Thursday 29 November 2012

Credit Scores

Whether you are applying for a loan, trying to buy that car using finance, renting an apartment or using a store card, the most important thing going for you is your Credit Score. This is the first thing that is checked to see whether you have the tendency to pay your bills. If you have a history of not paying bills, would you let someone buy something off you on credit, knowing that there is a chance that you might not get your money back? There are ways to build your credit score up, but unfortunately you can lower your credit score just as easy. Read the following article.

Real or Fake?

David Copperfield,  Penn and Teller and many more make their money out of magic. The majority of tricks performed are based around illusions.Another type of illusion is based around drawing in a distorted way which you may have seen on pavements / sidewalks around the world. Take a look at this video. The word of the day is Anamorphosis.

Tuesday 27 November 2012

Black Friday

Black Friday, shoppers heaven to some but not to others. Black Friday occurs the day after Thanksgiving and it is comparable with the Boxing Day sales in the UK. Retailers offer stock on that day at really low prices, which tempts people to go shopping. More deals, more shopping, same amount of floor space and parking spaces. You work out the equation. It is called Black Friday because it has been said that this is the day that the retailers go into the black, meaning they are making profit. It also allows retailers to clear end of the line stock, ready for the new products coming in. In the past as you will read in the attached article, there have been "incidents" occurring in shops due to the frenzy being stirred up for the latest deals and last remaining items on the shelves. Retailers such as Walmart are now saying that if the product is not on the shelf on that day,not to worry, pay for it and the product will be delivered from another store or warehouse and you can pick it up on another day. Go one step further, why focus on one day a year, spread the savings out over the year. Article

Customer Service at its Best!

There is a guy in Texas on a mission. He is writing a blog on rejection and has set himself the task of 100 requests and 100 rejections. That is until he went to Krispy Kreme. He asked for some donuts that are linked in the shape of the Olympic rings. The request in the first instance is not on the menu and therefore a quick and easy no would have been suffice. However the member of staff took on the request and produced the donuts. One happy customer and great customer service. See video.

Mind boggling partnership

We have all been reading about Samsung and Apples little but costly tiff which has cost Samsung $1bn. It has all been about the infringement in patents and being enforced to protect market share. Samsung have now got a new ally in Microsoft where it is able to use the Windows 8 and 7 operating systems on their tablets and computers. Samsung will be shipping 16 million of their tablets and computers worldwide in one year. This partnership should gain ground on Apple and Google in time. When you next upgrade your phone, who will you go with? Are you about the brand, functionality or price?Article

Friday 16 November 2012

Unions!!!!

You have no doubt heard about Trade Unions. They have featured quite heavily in the news. They were once formed to protect employees from unscrupulous employers. These days a lot of the protection is mandatory by law in terms of Health and Safety at Work, minimum wage, sex discrimination, age discrimination etc. On your syllabus in schools and college, you will cover Unions. Unions are generally a good thing if the system in general is both outdated and unrealistic i.e. layers of bureaucracy in education are being created, thereby stopping the teacher from teaching due to paper work. However, I feel that sometimes the greater picture is lost. The world is in a recession, there is less demand for products due to there being less money in the economy and in the world for that matter. Companies worldwide need to remain competitive if they are to remain in business and therefore have to make some difficult decisions. An analogy if you will. If there is a food shortage, people ration themselves.Its common sense! This way the food lasts longer and people live longer. However you could have one great feast and then die quicker. Think about that analogy and then read this article.

Great Videos

I came across these great Videos on Yahoo (Who Knew?), which are sponsored by Toyota. A great way to advertise the Toyota name and learn facts about both general and business world. Famous Brand names and their name changes, childrens nursery songs etc. Well worth watching, even if it is just for a bit of trivia knowledge.Video

Tuesday 13 November 2012

Google V Apple

In the past and to some extent in the future, whenever apps were mentioned in a conversation, Apple would nearly always be mentioned exclusively. I have been mulling over getting an app done for Fortune and Venture and initially when I contacted app developers, it was nearly always the same response. Get it done using the Apple operating system. Fast forward a year or two and now Google, Android and Windows 8 are making their way into the mix. The choice is vast, however, there seems to be one operating system that will eventually come out that when used to write apps can be used on all of the different Smart phones. Will people still stick with Apple or move to another brand? The article attached is well worth a read. If you are a potential app developer or want an app making, this is a must read. Article

Monday 12 November 2012

Blackberry10

RIM is about to launch 2 Blackberry10 devices and a platform to run them on in January. The days of the Berry are numbered, but could these latest products be the savior for them? I personally liked the QWERTY keyboard of the Berry and therefore haven't gone onto the Android or iPhone. Now they have done away with the keyboard and made it touch like all the other phones, will they still be here next year? Will I stay with Berry, get a Samsung, iPhone or hold out for the Windows8 phone by Nokia. Choices, Choices, Choices. To be a consumer is not a bad thing. See article.

Friday 9 November 2012

Apps for Driving


In the UK, there is a huge crack down on texting while driving. 3 points and a sixty pound fine to start with. As you only get a maximum of 12 points, this is a huge consequence when you are simply replying to a text. It is only a matter of time before the police in the US crack down on the number of people using their phones without hands free or texting whilst driving. In fact if the government cracked down on this offence and issued fines, cuts to education etc probably would not be needed. It almost becomes a game now to see who is using their phone whilst out on the road driving. A new App is being launched by AT&T. Just like the drunken app which stops you sending texts, AT&T are launching an App that does not allow you to text whilst driving. When on the road, the text feature of your phone is disabled and all incoming texts are instantly replied to with the message -Sorry I am driving. This service is only available to current AT&T subscribers at the moment but hopefully it wont be long before there is a version out there for everyone. Apps for Driving.