KBEAR: Billings' Greatest Hits » Tech

A Whole New Type of Movie

Greg Tillotson — Thu, 02 May 2013 11:58:24 +0000

I am a self proclaimed techno geek. I actually left a career in radio and went back to College to get a degree in Computer Science. The problem was when I got to College there were so many options in computer studies I took them all! Seriously. For a while I had classes in hardware, [...]

Happy 20th Birthday, Text Messaging!

Donald Deane — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 18:30:07 +0000

Although it became a widely used form of communication only recently, texting is actually a decades-old technology. In fact, it celebrated its 20th birthday on Monday, which makes it older than most of the kids who use it. OMG!

Amazing 'Lockitron' APP Will Unlock Your Door From Anywhere

Emerald Catron — Thu, 04 Oct 2012 19:30:13 +0000

Well, what could possibly go wrong? If you get the Lockitron, you’d only be making it possible to unlock your door with your cell phone from anywhere in the world. At the same time, if you forgot something at home, a friend wouldn’t have to pick up your keys to get it. GAH! Can’t decide [...]

Secret Siri: The Fun Movie Easter Eggs Hidden in Apple's iOS6

Eric Walkuski — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 17:30:53 +0000

The iPhone’s iOS6 upgrade has brought Siri closer to sentience. At least when it comes to movies; the “personal assistant” now evidently feels sympathy towards some of its misunderstood cinematic counterparts. Want to know Siri’s take on ‘Blade Runner’? It could make you look at it in a whole new light. The Cult Of Mac [...]

Classic Rock Will Rule 'the Cloud'

Jeff Giles — Wed, 29 Aug 2012 22:00:34 +0000

Judging from the results of a recent poll, many Americans still have no idea how cloud computing actually works — but once they figure out how to use it, they plan on listening to a whole bunch of classic rock. The news comes courtesy of Citrix, where more than 1,000 people were surveyed regarding their [...]

What are the Most Popular Websites in the World?

Mike Adams — Wed, 15 Aug 2012 19:00:36 +0000

If you’re like most people, you have one or more websites that you simply cannot live a day without clicking over to it in order to get your dose of the World Wide Web. Don’t feel bad. These days everyone is addicted to something, and the truth is, surfing the internet is safer than smoking [...]

16-Year-Old New Yorker Wins 'Fastest Texter' Second Year Running

Carl Pettit — Thu, 09 Aug 2012 17:00:20 +0000

Maybe you thought your thumbs were fast, and you could pop out text messages at remarkable speeds. Well, perhaps you should think again. A 16-year-old New Yorker was just awarded the top prize for the second year in a row at the LG US National Texting Competition. How does a person win such a fabulous [...]

Do You Track Your Exes on Facebook? — Survey of the Day

Jeremy Taylor — Wed, 25 Jul 2012 23:30:28 +0000

Sometimes it’s best to take an out of sight, out of mind approach to an ex after a breakup. However, in our brave new world of social media, the chances are your former flame is just a couple clicks away, making it difficult to completely ignore them. In fact, according to a study from Western [...]

Top 10 Apps for the 2012 Summer Olympics

Maura Chwastyk — Wed, 25 Jul 2012 18:00:17 +0000

The athletes have been training for the last four years. The city has been preparing for the last seven years. And the fans have been booking their tickets for months and months. The 2012 London Summer Olympics are upon us! No matter where you are, you won’t be able to make it to every match. [...]

Jerry Seinfeld's New Series to Debut Next Week [VIDEO]

Jami Bond — Mon, 09 Jul 2012 18:51:38 +0000

Jerry Seinfeld is returning to the small screen or rather your computer screen. The former Seinfeld star has released a 1 minute test drive of his new web series called Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee. It shows him driving around with various comedians presumably on their way to get coffee. Larry David, Ricky Gervais, [...]

See the Other Things Facebook Changed on Your Profile

Jeremy Taylor — Thu, 28 Jun 2012 21:00:03 +0000

Earlier this week, Facebook changed all the default email addresses on its users’ profiles to a brand new address, @facebook.com. Sneaky yes, but was it really that big of a deal? Probably not since very few people are ever going to navigate through a Facebook profile to get an email address when it’s so much easier and more reliable to use Facebook’s internal messaging system.

However, the folks at Thank for You for Not Laughing have found other recent tweaks Facebook has made that are far more dubious.

Google Glasses Can Be Yours for a Price

Jeremy Taylor — Thu, 28 Jun 2012 19:00:26 +0000

In April, Google announced to the world Project Glass, augmented reality goggles that use Google maps, GPS technology, gyroscopes, powerful mini-processors and voice recognition software to keep the wearer connected to the internet completely hands-free. Now this science fiction-like technology is available to buy. Sort of. According to Google co-founder Sergey Brin, the glasses will begin shipping [...]

Domino's Celebrates Digital Ordering Boom With a Half-Off Deal — Dollars and Sense

Shauna Wright — Thu, 14 Jun 2012 16:33:57 +0000

For the first time, Domino’s Pizza racked up $1 billion in digital sales during a one-year period — and to celebrate, the chain is giving you half-off any pizza ordered online or using one of its apps. Domino’s rolled out its online ordering service in 2008, and introduced both iPhone and Android apps within the [...]

10 Great Online Stores Where You Can Buy the Perfect Last Minute Father's Day Gift

Kathy Landin — Wed, 13 Jun 2012 15:23:07 +0000

Wake up. Sound the alarms. Father’s Day is on Sunday. It seems like we talk about Mother’s Day for a month before it actually happens, but Father’s Day just sneaks up on us every year. If this has happened to you and you aren’t prepared with a gift, it’s not too late. It may be [...]

Are You Careful With Your Online Image? — Survey of the Day

Jeremy Taylor — Tue, 12 Jun 2012 20:23:40 +0000

Even if you adjust your privacy settings, you can’t be sure that only your friends have access to your information on sites like Facebook and Twitter. This is a particularly big deal for anyone who’s looking for a job, since it has become well-known that employers search social media and the internet in general for [...]

Should Young Children Be Allowed on Facebook? Mark Zuckerberg Says Yes

Shauna Wright — Mon, 21 May 2012 19:08:33 +0000

Facebook only allows people 13 and over to sign up for an account — but the social site’s founder and CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, wants that to change. The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) mandates that only individuals over the age of 13 can have accounts on websites that collect information about users. And since [...]

How Much Will It Cost to Get Your Own Wikipedia Page?

Amy Sciarretto — Tue, 08 May 2012 03:15:40 +0000

Wikipedia may be the “free” online encyclopedia, but if you want your very own factual and well-written entry, it’s gonna cost you. Record producer Erez Safer and filmmaker Aaron Wertheimer have launched their own business which will write, research and post Wiki entries — at a cost. The duo offers its services for $300 a [...]

10-Year-Old Boy Designs Video Game for His Blind Grandmother

Jeremy Taylor — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 09:00:24 +0000

10-year-old Dylan Viale has a very close relationship with his grandmother Sherry, who is blind. The two walk dogs and go to the movies together, and recently went to a Lego event where they helped build a giant Lego Yoda.

But because of her vision impairment, Dylan wasn’t able to share with his grandmother his love of video games. So the fifth-grader at Hidden Valley Elementary in Martinez, CA, did something about that — he developed a video game which blind and sighted people can play together.

Could Your Social Media Profiles Cost You a Job?

Shauna Wright — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 00:00:28 +0000

A new CareerBuilder survey of 2,300 hiring managers and human resource professionals shores up the warnings many experts give job-seekers about social media — namely, what you post could wind up costing you a position.

Arizona Online Censorship Bill to Be Amended

Jami Bond — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 20:00:01 +0000

A proposal in Arizona to make it a criminal offense to post words that someone could view as annoying or offensive on Facebook, Twitter or other online outlet for expression is now being held back for revision after numerous complaints that it was to broad.

The bill would update telephone harassment and stalking laws by adding the use of computers or smartphones. Supporters say the measure would help victims of online stalking and harassment while critics say it goes too far.