Author Archives: Brad

Light Saber for Adults?

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At first thought, the Spyder 3 Arctic is a cool toy with which to play. It brings to mind Star Wars laser fights and who did not enjoy the scenes from that movie. Every kid had light saber fights at some point in their lives, didn’t they?

More uses than you would think

Besides the fact that you can tell all your friends you have a laser, the laser does have practical uses. You can start a fire with it. The laser can set paper on fire, cardboard and small sticks. It can also be seen for miles. Besides the constant high intensity mode, low intensity strobe and high intensity strobe, there is the distress mode. These are all beam intensities. The distress mode can flicker in a Morse Code S. O. S. pattern. This feature, along with the ability to light fires, can be a lifesaver in a situation where you are lost in the woods. It could save your life if you are trapped in a hole somewhere that no one can hear you too.

Potentially Dangerous!

If we face the facts, this toy is not really a toy. In the wrong hands, it could be dangerous. This could be said for many other products though. The safety features like Smartswitch make the device a little less scary. The button to turn on the beam does not work until a sequence of button pushes is entered. It’s like the child safety cap idea for laser beams.

Another potential danger is the powerful light beam itself. While most people are not going to leave the beam on their skin for any length of time, they will look at the beam not realizing it could be causing damage. The beam on your skin will burn within seconds. The effects on your eyes will not be seen immediately. The laser comes with safety glasses free in every package. Just like we know not to stare at the sun, we should know not to stare too long at bright lights.

So, to sum it all up in some cool facts; the laser looks like a light saber and can bring us mentally back to a simpler time of real light saber fights with friends. It is completely legal to own this cool piece of gear. You can tell everyone you actually own a light saber. The laser can light fires, and it can be seen from miles away and can pulse in Morse Code. This could save your life at some point. You never know until you actually need it. It is being tested by The Guinness Book of World Records as the most powerful hand held laser.

Why Does Everyone Claim to Have the Best Diet Pill EVER!

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Every company claims to have the best diet pills on the market. Each ad touts how the products are revolutionary and ground-breaking with never-before-seen results. The before and after pictures alone are enough to send anyone who is struggling with his or her weight, which is about 70% of the American public, reaching for the shelves. With results like these, you would be crazy not to try them, right?

Not so fast. People who are anxious to drop a few pounds are willing to believe almost anything when it comes to weight loss schemes. Our bodies are made to store fat as a defense mechanism against starvation. Once that fat is attached, the body fights to keep it. We must work ever harder to rid ourselves of extra pounds, and as we get older, and hormone levels drop, it becomes harder still. Reducing caloric intake is hard and finding time to exercise is even harder for most people. When a fad diet claims to shed pounds in only a few days, or when a diet pill offers to do all of the work for you, it is hard to resist believing.

Weight loss drugs are arguably the worst culprit in exaggerating diet results. Each one says it is the best on the market, but most of them work in the same way and probably don’t work at all. When sold over-the-counter, the FDA does not regulate these types of pills, so the efficacy is in question immediately, as is the safety. According to the Mayo Clinic, there are only a handful of ingredients used in OTC weight loss pills, and the only ones that have officially been proven to be effective are orlistat, sibutramine, and ephedra. Orlistat is under investigation for causing liver damage. Sibutramine and ephedra have been banned because they can kill you.

Just because the FDA hasn’t proven that these drugs work doesn’t mean that the results advertised are false. The people you see in the ads are real. Their weight loss is real. They probably took the pills they are selling. They probably also read the fine print that comes with each drug. Every weight loss pill suggests that, along with the daily supplement, you follow an exercise regimen and reduce your caloric intake. Does that sound familiar? The drugs that help people to lose a few pounds or stay in shape work in one of three ways. They claim to burn fat, suppress the appetite, or increase energy, but the true weight loss comes from exercise and calorie restriction. It could be that the pills that claim to be the best ever can slightly help you to achieve your goals, but wouldn’t you rather save the money you’re spending on pills on the new wardrobe you’ll need when the weight is all gone?

Apple AirPrint – Nope, It Cant AirScan and it SUCKS

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Users of the Apple iPad are very excited about the prospect of having the ability to print documents from ‘thin air’ from their favorite toy, but is it really a fact, yet? Apple recently released their highly touted AirPrint feature and it’s a wonderful thing, but there is only one problem: It only works on a handful of the hundreds of printers available to the public. HP must be loving this shortcoming though, as theirs are the ONLY printers that the feature works with to date.

AirPrint works by finding printers over WI-FI and will print photos, graphics and text documents and does not require any downloads or drivers. The catch is that you have to use the HP ePrint enabled version of their existing or upcoming models. If you already own one of these, then you can rock and roll now, but for the rest of the technologically challenged world, guess it’s time to go shopping.

Now if you aren’t ready to purchase a new printer just yet, here is a great way to work around the problem and still print stuff from your iPad. Are you ready? This is some really high tech stuff so prepare yourself: Take your iPad, lay it face down on the copy machine with the picture or document you want to print on the screen, and… Are you ready? Press ‘Copy.’ Voila! You have just printed your document! Now wasn’t that easy?

Now don’t get discouraged! There are actually some real work-arounds and third party programs that will allow you to print using the AirPrint feature and not have to spend a small fortune or sell off your first born to enjoy. If you are one of the non-technologically challenged crowd and have upgraded to iOS 4.2, you have a few options. Ecamm Network has developed a nice little software workaround with the Printopia program. Reasonably priced at around $10, it seems it can do what the people at Apple neglected to. They even added a little bonus, giving you the option to convert files to either JPG or PDF formats.

Another nifty option in overcoming the curiously understated AirPrint deficiencies is from Eurosmartz. Also very reasonably priced, their offering of Print Bureau looks like it might be a possibility. Reviews of the product reported that the program enabled access to email, photos, calendars and a host of other items, cloud-based or locally. There have been reports of inconsistencies with results so you probably wouldn’t want to use this program for printing out that ‘big presentation’ for the boss, but for everyday printing and access it looks like a great alternative.

If you decide to brave the wild frontier of AirPrinting, remember that patience is a virtue and sometimes the anticipation is just as much fun as the actual event. Apple will eventually get it fixed so you can use it will all of your toys, but for now I guess we just need to be content with the anticipation of upcoming innovations.

Most Web Hosting Review Websites Are Fake

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So you’re looking for a web host where you can build that website/webcomic/webseries/weblog/webwhatever that will make you rich and famous (or at least, well known with your bills paid on time). You’re reading some reviews of web hosts and wondering how they can all be the very best host around. Well here’s some news for you: the vast majority of those reviews were written by a paid writer. Here are some questions to ask yourself when reading those reviews:

How Many Sites Does the Reviewer Run?

When the reviewer puts themselves forth as some kind of expert on web hosts, you have to wonder, how did they become so informed on the subject? How can they give a full page review of all these different websites? The only way these guys could really be being honest in all these reviews is if they had actually subscribed to, and built a website with, every single one of these hosts, and then developed that site over several months to see how the host performs over time. Anyone running dozens of websites at once is someone that doesn’t have time to write reviews of web hosting sites.

Does the Extra Dollar Really Matter?

There are web hosting review sites out there that praise one web host or another for being mere pennies less expensive than the nearest competitor. If you can actually build a successful website, one that will pay for the hosting and registration fees many times over, do you really care that you saved fifty cents on the hosting costs? Unless you’re just starting out and have a budget of exactly $7.49 to build your website, you really don’t care that the other host costs $7.99.

You know who does, though? A paid writer who’s been told to explain why his client’s hosting site is better than the nearly-identical competitor’s hosting site, and is really grasping for straws when it comes to finding a difference between the two.

This is no slight against paid writers. Paid writers make the web go ’round, really, and what are we really all blogging for if not to make some money? What you won’t get from a paid writer, however, is impartiality.

Where’s the Money in Reviewing Web Hosts?

You have to wonder where the writer is getting his end. Is there any money to be had in writing honest, unbiased reviews? Is there any money to be had in giving negative reviews to crummy web hosts? When you’re making your money through affiliate sales of memberships to the very site you’re reviewing, chances are you’re not going to dedicate much discussion to their rude and dismissive customer service, their hidden fees or the fact that they ban and block any remotely controversial website after the very first visitor complaint.

If you want honest reviews of web hosts, nine times out of ten you’re better off just finding a website you like and seeing who hosts it, or else asking any friend with webmastering/blogging experience who they might recommend. If you want impartiality from some anonymous reviewer, you may as well ask for an unbiased opinion from television commercials.

National Security and Intelligence under the Obama Administration

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The remaining half of Obama’s first term continues to face difficult issues with respect to the economy, education and healthcare. Security is one issue often fading behind the prominence of job creation and federal deficit. Obama must still contend with ending two wars, securing the borders and a Wikileak in intelligence. The Administration has dealt with national security globally while concerns rest with securing the border. Issues revolving around national security could partially define the remainder of Obama’s term.

In 2007, Senator Obama stated support for the war in Afghanistan not Iraq. Efforts to exit Iraq continue as the Obama Administration no longer view Iraq a threat to security. The war in Afghanistan was ramped with addition of more troops this past year. Afghanistan and Pakistan are believed the residence of Al Qaeda radicals intent on America’s destruction. However, Obama removed the terrorist label from his May 27 document covering national security and Al Qaeda. His intent was to view extremist as enemies and not label the peaceful Islam community.

Nuclear proliferation continues to be one of Obama’s primary global concerns. His push for recent Senate approval of the Strategic Arms Reduction treaty, or START, proves Obama is serious about weapon reduction. The START treaty placed limitations on the number of nuclear weapons for Russia and the United States while incorporating a system of inspection. Obama hopes Russia will provide support against nuclear development in Iran. It could have been a good move toward improving national security and received strong bipartisan support including former President George Bush Sr.

President Obama continued global cooperation on national security by establishing the Center for Excellence with China during the visit with China’s President Hu. The goal of the center is a collaborative effort to share technology and improve security in China and Asia. Opposition to the center views an opportunity for China to gain and use American nuclear technology. China is a country holding considerable American debt and wants to establish a new role as a superpower.

There is still question concerning domestic security and the borders along Mexico. Obama has clearly expressed the southern border is a federal concern after the suit against Arizona’s immigration law. Obama does not seem to have a clear plan for dealing with border security as stated by Peter King, the new Congressional Chairman of Homeland security. This followed Homeland Secretary Janet Napolitano’s scrapping the construction of a border fence.

Obama also must contend with leaks in intelligence as classified documents have found there way onto Wikileaks. It shows a definitive weakness within the intelligence community and could be problematic in future global collaborations.

Obama’s effort in establishing national security appears to concern global operations over domestic. The Mexican border is a potential entrance point for future “enemies” and Obama should secure the southern border from potential threat. Without domestic security, a single nuclear or biological weapon could be devastating to the United States. Global arm reduction without domestic security is not beneficial to national security.

Smokeless Cigarettes Changed My Life!

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I have been a smoker my whole life. My life has revolved around smoking. This has become increasingly difficult as more and more laws are being implemented to limit where people are allowed to smoke. What makes it even harder for me is that I live in New York City, where you are barely allowed to smoke anywhere.

I have tried over the course of the last 20 years almost every method out there to try to quit smoking, but nothing has worked. From the patch to the gum to Welbutrin, I have never managed to stay off of the cigarettes for more than a week or two.

Because of this, I decided to research a new thing I heard about recently, smokeless cigarettes, or electronic or e-cigarettes as they are sometimes called. The way these work is pretty cool, and the cool thing is that they simulate the actual smoking experience while having the advantage of being allowed everywhere that real cigarettes are not.

An electronic cigarette looks exactly like a real cigarette, but is actually quite different. When you inhale an e-cigarette, you receive water-vapor that contains nicotine and propylene glycol. This allows you to get the nicotine, which is the one substance in cigarettes that you are addicted to, but not all the harmful substances like tar, hydrocarbons and hundreds of other poisons. They also come in all the same varieties as normal cigarettes, such as normal and menthol, as well as full-flavored and light, which contain differing amounts of nicotine. This option can be utilized by those who are using the smokeless cigarettes to try to quit smoking.

These babies act just like real cigarettes, and they have saved my life. They are legal everywhere; in my office, in bars and restaurants, on trains and even on airplanes you can smoke with no fear of being reprimanded or even arrested. When you inhale one of these cigarettes, it fills your lungs with a warm water vapor that contains nicotine. After exhaling, the water vapor evaporates quickly, and it affects no one. It also tastes like a cigarette as well. And no more nasty second-hand smoke for those around me. I am so happy I found the smokeless cigarette. They have made my life, and those around me at home and work, so much easier. I would love to shake the hand of the person who invented these smokeless cigarettes; he or she has drastically changed my life!