TechTalks Now

Whether you own a home, run a business, or manage a municipal building – there are many important advantages of installing solar energy panels on your property. Let’s review some of the biggest benefits. 1.  Solar Helps You Save on Your Electric Bill Probably the biggest advantage of solar energy is immediate electricity bill savings. No matter how small your installation, you begin receiving smaller monthly bills from your local utility company – from Day 1. But how large are these electricity bill savings? Answering this depends on 2 important factors: Solar energy is a modular technology, meaning you can install as many or as few panels as you like – whenever you like. Each new kilowatt of installed solar capacity brings you bigger electricity bill savings.  With a large enough installation, it’s possible to reduce your energy bill completely. Thanks to solar energy, countless Americans already pay $0 a month to their local utility. However la...

HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) is an important markup language used for web page creation. HTML was invented by Tim Berners-Lee, a British Engineer, Computer Scientist and Professor at MIT in 1991. Post his invention Tim Berners-Lee came to be known as the ‘father of web’. Berners-Lee is the founder of World Wide Web Foundation and is also the director of World Wide Web Consortium, W3C. A markup language uses a set of markup tags and these markup tags are used for describing web pages. The markup tags in HTML are called HTML tags. HTML tags come in pairs such as . The first tag is the start tag or the opening tag and the second tag is the end tag or the closing tag. Everything between the start tag and end tag is an HTML element. HTML tags are used by web developers for formatting different parts of a document. For example, HTML tags are used for specifying headings, lists, paragraphs and images tables. Images and objects can be embedded in HTML for creating inter...

Google needs no introduction. A popular search engine with a host of other applications, Google was invented by Sergey Bin and Larry Page in 1996. What started off as a research project by Larry and Sergey when they were pursuing their PhD at Stanford University, California went on to become one of the biggest internet companies in the world. Google’s main purpose was to enhance the search technology over the internet. Larry Page is a popular American computer scientist born in Michigan whereas Sergey Bin is a Russian American computer scientist and they studied together at Stanford University. The Home page of Google is easy and simple to use. It loads very quickly and brings out the best results. To increase the revenue, Google Inc. gave out advertisements related to search keywords in 2000. In 2004, about 80% of the search enquiries made on the web used Google. Google still needs to pick up as a search engine in Japan, China and South Korea. Google has ...

Mark Zuckerberg, an American software developer and computer scientist developed the social networking site Facebook in 2004 along with Duskin Moskovitz, Eduardo Saverin and Christ Hughes. Zuckerberg was born in New York and is currently the president and CEO of Facebook. Anyone who is 13 years or more can become a registered user of Facebook. Initially Facebook was limited to Harvard students, but it gradually opened up to other universities and high school students before opening up to the masses. Facebook is a leading social networking site. Users can create profiles with contact information, photos, lists of personal interests and other personal information. Their information is dynamically linked with others having similar information by Facebook. Communication between users is done through public or private messages and chat feature. They can also join and create groups of their interest and “like pages”, which are sometimes used for advertising by organizations...

The EDVAC, also known as Electronic Discrete Variable Automatic Computer, was invented by John Presper Eckert and John William Mauchly in the year 1946, who were also the inventors of ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator And Computer). John Presper Eckert was an electrical engineer and computer pioneer who was born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. John Mauchly was a popular American physicist from Cincinnati, Ohio. EDVAC was one among the earliest electronic computers invented. It was perhaps the first device with binary system and it was a stored program device. EDVAC used the binary numeral system unlike its predecessor, the ENIAC which used the decimal numeral system. EDVAC could perform operations such as automatic subtraction, addition, programmed division, multiplication and automatic checking. It had a memory of 1000 words capacity and this was later improved to 1024 words. The computer was made with components that included a control unit with an ...

FORTRAN or Formula Translator language was invented by John Backus in 1954 for IBM (International Business Machines Corporation). John Backus, a popular American computer scientist worked with a team of other scientists to come up with a general purpose programming language called Fortran as an alternative to assembly language programming. In 1967 he received the W.W. Mc Dowell Award for development of FORTRAN by IEEE. It is the first high level programming language and was meant for use in engineering and scientific related applications. Fortran is derived from IBM Mathematical Formula Translation System. This general purpose, imperative, procedural programming language is particularly suited for numeric and scientific computations. Fortran has been continuously used for more than half a century in areas which needed extensive computations such as numerical weather production, computational fluid dynamics, finite element analysis, computational chemistry and computati...

ENIAC, also known as Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer was invented by John Presper Eckert and John Mauchly in 1946. After graduation John Mauchly joined John Presper Eckert at the University of Pennsylvania and they worked together to develop the ENIAC. ENIAC was the first general purpose electronic digital computer to have been designed by humans. The machine was reprogrammable and could solve a number of computer problems. ENIAC was designed for calculating artillery firing tables for the United States Army’s Ballistic Research Laboratory, but was first used in hydrogen bomb calculations. ENIAC computer had modules with separate panels for performing various functions. Out of these twenty were accumulators which could subtract, add and also store in its memory a ten-digit decimal number. ENIAC used 17,468 vacuum tubes, along with 10,000 capacitors, 70,000 resistors, 7,200 crystal diodes, 6000 manual switches, 1,500 relays and 5 million soldered joints. I...

The flash drive is said to have been invented by Trek Technologies and IBM in the year 2000. Flash drives were invented to replace the floppy disks. It was also called as the Thumb Drive as it is a very small sized portable device. The USB Flash drive does the function of a CD-ROM or a floppy disk. As their parts do not move they are more durable and reliable too. Today flash drives are available with large storage capacities of up to 256 GB. They weigh much less than 30 grams and the data can be retained in them for nearly 10 years or so. A flash drive is merely a small printed circuit board with a USB Connector. It has electric insulation and has a protective case made of plastic, rubber or metal. Flash drives can be carried in a pocket or as a key chain. There is a removable cap protecting the USB connector and in order to use these drives one needs to plug it into the port on a personal computer. These drives do not require a battery. The flash drive p...

The floppy disc was invented by IBM as a storage device and they were made available in the market in 1971. The main aim of this invention was to save files in a portable storage device so that it can be viewed and used on multiple computers. The initial floppy disk was 8 inches in diameter. However today, floppy disks are obsolete and have been replaced by the more efficient thumb drive or the USB memory stick and the CD and DVDs in the market. A floppy disk could store up to 1.44MB of data. They come in two sizes; the 5.25” and the 3.5” floppy. The floppy drive writes and reads the data on the floppy disk. A floppy disk comprises a disk of flexible, thin medium of storage that is magnetic in nature and is sealed in a rectangular or square plastic carrier which is lined up with fabric that protects it from dust, scratches, finger prints and other risks. There is a coating of magnetic oxide on the blank floppy disk. Magnetized tracks broken into equal sectors ar...

Electronic mail is generally known as email or e-mail and it is a way of exchanging digital messages from one computer network to another. Email was invented by Raymond Samuel Tomlinson in late 1971s on ARPANET network. He was born in 1941 at Amsterdam, New York and completed his graduation from Rensselear Polytechnic Institute. Ray Tomlinson is a computer engineer by profession. The first email sent by Tomlison was between two computers placed side by side. These two computers were connected using the ARPANET network. Originally the transmission of email from one computer to another computer was done directly. Both computers had to be online at the same time for instant messaging. Present day computers use email servers and these email servers forward, accept, store and deliver messages. Users need not be online simultaneously and have to be connected only for a brief period of time to the email server, for the duration it takes for sending or receiving messages. A...

Computers Are Extremely Important in the Modern World Computers are extremely important in the modern world of today. In the fast moving life of the modern world of today, computers hold tremendous significance. Many of us will feel crippled without a computer , as we have gotten so used to this machine. The importance of computers can not be denied in the corporate or business world, at the work place and even in one's personal life. In the modern work place, pen are paper are becoming extent. It will not be long ,before pen and paper stop to exist altogether. Same is the case in schools and colleges. Children today are forgetting how to write and many blame their awful hand writing on this machine which has taught everyone to type at a speed of at least 50 to 60 words per minute. The children of today have bad handwritings and the children of tomorrow may ...

Virtual identity solutions provider Movirtu has been acquired by smartphone manufacturer BlackBerry, the company announced Wednesday. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. BlackBerry described the deal as part of its overall strategy to woo more corporate clients by expanding its list of value-added services. Movirtu, a start-up based in the United Kingdom, allows employees to use both a business and personal number on the same device. According to the company, its technology is targeted both at enterprises in which employees use their own handsets (known as BYOD , or "bring your own device") and environments in which IT departments issue devices to personnel (known as COPE, or "corporate-owned personally enabled"). One Device, Multiple Profiles The company uses a "Virtual SIM" platform, allowing employees to use both a business and personal phone number on the same device, with separate billing for voice, data and messag...

Tech giant Dell is beefing up its Dell Mobile Workspace. The company is tossing the Dell Business Phone powered by Vonage Business Solutions into the mix along with Microsoft Office 365 e-mail integration and access to Box for Dell to support enterprise content collaboration. In case you aren’t familiar with Dell Mobile Workspace, it’s a cloud -based solution that promises secure access to enterprise phone, e-mail and storage apps from an employee’s personal smartphone or tablet. The only catch: You need an iOS or Android device to use it. “With Dell Business Phone, Dell provides a compelling end-to-end user experience while removing some of the biggest BYOD security , manageability and cost hurdles companies face,” said Neal Foster, executive director of mobility solutions for Dell Software. “We will continue to curate and pre-integrate productivity apps and services into Dell’s EMM heterogeneous mobile cloud offering to ensure our customers have what they ne...

Deciding to leave the media-event product launches to its competitors, Amazon on Wednesday announced a new operating system to accompany a new line-up of tablets and e-readers with a handful of press releases. Despite its subtle approach, the online retailer’s devices are making a big splash. The lineup includes two new e-readers and three new tablets. To run them all, Amazon is also launching a new version of its Fire operating system for mobile devices, called Fire OS 4.0 "Sangria." The new products range in price from the $79 black-and-white Kindle e-Reader, now featuring a touchscreen, to the high-end $379 Fire HDX 8.9, sporting a quad-core 2.5GHz processor and Dolby Sound. Hold Your Fire The Fire HDX is aimed squarely at the high-end market, with Amazon highlighting its form factor, performance, and battery life. In addition to its top-line model, Amazon is also introducing the new Fire HD (shown above). The frame of the Fire HDX is made fr...

Microsoft has developed a new keyboard that works with a variety of operating systems. In addition to Microsoft's own desktop OS Windows, the "universal" keyboard will also be compatible with the iOS and Android mobile operating systems by Apple and Google. Ironically, about the only device it will not work with is a Windows phone. The Redmond, Washington-based company is promoting the peripheral's ability to connect with both tablets and smartphones. In addition, Microsoft says the keyboard can be paired with as many as three different devices and quickly swapped between different OSes by flipping its "Operating System switch." Six Months' Battery Life The Universal Mobile Keyboard, as Microsoft has named it, is a full QWERTY keyboard that will work with iPads, iPhones, Windows PCs, and Windows and Android tablets. Not only that, but it also supports each platform's unique special key, including the Apple Command key and Win...

Consumer tech firm Logitech is bringing its universal remote talents to the home control market with new home automation compatibility and a quartet of new products. Dubbed the Harmony Living Home lineup, the company is promising easy access and control over a library of both entertainment and home automation devices -- all from one central control system. Harmony Living Home lets you use your remote, tablet or smartphone to control your TV, set-top box, speakers, lighting, thermostat, door locks, window shades and other devices. You can also combine multiple devices into “Activities” to turn on or off several devices at once. That means you could choose to turn on your TV, dim your lights, lower the temperature and close your shades with one touch. And a mobile app lets you do all this even if you're not home. “As more connected devices such as the Nest Learning Thermostat, Philips hue lights and August Smart Locks come to market and enter the home, there’s more...

For decades, if you wanted your keys copied, you went to a hardware store or key shop in person. The only way a thief could get your keys was to physically steal them. Not anymore. Now cutting edge technology potentially allows crooks to open any door with no problem. The game changer is a new website called keysduplicated.com: All you have to do is snap a clear photo of any house key with your smartphone and upload it to the site. Sophisticated software analyzes the grooves of the key down to the tiniest millimeter, all from the photo. Then a machine drills out the key's teeth, perfectly matching the key in the picture. The key is mailed right to you. And it's cheap: only $6 a key, and no ID verification. Video: Cutting edge technology potentially allows crooks to open any door with no problem – including yours. NBC national investigative correspondent Jeff Rossen reports. Police departments are worried that thieves will take advantage by sn...

The Smartphone Generation It’s no secret that smartphones are everywhere these days. It seems like nearly everyone has one, even if they’re not sporting some fancy new model. That’s why we’ve compiled this definitive list of the main advantages and disadvantages of cell phones. Whether you’re a current owner nodding your head in agreement or a late adopter looking for the lowdown, we hope this article helps you make some sense out of the mobile phone craze. If you already have one, make sure to make a web video of your amazed expression as you read this post. You can learn how to do it with this fun course. Advantages Communicating with Friends, Family, and Coworkers This one is pretty obvious but bare with us. Since the first cell phone, we’ve been able to make calls while on the go. But given the fact that almost everyone today owns at least a basic mobile phone and the majority have their phone on hand at all times, you’re able to get in touch with peo...

  Internet has been perhaps the most outstanding innovation in the field of communication in the history of mankind. As with every single innovation, internet has its own advantages and disadvantages. Nonetheless, the greater magnitude of its advantages outweighs its disadvantages. The Internet : A global computer network providing a variety of information and communication facilities, consisting of interconnected networks using standardized communication protocols. - The Oxford Dictionary During our evolutionary journey from Homo erectus to Neanderthal and then to Homo sapiens , we have come a long way. Because of our continuous quest for more amenities and better standard of living, we have been able to invent and discover many new things. The nineties witnessed a major revolution with the invention of the first electronic digital computers. Till then, the term Internet was practically unknown to most people. However, today, the Internet has become the most...

Famous machines that helped to change the world – from the Archimedes screw to the computer and petrol engine. Archimedes Screw The ability to draw water uphill, against the flow of gravity revolutionised irrigation and the supply of water. Designed in 213 BCE, the Archimedes screw is still used in irrigation today. The printing press In 1455, Johannes Gutenberg developed the first mechanised printing press. He converted an old wine press to enable a heavy screw to press a printing block against paper. His machine enabled a huge reduction in the cost of producing books and would remain in use until the steam driven press in the 19th Century. Calculator A very primitive form of calculator was developed by Blaise Pascal Pendulum Clock In 1656, Christiaan Huygens developed a pendulum clock which kept time accurate to within a few seconds. His pendulum clock was based on the ‘Grandfather clock designing with weights and a pendulum swinging.) T...

Famous people of the Industrial Revolution The industrial revolution refers to a period of rapid economic and social change between the end of the Eighteenth Century and the mid Nineteenth Century. The industrial revolution involved a prolonged evolution in the the nature of economic activity. It led to an unprecedented rise in output and total national income. In particular, old traditional methods of hand production was replaced by the use of machines, leading to large scale factory production. The industrial revolution was helped by technological innovations such as steam power, cheaper iron, specialisation, the growth of modern banking, and new machines which could do the work of several people. The start of the industrial revolution is often held to begin around 1760-80, with the development of the steam engine, coke produced iron, and innovations such as the spinning jenny. A ‘Second Industrial revolution’ from around 1840-1870 built on this in...