If you are a user of any smart phone or pda device we’re pretty sure you have heard that you can use your phone to surf the net on your computer. By far this isn’t a new thing out, but with the latest advances in the technology it is becoming more and more a talked about feature.

This ability to use your smart phone as a modem actually has a recognized term which is called tethering.  The extended version of the definition is:

Tethering is the process of using a cell phone or smart phone as a modem for a personal computer of some sort – typically a laptop computer. The term gets its name from how a phone is attached, or tethered, to the computer via a USB cable, but wireless technologies such as Bluetooth can also be used for tethering. Typically the network carrier and the user’s account (contract) have to support tethering before it can be used.

What this means is that by plugging in your smart phone to your laptop, (ideally) you can use the connection you have to the internet on your phone provided by your phone company/corporation on your laptop or desktop and browse the internet.  This in itself is a great feature on to have on your phone because it means your mobility really can be endless.

There are a few things to keep in mind with this technology that can play a big role in your tethering experience. You are still subjected to your data plan with your phone company. Many companies charge a monthly fee to tether so call your carrier to get options. Also, you are also limited to the signal strength of the phone carrier. This simply means where your cell has great service, your tethering experience will be better.  

For those of us that really are addicted to work and are on the go all the time, tethering makes it possible.  If you have a capable phone and plan, test it out and let us know what you think about it.

After the amazing results with the website and logo we created for this one stop shop for all things entertainment, we were pleased to be contacted again to redo their business cards. JS Productions is Philadelphia’s premier dj, Elvis tribute and party rental companies. Visit the website we just redesigned for them at www.jsproductions.org for more info and check out how the cards came out.

While purchasing a machine either from a reseller or an internet store, there are many available options to consider when selecting the right machine for you and or your business. Between the amount of ram and the size of the hard drive being some of the more common customizable options, we are beginning to see the emergence of another significant choice. The choice between a 32 and 64 bit operating system has seemingly become a more viable option than many of the others.  This fact that this choice involves the operating system which is one of the main components of the computer itself, it makes you have to take a moment and decide which is better for you.

Where the 32 and 64 bit operating systems differ is in the ram (random access memory) cap that is imposed for operating systems and the driver/software incompatibility issues for 64 bit versions. For 32 bit operating systems you are required for Windows 7 (Microsoft’s latest operating system) 1gb (gigabyte) of ram and are capped at 4gb. For the 64 bit OS the minimum requirement is 2gb of ram and capped at 16gb. Simply put what this means is that the 64 bit operating system can process data faster because it can have a lot more memory to use to accomplish such.  From the software point of view the 64 bit operating system is new and the developers haven’t had the chance to catch up to the technology, thereby making software sometimes deficient if it is installed on the 64 bit platform.   

With this in mind the choice may be fairly simple, if you are ordering a machine with at least 4gb of ram, you should choose the 64 bit operating system. Take advantage of the newest technology and the ability to operate and become more efficient by having a faster running machine. From the software point of view, the developers are quickly catching up and are releasing software patches to utilize the new capabilities. So within the next year both the 64bit operating systems and software will coincide and the 32 bit operating system will began to slowly phase itself out.

Calcom Technologies supports and are actively using 64 bit operating systems on it Windows machines. Good luck in your hunt and if you need any help feel free to give us a call.