Of course, in real life, we also know the saying… sh*t happens. And, it does.

Just because something is cloud-based (which is just fancy-talk for the fact that it runs off a web server somewhere rather than on your local computer) doesn’t mean it is fool-proof. Not only that, we have also seen multiple examples of cloud solutions being shut down due to strategic changes or even lack of revenue.

One such decision that caused some waves recently was the pending closure of Google Reader. Many people use Google Reader every day, yet Google has still made the strategic decision to shutter it. Posterous, a fairly well-known blogging platform, was also recently unplugged. Users were given two months to move their stuff… or else it disappears for good.

Whatcha gonna do, right?

Well, there are some straight-forward common-sense things you should keep in mind. We know the cloud isn’t foolproof, so plan accordingly.

Ensure There Is A Backup Option

Never let a company hold your data hostage. You should be able to take it with you. This isn’t to say it will be totally painless to switch away from some of these things, but at least you CAN if you want to.

You also want to look for the format that your data is retrievable in. If the data download comes in some proprietary format, it won’t be much good to you. Standard formats like XML or CSV work well.

Email services provide data portability by allowing you to log in via IMAP or POP3 and download your email. Do you ever do it?

If you use online document creation services (like Office Live or Google Docs), they have the options to download all your documents locally. And, you should periodically do that.

Know Your Alternatives

Most any cloud software or site you use likely has one or more alternatives. Know them. You never know when you might need to make a switch.

When Google Reader’s demise was reported, every tech site in the world started posting about Google Reader alternatives. You’ll be able to find similar information for other things you use.

You can check out Alternative To, a site totally centered on helping you find alternatives to software and services you already use.

Lean Toward Services With Offline Usage

Many cloud services also store your data locally, providing you with solid redundancy.

For example, Dropbox mirrors all of your files to your local machine AND the online service. If Dropbox ever went bye-bye, you’d still have all your files. No harm, no foul.

Evernote is the same way. While everything in Evernote syncs to your Evernote account, your entire Evernote database is stored locally. Evernote could go out of business tomorrow, and you’d still have everything.

Don’t Rely On “Free”

“Free” is one of the most powerful words in the English language. People have this downright irrational draw to anything that is free, and they’ll sometimes inconvenience themselves to no end just to maintain that free price tag.

Problem is, “free” is often problematic. The old adage “you get what you pay for” is certainly relevant here.

Especially in the world of tech startups, these company come and go all the time, many times without any slightest hint of a real business model. They come out, get a userbase, and their entire play is to get acquired by a larger company with deep pockets. And, they’ll use YOUR data primarily to make their company look more valuable. Problem is, if they don’t get acquired or they play their cards stupidly, they’ll just die a painful Silicon Valley style death. Bye-bye to anything you had with them.

When a cloud service has a paid option, that means they’re in BUSINESS. They’re looking to make money. And, that’s a GOOD thing. Because, it takes money to keep these services online. If they’re not getting the money from somewhere, they won’t last.

As an example, I love and use a list service called WorkFlowy. LOVE this web app. They have a free option, and no doubt most of their user base uses that. I went ahead and forked over the little bit of money for the premium account. I wanted to help keep them in business. Not only that, I get Dropbox backup of my lists. That’s redundancy, which makes me less dependent on Workflowy remaining in business. That’s a win.

And, At the End Of The Day…

If you’re not comfortable with all this, then stay off the cloud. There’s still plenty to be said for keeping all your data local on your hard drive.

Sure, you’ll sacrifice many conveniences. And, there’s a strong argument to be said for the fact that your data is probably safer in “the cloud” than on your hard drive (which WILL crash one day, at the most inconvenient time).

But, practice safe data backup locally and common sense on “the cloud”, you can have your cake and eat it, too.

The chief gripe is the new desktop. You’re pretty much forced to use the “metro” desktop rather than the traditional icon-based desktop and start menu. People don’t like that.

Microsoft insists that Windows 8 is a big win, quoting the fact that they’ve sold over 100 million licences to it. Tami Reller, Microsoft’s chief marketing officer, said:

We recently surpassed the 100 million licenses sold mark for Windows 8. This number includes Windows licenses that ship on a new tablet or PC, as well as upgrades to Windows 8. This is up from the 60 million license number we provided in January. We’ve also seen the number of certified devices for Windows 8 and Windows RT grow to 2,400 devices, and we’re seeing more and more touch devices in the mix.

The way I see it, though, that’s an incomplete picture. It isn’t as if end-users are choosing to use Windows 8 in droves. The fact is that the many PC OEMs out there are simply pre-installing it on most PCs, so it is pretty difficult to buy a PC without Windows 8.

Despite that, people calling Windows 8 a “failure” are obviously just looking for traffic based on controversy. Any OS which has been purchased 100 million times, despite the conditions of that sale, is obviously not a failure.

But, the reaction to Windows 8 does go right to the heart of a very large problem that Microsoft has – and has had for some time.

Microsoft is trying desperately to adjust to the world of mobile computing. They have the Microsoft Surface now, but contrary to Bill Gate’s insisting that people don’t like the iPad because of the lack of a keyboard, the numbers don’t lie. The iPad dominates while having no keyboard, and sales of Surface are at a MUCH lower level. Much of the computing world is now dominated by touch.

Microsoft is trying to move with the times, but they’re trying to also find ways to keep the old-school folks happy. As D.B. Grady, from The Week, said,

The company’s brilliant engineers must feel like velociraptors handcuffed to brontosauruses

Apple doesn’t have to deal with supporting years and years of old legacy code. Apple is one company that moves forward and doesn’t feel obligated to support everything it has ever released. It gets to a certain point where Apple will just say, “Hey, you want to use this? Buy a new Mac, will ya?” Plus, Apple has the marketing chops to convince it’s users of just how awesome it is. They’ve always been awesome at marketing.

Microsoft isn’t that awesome at marketing. They’re trying to move forward, and they’re trying to do it using one operating system that can fit everything. They did it without really listening to the needs and wants of their users (I highly doubt anybody actually was hoping they’d ditch the start menu). And, it backfired.

Microsoft can’t keep the enterprise crowd, who are historically VERY slow to change, happy while simultaneously plowing forward to compete with Apple in the mobile space.

These are two separate audiences, and Microsoft is trying to have it both ways. Only with Microsoft, for instance, does the most modern operating system they have still need to sport support for a floppy disk, or some old piece of crap software which was created in the early 90′s. Apple moves forward because they don’t have the enterprise baggage. Microsoft tries to move forward, but they’re tied at the ankles.

There’s only two ways out of this. OK, well three.

1. Release some frankenstein mis-mash compromise between old-school and Modern UI, which I’m guessing is what they’re about to do with the “Blue” update. Paul Thurrott called it an “apology” release, and that’s probably fairly close to accurate.
2. Do a fork and maintain separate incarnations of Windows for different audiences. Surely to be a nightmare for Microsoft.
3. Suddenly get good at marketing, and use really solid marketing to draw enterprise over. SHOW them how this will be a boon to productivity. Totally embrace the “new” Windows and convince enterprise to come along for the ride.

For now, I’m betting they’ll continue to have problems, though. Microsoft is a criss-crossing company in conflict with itself right now.

Case in point, Microsoft Office is still in full-on traditional desktop mode. Whereas Windows is trying to embrace the Apple model with the walled-off “Windows Store” and the Modern UI, MS Office is still a traditional desktop app. Word is, however, that may change with something code-named “Gemini”.

Microsoft has a challenge ahead of it, through. Nobody said change is easy.

What do you think? Do you think Windows 8 is a failure? Chime in below in the comments.

But, that doesn’t necessarily mean that YOU use it much, personally.

Do you use social media much?

Here’s my video…

So, that’s the question…

Do you use social media? Reply in the comments and let us know!

Most smartphones today have an integrated GPS and pretty well-developed navigation apps.

Case in point, this last weekend I navigated to a fairly remote point in east central Florida using my iPhone GPS and the Google Maps app. While on the property, I was even using the Maps app to peer down on the area I was standing using satellite view to get my bearings.

Amazing technology that we now carry in our pockets. Which brings up the question…

Is there really any place for a dedicated, stand-alone GPS anymore? Why are they being sold in stores anymore?

It seems as if phones have all the advantages. The maps are always up-to-date because they are downloaded on the fly from the Internet. On the contrary, a standard GPS requires map updates to be installed. And, they’re not free. Garmin, for example, charges upwards of $50 for a map update.

Phones have real-time data like traffic, and my experience with Google Maps has shown that the red indicators for heavy traffic on the map is pretty darn accurate. Getting live traffic data on a stand-alone GPS requires specially-capable hardware, sometimes an additional subscription, or being hooked up to your smartphone (which sort of defeats the point, if you ask me).

So, why the hell would anybody want a regular GPS anymore?

Truth is, if you have a GPS-enabled smartphone, you really have no earthly reason to buy a stand-alone GPS anymore. The advantages of a smartphone over the GPS are many.

The only possible reasons I could think of on why a regular GPS would still be preferable would be:

1. You can get special-purpose GPS devices and maps, such as for marine or aviation navigation. Keep in mind, you CAN get such maps for your phone, too. But, it is more standardized on these special-purpose nav devices.
2. The screen is usually bigger on a stand-alone GPS than on a phone. You may prefer that.
3. The GPS on most smartphones is a real significant draw on the battery, so if you forget your car charger, you can kill off your phone pretty quickly. The stand-alone GPS’s are built to last longer on battery power.
4. If you’re navigating in an area without cellular internet service, apps like Google Maps just aren’t going to work for you. One way or the other, you will need to bring your own maps. This is a strong argument for stand-alone GPS, although one has to keep in mind that you can get on-set maps for phones, too. Garmin even has an app on the iPhone and you can have your own maps installed, making your phone really no different than a standard GPS.

All that said, sometimes it comes down merely to preference. For whatever reason, some people prefer to keep their standard clamshell phones and simply don’t want to carry a smartphone.

Hey, to each his own.

But, there’s a reason why the prices for stand-alone GPS’s have dropped like a rock over the last few years. Because, more and more, they’re becoming obsolete.

Rapportive seeks to address this, and does a right fine job of doing so.

After installing the browser extension (it’s compatible with Chrome, Firefox,  Safari, and Mailplane),  all you need to do is give it your name and email address through your Google account. Given how much information we spread around the Internet these days, those are pretty small stakes, indeed. Of course, there’s a catch, there: for many of your contacts, you’ll need to sign in with your other social networks in order to help the app provide you with a more complete profile. This is a weakness in tied to the security settings of certain contacts: in some cases, Rapportive may not be able to pull in any information about them, even with access to your social networks.

In truth, it’s not really a weakness within the application itself, nor is it something that can necessarily be addressed by the developers.

Anyway, once everything’s all set up, entering an address or name into the “To” field in Gmail will spur the application into action.It’ll start searching through your contact list – and around the ‘net – for accounts that are associated with said email or name. Once it nails down these accounts, it will display tweets, LinkedIn status updates, and Facebook posts. I’ll also display some details about who they are, their recent activity within some of the Rapportive organization’s other apps, and finally, where they’re located. It completes the cornucopia of information with a profile picture.

This information replaces Gmail ads, which usually aren’t particularly relevant anyway. It’s actually nice to see all that wasted space put to good use, with some information that actually has context to what you’re doing at the time. Do note that other applications, such as Smartr, won’t work in conjunction with Rapportive; they both occupy the same space in your interface.

Another interesting feature is the ability to add notes on a particular contact, which will pop up whenever you’re composing an email to them. It’s a nice touch: if you’ve something you need to remember about them (yet might not be immediately evident through their social network activity), you can jot something down to keep that info close at hand. These notes are private and visible only to you, your contacts are unable to see them.

Although Rapportive may well be a tool designed with business in mind, it’s still a useful tool for the average user, as well. Keeping details on your contacts close at hand when you’re talking to them can help you add a more personal touch to your messages; this is inarguably something which is useful for far, far more than just business. Still, it’s definitely not an application for everyone – if your contacts are particularly private people, or you’re already using some breed of management application, you may want to skip over this one, particularly if you’re not involved in sales.

Otherwise, give it a try – it’s free.

You can grab a copy of Rapportive (and see more information on the application) by visiting the company’s website.

Image Credits: [1]

That isn’t to say I feel that it’s perfect. There’s actually a wide array of different ways that I feel that Gmail could be improved upon. A whole host of apps exist to do just that. Today, I’d like to profile one: it’s called Smartr.

At its core, Smartr serves as a contact index. Once you install it in Chrome, a rather unobtrusive sidebar will pop up when you access your Gmail account. Once you’ve linked your Gmail account to the app (you’re going to have to do that through the website itself, for some reason, Gmail is finicky about people using the sidebar), you can search through your contacts, examine recent contacts, and look at your address book. It allows you to add and manage multiple email accounts, as well , though I wasn’t able to test this function out – I only use a single Gmail account, and I don’t use either Yahoo or iCloud.

Where the app really shines is that it allows you to sign in to both Facebook and Twitter, porting your friends and followers (and their contact information) directly into the application; this allows for easy access to anyone in your social networks you might want to keep in touch with via email.  Similarly, these contacts can also be searched from within the app, as well.

Once you’ve tracked down a contact, you can click on their name to bring up more information on them, via a menu that consists of four tabs. The first tab displays information on their social network activity. The second displays the history of your relationship with them, summarizing the communiques which have passed between you. For example, I’ve one contact that we’ll call Bill, who I’ve not emailed in some time. Clicking on the Relationship History Tab tells me the following:

You and Bill Fakename appeared together on 15 messages between January and December 2012. The first message was from you to Bill Fakename on January 31, 2012, regarding “Idea for Website Design.”

Frequently Communicated with

Throwawayemail@Website.com

Throwaway2@website.com

The next tab displays your recent communications: a list of every email message which has passed between the two of you in recent memory. Clicking on one of the messages will bring it up within Smartr; you can then click the “View Thread” button to access the email within Gmail itself. The final tab displays which contacts you have in common with the individual in question. Last, but certainly not least, beneath their name is a list of all the emails they’ve ever used to contact you.

Furthermore, Smartr isn’t actually just designed for Gmail, nor is it chiefly a Chrome app. The application itself is part of a cloud platform known as Xobni, which allows users to link together Gmail, Yahoo, and iCloud accounts with both Facebook and Twitter. It keeps the details of all your contacts updated and saved on its servers (in the event that you should ever lose track of them), and allows you to port said contacts across Gmail, Android, Outlook, Blackberry, and iPhone.

The only weakness I’ve found with Smartr thus far is that it’s a little bit glitchy when searching for a contact who doesn’t have a supported email account, and loses a great deal of functionality, to boot. It’s not really able to detail much information about contacts in common, either. The ability to simply browse through your contacts (rather than searching them) would be nice, as well.

Still, it adds a spot of nice functionality to Gmail. It’s definitely worth a look if you’re having trouble keeping track of the people you’re emailing.

In many cases, the music is actually the best part. I’m sure everyone remembers such fantastic gems as the Legend of Zelda theme, or the theme from Super Mario World. They’re equal parts catchy and nostalgic. Many people actually do their daily work while listening to music which was composed originally a video game.

As an added bonus, they’re often better than a lot of stuff that’s on the radio these days.

Of course, building up a library of video game music can often be a difficult task. To that end, Internet Radio is the answer.

A number of downright awesome online radio stations have begun to spring up over the past few years, tooled for all your listening needs. Here are just a few of the best I’ve stumbled across. I’m sure there are many, many more yet to be found.

VGM Radio

What sets VGM Radio apart from many of the other stations on the list is that it’s a purely in-browser offering, which features a voting system that allows users to differentiate between which songs they like and which songs they don’t.

Every Saturday, the station does a countdown of that week’s top ten tunes. The library is a fairly impressive one, though it doesn’t feature a great many old-school tunes(though it does still have a smattering of songs from gaming’s golden age). Still, the offerings it provides are definitely solid, and it’s been my stalwart companion on many a late-night writing venture.

Notably, it actually features one of the more varied libraries on this list – many of the others are tied to a single franchise or console.

Radio Hyrule

The Legend of Zelda franchise has, as a general rule, had some of the best and most memorable music in gaming (it helps that later titles feature music as prominent – and vital – in their narrative).  That’s the reason Radio Hyrule was founded – to allow fans of Link’s adventures to relive them through the best and most beautiful compositions.

Its library features a huge collection of songs from various points in Link’s history, including a number of symphonic and orchestral renditions of classic songs.

In short, if you’re a Legend of Zelda buff, this station is the perfect choice. It’s available on its own website, and can also be accessed through Shoutcast and Last.FM.

Sound-Test

Primarily geared towards Final Fantasy fans, Sound-Test provides a stream of songs from games stretching all the way back to the first and all the way up to more recent iterations. Now, at this point, it’s worth noting that although Final Fantasy may be the primary focus of Sound-Test, it’s not the only one. It’s a rather impressive collection of tunes from other RPGs, as well. Most notable, however, is the fact that it’s not just a streaming service. It also frequently spotlights radio programs contributed by site visitors and web-forum members.

Note that you’ll need a Shoutcast-compatible media player to listen.

Video Game Radio Live

VGR Live is definitely the most minimalist radio station on the list, but don’t let that fool you – it’s every bit as impressive as the others. Unfortunately, you’re going to have to be using either Windows Media Player, Winamp, Realplayer, or iTunes to listen – there’s currently no support for VLC Media Player, or any such alternative. For some, this may be a deal-breaker. For others, it’s a great choice. Unfortunately, it seems to be down, of late.

Radio Nintendo

Last, but certainly not least, it should be pretty obvious what sort of music Radio Nintendo plays. It features songs from very near every first-party title Nintendo’s ever developed, and a huge collection of radio songs, to boot. It’s definitely worth a look, even if you’re not interested in the music- a lot of the shows and podcasts are pretty high-grade.

A number of select partners now have the ability to offer paid subscriptions to its users. This announcement isn’t likely to come as any significant surprise for those of you with your hand on the pulse of YouTube monetization. People have been trumpeting for quite some time that YouTube’s partnership program makes the production and distribution of high-quality content a herculean effort at best.

The new program means that paid channels will start appearing on YouTube, each one with a 14-day trial and each one with adjustable fees starting at $0.99 per month to $6.99 per month. Presumably, partners will be able to set and adjust the subscription fees (within reason) as they see fit. Subscribing to a channel will allow a user to watch that channel from any of their devices, including their phone, tablet, PC, or TV. More devices have been promised in the future, as well.

Though only a small collection of channels is going to be running the subscription program at first, Google plans to roll things out on a much broader basis in the near future. As they do this, they’ll be taking feedback from both content creators and users, working to tailor the service to provide a better experience to all.

The categories of the currently enrolled channels are fairly broad and extensive, ranging from Comedy, film, & Entertainment to Music. For creators, the impact this initiative will have on them is clear. A new method of monetization means more money, more money means better content, and better content means more users.

That’s the theory, anyway.

I’m actually not so certain the new initiative is going to pan out all that well. For one, YouTube has traditionally been an entirely free platform. Ad-supported, maybe, but ultimately entirely cost-less to browse, peruse, and upload. To me, it almost feels as though Google may well be trying to make new media fit an old business model.

Just look at the new channels. Few, if any, contain any user-generated content. They’re almost entirely comprised of television shows. This could, it seems, end up as YouTube trying to be something it’s not.

After all, we already have a whole host of subscription TV services available to us. Netflix and Hulu together host pretty much all of the videos most of us will ever need, while many television networks have begun offering their own shows, free of charge, for online streaming. In such an environment, can YouTube’s new offering really survive?

That’s not the only reason I find myself experiencing doubts about the new service. In the current YouTube landscape, it’s common – almost distressingly so – for videos to be downloaded and re-uploaded. Given this fact, is a subscription service really the most viable option? What’s to stop people from simply getting the videos elsewhere, or subscribing then downloading to provide them at another source?

On the one hand, the YouTube subscription model means that we’re going to be seeing some really cool stuff coming out of some of our favorite YouTube channels. Unfortunately, we may with the advent of this model begin seeing pay-walls for some of the best content. Truth be told, I wouldn’t be terribly surprised to see video piracy services start to spring up if this ends up being the case. That, or people might just start going elsewhere for their video needs.

What do you folks think of the new model? Will it prove viable, or ultimately fall fat? Moreover, will any of you be willing to pay for YouTube videos?

If you’re looking to enrich your play experience -if you’re not quite done with a game, and want to see what else can be done with an engine – it’s definitely worth browsing through the vast library of mods and add-ons floating about the net. That’s where I come in: what follows is a list of the best, most common places to search in order to meet all your gaming needs.

Steam Workshop

Valve has done a great many amazing things with their digital distribution platform. Perhaps their most impressive step was the creation of the Steam Workshop, a huge collection of player-created assets easily navigable from within the platform.

Initially created for Team Fortress 2, the workshop has since expanded to include a huge array of developers and titles. Virtually anything can be found alongside  in the Workshop: new avatars and skins, new scenarios, new weapons…you get the idea.

At this point, it’s probably one of the best, most comprehensive libraries online. Plus, most of you who game on the PC are already using Steam, right?

Reddit

Given that it bills itself as “the front page of the Internet,” most of you probably aren’t terribly surprised to see Reddit make the list. When a particularly awesome mod hits the web, there’s a very good chance it will eventually make its way to the front page (or at the very least, to r/games or r/gaming).

In addition, there’s an entire sub-reddit devoted to the development, discussion, and advertisement of player-made content: r/GameMods. Have a look around, it’s definitely worth the effort. Plus, if you’re a budding modder yourself, you’ll have plenty of opportunities to develop your craft and seek help from those more experienced than you.

Mod DB

Steam aside, I’d say that ModDB is the world’s largest library of third-party add-ons. It’s a thriving community for both modders and gamers, with a robust ratings/review system, job postings, game engines, modding tutorials, and an extensive forum where people can go to discuss game development, ask for help, or simply hang out and chat. It’s definitely worth a look, as some of the best mods ever developed were either posted here initially, or found their way here in short order.

In-Game

Sometimes, you don’t really need to do a whole lot of searching. If you’re playing a title where custom games are common, you can probably find a great deal of mods, add-ons, and custom maps floating around in the lobby.

Take Warcraft III as a (slightly dated) example: Dota, perhaps one of the most popular mods in history, got its start as a custom map created with the title’s built-in modding tools. As such, before you start looking elsewhere, it might well be worth first booting up multiplayer and seeing what it has to offer.

Gaming Blogs

Last, but certainly not least, keep your ear to the ground in the games industry. A great many gaming publications- Kotaku, IGN, and Giantbomb among them – will often feature the best made, most enjoyable, and most popular mods in amongst their news-feeds, and some (such as Gamefront) even include a section entirely dedicated to player-made content.

Twitter, too, is a good website to watch.  Basically, just pay attention to the news, follow the top blogs on Twitter, and you’re bound to come across something good eventually.

Any other sources you folks can call to mind that I’ve missed? Give me a shout in the comments!

Are you checking in on Foursquare?

And, are you checking in on Facebook? Or, even if you’re not checking in, are you telling the world where you’re located every time you post a status update?

There are security risks with being so public about your location so often. In this video, I talk about those risks. And I also show you how to stop Facebook from posting what city you’re in when you post a standard status update.

Click Here To Watch This Video on Youtube.com

Here’s the golden rule of social media…

If you’re not OK with the world knowing about it, don’t post it on social media. Period.

You do that, you’ve got nothing to worry about when it comes to your social media privacy.