‘House’ for instance, is feminine: ‘la casa.’
  ‘Pencil,’ however, is masculine: ‘el lapiz.’

  A student asked, ‘What gender is ‘computer’?’

  Instead of giving the answer, the teacher split the class into two
  groups, male and female, and asked them to decide for themselves
  whether computer’ should be a masculine or a feminine noun. Each group
  was asked to give four reasons for its recommendation.
 

  The men’s group decided that ‘computer’ should definitely be of the
  feminine gender (‘la computadora’), because:

  1. No one but their creator understands their internal logic;
  2. The native language they use to communicate with other computers is
  incomprehensible to everyone else;
  3. Even the smallest mistakes are stored in long term memory for
  possible later retrieval; and
  4. As soon as you make a commitment to one, you find yourself spending
  half your paycheck on accessories for it.

   The women’s group, however, concluded that computers should be
  Masculine (‘el computador’), because:

  1. In order to do anything with them, you have to turn them on;
  2. They have a lot of data but still can’t think for themselves;
  3. They are supposed to help you solve problems, but half the time
  they ARE the problem; and
  4. As soon as you commit to one, you realize that if you had waited a
  little longer, you could have gotten a better model…
 

The women won.

What is Streaming Radio?

Streaming Radio uses the internet to send live audio data to your PC or Mobile device to be played anywhere in the world.  On a daily basis, I am listening to a handful of streaming radio stations on my Motorola Droid.  I know I’ve written about Pandora in the past and that is considered streaming music as well.  However, I thought I’d share with everyone a couple of personal favorites that I listen to daily.  If you’re anything like me, a minimalist, you’ll appreciate the free digital selection of music so much that you wont ever listen to your MP3 collection!   Ok, I know I just lost some of you.  But that’s ok – because I know everyone appreciates free music.  Streaming Radio is free and legal!  So you get the latest songs without all the fees.  Good deal!

ElectricFM, the Best Dance Radio station on the entire web!

About 70% of the time I am listening to ElectricFM since I like trance, dance, remixes, and DJ music.  Plus it keeps me motivated while I do just about anything. ElectricFM is ran out of New York (my home state!) and is streamed live to the world with zero commercials!  More importantly, they are very in touch with their listening audience through Facebook, Twitter, and Email. Now there are several ways you can get ElectricFM and here they are:

• ElectricFM for PC/MAC Users

  • Surf to: http://www.electricfm.com/default.asp and then click on Listen Live!

• ElectricFM for Android Phone Users

  • You can find the APP in the Android Market on your phone.  A quick link: http://www.electricfm.com/e.asp?i=678

• ElectricFM for iPhone Users

  • You can find the APP in the Apple App Store.  A quick link: http://www.electricfm.com/e.asp?i=628

• ElectricFM for Blackberry Users

  • You can find the APP in the Blackberry App Market.  A quick link: http://www.electricfm.com/e.asp?i=708

iHeartRadio: Local Radio Stations streamed to the Internet

The other 30% of the time I have on a radio station with iHeartRadio.  What makes iHeartRadio so great?  They make available just about any local radio stations as well as the majority from other States!  That’s right – Physical Radio Stations available to you from ANYWHERE!  This is great, because if you moved you can still listen to your favorite radio station from your previous region.  Very nifty!

IHeartRadio has an application for just about every mobile device as well as streaming to your PC.  You should head on over to their site and check them out:  http://www.iheartradio.com

What streaming radio stations do you listen to?  Any other cool applications like iHeartRadio and ElectricFM?  Let us know!

Surf on over to INTERFACELIFT!  It’s a great site that even detects your desktop size for the background image you’d want. They have a lot of really nice looking landscape photos that are in Hi-Def.  Take a look and Enjoy!  That’s it for now all!

Well readers, I found a nice and simple solution for you to fill out your PDF forms, save them to your PC, and print them out.  Ready? 

This is my first YouTube video article and walkthrough – so I hope everyone finds it useful.  I’ll try from now on to split written articles with YouTube articles (or a combination of the two). 

What do you all use as Adobe alternatives that are free or open-source?

So you’re on the road and you do not have Mobile WIFI for your laptop – or you just straight-up want to get Internet off a device bigger than 3 inches!  I understand.  You’re already paying  your cell provider for Internet access – wouldn’t it be nice to use that internet on your laptop, to surf the web in “real time”?  You betcha – and you can – by tethering your devices.  Get ready to go Macgyver.

Rumors have circulated that the iPhone/Android/Smartphone’s with Internet access do not offer “tethering” on your service plan.  This could not be more false and I will show you a simple and easy way to get internet access off your android Smartphone device.  For those of you unfamiliar with Tethering (according to Wikipedia):

Tethering is the use of a mobile device such as a mobile phone to supply Internet access for another device which is otherwise unconnected, using the mobile device as a modem.[1] This can be done through Bluetooth wireless technology or cables (such as USB).

Tethering has been used to gain access to the Internet since mobile devices started using their networks to give users Internet access, but has increased in prevalence due to Internet connectivity in modern cell phones and laptops.

Methods of Tethering:

There currently are two different ways you can tether a phone, via:

1. Bluetooth: Use of Bluetooth wireless technology to pair your phone and laptop together to share a internet connection.
2. USB Cord:  Use of a USB cord to connect between your phone and your laptop to share a connection.

Bluetooth in general is the most wire-free (cool) tech way to go about it.  But it will involve a couple extra steps such as pairing.  USB is pretty much a no-muss, no fuss easy solution if you’re in a rush.  (Did I really just rhyme?)

Simple and Safe Tethering Solution:

This solution works for the iPhone, Treo, Palm OS, Windows mobile, Blackberry, and Android operating systems on phones.  I personally have experience using it with the Android platform and feel it’s top notch.  This information I post is generally geared towards installing it on Android/Motorola Droid/etc.  For me personally, I chose it as opposed to “rooting” my phone.  For the those uninitiated in what this means – it generally means illegally gaining core level operating system access to your phone.  Can it ruin your phone make it stop working all together? You bet.  So take the safe path unless you’re real daring, have money to waste, or a hardcore technie. 

A Company called JuneFabrics makes the experience pretty easy and tidy to use. Therefore…

1. Surf to: www.junefabrics.com
2. Choose your Operating System: Android, iPhone, Treo, Windows Mobile, Blackberry
3. Download and Install the PDAnet software on the laptop/pc you want to tether to your phone
4. Go to Android Market or the iPhone Apps market, etc and Download/Install PDAnet to your phone.
5. Note for Android Owners: You will need to enable USB debugging. Go to > Settings > Applications > Development > ENABLE USB Debugging
6. Reboot your PC and your Phone
7. Connect the Phone either via Bluetooth OR USB to the PC.  Try USB first – its often easiest.
8. Your devices will recognize each other.  If at this point it asks for drivers, approvals, firewall changes – Approve them and move on.
9. On the PDA/Smartphone/iPhone/Android device: Right Click on pdaNet Application on taskbar > Connect
10.  
11. Click ENABLE USB TETHER or ENABLE Bluetooth DUN
12. The devices should sync up and you should now have Internet Access off your laptop. CONGRATS!

This process took me approximately 5-10 minutes to complete.  Really great, fast, and reliable.  All in all, great product.  By the way, if you find this product useful then I suggest buying/donating to the software designer – they deserve it.  Depending on your plan and 3G status signal strength, you’ll get decent speed internet.  When you’re ready to stop surfing off the phone – go back to pdaNet application and turn off/disable the connection.

Some Warnings:

Bandwidth: One word – Bandwidth usage!  Sure, you can tether your phone. Does your carrier probably want you to?  Most likely not.  Do not give them a reason to cut your service.  If you’re surfing the web, checking email, stocks, etc well then I am sure the bandwidth usage will be pretty low and they will not care.  Thinking about downloading full movies off iTunes or using torrents?  Think again.  Just a word of advice that I’ve read amongst the many forums. 

Battery: You are using your phones internet, therefore you will drain the battery faster then usual.  Keep this in mind when using this method.

Maximum Battery Usage TIP! (Post Update)

A.J, a TftM reader, brought up a good point in the comments below and it relates to battery optimization.  If you want THE MOST BATTERY LIFE out of your MOBILE DEVICE then you should use USB TETHERING. 

The thought process?  USB tethering will keep your mobile device charged while it’s being the source of your internet. The Bluetooth method lacks a continual charge, plus, using Bluetooth itself will put some drain on the battery as well.

   USB = Fuel Efficient / Bluetooth = Super Nifty Gas Guzzler.

Conclusion:

For my part, I’ve only used tethering a couple of times and one of those times was during a road-trip.  In this case, it was a life-saver.  Sure, my Motorola Droid can do most everything for me – but I work quicker on full-screen/full keyboard laptop.  Plus, it brings up the maps and directions a lot larger! 

Was this tip helpful?  What other solutions do you all use?  Has anyone had any positive or negative experiences with PDAnet?  Any good alternatives?  Love to hear from you!

However, they are giving advice for the greater masses of people who, in the end, always fall back on credit and dig themselves in a hole.  I’m sure there’s a ton of statistics out there that prove that the companies always win.  However, statistically, I choose to believe that my TftM readers are not your typical credit card statistic.

Technique Overview

Basically credit card companies make it real enticing for the average Joe to use their product.  They do this in the form of rewards, miles, or cash-back.  Personally, I am a fan of the cash-back model.  The problem is that the average Joe never does the math and keeps a balance on the card every month.  You aren’t an average Joe though are you?  No, I didn’t think so.  Therefore, you find a suitable rewards card (see further in article for recommended comparison sites) and use it for every single daily expense you could possibly use it for.

Carry some emergency cash in your wallet if you want, but just use the credit card “as if it were cash”.  I know I’ll get blasted – so hold on.  Now very important you must pay this balance off in full, every single month, in order to not be charged finance fees and interest.  Basically, you’ll be using the convenience of a card and getting paid money for being smart about it!

1. Find a suitable Rewards Card and Apply
2. Have emergency cash in your wallet
3. Use the Rewards Card for everyday purchases and fixed costs.
4. Pay off your Bill each and every month in FULL
5. Reap the Rewards and Cash back benefits at THEIR cost!

Discipline

This technique can work but you must be militant in your discipline to pay down the card every month.   By the way, I only suggest having one credit card while doing this.  The problem is that most people obviously are not disciplined or fool themselves into believing they’ll pay it off over a period of time. As soon as you think this way YOU LOSE!    ::stamps Statistic on your forehead::

WARNING: If you do not have rock solid discipline, these tips will not work for you.  In fact, it could put you in more debt if you aren’t inclined to pay down your entire bill every month!

Get a Financial Cushion

I’ve become a big fan of always having an emergency fund.  For this, you will need to have some money laying around just incase things go south one month.  In fact, even if you don’t read anymore of this article you should really be thinking about having at least $1,000 in a no-touch savings account.  The point of this is, if later in the steps you cant make a payment on your credit card – you use the emergency fund.

Personal Favorite

Right now, I am using Chase Freedom credit card.  They seem to be the overall best, but of course its a personal preference.  They have a few websites like BankRate and CreditCards that show all the types of cards you can get.  Of course, you should choose something that gives you the rewards you want without any gimmicks.  I’m also a fan of Chase because I setup Blueprint that allows you to track all your expenses into categories and choose what categories you’ll always pay off.

Paying All and On time

I’ll stress this one more final time – pay off your credit card in due time, every month.  This whole method will not work unless you do that.  Every month you should have your credit card at a zero balance.  If you can not do this, then I suggest using Cash or Debit cards!

1. Pay On Time! Check your banks payment schedule.
2. Pay In Full!

Conclusion

I’m sure some of you PF experts out there will be ready to flay me for my suggestions, and that is fine.  Many people argue that credit card companies design everything for them to win.  That is true, but they play the statistics game also – that the majority will eventually, fail and rack up interest bearing credit.  My suggestion?  Don’t be a statistic – stay smart, pay off early, and keep a zero balance. Have your own suggestions?  What works for you all out there?  Let us know!

The Hotshot competition basically consisted robots designed to release balls, harvest them, then “shoot” them through a netted goal.  

Teams:

The teams were (from the Pace site):

Hotshot Challenge Video

Tech for the Masses Videos

Photos of the Robotic Challenge

Furthermore, I took a few photos if anyone would like to check them out:

Final Results:

The results are posted on Pace’s official site and should be up within a couple days.  Click on photo below for results.

Results of Competition

Get Involved: More Information

Head on over to these sites for more information and resources about FIRT, Robotics, and Pace University.

• FIRST Hotshot Challenge @ Pace
• FIRST Robotics Program
• Pace University

DHCP – There can be only ONE!

Well not really, there can be others but that out of the “scope” of this article. Once in awhile a problem comes into the network, either through a hacker or uneducated user, that they add a device (router, personal server, Linksys wireless router, etc) to the network.  What happens then is a conflict between your original DHCP server and the newly added device.

When this happens certain things may occur…

• Your workstations will get a IP from either your authorized DHCP or the rogue device.
• Workstations will not be able to connect to the Internet
• Workstations or Server may have duplicate IP addresses which means, no connectivity!
• Your authorized DHCP may get intermittent problems, such as not receiving pings.

Anyway, all of the above was such my case one fine Monday morning.  It isn’t fun because it wasn’t until I replaced network cables, switched NICs, and did a few other tests that I realized a rogue device was on my network.  So let me help you skip past all this mess and download a Microsoft tool to detect Rogue DHCP servers.

Rogue DHCP Server Detection

In short, there are a few other resources you can lean on for more in depth detection but I’ll suggest a tool for now.  DHCP Server Prevention is an entirely more difficult task and more complex, so I wont cover that in this article.  For the time being, and for diagnosis I suggest Microsoft’s Rogue DHCP Server Detection Tool.  You can download it below.

http://blogs.technet.com/teamdhcp/attachment/3260962.ashx

I’d like anyone else’s advice or experience with these problems!  I know we’re all in the same boat once in awhile when it comes to DHCP issues and connectivity!

Ever had someone call you and explain their computer problems or the series of events that led to some kind of error?  Of course if you’re in IT support most problems are explained like this: “Nothing is working!”.  Kind of broad.  It’s time to put on our thinking caps TftM fans!  I recently came across a very simple to use website that you can use to help find out the specific problem on someone’s PC – as THEY see it.

So you aren’t sitting right next to them but you can still ask them, “Show me whats wrong” and they will be able to.  In my job I am often not able to sit in front of someone to watch for the error to pop up (or the series of events that lead to it).  Technicians will appreciate this tool because it adds a ton of insight into the “Nothing works!” user-diagnosis.  Lets jump in and see how it works.

“Show Me Whats Wrong!”

Step 1: Go to ShowMeWhatsWrong website tool

Step 2: They will ask for your name and email address.  Basically, you fill that out and hit GENERATE. 

Step 3: A website address will be assigned for you to send to your friends and family.  Copy this down and send it to whomever says “Nothing is working on the PC!”

Step 4: Great!  Your part is done.  Now when someone uses the link you sent via email it will bring them to the above screen.  They enter their name and click Start Recording.

User Interaction

What will happen is that it records everything on their screen including audio from their microphone (if they have one). The simple screen below will pop up and basically start recording. The user can then perform the series of events that led to the error and when done, just click STOP. 

Simple user interface!

Conclusion

It will process the video, upload, and send an email to you!  Pretty awesome right? I think this tool is a boon to anyone who likes helping out friends and family, right on down to the typical IT Technician who wants more clarity on a problem.  It’s a nice tool/favorite to keep in your browser so check out ShowMeWhatsWrong. 

You’ll get an email after they process the screen/mic capture like this

Obviously, this does not give you a hands-on way of fixing the problem but it can give you more information to research a problem before attempting to fix it.  If you want to do more hands-on remote support then I suggest checking out my article on Remote Access with LogMeIn.  What tools do you like to use to get to your pc remotely, help friends, or diagnose problems?

Today on Tech for the Masses we start the “Innovative Finance Series”, and we’ll jump into how to automate your personal finances.  If you’re like most people you probably live paycheck to paycheck with little concern on where it all goes.  When the money is gone, you have to stay in.  Using this method means there is often little thought for the future (savings goals, emergencies, down payments, gifts, vacations) and also means you’ll probably be using that high-interest credit card of yours.  That’s a huge problem.  Don’t worry – we have a solution and we’ll use technology to get it all done.

My Introduction to Personal Finance

Let’s face it, who wants to keep track of their money on a daily basis or god-forbid – Make a Budget!  Yuck, sound’s completely dull.  For the past year or so I’ve been inspired by the writings of several blogs, as well as personal finance guru’s such as Suze Orman and Dave Ramsay.  The daily finance blog I read is J.D. @ Get Rich Slowly.  I have to give JD a lot of credit because he’s pointed me in the right direction on many issues.  Lastly, The Simple Dollar is very informative and for the lazy, he put the basics of personal finance on the back of 5 business cards then expands it onto a 49 Page Free e-Book.  I’m sure everyone has time to read that one!  So if you haven’t gotten your finances in order and automated, wake up and smell the high-interest rates!

Online Banking Made Simple: ING Direct

For those who do not know, ING Direct is an online-bank.  Online banks usually higher savings account interest rates then brick-and-mortar banks which is why they are great.  ING is also FDIC insured so you don’t have to worry about the bank going under and losing everything.  I use ING for most things and it’s extremely simple to setup an account and I am impressed by their online security.  Pound for pound, I like it because they make it painless to login and even a chimp can use the interface.

Account Structure

As you can see from below, I’ve set up multiple savings accounts.  This is painless in ING and you can open as many as you want. The bank don’t care!  Plus there is no minimum fees or annual fees.  Basically, you open a savings account then give it a nickname, just as I have.  Now, my account balances aren’t anywhere near where I’d like them to be but it’s a start.  I highlighted the major money hits in my financial year, and created an account for each of them.

Christmas time has always been stressful for me, because like most people we never planned or saved for gifts.  It ends up going on a credit card and you make an empty promise to yourself that you’ll pay it.  Now as you can see I’ve created a savings account dedicated to these areas and will automatically fund it each month (See Below – ASP)

Why separate all your savings accounts when you can have just one?   The answer is simple. It’s difficult to keep track of your savings goals when they are jumbled all in one account.  You’ll easily lose track and spend the money unknowingly.

Automatic Saving Program

Now for the meat and potatoes part of the article.  Automatic Saving or Automating your Finances using ING DIRECT.  You saw earlier how I setup my accounts.  Below you’ll see ASP (Automatic Savings Plans) setup within ING DIRECT.  The ASP settings basically allow you to set monthly, weekly, yearly, etc rules for your accounts.  In my case, I have so much transferred each month to my Emergency Fund automatically, as well as the other areas.  All I have to do is make one bank transfer to my main checking account and the system does the rest for me.

Guess what?  When all that automated savings plans executive each month for me then I know I’ve met my goals – automatically.  Secondly, I know whatever is left in my bank account is all mine to spend as I like – guilt-free!  Furthermore, fast forward to Christmas and voila, a no-fuss no-muss Christmas gift fund is sitting there for me to spend on family and friends guilt-free.  Not only that, but I’ve made contributions to emergency, education, and vacation funds.  So when the time comes for a trip or even an emergency room visit (god forbid), there is money there.

I highly suggest you all try this approach.  This methodology I also use for funding investment and retirement accounts as well as bills.  The beauty of it is that everything is done hands-free and guilt-free.  The money you have left over each month (or week) is used for whatever your heart desires.

Joining ING – Free Money!

Now if the thought of automating your finances and having a guilt-free experience isn’t enough, then this should be it.  If you sign-up with ING Direct, they’ll give you $25 to start your account.  Crazy right?  The catch is you have to fund it with $250 and use an invite from an account holder.  If for some reason you aren’t comfortable doing it or getting $25, then still go to open an account directly at ING DIRECT – I am that passionate about ING Direct.

How it works

Basically, ING offers account holders a few limited $10 referral bonus for every person that we have create an account.  The new account holder is given $25 dollars after taking the referral.  That is a total of $35 ING is giving away just to have new customers! Amazing – It’s a WIN-WIN in my book and it’s how I got started with my account.

I have a few referral tickets left open, so if you are interested in depositing $250 to a new account and having ING give you $25 bonus for doing so then let me know. You can either leave your name and email address in a comment below or email: tech4themasses@gmail.com. I will send you the ING Referral and help you get started on your way.  It’s fast and easy – trust me.

Remember:  Sign up for Paperless Statements when you join-up! Save a tree!

Further Book Reading

Here are some books that I’ve read and highly recommend to everyone else.  I am not a guru in this area so I’ll tell you right off the back that you don’t need to be a rocket scientist to read any of these books.  In fact, I’ve found most of them I can read through pretty easily and they even offer some humor to go along with it.  Here is my list of books and authors below.

Author	Book	Review
Dave Ramsay	The Total Money Makeover: A Proven Plan for Financial Fitness	This is a great foundation book. His claim to fame is the debt snowball, a method used for getting rid of credit card debt.
Ramit Sethi	I Will Teach You To Be Rich	Ramit offers a youthful, intelligent, yet humorous approach to personal finance for most beginners.  He’s also a lover of automation like myself.
Suze Orman	The Money Book for the Young, Fabulous & Broke & Suze Orman’s 2009 Action Plan	Unfortunately, I end up watching Oprah with my wife.  And anyone who watches it long enough already knows who Suze Orman is.  Yes she direct and in your face, but that’s actually what most people need.  I read both books and they are priceless – especially the one for young people.

Further Online Reading:

These are my top 4 favorite personal Finance blogs to read – Get Rich Slowly, ManvsDebt, MyLifeROI, and The Simple Dollar.

Conclusion

Like always, I look forward to other peoples thoughts and ideas on the topic – especially automating finances.  Let me know how your experiences have personally went.  Look forward to hearing from you through comments or email.