ARE YOU CONFUSED BY AT&T’S PLAN TO REDUCE YOUR DATA SPEED?
On the front page of Friday’s Wall Street Journal, http://on.wsj.com/wlmlws, AT&T announced their latest attempt to control their costs for providing broadband services. They are planning to reduce the speed of your data service on your mobile device once you have surpassed your monthly purchased data limit.
With the growing popularity of mobile devices (smartphones such as the iPhone and the Android) as well as the iPad, the appetite for broadband services has surged. Last year, over 50% of all cell phone purchases were smartphones, whether new users or upgrades.
Most consumers don’t understand their data plans. Cell providers (AT&T, Verizon, etc.) offer “tiered data plans” based on data usage. What this means is that it is important to know your data usage and determine which plan is right for you. This information is available by simply contacting your provider. Streaming video from sites like Netflix will use up a lot of your data allotment.
The problem with this program is that, as their customer, you are being penalized for their inability to keep up with the demand for broadband services. Why not make sure their customers understand their data plans and make sure that they are subscribing to a program based on their usage? This is done for your calling plans without the risk of diminishing service once you have surpassed your purchased minutes.
Let’s hope that their competitors don’t follow this strategy. I called my provider, found out my average monthly usage and purchased a plan that was right for me. I suggest you do the same.
If you need help understanding your data plan, do not hesitate to contact me at 917 921-4518 or by e-mail at jblue@bluetutor.com. Feel free to click here to receive my free white paper on Technology Tips on setting up a home office and becoming a true road warrior.
IS YOUR NEXT FLIGHT WITH AN AIRLINE OFFERING INTERNET ACCESS?
According to a recent article in the Wall Street Journal, airlines are racing to include Internet access on their flights. By 2013, the expectation is that more than 50% of passenger planes will be equipped with wi-fi. The following is a summary of the current situation and some projections.
1. About a third of all US passenger planes are now offering Internet access
2. Currently, 3 out of the top 4 airlines (American, Delta, and Southwest) offer the service on many of their flights. While United has lagged behind, their expectation is that they will be completing a deal shortly and expect to have all their planes connected within the next couple of years.
3. The services include e-mail and Internet access which, according to a number of surveys, appears to be the greatest interest of most fliers at the present time.
4. As for the future, airlines are expected to offer streaming services such as live news and sports along with movies and TV shows. These services will probably be fee based. This week, Delta starting offering movies ($4.00 each) and TV shows ($1.00) on a limited number of their passenger planes.
As indicated in past blogs, we have become a mobile society, with Internet access available in hotels, coffee shops, airline terminals and now in the air. Isn’t it time for you to make sure you have the right technology to support your needs on both a personal and business level?
If you have any questions about this or other technology issues, do not hesitate to contact me at 917 921-4518 or by e-mail at jblue@bluetutor.com. If you are in career transition, feel free to click here to receive my free white paper on Technology Tips on setting up a home office and becoming a true road warrior.
WHY YOU NEED MORE THAN ONE E-MAIL ADDRESS
Finding it hard to sort through all the Junk?
Do you have only one e-mail address? Chances are, that if you do, you are having a difficult time sorting through it all to find that one important message you have been waiting for. Whether you are using gmail, yahoo, one of the services provided by your cable or DSL provider, or even AOL, your inbox is flooded with ads, jokes and other useless pieces of mail. By most accounts, 90% of all e-mails sent are spam!!
Advertisers love to send notices of sales since it is basically a postage free way of reaching millions of potential customers. Ever notice that a single order from any major retailer that manages to obtain your e-mail address will produce a flood of e-mails, daily or weekly? While most e-mail providers claim to have spam control, only the most obvious spam gets caught. Most retail promotions are not blocked unless you set up blockers manually.
What’s the solution? Well, having at least 2 separate e-mail accounts is a start. If you are running a business, you should have separate accounts for your business and personal lives. Even without a business, you should consider 2 personal accounts.
Why? Consider the number of online sites that you have registered with. Whether it be sites like Amazon, Ebay, The Food Network, Bloomingdales, the New York Times, Fandango (movies), etc., you have open the flood gates. Registering requires an e-mail address which often automatically adds you to their mailing list (unless you opt-out).
I have a separate e-mail address for all sites that I purchase from and/or require an e-mail for registration. My main e-mail address is used for business purposes only, and although I still receive a fair amount of junk, it is much more manageable since I never use this account to register for anything unless it is business related.
While you will never be able to eliminate all the junk and spam, it will at least be much more manageable with separate accounts.
If you have any questions about how to set up secondary e-mail accounts, do not hesitate to contact me by phone at (917) 921-4518 or by e-mail at jblue@bluetutor.com.
In addition, click HERE to join my mailing list and receive my FREE whitepaper on setting up a home office and becoming a true road warrior.
WHY YOU SHOULD TAKE A MAGICJACK ON THE ROAD WITH YOU
Traveling overseas? Concerned about keeping in touch? Using your cell phone will be expensive. If you bring your laptop and have Internet access, you should have a MagicJack as a companion.
Pictured on the left, a MagicJack is a tiny device that is plugged into one of the USB slots in your computer. The device costs $39.99 with an annual fee of $19.99. Not only that, but when you purchase a MagicJack, you get the first year for free. No monthly charges. You can purchase one at places like Best Buy or online at magicjack.com.
How does it work? When you sign up, you select a phone number with your local area code (in New York, either 917,646, or 347). What this means is when you plug your MagicJack into your computer, you are calling through the Internet and you can call anywhere in the US for free.
This works also in the US. So if you don’t want to use your cell phone from a hotel room or borrow someone’s phone, stick the MagicJack into your computer and make your call. If you want privacy, you can use a headset.
Free caller ID, free voice mail, free directory assistance……. Free …. Free …. Free!!
If you have any questions regarding MagicJack or any other technology issues, give me a call at 917 921-4518 or e-mail me at jblue@bluetutor.com.
WHAT IS CLOUD COMPUTING??
Whether or not you realize it, you have been using a cloud based service since you first started using a computer. These services include AOL, Hotmail, and G-Mail accounts. Chances are they you are one of the half billion plus members of Facebook.
Well, welcome to “the cloud!” Simply defined, cloud computing means having every piece of data you need at your fingertips and ready for use, being able to access all of your personal data at any given moment, having the ability to organize and store data from any computer, and on any model device. Using the cloud permits you to share that data (proposals, photos, movies, contacts, e-mail, documents, etc.) with your friends, family, clients and coworkers.
There are many excellent free cloud based programs that are extremely useful for your business. My favorite is Dropbox. I store all data in Dropbox that I would like to access from another computer or my mobile devices while on the road. You can store up to 2 GIGs for free. For $9.99/mo., you can store 50GIGs. I find the free version is plenty for carrying around what I need. As I write this blog, it is stored at Dropbox in order for me to able to work on it from wherever I am located. Another favorite of mine is Evernote. Instead of carrying around little scraps of paper with reminders scribbled on them, I enter them from any computer or mobile device into Evernote. Both sites are password protected. There are a host of other cloud based services and programs available ranging from news services, financial market reports, video conferencing, movie listings, flight information, hotel reservations, weather, etc.
No need to be afraid. Accessing the cloud is safe and secured as long as you know the site. You do it on your personal computer every time you use the computer.
With the world becoming more mobile and the fact that, in just a few years, more people will be accessing the Internet through one of the handheld devices (Blackberries, I-Phones, I-Pads, and Androids), cloud computing will continue to gain in popularity.
So, get with it! Join the cloud group. If you have any questions regarding cloud computing or any other technology issue, give me a call at 917 921-4518 or e-mail me at jblue@bluetutor.com.
WANT TO ACCESS THE INTERNET ON THE ROAD?
While many of us now own a “smartphone,” I-Pad or other small tablet size device with Internet access, a full size laptop is often necessary to work on documents and other projects that are not easily managed on handheld devices. It is now possible to buy a laptop with wireless access using the cellular networks. However using your provider’s (Verizon, AT&T, etc.) cellular network to access the Internet can be slow and spotty.
My solution is a credit card size device from Verizon called Mi-fi. This mobile device permits me faster access to the Internet using wireless technology (which is faster than the cellular network) for as many as 5 wireless products at a time.
With my Mi-fi card, I no longer need to look for a hot spot for Internet access. I can work in the park, in my car or commuter bus or train. Not only am I free to work anywhere there is service, the connection is secure since the device requires a password, which means that no one is able to join my network, much like being at home with a secured router. I am able to access sites requiring passwords and bank accounts without worrying about my neighbor sitting in a coffee shop next to me accessing the same unsecured network.
Yesterday, the Internet in my home was down. No problem. I simply turned on my Mi-fi device and the three of us were all able to use the Internet simultaneously until the situation was resolved.
The Mi-fi is not for everyone and it costs a minimum of $50/month based on your usage. In addition, while you are able to get a global model, the costs of using it abroad will be exorbitant, similar to using your phone overseas. Better to use a wireless hotspot (although not secured). However for those of you that require secure Internet access on the road, it is an excellent accessory.
If you have any questions about the M-fi, or other technology issues, give me a call at 917 921-4518 or e-mail me at jblue@bluetutor.com.