From the outside, it looks like sales of the Toyota Prius have never been better. According to WardAuto, they surpassed their 2012 sales goal by 16,000 units, and the rising gas prices since 2011 have cause many buyers to take the plunge and go hybrid. But not everything is smooth sailing for the Prius. An uncertain fuel market makes it harder for them to set sales goals, and it remains a rare Toyota model in that it’s sold in the U.S. but entirely manufactured in Japan. How much the Prius will take off in 2013 and beyond could be up in the air, and it may depend on how quickly they can start manufacturing domestically to keep supply matching demand. Higher gas prices could raise the price of the car even more, and buyers may start looking at alternative hybrids like the Ford C-Max, which offer comparable fuel mileage for less money.

1. The Competition

Motor Trend claims that Toyota was not too happy about them doing a comparison between the 2012 Prius and the 2013 C-Max. But their study of the two cars produced interesting results. While the C-Max was proven to se superior in speed, handling, noise, and overall package, the Prius still had better fuel economy, which the magazine suggests customers care about most of all. But Time Magazine suggests times might be changing for the Prius, with Ford reporting record sales in 2013 already and other competitors like the Volkswagen Jetta Hybrid coming up behind them. These days, 25 percent of potential car buyers are planning to get a hybrid, and every automaker seems to be entering the field.

2. Supply and Demand

In 2011, the overwhelming demand for the Prius exceeded predictions to such an extent that there was actually a shortage. Many analysts have offered different reasons for why the spike in demand was so high, but it’s usually directly related to a spike in gas prices, which inspires consumers to buy the more fuel-efficient car they might have been considering already. The ins and outs of manufacturing the Prius present an age-old dilemma of supply and demand economics. In 2013, fuel predictions are more undecided, and some experts say gas could remain relatively flat throughout the year. How does Prius, now the number one most-owned vehicle in California, predict how long its momentum will last? They recently announced that by 2015, they will begin building cars in the U.S. in order to keep the Prius more readily available. But with a host of new competitors on the horizon, it’s more than likely the demand will level off sooner rather than later.

3. Electric Cars

Statistics show that the market for entirely electric cars as opposed to hybrids is still very niche, with only about 4 percent of potential buyers looking at them per year. Both Toyota and Ford offer plug-in alternatives to their cars, as well as other manufacturers. The technology is still growing and improving, and automakers expect to be selling way more hybrids for a long time to come. But electric cars are still interesting because there is so much more competition, and Prius doesn’t necessarily have the same advantage that it did with the hybrid. The Prius Plug-in, Nissan LEAF, and Chevrolet Volt vy for number one, and now Tesla Motors is being hailed as the new Apple. Tesla’s goal to release cheaper electric cars with longer range due to their top-notch batteries. With Tesla’s willingness to lease its technology to competitors, electric cars might really be the wave of the future.

Prius has held dominance over green energy vehicles since around 2008, but increased competition and improvements in technology are inevitable. Toyota has succeeded at taking the Prius from its status as a niche vehicle to a widely popular mainstream choice. Now it might be time to make room for the next advances in eco-friendly cars, and that means making room for some alternatives.

Writer Jena Daniels is a guest blogger for business blogs. Interested in taking part in combining technology and business in the future? You may want to consider the business degree offered at Pepperdine University.

They Bought a Good Story

Nick D’Aloisio’s origin story is pretty compelling. He says he came up with the idea of Summly when he was doing internet research for a history test. Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-Shing and actor Ashton Kutcher backed the endeavor. Yahoo’s new CEO Marissa Meyer explains that Yahoo is looking to redefine their identity to be more user friendly, intuitive and entrepreneurial. Buying a company from a young entrepreneur fits their new identity and matches their desire to “grow with the market.” Because the owner was so young, Yahoo has gotten a lot of attention — attention it wouldn’t have received without the youth of this entrepreneur. It’s good publicity and it sends a message that Yahoo is changing, so keep your eyes peeled for the future.

They Bought Young Talent

Mark Zuckerburg’s youth has gotten Facebook a lot of hype and that novelty factor is not lost on Yahoo. Summly was founded by D’Aloisio when he was just 15 years old. The invention of the app answers a problem that yahoo faced for many years: how to share news on mobile phones. D’Aloisio’s iPhone app shrunk articles from an RSS feed so that they fit on the screen.

They Bought Math

More and more technologies such as finance and news aggregation are becoming algorithm based. An algorithm gets set up and then they’re given a set of step-by-step points to go through in order to produce output. Perhaps Yahoo sees algorithms as the next big thing and wants to get on board. According to Christopher Steiner, author of “Automate This: How Algorithms Came to Rule Our World,” “The story of the next 20 years is the story of big data and algorithms.” He predicts the use of algorithms in every industry from medicine to music to sports.

Yahoo’s acquisition of Summly makes sense in terms of trends and their desire to be seen as a company that is keeping up with the technological waves of the future. The major question that arises as a response to Yahoo’s surprise purchase has to do with whether other operations will follow suit to throw money at algorithms. Steiner follows up on this question, “Just how much will we allow algorithms to take over?”

Jena Daniels writes for Pepperdine University promoting their online master in business administration degrees.

Do you wish to monitor the cleaner or our kids when they get home? Maybe you need to check the security of your house occasionally while you are on a vacation. No matter what your reason is, the following applications are likely to help you have some peace of mind.

We have managed to come up with a list of 10 incredible applications that are available for Mac, iPhone and iPad. If you are planning on using the Mac home security applications, you can use the built-in camera as well. Using an external USB camera is a much better option.

1. Foscam Surveillance Pro
(Available at iTunes Store)

Price: $4.99

Although this is not the only paid offering in this home security app list, it is worth buying. The app is especially designed to work in accord with some suitable Foscam IP cameras. You need to set the cameras up in your house. Once you are done, you will be able to watch the video stream from the installed cameras along with the audio.

This application allows you to control the installed cameras in all eight directions. Switching between different cameras is incredibly simple, since you just need to swipe your finger on your iPad or iPhone. In fact, Foscam Surveillance Pro is capable of supporting approximately 144 cameras. It creates a mosaic video and allows you to watch approximately 6 video feeds at the same time. You can control the contrast and brightness of the videos as well.

2. Home Watch
(Available at the Mac App Store)

Price: $4.99

Home watch can be regarded as a pretty simple application. It snaps a picture every time the cameras detect motion. You can set it for taking periodic picture of your house. For example, you can set the timer at 30 sec. Home watch would take a picture of your house every 30 seconds. Every image taken by the camera will be saves on your Mac.

It can also be uploaded to any of the cloud service, for example DropBox. It will allow you to access the picture form another computer of your phone. Home watch is considered as one of the simple application used for remote home surveillance. However, it is highly effective and gets the job done efficiently.

3. Seedonk Webcam Viewer
(Available at iTunes Store)

Price: Free

Seedonk Webcam Viewer is an excellent iPhone home surveillance application. It works best when paired with a suitable IP camera, such as Compro IP540. It can also be used with a webcam on any computer that is connected with the internet. This amazing iOS application seems like an instant messenger and is fully equipped for home surveillance.

It enables you to control the set of cameras you have installed at your house. You can pan, zoom and tilt the cameras. Moreover, it enables you to add different cameras shared by your family of friends. This way you can monitor each other’s houses, when needed.

4. iSentry
(Available at the Mac App Store)

Price: Free

iSentry is yet another free Mac home security application that can be attained for free. It uses the webcam of your computer to record any event going on in your house in your absence. Its function is pretty similar to that of Home watch. The app can be triggered to put forward a photo or video whenever your camera detects motion.

There are a number of setting to control the sounds, activation time, alerts, sounds and email notifications. Moreover, this application can upload photos to different hosting websites at any time, making it easier for you to view them from any location.

5. XFINITY Home Security by Comcast
(Available at iTunes Store)

Price: Free

A number of home security companies offer different accompanying home surveillance applications for iPhone, iPad and other mobile platforms. XFINITY home security system is one of such example. When you employ this application, you can monitor your house in real-time. It also enables you to arm or disarm, get a live video feed, and control your thermostat and lighting. Event-triggered pictures and video clips can also be attained through this application.

6. iWatchU
(Available at Mac App Store)

Price: $8.5

iWatchU is listed among the most feature-rich surveillance applications. Unlike most of the home security applications, iWatchU features a few pretty developed motion detection algorithms. It is capable of recording video whenever the cameras detect an intrusion. It let you know about the activities carried on at your house via an email. That’s easy home security right there.

Each and every event taking place at your house in your absence is recorded and stored to its history, which allows you to look through the events effortlessly. The events are saves in the form of videos or image. The application supports unlimited Firewire or USB cameras at the same time, which can be handy when you have to monitor a number of rooms simultaneously.

In fact, it is of its finest features, since most of the other applications do not offer such advanced characteristics. Moreover, it also allows you to watch the live video of your house. There are a few similar applications available for iPad and iPhone too. iWatchU undoubtedly offers all the features that a homeowner needs to make his/her house safer…

7. VideoReplay App by AlarmForce
(Available at iTunes Store)

Price: Free

One of the finest features offered by AlarmForce is that it enables live two-way voice. This home security application utilizes this feature in the most effective possible. You can monitor your house easily through a real-time video. Also, you can communicate back to the person in your house via the two-way voice audio. It is highly effective in cases where you need to communicate with delivery people, etc…

William Roberts is a freelance writer adapt in writing about technology and how it helps us be better. His interests include smartphones, tech, security, apps and gadgets among others.

In fact, the measuring tools used by these two were as archaic as various sized chains and steel bands… and their equipment and supplies were carried by non-other than 26 camels. Perhaps, these two great pioneers would have survived the journey with some of today’s modern surveying tools – at least they wouldn’t have been travelling into the unknown. This article will examine three of the greatest advancements in surveying and how these instruments have made life that much easier.

3D Laser Scanning

Laser scanning has only been in use since 1998, although it quickly became an industry standard. This is the ideal way to make extremely accurate measurements, even in the most complicated of environments. The basis of 3D laser scanning is to interpret the shape of things, including land and buildings. This is done by collecting survey data points or clouds of points up to a rate of 50,000 points a second. The result – a 3D digital model is created. This information is then passed onto an architect who can visualise the land upon which they wish to design or build things.

Total Station

The use of total stations has become the norm in surveying and no doubt most people have seen one of these instruments on their travels (they look similar to a camera’s tripod extension). The total station typically uses an electronic distance meter in order to read and calculate distances. This is usually completed on objects that may be hundreds of metres away, while still allowing for centimetre accuracy. Not only is distance measured, but also specific coordinates and angles. The newest wave of total stations is the robotic variety, which allows the operator to control everything via remote control.

Satellite Positioning Systems

As the name “satellite” suggests, this type of equipment allow measurements of any specific points or indeed features located anywhere in the world, from space. Often referred to as Global Positioning Systems (GPS), not only is this technology used to collect data for large groundwork and framework projects, but also for use with in-car navigation systems.

Land surveying is without doubt one of the oldest professions known to man and technology has definitely come a long way since Burke and Wills time. In fact, even further back in history, Egyptian surveyors used primitive tools that are now obsolete to mark out fertile land around the River Nile after its annual flood. The accuracy of their instruments probably left a lot to be desired (although we’re sure they were more than happy to use them), so just imagine what they would have made of today’s technological advancements.

Attached Images:

•  License: Creative Commons image source
•  License: Royalty Free or iStock source: http://pixabay.com/static/uploads/photo/2013/03/12/17/54/earth-92966_150.jpg

Mark Anthony leads a team of surveyors in Sydney. A tech enthusiast, in this post, he has talked about the various advancements in technology which has led to the increase in efficiency of surveying.

It is predicted that the cloud computing market will grow six times its current size in the coming years. Data from Forrester Research revealed that its value will reach $241 billion by the year 2020 from its 2011 value of $40.7 billion.

In addition, the volume of digital content stored via cloud is expected to increase in three years’ time. A separate study done by IDC showed that the amount of data will more than triple from the current 2.7 Zeta Bytes (ZB) which is equivalent to 1 billion terabytes (TB) to eight ZB by the year 2015.

Gartner for its parts foresees that more than half of the Global 1000 companies will have stored customer-sensitive data in the public cloud by 2016. Also, it is expecting that 40 percent of enterprises will require independent security testing a precondition for using any type of cloud service.

Various providers now offer cloud hosting and storage services to meet the demand of businesses for safe storage and backup of their highly vital files. Mega is just one of the many players in the market today that commits to fully secure the valuable data of it clients.

Mega: Piracy or Privacy – An infographic by the team at Who Is Hosting This.com

Delta Search Home page is a toolbar and set your homepage to www.Delta-search.net, Here we have the proper instruction to remove.

If you are advance user, you may follow the below steps to get rid of this annoying Delta Search from your browser.

1. To remove delta search in Internet Explorer

• Open Internet Explorer >> Tools >> Internet Option >> General tab. type  www.google.com under HOME PAGE Edit Box.

• Advance Steps

• Click on Start and type Run and then type “REGEDIT” in the run box and then hit enter
• In the registry editor go to Edit menu and then click on find option, you will get edit box to search any string to registry editor
• Type in the find edit box “delta-serach.com” and click on Find Next
• The search result will highlighted the key which have the same string
• Edit that key and change the “delta-search.com” string to “google.com“
• Use F3 key to find Next, Replace all them to “google.com”
• Then Restart the internet explorer

2. To remove delta search in Mozilla Firefox

• Open Mozilla Firefox, Click on Tools >> Options >> General >> Startup.  now go to Homepage edit box and and type there www.google.com, type website which you want to open in firefox startup.

• Advance Steps

• In the Firefox type this command in the address bar “about:config” and then hit enter
•  After then you will get a popup on the browser asking for permission to open config page that comfirm that please use it carefull so please
  click on button named as “I’ll be carefully, I promise“.
• Now you will a configuration page with search option on the top, so please type “delta-search” into search bar, you will get the result.
• Replace all the string from “delta-serach” to “google”
  In the search result do double click on the all entries (related to delta search) one by one, and change them to “www.google.com”

3. To remove delta search in Google Chrome

• Start Google Chrome, click on Settings icon (Located in very top right side of the browser), Under this menu please find out and click on settings after clicking on that you will appear a configuration page.
• Here you find the option named as “Open a specific page or set of pages” click on Set Pages, here you will appear the bunch of paged set, you have to delete all the set pages and enter only one which you want to use as your home page.
• Here find the option named as ‘Manage search engines‘. Change search engine to google or any other and delete Delta Search from the list.

• Advance Steps

• Please open this Preferences file in Notepad
• Click on Start and type run type this below following path into the run box and then hit enter
  %UserProfile%\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default
• In this path please find a file named as “Preferences“
• Open this file (in Notepad) and find and replace all the “detla-serach.com” string to “google.com“
• Restart the Brower

How many times have you complained about having to clean your home at the weekend? It’s not actually a hard thing to do when you think about it. Maybe you just find it difficult because you’re living in the Stone Age and you don’t have any special cleaning gadgets.

There are some gadgets you can buy today that will take the pain out of cleaning up. You’ll still have to do some work, but at least you’ll enjoy doing it. Let’s take a look at some of the best ones right now because you’ve probably not even heard of them. Once you know how easy they’ll make things you’ll have to give them a try.

Cyber Clean

Do you ever get frustrated when you try to clean some tight areas in your home and it’s just too hard because you can’t squeeze a cloth into the gaps? If this is a problem for you then think about using Cyber Clean, which is some sort of goo that can fit into any gap imaginable. Once you bring it out you will see how great it is because it will be full of dirt.

iRobot Scooba 390

You probably heard about iRobot when they came out with their vacuum cleaner that would go around cleaning your carpets. At the time you were maybe wondering why you had to miss out because you had wooden flooring. You can stop wondering, because these days you can buy a robot cleaner that will go around and shine your wooden floors until they’re spotless without you having to lift a finger.

Karcher Window Vac

Are you great when it comes to cleaning your windows? A lot of people enjoy cleaning glass because they think it’s easy, but they do it the wrong way and leave smudge marks everywhere. If you use the Karcher Window Vac the only thing you need to worry about is moving the gadget up and down. It will suck the moisture away from the surface and the only thing you’ll be able to see in the window is your face.

Rabbit Air BioGS Air Purifier

People don’t think about the air when they are cleaning the house. You might open up a few windows, but does it really get all of the dust away. If anyone in your family has allergies it’s even more important to keep the air nice and fresh. A Rabbit Air purifier will take all of the crap out of the air and it does it in near silence. You don’t even need to worry about buying a new filter because it’s washable.

ScumBuster Xtreme

Cleaning the bath tub has got to be one of the most unpleasant experiences in the world. It’s only because cleaning it with a normal cloth seems to be a waste of time. If you want it to look great you need to buy a ScumBuster Xtreme. The motorized head will blast the dirt away and you get to stay well back because it comes with a big arm extension.

Attached Images:

•  License: Creative Commons image source
•  License: Creative Commons image source

William Dylan is an entrepreneur by profession. He has been in the cleaning services industry since his youth. He provides commercial cleaning services including pressure cleaning in Geelong.

They need to get on with their life and you can help them. Did you know there are a huge number of gadgets that will soon hit the market and they’ll make little things much easier on them? Now you know what to get them for their next birthday. We can even have a look at some of the best ones that you should hopefully see very soon.

Making a cup of coffee

It can’t be easy to pour water into a cup when you can’t see anything. You would have no idea when it’s about to spill over the edge and go everywhere. You can solve any difficulties by getting them a Braun Bell mug that will make a noise when the water reaches a certain level. It makes it easy for anyone who is blind to make themselves a lovely mug of coffee in the morning.

What time is it?

You’ve probably seen the alarm clock that speaks when you hit a big button on the top of it, but it’s not like anyone can carry that around with them when they’re outside. You should take a look at the ‘Feel the Time’ watch, which goes on someone’s wrist and they can use tiny little nibs to work out the time. Those nibs move around each minute which means no blind person will ever be late for a bus again.

Reading a book

It used to cost a lot of money to buy books that were written in braille. There was no option to download and read eBooks from a single device, but that will soon change when the new Braille E-Book hits the market. The surface pattern can be changed using electromechanical signals and it means an unlimited number of books can be read on the same tablet.

Walking around

Walking around is difficult enough and blind people rely on a white cane to help them reach their destination. A new device called the ‘Eye Stick’ is coming to the market and it will look like something you would see in a Star Wars movie. It sends out sonic vibrations and anyone holding it will get a much clearer picture of what is around them.

Getting from A to B

If you thought the Eye Stick sounded interesting them wait until you hear about the navigation bracelet that will tell someone exactly where to go. It has built-in GPS and gives out voice commands, so anyone wearing it will never get lost again. If you combine this with the Eye Stick it means your blind family member will be able to go anywhere while staying safe.

Attached Images:

•  License: Creative Commons image source
•  License: Creative Commons image source

Emma Sophie is a dietician by profession. She has encountered a rise in fructose malabsorption cases recently in blind people and suggests fructose malabsorbtion test to such patients. Besides being a dietician she takes keen interest in technology and has listed some gadgets that will help the blind improve their way of life.

What is a unique selling proposition?

In the world of marketing, there exists a term called the ‘unique selling proposition’; this is perhaps the secret dose that offers a competitive edge for business houses. It is defined as a single concise statement that indicates the competitive advantage of a business and tells their customers on how their products and services are unique from their competitors.

Significance of unique selling proposition:

Unique selling proposition answers several business questions such as, ‘What makes the business different from its competitors’, ‘what unique services it has got to offer as compared to its rivals’, ‘benefits of a particular business which is not driven by its competitors’ etc., Answering all of these questions successfully plays a mandatory role in converting potential visitors of a business into their loyal and paying clients.

But do you know, IT professionals and consultants would not require a unique selling proposition as clients always look for a better service rather than a unique service.

Why IT consultants do not require unique selling proposition?

The unique selling proposition is all about how different a company is ahead of its competitors; for example, there are numerous e-commerce sites that sell fashion clothing, home furnishings etc.; people browse through all the existing sites and only opt for buying from a website that yields unique services and provides different patterns from the rest of the providers in the market.

As this concept is different for almost all businesses that focus on tactile and physical products, the rule does not hold true for service providers and knowledge based service sectors.

David A. Field has rightly written that most clients looking for services, are not looking for different types of services but for only the good ones who provide excellent service.

What happens if USP is included in IT consultant services?

If a consulting company bumps into a concept of offering new and improved services, trying to peddle away from the rest of the players through smart acronyms, they are only going to end up failing in their business, for people cannot accept their ‘improved’ services until and unless they are approved by some government agencies.

Also, people would perceive the service provider as a gimmick offering cheap and invaluable services and tag them as a business trying to deviate from the set norms.

IT services only require a value proposition, stating how valuable their services are, which can further be communicated to their customers. And there is absolutely no need to spend time and energy to communicate with people about the uniqueness of the business and how different the IT consultant services are as compared to the market competitors.

Most of the customers of IT related services are busy individuals who do not have to experiment with the services the company has to offer. They would only require prompt results in tune with already existing standards.

Conclusion

Therefore experimenting with a unique selling proposition strategy for IT consulting services would only be a failure and a complete waste of time. It does not take the company anywhere ahead of their competitors, for no company appoints inventors to frame unique IT solutions.

Andrew Barnes is a retail manager and  internet entrpreneur. Since his business is completely web based, he understands the importance of hiring the best IT consultant to guide him on how his business can run as smooth as possible in terms of IT.

• Application layer vulnerability
• Physical resources (i.e. Memory, CPU and Bandwidth)

To counter such attacks, typically, companies use a combination of protection services which install defense systems at two levels:

• Software protection which will use smart filtering and mitigation techniques
• Hardware resources, to help protect against volume based attacks

Here are a few questions that you should keep in mind while looking for the best possible DDoS protection services.

When do you look for protection?

Answer –In most cases you should look for protection when you are conceptualizing the network. Protection services need to come in when you are thinking of the structure or the architecture of your network itself. Looking for protection services when you are already under attack is too late. Even with relatively fast setup allowed by now popular cloud based anti-DDoS solutions, you still want to be prepared ahead of time. Think stable door and bolting horse and you will know why this is important!

How do you choose protection services

Answer – As always, the Internet is a great source of information when it comes to giving you a list of leading companies in the DDoS protection domain. While choosing the right firm, look for aspects such as:

• Availability of cloud-based protection services which can be deployed within minutes. This becomes critical if you have omitted retaining a protection services firm right at the onset and you need their help when your network is already under attack
• Scalability of the DDoS protection method so that it can expand to take care of attacks that may otherwise surpass your Internet bandwidth limits
• Cost effectiveness that will help you do away with the need to over provision bandwidth which is one of the ways in which most companies deploy protection services.

 Is it possible to learn from DDoS attacks?

Answer – Yes, it indeed is possible. A professional DDoS protection services firm will have a superlative analytics mechanism in place and keeps collecting knowledge about various ways in which DDoS attacks take place. This knowledge center will have information on past attacks and even the new ones. This will help the firm fine tune its own defense mechanism to take care of better and more sophisticated levels of protection.

Is there a choice between hardware protection and software protection?

Answer – Ideally, do not make it an either/or choice. It is best to go in for a combination of the two. Doing a “mix and match” will also give you an opportunity to bring down costs a bit.The hardware approach will see the installation of security equipment which acts as a shield between your network and incoming traffic. The software approach will help analyze this incoming traffic and deflect what is considered as malicious or illegal traffic.

Should you outsource DDoS protection?

DDoS protection Answer – 100% Yes, this is a practical and viable choice simply because you may not have the necessary wherewithal to keep up with everything that is happening in this domain. For instance, there is plenty of work being done to analyze the source of DDoS attacks which leads to information on whether it originated from abnormalities in the network or whether a human source was responsible.

James is a writer and blogger with 5 years experience.