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Chris told us about some of the technology that saw it’s beginnings at IFA
In 1979 at the Internationale Funkausstellung, known worldwide as IFA, the dawn of the vinyl record came: Sony and Philips showed two competing technologies to record music digitally on silvery discs. Both prototypes, a 12 inch disc at the Philips booth and a 5 inch disc at the Sony stand, suddenly disappeared during the show – secret talks had begun behind the curtain. The format both companies later agreed to was the CD, the compact disc, which revolutionized the record industry, the hardware industry and audio listening.
Warren asked us about the possibility of forwarding voicemail
Warren said: I was wondering if any phone companies out there, in the future or now, would ever consider being able to forward a voicemail to someone else.
As a matter of fact, there are plenty of ways to forward voicemails! It all just varies, depending on what phone and/or carrier you’re using. The easiest way to tell how to do this would be to first check on forums that are designated to help users using your carrier, and if that doesn’t work– check forums for your specific phone.
For the iPhone, we were able to find solutions for forwarding voicemails on Apple’s forums and step-by-step guides that give different techniques designated for carriers like AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile. Plenty of YouTube videos are up that will also guide you through it. There are also plenty of apps that will allow you to forward a voicemail with just a few clicks. The most popular app to do this with is YouMail, a free visual voicemail app that has been available in most app stores for years.
One other solution would be to switch from using the voicemail provided by your phone company or phone manufacturer to a third party service, such as Google Voice. Google Voice allows you to embed your voicemails in a website or blog, download them as MP3 files, or share them directly from the Google Voice page as an email attachment. Google Voice is free for personal use and works with almost any combination of phone or service that offers “call forwarding, no answer” support.
Jeff in Carey, North Carolina asked us about Chromebooks and Chromeboxes
He said: I am seeking an improved email experience for my wife, as she continually gets frustrated with the PC and all the associated scans and upgrades that always happen when she is trying to access her email. I’m considering an alternative to the usual PC, that of a Chromebook or maybe a Chromebox. Ideally I would like to have a Chromebook that is a high definition screen, 4gb RAM, and something more than 16GB storage. Is there a Chromebook that you would recommend, and would you recommend a Chromebox in lieu of a Chromebook?
You’re probably looking for something like the Acer Chromebook 13, it has a 1080p screen, 4GB of RAM and 32GB of SSD storage. However, be careful, Acer makes a lot of Chromebook 13s, and specs vary. The only one that will meet your requirements is probably the top of the line $380 model.
ASUS makes a similar model, high definition screen, 32GB of storage space, gigabit WiFi, but it’ll save you some money at $270. Any new Chromebook you buy right now will come with 100GB of online storage on Google Drive for free for 2 years. Keeping that storage after that, would cost you $1.99 a month right now, prices may change within the next two years.
About a Chromebox, there are not many around, we know of an ASUS, an HP, and a Samsung model, and if you wanted to get one, it would probably work just fine for you, but they cost the same as Chromebooks, and they don’t really offer any extra functionality.
you are spot on with your assessment of the environment it will create
They mostly seem to be geared towards businesses that want to take advantage of Google’s offer to take care of all support work for $250 a year. Since you’re not going to need that for a home computer, the big advantage for you would be able to able to connect it to a big TV if you wanted to use it for Netflix, for example, but you can do that with a Chromebook anyway, and you can also use it on the go, so what’s the point?
Mark has told us, that as a Chromebook user himself, you are spot on with your assessment of the environment it will create for her. Assuming that she’s using a web based email account like Gmail, she will find that using a Chromebook instead of a Windows computer removes ALL of the frustration with scans, updates, and virus checks. The new generation of slightly larger Chromebooks with 13” 1080p resolution screens are nicer from the usability point, but Mark likes the extreme portability of the Acer Chromebook 720 with it’s 11” screen, and the $199 price tag is pretty nifty as well. But for any web-centered uses, and remember that means no Windows apps PERIOD, you absolutely cannot go wrong with a Chromebook.