Challenge Accepted!

Writer, columnist, and avid Google+'er, +Mike Elgan, has issued a challenge for "all bloggers to try blogging on Google+ for the month of August".

I am accepting this challenge with the exception of this one post, which is only to notify anyone that stumbles upon WillWork4Tech.com that they will need to head over to my Google+ page. For now, I will blog on my personal G+ page, +Clay Shaw, instead of the page made for this blog simply because there will be more readers that way (though feel free to drop me a line if you visit the WW4T page).

That's it. For the remainder of this month, I will give G+ blogging a shot. So click the picture above and join me on Google+!

Google-y Goodness!

Yesterday, the head of Android and Chrome unveiled some new toys. Most of which had already been leaked out in the days & weeks leading up to the event, so very little surprises took place. Except for one. But allow me to bore you first with a few things we already knew.

Well, I was wrong.

Yes, I can admit when I'm wrong. Although sometimes it's harder to coax it out of me, depending on what I was wrong about... but I don't mind admitting my error on a guess.

If you read the previous post, I guessed that the breakfast with Sundar Pichai would be the announcement of Android 4.3, the new Nexus 7, as well as Motorola's Moto X. Well, you can scratch off the Moto X, since Motorola has sent out invitations for an event on August 1st.

Yeah, I know I said I wouldn't talk much about it since Google will spend $500 million on advertising, so I'll keep it short. Rumors around the device are stating it will have a 4.5 inch 720p HD display with a Snapdragon S4 processor, and 2GB or RAM. It's also hinted at 16 GB of internal storage, but it's likely to have a 8GB or 32GB variant, or at least an external SD slot. If the Moto X doesn't ship with Android 4.3 on board, I would bet that it will be pushed out before the end of the year. It's also rumored to have a 10 megapixel camera on the back, with a 2 megapixel forward facing lens. Of course, it will have everything else usually found in good smartphones; Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, NFC, etc. No rumor on price yet, but with these specs, odds are it will fall into the all-too-familiar super-phone slot of $299 with a new contract. Of course, if Motorola and Google can get the price down to $199, then this phone will be more popular that you'd think.

This is the phone that will hopefully make Motorola a serious contender again. What do you think?

Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy!

Google doesn't invite the media to breakfast because it just learned how to make the perfect crepe. And they certainly don't invite the media to a meal with Sundar Pichai, the head of Android and Chrome, without having some new goodies to show off.

All signs point to the breakfast with Sundar Pichai as being the official unveiling of the long-rumored Moto X, the refresh of the hugely successful Nexus 7, and an update to Android 4.3 to begin its rollout.

Too Long!

Today marks one month since my last post. I'm not dead, just very busy. June is typically the busiest month at my job, and this year is no exception.

I promise that weekly updates will resume soon... just let me make it to the end of the month.

A Different Kind of Email Attachment

Sometimes the best things to come out of Google I/O are the things that are barely mentioned. Sure, most people are talking about the new cross-platform messaging app called Hangouts, or they are too busy complaining that there was no reveal of Android 5.0, also known as Key Lime Pie. Don't get me wrong, I think Hangouts is a fantastic first step, but they still have some work to do if their aim is to make it the go-to messaging service.

Now there were plenty of exciting services and products that were announced at Google I/O last week, but the feature that made me do a double take... was the ability to email money.

Quick update...

Good morning! I just wanted to stick a quick post out there this morning because Google I/O begins today at noon for us east coasters, and that will most likely skew what I will write about for the next few entries.

So the one thing I wanted to point out was the rumor that's been circulating that AT&T will be discontinuing the HTC First. As it turns out, Facebook Home is a flop. Who knew! Well, the numbers don't lie:

Those are the numbers from the Facebook Home page on the Google Play store. This, at least to me, is not surprising at all. From day one, I thought Facebook Home was a neat concept, but I didn't believe it would take off... at least, not with people over 20. And it didn't. Just a few short weeks after the arrival of the HTC First, AT&T slashed the price down to $0.99 from $99. This was the beginning of the end for the First. And now rumor has it that AT&T is simply getting rid of it altogether. And who can blame them? Mediocre device sales mixed in with a stock launcher that has a 2.3 star rating? No thanks. Even 99 cents is too much when you can get better hardware on a number of other phones, and you won't have to uninstall Facebook Home the moment you open it.

This is strike 2 when it comes to Facebook meddling in hardware. Unfortunately, Facebook Home isn't dead, as I'm sure Zuck & Co. will beat that horse as long as possible to justify the amount of time put into it, but I will be extremely surprised if Home makes any sort of progress.

With any luck, this will be my last post about Facebook Home. Now I can concentrate on the new goodies that will emerge from Google I/O!

Still Working for Tech

Oh boy... when I named this site Will Work 4 Tech, I apparently wasn't joking! I have been absolutely slammed at work, which is good because it makes the day go by faster, but it also means that the site has taken a back seat. So let's see if I can get it back on track, shall we?

A few weeks ago, the girlfriend upgraded her computing experience by demoting her older desktop computer and bought a shiny new laptop. Yay, progress! Even though, it's not my toy, it's still good news for me since her desktop would now be re-purposed to serve as the video streaming box connected to our HDTV. In other words... it means I get my laptop back!

The Evolution of Essentials

I think we all know which category I belong in.

(Source: Wrong Hands)

Help Wanted!

Back when I transformed this page from being a mere blog into more of a technology specific site, I wanted to get a handful of posts published per week. I found out very quickly that wouldn't happen. So I've settled to updating once a week, mostly on Thursday's. But that isn't enough. I want more. Unfortunately, with it being a hobby away from my full-time job, I struggle with doing much more than I am right now.

So I am hanging out the 'Help Wanted' sign. I am looking for people that are passionate about technology and would like to write about it. If you have visited this site before, you know the type of subjects I tend to focus on... smartphones, tablets, and computers, as well as the major social networking sites, and interesting mobile apps. As long as the topic is tech focused, you can cover it here.

Personally, I use an Android phone, an Android tablet, a Google Chromebook, and I use many of the Google properties in my day-to-day life. Therefore, the majority of my posts revolve around Google stuff. I don't write much about Apple simply because I do not have an Apple product. I may be a Google fan, but I am certainly not opposed to having an Apple fan write for WillWork4Tech.com. As a matter of fact, I'd welcome it.

If you think this may be something you are interested in, send an email to clay@willwork4tech.com and let me know!

Your Digital Afterlife

With everyone utilizing social networking more and more... have you ever wondered what happens to your data after you die? Wow, a bit of a morbid topic, I know, but it's one we must all face. Most people will have a Last Will & Testament drawn up before they pass, but will that include your passwords or emails? Unlikely.

Earlier this week, Google rolled out Inactive Account Manager, and what it does is send a notification to you after a set period of time if you don't check into Google. And by "check in" I just mean to log into your Gmail, or YouTube, or Google+, or any other Google site you use. After that time period expires, whether it's 3 months, 6 months, or a year, it will first send a notice to a mobile number you provide just to say 'Hey, that time delay you set has expired. You OK?' And after that message is sent, if you still haven't checked in after a month, your data is sent to a trusted friend that you specifically said to send it to. Or not, the choice is yours. If you do decide to send your data to a friend, you can choose to send all your Google data, or just pick certain Google properties, like Gmail, Drive, Contacts, Blogger, etc.

Unfortunately, this service only applies to Google products (as itself is a Google product), and as far as I am aware, no other site offers it. Well, there are some third party applications that could allow you to do this, but I would trust the host site more with this type of thing. Of course, you can get around that limitation simply by creating a document in Google Drive with a list of the sites you visit and their passwords.

I do apologize for the morbidness of this post, but I felt it was a great tool that should be utilized. I've already set mine up, and the hardest part was writing the email to the trusted contact that will be sent after the time period expires. It's kind of hard writing a "If you're reading this, then something terrible has happened to me" kind of email. But, like a Last Will... it needs to be done.

Now if you'll excuse me... I have to go live my life. First stop, a local Comic-Con!

How Much Do You Love Facebook?

Earlier today, Mark Zuckerberg was happy to show off Facebook's "new home on Android". Many sites and blogs were in a rumor frenzy for the past few days about a Facebook phone which, in the end, fell flat. Today's Facebook announcement was to showcase Facebook Home which is simply a new homescreen launcher.

Nope!

Oh, man... I couldn't even make it 12 hours!

Oh, who am I kidding? I didn't last 12 minutes!

I Am Abandoning WillWork4Tech

For those of you that know me, you know that I am a big technology fan. At least, I was. I just can't keep up anymore. Every day there is a new tech announcement of some kind, and my mind just can't keep up with it all.

So from this day forth, this page will no longer be updated. WillWork4Tech.com will stand as a memorial to the technology that I wasted so much time learning about.

Now, I will do what I should have been doing for a long time. I will...

GO OUTSIDE AND PLAY!

Is Keep A Keeper?

Just two short days after being leaked, Google's note taking service dubbed "Google Keep" became official. Keep is certainly a no-frills service, but that doesn't mean it isn't useless. Whether you enjoy typing or talking more, Keep can keep up. So far, in my tests, the voice transcription has been incredibly accurate, so I can see myself using that feature most often while driving, as it also keeps the voice recording just in case the transcription is a little off. The other options you have are check boxes, handy if you use Keep as a to-do list; and an option to save a photo.

If any of this sounds at all familiar, that's because it is. Keep is Google's answer to Evernote. Getting current users to switch from Evernote will be next to impossible due to the fact that Evernote has over 34 million users and a four and a half year head start. Of course, Google may have snagged a few extra users right off the bat if they announced Keep in the wake of the Evernote security breach a few weeks back.

Google Keep may be a great product, but I don't think it will pull in the users that the big G is hoping for. Yes, mainly for Evernote and it's companion apps (Skitch, Evernote Food, and Evernote Hello), but more recently because some users are unsure whether or not the service will stay around. With Evernote, that is their sole business. If the service dies, the business dies. With Google, the service dies whenever they want it to die. Many users are still reeling from the death of Google Reader, myself included. Gigaom founder, Om Malik, said it best in his article on Gigaom.com:

"I spent about seven years of my online life on that service. I sent feedback, used it to annotate information and they killed it like a butcher slaughters a chicken. No conversation — dead. The service that drives more traffic than Google+ was sacrificed because it didn’t meet some vague corporate goals; users — many of them life long — be damned."

As for myself, I'll use Keep. I'll use it about as often as I use Evernote which, considering I have 18 notes since joining in October of 2009, it won't be often. But who knows! Maybe Google Keep will be handy enough and simple enough that I'll start using it more!

On the other hand...... nah, probably not. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go get some coffee.

Rest In Peace, My Beloved Google Reader

For a number of years now, I have been a daily user of Google Reader. Honestly, it is where I get close to 90% of my news from. It's how I stay up to date on what new gadgets are coming out and when, as well as hear about other current events.  Last night, I learned that Google would be discontinuing the service on July 1, 2013 as part of their "Spring Cleaning".

10 Reasons Daylight Saving Time is Evil!

Click to enlarge

Source: The Joy of Tech

There Is Such A Thing As "Too Easy"

Let me pose a hypothetical situation to you. Let's say your significant other passed away suddenly (sad, I know, but bear with me), and that person did both of your taxes, paid the bills, and other important tasks. That person was also the administrator to the computer with all those files that you will need... but it is password protected and you don't know what it is. You have tried and failed many times to guess what the password could be; the dog's name, kid's name, your name, etc., but nothing works. What are your options?

The majority of people would either take it to a computer shop to see if they can unlock it, or accept defeat and admit to themselves that all that data would be forever lost. But there is a third option, and it scares me.

What A Week!

If you're reading this site, then you know that I like to play with the new gadgets and software. Unfortunately, my wallet forbids me from buying the new gear when it comes out, so I have to settle for checking out software.

It's is no secret that Verizon Wireless is possibly the slowest when it comes to updating their phones' software, so if you want to play with the latest dessert treat from Google... you need to install it yourself. So I did. Eventually. You see, initially, I only wanted to update the camera software so I could check out the Photoshere feature in the Android 4.2 update. Unfortunately, when I installed the camera update, it broke. I couldn't open the camera nor the photo gallery.

Have You Been Scroogled?

Every now and then Microsoft likes to remind people that "Google goes through every Gmail that's sent or received". They do this in hopes of converting users to Outlook.com. Just over a week ago, Microsoft fired up their smear campaign again, and this time there's a commercial...

Thank You

I have noticed that my little tech blog here has hit somewhat of a milestone. Just a few moments ago, I saw that Will Work 4 Tech has surpassed the 10,000 view mark.

For those of you that have stopped by and read my ramblings, thank you. I am humbled. Ten thousand page views is quite an achievement for a blog of this size, and I am looking forward to writing more tech stories as well as learning about new technologies throughout the next 10,000 page views.

So again.... thank you.

One Reason Why I Dislike ISP's

Earlier today, I noticed an ad on a page I was visiting. I see ads on webpages all the time, but it's fairly rare when I stop and take notice of them. This was an exception, and it is one of the many reasons why ISP's annoy me with their "bundling" tactics. This is the ad that I saw:

This amount, is all but meaningless for a number of reasons. The charge for internet will never be just $20 because there will be taxes, service fees, equipment rental fees, etc., so it is more realistic to say it would be closer to $35 per month. But even that number is insignificant due to the requirement that the internet service is bundled with other products.

Someone Call Security!

I've long been an advocate of security on electronic devices. Whether it's your main computer, or your smartphone or tablet. Some sort of security software is always the first thing I install on a new device, and that is unlikely to ever change. And I'm not talking about anti-virus or malware (although those are important also)... I'm referring to software that can help you locate your device if it is lost, or worse, stolen.

I'm not sure if I have mentioned an app called Cerberus before, but in case I haven't, let me tell you a little story. Across the pond, in the United Kingdom, on a tech centered message board called Overclockers UK, a new thread was created called "This man knows who stole my phone, can anyone help". It continued:

"Well about 3 hours ago some lovely person let themselves into my friends house and stole amongst other things my mobile phone."

I'm Probably Going To Pay For This...

... but this was just too good not to share.

Maybe I'm Using Facebook Wrong

I have a strange feeling that I am not using Facebook correctly. You see, Facebook has introduced their newest feature that will be pushed out to everyone shortly called Social Graph. If you don't keep up with tech news (or even if you do) that title may confuse you. A better title for the feature would be something along the lines of... Facebook Search, because essentially... that's what it is. It's simply a way to find in-depth things about your friends on the social networking site, and if Facebook doesn't know, they turn you over to Bing for help. You can search for... well, anything! From friends in your town that like steak to married people that like prostitutes. Remember, if you put it on Facebook... it's public information, and now it's even more public.

How We Stopped SOPA

On January 18th, 2012... one year ago today... something incredible happened. The internet went dark. There wasn't any power outage or system failure, no it was bigger than that. The internet chose to go dark in protest of a bill in congress called the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA). Major websites like Google, Wikipedia, Reddit, and many more altered their websites to sensor it in some way to show what legislation such as SOPA could do if passed. And it worked. The internet rallied, and rose up in great numbers to fight for our internet freedom. That day will be immortalized in the history of the internet as a bright beacon of strength and unity.

Below is a video of a speech from Aaron Swartz, one of the front line fighters against SOPA. If you haven't seen Aaron Swartz's name lately, do a quick search for him. His story is fantastic in his accomplishments, yet tragically short in time. This video is his recollection of how we defeated an internet censorship bill, and showed congress that we will fight for what we believe in.

You can tell a lot about a person by the way others talk about them. After Aaron's passing, Sir Tim Berners-Lee (he invented the internet, by the way) took to Twitter:

Aaron dead. World wanderers, we have lost a wise elder. Hackers for right, we are one down. Parents all, we have lost a child. Let us weep.

Would You Bank in the Cloud?

I will admit that there are some apps out there that I do not know about until they arrive on the Android platform. Sometimes, even a very popular app, like Flipboard, can slip through unnoticed. I attribute this to the fact that I have no iOS device. The girlfriend has an iPod that is used for an alarm clock, but that is the only Apple branded object in our home. For that reason, I am behind the curve when it comes to iOS apps. And I got a little behind again.

I Learn Something New Every Day

I have been using Gmail for just under 6 years now, and somehow I still get surprised when I find out there is something new I'm able to do with the service. Unfortunately, now that I know this handy little trick, I want to update my email address on every site I have an account with!

We Have A New Contender!

Yesterday, in a very Apple-like virtual keynote, the founder of Ubuntu, Mark Shuttleworth, unveiled the plans to bring the popular operating system to the world of smartphones. It is certainly an uphill battle for them against the current crop of Apple and Android offerings... but it does look pretty good.