About

My name is Michael Sheehan, otherwise known throughout the inter-webs as “HighTechDad” (just do a Google Search to see my reach). I have been personally blogging about technology for many years, providing product reviews of hardware and software, as well as writing fix-its, how-to’s and other tips and tricks. I’m an avid social media pundit and discuss parenting hacks from time to time.

Technology, gadgets, gizmos, hardware, software and anything geeky are what I’m passionate about. I am also the Technology Evangelist for GoGrid, the Cloud Computing Infrastructure Provider, and ServePath, the Silicon Valley Managed Hosting provider. I helped position GoGrid within the Cloud Community and use Social Media, Social Marketing, Public and Press Relations and corporate blogging to evangelize the large and growing benefits of outsourced server infrastructure in the cloud. I have well over 10 years of Product, Account and Engineering Management experience, as well as a passion for all types of technologies.

My desire is to bridge the gap between the technical and marketing aspects of various products and services, but doing so in a way that is understandable by most, informative and unique.

I received a Bachelor of Arts in English and Comparative Literatures at Occidental College in Los Angeles as well as a Marketing Certification at U.C. Berkeley Extension in San Francisco. My technology expertise is completely self-taught and I try to provide regular critical analysis of technology trends.

About HighTechDad’s Blog

This blog was conceptualized long before blogging became as popular as it is now. I had the desire to create a way to provide helpful insight to people and my first thought was doing a How-To book. The problem was, writing a book takes time and was slow (it did not reflect the speed of technology). So when blogging started to become more prevalent, I jumped in feet first – my first post was on Nov 3rd, 2005). The rest is history.

Keeping on the cutting edge of technology takes a lot of time. I’m lucky that I do have a following and many PR firms and companies now regularly contact me to get their products reviewed. My wife calls technology “the other woman” which should make it clear how passionate I am about it. This blog is a hobby that continues a very healthy growth.

I do, however, need to make some public disclaimers and notices in order to maintain transparency (the buzzword du jour). (If you have any questions, I encourage you to contact me.) So, here they are:

Product Sample Return Policy

Apart from the tiny amount of advertising revenue I receive from this blog, I receive no financial compensation for these articles. I do this solely because of my fascination of technology…which verges on an addiction. To that end, my policy is that any samples that are sent to me, remain in my possession. There are extreme cases where I make an exception to this policy, but for the most part, this levels the playing field for everyone.

It takes time to write an intelligent review, I spend on average a few hours writing it, plus the time it takes to take product shots, and evaluating the product itself. Finding time to do this is difficult so the compensation I receive is frequently only in the form of keeping the product itself.

Therefore:

I will provide an honest review across the board
I will write about both positives and negatives about your hardware or software or website
If the sample must be returned, please ensure that there is ample time for me to review it AND provide return shipping
I will note in my review that I received the product for free, as a sample or as a “thank you for taking time to review and write” (this was only recently implemented in July 2009)
I will NOT take monetary payment for posting a review
I will NOT insert text into a previous review advertising your product or site for money – send me a sample and I will review it
I will do my best to provide a timely review (especially with new product launches), however some reviews may be queued for later release or until the product is fully reviewed

I do periodically run Amazon afflialiate links within some of my reviews on HighTechDad.com. Typically, I mention the current price of the hardware or software and provide a link directly to the product as listed on Amazon. If you do click on those links (which I would appreciate that you do) and order a product, I do receive a tiny bit of compensation (2-4% of the purchase price). Regardless of whether you click through my Amazon affiliate links or go directly to Amazon, the price you pay is the same. The only difference is, if you go directly to Amazon, I don’t receive any type of commission. I also try to put many of the items I review within my Amazon “store” here.

Similarly, I do run advertising through Google and others where I do receive some portion of advertising revenue (it is much smaller than you would think).

Please support my efforts by making purchases through my Amazon affiliate links as well as clicking on some of the advertising you see within this site.

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