Top Ten

Top 10 Tech Christmas Gifts For Your Favorite Geek

2012-10-24T10:57:21Z

Written By: Abby Terlecki

As fall transitions into winter and November turns into December, days start to fill up with an array of holiday preparations and multiple to-do lists form with extensive obligations. From designing that family holiday card to decorating the home, Christmas shopping seems to loom overhead the most.

Surprise your favorite geek this holiday season with any of following gift ideas:

Cube Laser Virtual Keyboard

The Cube Laser Virtual Keyboard creates a futuristic and comfortable workspace for using the iPad or iPhone. ThinkGeek.com describes the virtual keyboard as a tiny device that projects onto any available flat and opaque surface. The keyboard projects and wirelessly connects via Bluetooth to an iPhone or iPad. It has simulated keystroke sounds and types at speeds similar to a standard keyboard. In mouse mode, fingers move and replicate a mouse.

The geek in your life will love the device's micro size and ease of mobility. Whether writing a thesis at Starbucks or composing an email at home, communicating through your tablet or smart phone using the Cube Laser Virtual Keyboard will never seem so fun or easy.

Available at www.thinkgeek.com.

Wi-Fli Smart Phone Helicopter

What can't smart phones not do? Besides end world hunger and heal broken hearts, the smart phone is like a magic device that can move mountains — or fly a toy helicopter. The Wi-Fli helicopter is controlled by a Wi-Fi-enabled smart phone and can fly within a 100-foot range. After downloading a free app on your smart phone, you can remote-control the helicopter using a touch screen and accelerometer steering. The helicopter charges with a USB system and flies with excellent stability because of its gyro technology and three-channel control. As soon as your loved one opens this gift, he won't be able to wait to see how high it can fly.

Available at www.cabelas.com.

iPad 3

Introduce a tablet into your home and experience the sleekest features it has to offer. The latest iPad features a wide-range of performance upgrades, including a high-resolution retina display, 5 megapixel iSight camera, 1080p video recording and Siri-like voice dictation. The iPad 3 is rated as number one for the most-wanted technology gift this Christmas season, and why not enhance your life with this digital innovation?

If the tech lover in your life is really deserving, wrap up an Upstand by Just Mobile and give the brand-new iPad a proper resting home. Whether resting vertically or horizontally, you can set your iPad in the kitchen as a recipe book, on your coffee table as a movie screen or in your home office as a computer.

Available at http://store.apple.com/us.

Pocket Breathalyzer

Have a drinker in the family? Prefer not to get a DUI? Stuff a pocket breathalyzer in the stocking of your favorite party animal. Sharper Image's pocket breathalyzer has myriad features for maximum accuracy while measuring blood alcohol content after sipping that Christmas ale or eggnog.

For a deep lung air sample, you'll exhale about a half-inch away from the device. Samples are analyzed using a unique sensor technology. It can test alcohol levels between 0.00 and 0.40 percent within a three-second response time. No longer second guess if your loved one can get behind the wheel after a holiday work happy hour or New Year's party.

Available at www.sharperimage.com.

Kinect

Xbox 360's Kinect is the latest gaming trend to top Nintendo's Wii. Its state-of-the-art motion-control technology raises the bar on virtual gaming and interaction. Free of any hand-held controllers, you experience the game through full-body movements. The whole family creates Avatars that are activated and recognized by hand movements and voice commands. Is your son addicted to Angry Birds? Is your husband a soccer fanatic? Does your daughter love to dance? Kinect gaming will transform how your family plays and entertains starting this holiday season.

When you connect Kinect with Xbox LIVE, your family can also control Netflix movies and Hulu Plus shows all through the sound of your voice. Forget hand-held controls — get into the action with voice control and special moves. If you're unsure about what games to stuff in stockings, Mashable.com recommends "Child of Eden," "Dance Central 2," "Double Fine Happy Action Theater" and "Fruit Ninja" Kinect.

Available at http://www.xbox.com/en-US/kinect.

The Abyss LED Watch

More than just at stylish timepiece, The Abyss touchscreen LED watch exposes the true nature of the wearer's being, according to ThinkGeek.com. You'll experience reality in four dimensions and control the Eye of Sauron. The Abyss Japanese-inspired digital watch with an LED touch screen can even give your nerdy boyfriend the power to know who believes in midi-chlorians.

From sucking the souls of enemies to accessing top secret locations, The Abyss is a powerful piece of technology with extraordinary out-of-this-world capabilities. With a tap of the screen, time is displayed as glowing-blue and white LED lights circle the Abyss. Strap the black leather band onto the wrist of your special someone and watch it tell time with each tap and LED glow.

Available at www.chinavision.com.

Garmin Dakota 20

The outdoorsy gadget-lover in your family will swoon over the Garmin Dakota 20 handheld GPS system. The GPS system features a color TFT touchscreen display for fast and easy navigation. Perfect for backpacking and camping trips, this Garmin gadget is a versatile piece of equipment that's lightweight enough to latch onto a bike or backpack.

It's a reliable navigational system that can easily switch between car-routing mode and marine-chart mode. It has marine map loading capabilities and geocaching features. The rugged, waterproof and compact Garmin Dakota is small enough to stuff into a stocking, and it will bring a huge smile to the outdoorsy guy dearest to you.

Available at http://g.factoryoutletstore.com.

iPhone Photo Cube Printer

After taking and sharing on Facebook all those iPhone pictures, why not print them out right in your own home? The iPhone Photo Cube Printer easily processes pictures on your iPhone without a computer. No need for time-consuming uploading and downloading. In moments, your family can print 4-by-6-inch photos up to 300 dpi in moments. Even more exciting for the geeked-out photographer in your home is that your phone will charge as it's printing files.

During this Christmas and Hanukkah, take pictures and have them instantly printed as beautiful, clear images with amazing typography that brings vibrant life to any holiday card. Weighing only about 3 pounds, the printer is compact enough to pack in bags and suitcases for vacations. During your family beach vacation or camping trip. quickly print water-resistant pictures that are resistant to smudges, tears and fading.

Available at www.sharperimage.com.

Kindle Fire HD

The Kindle Fire HD is an affordable gift that your favorite bookworm or movie fanatic will love opening this holiday season. Known as "the world's most advanced 7-inch tablet," Amazon's Kindle Fire features stunning 1280 by 800 HD display, exclusive Dolby audio and dual-band/dual-antenna Wi-Fi for fast downloads and dependable streaming. With this tablet, you're getting high-quality and fluid performances every time you watch movies or play games. With its rich color and deep contrasts, the Kindle is a remarkable digital experience right in the palm of your hands.

Available at www.amazon.com.

Lytro Light Field Camera

The Lytro camera creates incredible living pictures that will make the photographer in your family take his or her hobby to a new level. The Lytro camera captures and records every light ray traveling in a scene. Because of this camera's revolutionary ability to record an entire light field, you can bring into focus any object in the photo by simply tapping the touchscreen or clicking your computer screen. The freedom to refocus makes the ability to share stories from different perspectives possible while either in an everyday setting or a creative mode.

With the Lytro application, you can also import and share living pictures online for friends to easily refocus. Its radical shape and innovative capabilities make taking pictures a truly unique experience, whether you're capturing a timeless moment with friends or beautiful scenery in nature.

Available at www.lytro.com.

About the Author: Abby Terlecki graduated from Ohio University’s E.W. Scripps School of Journalism and from day one it was apparent that she was destined to be a contributing writer with a focus on entertainment, fashion, and shopping. Abby loves tree pose, her nephews, coffee and the movie Factory Girl.

10 Free Things to do at San Diego Comic-Con

2012-07-05T14:05:42Z

A lot of people think Comic-Con is only for nerds who love comics, but they can't be more wrong. I can guarantee that there is something for everyone in their giant exhibit hall. From independent artists to record breaking movies, Comic-Con has it all. For those of you who have never heard of San Diego Comic-Con can get all of the information you need here. But like everything in life, there's always a catch. It is REALLY difficult to get tickets, not too mention that they're pretty expensive if you buy multiple days. But don't worry, hope isn't lost! There's still plenty of things to do at San Diego Comic-Con, even if you don't have tickets.

1. WB's Free Entertainment Festival

2. Take pictures with cosplayers

3. Watch the Zombie Walk

4. Find famous people and get their autographs (they're all over the place!)

5. Play video games that haven't even come out yet

6. Check out the independent art

7. Watch LEGO street art be made

8. Check out 6 different Batmobiles

9. See some of your favorite stars on stage

10. Meet new people and make new friends in the comic book industry

Well there you have it! 10 free things to do at San Diego Comic-Con. Actually going in is an incredible experience, so I hope this year will warm you up and get you excited for SDCC 2013! I'll definitely be there and I suggest you check out for at least a day. Trying new things can be scary, but it definitely helps if it's free! So we hope to see you out there having fun and hanging out with Batman and Superman! Comic-Con 2012, here we come.

Top 10 Tumblr blogs on Typography

2012-01-30T11:20:28Z

Written By: Nargis Namazi

“Typography is the art and technique of arranging type in order to make language visible” explains Wikipedia. Creatively put, typography delves deep into the world of fonts, images, colors, spaces and more recently infuses these bits with the digital platform. As so much of creative outlet can be discovered in blogs, Tumblr (a micro blogging platform and social networking website) is attracting several bloggers on this subject. Presenting the ten best that caught my attention:

1.Beautiful Type: Created by Francis Chouquet and Aurelien Foutoyet (2 blokes or web designers extremely passionate about typography), this blog is all about some inspiration. If you’re looking for something similar on this subject, then this is a good place. Both designers are knowledgeable and keen on sharing what they know. Great videos and content, I especially enjoyed the Books section (Didn’t know there were so many on Typography!)

2. Faberfonts Foundry's Blog: Run by Béla Frank (a graphic and type designer living in London), this blog is frank and the author is expressive about his work. I picked this one as the best as I feel that unlike others, he does a fabulous job with visuals and content both. By using a series of fonts, snapshots and bundling them with how he feels; he depicts his work neatly.

3. Typography: scores highly for its simplicity. For someone who knows nothing about typography, the blog makes it super easy. For beginners this is a great place to find articles on topics as simple as what is typography, meaningful typography, dos and don’ts, etc.

4. Words and Eggs: This one’s by a college instructor and calligrapher named Lesley Yorder. For anyone with interests in fonts, Words and Eggs will not fail to disappoint. One may find vintage-inspired designs, typography, hand lettering, francophilia and other works here.

5. Beautiful Swear Words: The name explains why this blog caught my interest. Bad words written in great designs and font, how calligraphic! Check Beautiful Swear Words for modern day creations – they even have typography offerings on T-Shirts and have appealing videos too.

6.Type Worship: James Clarke’s ‘visual research and creative inspiration’. Sure, it is. Creative, if slightly unusual typographical artwork that revels in beautiful art forms can be discovered here. What I like at Type Worship is the treatment of fonts and how they are used with objects.

7.Typostrate:It’s not enough to just fancy different type or come up with unusual ones; it’s equally important to know its use and what can be done with it. Typostrate answers these questions and that’s why the blog’s important for those in the business.

8.Cabaret Typographie: If you’re Italian, then this is a must check out for Type lovers. The blog, which is in Italian of course, is nothing but a typographic workshop based between several Italian cities. The Archive section is especially captivating.

9.Movie Title Cards: This guy likes fonts – on movie title cards. Personally I should have ranked this higher – it’s creative and involves a lot of work and a keen eye as well. However, it’s not dedicated to type – it’s simply a collection of title cards.

10.Pretty Clever Design: Based in Chicago, these guys (one fella and a cat actually) can basically create customized websites for small start-ups and even large corporates. To showcase their skills in Type, he has a blog which is Pretty Clever, that offers a peep into their type and design sense.

Top 10 Technology Companies

2011-12-23T08:53:42Z

Written By: Nargis Namazi

Apple: Standing tall on number 1 position is Apple as the largest technology company in the world in revenue and profit. The biggest money spinners for the company include its awesome Macintosh line of computers, iPhone, iPhones and the iPad. The company’s employees have also voted it as one of the best place to work – Check Glassdoor.com Employee’s Choice Awards for 2012. Also, after the demise of Apple founder Steve Jobs in 2011, newly appointed CEO Tim Cook also fared well with a 96% overall approval. One employee said, “Apple was "very invigorating," adding that "there is always a challenge that you must overcome. The team, management, leadership, and people you meet will be a great asset to you”

Company Brand Value: $153.285 billions

Google: It is impossible to imagine life without Google now, the largest advertising company in the world. Making most of its chunk from search advertising, the company also leads in the development of the Andriod mobile operating system which serves as the base for millions of users to check Google ads as well as its other web services such as Gmail, Google Calendar, and more recently Google +, a social networking platform. The company is known for its constant innovations, with several employees happy with the perks and compensation offered. It is an excellent place for engineers especially.

Company Brand Value: $111.498 billion

Facebook: “Working at Facebook means that you are working in a very deeply entrepreneurial environment and culture and that you come to Facebook with a love for building things,” says Lori Gohler, Facebook VP of HR and recruiting. The social networking website is the largest in the world that has recently shifted to its new headquarters in California. Started by Mark Zuckerberg and his college roommates Eduardo Saverin, Dustin Moskovitz and Chris Hughes, Facebook is one of the leading technology companies in the world today. The company hires some of the best tech minds in the industry to constantly innovate its bouquet of offerings.

Revenue: In 2011, Facebook’s revenue stood at US $4.27 Billion

Microsoft: Through its various product divisions,the company offers a wide range of products and services related to the computing world. Microsoft is a major global tech player without which this list is incomplete.In May 2011, Microsoft Corporation acquired Skype Communications for $8.5 billion.The company’s current CEO Ballmer has emphasized time and again the need to continue pursuing new technologies even if it means failure citing the original attempts with Windows as an example.

The company has diversified in recent years into the video game industry with the Xbox and its successor, the Xbox 360 as well as into the consumer electronics market with Zune and the Windows Phone OS.

Total Assets: US$ 108.7 billion (2011)

Twitter: is a great place for people to gather helpful inputs from experts across several fields, share your own knowledge with people with similar experiences and so forth. Basically, the micro blogging website offers tremendous value, is simple to use and lots of fun which explains why it has attracted so many users (over 300 million) from across the globe!

Revenue: US $140 million (2010)

Samsung: has certainly firmed its position as one the most influential technology companies today after 2009 sales of its devices hit $117.8 billion beating HP. The major drive has come from TV, camera, memory chips and lately the tablet market that has shot Samsung up in the technology charts.

Samsung has also been listed among the top 10 most trusted brands in India by The Brand Trust Report India Study.

Revenue: US$ 220.1 billion (2010)

Sony: This Japanese multinational headquartered in Tokyo is a leading manufacturer of products ranging from consumer electronics to telecommunications, communication & information equipment, semiconductor, electronic devices, battery,chemicals, PlayStation, films, television and music.

Sony has lost 399.3 billion yen ($5.1 billion) thanks to fierce competition mainly with Apple Inc. and Samsung Electronics Inc. in the last three years. Additionally, it also reportedly lost a close to a total of 260 billion yen ($3.2 billion) in 2011 due to the effects of the deadly Japanese earthquake. But it still continues innovating with its broad range of products (especially Playstation brand of video games) which are extremely popular among masses.

Revenue: US$ 86.64 billion (2011)

IBM: or International Business Machines Corporation stands out as an important leader in the manufacturing of computer hardware & software. As of September 2011, it is the second-largest publicly traded technology company in the world by market capitalization. Famous inventions by the company include the automated teller machine (ATM), the floppy disk, the hard disk drive, the magnetic stripe card, the relational database, the Universal Product Code (UPC), the financial swap, SABRE airline reservation system, DRAM, and Watson artificial intelligence.

Revenue: US$ 99.870 billion (2010)

HP: Hewlett-Packard Company better known as HP is an American multinational company that specializes in providing products, technologies, software, solutions and services to consumers as well as SME’s and larger enterprises. Besides being a leader in the field of technology, the company is known for its other divisions as well that include hardware, financing, services and software. Their list of product offerings is a great many ranging from printers and digital cameras to pocket computers to business desktops.

Revenue: US$ 126.033 billion (2010)

LinkedIn: launched in 2003, LinkedIn reached profitability only in March 2006. But by Jan last year, the company had reached a total of $103 million of investments. As a business-related social media website, it was an early player whose model was unique and is now being imitated by others.

Revenue: US$121 million (Q2 2011)

The most important tech news of 2011

2011-11-17T11:43:46Z

Written By: Artika Shah

1. Steve Jobs Death
The most touching and important news of 2011 and for years to come. “We are deeply saddened to announce that Steve Jobs passed away today,” stated, Apple Inc’s board of directors. Visionary co-founder of Apple, Steve Jobs expired at the age of 56 on October 5 which is a major loss for the technology industry. Mr. Jobs was one of the world’s great entrepreneurs who gave the world the iPod, the iPad and the iPhone. He resigned as the CEO of Apple in August and handed over the reins to the current chief executive Tim Cook. The Silicon Valley Icon had been battling cancer and other health issues for years and also had a rare form of pancreatic cancer.

2. Steve Jobs quits Apple

The news of Steve Jobs resignation announced on Aug 24 hugely impacted the Technology and the stock world. The shares slipped as much as 7% in after-hours trading. Apple’s ailing chief executive Jobs officially tendered his resignation and recommended chief operating officer Tim Cook as his successor. Mr. Jobs said, “I have always said if there ever come a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple’s CEO, I would be the first one to let you know.” Mr. Jobs said in his resignation letter, “Unfortunately, that day has come. ”

3. Launch of iPad 2
On March 2, Apple introduced iPad 2, the next generation of its magical device for browsing the web, reading and sending email, enjoying photos, watching videos, listening to music, playing games and reading books. The then CEO of Apple, Steve Jobs was of the view, that while others have been scrambling to copy the first generation iPad, Apple is launching iPad 2 which moves the bar far ahead of the competition and willlikely cause them to go back to the drawing boards yet again. iPad 2 is available in black or white, features models that run on AT&T’s and Verizon’s 3G networks. The iPad2 with Wi-Fi was made available on March 11 for a retail price of $499 (US) for the 16GB model, $599 (US) for the 32GB model, $699 (US) for the 64GB model.

4. Launch of Amazon’s new tablet Kindle Fire 4.

The world’s largest online retailer, Amazon.com Inc unveiled its Android-based tablet with a color touch screen on September 28. This is the first Kindle without an EInk display which costs $199 and has a 7-inch IPS display. The Kindle fire is a 7 tablet that brings together Amazon’s various digital media offerings like streaming video, Kindle books and Amazon MP3- in a dual core device and most importantly it runs on a cloud called Amazon silk. The company also debuted three new Kindle devices namely, the Kindle Touch wifi for $99, Kindle Touch 3G for $149, and a basic (non-touch) Kindle for $79.

5. Super charging Android: Google bought Motorola Mobility

Search giant Google Inc announced in August that it bought the cell phone maker Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc for for a total of about $12.5 billion, in what may be termed as one of the biggest deals in the tech world. The acquisition of Motorola Mobility, a dedicated Android partner, will enable Google to supercharge the Android ecosystem and will enhance competition in mobile computing.

6. Sony makes it official: PlayStation Network hacked
“We have been hacked,” stated Sony blaming external intrusion for PlayStation Network outage. After four days of disruption, Sony admitted that outside are hackers were responsible for a major PlayStation network outage. The outage, which began on Wednesday in the month of April, affected more than 70 million gamers worldwide, who used the network to play videogames against friends online, stream movies and shop. Sony said it had shut the network down voluntarily in order to conduct a thorough investigation and verify the smooth and secure operation of its network services going forward.

7. Launch of Apple iPhone 4S

Apple announced the launch of all new iPhone 4S model at an event held in Cupertino, USA in October. It did not announce the launch of the much awaited iPhone 5 which disappointed millions of Apple fans across the world and the ones who were waiting to upgrade from the current iPhone 4 but Apple delighted its fans by introducing Voice intelligent system ‘Siri, ‘ who calls herself as your personal assistant. Apple fans and tech geeks are all gushing over her and she deserves every bit of attention she’s getting.

8. Search giant reveals mobile payment system: Google Wallet

At search giant Google’s media event May 26, the company launched the long-rumored and long-awaited Google Wallet, its mobile payment system at its NYC Headquarters. Google Wallet is a mobile application for mobile devices running its Android operating system.

9. RIM faces lawsuits over blackberry outage

Blackberry customers in the U.S. and Canada filed a suit against Research in Motion or RIM over the worldwide outage which left millions without instant messaging, email and net access in October. The lawsuit claimed that RIM was responsible for Blackberry users’ loss of email, BB and internet. The outage, caused by a system failure and compounded by the failure of its back-up system started on October 10 and lasted 4 days.

10. Apple posts record quarter on sales of 20 million iPhone, 9 million iPads in third quarter 9.

Apple announced record revenue and profits in the third fiscal quarter of 2011, largely ruled by sales of over 20 million iPhones and over 9 million iPads. The company reported a quarterly net profit of $7.31 billion and its revenue stood at $28.57 billion, up 82% year-over-year. Apple sold 20.34 million iPhones, a 142% increase over last year’s third quarter.

Top 10 Celebs Active on Social Media

2011-10-21T07:08:14Z

Social media has attracted a big bunch of celebrities from across the globe that are spread on channels such as Facebook, Twitter and now Google+. For celebs – big and small – social media has become the ideal platform to promote themselves, their personal brands, causes, and give updates on their lives to an eager fan base. Social media has, in fact, been the best medium for them to go all out there and “get it”

This post will help you sieve through the assemblage of celebs crowding the social space as we pick only the most active and popular ones. Read on…

Celebs on Facebook

Megan Fox: Okay, she needs no introduction so I’ll come straight to the point. This hottie is an active member of Facebook and frequently updates her page with a lot of interesting details about herself and happenings related to her. Check out here page here. We especially like “Things you can’t do with your face when you have Botox” photo album.

Lady Gaga: Her customfacebook page serves most users with some backlinks to her albums and interactive pages. (Lady Gaga’s Page). She’s pretty popular on the social media scene. Lately, a Facebook scam reported that she was found dead in a hotel room, which of course was fully rubbished.

Justin Bieber: This kid’s definitely taking his singing skills to the social media landscape and perhaps Facebook’s his most favorite. If you’re a fan, you must check out his page (Justin Bieber’s Page) which he keeps updated with his visits and concert details. He also keeps himself busy by staying involved with fans directly.

Chistiano Ronaldo: This celebrity is one eye candy and uses FB as a medium to share his training schedules and success stories with others. (Cristiano Ronaldo’s Page) The football star has an incredible 2.9 million fans on his page, even though he joined only sometime mid last year!

Celebs on Twitter

On Twitter, there are many (read many many!) celebs out there who are obsessed and attention hungry and are only abusing the medium. Of course, we won’t go that far and list them but those active on Twitter may already get the drift as to who these guys could be. Thankfully, Twitter also has a gang of celebs who are witty, thoughtful and entertaining.

Steve Martin– For comic relief, Steve Martin is definitely your man. Surprisingly though, while he is very-active, he is not here to spread a few jokes. He spends a lot of time replying to people. That sprinkled with his trademark hilarious style makes him one cool winner. And believe me, he’s pretty crazy too!

Tom Hanks: joined Twitter only early this year but since then he’s seen a 666% increase in buzz so far. He even took part in a viral video campaign urging the Pulitzer Board to give the Onion a Pulitzer Prize. Besides this, he even gave a boost to the Los Angeles Police Department's "Carmageddon" media strategy, warning his 2.2 million Twitter followers to avoid the 405 closure.

Diablo Cody– Brook Busey, better known by the pen name Diablo Cody, is an American screenwriter, writer, blogger, journalist, and author. This eccentric celeb and ex-stripper is far from inhibited and one of those Twitterers who will tell-all to her fans about all that’s going on in her life. We kinda like that!

Celebs on Google+

Britney Spears: Is this the femme fatale herself (or her management) posting tour news to Google+? Even though the profile claims to be original, we have a few doubts. It links to Britney's official Twitter account, Tumblr, Website and YouTube channel. But those sites aren't linking back to Google+, so that’s why the doubt. But worth checking out, we still maintain.

Felicia Day: Besides appearing on TV series, Day is also a writer, producer and star of the popular web series “The Guild”. She has around 219551 people in her friend circles and stays in touch with them with regular posts, photos and buzzes. Check her out here

Ashton Kutcher: was the heartthrob of “That 70’s Show” and replaced Charlie Sheen on “Two and a half men”. He is a big buzz on social media. Kutcherrecently joined Google+ too and wrote “google+ needs to be able to collapse comments to posts in stream”. Listening Google+?

He is also currently engaged in a heated Twitter warwith Digital Brothel.

Why should celebrities take social media seriously?

With social media, celebrities can speak directly to the public. Period. A great way to manage your reputation. If a situation goes out of hand or they are involved in a controversy, social media helps them to stay ahead of the game & speak directly their fans, bloggers, journos and do their part to keep matters sorted.

What more? It humanizes a celebrity. Perhaps, the most important reason why we see so many of them out there. They’re tired of their ‘star’ status and want to be treated normally.

Good-to-know

Demi Moore and Nia Vardalos (My Big Fat Greek Wedding) help stop a suicide by responding to a distress message.
Director Kevin Smith gets thrown off a Southwest Air flight for which he was already seated. Why? Because he was apparently “too fat”. He tweets about it to his 1.6M Twitter followers and creates a PR nightmare for the airline, causing them to issue an apology.

By: Nargis Namazi

10 Best 3D Movies of 2011

2011-09-30T10:46:15Z

1. Harry potter 7: The Deathly Hallows Part 2

Harry potter 7: The Deathly Hallows Part 2, the second installment of a two part film based on Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling, and the final film in Harry Potter series. David Yates directed both the parts. The film is the end begins as Harry, Ron, and Hermione going back to Hogwarts to find and destroying Voldemort’s final horcruxes but when Voldemort finds out about their mission, the biggest battle begins and life as they know will never be the same again. The movie stars Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson and was released on July 15.

2. Kungfu Panda 2: The Kaboom of Doom

The sequel to the 2008, Kung Fu Panda, Kung Fu Panda 2 is a 3D American computer-animated action comedy film, directed by Jennifer Yuh Nelson and released on May 26. Kung Fu Panda 2 stars Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Jackie Chan, David Cross and Lucy Liu. The movie begins with Po living his dream as the Dragon Warrior, protecting the Valley of Peace alongside his friends and fellow kungfu masters, the Furious Five.

3. Pirates Of The Caribbean 4: On Stranger Tides

Based on the book ‘On Stranger Tides’, the movie Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tidesis an adventure fantasy film and the fourth installment in the Pirates of The Carribbean series. In the movie, Captain Jack Sparrow is joined by Angelica in his search for the Fountain of Youth, confronting the infamous pirate Blackbeard. The film was distributed by Walt Disney Pictures, and was released on May 20. The movie has been directed by Rob Marshall and its star cast includes Johnny Depp, Penelope Cruz, Geoffrey Rush, Ian McShane and Kevin McNally.

4. Cars 2

An American computer-animated action film produced by Pixar, Cars 2 is the sequel to the 2006 film, Cars. The film has been directed by John Lasseter and was distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. Cars 2 was released in theatres on June 24. The voice cast includes voice of Owen Wilson, Larry the Cable Guy, Michael Caine, Emily Mortimer and John Turturro. The film is about the race car Lightning McQueen and tow truck Mater heading to Japan and Europe to compete in the World Grand Prix, but Mater becomes sidetracked with international espionage.

5. Rio 3D

RIO 3D is a 3D motion picture from Blue Sky Studios, the makers of the Ice Age films. The comedy-adventure centers on Blu, a rare macaw who leaves the comforts of his cage in small town Minnesota for the exotic wonders of Rio de Janeiro. But Blu’s new life and adventures in Rio are complicated by the fact that he can’t fly. The movie stars Anne Hathaway, George Lopez, Jesse

6. Winnie the Pooh

Winnie the Pooh is an American animated children’s family film inspired by the AA Milne stories of the same name directed by Stephen Anderson and Don HJall. The film is part of Disney’s Winnie the Pooh franchise released on July 15 in US. The movie stars Jim Cummings as Winnie the Pooh and Tigger, Tom Kenny and Craig Ferguson. The movie revolves around Winnie the Pooh, Tigger, Rabbit, Piglet, Owl, Eyeore, Kanga and Roo embarking on a quest to save Christopher Robin from an imaginary culprit while Pooh deals with a hunger for honey.

7. The Lion King

Simba, Mufasa, Nala, Timon and Pumbaa are back and better than ever with “The Lion King” roaring into theatres and homes in breathtaking 3D with its release on September 16. Lion King presents the story of a lion cub’s journey to adulthood and acceptance of his royal destiny. The movie stars Rowan Atkinson, Matthew Broderick, Jeremy Irons and others. The film first made its debut as an American animated feature in 1994 produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation.

8. The Smurfs

The Smurfs is an American 3D family film based on The Smurfs comic book series created by Peyo and the 1980s animated TV series it spawned. The film has been directed by Raja Gosnell and stars Neil Patrick Harris, and Hank Azaria. It is the first CGI-live action hybrid film to be produced by Sony Pictures Animation and in The Smurfs triology. The film was released by Columbia Pictures on July 29. In the film, when the evil wizard Gargamel chases the Smurfs out of the village, they’re forced through a portal, out of their world and into outs, landing in the middle of New York’s Central Park.

9. Mars Needs Moms

Based on the Berkeley Breathed book, the movie Mars Needs Moms is an animated sci-fi adventure film directed by Simon Wells released by Walt Disney Pictures on March 11. The film stars both Seth Green and newcomer Seth Dusky as the main character Milo. The film is about a young boy named Milo gaining a deeper appreciation for his mom after Martians come to Earth to take her away.

Eisenberg, Will.i.am and Jamie Foxx. This 3-D animated feature has been directed by Carlos Saldanha and was released on April 8.

10. Gnomeo and Juliet

Gomeo &Juliet is the computer-animated family comedy drama film based on William Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet. The film was directed by Kelly Asbury and was released on February 11. The movie stars James McAvoy, Emily Blunt, Michael Caine, and Jacon Statham. The film features the voices of James McAvoy and Emily Blunt as Gnomeo and Juliet, who have many obstacles to overcome as their quasi namesakes when they are caught up in a feud between neighbors.

Written by: Artika Shah

Top 10 Technology CEOs

2011-09-13T02:27:59Z

Eric Schmidt: Dr. Schmidt stepped down as the Chief Executive Officer of Google in April 2011 and has been the Executive Chairman since then.

An electrical engineering and Ph.D degrees, Schmidt began his career in software at Bell Labs and Xerox PARC. He then led development of Java technology as a chief technology officer at Sun Microsystems;. In 2001 when Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin appointed him chief executive. He helped Google grow from a Silicon Valley startup to a global leader in technology. He introduced new services (Gmail, Google Talk)

Dr. Schmidt is a member of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology and the Prime Minister's Advisory Council in the U.K.

Steve Jobs: Eric Schmidt himself recently announced him the 'Best CEO in 100 years'. The King of iPhones and iPads, Steve Jobs was adopted by working-class couple; dropped out of Reed College since he couldn’t afford the tution. Founded Apple in parents' garage. Was fired from his own company after power struggle with chief John Sculley 1985. Started Pixar; credited with computer-animated blockbusters Toy Story, Finding Nemo. Returned to Apple in 1996, created iPod. In September added movies to the iTunes store and previewed iTV, which streams movies from computer to TV. Jobs resigned as the CEO of Apple in August. He was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2004 but is said to be in full recovery.

Paul Ontellini: The Zen-like and Softspoken Otellini encouraged his subordinates to push themselves through his own quiet confidence.

Paul Otellini joined Intel Corporation straight out of business school and rose through the company's ranks as a result of his marketing savvy and leadership in product development. During the 1980s he cultivated a key strategic relationship between Intel and International Business Machines (IBM), and during the 1990s he presided over the development of Intel's flagship computer chip, the Pentium. The President and CEO of Intel, Otellini became second in command of the world's leading producer of microprocessors.

Jeff Bezos: Jeff Bezos founded Amazon.com in 1995 as an online bookstore. Due to customer demand the company later expanded and added other products to its inventories, including videos, DVDs, electronics, toys, apparel, software, household items, and gourmet food. In an interview published in Dealerscope magazine, Bezos indicated that books were chosen as Amazon.com's first product category "because they offered so much selection"

Larry Ellison: Lawrence (Larry) Joseph Ellison was regarded one of the most visionary leaders in the information technology industry. In 1977, with two colleagues, he founded a company that created the world's first commercially viable relational database. This technology revolutionized the way businesses were able to access and use data. Owing to Larry Ellison's drive and competitive spirit, Oracle databases eventually dominated the market, and Oracle grew to become the second largest independent software company in the world.

Samuel Palmisano: noted for hopping on an airplane at a moment's notice to meet a potential client in person. Those who worked for him gave him high marks for honesty and candor. He brought optimism and exceptional self-discipline to his leadership of IBM. He brought optimism to his leadership of IBM.

Shantanu Narayen: Mr. Narayen currently serves as our President and Chief Executive Officer. He joined Adobe in January 1998 as Vice President and General Manager of our engineering technology group.

Michael Dell: Michael Dell helped launch the personal computer revolution in the 1980s with the creation of Dell Computer, which began in the founder's dorm room at the University of Texas and quickly blossomed into a megawatt computer company. By 1992, just eight years after Dell was founded, Michael Dell was the youngest CEO of a Fortune 500 company.

John Donahoe: The eBay boss is relentlessly upbeat but always self-deprecating, amazed when pulling up more auctions on his iPhone. He took the top slot at eBay two years ago, replacing Meg Whitman, and immediately plunged into overhauling the e-commerce giant after its rapid growth stalled.

Brad Smith: Intuit's Brad Smith brings a strong desire to foster creativity and innovation among employees, and to reach out to the company’s stakeholders and stay ahead of market trends. “I’ve done a number of things in the spirit of employee motivation,” says Smith, 44, who was named CEO in January 2008. “I tend to be a storyteller and a student of history. I often tell stories of great battles, like the battle of Thermopylae, to inspire teams who face what appear to be insurmountable odds. And yes, I have been known to don costumes ranging from a Roman soldier to Elvis Presley as a reward for a job well done.”

Top Ten iPhone Apps for Business Pros

2011-09-09T07:59:13Z

Written By: Blake Sanders

Business applications like the ones available for the iPhone have significantly improved workplace productivity. From the time you activate your iPhone sim card, you are granted access to a plethora of tools that can help you manage your time, enhance productivity, and increase efficiency. Numerous applications have been created to enhance the way that employees work while they are away from the desk. We took the liberty of sorting through the nearly half million apps available for iPhone users to bring you the top apps for business pros.

GoToMeeting

Employees that are traveling or working from home no longer have to travel to attend meetings. Business owners may select this web conferencing software to significantly improve accessibility to employees, clients or business partners regardless of their physical location. With the software, video conference calls may be established and online discussions are facilitated. A free 30 day trial is offered to customers before a nominal monthly payment is required.

Dragon Dictation

Speaking, for most people, is faster than typing. Dragon Dictation developed dictation software that will convert spoken words into text based upon this common fact. Users simply must press to record and then, press the button again to stop recording and translate to text. The voice message may easily be converted into an email or a text message as well. The application will also allow users to select a word that is not recognized and a list of editing suggestions will populate.

Roambi

Business people and investors need up-to-the-minute information available about their company. There is nothing like having a discussion with a client and discovering that the client has more information about the company than the employee or sales person. Stay informed of developments in your company. Analyze the data to be prepared for your client’s proposal.

WordPress

Blogs are essential to increasing a company’s exposure and presence on the internet. WordPress is one of the best platforms available that will help with promoting and marketing a company’s website. Optimization is also a synch with WordPress. The application offers numerous themes for the company to select and customize to meet their company’s marketing campaign needs.

DropBox

Removable USB drives are convenient, but there is little protection if you lose the drive. DropBox uses cloud computing to save all of the company’s files in this convenient location and they can be accessed from any web browser. The concept utilizes cloud computing to backup all business data into one convenient location.

Analytics App

In the age of eCommerce, companies are beginning to understand the importance of analyzing webpage data to improve web marketing campaigns. This analytics application will allow you to access information in real time about your website's bounce rates and landing pages. This application allows all of the functionality of Google Analytics to be accessible from any location.

Documents To Go

Documents to Go allows employees to read and alter Word, Excel and Powerpoint files on their iPhone devices. These documents may later be synched to the desktop, laptop or other online document storage service. Some of the most popular online documents storage services are DropBox, SugarSync and Google Docs.

SiteCatalyst

This unique application helps companies remain abreast of marketing and online strategies to improve their profitability. The information is provided in real time.

Skype

For free video calling, there are not too many video chat services that offer the flexibility of Skype. This application is ideal for making free Skype-to-Skype calls, cheap international business marketing calls, and for chatting online.

Print Magic Business

Printing from an iPhone is a convenience. Simply tether your iPhone to your wireless printer and print any of your word documents, Web pages, photographs or PDF documents. The application works with multiple printers. Many business people have used the application for printing boarding passes.

Blake Sanders is a tech writer at Sim Only. He specializes in industry news, iPhone sim, as well as mobile phones and broadband.

Note: Photo courtesy of Robert Couse-Baker via FlickR Creative Commons.

Top 10 Twitter Celebrities

2011-07-28T04:58:14Z

The 140-character forum is one of the best and most accessible popularity contests online. Who’s winning? Lady Gaga, who reigns as No. 1. Celebrities tweet about everything from mundane details of their day to big announcements.

1.) Lady Gaga (@ladygaga)- This Lady has been dominating Twitter since she first exploded on the scene: The trend setter singer and fashionista has a whopping 12,219,059 followers.

2.) Justin Bieber (@justinbieber)- The heartthrob of millions is one of the most active celebrity users of the website. He obliges nearly 11,472,070 fans in kind with multiple posts per day. He has been on the site for just 28 months and has nearly 10,000 Twitter posts, an average of over 350 posts per month and more than 10 a day!

3.) Barack Obama (@BarackObama)- 44th President of the United States is the only person on the top ten list who is not a Hollywood celebrity. By far the most accessible President in U.S. history, Obama isn’t taking his 9,435,149 followers for granted: He recently held a Twitter Town Hall, an open digital forum where he communicated directly with his followers and also made news for initiating the Debt Ceiling campaign on Twitter.

4.) Katy Perry (@katyperry)- has 8,817,868 followers. The singer has made more than 3,000 posts since she started using the service. Perry announces concerts, album releases and even sends jokes to her followers.

5.) Britney Spears (@britneyspears )- She is yet another female singer is also one of the most popular celebrities on Twitter. Spears has 8,767,839 followers thanks to her album sales and a new concert tour. She also follows more than 420,000 Twitter accounts like any good celebrity who keeps up with her fans.

6.) Kim Kardashian (@KimKardashian)-This Business woman, exec producer, fashion designer, and perfumista in the age of reality television and all things Twitter, is the main wheel that keeps the pop culture influence of the Kardashian-Jenner unit turning, allowing her steady fan base the opportunity to live vicariously through her very public lifestyle. The curvaceous woman ranks #4 with 8,704,371 followers.

7.) Shakira (@Shakira) The Colombian singer has now surpassed Oprah in Twitter followers – making her the only Latina currently among the Top 10 most followed users on the social media website! She is holding her ground with 7,360,520 followers. If we can only get more Latinos to join her.

8.) Ashton Kutcher (@aplusk)- known to his followers as the one "who makes stuff". Kutcher was one of the first celebrities (along with his wife, Demi Moore) to get in on the tweeting game and it paid off very well– the hunky actor and wannabe activist has 7,314,857 followers.

9.) Taylor Swift (@taylorswift13)- This confession-prone crossover superstar has 7,284,502 Twitter fans adoring her every word.

10.) Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow)- The always funny talk show host leaves her 7,194,458 followers in splits with her silly jokes. “Being a celebrity I learn a lot of Hollywood secrets, like who’s dating whom, and where to get free air for my tires.” jokes DeGeneres.

Top 10 Facebook facts hidden behind its face

2011-05-04T13:04:15Z

While everyone knows how this social networking site originated behind the doors of a Harvard Room, there is more behind the face of Facebook…

Read on these fun facts..

1.) Facebook first went corporate with Apple and Microsoft.

Thanks to the movie social network everyone now knows that facebook started with Ivy League colleges and educational institutions. But very few know that it went corporate with the companies Apple and Microsoft in May 2006. Others in the first round also included Accenture, Gap, Intuit, Pepsi, PricewaterhouseCoopers and the non-profit organization Teach for America, Intel and Amazon. It was only after September 2006 that everyone, regardless of school or company affiliation, could join Facebook.

2.) Al Pacino’s Face was on the Original Facebook Homepage

Before Facebook redesigned its Homepage back in 2007, it used to feature a man’s face partly obscured behind a cloud of binary code on its front page.

Dubbed the “Facebook guy,” it was not known who the mystery man was — until recently. David Kirkpatrick recently revealed in his book The Facebook Effect that the image is a manipulated photo of Al Pacino created by a friend and classmate of Mark Zuckerberg.

3.) Hidden Easter Eggs

Facebook once boasted a funny Konami Code (up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A, enter) that changed the background of the site to display colorful circles and light flares.

Finally, there’s the “Chris Putnam,” a Facebook Chat Easter egg that still works today. To test it out, when in chat type in :Putnam, hit enter and see the hidden egg.

4.) Facebook has never explained the Term “Poke”

While Facebook explains how “poking” works on its help center, there’s no explanation to be found for the origin of the phrase. The most common definition is a friendly “nudge,” but the more flirtatious connotations cannot be ignored.

As Zuckerberg himself had once responded to a question about what a poke meant on the social networking site with: “We thought it would be fun to make a feature that has no specific purpose… So mess around with it, because you’re not getting an explanation from us.”

5.) The Average Facebook User Has 130 Friends

While the current active official user count now stands at over 500 million, the average user has 130. Facebook’s official stats page and people spend over 500 billion minutes per month on Facebook.

6.) California is Huge on Facebook

As far as Facebook goes, California (home of Silicon Valley) is the most social state, with an amazing 15,267,160 users in the region, according to Facebakers. This means that nearly half the state is connected via Facebook.

The next biggest user-base can be found in Texas with 9 million users, but it’s nowhere close to California. New York comes in third with 8 million.

7.) An App to See What’s on the Facebook Cafe Menu

Like at Google, Facebook staffers get three free meals a day (as well as free drinks and snackage) served up by the “Facebook Culinary Team”.

If the staff want to know what’s on the menu, they don’t need to leave their seats. In fact, they don’t even need to leave their Facebook profiles — the “Lunchtime” Facebook app offers a weekly view of what’s being offered and it looks very interesting.

8.) Mark Zuckerberg Calls Himself a “Harvard Graduate”

At facebook.com/zuck (the personalized URL Zuckerberg nabbed for himself), Mark Zuckerberg lists himself as a “Harvard Graduate,” which by now everyone knows isn’t true, as he dropped out to concentrate on getting Facebook up and running.

When he was once confronted about this on the 60 minutes show he said, “That’s true. We don’t have a setting for dropout.”

Well, a suggestion to Mr. Zuckerberg, you kind of have the power to make that happen.

9.) A Facebook Employee Hoodie Sold for $4,000 on eBay

A Facebook Employee Hoodie is a collectible now. It recently sold on eBay for a whopping $4,050 with nearly 50 bidders battling it out to win the auction and considering the fact that it had not touched Zuckerberg skin, it’s an astonishing amount.

10.) Facebook once had a File Sharing Service

Though one can’t find information about this on official Facebook timeline, but one of Facebook’s early add-ons was a friend-to-friend, file sharing service called Wirehog, developed alongside Facebook by Mark Zuckerberg and three others.

It was launched in 2004 and is reported to have been planned as an integral FB feature. In 2005 Facebook was actively promoting the service and Zuckerberg told The Harvard Crimson “I think Wirehog will probably spread in the same way that thefacebook did.”

However, likely due to piracy concerns, Wirehog was axed in 2006 before Facebook got really big, although its photo-sharing functionality lives on in spirit.

Top 10 technologies of 2011

2011-05-04T12:45:57Z

2010 saw the unveiling of hot products like the iPad and iPhone 4. Not to forget the widespread adoption of the Windows 7 and Android operating systems.

Now below are the list of some much awaited technological launches in 2011….

1. Tablets will turn the table
Apple's iPad was just the beginning. In 2011, consumers can expect an onslaught of competitors that want to take a bite out of Apple's near monopoly in the "pad" market.

New models from HP, BlackBerry maker Research in Motion, Motorola, Dell, Asus, Cisco, Lenovo, and others are expected to be rolled out in 2011. While these products may not be as popular as the iPad, they'll all likely have something that the iPad doesn't; Affordability.

2. Cloud Computing
The idea of your stuff being available to you wherever you are and on any device is the future. So there are plenty of reasons for cloud computing to be taken seriously, by both corporations and consumers, in 2011. Some of them are Accessibility, Cost and Backup. Cloud will make new products like the iPad far more helpful over time.

3. OnLive
The company has proven that the service works and in 2011 it will take it to the next level as part of this is their version of streaming movies and videos. The advantage with OnLive’s approach is that it uses an extremely thin client, allowing the service to more easily move across platforms than alternatives, which require more client-side technology. This could open the door to blended entertainment where the lines between movies and games are truly blurred.

4. Windows 8
Consumers can get ready for the launch of windows 8 in 2011. They can expect sweeping changes of the User Interface with this product.

5. 4G
With heavily constrained bandwidth, 3G is not enough to facilitate the use of OnLive service on our phones. 4G might help in overcoming that problem.

6. Social networking
Facebook and Twitter took the world by storm in 2010. And it is highly unlikely that Google will watch success like that go unchallenged?
It is currently rumoured to have a 'Google Me' product in the wings, which is expected to give Facebook some competition in 2011. Others are likely to follow suit.

7. Storage
Think big and fast in 2011. Traditional mechanical hard drives will be available in 3-terabyte (TB) capacities and larger -- and at prices that will be budget-friendly. For those who have been waiting for Speed State Drives (SSDs ) to get big enough to be interesting, expect 600 gigabyte (GB) drives to appear early in the year.

8. Hardware acceleration
The first fully hardware accelerated browser drives through the market in 2011, and Web pages will likely respond by becoming vastly more graphically rich, and much more thrilling. Expect some interesting responses from Google and the Firefox as the competition in this area heats up in 2011.

9. USB 3.0
It was unveiled in 2010, but hardly anyone noticed. Expect that to change in 2011, as a flood of new products are launched that take advantage of USB 3.0’s tremendous speed advantage over USB 2.0, as well as its two way communication prowess.

10. Green cars
2011 turns an important page in automobile history. This year manufacturers’ good intentions change into electric and hybrid production models.

Some of the Electric and Hybrid Cars that will be launched during the year are:

Under Electric Cars one can look forward to Renaults ZE’s model Fluence ZE, Bollore’s Bluecar, the Nissan Leaf, sport-luxury sedan, the Fisker Karma.

Some of the Hybrid cars that may be launched are Audi A6, Infiniti M35h, Hybrid Honda Jazz.