Conclusion

As the semester is coming to an end we would like to thank you all for following us this past semester. As a required part of our Information Systems Management course we have greatly enjoyed the freedom to post what we think is relevant in today's Information technology society.
We hope that you as a reader have taken something away from reading our blog these past few months.

Much thanks,

Alex, Jordan, Marie

Augmented Reality Layar

Connections is the focus of this application.  It uses images from a broad spectrum of tools from smartphones to tablets and stacks related information on top of it.  These connections are made in the form of videos, sounds, or photos. It brings you into a reality you didn't even know existed until Layar opens your eyes.  The app brings in a whole new feature of print that is new and allows users to interact with traditional adds.  Currently Layar is the top platform for Augmented Reality.  The downloads are above thirty-five million including both Android and iOS. So who is using it?  One of the oldest magazines Readers Digest is using this application to initiate interaction beyond reading each issue.  With a price of $20 a page it is easily affordable for just about any curios creator to test the process.

 

Watch it in action:

 

Such thing as too much memory?

As an avid PC gamer I have always been trying to follow the "best of the best" in the PC world. Most PC gamers decide to build their own desktop PC. The reason for this is to update outdated hardware with ease, and without needing to replace their whole machine.

One of the most important aspects when building a gaming PC is the GPU, Or graphics card. Recently a 2GB graphics card has been considered to be in the "high-performance" range depending on the other aspects of your machine. Personally on my machine I have a 2GB GPU and have never had issues.
With technology always getting better and cheaper, especially memory. NVIDIA has now created a GPU or graphics card that has 12GB of DDR5 memory called the Tesla K40. This is such a large amount that it is hard to even imagine what you would need it for. I think this demonstrates that technology has no limit and will continue to grow and become less expensive. Who knows, maybe 5 years from now ipads will only be $100.

-Alex

What Not to Wear

Wearable technology seems to be a big buzz topic this year, with the unveiling of the Samsung Gear line, which for now only features their watch, and Google Glass having a targeted release for next year. Having your tech gear be wearable brings on a wide array of implications for every area of technology. For social media, having a camera that can shoot from your point of view at any time allows users to post an increasing amount of things from their lives to their preferred media. It also allows for new innovations with navigation, allowing the directions to be directly placed in your field of vision with Glass' heads up display. Another big advancement is 'pay per gaze' advertising that Google is rumored to be looking into based on a patent application. Their patent uses the camera on glass to determine what a wearer is looking at. This patent would have a lot of interesting uses, allowing a computer to determine what information to display based on how long a user looks at different items. However it also allows for a new idea in advertising.. This sort of advertising would allow advertisers to truly only pay for what they get, only shelling out when a viewer looks at their advertisement, if they only glance quickly and close, a certain amount, if their gaze stays for a long time, they pay more.

     Their a lot of serious implications that come with these advancements. Is it truly safe to have your directions placed right in your environment, or will it prove to be a fatal distraction to drivers? As far as privacy goes, would you really want an advanced hacker to be able to tap into a camera on your face and being able to see what you see any time you wear the devices. I can also imagine a lot of people being uncomfortable with the idea of companies collecting and analyzing what you look at in your life to determine their next advertising campaign.

    Over all, the idea of wearable technology is still in its infancy, with only a few serious contenders out there. However, if there are enough early adopters to convince the industry that it could be profitable, we could see the majority of the population with it sooner than you think.

Revolutionizing Home Design

Make your renovations or new home seen through your eyes

Past unstable markets and the boom of Pinterest have pushed home owners or renters to be more creative in home design.  Pinterest has inspired many to redesign the space they have or picture the future of a "fixer-up" that falls in their price range.  Envisioning a finished master piece is no easy task if you can't get past the mismatch kitchen cupboard and on the other end if one wanted to build a home where do even you begin?  I have found several sites which are; free to use (at least demo), easy to manage, and most importantly give you the ability to see your design put together.

Key Features:

Demension:
Amongst the CAD (Computer-Aided Design) sites I have found allow the user has access to both 2D and 3D floor plans.  Three dimensional floor plans are a great way to see your plans from all angles, some sites such as Floor Planner, are great for this visual.


Prebuilt Floor Pans:
Looking to optimize your space, this is the feature for you.  Prebuilt plans work wonders for a user who is looking to design a specific room or has a typical layout.  These plans give the bones of a floor plan from here it is up to user to adjust to specific dimensions a room has.  Personally I have used this feature myself to find new ways to rearrange furniture in rooms with many obstacles such as; windows, doors, closets, and outlet placement.


Prints:
For those of you looking to build or remodel and don't know where to start when you meet your contractor, print off your vision and bring it.  Although CAD gives you freedom to design to your hearts content keeping budget in mind because, who wants to be told "It can't be done on that budget"  So my tip keep it simple for the first meeting give the contractor perspective on your style but don't create something so unobtainable you will end up crushed.

-Marie

Hacking: Is the term being over used?

I am no professional hacker, but IT security has always been a big interest for me. After competing in the Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition my Junior year of College, and learning about different methods; DOS,DDOS,SQL Injection, and others. Compared to the average college student, I would consider myself to be quite aware and knowledgeable of IT Security and hacking.

Hacking is defined as:

• Use a computer to gain unauthorized access to data in a system.

• Gain unauthorized access to (data in a computer).

So why am I arguing that the term is over used?
We have all seen Social Media posts where someone leaves their computer on and their friend makes a status for them, usually a joke, then claiming they "hacked" their friend. That is not hacking, that is simply your friend leaving their computer on, and you using it.


The news is also starting to use this term when it is not necessary as well. On October 15th Yahoo News released an article titled "'Place Hacking': New global movement to find adventure in forbidden places".
The article explains how these "hackers" are sneaking onto old military bases, hospitals, and other locations and calling it "place hacking".
10 years ago this would simply be called Trespassing: Entering land without proper permission. Relating to my definition of hacking above, you can see there is no computer use here, and no gain of data from a computer by an individual simply walking on a piece of land. So yet again this is not hacking.

In conclusion, as technology becomes more prevalent in everyone's daily lives, people should understand terms related with different technologies before using them. This same method of understanding something before saying it holds true to almost everything. For example: Being a passenger on a plane does not mean I know anything about flying it, or being a Pilot.

-Alex

Windows 8.1 is Here!

The next big thing is here again! Microsoft officially released 8.1 as an update on October 17th. The biggest feature to return is the start button. Although it doesn't exactly mimic its older counterpart it is still nice to have the button back.

Other features include the ability to split apps at any point on the screen, instead of just at the thirds. 8.1 also allows for multiple apps to run at once on different screens. Finally, the benefit I found the most critical, the drivers for windows have all been improved. The update was released in a beta version as a .iso file a long time ago, however, users with this version will have to re-install their regular windows, and re-install their apps.

From the launch of the new operating system, Microsoft has been plagued with complaints over how not user-friendly the interface is for non-touch screen systems. I personally have not experienced any undue difficulty with operating without a touch screen beyond a relatively short learning curve. I've grown to embrace the new apps, and the side-by-side views. I am definitely in the minority on this one. Whether Microsoft has solved all of their problems remains to be seen.