Internet and Electronic Commerce

Think Geek.com’s motto is “Stuff for smart masses” it is a website specializing in all things geeky and nerdy. There was a need for a place where the cool challenged could shop for items they required.  Think Geek.com has been around since 1999 and fills a niche for many who shop there.

 The website conveys a very positive message, that its ok to be who you are and not be afraid to show the world how you feel; that it is cool to embrace your inner geek, especially when you do it by buying Think Geek T-shirts.

 The company sells many uncommon items unique to their target demographic. They must be doing well in their endeavor, the site seems to have a bigger selection every time I visit it, umm I mean every time my friend visits it. Once you purchase something from the site, it remembers what it was and will send E-mails when something new arrives similar to what you had previously purchased. If my friend buys a Star Trek T-shirt from Think Geek.com, in the future when anything new arrives that is related to Star Trek it would let him know.

 

The design of the site is arranged to show as much merchandise as possible on the front page. It does so without looking too crowded or busy. The site uses frames, lines, and colors to separate different types of items. It also uses a consistent main menu on the upper left with submenus that generate links to items in that sub category. When you select a specific item it shows you all other related items. It is a very intuitive website in that respect. This is an excellent way of targeting the customer to view only those items she or he might be interested in purchasing. The site’s web pages loaded very quickly and I never encounted an error or bad page on the site.

Almost anyone can find something of interest on the site. However, most would not be willing to be seen outside warning a Wi-Fi detector shirt.

 http://terrymorris.net/bestpractices/

Read Full Post »

Wireless Networks

It is only in recent years that public wireless access points have become a familiar phenomenon. Now it seems they are springing up everywhere. Hotels, restaurants, and libraries seem to be the preferred spawning grounds.

 

While there are many locations in my area that have public wireless access points; the two that I find most interesting are my local McDonalds and Panera Bread Company. I can only surmise that they hope patrons will spend so much time reading the news on the internet that they have breakfast and lunch at the same table. McDonalds hopes to attract business people to dine on Mcnuggets while enabling them check their E-mail. Panera Bread wants us to sit back in a cushiony chair and surf the net while ordering double lattes and espressos. 

 

I have yet to see many patrons at McDonalds utilizing the wireless access connection. Perhaps it is utilized more in the early morning when I rarely haunt McDonalds. Therefore, I do not  think it has had much of an effect on  the regal ambiance of McDonalds. Panera Bread on the other hand, always has at least a few patrons clicking and scrolling madly at their laptops. It looks a bit strange to see these people in their own little worlds, oblivious or indifferent to their surroundings. I guess in some way it makes them feel as if they are out exploring the world, conquering one coffee table a time.

 

For me, when I go out, I do so to get away from the computer. The last thing I want to do is drag it along with me. Well, that may be because I own a desktop tower PC with a 19” monitor. I wonder if Panera Bread would let me set it up in a booth?

Wireless access point – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

free wi-fi Virginia Richmond Roanoke

 

Read Full Post »

Software

Microsoft Vista was not was as well received as Microsoft would have liked. I feel that are two main reasons why this is the case.

 

First reason it is that it lacked the proper drivers for many computer components. This created a huge headache for those that upgraded to Vista from older computers. It also requires a faster CPU and more RAM memory to run properly then Windows XP does. Microsoft recently released a server pack for Vista that reportedly corrects many of the driver issues. However, it still does not address the fact that Vista requires a state of the art computer to run properly.

 

The second reason is that Windows XP is an excellent Operating System. It is stable, compatible with all previous versions of windows and has three service packs that correct every know security flaw. A speed test in April  put Windows XP with service pack 3 faster then Vista 31% – 61% of the time when running identical applications on identical computers.

 

At this time, the incentive to upgrade to Vista is not that pressing. Since only a small fraction of users have upgraded, Microsoft’s solution is to stop selling it on new computers.  They have agreed to let the lower end laptops come installed with XP because Vista will not run on a low-end laptop. XP loyalist have started a petition to extend the life of XP, currently more than 200,000 people have signed it. Nevertheless, no matter how many people sign it, it will not save XP since Microsoft is more concerned with their stock prices then producing a quality product.

 

It is always best to wait 6 months to 1 year before upgrading to a new operating system. There will always be people who have to have the newest thing. Let them be the ones to lose all the data on their hard drives, or be hacked due to some security flaw. Many who jumped to Vista from XP found their computers took 5 times as long to boot up. Not exactly the upgrade they were expecting. This philosophy also holds true for service packs. XP service pack 3 had a flaw with Norton Anti Virus that caused major problems.  Take a wait and see attitude when it comes to new operating systems and service packs.

 

 Save Windows XP | InfoWorld

Microsoft: Windows XP faster than Vista SP1 in some cases

XP SP3 update corrupts Windows registry, users claim

Microsoft admits to XP SP3 flaw | News | OneStopClick

Vista slower than XP at start-up, shutdown, gripe users

Read Full Post »