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Welcome To The Future

The world of business is constantly evolving. The technology that is growing with it is immense. So many companies have streamlined their business so that their processes are quick and easy, using such advanced technology. But with it constantly changing, it can be pretty hard to keep up. Depending what niche you’re in, they’ll be more advancements than others. For example, manufacturing relies on machinery and robots so heavily, that the industry has no choice but to keep evolving its technology. With this however, comes a few issues. Money being one of them, time, and human labour. There isn’t enough time to keep up with the demands of what’s changing. There isn’t enough money being pumped into technology innovation by the government. There isn’t enough skilled labourers to build the parts as quickly as people would like. The demand is so high, that we’re seeing more and more businesses struggle to keep up. However, it is common that businesses will fund their own innovative technology that is changing the world, let’s take a look at some of the tech that will revolutionise how the business world works, in particular, manufacturing.

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3D Printing

Possibly one of the most innovative pieces of technology to date. This is a process purely controlled by a computer. It’s basically layers of material that are constructed by the orders of a computer, to form a 3D object. Usually, they’re created to mimic an object already created, but they can be used to create brand new designs. This however, is much more confusing. The benefits this brings to businesses is huge. Time saving is one of them. Compiling the product itself using manual labour would take ages. A machine can do it in a matter of hours, and will do a much more precise job. There are so many components working at the same time to give you the perfect output. The parts are usually manufactured by multiple different companies. A 3D printing company with then compile them all to work seamlessly to create a perfect product. For example, the MOON’S brushless motors are handcrafted by that company, as is the thermocouple. It is wise to be done this way, as the companies designing the separate parts are experts in their field. Precision is another positive, rarely any faults occur compared to when a human hand is producing the product. The only negative side is the fact they are rather expensive. Money’s no object to some companies that just want to deliver quality products. However, for smaller businesses it may be a bit of a set back.

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Robotics

Robotics is now becoming a huge part of business. Again, especially in the world of manufacturing, and automotives. It can also be widely seen in medicine. However, we’re going to mainly focus on the benefits it gives to manufacturing and automotives. The main being speed. Robots are programmed to act in the same way as humans. They are essentially meant to be mimicking the movements a human would make. However, everyone knows a human has the tendency to become a little lazy now and again. With robots, they’re working at maximum efficiency all the time. So in theory, they’ll be doing a quicker job. They don’t need to take breaks either, further speeding up production time. Most companies choose to still use humans along side robots. This is mainly due to the fact that just like humans can have days off sick, robots can break. And unlike humans, they aren’t always the easiest to fix. However, on the whole they are generally much more reliable. Car manufactures in particular love using robots due to the fact they are so clean. During some points of the manufacturing process, suits have to be worn, and rooms have to be completely sealed in order for no dust particles to enter. Using robots eliminates this risk factor. They’re also so much more precise. They have the skills and stability to perform tasks that an unsteady human hand might not be able to do. Overall, they’re such a great addition to so many companies and production lines. Robotics technology is only going to improve over the coming years.

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IT

IT already played such a huge role within a business. From just computers in the office, to huge servers managing different aspects. The way the technology is evolving in terms of IT is huge. The power of computers is taking over the way processes are run. Whether it be in house, or outhouse, companies are constantly find new ways for IT to improve their business. Let’s use servers as an example. Huge companies that rely on a lot of software and other components may have their servers in house. Smaller companies will choose to use companies outside to manage them. Simply because servers are just so hard to control. The issues that can arise with them can be devastating, so it may be cheaper for companies to have a managed server outside of their company. However, in-house servers are safer in terms of, you can manage what goes on with them. Pretty much everything has had to evolve to be on the internet. Services, marketing, sales, you name it, it’ll be on the internet. So the speed and functions of IT systems has greatly improved. There’s now fiber optic broadband that businesses use to speed up their in house processes. Website design is unparalleled compared to what it used to be. The power of social media to influence marketing among a given audience is also huge. Your business will literally rely on IT for the rest of time. It is for the most part reliable, however, things such as copyright and trade marking etc. need to be closely monitored. Utilise IT and the web to make your business better.

The future of tech in the business world, as you can see, is constantly evolving. Before we know it, we may have machines, computers, or robots fully taking over the role of humans. It’ll be interesting to see where these three factors are in the next 50 years.

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Why Your Business Needs To Fully Embrace Technology

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Your business already uses technology in its day to day workings, of course. Every company uses computers and the internet; it would be impossible to reach clients and deliver any sort of service in the modern age without using at least some manner of technology within your business’ operations. Nonetheless, that doesn’t mean your business is fully utilizing the potential of current and upcoming technologies in the modern age. You need to have your eyes on the digital industry so that you can spot new and exciting opportunities to really build your small or medium-sized company into a real empire with the help of computer science. Here are some reasons as to why your business needs more technology.

Automation is the future.

One of the most intriguing ways in which technology has changed business over recent years is through the increasing improvement of automated systems. Of course, the big question that scares people is: “When will computers become as smart as humans?” However, singularity isn’t really a concept that should scare you. As a business owner, the idea that you could automate increasingly complex tasks with the beauty of artificial intelligence should be exciting; it means free labor (until computers become self-aware and demand equal pay).

Still, you don’t have to fire employees just yet or worry about a computer taking over your role. We most likely won’t be completely replacing humans with robots in our lifetime (perhaps that’ll be a worry for people a few hundred years from now), but it is becoming increasingly possible to help your employees use their time more efficiently. Utilizing new programs, such as accounting software, you can leave administrative and menial tasks to automated systems so that your workers can focus their brainpower on more complex and creative issues. Essentially, your company can increase its workforce virtually, save money, and maximize time. And whilst automated labor has been replacing manual labor for many years already, the ways in which it does so are looking to multiply over coming years. That’s why you need to keep your eye on new technological solutions.

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Exist on the cloud.

What is important to understand is that the cloud isn’t infinite or disconnected from the physical realm (that’s a big shocker, I know). Cloud computing is physically based but what makes it a better solution than storing your business’ data on-site is that it can increase security, reduce the costs that come with a large server room, and help to keep your workforce connected online. It means any remote workers can access company files online, for example, but it’s secure and smart enough to block out unwanted access. It means your business’ data is backed up offsite should something ever happen to your company’s physical premises. The positives are endless.

You have two options: you can either fully embrace technology or your business can be left behind. The world may have changed but the way in which business works remains the same. You need to stay ahead of the curve if you want to be successful; you can’t always play catch-up. Consumers are looking for stand-out solutions and you have to be ready to separate yourself from the cloud; simply “having technology” isn’t enough. What are you doing to address the gap in the market? Are you fully embracing technology to offer more to potential customers?

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Will Autonomous Cars Eliminate Accidents? Don’t Count On It

There is a lot of hype and excitement surrounding autonomous cars with some people believing that they could take the level of accidents on the road down to zero someday soon. But before we get carried away, there are a few things to consider here.

Autonomous Cars Are In Their Infancy Stages

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You might think that the tech surrounding autonomous cars is highly advanced and it is. However, it’s still in its infancy stages. You can think about these cars like the first laptops that appeared on the market. They were bulky, used a lot of power and were nothing compared to the ones that we have today. Well, that’s a great way to look at the autonomous car market. Right now, there’s only one or two developers of autonomous cars meaning that customers don’t have a wide range of choices. And when they do, there’s going to be significant difference in the level of the tech. Some cars will be completely hands-free while others will be glorified versions of cruise control. As such, the tech just isn’t at the stage where it can be the massive advancement in safety that people are hoping for. If you don’t believe this, be sure to check out the advice that Tesla provide to owners of their self-driving vehicles.

Tesla explicitly state that drivers still need to pay attention to the roads, even keeping both hands on the wheel. Since Tesla are currently the producer developing the most advanced form of this tech, one has to wonder how autonomous these cars actually are. After all, there have already been reports of cars crashing because the drivers weren’t paying attention to the road. That brings us to the next point.

Distracted Driving

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What causes the most car accidents on the road? If you speak to a an accident attorney from firms like Jones Wilson, they will probably tell you it’s distractions. We often associate distractions with talking on our phones while driving. But a distraction can be anything. It could be fiddling with the sound on the radio, an argument going on in the back seat or someone flipping you the bird. Anything like this can be a distraction that could ultimately lead to an accident. Will autonomous cars be able to fix this issue? Probably not because don’t forget, the man who crashed his self-driving Tesla car was actually watching Harry Potter at the time.

But let’s assume for the moment that the tech is advanced enough to do whatever you want while the car is driving itself. It isn’t, but let’s imagine for a moment it is. There’s still another issue that we can’t ignore, and that’s the situation with rights.

Licence To Drive

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Imagine that you’re a teenager and you have just learned to drive ten or twenty years from now. Congratulations! You probably can’t wait to get your hands on a wheel and take a car for a spin. But wait, a law passed a couple of years ago prohibits driver cars being allowed on the roads. Just take a moment and think about whether a law like that would be passed. Don’t forget, plenty of people enjoy driving. You might say, well that’s okay because people who want to drive still can and those that don’t can use driverless cars. Cool but if you take that tactic you’ll never get to zero accidents on the road because human error will still be a factor. Though, if the majority chose to buy self driving cars, then you would see a sharp, massive reduction in the number of accidents. Note we did say, If.

Concerns Of Cost

Despite energy efficient alternatives being readily available to majority of people still buy cars with petrol and diesel engines. Why? Some people may just prefer a true gas engine, but the majority just can’t afford to buy a car like this. Even second-hand, they are still far too expensive for the average individual. So, if people can’t afford to buy a car like this, what are the chances they’ll be able to afford one that can drive itself. For at least a few years, this tech is going to be out of reach for the majority of the buying public.

So you see the only way autonomous cars leads to safer roads is by making several assumptions. The tech has to be cheap, the tech has to be reliable, and the tech needs to be advanced enough to work without human interference. Right now, none of these assumptions are true, and it’s unlikely this will change in our lifetime. 

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A Bitter Pill: The Effects Of Giving Your Children Tablets & Smartphones

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It’s a common part of society now, everyone has their smartphone glued to their hands, and people would rather flick of their finger back and forth on a small screen rather than engage the person next to them in conversation. But the biggest place where it’s having an impact is at home with your family, and, more specifically, your children. A lot of young children are already addicted to tablets. And it seems that by the age of two, most children already know how to use a smartphone or a tablet, so is this a little premature? But also what are the negative effects of your child having a smartphone or a tablet at such a young age?

 

It Becomes Their First Addiction

As we all know, it’s very difficult for us to put down or smartphone for any lengthy period of time anymore. Think about this in terms of an infant, where between the ages of 0 and 2 years old, their brain will triple in size. And if their brain space is taken up by an allegiance to this electronic device, not only do they become addicted to it, but it also doesn’t teach them how to control their impulses or to even challenge themselves, both of which are traits of an addictive personality.

 

Your Relationship With Your Child Can Be Fractured

If the tablet becomes their priority, this gets in the way of any young child developing proper personal bonds, which means they will struggle to utilize their emotions, and they will struggle to form bonds with other people down the years. In addition to this, any time you take away their tablet or smartphone, it will result in temper tantrums, which aren’t pleasant to deal with. We tend to think that we are keeping them quiet for 5 minutes by giving them a tablet. However this kind of behavior will self-perpetuate itself, and you may find that you have got into a desperate cycle of pacifying your child with a tablet for an excessive amount of time.

 

The Health And Safety Concerns

It has been widely spoken off that if you go to bed with your smartphone, it will suppress your melatonin, known as the sleep hormone, and therefore it becomes a struggle to have and maintain good quality sleep. Couple this with the all too real concern of mobile phones and tablets catching fire, this is something for every parent to be concerned about. If, heaven forbid, your child fell asleep with their tablet under their pillow, and it caught fire that would be a terrible thing to endure as a parent. There may be some sense of redemption in hiring accident lawyers to fight for a product liability claim, but this would be low on your list of priorities if your child were severely hurt by their tablet. We all think nothing of plugging in our phones to charge at night, but this is the time when you are most at risk.

 

It’s Incredibly Distracting

Children growing up with a smartphone are being distracted in many ways. It is argued that these devices can have an impact on the hands on approach to completing tasks. So, for children in school who are solely relying on their tablet or smartphone, their sensorimotor or visual motor skills may be very underdeveloped. By being distracted by their phones, there’s a high chance that they are not being as creative or imaginative as the average child used to be. In fact, with the wealth of information at your fingertips now, it means that there is less engaging with the brain, and the ability to recall information is not used as much as it used to. A good example is that instead of trying to remember a fact for the purposes of debate, they can simply look up the information. This can be argued as a good thing in one respect, but on the other side of the equation, this means that everyone, not just children, are not using their brain the way it was meant to be used.

 

It’s Stopping Interaction

This is all too obvious to everyone, but if we as adults are not interacting with people more, how is this affecting our children? And if you think back to the playground in school, you actually played; you didn’t sit in the corner on your phone. This lack of interaction and engagement with other people is showing in the increase in obesity in our children, but it’s also a critical signpost of how future generations may be ill-equipped to deal with basic human emotional processes.

 

You may have already given your children that smartphone or tablet, but with these, and many other dangerous symptoms of being glued to a screen, it’s time to take them back. It is, indeed, a bitter pill to swallow.

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A Handy Tool for Rendering Computer Help Remotely

Are you computer savvy? Even just a little bit more than most people you know? Well, if you are, they probably know it. And, when they need help with their computers, chances are, they call you, right? And, unless you live close enough to simply hop over to their place within minutes, you probably have to help them remotely, over the phone. And, when you do, you come to realize why doctors often refuse to make a diagnosis over the phone.

Windows 10 Start Menu. 11/27/2015

 

 

It can be really frustrating to identify a computer problem over the phone and even tougher to correct it, as you have to guide the person who you’re helping and they may not always understand, or be as familiar as you are, with what you’re trying to tell them. And it often doesn’t matter that they may be as computer savvy or literate as yourself. When I worked for a large company in the past, I often had to try to describe technical problems to our IT department, and I often wished I had some kind of camera that would allow them to see what I was talking about, because it was still difficult at times for both sides to “see” the same problem.

Well, there is a free software program that can really help in this regard. It’s called, Team Viewerand it’s really great! If you ever allowed a tech company to remotely control your computer to diagnose a problem for you, Team Viewer is similar. How it works is, you go to the website, download it, and install it on your computer, and also have the other person do the same. You’ll also see more information about Team Viewer, including resources for both business and personal use. The website is quite informational.

The program will install a desktop shortcut like the one pictured once it is installed. Then both you and the other person call each other and then each of you will click on the shortcut on your computers. This will bring up  the team viewer windows.

 

 

 

 

 

The person needing your help will then give you their password, which you enter into a field on your Team Viewer window. You’ll then see the other person’s computer and your mouse will move the cursor on their screen. They can still move the cursor and see their own screen as well. You can then see what they are seeing and can correct the problem for them or guide them while seeing what they are actually doing and what actually happens when the problem shows up if it is not readily apparent. This means you can see the problem as it really is, which makes it much easier to identify and correct!

It’s really helped me since my cousin told me about it. As I often help a few of my relatives with their computers, and with them living quite a distance from me, it has made it much easier to identify and correct problems on their computers.

If you’re worried about having someone else have control of your computer, just remember, they cannot get control until you give them your password, which changes every time you open Team Viewer. Your mischievous nephew cannot take control of your computer on a whim. He would have to have you turn your computer on and give him the current password.

And, there is a Team Viewer app for Chromebooks, which can then be used to diagnose problems on other computers, whether they are Chromebooks or regular Windows pc’s or laptops.

So, if you are the go-to person when your friends or relatives need computer help, Team Viewer is for you!

Happy computing!

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Autonomous Cars Will Do More Than Just Drive You To Work

Autonomous cars are perhaps the most exciting invention of the 21st century so far. From humble beginnings almost a decade ago, driverless cars have become something that is now discussed in the mainstream and something that practically every major carmaker is working towards right now.

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Autonomous cars will do more than just take you to work or bring you home from the pub if you’re drunk: many experts are predicting that they will fundamentally reshape our society, just as the original automobile did. Just think for a second what the world would look like if cars, trucks, and motorcycles had never been invented. Our cities would look very different, that’s for sure. We’d all be crowded into the center to be closer to services. And there wouldn’t be mile after mile of road and parking lot. Perhaps horses would still roam the streets.

 

The latest predictions from the car industry itself is that we will see autonomous vehicles emerge onto our roads between 2020 and 2025. Tesla thinks that it might be able to get there sooner. And Audi has indicated that it is already at level 3 autonomy and will soon be moving onto level 4. What’s interesting about the current drive to driverless cars is that it doesn’t rely on the usual car model cadence. Instead, the most cutting edge vehicles, like the Tesla Model 3, can be updated wirelessly. In other words, cars are moving towards a platform model where your car can receive new updates like your phone operating system, and customers can enjoy the benefits immediately.

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Will we just have autonomous cars, or will other vehicles also become driverless? The answer to that question appears to be unequivocal “yes.” There are already dozens of prototype vehicles under construction and being trialed in the real world that suggests that autonomy is coming to all categories of vehicle. For instance, there are already flying car prototypes being developed by people like Google founder Larry Page. And other companies, like Daimler, are testing autonomous trucks on US and German roads. The hope is that businesses will be able to buy autonomous fleets by 2025, slashing their wage bills and lowering prices for consumers. We may also see a proliferation of new classes of vehicle, like sidewalk drones which will do everything from clean up the streets to deliver pizzas.

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Will you need to insure your car, truck or motorcycle through Johnson or another company? That’s not clear yet. According to industry experts, it is predicted that insurance will still be required because there is still a risk. Even though autonomous cars are expected to reduce the number of accidents by more than 90 percent, there is still a chance that they will hit pedestrians and cyclists if they step out into the road unexpectedly. As with any technology, there are still risks, but many of those risks can’t be abated by the technology itself. They require pedestrians to make better decisions and observe the road more carefully, something which they are unlikely to do.

 

The question of who will ultimately cash in on this autonomous extravaganza remains to be seen. This is going to be one of the growth industries of the early 21st century, but it’s not yet clear who will win. The early indications seem to suggest that it won’t be the carmakers themselves (except Tesla possibly). Instead, it looks like it is going to be the people who develop the autonomous software and hardware. Nvidia, the computer graphics chip company, has seen its share price rocket to astronomical levels over the last couple of years or so following its foray into deep learning and the autonomous car market. AMD, though lagging a little behind Nvidia in the car space, is another company which could potentially break into the market and make a lot of money. Its share price has quadrupled over the last 18 months.

 

What we do know is that incumbent firms are usually unwilling or unable to change. What usually happens is that they don’t change from within so they are disrupted from the outside. When it comes to autonomous cars, the majority of big car makers are making the right noises, but whether they really understand how autonomy will change the market is debatable. Even today, five years after Tesla launched its wireless updates for the Model S, no other major manufacturer has done the same. In other words, it doesn’t appear as if they understand the new paradigm or are able to transition towards it. Thus, we could see some of the big names in the global auto industry fall by the wayside.

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Want Great Sound? Get a Blue Tooth Speaker!

Hi everyone! I’ve been curious about these portable blue tooth speakers lately. I did have some computer speakers that could be used alone with my mp3 player, but they required an additional plug-in to an electrical wall socket and also weren’t very loud, despite being of otherwise good quality. I had another set that was completely portable that I could also use with my mp3 player. The great points for this set of speakers were that they were very light weight, required neither an additional plug-in to an electrical socket or computer or anything else, and also required no batteries! I would just plug them into my mp3 player and they worked. But they were extremely weak and just being more than about 5 feet away from them meant not really hearing what was playing.

Both sets had some extra wires to contend with and neither set could really fill the room with sound.

I’d seen the portable blue tooth speakers in stores and found most to be quite impressive sound-wise, and have no wires to contend with, but I really wasn’t sure if these speakers would work as well in my place, especially the smaller ones. And many of them are pricey, especially if they are of any size, and many don’t have a battery life of more than 10 hours.

So, a couple of weeks ago, I decided to check them out on Amazon, as I can often find more varieties here than at almost any store, plus with reviews and usually more information, and I found one I liked, with a 24 hour battery life and the ability to connect with non-blue tooth items via an auxiliary audio cable, like the one I sometimes use to connect my mp3 player to my car’s stereo, so I can listen to my playlists on long trips. And it only cost $30!

 

This is it. And I am very satisfied!

Buttons on top include the power button, volume down, play/pause, volume up, and blue tooth. This area, which goes around the speaker via the top and bottom, is rubberized so the speaker won’t slip easily.

Many portable blue tooth speakers have some sort of rubberized surface, and some are even made to be water-resistant with the outdoors in mind.

 

 

And, it is just under 7 inches long!

And light enough to take anywhere! I’ve known people who pair these speakers to their phones and take the speakers with them where ever they go.

And the sound? It is great! Once you connect it via blue tooth to your phone, or computer or other device, you will notice the difference right away! This speaker, despite its small size, will fill the room, and possibly your whole house, with great sound!

So how long will it play? I haven’t yet played it for a really long time, but it’s battery life is rated at 24 hours and the reviews seem to bear this out.

It does come with a micro usb cable which can be used to charge the speaker using a computer or a wall charger with usb ports. You can also use any wall charger with a micro usb plug-in.

 

 

But of course, the blue tooth connectivity is the best feature of these speakers, as you don’t need any type of wired connection to use it with another blue tooth capable device! And you can pair many of these speakers with multiple devices, as well. So you can take one of these speakers and play the music files from your laptop through the speaker, and can take the speaker into the bathroom while you shower, or onto the porch or balcony, or into the kitchen, and enjoy great sound!

Do bear in mind, these speakers do have a range and this range varies from speaker to speaker. Mine has a range of 66 feet, which is more than enough for my place, but some have a range of 30 feet, so if you have a mansion, you would want to take this into account.

Also, many of these speakers allow the use of an auxiliary audio cable so you can attach that old, non-blue tooth mp3 player to the speaker and still enjoy great sound!

And, you don’t have to spend a lot to still get a quality speaker. Checking YouTube to see if there are comparisons between the one you are interested in with other well-known brands can help with your research also. So, if you want great sound that you can take with you, think about a blue tooth speaker!

Happy listening!

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The Silent Revolution In LED Lighting

When you think of the big technological breakthroughs of the digital era, what do you think of? Perhaps the invention of the internet, cloud computing or artificial intelligence.

 

But while these technologies are no doubt impressive, there’s arguably been an equally important technological revolution going on right under our noses, yet few people have even noticed it.

Wikipedia

 

LED lights were once fabulously expensive. But today, because of improvements in production technology and scale, the costs of producing them has come down by many orders of magnitude. In fact, they’re now so cheap that they rarely cost more than 50 percent more than standard fluorescent lights. That might sound like a lot, but remember than  lights use about a tenth of the energy of standard lights and last ten times longer!

 

Increasing Uses For LED Lights

 

LED lights have made it into all kinds of new applications you would never have thought of. Not only are they being installed in the home, but they’re also being used in business settings to not only cut costs but drive profits. Tom Sawyer Construction LED canopy lights are a type of lighting used by gas stations. Like other companies in the industry, Tom Sawyer has moved towards LED lighting for a number of reasons. But the main reason is that customers prefer LED lighting. Gas stations that use LEDs typically go on to make more profit than those that don’t.

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One of the reasons for this might be the fact that LED lights are able to more accurately reproduce white light than many standard lights. This, in turn, helps make colors appear more natural and vibrant, especially at night.

 

LEDs are also being used increasingly in agriculture. Before LEDs, the idea of having an indoor farm was laughable. Futurists experimented with the notion of “vertical farming,” where plants were layered on top of each other in giant factories, helping save on space, water, and fertilizer. But it was only really a dream until the emergence of LEDs. The reason it couldn’t work before was that providing the plants with light was both too expensive and too hot. Old forms of lighting, including incandescent and fluorescent, aren’t actually very efficient at converting energy into light. For a standard bulb, only around 10 percent of the total energy that reaches the filament gets turned into photons. The rest is just wasted heat. That wasted heat is annoying for most people since it increases their energy bills, but for vertical farms, it’s a huge problem: temperatures from all the lighting needed to keep the plants alive might kill them.

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With LEDs, however, more than 90 percent of the energy they receive gets turned into light. And so the same problems don’t occur. In fact, light from LEDs is so cheap, we’re currently seeing an explosion in the number of indoor farms operating profitably, especially in the Far East.

 

LEDs are here to stay. They’re finding their ways into all sorts of applications and making new business models possible. Only the future will tell what they’ll do next.

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Log Onto A Digital Career!

We live in a world that is constantly evolving and changing, and this has never been more prevalent than in the digital world. The world is getting smarter: smartphones, tablets, smart televisions and instant access to information make our planet as switched on as ever. Due to this, careers in the digital world are on the rise and digital education is becoming increasingly popular.

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When people think of working in the digital field, their minds immediately think of IT. For some, a career in IT is not appealing, but it’s important to know that a digital career embraces far more than just the IT field. Sure, there are careers in SAP and various niche specialties, but there is also digital marketing, website building and graphic design that are all important players in a digital game. The skills required for a digital career do vary by industry, and researching your options thoroughly before deciding which route to go down is very important.

The education required for a career in the digital world is often complex, but thankfully there is a huge amount of choice out there. If you want to work in an IT field, it makes sense to study at a school of computing and if you hold an interest in the way computers process their information, you’d be on the right path. For those who love to be creative, then studying graphic design tech skills would be right. Graphic design is so much more than drawing now, especially with the popularity of websites that need designing and building, as well as companies requiring branding help.

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Making the right subject choices at school level will greatly help you embark in a career in digital media. If the school you are in doesn’t offer computer sciences or digital technology as an option, don’t panic! There are so many other subjects that can support your interest and once you go into college and study at a higher level, you can take the knowledge you have gained from those subjects and maximise on those.

The world of marketing is increasingly needing professionals and experts who specialise in digital media development, user experience and digital marketing. Everything in the world is moving online at a rapid pace, and the development of websites and social media advertising means that more careers are being carved out in this industry. There is so much that digital technology is influencing, that even jobs in the retail industry are being influenced and affected by the digital world. This means that there is room for digital careers in every industry.

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The changes that digital is bringing to today’s jobs include the need for new skills and the opportunity to be exposed to new skills. More and more colleges across the globe are picking up courses and degrees within the digital world. Leading universities are changing their curriculums to go with the changing needs in the digital world. This is allowing more and more people to study a digital field, including programming and HTML. HTML is becoming more of a second language for people working in the IT industry, and this bleeds into careers in digital creative marketing. If you decide to go for a career in the digital world, your skills will be transferable across so many avenues that you are spoilt for choice in which way to go.

The rise in the digital career gives people far more scope for entrepreneurial activity and innovative thinking. You could start a business from home with your knowledge of design or digital media development. Even IT professionals are branching out as freelancers and making their own way in the digital business world. The roles you currently work in could see a change in its description, especially if you are working in one of the many branches of technology. The change in your job description will allow you to gain training in digital technology and eventually expand into the area.

Choosing a career in digital is not an easy option. You are choosing to learn about an industry that makes significant changes and evolves very quickly year on year. If you want to work in a field that has constant upgrades, constant learning and a constant need for people to work, you would be right in choosing your career to be in digital technology. Everyone wants a career they can expand in, and digital tech is no different!

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Modern Changes to the Auto Industry You Can’t Miss

All industries change and grow to meet the demands of customers, as well as give people things they didn’t even know they needed. The automotive industry is no different and, like many others, continues to embrace new technology and find ways to use innovations in different areas. If you’re interested in cars or other vehicles, it’s worth keeping up with how the automotive industry is changing. It could help you make a decision about your next car, or maybe it will help your career if you’re involved with the industry. Have a look at some of the ways the industry has become more modern in recent years.

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The Move Online

The internet has played an increasingly important role in the automotive industry, just like it has in many others. It provides a source of information for people looking to buy a car, as well as sell one, service one, and much more. People can use the internet to compare prices and can even buy a new car completely online. Buying online saves time and money because there’s no need to visit a dealership. If you look at the Cars & Co new Lexus deals, you’ll see how much you could potentially save by buying online. There are many other things you can do online too. If you’ve lost your car’s manual, find a new one online. If you need car insurance quotes, look online.

Autonomous Functionality

The idea of vehicles that do things on their own is a huge one in the auto industry. The big concept that many people are obsessed with is self-driving cars. While having them on the road could still be a while away, there are other autonomous technologies you can get in modern cars. For example, there are the models that have built-in automatic parking. All you need to do is press a button, and the car can neatly park itself without you having to navigate a tight space. Driverless cars might not be that far off, either. Ford wants to mass produce them from 2021.

Tapping into the Sharing Economy

The sharing economy is something that has grown a lot over the last few years. Several business models within it are based around vehicles, such as the Uber type business. The automotive industry is making moves toward providing for these types of businesses. For example, they are starting to explore how to connect with ride-sharing and car-sharing companies. This could include things like the creation of new dealership networks and leasing organizations.

The Environment

There has been a big focus on the environment in recent years. An increase in hybrid and electric cars, as well as places to charge electric cars, means it’s easier to find a more eco-friendly vehicle. Even cars that aren’t hybrids or electric are more energy efficient to help them use less fuel. Not only does this make cars greener, but it also helps owners to save money.

The auto industry continues to innovate and offer new things to consumers. You could benefit from some of these innovations when you buy your next car.

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