CMUThought Community Thought http://www.cmuthought.com Building a Community One Thought at a Time Fri, 03 Sep 2010 14:57:39 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 New iPods and itouch set to hit the market next week http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/09/new-ipods-and-itouch-set-to-hit-the-market-next-week/ http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/09/new-ipods-and-itouch-set-to-hit-the-market-next-week/#comments Fri, 03 Sep 2010 14:57:39 +0000 admin http://www.cmuthought.com/?p=1906 Apple announced this week that they will be releasing their newest ipods including the new iPod Touch. They have now included many of the features of the iPhone into the latest iTouch such as HD video recording, Facetime, and the upgraded Retina display. This will help expand the market for the iTouch because it now offers everything that you like in the iPhone and allows you to communicate with other iTouch users and iPhone users. The camera function was a key piece that was missing on the iTouch and now they again set the bar on what music players should look and act like.

]]> http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/09/new-ipods-and-itouch-set-to-hit-the-market-next-week/feed/ 0 finding the best rates online http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/finding-the-best-rates-online/ http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/finding-the-best-rates-online/#comments Tue, 31 Aug 2010 13:59:18 +0000 admin http://www.cmuthought.com/?p=1904 Insurance companies are battling it out for your insurance dollar. The long term look at life insurance has started to show up as a viable option for investment not only to help protect you and your family should a death occur, but as a possible investment vehicle. With the ability to get life insurance quotes from several companies with only the click of the button consumers are now in the drivers seat to getting a great deal. Since there are various plans and options you want to shop around and find which company will offer you the best solution for your short and long term plans.

]]> http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/finding-the-best-rates-online/feed/ 1 secure your belongings http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/secure-your-belongings/ http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/secure-your-belongings/#comments Tue, 31 Aug 2010 02:52:31 +0000 admin http://www.cmuthought.com/?p=1899 Every night we go through the same routine to make sure our house is all locked up. We made sure that our builder used Kwikset locks in all exterior doors to make sure that we had the best locks in order to protect our family and belongings. With the traditional lock and key set and a deadbolt you know for certain that you are locked in and can feel safe going to bed. I like the fact knowing that when I do have to travel that my family is safe and secure along with our other security measures. So don’t comprise on your families safety and ask for the best.

]]> http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/secure-your-belongings/feed/ 1 Your iPhone and Voip http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/your-iphone-and-voip/ http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/your-iphone-and-voip/#comments Thu, 19 Aug 2010 05:19:09 +0000 admin http://www.cmuthought.com/?p=1890 We subscribed to VOIP about three years ago in the hopes to lower our phone bills. We moved from the West Coast to the East coast, and the long distance calls to family and friends were quite numerous. We did land on Vonage, and the difference in cost was amazing. We ended up saving about $30 per month, and could call anytime we wanted. Since the technology was very new, we always had questions. The market is now opening up because of the broad availability. Wireless connections are now becoming an area where developers are concentrating on because of the 3G and soon to be more widely available 4G speed. Now as we move into the smartphone age there is a VOIP for iPhone app that is now available for half of what we are paying. Ok, you are probably asking like I did how does a iPhone VOIP actually work and why would I move my home number to have just my cell number.
What Line2.com has done and what makes this iPhone Apps so different is that it is the first dual line application for your phone. So you have your normal cell number and with this app you now can have a second number that will work over a wifi or 3g connection. They have a great grid that shows the features that they offer over the various voip companies and other internet calling apps.

]]> http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/your-iphone-and-voip/feed/ 0 New fall fashions for women http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/new-fall-fashions-for-women/ http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/new-fall-fashions-for-women/#comments Wed, 18 Aug 2010 05:58:17 +0000 admin http://www.cmuthought.com/?p=1884 The new Fall fashions in women’s dresses are now online and available in the stores. Guys can usually get away with what we wore last year, for women having the newest styles and colors is essential to their sense of style. Some of the new looks using a softer material and being able to dress down without looking to formal is what I prefer to see my wife in. The style of dresses that are coming back are moderate in length and women are pairing them with stockings to accent the color and cut of the dress. It provides style along with a functional wear as the weather gets colder.

]]> http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/new-fall-fashions-for-women/feed/ 0 Gearing up for your trade show http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/gearing-up-for-your-trade-show/ http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/gearing-up-for-your-trade-show/#comments Wed, 18 Aug 2010 02:45:28 +0000 admin http://www.cmuthought.com/?p=1879 As companies are looking for ways to get in front of their customers or continue to create brand awareness attending and being present at regional and national trade shows can provide a great avenue. If positioned correctly you can interact with hundreds if not thousands of customers in order to promote a new line or product or simply enhance your brand. Times are tight, and companies are looking to save money any place possible. A great way to cut costs is to by used, and that includes buying or renting a table top display. If you have ever been to a trade show or conference and looked at the various trade show booths you will see a marked difference in those know how to make the most out of their time based on their display and what they offer the customer. Some have gotten the layout and presentation right where they make the experience interactive for the customers where you actually walk into the booth area and become part of the program instead of simply having a table with brochures. The trade show exhibits cost for some of these elaborate setups can be costly but the amount of business you can potentially gain by being at the even. You can usually work with a vendor that can provide a selection of booths that is second to none, are priced to meet any budget, and are all in like-new shape.
If you’re looking to shave some money from your budget but still need to attend all the major trade shows then plan ahead and don’t wait until the last minute. Last minute shipping and handling costs can adds as much as 30% to the cost of the table covers and other trade show items. So if you are going to take the time and personnel out of the field to be at a trade show or conference then you might as well make the most of the event and make sure that you get noticed.

]]> http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/gearing-up-for-your-trade-show/feed/ 0 Using technology to help your security http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/using-technology-to-help-your-security/ http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/using-technology-to-help-your-security/#comments Wed, 11 Aug 2010 06:15:36 +0000 admin http://www.cmuthought.com/?p=1875 No matter how you implement id badges having the means of id card printing onsite can be a great cost savings and help increase security. By this mean that you are not having to ship personal information and pictures out to a local vendor to produce the badges and the turnaround can be minutes and not days. More and more companies and organizations are setting up their own printing solutions on site to help facilitate the time and cost savings of printing in house. To help increase security companies are now using an onsite barcode scanner to help control inventory and people that are coming and going on company property.

]]> http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/using-technology-to-help-your-security/feed/ 0 Looking to stay connected http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/looking-to-stay-connected/ http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/looking-to-stay-connected/#comments Wed, 11 Aug 2010 02:59:51 +0000 admin http://www.cmuthought.com/?p=1843 I have been doing a lot of flying over the past few weeks and noticed that there is now an airline that offers in air Wi-Fi on most of their flights. For business travelers this could be a huge benefit to be able to stay on top of emails and be able to communicate with the office and for the rest of us to be able to surf while 30K in the air could really open up some great Facebook posts. The newest Toshiba Satellite L655D Notebook is a great companion to take along on a flight or have with you whenever you need to get online. I have noticed that there are more and more of my friends that are now using the social media sites like Facebook and Twitter that being able to stay in touch with them is quite addictive.
For example the other day we were at a neighborhood get together and there were a lot of pictures that were taken and within hours they were already posted on Facebook. This was pretty cool because then we were able to capture and see how the whole event went down and some of the pictures were quite hilarious. These new mini notebooks can be found on sale on sites like buy.com where you can get a great price and free shipping. So whether you are needing to stay connected at the airport, in the air, or while at a neighborhood get together you may want to consider these new devices to help you get online.

]]> http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/looking-to-stay-connected/feed/ 0 Tools that can help you sell online http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/tools-that-can-help-you-sell-online/ http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/tools-that-can-help-you-sell-online/#comments Wed, 11 Aug 2010 01:43:17 +0000 admin http://www.cmuthought.com/?p=1830 There are many different ways to archive this either through paid links, blogs that write about your site, or through web directories from similar type sites. For those ecommerce sites that sell actual goods and services there is ZenCart SEO which is the mostly widely used free shopping cart application that is now optimized for search engine traffic. It is a great new enhancement for existing users of this ecommerce tool to help you maximize your page rank and rankings for keywords within your market. Basically it changes those dynamic URLs that are created to static SEO friendly URLs that have more of a chance to be indexed. Whatever method you use, remember to always use your keywords in your links, and try and be very specific to your site. Your ad connection will make a big difference in the audience and type of traffic that comes to your site.

]]> http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/tools-that-can-help-you-sell-online/feed/ 0 Improve the look of your blog http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/improve-the-look-of-your-blog/ http://www.cmuthought.com/2010/08/improve-the-look-of-your-blog/#comments Wed, 11 Aug 2010 01:39:11 +0000 admin http://www.cmuthought.com/?p=1828 Sometimes you have to really grab someone’s attention in order to get them to stop and take notice. Using free fonts found online is a great way to grab their attention. The site has a very nice web 2.0 look and feel and all the fonts are organized and can be easily seen and searched. With millions of blogs out there competing for attention and readership you have to use more than a fancy graphic to keep them coming back. We have always said that besides fresh new content, giving away items such as free fonts and dingbats will help in your customer retention.

We have come across sites that carry over 8,000 free fonts and dingbats for the Mac or PC. Yes they actually cater to the Mac crowd which for the graphic gurus a great tool to have at your disposal. The nice thing about the free fonts download is that they do not bombard you with pop-ups and no spyware unlike some other popular sites.

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