Back in mid-2012, I wrote an article about the “dangerous” combination of Kik Messenger and Instagram. The article turned out to be quite popular (and controversial) in a few ways. Parents didn’t know about Kik nor how the “Kik me at” functionality was working with Instagram. Over 2 years later, Kik Messenger has taken a new approach to privacy and how strangers can or cannot interact with users. I received an early briefing on the new version of Kik Messenger and while I haven’t actually had hands-on experience with the app, what has been outlined seems to be potentially a …
Your Young Scientist Could Win $25,000 from Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge
If your middle-schooler has an aptitude for science, you might want to consider having them enter the Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge. Not only do they get the opportunity to dive deeper into scientific concepts that they may be interested in, they also have a chance of winning the $25,000 grand prize and claim the title of “America’s Top Young Scientist.” If you or you child or student are thinking about entering the Challenge, you better do so soon. The deadline to enter is April 22, 2014. Your Young Scientist Could Win $25,000 from Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist …
Watch Out SnapChat Users! SnapHack App Can Now View & Save Photos & Videos Forever
SnapChat has always, in my opinion, been a controversial app. It has a very simple model, you can take pictures and photos and send them to friends and these multimedia files only are visible for a few seconds. Once the time passes, the videos or photos can no longer been seen. Teens and tweens view this app as a lot of fun. The controversy comes from the temporary natures of the media and what private information may or may not be shared. This is part of its appeal to a younger generation (yes, I’m “old” and I don’t always get …
Is K-12 the Appropriate Place to Teach Children about Copyright Infringement? Huffington Post Live Interview
I remember back in the 1980’s (ok I’m dating myself) when my friends and I used to make mix-tapes and music compilations and shared them amongst ourselves. It was a multi-hour process and we poured our creativity and thoughts into making the perfect tape. There was no thought in our minds about whether what we were doing was “legal” or not. We just did it. It was a right of passage. Now there are discussion about inserting anti-piracy and copyright infringement “training” into our already packed curriculum at schools in California, and it’s making me scratch my head a bit. …
Weighing in on the Withings Smart Body Analyzer WS-50
Recent advances in personal technology are allowing individuals and families to get better analysis of their health progress or lack there of. From wearable devices that track your movement to applications that help you set exercise goals, our society now has consumer tools that remove some of the mystery surrounding personal health. Withings is a company that has been leading the way providing consumer products that previously were only found in the doctor’s office and in the process is empowering individuals to simply get healthier. The new Withings Smart Body Analyzer (WS-50) is a fine example of one of these …
Will You Pledge to Not Text and Drive? Do It Now! #ItCanWait
For the past couple of months, I have been writing and talking about the national campaign where you pledge to not text and drive. It’s called It Can Wait (the hashtag is #ItCanWait). There is a website that you can go to to take this pledge of not texting and driving – just head over to www.ItCanWait.com and you can pledge right there. Today, September 19, 2013, is “Drive 4 Pledges Day” which means that I’m asking you to take just a few minutes out of your day to pledge that you will do your best to not text and …
Still Texting and Driving? This #ItCanWait Documentary Will Change Your Mind
We all know that we shouldn’t text and drive, but yet even I feel sometimes compelled to glance at my phone. I don’t respond to texts unless I’m fully stopped, but even that is against the law in many places. That second that you remove your eyes from the road, you become distracted, and the vehicle you are driving is transformed into a deadly weapon. Often, however, people think and believe “oh this can’t happen to me” and choose to continue to drive and text. If you are still of that mentality, please take 30 minutes to watch this documentary …
The Back-To-School Hard Drive Questions: Use for Backups or Media? Size vs. Size?
Schools are booting up in the coming weeks and students are also Ctrl-Alt-Deleting their brains to get ready to upload GBs of essential data into their minds to help them maintain their upgradability down the line. As part of the back-to-school process, parents often need to think about the tech that they will provide their kids. This is particularly important for those heading out of the comforts of home and off to college. Laptops and computers are very personal choices: do you go Mac, Windows or even Linux? Tablets and smartphones have similar choices based on preferences: Android, iOS, Windows …
CrashPlan Online Backups Keep Your Digital Life #WorryFree!
Are you backing up your computer? How often do you do it? Do you do it manually or automatically? Have you ever thought about the possibility of hitting the power button on your computer and suddenly it not starting up? What would you do if that happened? What if you couldn’t access all of your home movies or photos, or your family documents or your kid’s paper they have been working on for weeks? I must admit, I had been sort of living my digital life a bit dangerously until recently. I’m hoping that I can tell you to WAKE …
“It Can Wait” – A Public Service Announcement Video from HighTechDad & Daughter
Last month, I announced my participation in the “It Can Wait” campaign designed to promote awareness at how dangerous it is to text and drive. I honestly don’t understand why people feel the need to become even more distracted as they drive. So, to highlight the dangers of texting (and driving), I decided to enlist the help of my youngest daughter to dramatize how truly distracting texting and driving is. Think of the video below as my Public Service Announcement (PSA) against texting and driving. Texting in general is distracting…even if you are JUST doing that. You lose touch with …
Parents Be Warned! Ask.fm is a Dangerous & Deadly Social Site for Teens & Tweens
Back in 2012, I wrote about some potential dangers surrounding the Instagram and Kik Messenger combination. By now, hopefully many parents know what to look for and how to combat this social danger. Recently, I started to investigate a new social danger for kids, specifically Ask.fm which actually has a few documented teen suicides attributed to the service. Interestingly, it was my teenager and my wife that introduced me to Ask.fm. My teen wanted to join and my wife said absolutely not! Before I go into this social danger, I do want to point out that I am an avid …
Staples Provides Tools for the Next Great American Novel
A few weeks ago, I was asked if I wanted to get some products from Staples to write about. Sure, I said, thinking it would be a box of paper or a crate of paper clips or an assortment of binders. Traditionally, when I thought about Staples, visions of boring office supplies came to mind. How wrong I was. While they do have all of the necessary essentials to keep your business or home office running, they also stock a wide variety of other products that are a bit more exciting, at least to me. Think furniture, HDTVs, Coffee Makers …
It Can Wait – Texting Ends Lives – #ItCanWait Campaign (Sponsored)
Technology is a great tool when used properly. But as it becomes ever prevalent in our day-to-day lives, it can move from being simply useful to life-ending. With all of our connected gadgets, we are in constant communication via social networking, phone calls and texting. And now this is moving into our vehicles. As we enter into the 100 most dangerous teen driving days of the year, the days between Memorial Day and Labor Day, we need to pay careful attention about when we use technology and how we use it. If used at the wrong time, it turns into …
Wake Up! Mother’s Day is Almost Here!
In case you didn’t know it already, Mother’s Day is right around the corner. Heads up to daughters and sons everywhere, it’s time to think about the person who hopefully nurtured you through the developing stages of your life and has provided you with ongoing support and unwavering love. However, I think it is important to not just think about moms, but also those female figures in your life who have given you guidance, a helpful hand, companionship and protection. These could be moms or mother-in-laws or mother figures or step mothers or foster mothers or simply mentors who are …
Did You Miss Us? We’ve Been Licking Lemon Ant Butts! Cast of Dads Podcast #57
Yep, we’re baaaack! Have you ever tried to organize the lives of 5 busy dads who are dispersed across the country and time zones? The image of herding cats comes to mind. The desire to record our Cast of Dads podcast is there, the free time, however, is not. Yeah, excuses, excuses. We did manage to all get on a call about a week ago and chat through a variety of topics though, and were able to record Cast of Dads Podcast #57, “Lemon Flavored Ant Butts.” I always feel that half an hour is simply not enough time to …
