It seems Apple has finally found a connector to put on their computing devices that will catch on. After misses with Firewire 800 and Thunderbolt, USB-C seems like it could finally have industry wide acceptance. Although I’m not certain the statement made in the article that “soon you won’t be able to buy a computer without USB-C” will in fact be our reality. Sure, it wouldn’t be an Apple product without the need for unnecessary dongles and such, but the USB-C connector on the newest MacBooks offer the ability to charge, display video and connect a USB device all from a single, albeit incredibly high-priced, dongle. Also, another article points out that the Thunderbolt 3 USB-C has the ability to output two 4k/UHD screens, a feature that will be very popular for technology managers looking to improve desktop computing offerings for their Mac constituents.
Classroom Design Standards: Spelling out ‘Look and Feel’
A few weeks ago I posted the first of Greg Brown’s series on defining classroom standards from higher education institutions, this is the third part in his series. This post deals with defining the look and the feel of a classroom or teaching space; what’s important and what isn’t. Brown, a veteran technology manager at UCLA, offers his insight into things to consider when building a standardized classroom. As a former technology manager, I can attest to how developing a standard look and feel not only offers a tremendous advantage in reducing support costs, but also allows presenters a higher degree of comfort in operating the technology. Nothing worse than completely different environments from building to building.
Apple’s HomeKit platform will see first accessories launch next week
When the consumer electronics and computer giant first announced HomeKit along with iOS 8, there was a lot of skepticism and intrigue at the thought of Apple entering the home automation market, and rightfully so. Well, the platform has taken off and developers have rounded out a product designed to integrate with Apple iPhones and the built in ‘personal assistant’ Siri. Apple is even planning a Home application that will allow users a greater degree of control over HomeKit devices on a room-by-room basis.
Hello World: Windows 10 Available on July 29
Windows OS has had a history of ebb and flow, from the long-term success of Windows XP, to the incredibly poor Windows 2000/ME, to Windows 7 and the lull that was Windows 8/8.1. I’m interested to see what Windows 10 offers. Finally retiring Internet Explorer was a good first step, but like any other windows product I expect there to be significant bugs from the get go in Windows 10. For starters, at least, Windows brought back the start menu and then added their own take on the ‘personal assistant’ with Cortana. I look forward to at least updating one of my virtual machines to Windows 10 to give it a shot. I mean, it can’t be worse than Windows 8 or 8.1
Will Tesla Batteries Force Home Wiring to Go Low Voltage
In the immediate, no. There is no mass transition from high voltage to low voltage; but in a blog that is ahead of it’s time, Jason Knott ponders on whether on not the proliferation of solar power, especially on the home level will put home integration firms in the ‘catbird seat’ when it comes to the future of wiring homes. Knott does a great job of working through the process of wiring your home today for future use of solar power through solar batteries.