systems

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My friend recently expanded his small construction business and he said that he requires a better and more cost effective telephony system now. The has been complaining about his bill for quite a while already!

I have heard from friends that Toshiba Phone Systems are very reliable but I don’t know if he will use it. There are other telephone systems of course, like Siemens, Avaya and Panasonic. All are major brand names and should not give problems.

Whatever my friend opts for, it’s high time he upgrades his phone system and make use of the more advanced technology of business communications.

Computing & Internet

10 Million Facebook Fans For Starbucks

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Starbucks is the only brand name with fans numbering more than 10 million on Facebook, just like Lady Gaga who is the first living person with more than 10 million fans on Facebook. The main rivals of Starbucks in terms of brand name is Coca Cola with approximately 8.3 million fans and counting.

If you are on Facebook, you would know that Starbucks is one of the global brand names that is most actively giving away free coffee vouchers to fans. It’s too bad that many of these promotions are only available to people in the United States.

But then 10 million fans is already huge. The entire population of New York is only 8.2 million! I wonder how many of these fans actually SPEND at Starbucks and not just wait for free vouchers or coupon codes from Starbucks.