<< back to: HyperGeek Speaks!

Sunday, September 25, 2005

Cheat Sheet to Get Past Voice Mail to Speak to a PERSON!

RE:
Customer Service Heaven - An occasional series ferreting out hard-to-find phone numbers. By Timothy Noah

If you have ever tried in vain to get past endless voice mail to speak to a PERSON to resolve customer service issues you are in my boat! This web site is an answer to our prayers:
Find A Human

Amen!

Friday, September 23, 2005

Avidly Seeking Wireless Clues From Google - New York Times

Avidly Seeking Wireless Clues From Google - New York Times

This folks, will make dial-up and DSL fees unnecesary. Now it is just in the San Francisco Bay area, but this author hopes it will creep east real soon.

Wow! Come to the Big Apple Google. This gal is ready. Free WiFi!

Ya-hoo!

Monday, September 19, 2005

Big Blue Back to School: Generous or Down-Sizing Smoke Screen?

(This is from my other blog: An Educational Voyage)

Article: Big Blue Back to School : "On a completely related note, IBM announced a "Transition to Teaching" initiative today to help transform IBMers into U.S. schoolteachers in an effort to stave off teacher attrition and boost interest and aptitude in math and science among American students. The Cliff Notes version: IBMers would be given financial assistance in the form of tuition reimbursement and stipends while they take a leave of absence from the company to seek teaching credentials and begin student-teaching, before ultimately becoming full-time teachers and leaving IBM's employ. Datamation blogs it here and hints we could quickly be moving to the top of our class."
Article: Big Blue Back to School

My Opinion?

This will be nice for those close to retirement or dissatisfied with corporate life. However, I think in the long run, IBM is planning to terminate a nice number of employees and thinks it has figured out a way to not announce a need to down-size, (ie. overseas outsourcing) while being helpful to employees whose heads are on the chopping block by providing new career training. No red and white in Old Blue...
Oh, the miracles of modern "spin!"

This is a really lucky project for "soon be let go" IBM employees. However, they probably land better paying, moe respected jobs anyway- after all they landed jobs with Big Blue to start with, right?

A word to the wise IBMers heading for the Big Apple: Sometimes the devil you know is better than the NYC devil you don't know. Switchers beware.

Hey, IBM, can you send us a quality Chancellor?

Sunday, September 18, 2005

Analog Folks in a Digital World

I have been a technology teacher for the New York City Department of Education, own my own technology company, run and moderate an online educational discussion list, have numerous web sites, and am here to tell you, technology can be quite useful.

Believe it or not there are still some people out there who have resisted as much technology as possible. You know who they are. They are the ones who scoffed at the Casio calendar watches, digital alarm clocks, tone rather than pulse telephones, etc. They are our loved ones, the business down the block who still used the old cash register, and the wonderful aunt who still writes wonderful handwritten birthday cards!

Perhaps you are a closet technophobe. Just maybe, you are thinking of coming out of the closet. Well relax. You have a friend. I'm here to introduce you to the wonderful world of technology, in little baby steps. In posts here, I'll discuss a little snippet of technology in a gentle, non prodding way. You can read and digest it, then decide if you want to take the plunge little by little.

I always said, that if God didn't want us to use dishwashers, they would never have been invented. So with that in mind, de-stress yourself, and take comfort that technology is here to serve you. Not the other way around. You can take control and improve your life in itty bitty ways, and not feel a bit of pain along the way.

Whether its getting a digital answering machine, buying that first PDA, cellphone, or computer I'll lead you down a neat, clear path.

Trust me- Technology Rocks!
ccccc