How technology can help you study for finals

Finals are rapidly approaching and you should be prepared for the stress that is about to hit you( if it hasn't already). There is some technology available to the general public that could be helpful for your finals studying. 

If you have a Ipad or any other apple devices there are 5 great things you can add to help you ace your finals.
 (Preview brought to you by http://www.higheredtechdecisions.com/photos/10_best_college_apps_for_studying_on_the_go/8/)

Chegg Flashcards:Chegg Flashcards allows you to easily create flashcards for any subject using your mobile device. You can even add pictures or diagrams to your cards. The app also provides access to pre-made sets of flashcards powered by Quizlet. These are available for a variety of subjects including Math, History, Chemistry, English, Science, Accounting and more.

Chegg Flashcards allows you to track your results as you quiz yourself. Just swipe up across a card you get right and down across a card you get wrong. You can then go back and review the material you answered incorrectly. Your answer speed is tracked on the app’s results page. Chegg Flashcards also allows lets you skip a card by shaking your device and navigate the deck with the swipe of a finger.  

Evernote Peak:Evernote Peek is a fun way to study for an upcoming quiz using your iPad. You can either use an iPad 2 Smart Cover or a virtual cover option to begin testing yourself on a series of questions using a clue. Simply lift the corner of the tablet cover and a clue appears on your screen. To reveal the answer lift the cover a little higher. Then close the cover and repeat. Evernote Peek requires a free Evernote account to begin creating the “notebooks” from your which test questions will appear. The title on the note appears as your clue and the text in the body appears as your answer.

Exam Countdown:A test will never sneak up on you again! Exam Countdown allows you to track your exams by storing key dates in one place. You can add a “to-do” list of items that must be completed prior to the exam and read and share test taking tips from other students. All you need to remember is to download this app.

Margins: If you like taking notes in the margins of books, this app is for you. You never have to remember where to find your note or citation because the Margins app organizes your notes by book and page number. Each note you save can include a quote and a comment so you remember what you were reacting to and exactly where to find the passage you need. The app even allows you to search for keywords and includes bibliographic information. If you know your book’s ISBN number, Margins can look up the book for you. Now you can take your notes with you and review them wherever you go.

Study Blue: StudyBlue allows you to make digital flashcards and flip through them while getting feedback on what you know. Using the app’s study filters you can weed out concepts you’ve mastered and review questions you answered incorrectly. Each flashcard can contain text and pictures and you have the option of creating your own or using a classmate’s.  StudyBlue also allows you to set reminders for tests that are coming up so you remember to start reviewing class material. If your friends or classmates have the app, you can message them questions or collaborate virtually.

Battle between Netflix and Net Nuetrality

Lately there has been a lot of controversy over the poor streaming quality of Netflix while using a Verizon and other Internet providers. Netflix is blaming the Internet providers for not providing enough bandwidth for the customer to download their movie fast and efficiency.

This issue is making the consumer very upset because they are spending money on a product that is not working properly with their Internet provider. 

But who is to blame? is it Netflix for making the service use so much bandwidth or is it the internet provider for not giving enough bandwidth? They are both at fault for this issue. This is an issue between all of the companies complaining that they are charging too much for their services.  

 "This is about consumers not getting what they paid for from their broadband provider," a Netflix spokesman said in a statement. "We are trying to provide more transparency, just like we do with the Netflix ISP Speed Index, and Verizon is trying to shut down that discussion."

These companies are all going to lose customers if they keep this up. They can complain to each other all they want in the background, but don't bring the consumer in the middle of the issue. We still have net neutrality in this country, so the consumer should not be involved in this corporate battle.  

when a verizion spokesperson was asked If you already have a deal with Netflix in place that you say has fixed the issue, why are some Fios broadband customers still experiencing poor Netflix streaming? he responded: Well, we can't just snap our fingers and the network is upgraded. We need new facilities. We have to do the equipment engineering. Build it and test it. We are doing all of that right now. And it should be completed during this year. 

The reality is that we have a deal in place to handle these issues. So who is at fault is really a moot point. We both recognize that customers will be better off with a direct connection. And that's what we are in the process of implementing.

For all you Netflix users on college campuses everywhere, this is a heads up so you are not left out in the dark with this issue. And if you want this issue to stop temporarily, I would try to find an Internet provider that is a pay-as-you-go until they come to a conclusion.

This issue also affects everyday people that already have enough going on in their lives. These corporations need to stop affecting the consumer over a internal issue.

News of a Revolution

The news industry has seen very minimal changes in recent years. John Meyer, college student at NYU Polytechnic School of Engineering, is going to change the way people get their news.

Meyer created an app called 'Fresco' available on the iTunes Store. This app gives the person more options on how they get the news and what news they get. It uses other news sources all connected to this app to create an personalized news by the sources you want to see.

This is great for people that have particular interests and don't want all of the other news in the newspapers.

But there are always cons to every app. For this app, if you set it up so you don't get a variety of sources and see the other side of the issues in the news then this app could isolate you with the world. This app could also be a breeding ground for people to only get news from certain websites and take some news companies out of business.

There have been some other news apps like this one created. All of the major news companies have their own app to give the consumer the news on their phone or electronic device while on the go. Some other news apps on iTunes store are Flipboard and News360.

News360 has the most in common with Fresco. They both personalize your news all on one app. Another thing in common is that they are both made to make the news simple to find for the consumer. This makes them competing to get to the top.

Flipboard on the other hand is a personalized magazine that gives your choice in magazines to appeal to your taste. This competes with Fresco because they both personalize the info you want to get. 

For now, Fresco is on top of the personalized news apps offered by iTunes. That could change if another person creates an app that makes the news even simpler to get.

Meyer is thinking about dropping out of college at the age of 19 but has not made his decision yet. His decision will be based on the success of Fresco and if he thinks he can become more successful with more schooling.

If I were in his shoes I would stay in school. This is because then you know if something goes wrong and you lose your job with the company that hires you, there is a back-up plan and you have a degree in some field.

What is cyberbullying?

As the number of people increase social media usage, the danger of cyber-bullying rises. But what is cyber-bullying and how do we properly punish the people that do it?

Many teens have there own communication when it comes to their friends. To an outsider of a group, it may seem like a particular person might be getting cyber-bullied. Many of these possible false reports are caused by a parent or family member that does not understand the communication style they have with their friends.

The way I think that cyber-bullying should be handled is loosely but if there is a person that truly needs help and is not defending themselves. This is so there are less false reports by others hat don't understand the context of the conversations. Basically, if a person is being repetitively bullied online and they are not sticking up for themselves then ask the person if they think they are getting bullied. Depending on what they think is happening to them, proceed in a manner that may help them.

I think they should also help the person that is bullying the other person. this is because they are more then likely going though some troubles in their lives.

There is always a way out of the cyber-bullying cycle. It starts with getting someone involved if you feel like it is happening to you. and if it does not stop then get the police involved.

The children's parents should be teaching their kid right from wrong. But schools should still teach all of the students what is right and wrong to say online.

Following those tips and some others mentioned in the video, we can create a safe place for children to go online. But this will take the cooperation of all the parents, students and teachers to make this right. 



 

Distracting your Future?

Has social media really gotten to the point that people feel like they are alone in the world?

It may be a safe place to go where your parents can't see what you are doing or at least limit what they can see. This is also where we create a lot of our connections with people we know.

Snapchat is now one of the more popular ways teens communicate with their friends. This use of social media has taken the selfie craze to a whole new level. I can't walk down a sidewalk or sit in a public area without seeing one or two people taking selfies and sending it to their friends. 

This video I have added to the post, is really treading on Facebook, and shows one side of the story. It is a great example of how things have changed from what we did as kids to what kids do today.

It is sadly true to many people in developed countries.

Everyone is guilty of being tuned out of society from time to time, and there is nothing wrong with that. But when it starts affecting your daily life and you feel no connection to the people you are "friends" with on your social media that's where it becomes a problem.

Try giving this a shot one-day and see how this could change your life. You might be surprised at the friends and connections you can create by just being unplugged from your devices and social media. 

The Apple is Growing Bigger

The Apple logo has been infused in every one's mind whether you like it or not. You see it on a daily basis. This company has just expanded and bought out another small company to enhance their product even more. 

It cost them $43 million dollars, but they bought LuxVue Technology to improve there already stunning led screens. LuxVue has been around for a few years producing low-powered micro LED screens for all sorts of technology. They have flown under the radar for a while.

Apple must have seen something in them to spend that kind of money to possibly enhance the LED in the screens of their product. 

With this purchase by Apple, there is a possibility that the new product they come up with will cost more then what you are already paying (which is already outrageous). 

It may improve their product as a whole but are they becoming a monopoly? Numbers don't lie, and the fact that they had more money on hand then the U.S. Treasury is saying something. 

In 2011, Apple was worth $370 billion. That’s right I said $370 billion. That is double what the Apollo Space Program is worth.

They also have $140 billion dollars in foreign accounts due to tax loopholes that they took advantage of.  And they blame the government for creating the loopholes.

Needless to say, but Apple has grown though the point that it cannot be controlled anymore. 

Apple has been accused of making products that are meant to break to make the customers come back and buy a brand new version of what they already have. They have also patented their own style of screw so no person can fix the product themselves. Then when you bring it in to get fixed, it cost an arm and a leg (literally). 

Apple has taken over the world with there technology and someone needs to stop them before they control over everything in our daily lives (even though this has happened to many of us already).

Video Streaming gaining campus popularity

Netflix and other video streaming services are making a splash on college campuses around the US.  The major players in his business are Hulu, Amazon Prime, VUDU and Netflix. Personally I use Netflix and i love it. I know many people on our campus that use some sort of video streaming service.

Generally, many college students don't have much extra money lying around. That could make it hard for them to find the funds to afford such services. This could lead them to use either free services or finding a pirating site to get the shows they want to watch.

All of the providers have pros and cons. Making the comparison between them is key to finding out which one is the best for the viewer.

Netflix: If you are looking for a wide variety of movies and TV shows Netflix is the best video streaming service for you. You can also personalize your account with Netflix to that shows and movies that you might like. A negative to Netflix is that it does not have the most current seasons available right away. It is only $7.99 a month to get online streaming. You can add more to your account if you want to.
 
 

Hulu Plus: To get the most current episodes of your favorite shows then Hulu Plus is for you. They allow you to catch up on a episode if you missed it due to other plans. But a huge draw back to Hulu Plus is the commercials that hinder your experience. Hulu is the same price as Netflix and has about the same amount of content as Netflix.



Amazon Prime: If you enjoy watching shows from Comedy Central and Nickelodeon then this service could be right up your ally. This service also has a good balance of other movies and TV shows available. The only downfall for this service is that the price of it is $79 for a year subscription. That could burn a hole in the pocket book of many college students. 


VUDU: The pay-per-episode can be very cost effective for many college students who are aware of their budgets. VUDU offers this and that is a major plus for them. And the many choices you have to choose from makes it a nice service to have. The price of these services is variable based on how much you watch a movies or TV shows. A negative for this service is that certain features are not standard for all operating systems. 


There are many other options available online, but these four are defiantly the major players of online video streaming. And for college students needs, any of these services can be affordable. But the best choice is different for each student and what they can afford to spend on this kind of entertainment. Choose wisely my fellow classmates!