The Invention of Email

Email has since come a long way from Aug 30, 1982. It still does the usual thing of sending and receiving emails but now we have the option of internet phones and internet fax to add to the features. Celebrating this day provides all of us, especially parents, educators and policy makers an opportunity to understand the conditions, which allowed a young boy to create email, something we depend on so completely that we take it for granted. These creative conditions may provide us clues on how to unleash that field of infinite possibilities for all us, particularly our youth, to innovate and create, both locally and globally. The message is that innovation and creation are inherent to who we are and is the ultimate expression of spirit. Our current models of innovation, based on old belief systems that innovation can only take place in big universities, large companies and the military does not provide a scalable way for us to create the necessary jobs. So go out there and innovate.

Smartphone with Built-In Service

The Amazon Kindle uses AT&T's network for the built-in cellular connection but you never have to worry about a monthly fee for the services because Amazon takes care of the costs and offsets them through all the books and mobile applications that you would buy when using the network. There have been rumors that Amazon is experimenting with having their own wireless network but it still remain expensive and very time consuming. Cutting out the cellular middleman – AT&T, Sprint, Verizon, T-Mobile and others – could potentially open up a world of connected gadgets that cost companies like Amazon less to produce, thanks to not having to pay for access charges (savings that would hopefully be at least partially passed along to consumers), and could make it to market more quickly by not having to pass through a gauntlet of compatibility tests on the various providers’ networks. Think about it.

Cable Outage

If your cable had an outage, would you call 911? A Connecticut police department wants people to know that missing your favorite show isn’t an emergency. There was a recent power outage which put the cable, phone services, and internet off the grid for several hours. During that time, people actually called the police department about it. How many of these dumb stories have you heard about where people decide that certain things warrant calling 911 because they feel that it is an emergency? I recently read that someone was prank calling the police department several times a day. I think that the cable dispute should be left up to those guys while the government has not gotten in the middle of it. It might have been a good thing though when the FCC decided that AT&T and T-Mobile should not merge. Any thoughts on your cable or phone service?

Work From Anywhere

In today's world, with all the technology and mobile applications, it is easy to literally work from anywhere you chose. There are several tools that you will need in order to do that. First of all, it might be good to get a great internet phone service that works on any device. It will keep the number of gadgets you tote around down to a minimum. Since you have a VoIP service, you would need reliable internet. It is needed even if you do not opt in the phone service. Also, Google Docs is my go-to for online document creation and editing. It’s free as long as you have a Google account. Google Docs is the gold standard for real-time online collaboration, and closely mirrors the functionality of the Microsoft Office suite. So what is keeping you from cutting that cord on your desk?