Looking to Avoid Business Vulnerabilities? 6 Reasons Patch Management Matters

Posted on December 4, 2021 by Amanda Greenberg

When a software provider sends you an on-screen notification to update your software, you might be in the middle of a project. You don’t have time to wait for your computer to update, so you click on the “remind me later” option.

All too often, it’s easy to forget to update your software with the latest patches. If you want too long, you could have serious problems that affect your cybersecurity and other vital issues. When you’re in charge of a business or an IT department, encouraging people to download and install updates can be even more challenging. If you’ve been letting your patches fall by the wayside, here are six reasons why you should manage them sooner than later.

Most Businesses do not Have a Cybersecurity Expert On-Site

Cybersecurity professionals demand high salaries, so many small businesses cannot afford to employ them. These businesses rely on their software companies to provide cybersecurity.

Whenever software companies discover vulnerabilities in their products, they release updates or “patches” to fix the problem. Unfortunately, many companies often wait three or more months to update their software, creating dangerous situations for your data in the meantime. That risk can grow exponentially if you drag your feet around installing the updates.

To understand the importance, explore more on vulnerability management to see how timely updates can significantly reduce your exposure to threats. By staying proactive, you can mitigate risks effectively and build a strong foundation for ongoing cybersecurity practices.

If you don’t have a dedicated IT department or you otherwise struggle to dedicate time to your patch management strategy, consider automation. Automated solutions like TuxCare patch management install your patches automatically, taking a massive weight from you and your employees’ shoulders. In this case, you’ll never have to worry about accidentally leaving the door open to thieves and system crashes.

Antivirus Software Often Becomes Outdated

When you neglect your patch management, your antivirus software loses its efficacy because it becomes outdated. Cyberhackers can access your sensitive data and steal information if your software is vulnerable. Patches update cybersecurity measures, making it harder for hackers to penetrate your system.

A Security Breach Costs More than Patches Cost

The cost of paying for security breaches is more expensive than any patch. Often, patches are entirely free, but they do require businesses to pause their systems for a short time. You might lose a sale or a bit of productivity, but it is nothing when compared to the cost of losing customers because of a security breach.

If a hacker invades your system because you neglected a patch, they could take your financial information and steal money from you. Cybercriminals could also steal money from your customers, and your customers could come to you for reparations. Patching your software helps you avoid these potential pitfalls.

Software Becomes Vulnerable to Hackers

Patches update your software in several ways. These pieces of code can fix bugs that affect productivity and correct problems that open your system to hackers.

Patch Updates Minimize System Downtime

When you update your system each time a patch comes through, you shorten system downtimes. Without patches, your system is vulnerable to problems that could force your system to shut down unexpectedly. If you wait too long to update your system, you could be forced to shut down your system for a longer time to access all of the upgrades.

Avoiding Compliance Fines

Many industries have compliance rules for software systems, and avoiding necessary patches and updates can force you to fall out of compliance. As the expenses for repairing data breaches, compliance fines can be more costly than the time allotted for the patch itself.

Before You Go

When you neglect your patch updates, you put your business, finances, and customer data in danger. You open your business up to potential fines and time-consuming repairs. The best way to avoid software problems is to upload the patches or schedule the upload as soon as they arrive.

What’s New with 5G in 2022?

Posted on December 2, 2021 by Oscar Jack

5G is the wave of the future — and the future is now. Long heralded as a new era of outstanding connectivity, high performance, and unprecedented technological capability, it’s finally here, and it’s becoming increasingly ubiquitous.

While 5G is largely confined to densely populated areas at the moment, its increasing rate of adoption by the general public and across a wide variety of industries, from retail to manufacturing to healthcare, indicates that it will enter a new phase in the coming year.

In fact, 2022 will be a pivotal year for 5G. It’s highly likely that the vast majority of mobile phones and tablets sold in the next year will support 5G. And the top carriers have all announced their plans for rollout — a rollout that is coming sooner rather than later.

Are you ready for the 5G revolution? Here’s what you can anticipate in 2022.

Adoption Will Skyrocket

Global adoption of 5G will reach — and, in fact, surpass — one billion devices in 2022, Ericsson projects. Its June 2021 Mobility Report notes that it is overtaking the world at a far higher speed than that of 4G. In fact, Ericsson anticipates that there will be more than half a billion 5G users by the end of 2021 alone.

This isn’t true across all regions, though. It will inevitably take longer for some regions to adopt and deploy 5G than others.

3G Will No Longer Work

3G made its debut roughly 20 years ago. At the time, it represented a new era of internet connectivity. But that era is coming to an end. In 2022, all of the major mobile carriers in the U.S. plan to retire 3G. AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon, the 3 top carriers, have announced dates at which this service will end in the coming year.

This should affect very few users since most people have moved onto 4G devices. However, anyone who still relies on a 3G device should be aware that they will long longer be able to make or receive calls and send or receive text messages in early 2022, although wifi service will still work.

New Players Will Join the Game

All the major players have invested in the 5G Infrastructure Market. Apple entered the game in fall 2020, with its iPhone 12 debut, which has 5G capabilities. Samsung started even earlier, back in 2019. But even smaller players are getting in on the action, too.

For example, Nokia will serve as the supplier of UScellular’s standalone 5G network. The carrier serves a relatively low number of customers, despite being the fourth-largest carrier in the U.S., but its deployment of 5G, expected to be completed by the end of 2022, could increase its popularity — as well as that of Nokia.

Some Rollouts Are Slightly Delayed

AT&T and Verizon had originally planned to roll out their new 5G frequency band on December 5, 2021. However, concerns about interference with cockpit safety systems have led them to delay their rollouts until January 5, 2022. Now, they are working closely with the Federal Aviation Administration to hear their warnings about these potential dangers so they can assess and address the safety concerns.

5G Is Going to Be Faster — But Perhaps Not as Fast as Expected

Ultra-fast download speeds are one of 5G’s main claims to fame. And for the most part, it is proving to live up to the hype — to an extent. According to an analysis by RootMetrics, 5G speeds were higher than 4G speeds for each carrier they assessed. For AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon, the speeds were higher than those of the previous year’s 5G results.

However, RootMetrics also reports that these speeds aren’t necessarily as fast as anticipated. Service isn’t equal across the board and, in some cases, download speeds aren’t even that much faster than those of 4G.

It Will Increase and Improve Connectivity

5G has a number of benefits, including lower latency, increased bandwidth, and greater capacity. One sometimes-ignored advantage is the fact that it could improve connectivity for underserved populations.

Communities that rely on wired broadband connections can now enjoy better connectivity, after having been overlooked in the past. Thanks to the performance and super-high speed of 5G, rural communities and areas with low populations now have access to better internet connections.

What’s new with 5G in 2022? As you can see, the answer is quite a bit. 5G certainly had a moment in 2021, with an increased rollout and new benefits emerging. But next year we will see this standard take its capabilities and features to even greater heights. It’s time for the world to adjust to make way for the next era of broadband cellular networks — and technology itself.

The Tech Behind MOOCs

Posted on December 2, 2021 by Oscar Jack

“Remember the MOOCs? After Near-Death, They’re Booming.”

That was a May 2020 New York Times headline.

Massive open online courses, known as MOOCs, became a phenomenon in 2008. Early platforms like Coursera, edX, and Udacity sought to completely overhaul the concept and delivery of higher education, offering free means of learning from top institutions. These courses were accessible to practically anyone with an internet connection.

Each year, hundreds of thousands of students sought to study with world-class institutions like Harvard, Stanford, and MIT. But as challenges emerged, enrollment began to decline.

Perhaps in response to the pandemic, the MOOC movement was recently revitalized. This edTech innovation now has a new life — and, thanks to technology, it has the power to once again revolutionize education at all levels.

The Tech That Supports MOOCs

Digital Content

The backbone and very essence of MOOCs is the digital content it includes digital readings, video lectures, graded assessments, social networking, and much more. This content is often self-paced and accessible via a library or your account on the platform.

Online Forums

Often, MOOCs offer an online forum where peer learners can ask and answer one another’s questions, get help with assignments, exchange ideas, and pick one another’s brains. These discussion forums give students an opportunity to engage with others, lending a personal touch to a usually impersonal method of teaching and learning.

Educators sometimes engage in these forums, too, offering responses to questions, posing critical thinking questions or topics, or otherwise sparking and continuing discussions.

Big Data Analytics

Big data is the result of tremendous innovation in technology, which has produced an abundance of data. MOOCs, like other platforms, collect information, which specialists can analyze and transform into meaningful insights.

They can, for example, assess performance and progress in given courses and offer guidance on how to make changes for better outcomes.

Predictive Analytics

Meanwhile, predictive analytics can be used to assess students’ learning and predict completion rates and how given individuals will perform in various courses. By analyzing information like assignment completion, the number of logins, and so on, systems can anticipate who is likely to see success in given courses and who won’t.

Using this information, the system could autogenerate messages to coach at-risk students or otherwise provide guidance to steer them toward completion, as well as warn them as to their current progress or lack thereof.

Artificial Intelligence

AI plays an integral role in MOOCs. It’s leveraged for a wide variety of purposes, such as auto-grading assessments. Additionally, it can assist with personalizing coursework and course progression. For example, by analyzing student performance, the technology can offer suggestions, including types of courses that might interest students in the future.

Moreover, AI can offer guidance and assistance through means like chatbots.

Benefits

MOOCs are lauded for their many benefits, which include:

• Accessibility to a wide variety of learners
• Self-paced learning
• Low-cost or free education model
• Short timespan
• Collaborative environments
• Flexibility
• Breadth of topics

Criticism of MOOCs

Still, MOOCs aren’t without their critics. One of the main critiques of this education model is that there is usually a lack of interaction between students and their instructors. Typically, courses are taught asynchronously, which means that instructors and pupils don’t even share screens and material at the same time. Many believe technology simply can’t replace the personal connection required for learning.

Moreover, teachers don’t actually do the grading of assessments most of the time. While automation and peer grading may suffice in some cases, there are others, such as those in some humanities courses, where a human touch is necessary. Students won’t receive personalized feedback, either.

All of this summarizes a chief complaint of MOOCs: They tend to be highly impersonal.

Another complaint is that MOOCs have previously seen relatively low completion rates, especially compared with other higher education models. Perhaps the low-stakes nature of these courses could account for dropouts, or maybe it’s due to the aforementioned lack of interaction. Whatever the reason, this is something those who design MOOCs must strive to address.

MOOCs of the Future

College and university enrollment fell by more than 3% between fall 2019 and fall 2020 across the United States. This suggests that students could be beginning to question the value of higher education, and they’re left wondering if the steep price of a college education is worth the investment.

Could MOOCs be the solution? With so many topics available, some learners are turning to the model to upskill, relying on a more cost-effective solution for the education on the subjects they really want to learn.

While MOOCs are certainly not without their flaws, they have come a long way in the more than a decade they’ve existed. And as higher education sits at a precipice, MOOCs may very well over be the answer to the challenges of teaching and learning.

How Mobile Phones Are Changing Commercial Security Management

Posted on December 2, 2021 by Kate Teng

The transition towards a world run largely by our smart devices is certainly in full swing. Almost everyone carries a smart device on their person at all times, and these devices just keep getting smarter.

Smart homes have been trending for some time now, with residents able to remotely check on their security, change the internal temperature and even start the kettle boiling in time for their return home. But how does this smart technology relate to commercial applications?

The post-pandemic commercial landscape is set to be infinitely more mobile, with the adoption of remote working, hot-desking, and BYOD (bring your own device) showing no signs of slowing. Commercial operations are transitioning towards an all-mobile future, and security must follow suit.

The Security of Mobile-Based Access Control

When commercial door locks and access control systems are paired with cloud-based technologies, the need for businesses to manage multiple fobs or key cards is eliminated. But how secure are these systems?

Given the advanced security that mobile devices now feature, a mobile-based system of access control can be highly effective and reliable. Some of the security benefits of a mobile-based commercial access system include:

Each set of mobile credentials is entirely unique to each individual, unlike PIN code entry or traditional key systems
Mobile credentials cannot be duplicated as easily as an ID badge or key card
Multifactor identification (MFA) processes are built into the device itself
Mobile and cloud-based access control systems can integrate with other security systems, like video security, for a more comprehensive management system
Automatic, instantaneous alerts can activate to notify the necessary security personnel in the event of a security breach or incident
Access activity records can support compliance and auditing

What is a Mobile Credential?

Mobile credentials are essentially virtual keys that exist on a smart device. With access control systems that are mobile-based, users simply install an app on their device, and either scan a QR code or open a Cloud Key link to gain authorized access to a business premise. Depending on the particular system used, the use of mobile credentials can involve a variety of lock-activating technologies, such as Bluetooth, RFID, and WiFi. When in close proximity to the entry point, an authorized user can either use a mobile application or, in some cases, simply wave a hand across the reader and the door will unlock/open.

Additional Benefits of Commercial Mobile Access Systems

In addition to enhanced security, mobile-based security systems provide much more convenience of use for employers, employees and managers/landlords.

For employees and visitors, mobile-based security systems do away with the need to keep track of any physical keys. These systems also support the need for touchless entry, particularly when paired with automatic doors or gates. This contactless technology enhances public safety by reducing the risk of disease transmission.

With mobile-based security systems, commercial landlords and managers can remotely manage a building’s security in real-time, efficiently issuing and revoking authorized access on the spot as needed. Such systems also allow for added peace of mind, as users are far less likely to lose their phones or lend them to an unauthorized third party to gain access.

Business security personnel can use mobile-based security systems to view and analyze video and security event data from anywhere in the world, providing they have internet access. They can also receive real-time security notifications and respond efficiently to security threats without being physically present.

Final Thoughts

The future of security is undoubtedly cloud and mobile-based. As a result, intelligent commercial security systems have evolved to improve security and public safety while also enhancing convenience and, thus, productivity. One of the most effective ways of incorporating smart technology into commercial security is via mobile access control

Such systems’ security and usability benefits for commercial applications are far-reaching, allowing for optimized security, efficiency in incident response, and the ability to integrate systems for a superior, cohesive security strategy.

Accelerating Digital Transformation in the Next Normal – How to Grow Your Businesses Using Technology

Posted on December 1, 2021 by Stephen Marshall

Disruption has steadily transformed the global corporate environment over the last decade. A perfect storm of disruption has been generated by the convergence of numerous critical aspects, including worldwide accessibility and connectivity online, unprecedented computing power, boundless storage capacity, and inexpensive technological manufacturing costs.

As a result, technological advancements have accelerated, and the new rules of the digital economy have modified long-standing principles about how to communicate with consumers, produce and promote products or services, run a firm, and earn money.

What Is the “Next Normal”?

The coronavirus pandemic has caused a slew of unexpected changes in the global business environment this year. Never before in modern corporate history has there been such a high degree of digital adoption as we’ve seen in the last year. Consumers quickly moved to internet and e-commerce platforms to purchase products and services as the globe fell into lockdown. Furthermore, shoppers prioritized critical purchases like groceries and healthcare supplies above non-essential purchases or brand preferences.

Companies also had to deal with the significant transition to remote work, which required a large portion of the worldwide workforce to work from home. Because many businesses had functioned under the assumption that physical presence was the main or major operating paradigm, few were prepared for such a scenario, let alone be able to provide smart office solutions. To maintain productivity in the digital collaborative environment, businesses have to immediately upskill or reskill their staff.

There are some companies that have understood how to tackle this situation and proceeded to use this remote working environment to upscale their business. Hiring a virtual assistant, for example, is now a choice many entrepreneurs make instead of going for an in-house assistant that would be required to work from home as well. This is a much more affordable option, as virtual assistants are able to do almost everything a traditional assistant does, the only difference being that they work from their home.

In this environment, strategic company transformation through digital technologies has become crucial to retaining a competitive and resilient market position. The following are three practical measures that businesses may take to expedite digital transformation and win in the “new normal” business environment.

Understand Your Current Position

Before you design tactics to get you where you want to be, you must first understand where you are right now. When pursuing a digital transformation, this health check may help you analyze strengths, weaknesses, pain areas, and roadblocks.

In order to assess an organization’s digital health, three essential components must be considered: market trends, the company’s existing technological landscape, and the company’s skills, capabilities, and products.

To perform your own evaluation, form an internal task force or a small cross-functional team to do research and gather information in these areas. Consider several variables while examining emerging trends, such as changing consumer habits and tastes, new technology and their potential influence in business, and the changing competitive environment, such as industry-changing startups.

To avoid becoming bogged down in too much research, the assessment team should run a quick scan of a wide variety of trends before diving deep into a few areas that might have a significant influence on the company. Focus on connecting market trends or future prospects with the company’s internal capabilities once the evaluation study is completed (i.e., what the company can realistically deliver in the next few years).

Find Disruptions in the Customer Journey and Tackle Them

Analyze your customer journey to find gaps in contact points and interactions that may have an influence on the customer’s experience with your company.

Furthermore, concentrate on identifying moments of truth in the client journey where your organization has the potential to leave a lasting impression. “Moments of truth” are described as interactions with your brand, product, or service that cause a consumer or user to create or modify an opinion about your firm. Concentrate on identifying micro-moments where you can connect with clients to strengthen the bond.

Customers can be engaged in a variety of ways through digital and internet platforms. Other excellent digital solutions are now simple to adopt. For example, there are a plethora of AI-based virtual assistants and chatbots on the market today that are both cost-effective and simple to adopt, yet have a significant impact when done correctly. Companies may use these to boost customer engagement and fill in the gaps in the customer journey with value-added interactions.

Use Technology to Reshape Your Business Model

Companies have been able to create a variety of new business models and income sources thanks to digital technology. Many digital native startups have been able to quickly disrupt established corporations by leveraging these digital-first business models.

Netflix, for example, has drastically transformed how moviegoers access and consume content. Netflix also benefited from the coronavirus outbreak because people resorted to internet streaming as an alternative to going to the movies or watching television. Netflix’s subscription-based business model, on the other hand, has proven to be more sustainable than that of some other younger streaming services, such as Quibi, which was forced to close in the past year.

Companies should analyze their strengths and skills and link them to evolving market demands to uncover pivots that will offer new income possibilities in the next normal to survive and grow. Companies must, however, ensure that pivots are aligned with long-term strategic goals.

As businesses navigate the “next normal” business landscape, which is characterized by quickly evolving consumer trends and new working patterns, digital solutions may help them gain a competitive edge and achieve long-term success. Given the limited capital, time, and resources available to most organizations in the present economic environment, it is vital to focus on the proper activities.

To win the new normal, business leaders should be encouraged to experiment with novel ideas and make the most of digital technology. Most of the time, it does not require a lot of financial investment, as some companies fear, but rather commitment and time.

Why Collaboration Is Key in Complex Tech Projects

Posted on December 1, 2021 by Boris Dzhingarov

As a team includes people with increasingly specialized skills, collaboration becomes crucial as it allows the whole team to take advantage and make the best use of everyone’s strengths and specialized skills. We all collaborate in one way or the other, most times without knowing it, although everyone understands that working together is a key component to a team’s success. It is, therefore, worth taking the time to explore why collaboration is so important.

It Helps Keep Projects On Track

A key component of getting tech projects completed on time is ensuring they are on track all the way through. When using the right collaboration tools, project managers and team leaders can ensure everyone understands what should be done, when it should be done, and who is responsible for various aspects of the project.

To make things easier and to keep everyone in the look, teams can use a diagram maker to create action plans, bring changes and alterations together in one place, ensure everyone understands the project, its scopes and tasks, and take action depending on the various action items added during the diagramming process. By doing all the above and when used to its full potential, a diagram maker becomes an important tool that helps combine the diagramming process and collaboration to keep complex projects moving forward as expected.

It Helps With Problem-Solving

Everyone gets stuck on one thing or the other from time to time. It often happens that you face a problem, try everything you know and every solution you have, and the problem still remains unsolved. You then run out of ideas and are left with a looming deadline that you do not think you will meet.

While taking some time away from the situation and trying another approach later, the best course of action, in this case, would be to ask for help. You might call up a colleague and set up a brainstorming session for a few minutes to talk through the problem you are trying to solve.

The ability to collaborate with people in this way in the middle of complex tech projects, utilizing your combined skills, knowledge, and expertise is the key to successful teams. Team leaders and project managers should not let collaboration be the last resort, as they should ingrain it into their teams. The more people a team member can reach out to at any time, the easier it becomes to spot potential issues and to find solutions to issues easily and as early as possible.

Collaboration Brings People Together

When working on a complex project, the worst thing a team can do is operate in isolated silos that hinder collaboration. Instead of operating in this way, project managers can form teams of people with different skills. These can include developers, user experience designers, writers, and graphics designers to tackle a complex project together.

Forming teams composed of people with mixed skills works out best for complex projects because these usually require people with diverse skills, varied perspectives, and different areas of expertise.

When different people are set up to collaborate in this way, they have a shared purpose between them, and these connections and shared purpose will help with other complex projects in the future. The point is that collaboration achieved through putting together a mixed-skills team is not only good for the project, it is also great for breaking down walls and barriers in the workplace and forming connections that will be crucial in the future.

Collaboration Helps Reduce Project Complexity

While it may seem that a project is quite complex because it has only a few people working on it, allowing more people to come in and collaborate on the same project can reduce its complexity. With more people working on the project, the project can be divided into mini-projects and tasks where each is tackled by the person with the most skills and expertise in that area.

By dividing up a project like this, other members of the team do not have to deal with the complexities of the other parts of the project. This reduces the mental load of thinking the project is a complex one, it simplifies it and allows everyone to use their strengths to ensure the success of the project.

It Allows For The Transfer of Skills

Savvy business owners, project managers, and team leaders are always looking ahead. They want to know that complex projects in the future can be handled by people with the right skills. A team cannot complete a complex tech project without some knowledge being shared across the different team members.

When people with different skills, experience, and expertise are brought together to achieve a common goal, opportunities for coaching, learning new skills, and the improvement of the whole team and organization appear. Every good team has at least one person who is good at one specific thing and they can share their knowledge so they can contribute to the future success of the team and business.

Collaboration in complex tech projects is not only about ensuring the project is completed in time and according to set specifications; it is also about looking into the future. Allowing collaboration today can have positive ramifications for a team and the overall business in the future.

Why Building Reports with SQL is Ideal for Businesses

Posted on November 30, 2021 by Alex Sanders

Are you collecting data for the purpose of making better business decisions? No matter how much data you collect, you still need to process and build reports from what you collect.

Building reports has traditionally been a complicated process, but it’s easier today with SQL report builders like datapine. For instance, you can run reports quickly without relying on your IT team. You don’t even need to know SQL – the interface is user-friendly and simple.

If you’re not familiar with SQL reporting, keep reading to find out why it’s ideal for businesses.

What is SQL Reporting?

SQL reporting, also called SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) is a server-based reporting application that processes data stored in a database. Since SQL can be made user-friendly, SQL reports can be created by employees and managers with no technical experience.

SQL (Structured Query Language) is a data management language that makes it easy to access data stored in databases. It’s not a programming language like PHP or Python, but rather, it’s more like HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) as it’s designed to provide a simple solution.

What Kind of Reports Can Be Run With SQL?

SQL reports are highly agile. You can run any kind of report, including:

Profitability reports
KPI reports
Management reports
Expense reports
Industry reports
Labor-related reports
Sales reports for special promotions
And more

All you need to do is define a set of goals and SQL reporting software will do all the heavy lifting.

All of your reports are easy to export to various formats, including PDF, HTML, CSV, XML, and TIFF.

SQL Server Reporting Is Better Than Crystal Reports

Some people might remember Crystal Reports before it was phased out. While both reporting processes are similar, there are several differences. Before user-friendly interfaces were created, Crystal Reports were the simpler of the two options.

Now, SQL reports have actually surpassed Crystal Reports in terms of flexibility and features. Companies have made SQL reports more user-friendly while maintaining the ability to build complex reports. If you’re looking to enhance your database management, consider exploring options to convert Access to SQL Server.

Security for SSRS is more granular, which means you have more options to secure each folder. Security should always be a top priority.

The biggest difference is the price. If you want to run your own SQL reports, it’s free with a Microsoft SQL installation. However, Crystal Reports requires a paid license and you must pay for run times on every client.

While there are some diehard fans, Crystal Reports just don’t match up to SQL reporting. If you don’t make the switch, you’ll miss out on the ability to organize, sort, and personalize your data.

SSRS Can Be Used to Create a Reporting Portal

If you want to display your reports in various applications, that’s easy with SSRS. Say your goal is to provide employees with easy access to data. You can centralize your company data into just about any business application, including your company’s private network.

You can even display data in client reporting portals if you want to keep clients up-to-date with information pertaining to their project.

3 Tips for Making the Most Out of Your SQL Reports

Although SSRS is a wonderful way to process reports, the integrity of your reports will depend on the data you crunch.

Here are 3 quick tips to make the most out of your reports.

1. Only Collect Data You Know You Can Use

Don’t get overwhelmed with minutia. If you wanted to, you could collect an unlimited amount of data, but if you don’t have plans to use that data, it’s useless.

Collecting data you won’t use is a waste of time, company resources, and precious space in your database.

Before collecting specific pieces of data, create a plan for how you’ll use that data. Will it be part of your decision-making process? Will it affect the way you handle your sales calls? How will collecting that data factor into your business decisions?

If you’re not sure how you’ll use the data, consult with a third party to see if it’s necessary.

2. Make a List of All the Metrics That Drive Your Business Decisions

Rather than starting by collecting all data, start by making a list of metrics involved in your business decisions. Then, start collecting data related to those metrics.

3. Focus on the Metrics That Matter

Too many metrics is a sign that you’re unclear on your priorities. Focus on the metrics that matter most. It’s much easier to correlate data and make good decisions when you’re measuring fewer data points.

SQL Reporting Will Help You Make Better Decisions

Whether you’re new to SSRS or you’ve done some dabbling, you’ll be amazed at how much better your reports will be using this wonderful reporting tool.

Should Freelancers Buy New or Refurbished Laptops?

Posted on November 29, 2021 by Boris Dzhingarov

The first thing you need to think about when you want to start freelancing, besides the types of services you will be offering, is the computing device you will be using. Most of your work will be done on a computer, and so it is important to think about the type of computer you would like to buy and that will fit your use cases. When shopping for a laptop, it is common to hear the term “refurbished” or “refurb”. What are refurbished laptops, and how do they compare against new laptops?

Refurbished Laptops: An Overview

A refurbished laptop is a laptop that has been returned to a retailer or manufacturer for a variety of reasons. The retailer or manufacturer then takes these laptops apart, checks them, and ensures everything is working like it would in a new laptop. The major testing these laptops undergo before being put back on store shelves is what differentiates them from used laptops.

When Buying Refurbished is a Great Idea

One of the most common reasons why a laptop is returned to a retailer or manufacturer is cosmetic defects. This means there is nothing wrong with these laptops and after undergoing the required checks, they are often sold for a lower price than new laptops.

This means it is possible to buy refurbished laptops that are essentially new at a fraction of the price of a new laptop of the same capabilities and specifications.

As a budding freelancer, you can shop online for refurbished laptops that have the specifications you are looking for, and you might find them.

Availability

One downside of going with the refurbished option is that stock might be limited depending on the retailer and the specific model you are looking for. If you are looking for a specific laptop model, you might have to reach out to a manufacturer directly and see if they have a refurbished option.

A common solution to this is choosing a refurbished laptop that has the same specifications as the one you are looking for, even though it may not be the exact model you need.

Warranties

Another huge difference between new, used, and refurbished laptops is the warranties offered for them. With used laptops, you do not get any warranty or quality assurances, and so you have to rely on what the seller tells you.

With refurbished laptops, you usually get a limited warranty. This is typically a fraction of the period offered by a retailer or manufacturer for a new laptop. However, even with these shortened warranty periods, you can expect the laptop to last almost as long as a new laptop due to the quality checks and assurances.

New laptops come with a full warranty. This is because they have been fully tested from the factory, and thus the retailer or manufacturer is completely sure about their projected lifetimes.

If you have the money, buying a new laptop is the best option. However, refurbished laptops are a great option if you are strapped for cash. They have been checked to ensure they perform as expected and come with a warranty, even though it might be limited. It would be a bad idea to start your freelance career with a used laptop unless you have a very small budget and trust the seller completely.

How to Choose a Hard Drive: Essential Features

Posted on November 29, 2021 by Evelina Brown

Recently, we’ve been proud of a 40 GB hard drive on our computer! But now this might not even be enough for one high-quality movie.

With the development of technologies, even modern hard drives of hundreds or thousands of gigabytes may not be enough. In addition, hard drives have their own service life, which sooner or later ends, so the purchase of a new HDD or SSD is only a matter of time. If you are worried about the safety of your collection of films, photos, music, or any other data, it is better not to delay the purchase.

Which hard drive should I choose? What is the difference between an HDD and an SSD and is there such a big difference? Which hard drive is good for work and which one for playing games? These and other questions are of concern to any buyer, and we will try to answer them.

Getting to the Basics

Modern storage media can be divided into those with which it is convenient to work, and those on which you can store it. They differ in speed, “capacity” and others.

Types of Hard Drives

SSDs do not yet have the same capacity as HDDs. There are some models with 4TB, but they are insanely expensive and used for special tasks and server machines.

In a normal computer, SSDs of about 320 GB is used. This is because SSDs are more expensive than HDDs. But at the same time, such a capacity allows you to install on a hard drive operating system, as well as the most important programs and games.

SSDs are solid-state drives that have no moving parts, and the storage elements are in the form of chips.

The principle of operation is similar to the flash drive, but these devices are much more complex and faster. The difference in speed is especially evident in comparison with HDD. If magnetic disks can write and read the information at up to 220 MB / s, the SSD drives can be dozens of times higher.

High-speed writing and reading speeds provide faster access to data while working and loading applications. That feature is important for web designers, sound designers, and others. With the help of an SSD drive, you can easily use templates and mockups like this business card mockup. The same Windows operating system which is installed on an SSD boots 10-15 times faster than an HDD.

Read-Write Speeds and Advantages of Different Types of Flash Memory

Sequential read speed is one of the most important considerations for selecting a hard drive for your PC or laptop. The faster it is, the faster programs and games will access your files as they need them.

An SSD with a read speed of about 500 MB/s is the best choice for your home PC.

Writing speed is considered a secondary parameter — it does not affect the computer’s performance so much, rather it will make you wait when transferring large amounts of information from one drive to another, installing programs, and so on. Better if this parameter will be equal to the speed of reading, but in this case, the drive will be a little more expensive.

Briefly About the Main Features:

For an office computer, an ordinary HDD with a speed of 5400 rpm and a volume of 300 to 500 GB will be enough;
If you buy a hard drive for use in a home computer, where you watch movies and surf on social networks, HDD with 1TB will be enough;
If you are an active PC-user, like speed and short downloads, SSD with a capacity of about 120 GB can be added to 1 Tb HDD to install the OS and programs on it;
For a quality gaming PC, you might choose an SSD with up to 1TB + one or two HDDs with 2TB each, high spindle speeds, and read speeds;
If you’re a geek who likes to play with hardware, then try experimenting with SSD M.2 drives and other new products.

Hope our article helped you to understand the main differences and features of different hard drives.

How to Market Your Product Using Video

Posted on November 26, 2021 by Zoey Fang

The Magic of Video

Compared with traditional graphic content, short video is more intuitive. Focusing on short videos, we can implement soft advertising, flexible content, high interaction, and richer and diversified marketing methods. We must admit that short videos are the advantage of brand marketing. In the future, with the development of more products and the rise of brands, short videos will have more angles and diversified interactive features, realize a new profit model, and increase additional attributes.

Data shows that more than 42.5% of digital marketing decision makers choose celebrities, influencers, or stars to create marketing content in short video marketing. More than 70% of users have consumed because of the influence of these celebrities and influencers. So how to market your product using video? Let’s check some product video marketing ideas below.

Product Video Marketing Tips

Choose Proper Video Content

1. User-Generated Content

In order to get a more positive effect, you can put different types of videos on social networking sites for different purposes. One of the most popular video types is user-generated content. These videos are provided by real customers, and they are more authentic. Many customers are happy to share their favorite brands, so if customers are satisfied, they can easily get user-created videos with a simple request. These videos are more attractive to potential customers because they see real users.

2. Product Display Content

This is a relatively simple way to better showcase the products you sell. Of course, this type of video does not have to be very high-end, it only needs to meet user needs.

After all, one of the main reasons why many people refuse to shop online is that they can’t get in touch with real objects, and it’s inconvenient to understand product functions and operations. Using product display content can help alleviate such concerns.

3. Behind the Scenes Content

We all want to peek into the story behind the curtains, which is why people generally think the behind-the-scenes footage of the movie is interesting.

If users can understand the story behind the product, they may have unexpected brand loyalty.

4. Tutorial Content

Tutorials are usually more suitable for users with in-depth needs, and are very important for some companies. For example, when you invent a new product or provide a new service, no one (or very few people) has heard of it.

Through the tutorial, you can show how your product works and how it will change people’s lives. In this case, tutorial videos will be the best choice.

Ensure That the Video is Mobile-Friendly

The following are two important statistics:

· 65% of video views on Facebook come from mobile devices

· Smartphone users hold their phones upright 94% of the time

The video placement effect in portrait mode is not necessarily better than that in landscape mode. But, if possible, please make both vertical and horizontal videos, and then choose a more appropriate mode in the placement customization to provide customers with a full screen viewing experience.

Include a Clear Call-to-Action

After all, this is marketing. We all know that no matter which format, call to action must be used in the ad. You can put the call to action in the display copy, or you can add the call to action in the video content through the cast or subtitle text.

Brand Consistency

Elements such as colors, graphics, and music will be used in brand videos. First of all, these elements must be coordinated with each other, and secondly, these elements must always run through the entire process of brand marketing. At the same time, in order to increase the conversion rate, it is necessary to always emphasize the brand and leave a deep impression on the audience.

Make an Engaging Marketing Video

There are countless videos on YouTube, Facebook, TikTok, Vimeo, and more platforms. How to stand out from the crowd? Creating an attractive video seems an option to go. A good video can increase the exposure of the product on the Internet, thereby bringing considerable natural page views to the company or the website and increasing the visibility of the company or the website. Let’s move to the next part to learn an easy way to make a video to market your product.

How to Make a Video to Market Your Product

To make an attractive marketing video in a free and simple way, VideoProc Vlogger is recommended to help you out. Developed as a professional yet simple video editor, VideoProc Vlogger is equipped with a lot of basic as well as advanced editing features. You can easily process your videos like trimming, splitting, merging, making picture in picture video, adding music to video, adding texts & subtitles to video, changing playback speed, color grading, color correction, removing noise, adding filters & effects, and more. Just download and install this free video editing software and create an amazing marketing video now.

Add subtitles to video: Run VideoProc Vlogger on your computer and upload your videos. Drag your video to the Video Track. Choose a subtitle style and drop it to the Subtitle Track.

Changing video speed: No matter you want to speed up your video or slow down your video, VideoProc Vlogger is ready to help. You can perform a variable speed change, and you can also change the speed constantly.

Add filters & effects: VideoProc Vlogger offers more than 50 beautiful filters and effects to help you make your videos cinematic. Just import your videos and drag it to the Video Track. Then choose a filter and drag it to the Overlay Track to preview the effect.

Platforms to Promote Your Product

YouTube: If you aren’t verified on YouTube, the length of your YouTube videos can only be 15 minutes or less. If you own a verified account, you can upload YouTube videos up to 12 hours long, or as much as 128 GB.

Facebook: It supports uploading files in 1080P or less. You can upload video files up to 10GB and it must less than 240 minutes.

Twitter: You can upload a TweetVideo within 512MB, but you can upload a video longer than 2 minutes and 20 seconds. You need to trim it before using the video in your Tweet.

TikTok: TikTok first allowing users to upload 60 second clips (up from 15 seconds originally), then expanding that to 3 minutes in July 2021.

Instagram: You can upload a 60 seconds video for a regular Instagram post and videos in Instagram Stories should be no longer than 15 seconds. But videos for Instagram livestream can be up t0 60 minutes long.

How Do Crypto Trading Bots Work and What Pros Can You Enjoy?

Posted on November 26, 2021 by Oleksandr Melnyk

Do you want to enter the crypto world now but have no idea how to avoid risks? You know, it is impossible to avoid them at all but you can minimize losses. For this, you are recommended to use Safetrading.today crypto trading bots are the best choice for both beginners and experts. What is a crypto trading bot? It’s the software that can analyze everything that is going on in the cryptocurrency market and complete trades for you profitably.

You don’t need to rack the brains on when it is the best time for buying or selling BTC or other leading coins. Entrust all-important trading decisions to the best crypto trading bot. Find out what steps you should make to get started.

Top Crypto Trading Bots: The Principle of Work

More and more crypto traders enjoy benefits from using crypto trading bots. But there are still those who have a skeptical attitude toward bots because they don’t have a clear understanding of bots’ work. You can get it a try by making a few simple steps. It’s very important to choose a bot with a flawless reputation. For this, go to the Safetrading platform and check the rating of bots. You’ll learn more about trading bots and will be able to choose the best crypto trading bots. Each of them appears on the list of the Safetrading – the place where each bot is checked carefully. You can be sure that they are approved. This means that you won’t be scammed. Don’t use an unknown trading app as it can transfer your money to its founder.

If you use a trusted Bitcoin trading bot, you should just provide the necessary information for it to open and close deals for you. It’s also possible to enable an auto trading regimen. It’s best to save time and effort. Most traders combine their crypto trading career with a permanent job. It can be a good additional source of income for you. You can choose the best trading bot on the Safetrading website and be sure that it will use reliable crypto trading signals. Crypto calls are provided by professional traders for your maximum convenience.

Best Bitcoin Trading Bots: Make the Most Out of Crypto Trading

Time management is just one of the advantages you will enjoy if you use a trading bot. Some traders use exchange platforms and Telegram crypto calls only. But it takes more time to use an exchange platform as the trader should monitor the market on his/her own.

An automatic bot is a right solution for those who want to trade round-the-clock. Devote your free time to family, work, hobbies while a trading robot will complete deals at the most convenient rate. It’s also the best tool for newbies who don’t want to lose money by using their credit/debit card on some unknown exchange sites where you can buy crypto for USD and pay an additional cost for the service. Instead of this, you can make the most out of effective trading with the help of a bot.

What is React programming used for?

Posted on November 25, 2021 by Anna Shevchuk

Wondering what React is, and what is the difference between it and other libraries and frameworks? By providing react software development services by Fireart, we have gained a wealth of experience and knowledge base that we want to share with you in this article. So if you’re wondering what makes React different from others, you’ve come to the right place too.

By now, anyone involved in web development has heard of React. A social review conducted in 2020 found that the React library is the most commonly used JavaScript programming option. It also became clear that it was second only to the truly more popular ASP web programming platform.

What is React, and How Does it Work?

Facebook in 2013 released a JavaScript library with which you can perform cutting-edge operations called React. After going through many improvements with React, you can work not only with web operations but also create mobile applications.

Why You Should Use React?

For its superior functionality and capabilities that open up to the web inventor. The library is so widespread that it is gaining the love of more and more developers. Let’s take a close look at its benefits:

Virtual DOM. VDOM is the most important part of networking. Its structure is a document with a logical tree, where at the end of each branch is a node, which, in turn, contains objects. VDOM is so widely used today because quality operations contain a lot of content such as images, animations, and more. By keeping React’s virtual DOM (which is the virtual counterpart of the real DOM), rendering of a custom real tree is faster and more reliable.
JSX is a JavaScript syntax extension that is used to create the rudiments of React. Processors like Babel use JSX to transform HTML-like tutorials in JavaScript strings into parsed objects.
Response factors make the law applicable by dividing the stoner interface into different corridors. Factors have identical functionality to JavaScript factors. Response factors are really important because they help us keep your project cleaner, more reliable, and easier throughout our entire business. You can have any number of React factors.

Comparing React with Angular, Vue and other frameworks

The biggest difference between React and other frameworks is a completely different view of data flow. The React library allows you to create introductory stoner interfaces. It is a really essential library for creating cutting-edge productions.

Having the factors that allow you to directly describe the stoner interface, you need, you just need to pass the data to the library – it will do the rest for you.

Sum Up

Libraries like React are used to create cutting-edge, high-quality JavaScript UI operations. The answer stands out for its characteristics and strong similarities compared to the rest of the frame.

You don’t have to worry about libraries when learning React. Calmly and leisurely explore his skills, basics, and features.

After creating many simple systems, you will first know what to use, libraries, etc., before you can move on to the next position.

However, you will find that its community is larger, and its support is more advanced if you compare Reply with similar libraries such as Angular and Vue. There are tons of jobs out there, and the general job request for React inventors looks good.

You might think that learning a React frame is tricky and thankless, but it’s worth noting that it pays off in the long run. With knowledge of React technology, you can open doors to new possibilities and become more professional.

How to Get Better at Typing

Posted on November 24, 2021 by Eugene Jacobs

Typing is something you master over time. When you keep on writing large quantities of text, that is when you get a chance to increase your typing speed as well as your skill overall. Yet, just typing in bulk isn’t the only thing that improves your typing. There are a number of other factors as well that can help you get better at this skill. Before we discuss them, the question that needs to be asked is why do you need to get better at typing.

Why Do You Need to Type Better?

Typing better helps you save time, makes you more productive, and helps in better hand and eye coordination. When you start typing, at the beginning you will constantly be switching your view between the keys and the screen but once you become frequent in typing, you will keep on looking at the screen for minutes while you type on continuously for a number of minutes. This is the advantage better typing brings with it. Typing better also helps in lesser procrastination since you get done with work quicker and can then move on to do other things you have planned for yourself. Do typing master free download for windows 7 if you are still using windows 7.

Now that we’ve discussed the advantages you will have once you get to type better, here are the ways you can improve the way you type. Make sure to go through this list carefully as it will surely help you become a better typist.

Ways to Become Better at Typing

Improve Your Workspace

A lot of people believe that fast and correct typing will come to them when they learn to master their keyboard. As true as that might be, it isn’t the entire thing that you will need to master your typing ways. The truth is that you will need to begin with a workspace that is clean, spacious, properly ventilated, and comfortable. For optimal typing, get a table that suits you instead of working with your computer in your lap. If you will be typing for an extended period then make sure you are comfortable. A comfy environment for yourself counts for a lot when you are typing for hours.

Fix Your Posture

If you want to type well then you will need the right posture to go with it because when you have the right posture only then will you have productivity in your work. Typing shouldn’t be done under stress. It is probably the last thing that you should be doing under stress. Make sure that the place where you are typing is comfortable. Your wrists should be positioned in such a way that your fingers can cover the keyboard. Tilt your head a bit as you can look at the screen properly. Adjust your chair so that you can position your chair the way that you like and get yourself the best posture for yourself. You’ll see an automatic rise in your productivity levels the moment you fix your posture.

Hold Your Posture

Just having a posture isn’t enough. The important part is to maintain that posture while you type. Ensure that your posture remains like the one you started with because that is important. At times we get so indulged in work that we forget to maintain the posture we began with hence leaving us with different kinds of pain and aches. These aches are going to slow you down and have a way to keep you out of rhythm. Make sure to not let them get in your way and hold your posture the right way. This is going to prevent you from a lot of back pain! We’re talking with experience here!

Familiarize Yourself with Your Keyboard

Your keyboard is the only thing you’ll ever need for your typing so why not get familiar with your weapon, right? This shouldn’t be a problem because all the keyboards in the world have the same QWERTY layout regardless of where you are. So even if you upgrade your laptop or computer, the keyboard will remain the same. The reason this layout is given this name is because the letters that make up the top-left corner of the keyboard are Q, W, E, R, T, and Y. Apart from this, another important thing that you can learn on your keyboard are the important shortcuts. Some of these include copy, paste, cut, and changing the font.

Speak the Keys Out Loud

When you type the keys, make sure to look at the screen as much as you can and say out loud the key which you are typing. This will help you to remember the pattern of your keyboard and will help you memorize the keys better. This step will go a long way and it will help you memorize the keys. It can easily help you learn how to type faster than before. You can stop speaking the keys out loud once you become habitual in typing and know where your keys are. Until you’re not, telling yourself which key you’re typing is going to help you a lot.

Start Slowly With Touch Typing

Touch typing is the method where you type without looking at the keyboard. The fundamental idea is that each finger is given its own section of the keyboard and your fingers learn the location of the keyboard through practicing regularly and gaining muscle memory to eventually build up speed whilst typing. If you’re only just starting off with touch typing then you might need a lot of time on this step. However, once you learn to type key combinations without looking at the keyboard, your speed will increase.

Don’t Look at Hand Movements

The main goal of typing is to not look at your hands whenever you’re typing so that your fingers are made to learn how the keys work. When you constantly keep looking at your hands, you will notice that your speed reduces. Although it might be difficult to not look at your hands at the start, stick to looking at the screen. This will help you hit higher speeds in less time and you’ll be giving yourself a pat on the back when you end up increasing your speed.

Typing Games

This trick is actually one of the most useful ones on this list. You can download any type of typing game from Getintopc for free. Typing games help you improve your typing immensely. There are a number of websites online that can help you get better at typing. These websites score your and have different modes such as speed typing and typing a number of words inside a minute to help you increase the way you type as well as your speed. You can try improving your record and competing with others as well. Some of these websites are Typing Club, The Typing Cat, and Typing.com which you can use to improve your typing.

Dictation Practice

If writing is time-consuming for you then another alternative to good practice is to listen to something and then type it alongside. There is no limit of any kind to the number of things you can type. As you listen, keep on typing it side-by-side. This will help you to type better while also improving your hearing and typing coordination. Plus, this is a fun activity as well. You can use an e-book, a YouTube video, an online lecture, or even the dialogues of your favorite movie that you can type.

Monitor Your Progress

Make sure to keep a track of the progress that you’ve made so far as you go on. It is important that you don’t get obsessed with how many words you type in a given time. That’s not what this is about. Yes, improving your speed is important but the most important thing is to be comfortable while typing. With time, the number of words you type in a given time is going to increase as well. Worry about quality over quantity and your typing level will improve automatically.

Get Formal Training

There are specifically designed courses and typing lessons that will boost your abilities to make sure you type better. You just need to go online and find courses that are free and start doing them. These are exercises carefully catered for beginners as well as experts to improve their typing rate. These short-term courses are definitely going to boost up your typing speed and that is what is going to make your typing better than before.

Practice Makes Perfect

The final tip of course is to keep on practicing what you’ve learned so far in the world of typing. These tips mentioned above will be of no use if you don’t apply them whenever you sit down and type so make sure to use these tips as told since they will help you improve the rate of your typing. The more practice you carry out, the quicker your typing is going to improve making sure you get done with your tasks quicker. Typing is one of those skills that is polished every time you carry it out!

The Rise Of Xiaomi’s Smartphone Empire

Posted on November 24, 2021 by Mark Morrison

The Rise Of Xiaomi

Xiaomi only a few years ago was a very little known and niche brand, chattering by the majority to low-income markets with cheap devices. Today, they stand at the top as the biggest phone manufacturer in the world, trading blows with Samsung to take the top spot.

So, what happened, how did the obscure company who made phones only for certain markets, rise to take on the biggest the business has to offer. In the below, we discuss the rise of Xiaomi and how it came to be the biggest phone manufacturer in the world.

The Fall Of Huawei

Due to an unfavorable political climate and other uncontrollable factors, mid 20119 saw Huawei no longer producing new phones with access to Google services. While Huawei still makes very usable phones, a lot of people have become accustomed to and integrated with the Google ecosystem.

This saw Huawei’s market share start slipping more and more each month, with more market share to capture for other companies. In this time, looking at Samsung’s release schedule and line-up, it is clear Samsung had the scramble to try and fill the newly created market void. All the efforts were just not enough, though, as Xiaomi was perfectly positioned and supplied the right type of devices to fill the market void perfectly.

Why Xiaomi?

Xiaomi phones supply what is considered to be the best cost to performance of any mobile device today. A fantastic ecosystem while still having access to Google services is set to be a winner in the eyes of the consumer. Xiaomi’s devices are cheap while still being good quality and offering all the features of other flagships. This cost to performance factor plays an especially important role as the world fell into a pandemic.

In the pandemic, saving money became significant to a huge part of the world population, most people no longer had excess money for high-end flagship devices, the cost to performance ratio of Xiaomi devices became crucial to the company’s success.

Range

In trying to expand the ranges of phones and market presence, some phone manufacturers end up with convoluted ranges which are difficult and sometimes frustrating to fully understand, especially when you just want to enjoy real money gaming. Most people just want a good phone for their budget, understanding a full range to do that can be annoying at the best of times. Xiaomi has taken a different approach by having sub-brands to cater to different types of devices, there are 3 main sub-brands for Xiaomi mobile phones

Redmi – Redmi is Xiaomi’s sub company that focuses on budget phones, these are in no way bad phones but are the cheapest of the line-up.
Poco – Poco is Xiaomi’s mid-tier brand, focusing on middle of the road devices for the average market. They do still supply flagships as well in the form of the Poco F series, which are fantastic devices.
Xiaomi – The self-named Xiaomi sub brand is considered to be the flagship brand. While each sub brand does provide a bit of everything, the Xiaomi sub brand supplies the real flagship phones, set to take on flagships from apple and Samsung alike.

Will Xiaomi Stay At The Top?

Xiaomi has set its stake in the market and is a leading player in the smartphone field, but nobody is to say if it will stay that way. With repeating criticism of censorship from the Chinese government, one wrong move from Xiaomi could spell bad news for the company.

For now, though, Xiaomi supplies the best cost to quality and performance ratio available in the market, which will stay in demand for a long time to come.

Smartphone Privacy Matters More Than You Think

Posted on November 24, 2021 by Mark Morrison

Smartphone Privacy

The modern age of the internet has brought constant access to everything we may want to see or know, at a huge cost to privacy. When we discuss privacy in this sense, it is not so much that a hacker has access to your information, but your information is being collected and used by the very company you are trusting to protect you.

The Culprits

As it stands there are only two major operating systems for phones, iOS and Android made by Apple and Google respectively. There are many other smaller operating systems, but these two giants own more than 99% of the market space. If you are buying a new phone from any major brand, you are getting Android or iOS. While both Google and Apple are responsible for the capturing and usage of your data, they go about the process in different ways.

Google – Google treats its android platform as essentially a marketing platform. Android is completely free to use by anybody and is open source, allowing any brand to use the software. In exchange, Google collects your data to provide tailor made adverts for you. These advertisements are the income of Android.
Apple – Apple has attempted to take the moral high ground here. A completely closed off system where the only data collected about you, is used to improve the iOS experience. Tim Cook, Apple’s current CEO, went on record saying “We at Apple believe that privacy is a fundamental human right” and Apple have backed up that statement for the most part, besides one glaring omission. In 2021 Google has paid Apple $15 billion to remain the default search engine of the safari browser, allowing Google to collect the user’s search information and provide targeted advertisements. This allows Apple to still make money from users internet information while retaining the ability to claim the moral high ground, simply shifting the blame to Google, who actually uses the user information.

Should You Care?

For the most part, most people either don’t understand or just don’t care. Besides, a few targeted ads in exchange for the use of a great operating system doesn’t sound like a bad deal. One of the biggest reasons this is concerning is the claimed sale of your personal data.

At the moment, Google does not sell your data directly. Google uses the data to find what adverts would best be presented to you and then sells the advertising slot knowing that you are the best likely customer. The only time in which your data leaves the hand of Google is when ordered by a court or policing unit. If you are a lead suspect in a crime, Google may be forced to give police access to your location data under a “geofence warrant”. For the average law-abiding citizen, this is of no concern, so you can play Android games and do whatever else you choose with peace of mind.

For the majority of people, the way Google uses our data is not a large concern. If you do feel that you are concerned about this and want to better protect your online privacy, there are a number of options available to you.

Taking Back Privacy

To take back your privacy means breaking away from Google and the software supplied by Google. To do this, there are two main options. Either, you can buy a phone which is built for privacy with an open-source operating system like the Purism Librem 5, or you could flash an existing android phone and install an operating system like Plasma Mobile, Lineage OS, or Ubuntu Touch. The latter option will require some tech know-how but is a great and free option to better secure your online privacy.

A Brief Guide To Lightroom Presets

Posted on November 24, 2021 by Charlie Short

Everything you need to know to get started with Lightroom Presets in less than 5 minutes.

Have you ever spent time jealously staring at someone else’s Instagram feed wondering how they keep their color palette so consistent and how they make all the photos look so good together?

Well, we want to let you into a little secret – this is not something they can do with just their cameras and Instagram filters alone. The likelihood is that they are using Presets on an amazing tool called Lightroom.

And, we have some good news for you – today, we are going to teach you everything you need to know to successfully use Lightroom and get your feeds looking flawless.

What is Lightroom?

Let’s start with the basics – what is Lightroom?

Lightroom is a photo editing tool that was created by the team at Adobe. Lightroom allows the user to make minor manipulations to the photos, as well as, changing their tones, white balance, and much more.

Some of the features offered by Lightroom include:

Wed-eye correction
White balance
Tone curve
Tone
HSL
Adjustment brushing
Color grading
Presence
Lens correction
Spot removal
Transformation
Detail addition
Presets
Graduated filters
Radical filters
Calibration manipulation

Lightroom is available as an individual monthly subscription or as a monthly subscription bundle including other tools from Adobe such as Adobe Photoshop.

How is Lightroom Different from Photoshop?

Lightroom was designed to help photographers take their photos from raw images and polish them off to create finished products. The adjustments that can be made in lightroom are very minor and do not involve manipulating a lot of the image.

The most manipulation Lightroom offers is red-eye and spot removal. Lightroom instagram presets are compatible Lightroom mobile and all Lightroom versions.

Photoshop on the other hand offers nearly unlimited photo manipulation. Photoshop can be used to add things to the image that was not there originally. The Photoshop tool is one of the most advanced on the market and for this reason, its name has become synonymous with the act of manipulating images.

What are Lightroom Presets?

Lightroom allows you to edit your photo using 8 different categories. Each of those categories has multiple sliders and options that allow you to edit the photo in a near-infinite amount of ways.

You will use these sliders to create your own filter to put over the photo. This can be time-consuming if you do not know a lot about the science behind color theory and photo manipulation.

A Preset is a premade filter that you can select and it will change all the sliders for you. Lightroom comes with a few pre-made Presets, but you can also purchase Presets, like these boho Presets, online.

The benefit of using a Preset is that your images will have a consistent look. You will also be able to save yourself a huge amount of time when you are editing your photos.

3 Things You Should Know About Lightroom Presets

Before we leave you, here are three essential things you need to know about Lightroom Presets

#1 – How to Download a Preset on Mobile

Here is a quick guide to buying and installing Presets to Lightroom on the mobile app:

Purchase the Preset you wish to use
Download Preset Files (.dng files)
Save each file to camera roll
Download and Open Lightroom App
Create a new album and name it after the Preset, then import the .dng files into the album
Open the first photo in the album and there will be three small dots in the corner of the image. Click on the dots and then select “create Preset”, then give the Preset its corresponding name.
Enjoy the Preset.

If you buy a pack of Presets, you will have to go through this process for each Preset individually.

#2 How to Download a Preset on a Computer

To download a present on your computer the process is much simpler:

Purchase the Preset you wish to use
2. Download Preset Files (.xmp files)
Open Lightroom, go to Preferences, select the Preset tab, then select Show Lightroom Develop Presets
Copy and paste the Presets into this Settings folder
Then restart Lightroom
Enjoy the Preset

#3 – Don’t Be Afraid to Retune a Preset That You Purchase

If a Preset is not working perfectly for you then you are well within your rights to finetune it a little bit.

Just remember to save your new version of the Preset and save it under a different name to save you the confusion in the long run.