We have entered the age of on the go computing. But Google wants to take it a step further. You have probably heard of their Project Glass initiative, which many people call Google glasses. These look like futuristic sci-fi glasses, and take being constantly connected to the next level.

A Computer Above Your Eyes

The famed Google augmented reality glasses allow users to read email messages, access online maps, take pictures, record video, and video chat with friends and family members – all without having to use their hands.

A Stream of Useful Information

Google glasses are activated using voice commands. You can just request a bus schedule and it’ll be displayed for you. Or you can ask for directions to a theatre, and a map will be displayed much like how it would be on a smartphone.

This video, produced by Google, gives you a glimpse of what wearing these augmented reality glasses might be like. The video shows a man making plans throughout his day, without having to hassle with a hand held device. As he heads to meet a friend the glasses alert him that the subway is suspended then maps out walking directions for him to follow. The video shows that these glasses can act as a personal assistant who stays one step ahead and makes your life run more easily.

An Unobtrusive Technology?

There has been some debate as to weather the information displayed will be so vast that it may restrict a person’s sight. Google claims that the only data that’ll be projected into a user’s field of vision is information they have requested and they maintain that this will help more then hinder. For example, if someone wishes to text a friend they only have to speak it, rather then find their device and type.

There have been those who think that these glasses will be used for advertisements. A few spoof videos have been made and posted on YouTube that demonstrate this idea. While it’s uncertain what will be projected into your field of vision with Project Glass, what is clear is that Google’s latest effort holds endless potential.

Gmail, Google’s email system, is steadily growing in popularity. This is not a surprise; Google hasn’t produced too many products that prove unpopular with consumers. But are you using Gmail to its fullest potential? Below you’ll find some tricks to help you manage your inbox.

Label your messages: Is your email inbox filled with messages from friends, co-workers, bosses, and family members? It can prove challenging to keep track of these messages. Luckily, Gmail lets you add brightly colored labels to your messages which helps organize your inbox. For instance, you can slap a red “Urgent” label to all messages that you must address quickly. You can put a blue “Vacation” label on email messages relating to hotel reservations, car rentals, and other vacation-planning activities. If you’re performing a job search, emails from prospective employees and networking contacts might include a purple “Job search” label.

Free up space with archiving: Is the number of emails in your inbox fast approaching the 5,000 mark? Then it could be time to archive your messages. This neat feature from Google lets you place messages that you don’t need right now but don’t wish to delete to the “All Mail” folder. Unlike messages that you place in “Trash,” emails archived in “All Mail” don’t go away forever after 30 days.

Add a signature: Tired of typing your name, phone number, and email address at the bottom of each of your Gmail messages? Why not create an email signature? Gmail lets you save signatures that you can then simply drop into the base of your messages. This is a wonderful time saver for anyone who writes dozens of email messages during a typical day.

Filter your incoming messages: Gmail can automatically filter your incoming emails. For example, if you are currently accepting applications for a job opening, you can create a filter that sends any email with the words “resume” or “application” to a file you’ve created called “Applicants”. Or if you would like all of the emails that come from your supervisor to be labeled as “Urgent”, it can be done with this feature.

Voice over Internet Protocol technology makes it possible for people to make phone calls over the Internet and it features one major benefit: It is more affordable then landlines. VoIP technology, as it is typically known, typically saving users anywhere from 30 to 50 percent on their phone bills.

In today’s economy many businesses are still struggling and they are looking to save money anyway they can. So it seems like switching to VoIP would be a no-brainer for businesses in this position, right? But are businesses embracing this technology to conserve money, or are they reluctant to make the change?

A Move Toward VoIP?

Recently a study was done by Heavy Reading that showed that fewer businesses then you would think have made the conversion to VoIP. But, based on the Heavy Reading study, that may be changing. The number of businesses using VoIP is on the upswing. In 2011 about 31% of companies in North America were using VoIP but Heavy Reading predicts that by 2015 that number will rise to 66.6%.

Businesses are Switching to VoIP

The study implies, then, that companies will do a full flip-flop by 2015. Today, after all, traditional circuit-switch phone lines make up 68 percent of business lines in North America. Are these numbers to be believed? Are businesses willing to make such a dramatic shift? Even if you’re less optimistic than the researchers at Heavy Reading, it’s tough to deny that businesses will turn more frequently to VoIP technology in the near future.

A Bright Future for VoIP and Business

VoIP technology, while lowering businesses phone bills, provides voice communication that is just as clear as any landline. Employees won’t have to change any of their behavior to use this service. They’ll simply have to make phone calls as usual. The future of VoIP in the business world looks to be a bright one!

Many of us get our entertainment, news, and pay our bills via the Internet. So, it’s not a shock that we access our music over the Internet as well. Many people subscribe to on-line music-streaming services that are either free or cost money. The advantages are many. People don’t have to transfer their music files onto different devices and they can listen to it anywhere they have access to the Internet.

If you are curious as to the differences in these services, we have highlighted several below.

Pandora: Pandora has been around awhile, and it is very popular. It’s clear to see why: it is simple. After navigating to the website, enter the name of a song or artist you like and Pandora will create a radio station based on that information. It chooses songs by artists with a similar sound. As you listen to your station you can click the thumbs up or thumbs down symbol on the songs and Pandora will customize your station based on this new information. In addition, you can “seed” you station with different artists to further personalize it. You can listen to Pandora without setting up an account but in order to save your stations, you have to create an account.

Grooveshark: Grooveshark is a lot like Pandora in that it creates a “radio” station based on your musical tastes. However, you can also enjoy entire albums on Grooveshark and create playlists. One distinctive feature of Grooveshark is the ability to upload your own music to the Grooveshark database if you cannot find what you are searching for. This is a smart and simple method for Grooveshark to grow its library.

Rhapsody: Rhapsody has remained fairly popular because of its huge database of music. It has more then 14 million songs. Unfortunately, while many of the services we have talked about offer a free version, Rhapsody does not. It is $10 a month for unlimited music.

Spotify: Spotify is one of the most widely known music-streaming services out there. After its release in 2008, it expanded rapidly. Spotify has a simple to use interface. You can listen to entire albums, decide to create a “radio” station based on your tastes, or create playlists that you can share with other Spotify users. This is appealing to people who enjoy the nostalgia of creating mix tapes. A lot of people love Spotify’s integration with Facebook. By utilizing the Facebook app, Spotify generates a running list of what you are playing day by day. You can also see what your Facebook friends are listening too, in real-time.

Remember when Windows was considered cool? It’s been a long time. However, the Kinect – a motion and voice-sensing device originally meant as a clever feature for the Xbox gaming system – may help Windows recapture its long-lost coolness quotient.

A version of the device also works with Windows-operated PCs, and almost immediately after its release in February, people started discovering innovative ways to use it.

Innovative Uses for the Kinect

At the Chicago Auto Show the Chief Marketing Manager for Nissan North America used the Kinect in an interesting way, by creating a virtual tour of the upgraded interior of the Pathfinder. This worked out well as they only had the outer shell of the Pathfinder to physically display. Using the Kinect, participants could actually “see” what the interior looked liked.

Microsoft is encouraging companies to find different uses for the Kinect and even working with them to develop applications for it. This is a great move on their part, as it not only promotes creativity but it also puts a Microsoft product at the center of the creative development. One company that has worked with Microsoft in this way is Boeing. They have used the Kinect to build virtual tours of their jets. Another unique use of the Kinect was discovered by a medical facility in Canada. They are utilizing the Kinect’s gesture-recognition to swipe through CT scans. This greatly lowers, if not eradicates, the possibility of spreading germs since you don’t have to touch the computer.

Kinect: A Solid Hit

When Microsoft created the Kinect for Windows they hit a home run. Last year the Xbox 360 was the best selling video game console. In fact, since November 2010, more then 18 million Kinect devices have been sold. This is definitely changing the way that the consumer views Microsoft products.

The excitement surrounding the Kinect and its many uses can only help to improve Microsoft’s reputation. They may be on their way to moving into the “cool” tech company category.

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These days, whenever you post an open position on the Internet, a huge selection of people reply. Many of these people are eligible candidates for the position, so you call them in for an interview. But how do you dig through them to find the truly impressive and enthusiastic people? Since the interview is essentially all you can go on, your interview questions are essential.

It’s crucial that you create a job interview strategy that pin points what you’re trying to find in an employee. If you ask the same cookie cutter questions that everyone else does, you are likely to get cookie cutter answers.

Ask the Right Questions

A common approach to the job interview is to inquire about past positions the person held. What their duties were, etc. These are not the most effective questions as you only end up receiving information that may be easily read from their resume. This doesn’t help you much if you are looking for specific characteristics. Consider asking them how they improved their positions, were there any processes that they changed, or ways in which they saved their company money.

Another common interview question is to ask about the individual’s strengths and weaknesses. Almost everyone has a canned answer to this, as they know it might be asked in an interview. Instead have them tell you the things they add to the culture of a company, what do they do in demanding situations, or what are some ways they keep themselves satisfied at their jobs. These answers will clue you in to the disposition of the person you are interviewing, and if they will fit in with your organization and the position.

Another method you could use to measure creativity is to give them a task to execute. Something simple, for example have them write their ideas about what their ideal workplace would be like. Or they could brainstorm products and services for a company of your choosing. You could keep it light and fun; the goal is to get a snapshot of their brainstorming abilities, and imagination.

In today’s job market, employers have the advantage of choosing amongst many talented people. So to be able to select the very best, they need to alter the types of questions they ask in job interviews.

No one likes traveling for business. Airports can be a hassle, with all of that business of removing your shoes, shelling out extra to stow bags, and the frequent delays and cancellations. We have a tendency to overeat on bad fast food or at hotel buffets, as well, when we’re traveling for business. Then there’s the lack of sleep. It’s no surprise that so many business people are longing for advancements in videoconferencing technology. After all, if this technology improves enough – the logic goes – maybe off-site business meetings, and the business travel that goes with this, will be a thing of the past.

The End of Business Travel?

But is this something that we ought to strive for in business? Is it a good thing if videoconferencing replaces face-to-face meetings completely? Maybe not, think about the differences between meetings that are face-to-face versus videoconferencing.

When people around the world sign on to a videoconference, they generally introduce themselves quickly, if needed, and then dive into the goal at hand. Brainstorming does not often play a large part in videoconferencing; this is partially due to the worry that their connection may fail. As well, there are many distractions within the individual’s office that can make fluid conversationtricky.

The Benefits of Face-to-Face Time

At in-person meetings, however, agendas have a way of falling by the wayside, and that’s a good thing. Meetings may start only after a few minutes of personal chatter and they might end with attendees swapping office stories. Again, this is good. Often, the best business ideas arise from these moments of off-topic discussion.

Business Travel is Here to Stay

Yes, business travel is a hassle and videoconferencing is convenient. However, there are occassions when meeting face-to-face is the best option for generating the most imaginative business solutions. Due to this, don’t expect savvy business executives to ever completely replace business travel with videoconferencing.

Doesn’t it seem like we should already have jetpacks? Teleporters? Or meals in capsule form? We already have some incredible technology, like tablets, which are small computers that people can carry around. We can take advantage of the GPS in our cars to find the way around town. We can post an update to our social media sites and reach countless people at once.

So, with all of this technology, why don’t we have jet packs yet? What issues are keeping us from making these technological leaps?

Building a Better Battery

As we move into a more mobile world, batteries grow in significance. They are a building block of our technological world nowadays. As a result, if we are limited by their power, and capacity to hold a charge, the technology that utilizes them is also limited. For instance, you wouldn’t want your jet pack to loose its charge in flight. Recently, researchers at Chicago’s Northwestern University found a way to make a much more powerful lithium-ion battery than the ones we have today. We explained this more thoroughly in a blog post last week. When these batteries finally enter the market, we will likely notice a increase in technological advancements.

Improving Internet Access

Another hurdle to conquer is that not enough people have access to the Internet. Actually, most of the globe doesn’t have access to it. This is naturally restricting advancements in technology. It goes back to the basic idea of the more minds we have working on a problem, the faster we will solve it.

The Business of New Tech

Finally, there’s the business end of things. Technological progress is slowed by arcane matters such as patent law. Businesses take their time releasing new gadgets and services as they must first traverse a minefield of laws and government regulations. These laws are essential. However, they need to be clear and easy to understand so new technology isn’t bottled up unnecessarily.

Even though there are several things that are holding technology back, it is still developing at a rapid pace. Maybe we will finally get hover boards when battery technology catches up to our imaginations.

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Businesses can use Adobe Photoshop to generate professional marketing material easily. It is a very powerful program with many features so it’s no surprise that it can cost over $600, depending on the version. Many small business owners don’t want to invest this much, and they don’t require all the features that come with it. However, there are some alternatives to Photoshop that are economical or free.

Not surprisingly, these programs are not as powerful as Photoshop. But they have adequate photo-editing features for small business owners to effortlessly create professional looking material. Below is a list of the best free photo-manipulation programs now available.

GIMP

GIMP is very user friendly and possesses most of the features from Photoshop that a business owner might need to create marketing material. The beauty of GIMP is that it’s completely free!

Paint.NET

Did you ever use MSPiant? It was included with your Windows operating system and was very basic. Paint.NET is its successor and is far more powerful then its forerunner. One fantastic aspect for designers is an unlimited undo button. Paint.NET is a free program; the only negative about it is that it only works on Windows machines.

Picnik

Picnik is fast, free, and easy to use. It works on the Mac, Windows, and Linux operating systems and you don’t need to download files to use it. It has some exciting special effects as well, making it a well liked photo-editing program.

There is no need to purchase the pricey Photoshop program to produce professional looking pamphlets. For the small business owner on a budget, any of these programs will do the trick and keep standards high.

Your smartphone is wonderful. It can steer you to that trendy new fusion restaurant if you are lost. It can play your favorite sitcom as you head to work on the train. It can play your favorite song at the touch of a button. However it can’t do any of this if its battery is dead.

A Better Battery on the Way?

Engineers at Chicago’s Northwestern University have been working on advancements in battery technology and may have discovered a way to make batteries charge in minutes and last significantly longer.

Northwestern’s researchers have found a way to extend the charge of lithium-ion batteries by more then 10 times the present lithium-ion battery life. They’re even boasting that after 150 charges, which they believe represents about a year of operation, the new lithium-ion battery will be 5 times more efficient than batteries right now.

A Charged Battery for a Week

Ultimately, this new cell phone battery could stay charged for a full week, even with all the apps we use daily. And the charging time? Below 15 minutes. Which will sure make our lives easier, but more than that, this new battery technology could lead to smaller and more efficient batteries for electric cars.  This could consequently, have a dramatic effect on our reliance on fossil fuels.

Batteries Powering Technological Change

Advancements in battery technology are not something we typically pay attention to. But this one may have a massive positive impact on our lives, and not just where convenience is concerned. This new lithium-ion battery may hold the key to a greater technological shift.