(bal) Web Trends

Protecting Your Data From Disaster

2008-02-28T20:09:00.005-05:00

One reason I'm talking about this topic today is the three emails I've received in the last week from people who lost data on their computers. But I'll admit it. It's also because I got caught without a backup when my computer died a few weeks ago.

SkyDrive.Live.com
Microsoft just launched its online backup service called SkyDrive. It's free and you get 5 Gigabytes of secure storage for your files. Just upload the documents you want to protect and they're kept safe, sound and password-protected on Microsoft's servers.

Carbonite.com & Mozy.com
These are two of the biggest paid online backup sites. They cost from $50 - $60 per year and allow you to store an unlimited amount of data on their servers. The service comes with a small piece of software that lives on your computer and automatically uploads files to the backup site. As you add new things to your computer, they're seamlessly backed up to the remote servers.

Rockin' Slideshows of Your Photos

2008-02-27T02:29:00.003-05:00

You may have seen websites that allow you to upload your photos and create moving, musical video slideshows. I've never see a site doing it as well as this one, however.

Animoto.com
Just upload a handful of photos and pick some music. Animoto's servers then go to work synchronizing them to the beat and adding some very impressive video effects. It seriously looks as good as some music videos you might see on MTV (at least back when it still played music videos). It require no editing skill on your part; it's all automated. When you're done, you can share your slick video with friends and family online. It's free to create a 30 second video and $3 to make on with a complete song.

Slideroll.com
If you're looking for something a little more understated, this site offers more control over how your slideshow ends up. You upload your photos in a way similar to Animoto, but here you're offered tools to control how long each photo is displayed and what the transitions look like between each one. This one's free too for basic functions, but it's a few dollars per month to get access to everything.

Web Trends Report on WBAL Radio

2008-02-25T06:54:00.003-05:00

Dave Durian and I had a technology chat this morning on WBAL Radio. Here are the links to some more information about the topics we discussed.

Control Video Games with Your Brain

Now that HD-DVD is dead, what's it mean for electronics consumers?

Would you trust Google with your medical records?

Web Trends Gadget Friday Monday

2008-02-24T13:24:00.016-05:00

Considering Friday's winter storm, we figured nobody had time to think about gadgets, so it's a one-time-only "Gadget Monday" on 11 News Today. And it's appropriate because today is the launch day for a product I've been waiting on for more than a year.

Chumby $179 Chumby.com
This product is basically what would happen if you crammed your laptop computer into your clock radio. It features a touchscreen display, connects to the internet via your WiFi network and allows you to see snippets of web content on, say, your bed stand or your kitchen counter. You control what it displays by logging onto Chumby.com and making your selections.

Popular "widgets" include news displays, stock tickers, traffic trackers and weather forecasts. You can get even more specialized with ski reports, eBay auction trackers or recipes. There is already more than one hundred "widgets" and Chumby allows anyone to create new ones, so there will be plenty more to come.

The Chumby can also connect to internet radio stations, play music from your iPod if you plug it in or stream songs from your music library on your computer. It can even use any of these as your morning alarm if you choose.

I've been playing with the Chumby for about a week and overall I like it. The customization is great; I can have it display only the content I want to see. I like having internet radio stations somewhere other than on my computer. And it's designed with a fun attitude; it's not a plain brown box like the clock radio I'm used to.

On the other hand, the $179 takes the Chumby out of the "impulse buy" world. No one's going to say "That's cute. Here's $180." Only people who really want a device like this (You can call us "geeks," it's OK.) are going to pay that much.

Finally, the software running the Chumby is still a little rough around the edges. The menus are a bit confusing and non-intuitive and the setup, while better than many electronics products, will stump the non-tech savvy. But the good news is that Chumby is software upgradeable; it can download new programming as it's developed. So these issues may be sorted out in the future.

WildCharge $90 WildCharge.com
How many electronic devices do you have to plug in and charge each night? A cell phone, an iPod, a BlackBerry, maybe a GPS. I've always hated how each one of those has its own charging adapter and cable. I wind up with a tangled mess of chargers that I inevitably lose and have to buy overpriced replacements.

So along comes WildCharge with a simple idea. Just plug a special charging tray into the wall, then when you come home, just drop your devices onto the tray and charge them up. No plugging, no tangling, no lost adapters. A thin adapter that you leave on the back of the phone connects it to the power source.

A couple of drawbacks, though. $90 is a lot of premium for a little convenience. And for the moment, the company only offers adapters for the Motorola Razr and the old version of the iPod Nano. But that $90 includes the charging tray. You'll be able to buy adapters for additional devices for $35 then use them all on the same tray. The company is hoping future gadgets my come with WildCharge already built in. Just place them on the tray and charge... no adapter needed. Maybe by the time that happens, the price will have dropped a bit as well.

Your Tech Questions Answered

2008-02-24T13:04:00.005-05:00

Some interesting tech questions in the Web Trends mailbag this morning.

Richard in Parkville asks...
Regarding the digital TV transition, I have analog TV's and I use "rabbit ear" antennas. I know I will need a conerter box; however, will I also need new antennas?

Something many consumers are wondering about. Whether you'll need a new antenna or not depends on where you are in relation to the transmitter tower of the TV station. During the digital transition, some channels are moving to different frequencies and/or reducing signal strength. So even if you get them now, that may change after February of next year.
Richard in Parkville is not too far from TV Hill, so he probably won't need new antennas. People living farther from Baltimore, though, may need a new antenna.

To find out if you need to go antenna shopping, check out AntennaWeb.org. You just type in your ZIP code and it tells you what kind of antenna you'll need to get the the best digital TV signal.

Lisa in Columbia writes...
My computer hard drive crashed last week and I lost all my music files. They're still on my iPod, but how do I get them back onto my new computer?

This happened to me a few weeks ago, Lisa. Let's let our misfortune be a reminder to everyone else to back up their data. Sites like Mozy.com and Carbonite.com allow you to automatically upload files to their secure, redundant servers so it's safe in case anything happens to your computer. You can back up an unlimited amount of data for $50 to $60 per month.

Now, to your question about getting those files off your iPod. Due to piracy concerns, Apple makes it easy to get files into your iPod but difficult to get them off. To misquote the Eagles, your files can check in any time they like, but they can never leave.
Fortunately, some private developers have created applications to get those songs off your iPod and back onto your computer.
For Windows, try iDump. (A useful, but extremely poorly named program.)
For Mac, a good one is Senuti. (iTunes spelled backwards. So clever I can't stand it.)

Wanda in Baltimore writes...
I HATE email spam!!! I used to always click the "Unsubscribe" link to try to stop it, but now I've read that will only make it worse. Should I click "Unsubscribe" or not?

Wanda has made it clear how she feels and I suspect most of us share her sentiments on spam. Short answer: don't click those Unsubscribe links.

Why? Spammers use huge email lists to send their awful messages. Many, if not most, of the addresses on those lists are outdated or bogus. It costs spammers lots of money to send millions of messages that are never delivered. Once you reply to a spam, though, they know your address is valid and you've become a hot commodity. They'll target you even more and will probably even turn around and sell your email address as a "confirmed valid" recipient. Bottom line: even more spam.

That said; however, there is one circumstance where you can click Unsubscribe and get results. If you're absolutely sure the unwanted email is coming from a reputable company, particularly one you've done business with, it's OK to unsubscribe. But be careful that it's not a bad guy posing as that trusted company.

Online Fitness Help

2008-02-20T02:07:00.004-05:00

It's Fitness Week on 11 News Today, and while surfing the web may seem like exactly the wrong way to work on slimming down, there are plenty of websites helping you manage your fitness goals and keep an eye on your healthy diet.

Gimme20.com
Many websites have come along lately offering to help you build and stick to a workout routine. This is one of the better ones. You can search for new workouts and learn with descriptions, photos and video. Then add your favorites to a fitness routine that can be shared with other users on the site for their advice and encouragement.

Calorie-Count.com
Do your dietary research by checking the calorie, fat, cholesterol and sodium levels of hundreds of home-cooked and restaurant meals. Add your foods to your daily log and track total calorie intake as you progress toward your goals. Calorie-Count also lets you determine how many calories you're burning during various exercise routines.

Online Home Design

2008-02-17T22:11:00.001-05:00

DesignMyRoom.com
Used to be, only architects had software that could previsualize your redesigned room. Now you can do it for free right in your web browser. Repaint the walls, redo the floors, change the furniture. The realtime 3d renderings let you get it just right before you spend a dollar or move a piece of furniture.

MyDeco.com
It's a similar site that offers a more advanced room designer. It's a little more complicated but it might be helpful for getting a room's look just right.

Web Trends Report on WBAL AM1090

2008-02-15T07:00:00.002-05:00

Here are the links to the stories Dave Durian and I talked about this morning on WBAL AM1090.

You can check into Facebook any time you want, but you can never leave. Some Facebook users are mad about their information being stored indefinitely

Digital TV arrives one year from Sunday

LetsSayThanks.com
Send a free printed postcard to random US troops serving overseas.

Cool Technology: Links to Gadget Friday Products

2008-02-15T05:04:00.006-05:00

We answered a question this morning from a parent wanting to monitor what her kids are doing online. One of our gadgets can help with that.

SnoopStick
The SnoopStick costs $60 and can be used to monitor activity on your home computer from anywhere. Just install the invisible software on your home PC, then plug in the SnoopStick from any computer to view what's been happening back home. It's quite intrusive, but for some parents it may be necessary.

Jitterbug Cell Phone
If the latest, greatest cell phones fail to impress you, you may be interested in the Jitterbug. It aims to be the simplest cell phone ever, even offering a version with just five buttons. Great for older parents and seniors who need something easy to use. It costs $150. A bit steep, but there's no contract required. Monthly plans start at just $10 for a pay-as-you-go setup.

Answering Your Tech Questions

2008-02-14T19:28:00.005-05:00

Accessing your child's MySpace or Facebook profile.
This is a delicate one. Much of the information a parent may need may be on a child's public profile page. You can just search for it by name and location or by email address.
Getting into their password-protected account is more difficult. Websites will likely say "no" unless police are involved. You can, however, probably have the profile deleted by contacting the site
If your child is under the age of 13, you do have some rights under the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act. You should be able to view the information your child posted to the site before it is deleted.
Here are some links to more information for parents:
MySpace Parents Info
Facebook Parents Info
NetSmartz.org is a great place for parents to keep informed about their kids' online lives.

How can I be sure all my personal information is deleted from my old computer before I give it away or sell it?
This is a very important step to take before letting an old computer before letting it out of your house. Darik's Boot and Nuke is a simple program that creates a special CD-ROM that wipes all your hard drives when your computer is booted with the magic disc in the CD drive. Be careful with this one!
If you're selling or giving the computer away, you'll then need to reinstall a fresh copy of your operating system.
Boot and Nuke doesn't work on most Apple computers, but a utility built into the operating system can accomplish most of the same things.
And here's a good article a with more info about accomplishing this.

Do I really need $100 HDMI cables for my high definition TV?
Depends on who you ask. Some will say a better cable will provide dependable picture quality. I say, "Heck no, you don't need $100 cables!" But then, I'm not an A/V purist. For the most part, a digital TV signal is either on or off. Unlike the old analog TV signals, the quality of a digital picture is either perfect or it's unwatchable. There are no "shades of gray." If a $20 cable produces a picture on your TV, it will be indistinguishable from the picture produced by a $100 cable. Just be sure to buy from a reputable store, and if you don't like the results, make a return,
Here are some links for shopping for HDMI cables. And here's a very technical explanation of why more expensive cables may not provide a better picture.

By the way, this is the 300th post on the Web Trends blog woo hoo!

Seeing Hotels Before You Book

2008-02-14T00:27:00.006-05:00

Most travel websites allow you to see photos of locations before you book your room. But a few we websites have begun adding a new dimension to that: video.

TVtrip.com
These video site are starting off slowly and right now are only available for hotels in a handful of cities. But if you're heading to cities like New York, Chicago or Miami, they've got you covered. You can search for hotels by name or on a map. Each listing features videos of guestrooms, the lobby, the entrance and sometimes even the pool. Users are also able to review hotels they've stayed at, so you can see both the videos and reactions from other travelers.

Tripr.tv
This hotel video site adds one other interesting element to the idea. They offer to pay you for submitting your own videos of hotels you visit. If you record a video tour of a hotel and someone then books a room after viewing it, Tripr.tv says they'll pay you one third of their commission. The exact amount would vary from hotel to hotel, but if this site becomes popular it could start to add up.

Discovering Maryland's Bed and Breakfasts

2008-02-11T00:50:00.000-05:00

We're exploring Maryland's Bed and Breakfasts this week on 11 News Today. Sandra landed the plum assignment of touring the state's B & B's, but I did manage to check out many of them online.

BBOnline.com
Whether you're looking for a Bed and Breakfast in Maryland or across the country, you'll find plenty on this site. It works a lot like the travel sites you'd use to book a hotel room, but this one is exclusively for B & B's. There are several others out there, like BedAndBreakfast.com and BnBFinder.com, but I found BBOnline the easiest to use. You can search for inns based on location, amenities and price. And for many of them you can book your reservation right on the website.

MarylandWine.com
Maybe it's just me, but a weekend Bed and Breakfast getaway seems to fit with a visit to a winery. There are plenty listed on MarylandWine.com, where you'll find direction, activities and prices. There's also an interesting section called "Wine Trails" that suggest road trips that visit several wineries in a single weekend excursion.

Managing Personal Finances

2008-02-06T00:23:00.000-05:00

One of the first steps toward getting one's personal finances under control is organization, but that's not always easy.

Mint.com
This site tries to automate much of the process of financial organization by tying together all your accounts. By connecting your checking, savings and credit card accounts, you're able to see on one page where all your money is coming from and what you're spending it on.

Mint.com will also crunch your financial numbers to find savings opportunities you might not otherwise be aware of. One catch though: for Mint.com to bring all that info together, you'll have to trust the site with your personal passwords, so take a careful look at their security information to decide if that's something you want to do.

TheSimpleDollar.com
For good old-fashioned financial advice, the writer behind this site offers daily tips, tools and inspiration for anyone looking to take control of their finances. From digging out of debt to reigning in spending, there's a constant stream of ideas and information to keep you motivated.

Getting a Real Estate Advantage

2008-02-03T23:31:00.001-05:00

We're talking real estate this morning as part of Money Makeover Week on 11 News Today. It's an industry that has been changed dramatically by the internet. Online realtor Redfin.com has created an alternative to dealing with traditional realty agents, and sites like the following are putting more information into the hands of consumers than ever before.

Roost.com
This is the latest of several sites offering access to property listings that used to be available only to real estate agents. You can search the MLS database for homes by location, price and features. Roost isn't the first site to do this, but they claim to update their listings more frequently to give you an edge on competing consumers.

Trulia.com
Trulia also offers access to MLS listings, but augments that with in-depth real estate data that can be useful even if you're not looking to buy or sell. Trulia's real estate "heat maps" allow you to home sales data on color-coded maps, while charts and graphs let you track home sales prices week by week for your neighborhood.

Connecting Your Camera Wirelessly

2008-02-01T07:03:00.000-05:00

This morning I talked about the EyeFi memory card for digital cameras. It's an SD memory card with a wifi networking card built in. As you take pictures, it wirelessly transmits them to your computer and can even upload them to the web. It's $99 and is available at many Ritz Camera stores and from online retailers like Amazon.com.

PrintRates.com
This handy site allows you to compare prices for printing your digital pictures. Just tell it how many you'll be printing and it shows your full price, including shipping, for the order. There are also customer reviews to help you compare the quality of the various sites.

Answering Your Tech Questions

2008-02-01T05:18:00.000-05:00

Here's some more information on the tech questions we answered this morning on 11 News Today.

How can I stop all the junk mail in my inbox?
If you're using a program on your own computer for email, there are tons of products from companies like McAfee and Symantec that will try to filter spam. I've taken to using web mail sites like Yahoo Mail and Gmail, which do a good job of filtering. To protect your email address, you can use sites like Dodgit.com to create a decoy address for use when you don't want to give away your real contact info.

What's the difference between "Wireless G" and "Draft N" wireless routers?
Draft N is the preliminary version of 802.11n, the new standard for wireless routers. It's supposed to be faster and reach greater distances. The only problem is that the standard hasn't been finalized and there's a chance different companies' equipment might not work together. To be doubly sure everything will work, you might want to stick with the cheaper "Wireless G" 802.11g routers for now.

Tricks with Google

2008-01-29T23:54:00.000-05:00

If you're on the Internet, you know all about Google. But there are some less-well known feature on the site that can come in very handy.

Labs.Google.com
This is where you can find links to all the new services Google is testing. This week they added some new features to their "experimental search" test. It's right at the top of the list and allows you to view search results on a timeline or on a map.

Google 411
If you're looking for a business phone when you're away from the Internet, instead of paying for a 411 call, just call 800-GOOG-411. It's free, but doesn't yet work for residential numbers. To find someone's home phone, try the ad-supported 800-FREE-411.

Search for (and listen to) that song in your head

2008-01-28T00:33:00.000-05:00

There have been a few new websites and features to come along lately that are sure to be useful to music lovers. Thanks to the changing economic realities of the music business, it's becoming easier to listen to just about any song, on demand, for free.

Last.fm
This one's been around for a while as a place to share lists of all the music you listen to on your computer or portable music player. But now in addition to seeing lists of what everyone is listening to, you can listen to the songs as well. A search for a band or a particular song will likely turn up links to listen to the full track for free.

Songza.com
A simpler implementation of the idea here. It's almost like Googling for a song and being able to listen to the search results. Just type in the song or artist name and you get a list of results you can click to listen. Unlike Last.fm, though, Songza seems to be drawing some unfavorable attention from the music industry and could at some point be shut down.

Deezer.com
Deezer doesn't seem to have as wide a selection as the other sites, but it makes up with its easy and fun interface. If you can't find what you're looking for on the other sites, this one's worth a try.

Taking Part in the Plunge

2008-01-24T22:09:00.000-05:00

For me it's the best part of an otherwise cold and dreary month: watching the insanity as thousands of people take the plunge into the Chesapeake Bay. 11 News has some new plans for our coverage of the Maryland State Police Polar Bear Plunge this year, giving you more ways to be involved, even if you can't attend in person.

YouTube.com/wbal
There are going to be some very interesting videos on our YouTube page this year. We're giving tiny waterproof video cameras to our Plungers and asking them to carry them along as they dive into the Chesapeake. We'll be on the beach with laptops to instantly upload those movies to YouTube for you to watch just minutes after the Plunge.

Text Your Support.
Another way to get involved is to send your messages of support to your favorite plungers with your cell phone. Just text the number 88509 with your encouraging message and watch for your words to appear scrolling at the bottom of the screen during our live coverage Saturday morning.

Vote with your donations.
Be sure to check out the Plunge Page here on WBALTV.com to pick your favorite plungers from 11 News, 98 Rock and WBAL-AM 1090. You vote with your donations, and the plungers who collect the most money will be the first to make the icy dive.

And of course, you can watch live coverage of the event Saturday morning on 11 News Saturday Morning, with live reports during the Today show. Then check back here on wbaltv.com during the afternoon for more live streaming coverage of the Polar Bear Plunge.

Web Trends Report on WBAL AM1090

2008-01-23T07:55:00.000-05:00

Dave Durian and I talked technology on WBAL AM1090 this morning. Here are links to some of the topics we covered.

"Pharming" threatens wireless home networks.
Here's an article helping you change your wireless router password.
The beginning of the end for "unlimited" broadband internet service?
Website helps you pitch yourself as a contestant on TV reality shows.

Taking on Cyberbullying

2008-01-22T23:20:00.000-05:00

It's a very real problem with very real consequences. Whether it happens on a Facebook or Myspace page, instant messaging or cell phone texting, many kids say it's just as much of a problem as bullying in the real world. It's an issue being taken on in Annapolis this year, as well. Here's a link to Dave Collins' report on two cyberbullying bills being introduced during the session.

StopCyberBullying.org
This is a good site for parents to get a feel for the issue. It gets right to the point and doesn't bog you down in too many details. There's information on how to take action in response to cyberbullying and a list of steps kids should take if they're bullied. You'll also find an online form for reporting an incident to the site's volunteers, who can help parents work through an issue.

AdinasDeck.com
This one is based around a 30-minute movie made by a college student aimed at education middle and high school students about this issue. It features kids in a detective mystery story unraveling a case of cyberbullying. The DVD costs $30, but there's some information available on the site for free.

Learning When School's Out

2008-01-20T21:41:00.000-05:00

Whether it's a holiday like today or a winter snow day, websites that can both entertain and educate can be very handy.

FreeRice.com
There are two aspects to FreeRice. First, it's an educational vocabulary test where you're quizzed on word after word until you fi ally reach one you don't know and learn the definition. Second, here's where that free rice comes in. For every world you get right, the site donates twenty grains of rice to the United Nations Word Food Program for the global flght against hunger. The money comes from advertising on the site and it adds up fast. FreeRice has donated billions of grains of rice since launching last October.

NobelPrize.org/educational_games
Sounds unlikely, but the people behind the Nobel Prizes have created a series of online games aimed at kids. Each one is based on Nobel-winning work in categories like medicine, physics, chemistry and literature, and helps players grasp the basic concepts behind complicated research.

Making MLK Day More than a Holiday

2008-01-17T20:23:00.001-05:00

Lots of community groups are hoping to make Monday more than a holiday off work. They're asking people to use the time to volunteer in their neighborhoods.

MLKDay.gov
If you're able to volunteer your time on Monday, this site has plenty of ideas for where to spend it. There's a database of thousands of Martin Luther King Day events acros the country, including more than a hundred here in Maryland. Everything from community work to church services to collecting shoes for South Africa is included.

Stanford.edu/group/King
Stanford University has put together an exhaustive site featuring audio of Dr. King's speeches, documents and history. The site's "King Encyclopedia" features profiles of the people, organizations and ideas touched by his life, and a section of teaching resources offers ideas for educators to bring the material into the classroom.

Web Trends Report on WBAL AM1090

2008-01-16T07:57:00.000-05:00

Dave Durian and I talked about Steve Jobs' annual MacWorld keynote speech, as well as some other tech news this morning. Here are links to more information.

Macrumors.com probably has more information than you want on the new Apple announcements.
And this is funny: the site Mahalo.com edited a video of Steve Jobs' speech down to the crucial 60 seconds.

Bad news for HD-DVD brings fire sale on compatible high def DVD players.

Big Brother adjusting your thermostat? It could happen in California.

And here's the lowdown on what MySpace agreed to do this week to protect kids on the site.

MySpace Safety

2008-01-16T00:00:00.000-05:00

Myspace.com got a lot of attention earlier this week for the kids safety agreement it made with 49 states' attorneys general. If you read the press release, though, you'll see many of those new efforts don't start immediately. So here are some things you can do on your own to take action now.

MySpace Safety
Maybe I'm missing something obvious, but it seems that MySpace makes this online safety page awfully hard to find. The link above will take you to the site's safety center where you can read articles and watch videos about how to keep your kids safe on social networking sites like MySpace. It's fairly well done, and is understandable even if you're not a computer whiz.

Online Safety Software
Sometimes people ask me to recommend software to filter explicit internet content or monitor kids' activities. There are so many choices out there that it can be difficult to pick the right product. But the experts at PC Magazine have put together an excellent review of a dozen or so options. One interesting example is the "Snoop Stick" which allows you to monitor kids' online activities in real time from any computer, even from work. I may try to get a sample of this to show on the air in February.