John W. Scherer Video Professor Blog Nov. 10, 2006

Talking Tech!

No e-mail for you
I thought teenagers were the target market for e-mailing, but apparently not. According to a new survey, teens between the ages of 13 and 17 are less likely to communicate via e-mail. After thinking about it, I guess it makes sense. We are moving into a world of instant gratification, and I guess kids don’t want to wait for e-mails. Instead, instant messaging is the way to go. Most teens prefer to communicate using AOL Instant Messaging or MSN Messenger services. Plus, with social networking taking over the Internet, kids simply must prefer MySpace to e-mail.
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Cleaning up your Web reputation
Are you a little worried about information about you that lives on the Internet? Are you searching for a new job and a little worried that your potential employer will see some embarrassing photos from spring break your junior year of college? Well if you have a Web rep that you’re a little ashamed of, you may be in luck. A new company, ReputationDefender, can help rid the Net of your past. They can contact server hosts and ask them to remove certain information that you may regret now.
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Vista is near
After much speculation as to the launch date of Microsoft’s much anticipated new operating system, company officials announced this week that they will begin selling Vista to customers on Jan. 30, 2007.
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Search by sight
This is a pretty cool search engine. For me, there have been countless times that I’ve seen a product but didn’t know the name and just couldn’t find it. By using a new search engine, Like.com, you can search for something using a photo. Pop the photo in and let the Web find your match.
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Beware of your BlackBerry
I’ll stick with a pen and paper. That’s a joke, but you will get my point. I’m a business owner, Video Professor, and some of my employees are jumping on the PDA bandwagon. Am I going to have to pay higher medical insurance premiums because constant PDA use is causing arthritis? I’ve been saying it for years: the more that technology betters our lives, the more it can hurt.
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Off Topic:

There is a pro for everything
Are professional video gamers really necessary? What’s more surprising, that there are actually professional video gamers or the fact that the top pros can pull down a low six-figure salary? A high-school dropout at the age of 16 is now a top video game pro at 19 and pulling down a great salary. But according to the lad, it’s not all fun and games. My recommendation to teens, don’t take this route. Stay in school and cherish your education.
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Picks o’ the week!
I have this picks thing figured out. That’s for sure. In the past two weeks, I’m 2-4 after only picking one game correctly last week. I guess this is what the powers-that-be wanted in the NFL. There is so much parity right now. The team that really stands above and beyond anyone else is Indianapolis. Peyton and company are playing so well right now. That was an absolutely huge win for the Colts last Sunday in New England. Granted, Tom Brady did the Patriots no favors by throwing four interceptions, but give the Colts a ton of credit. Give them credit until the playoffs roll round. We’ll see if they can avoid another January swoon. As we move into Week 10, I’m at 15-12 overall. Let’s see if I can rediscover my winning ways.

San Diego over Cincinnati: San Diego is surging, and that’s pretty easy to do when your running back scores six touchdowns in two weeks. How good is LaDainian Tomlinson? There is certainly no back in the NFL that I would rather have on my team. To keep pace with Denver, who plays the lowly Raiders at Oakland on Sunday, San Diego needs to take care of business on the road. Plus, Cincinnati is one Chad Johnson eruption from finally imploding.

Philadelphia over Washington: I just can’t figure out this Washington team, and neither can anyone else. One week they won’t be able to do anything, and the next they pull out an improbable win. Did you see what they pulled off last week against Dallas? That was a gut wrencher for the ‘boys. I think Philly at home is just too tough for a very inconsistent team to handle.

Kansas City over Miami: Was that shocking upset win a sign of good things to come from the Dolphins? I don’t think so. Despite pulling off a huge upset last week at Chicago, the ‘fins are still chock-full of problems including, among other things, at quarterback. Speaking of QB, Herm Edwards certainly has a conundrum on his hands. He lost Trent Greene but said that a player would not lose his starting job due to an injury. With the way Damon Huard has been playing in relief, however, it’ll be hard to pull him out of the lineup.

John W. Scherer
CEO and Founder
VIDEO PROFESSOR, Inc.