Category Archives: Technology

5 Tools for a Better Car Audio System

Let’s face it: Sometimes your playlist is the only thing keeping you from insanity during a traffic jam or a long, dull commute. So doesn’t it stand to reason that your car audio should be optimized for perfection? Here are five great tools for turning your vehicle’s standard audio equipment into a state-of-the-art system.

Car audio

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Behind The Scenes and the Future of Our Food Blog

Since 2010, my brother and I have been maintaining our food blog Certified Foodies. We’ve had an amazing ride so far, even being recognized as one of the top food blogs in the country, which is really just the cherry on top.

2013 October cover v1

My brother and I have had this passion for food since we were kids. We both love cooking, him being the more skilled one. So we feel that we were meant to start our own food blog. We never intended to gain fame or even earn from our blog, but we did and continue to do so, which pushes us more to make our food blog better.

During the past 2 years, I’ve seen new food blogs launching here and there, and I was actually glad to see more people becoming more adventurous with food. We’ve received emails and inquiries from new food bloggers asking us for tips and help, and it seems that the most common question was how they can earn from blogging about food. And I think that’s the wrong way to approach blogging, especially when you’re writing about food. If it was for a different niche, I’d be perfectly okay, but I feel like for someone to start a successful food blog, one must have genuine passion for it.

Me at Seoul Garden - just showing you the grill at our table - CertifiedFoodies.com

A really, really, really old photo of me. 😀

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IT Temp Work Leads to Full-Time Careers

IT Temp Work opportunities

Earning a certification or a degree in IT can improve one’s chances of finding a good job after graduation. Almost all companies would benefit by hiring people who are certified to perform technical tasks. Regardless of the major one chooses, some IT experience is always useful. A certificate or minor in IT places a job applicant ahead of his peers.

IT training makes a recent graduate uniquely suited for a wide variety of jobs. One problem that young adults encounter is not being experienced enough to qualify for good jobs, even if they meet all of the academic requirements. A good way to acquire the necessary experience is to take on some temp work. Even temporary assignments are hard to get these days, since there are so many applicants with impressive degrees and not enough career-track jobs to go around. It is common for people with college degrees to think that they are above applying for work through temp agencies, but the current employment environment makes it necessary to be humble about one’s job prospects.

Temp work can lead to greater opportunities. Many people who start out as temporary employees are eventually hired into companies as full-time staffers. One way to increase one’s chances of landing a permanent job is by taking network administration courses in college. A temporary employee who reveals a talent for managing the company computer system quickly becomes essential, and the business will not want to lose that person, even if the original temp assignment has been completed.

An individual might go through several temp assignments before finding the one that becomes permanent. This is not a reason to become frustrated or to allow one’s confidence to waver. Every successfully completed temp job is a potential new resume entry. It is a chance to impress a new management team and add to the list of people who can provide positive recommendations.

People who are attempting to navigate today’s economic landscape need to be open to new opportunities. There is no way to guarantee that one will land his dream job. He might not even end up working in the field of his choice. Instead of feeling discouraged at not being able to use his degree, someone who had the foresight to take some online career training courses or to minor in IT will still be putting his education to good use. He will have the satisfaction of knowing that his education is being put to good use.

No matter what direction a graduate ends up taking, some IT experience can make that path a bit less bumpy. He might choose to stay in whichever temp field he happened to be assigned to, which is how many people discover previously unknown talents. He could also keep taking temp jobs to bolster his resume while following leads that are more suited to his interests. Completing some IT training is helpful in both scenarios.

Importance of a Reliable Time Clock

Time Clock for employeesThe time clock measures the pulse of any office. It takes attendance and keeps the hours, as well as connects all aspects of the workplace. The time clock has come a long way from the days of employees just punching in at the beginning of the day and punching out again at the end of the day.

Timeclockeshop.com employee time clock software allows employees to perform time keeping routines other than punching in and out and includes requesting time off and printing time reports from their own desk. The software also includes managerial functions including hour’s approval, time data correction and time and analysis reporting. The software is ideal for companies with multiple locations but have the need to tie all offices together with one standard time keeping function.

Timeclockeshop offers software compatible with corporate networks, as well as browser web based applications. The time is stored electronically and is available for the necessary time related functions. Time clock software will add efficiency to any office and allow managers to identify areas where efficiency is less than desirable.

The software comes with single, multiple or network licenses and is easily installed on any W.A.N. or L.A.N. network. Electronic software is a powerful employee tool that can help employees track their time and in turn, productivity.

The Timeclockeshop also offers hosted time clock software that is computer based, but not installed on the customer’s network or computer. That means there is no IT staff necessary to maintain the program, or to handle upgrades when they are available, including upgrades. The software provides the same functionality as the home based program but is fee based depending on the number of employees.

Managers, supervisors, as well as employees, are able to punch in from their own desk or workstation. All employees have the ability to print their own time reports or the system can be set to allow only certain individuals view and print time reports.

An available option is a remote time clock, to allow all or some employees to punch in and out where a computer is not practical. The time clock tracks time in the same manner as a computer based time tracker. The time clock does not incur a monthly fee as it is a purchase item.

A hosted time clock system provides the customer with accurate time allocations to specific projects and helps the employer to always be in compliance with wage laws.

Why Backups are Important for Businesses

Backing up your files is important if you have any critical data on your computer or on a server. Failing to back up your files can leave your vulnerable to a hacker, a corrupted server or a computer that becomes infected with a virus. Anyone who runs a business or has big projects saved on their computer should invest in disk to disk backup services.

Backups can be done using flash drives, dvd, external hard drives, etc

Having multiple copies of your data allows you to keep working on a secondary copy if your original is ever compromised. Instead of telling a customer that you don’t have their order information, you can call up your backup file to confirm any order that your customer has made.

Your boss isn’t going to be impressed if you aren’t ready for the big client meeting because you accidentally deleted the file that you were working on. It is likely that the client is going to be left with a lot of questions while you are left without a job after the meeting is over.

It is never a good idea to leave your files open to attack. It is easy and affordable to purchase additional copies of your data that can be stored and retrieved from almost anywhere in the world.