What We’re Reading: Aug. 13 – Aug. 19
On August 22, 2011,
in What We're Reading,
by Dave
Commercial outperforms, private wi-fis, and Google buys Motorola
Washington is speculating that Obama administration will protect the 30-year mortgage – along with Freddie and Fannie in some form.
US commercial real estate will perform better than the country’s volatile sharemarket during the current economic downturn because investors value its intrinsic quality, according to a new CB Richard Ellis report.
Money Magazine is the latest to release a Best Places to Live list. Looking at the top picks it’s easy to see the editors like small towns or suburbia.
Who can resist the lure of free wi-fi? But using public wi-fi opens your computer or device to a slew of security risks. Never fear: Freelance Switch gives the scoop on private wifi.
People have been predicting the death of the PC computer for years. With the rise of cloud computing and new operating systems, it seems the PC is getting a second chance. Joshua Topolsky writes in the Washington Post that advances in both technology and the way people use the machines is dramatically changing:
Something very big is happening in computing right now. We’re moving away from closed, disconnected, windowed environments toward something dramatically different. This isn’t like going from a command line in DOS to the graphical environment of Windows. It’s more like going from driving a car to a shuttle launch. What will happen over the next few years in user interface design and decentralized cloud systems will make the previous 20 years seem tame by comparison. We’ve crossed over from a long, slow evolution to an explosive revolution in what a computer is and how you use it — and there’s no looking back.
Patent trolls are a problem, but no where more so than in Silicon Valley. Might that be one of the main reasons Google snapped up Motorola Mobility this week for $12.5 billion? As the new kid on the mobile phone playing field, Google doesn’t have the history or legal files that Motorola, one of the industry founders with 80 years of patents, does. While many of Motorola’s assets will be valuable to Google, its 17,000+ patents may be some of the most important.
According to the latest Pew Research Center survey, 13% of US cell phone owners pretended to be using their phone in order to avoid interacting with the people around them. Read the rest of the latest mobile phone survey results here.
Apple plans to sell a hell of a lot of iPhones in the second half of the year.
Tagged with: apple • cloud • commercial • GSE • investment • lists • MID • mobile phones • pc • smart phones • wifi • wireless
What We’re Reading: June 11 – June 17
On June 17, 2011,
in What We're Reading,
by Dave
Bill Gates, the American Dream, and Father’s Day
‘Loose lips sink ships’ was the saying. The same holds true in the real estate biz. Agents, buyers, and sellers will look for any trickle of information to help in negotiating a deal. Even the most casual of comments can weaken your position. Agents are advised to read their clients their own version of Miranda Rights or just get them out of the house altogether.
Although there may be bargains, the continuing decline of home prices makes many buyers nervous. And uncertainty over jobs makes buyers less willing to make gambles on big investments. NPR looks at the fear of housing commitment in the great recession.
Bill Gates is still the second wealthiest man in the world. And the Daily Mail just published a wide-ranging interview with him. It’s worth a read in its own right, but if you need a condensed version, Mashable provides 10 key facts on Bill Gates from the longer piece.
Buying vs. Renting? It’s not an easy one-way-or-the-other answer. Lots of factors go into making the decision, but for many home ownership is still part of the American Dream.
Google is investing in solar panels – not for itself, but for you.
Apple founder Steve Jobs announced a free service last week that allows consumers to store vast amounts of music, video, photos and documents on the Web, one of several emerging “cloud” computing offerings, reports the Washington Post, that are diminishing the need for a computer.
Google has stumbled before in social media, but pundits are looking on its latest offering with a bit more promise. Google’s +1. Not only can users “+1″ (said “plus one”) directly in Google search results, but website owners can add the button to their home page or website posts. It’s similar to the Facebook “like” button and is a vote in Google for specific content which could alter the way you see search results in Google. Agent Genius gives six things you should know about the Google +1 button.
DigitalTrends lists 9 tech gadgets that any dad is sure to love.
Tagged with: cloud • dad • gadgets • Google • green • home ownership • icloud • philanthropy • social media • solar • Technology • wealth
