Comcast X1 Cloud DVR

 BY Corey Kent – 

X1 DVR with Cloud Technology Launches in the Central Division

As competition in the cable and DVR marketplace continues to grow, ensuring our products are as innovative and cutting-edge as possible is a key part to our competitive advantage and mobility is a big part of this strategy. Updating and improving our X1 platform allows us to boast the very best viewing experience at home and on the go.

Last month, we launched the X1 DVR with Cloud Technology in the Greater Chicago Region, and we are excited to share that we will continue to launch this industry-leading feature.

What is the X1 DVR with Cloud Technology?

X1 DVR with Cloud Technology is a new DVR that functions like a regular DVR, but also includes new features like streaming recordings to mobile devices and computers and downloading recordings to mobile devices within the home for viewing at a later time outside of the home.

Additionally, with the new live TV streaming on the X1 Platform feature, customers can stream live TV channels to their mobile devices and computers within the home. Once available in a market, the X1 DVR with cloud technology will be the default X1 DVR product moving forward for new X1 DVR customers.

In markets where the new service is launched, existing X1 customers with DVR service will be able to upgrade to X1 DVR with cloud technology but will need to request the new functionality.

What features will the X1 DVR with Cloud Technology offer?

Some of the key features for the X1 DVR with Cloud Technology include:

• Five tuners (four DVR and one live) – record up to four shows at once!
• 500 Gigabytes of recording storage
• Whole-home DVR experience
• Full scheduling, DVR management and playback capabilities on all set-top boxes and IP devices
• Access to the new XFINITY TV app for the X1 Platform and XFINITY TV on the X1 Platform Site, supported on both PC and Mac:

• Visit the XFINITY TV on the X1 Platform site at xtv.comcast.net
• Visit the Einstein overview article for the XFINITY TV app for the X1 Platform, available on Apple and Android devices

• Stream live TV in the home on mobile devices or computers with the live TV streaming on the X1 Platform feature

• Cloud DVR Service:

• Stream DVR recordings in the home on mobile devices and computers via the XFINITY TV on the X1 Platform Site
• Download DVR recordings in your home to your mobile devices to take anywhere you want via the XFINITY TV app for the X1 Platform on Apple and Android devices

• Begin a recorded show on your TV and resume it on another TV or your mobile device or computer

NOTE: Just as with the normal DVR service, customers will only be able to record content that they currently subscribe to.

What is the value of the X1 DVR with Cloud Technology to customers?

“We want to provide customers with the best television experience on every device, when they want it and where they want it," said Matt Strauss, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Video Services, Comcast Cable. "The cloud-based infrastructure of the X1 platform allows us to deliver on that promise, and give customers a more personalized viewing experience. We look forward to providing these features to more customers this year."

Flying Car?

By Lewis Dix, III

Alongside the jet pack, the lack of flying cars in modern society has been a constant reminder of how far we have to go for the past 50 years. But 2013 saw the first movement on this front in years: the first flying car to actually get tested out in the public. The Transition is a vehicle that can drive down the street and take liftoff with just 100 feet of runway. It might be a strange looking car to park in your driveway, but it just might be the most accessible and serious commercial flying car in existence.

Terrafugia is a small privately held American corporation that is developing a roadable aircraft called the Transition and a flying car called the TF-X. The Transition and TF-X are designed to be able to fold their wings, enabling the vehicles to also operate as street-legal road vehicles. First delivery of the Transition is scheduled for 2015.

The Terrafugia Transition is a light sport, roadable airplane under development by Terrafugia since 2006. The Rotax 912ULS piston engine powered, carbon-fiber vehicle is planned to have a flight range of 425 nmi (489 mi; 787 km) using either automotive premium grade unleaded gasoline or 100LL avgas and a cruising flight speed of 93 kn (107 mph; 172 km/h). Equipment includes a Dynon Skyview glass panel avionics system, an airframe parachute, and an optional autopilot. On the road, it can drive up to 70 miles per hour (110 km/h) with normal traffic. The Transition Production Prototype's folded dimensions of 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) high, 7 ft 6 in (2.29 m) wide and 18 ft 9 in (5.72 m) long are designed to fit within a standard household garage. When operated as a car, the engine power take-off near the propeller engages a variable-diameter pulley CVT automatic transmission to send power to the trailing-suspension mounted rear wheels via half-shafts powering belt drives. In flight, the engine drives a pusher propeller. The Transition has folding wings, pusher propeller and twin tail.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1g6f6Gp8qo

On May 7, 2013, Terrafugia announced the successor of Transition, called the TF-X. TF-X is a plug-in hybrid tilt-rotor vehicle and would be the first fully autonomous flying car. It has a range of 500 miles per flight and batteries are rechargeable by the engine. It is expected to hit the market at least six years after Transition (2021).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KeXRGhhKDGs

U.S. Military

BY: Xzadrean Gladney

The last time the U.S. Army was smaller than 450,000 troops, it was 1940 and the United States had yet to join World War II. Announced yesterday, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel's proposed budget would shrink the American military to the smallest it has been since right before the deadliest war in history. Yet this is not a return to the pre-war state of unreadiness. While the military Hagel proposes might be smaller than the one that precedes it, it will also remain the most technologically advanced military in history.

Improved technology, for example, let's look at spy planes. The U-2 (pictured above) first flew in 1955, and was America's chief high-altitude spy plane for the entire Cold War. Giant film test patterns, made to calibrate the spy plane's original film cameras, still dot the American landscape, artifacts of time before satellite surveillance. U-2s cruise at 70,000 feet, and can do so for well over 10 hours. The chief constraint on a U-2 isn't the plane itself, but the need for an onboard pilot, who must be awake and seated for the entirety of that exhausting flight.

The Littoral Combat Ship, a new modular naval vessel, that can do some light combat, anti-submarine, or mine-sweeping jobs usually assigned to frigates or destroyers, was designed to have a crew of 40. While recent revisions have that number going as high as 88, that's still less than half the typical 200-person crew of a frigate performing the same role. The new budget keeps the LCS program in place, though at only 32 ships, instead of the 52 expected.

Left unmentioned in Hagel's remarks was the laser truck the Army is currently developing, and the laser weapon the Navy is putting on a ship. The HEL-MD laser truck shot down drones and mortar rounds in the New Mexico desert last December. While lasers are pricey to develop, they are incredibly cheap to fire, costing about $1 per shot. This makes them a very good tool for shooting down small projectiles and incoming attacks. These technologies are still new, but their very existence was the stuff of literal fantasy in 1940.

Facial Recognition: is the technology taking away your identity?

BY: Donte Miller

A little later this year, Facebook is set to release a plan for new facial recognition technology, DeepFace they plan on incorporating into their website. The difference between this technology and previously released computer technology is the proposed accuracy of it; it is said to be nearly as accurate as the human brain in recognizing a person's face in pictures, with only a .28% difference. What it plans to do with this software is to help people identify people in pictures so that they may more accurately "tag" them in the photo. Facebook has not been the only company interested in utilizing face recognition technology, as other tech giants, such as Google and apple also have their own purposes; Apple plans to further develop their lock system to be able to be unlocked through taking a "selfie", and Google to improve their image search system.

http://youtu.be/iYvkMfmNBPw

Facial recognition has also found a purpose in less commercial fields, as researches in the UTS Games Studio have realized. They have applied facial recogniton technology to read facial expressions to help the emotional development of ASD children of autistic children. It is has been observed that 93% of communication is non-verbal and austic children often have a difficult time interpreting those, so the software is designed as a game to help teach that.

http://medicalxpress.com/news/2014-05-facial-recognition-technology-game-autistic.html

In addition to that, the technology can also be used for security purposes. The software would allow officers to compare any photo of your face to a database of local mug shots to help take more of a proactive and preventive approach to law enforcement. On the opposite side of this issue is the privacy issue. Many people have issues with this technology because of the invasive nature of it. This technology would allow someone to access information about you without your consent. It has been often implied that this is a violation of people's right to free speech, and freedom in general. Another issue with this people have is the accuracy of this software. Examples like 41-year-old John Gass, who received a letter from the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles informing him he should stop driving, effective immediately.After several frantic phone calls, followed up by a hearing with registry officials, Gass learned his image had been flagged by a facial recognition algorithm, designed to scan through a database of millions of drivers' licences looking for potential criminal false identities. The algorithm had determined that he looked sufficiently like another Massachusetts driver that foul play was likely involved, so he received the automated letter. The RMV was unsympathetic, claiming it was the accused individual's "burden" to clear their name in the event of any mistakes, arguing that the pros of protecting the public outweighed the inconvenience to the wrongly targeted few.

There is much to be stated about the progress of facial recognition technology, and while whether it has a more positive or negative effect has yet to be determined, one thing is for certain; it's impact will be immense.

Sources:

http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2013/jun/03/google-glass-facial-recognition-ban

http://medicalxpress.com/news/2014-05-facial-recognition-technology-game-autistic.html

http://www.cbs8.com/story/24604243/facial-recognition-software-tested-countywide-by-law-enforcement

Reverse Vending Machines

BY: Charles Burch III

Reverse vending machines are devices that allow you to receive reimbursement for your recycled goods. These machines receive, sort, and dispose of recyclable materials, and give users credit based on the amount of material turned in. The first patent for a “Bottle Return and Handling Machine” was filed in 1920, but only since the turn of the century have modern versions of these technologies been created. Since then, more viable options for alternative recycling have emerged.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4FTAzrGfYM

Reverse vending machines are so innovative because of the way they solve two important issues simultaneously; they encourage recycling and at the same time make people want to do it. Apathy about recycling has long been a problem for Americans, who view the process to be tedious and time consuming. Each person generates about 4.5 pounds of trash a day, and 74% of the materials are recyclable. Unfortunately only a meager 30% of the materials reach the recycling bin. This statistic is appalling in light of the pollution problems that our country is currently suffering from, our waste sites pile up with millions of tons of materials that could easily be reused and turned into new products. Some western states like California have become aware of this fact, and have started incentive programs that pay citizens money for bringing their recyclable waste to gas stations for proper disposal. However, this service is only in operation in a few states, leaving the majority of us with very little to gain from the process.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PnnrU9CEHSg

If you pay close attention to the video, you will notice that the person using this device is an American, and this video takes place in New York. What makes this interesting is that the majority of Americans are not offered access to this service, much less even know what a reverse vending machine is. The reluctance of the American market to embrace these technologies may have something to do with the technical difficulties that can occur, much like those shown in this video. Americans are known for being generally lazy, and will not participate in processes that slow down or add more burdens to their lives, even for beneficial deeds like recycling. In order for reverse vending machines to reach the mainstream, strides will have to be made in streamlining the reverse vending process to make the process faster. Once that happens, reverse vending will be the vanguard for modern recycling.

Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reverse_vending_machine

http://www.envipco.com/recovery-solutions/reverse-vending.php

http://www.can-machines.com/

Revolutionary Innovation

BY: Toren Miller

.

Many people recognize Mark Zuckerberg for his fervent effort to innovate social networking, his success at it, then leave it at that. What people fail to realize is the simple business genius of Zuckerberg. The innovations we take for granted as colloquial web surfers and Facebook users are marks of pure genius! Think about it, every social network including many non-social networks are linked to Facebook. You can sign in to your twitter, instragram, collegeboard, online clothing accounts, just about every website that has a login is linked to Facebook.

What does this all mean? If it is not already clear, Zuckerberg is sticking his hand in every profitable pot across the globe as each company looks to be generationally relevant. Facebook has over a billion users including a myriad of companies who provide promotions through Facebook.  He is lierally profiting without any direct contact with any other entity! How genius is that? Between signing in to your email through Facebook to users all over the globe, Zuckerberg wins the entrepreneur of the decade in my book.

Mark Zuckerberg is also cultivating an affluent business through acquisitions. In his words, "We have not once bought a company for the company. We buy companies to get excellent people... In order to have a really entrepreneurial culture one of the key things is to make sure we're recruiting the best people. One of the ways to do this is to focus on acquiring great companies with great founders.” Thus Zuckerberg buys out potential competition and allots for exponential expansion. One of the most recent major acquisitions was Instagram on April 9^th, 2012. The application has 90 millions users who log on at least once a day through Facebook. Zuckerberg is literally behind the scenes witnessing his pockets flourish due to his savvy business techniques.  

Videos are no longer available

In accord with the previous statement of companies who use Facebook reveal promotions, Facebook has 21,655 companies on it around the globe. What this does is allow these companies to niche market when a user “Likes” their page. This gives the companies the opportunity to provide ads to every user who likes their page all through Zuckerberg releasing and selling the emails of the users. Imagine having 5,000 emails of people who like Starbucks, now Starbucks is willing to purchase said information with the purpose of providing these people with promotions that may potentially lead to higher sales. Now multiply that 5,000 by 100. Imagine the amount a company such as Starbucks is willing to pay for the information to gain access to those 500,000 emails. Zuckerberg is the largest third party advertising agent in the world through his systematic approach to gaining access to people’s emails and thus access to their personal preferences. Companies such as ESPN, Coca-Cola, Oreo, and Disney, put in a significant amount of work and effort into becoming one of the most popular companies on Facebook because they know popularity breeds consumption.

Videos are no longer available

Mark Zuckerberg’s initial, internet changing invention of Facebook made him the youngest billionaire ever but his illustrious business savvy is cultivating him into one of the most powerful men in the world. I ask that we all take notes of how social media can make us all at least millionaires.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_mergers_and_acquisitions_by_Facebook

http://www.insidefacebook.com/complete-list-of-21655-companies-on-facebook/

http://tech.ca.msn.com/most-popular-companies-on-facebook

http://www.biography.com/people/mark-zuckerberg-507402

The future of Atlanta: Population growth and future Technology

BY: Taqiyyuddeen Saleem

Over the last 10 years of my life I have worked in residential and commercial real estate in the Metro Atlanta area. The other day I got to thinking about the implications of population growth and technological advances on Atlanta over the next 40 years. Where will people want to live? How will they commute? Is the city equipped to handle such huge population growth? Will new technologies save the day? How will changes in technology affect how people want to live? These are some of the questions that came to mind and which I look forward to exploring in this blog.

Growth is a good thing if you are on the right track or have a shortage of population, but can be a very troubling thing if you are ill prepared for it. When we look at the condition of the 10 major American cities, it is safe to say that they are not prepared to have there population increase by 100%-200% over the next 40 years. This forecast growth in population is signaling the emergence of many opportunities and challenges for city planners and business people. Challenges and opportunities are two sides of the same coin and the capacity of our city to realize the potential of the time coming is in large part centered around its business owners and politicians.  

When looking at the impact of technology and population growth on Atlanta two things are clear. The right people create value and drive demand. The right companies create value and drive demand. As long as major corporations with the capacity to drive/understand consumer interest are interested in major cities I think big cities will flourish There is great value in creating hubs or clusters of people for corporations. It allows them to reach there markets in a much easier and low cost fashions. Corporations want density because it allows for easier access to there workforce and there consumers. 

People like to live in cities because it gives an impression (albeit the right city) of security and power. People clustering can also mean diversity and social opportunity. Clusters mean less commute times to get to things that are important to you. Clusters are the birth place of cultural explosions and technological ideas. Well planned and executed cites can mean options to many different things...jobs, dates, living situations, friends, culture and the arts, and education to name a few things. Thus if we assume that even with the risk for disease and other cluster related problems, there is a stronger pull for people to live together in cities.  

Provided cites are things of the future then Atlanta needs to guard its development and make sure that it is pioneering in technology, sanitation, education, jobs, culture, and city aesthetics.   

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmyIgSD41fQ - Managing population growth

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b98JmQ0Cc3k - Another video on population growth

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnXX4iiVI9s - The future of real estate

3-D Printer

 BY: Matthew Kelly

This is a new day in age, a time where the yesterday’s scientific fiction has becoming today’s reality, looking back a few years ago when I was growing up I remember watching shows such as the Jetsons or Zenon, one was a cartoon that gave life to our imagination of the future and the other was a Disney movie that looked at life from a near future perspective. I always remembered on Zenon them having a 3-d device that could bring up the person you were speaking with saying to myself that that would be something I would love to have, well today I have found something very close to it, something that could bring that to reality, The Form 1

The Form 1 is a 3-D printer, sources say that “The Form 1 itself is only 18 inches tall and has a footprint of about one square foot. Also, it’s beautiful. The hinged lid is crafted from a translucent orange plastic which, in addition to lending the Form 1 a striking, colorful visage and allowing you to safely watch the printer in action, also serves to protect the resin tray inside from UV light. You can leave the reservoir filled with resin and, as long as the lid stays closed, the liquid will remain uncured until you hit it with the laser” http://www.wired.com/2013/09/formlabs-form-1/

Formlabs' goal is to bring stereolithographic 3D printing technology to the masses. Where extrusion-type 3D printers squeeze heated plastic through a tiny nozzle to build models up layer by layer, stereolithographic printers involve a precisely aimed laser that polymerizes, cures, and hardens liquid plastic resin. - http://www.popularmechanics.com/

This new idea will change the way we do everything, especially in the class rooms, so many things can be done with this, faster ways to do projects, multiple ways to create designs for a business, and I could just see engineers and architects using this all the time.

Google's Project Tango

BY: Daniel Jackson


While in MIS, we have learned a great deal about the multitude of projects Google has planned for the future. From Google Glass to the tech giant’s self-driving car, it’s obvious that Google has become a sort of pioneer into the future applications of technology. With this in mind, Google’s Project Tango shows that these pioneers are not stopping at cars and glasses, but are becoming a catalyst in the evolution of the mobile phone and its applications.

Project tango is Google’s smartphone endeavor being overseen by their Advanced Technology and Projects group (or ATAP). As stated on their official website, “Project Tango is an attempt to create a mobile device unlike like any other, a mobile device that shares our sense of space and movement, that understands and perceives the world the same way we do”. In other words, Project Tango is a device that can track its own motion as well as model the environment around it in 3D using customized hardware and software.

The sensors in the phone allow for over a quarter million 3D measurements every second updating its orientation and position in real-time. Project Tango then combines that data into a single 3D model of the space around the device, which is a huge step into the future of how we look and interact with the environment around us.

A collaboration of different universities, research labs, and industrial partners from over 8 countries in the past 10 years, Project Tango has around 200 prototype development kits, which will be distributed by mid-March 2014. With these development kits in the hands of developers so soon, the possibilities for Project Tango’s application are endless. From helping the visually impaired navigate new spaces to finding the exact location of the items you need in the store, Google’s ATAP and Project Tango look to revolutionize the mobile phone industry.


Links/Resource: https://www.google.com/atap/projecttango/

Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qe10ExwzCqk

Wednesday April 30, 2014 - HW#10 - Multiple Regression

Last Class for the semester.

Multiple Regression 

How to use Excel for Multiple Regression and what you will need for the exam. This is my video from last year. Sorry that the Homework number is off. It was #9 in the past but it is #10 now.

http://youtu.be/FEFXp0iilsU

HW#10 - Multiple Regression

Multiple Regression is a statistically model used to analyze the relationship between two or more independent variables and one dependent variable. If differs from linear regression in that is takes more than one independent variable into the model.

Assignment

1. Download Excel Spreadsheet (here) File name has HW #9 but it is for HW #10, this semester.
2. Watch the Windows or MAC videos below
3. See "Understanding Output" video at the end of this post.
4. Take Exam #10 (Thursday May 1, 2014  thru Sunday May 4, 2014 at midnight)

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WINDOW USERS
make sure you have the multiple regression option available. If under Step #1 below, you do not see "Data Analysis", then skip to Step 1A.

Step 1

Switch to the "Data" tab in the Microsoft Excel ribbon and locate the "Data Analysis" at far right on ribbon. Click on the "Data Analysis" item to bring up the dialog box of the same name.

Step 2

Scroll through the list of Analysis Tools until you locate "Regression". Click on it to select it, and then click on the "OK" button at the right to open its dialog box.

Here is a quick video:

http://youtu.be/DoAckgj-jUk

If you do not see "Data Analysis" under "Data" Tab, then to add that option see steps below:

Step 1A

Launch Microsoft Excel and click on the "File" tab in the ribbon. Select "Options" to open the Excel Options dialog box.

Step 2A

Click the "Add-Ins" item in the list on the left side of the dialog box. You will see "Analysis ToolPak" in the list of Inactive Application Add-Ins. Set the Manage drop-down menu to "Excel Add-Ins," and click on the "Go" button at the bottom of the dialog box to open the Add-Ins dialog box.

Step 3A

Tick the check box in front of "Analysis ToolPak" in the list of available add-ins. Click the "OK" button on the right side of the Add-Ins dialog box to turn on the Analysis ToolPak once you have selected it in the list of options.

Here is a video to help explain those three steps above:

http://youtu.be/IN_VHhHqClI

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MAC USERS
Excel 2011 does NOT have multiple regression built in. You will need to add some software from this link. This software is free. The software is called: STATPLUS LE

Here are two videos on how to install Statplus LE

http://youtu.be/uBHo7EVlGW0

http://youtu.be/LRZTvAFfKEU

Here is an example for MAC (EXCEL 2011) using Statplus LE

http://youtu.be/BIlbRHW1DUk

MAC Excel 2007, click here to get short (6 page .pdf file) file on how to set it up.

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Understanding Output (pdf file link)

Older Version of Excel - but explanation good

http://youtu.be/ECXeUj8I6w8

Wednesday April 30, 2014 - Last Class: Extra Credit and grades

For grades:

Go to your schoology account.

If you do not have a schoology account. Go to Schoology and set an account up. It will ask for the course access code. (CODE: 7SKH4-WHB82)

The above images are from a Schoology account.

If there is an *, then that grade has not been added.
If you have a question about a grade, you can email me about it.
1) If its about attendance, then check the sign-in sheets (link here).
2) If a grade is wrong, email me proof.
3) Final Grade will be based on today's attendance
4) Extra Credit to follow

There is a grade calculator that you can use to change these grades and add missing grades to determine your final grade. LINK Download this file before you use it. If you use the file in the cloud, the next student will see your results and can change it.

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EXTRA CREDIT

This assignment is due Thursday May 8, 2014 by midnight. It is worth up to 40 points which will be added to your final grade.

You are to download and use excel to analyze the following data. LINK 


You need to create the following results. Create a video showing you completing each result and include your discussion. Upload this video to youtube and then send me the link. I will grade based on your video. The video should show each step of how you created the four results. You may need more than one video.

Create the video using a free account from Screen-o-matic.com. This site lets you record your record your computer screen, while you are creating each analysis. It records both video and audio. Each video can be up to 15 minutes. Once you finish, you can upload it to your youtube account.

You have the option to complete one or up to all four of the results below. There is no partial  credit with each result. You either get all the points of each section or none. Therefore, you should do more than is required, not less.

1) Create a pivot table (worth 10 points)
     Average Sales Price per Building Square Foot (BSF) by State
     Discuss Results
 2) Chart (worth 5 pts)
      Bar Chart
     Sales Price/BSF on Y-axis and State on X-Axis
     Title Chart, Label and format axis data, Legend
3) Fusion Table (worth 15 points)
     Map all sales
     Change icons from bucket - use a range that allow colors to change
     Add legend
     Discuss Result
4) Linear Regression (Worth 10 points)
     Sales Price to building size
     Show Scatter Chart with regression formula
     Chart must have title, axis label, format numbers
     Best Fit line
     Discuss Results
     Use formula to estimate a sales price

Apple Commits to Increased Drive Safety

BY:  Lewis White

With connection and convenience being of utmost importance to the modern 21^st century consumer sometimes safety tends to take a backseat to this convenience. Hands free driving is a big concern for most folks but the concern and precaution is generally placed on the driver alone. Recently car companies have began to talk preventative measures regarding driver safety in relation to mobile devices. With easy to use in car smart systems as well as increased vehicle utility when it comes to safety and artificial intelligence, the automotive industry has been taking many progressive steps forward to increase driver safety.

With the automotive industry going beyond the call of duty to assist the 21^st century mobile addict, the spotlight has now turned to the mobile providers to step in. With the increased prevalence of the smartphone over the past few years the ability to personally shut down major functions on your phone has been available. Up until now though, there has not been a means in which your mobile device does what’s best for you without your choice. Apple has been issued U.S Patent Number 8,706,143 for "Driver handheld computing device lock-out”, a system that intelligently determines whether a device user is driving and shuts off distracting phone functions accordingly. Apples newest invention takes on two very important tasks. The first concentrates on a lock-out mechanism that requires no input from a vehicle and instead uses on-board sensors to determine when a user is driving. In the second embodiment, the car is able to transmit blocking signals to an iPhone, effectively stopping a user from receiving and sending texts, or using other smartphone functions while in the driver's seat. 

With our society being so wrapped up in technology and connectedness, it seems as if there must be someone or something to step in and babysit the minds that seem to no longer be able to take care of themselves. We may never learn when enough is enough and when our safety should be our first priority, but at least someone has stepped in to do it for us.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-Jf5NaBLjc

Facebook Announces to Buy Oculus Rift for 2 billion

BY: Myles Johnson

The idea of sending a person through a three dimensional virtual reality seemed like a dream far too big to be conceived in yesterday’s time and age.  It was as laughable as the Matrix or a Star Trek movie.  Yet a company called Oculus VR decided bring that dream into a reality by starting a kick starter that raised 2.4 million to not only get startup, but also see the desire for such a gaming device to hit the market.  The world responded above and beyond the company’s expectations and they have used this resource to proceed with the production of the Oculus Rift.

            The Oculus Rift is a virtual gaming platform that since its early stages of birth was made to revolutionize the way we play video games.  It comes with a headset/goggles that immerses the gamer through peripheral rotation so the environment of the game is literally around you.  There is also a platform for your feet with a circular bar so everything is contained within it that tracks your body weight, how much energy you exert, and synchronizes your movements into the character you are playing as.  It’s almost like “larping” but extremely more complex and cool. This type of gameplay takes the controller out of the hands of gamers as well; instead of pressing the right trigger to shoot you will be pulling a plastic gun model synced with the Oculus to shoot.  So the specs and models of this platform are amazing especially when concerning the technology but it is still in the development stage. 

Although recently Facebook just bought the company Oculus VR for 2 billion dollars.  The logistics of that buyout being 400 million in cash and 1.6 billion in stock. With the projection of up to 300 million depending on the performance of the Oculus.  Mark Zuckerberg has a lot more than just virtual gaming with numbers like those. His vision probably lies along the lines of virtual chat rooms, or being able go to a doctor visit or being courtside at a basketball game all through power of the goggles. 

Articles:

http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/gadgets/video-games/when-virtual-reality-goes-beyond-gaming-16611699

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/24/arts/video-games/oculus-rift-and-morpheus-take-games-to-a-new-dimension.html

Video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P50fvL_EWYY

Monday April 28, 2014 - No Class

I will be inputing grades into schoology.com throughout the day. Check the site to see you score.

On Wednesday, class will cover:

1. Excel HW #10,
2. Extra Credit (Final),
3. Schoology Grades
4. 3D - Printing (?)

If you have any questions about your grades entered, email me (os3@aol.com) with proof, you are correct or text me with questions.

Wednesday April 23, 2014 - HW #9 Linear Regression

Define Linear Regression

To describe the linear association between quantitative variables, a statistical procedure called regression often is used to construct a model. Regression is used to assess the contribution of one or more independent variables  to one dependent variable. 

It also can be used to predict the value of one variable based on the values of others. When there is only one independent variable and when the relationship can be expressed as a straight line, the procedure is called simple linear regression. 

If there are more than one independent variable, then its called multiple regression 
(See HW#10).

As a business major, you will see both linear and multiple regression again, possibly many time in future classes. Homework #9 and #10 will provide a simple introduction and more importantly how to use Excel to solve problems. Again you will see this again.

HW #9 Data for Student Exam

HW#8 Steps:

1. Watch the video(s) below (there are both PC & MAC videos)
2. Download the excel file for HW#9
3. Take Exam on classmarker.com (Thursday 9 am until Sunday midnight)

Excel 2010 Windows

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExfknNCvBYg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MkNubKibM0A

Excel 2011 - MAC

http://youtu.be/1jZ4T1dcsFg

Facebook Invests in Virtual Reality

By: Langstin Hendrix-Wright

Over the history of Facebook, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has purchased Friendster, Instagram, WhatsApp, and many others. On March 25, 2014, Facebook made another step forward by purchasing Oculus VR for $2 billion. Oculus VR is a company that develops virtual-reality technology by making gear that enhances video gaming. This is an interesting investment since Facebook is a social media network.

Facebook may have purchased this technology to enhance their user experience when communicating with someone online, even though one is already able to video chat with another on Facebook. This virtual-reality technology may make the conversation seem as if the other person is right there in the room with you.

The technology looks like goggles that you put on when you go scuba diving. It has a built-in, high-definition 3-D display, which make it look as though you are right there in the scenery of the opposite user. The goggles also have an accelerometer, gyroscope and a compass, which will be helpful to the user when moving around, so the goggles can track your head movement and you can see everything in a 360-degree view. This will help the user see and interact with what is being projected.

The virtual reality goggles make it feel as if you are right there inside of a game or an environment. Facebook may transform this into a conversation that makes it seem as if the person you are talking to is right there in front of you.

In the future, Facebook make advance the goggles so that the user can take a 360-degree picture or video where the viewer can see everything the uploader saw. This new technology can drastically change the Facebook experience.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/26/tech/gaming-gadgets/oculus-vr-explainer/index.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGhTPQfzANs

Monday April 21, 2014 - Internet Financial Web Sites

Savefrom.net allows you to download the youtube video. Just click the download button.

Need to download a youtube video. Try this.

1. Bring up the youtube video (Ex. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YcnTaPmHFHY)
2. Now add ss after the www. and before the y ( Ex. http://www.ssyoutube.com/watch?v=YcnTaPmHFHY)

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Today we will discuss four important web sites used for managing business financing and accounting.

Mint is an online free bookkeeping web site. Its quickbooks online.

http://www.mint.com

.

Paypal offers a way for businesses to take payments and pay bills online using a paypal account.

http://www.paypal.com

http://www.curdbee.com

http//www.square.com