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Men Less Discouraged by Gadget Breakdowns Than Women, Study Says

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Nov 17th 2008 at 2:16PM


The Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project is constantly filling our lives with fascinating numbers and stats we never knew we cared about. For example, did you know that young people and men are much more likely to remain calm and optimistic in the event of a technological meltdown?

We don't want to spend to much time sweating the details, so here are some quick bullet points filled with percentage-ee goodness:
  • When a piece of technology failed, 76-percent of men were confident the problem could be fixed, versus 68-percent of women.
  • Despite being more confident, men were just as likely to report being confused or discouraged by technical difficulties.
  • 33-percent of men fixed their gadget problems on their own, compared to 22-percent of women.
  • Despite being no more capable of fixing the problem, 85-percent of 18-29 year olds reported being confident that they could solve the issue.
Despite all of these feelings of confidence, it doesn't change the fact that most people are just not capable of repairing their own tech-toys. Only 28-percent of all respondents were able to handle their own tech support. [From: Crave]

Does the Internet Bring Families Closer Together?

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Oct 22nd 2008 at 7:29AM


The Internet (much like TV before it) has taken a lot of criticism, and one argument often heard is that it would impede socialization amongst family members. But, a new study from Pew Internet & American Life Project counters those expectations.

According to a new survey of 2,252 adults, around 25-percent of adults with Internet access said their families were closer now than when they were growing up. Only 17-percent of those without Internet said the same. In fact, many treated browsing the Web as a family activity, with 50-percent of respondents who lived with a spouse and at least one child saying they went online with a family member a few times a week.

We're constantly calling over friends and family to check out videos on YouTube, or e-mailing articles and funny sites, so this really comes as little surprise. The Internet, unlike TV, is inherently social and interactive and so lends itself more easily to becoming an activity a family can participate in together.

More bad news for television: A quarter of respondents said they watched less TV, preferring instead to spend leisure time online. [From: CNET]

77% of Americans Use Cell Phones to Text-Message While Driving

by Tim Stevens, posted Oct 21st 2008 at 12:42PM

Pervasive cell phone use is on the rise, and it's not just a concern with bad manners. We've reported on people walking in front of trains and crashing cars while focusing more on their phones than what they're doing. And don't forget that this summer's awful train crash in Los Angeles was blamed on a texting. Now, new survey by software company Neverfail, Inc is showing just how pervasive these dangerous habits are becoming, and the findings are disconcerting, to say the least.

The data shows that 77-percent of people have used their mobile e-mail device, like a BlackBerry, while driving a car. Ridiculously, 41-percent have done the same while either skiing, riding a horse, or riding a bicycle, and 11-percent have used one during a "romantic moment!" All the stats, available at the Read link below, are amazing sign of just how addicted to these things some people are. [From: Reuters]

Study Shows 43-Percent of Women Prefer Macs

by Kaiser Hwang, posted Oct 14th 2008 at 4:31PM


When it comes to computing technology, the general stereotype is that it's more a male-dominated culture. And in general, from the number of software companies and trade events we've worked at/attended, it's a fairly accurate assumption. But in these connected times, everyone -- yes, even that middle-school child with a phone that's better than yours -- is tied to technology, regardless of gender.

So what brands are women into besides Kodak? Apple. According to a survey conducted at a Canadian university, 43-percent of women prefer Apple laptops over PCs. Details were not given as to why women would prefer devices with incredibly classy looks and are known to "just work," but maybe today's event will shed some light on the subject.

It must be noted that this survey was conducted with a random sampling of only seven women, so the results are far from definitive. If our last visit to the SF Apple store was any indication, though, 43-percent seems like way too low a number. [From: TUAW]

Headphone-Wearing Pedestrians Causing More Traffic Accidents

by Lee Bains, posted Oct 9th 2008 at 7:06AM



An unnamed insurance company recently stated that one in ten minor accidents are caused by headphone-wearing pedestrians, the Daily Mail reports.

Since headphones and earbuds have become louder and increasingly capable of blocking out external noise (especially those new-fangled in-ear buds), the folks who don them on the streets are frequently unable to hear traffic noise. This can result in a listener stepping into a crosswalk, oblivious to the oncoming truck forced to slam on its brakes. Not surprisingly, collisions are on the rise.

Although we haven't heard any such reports yet, we're confident that sometime soon, some iPod-listening jaywalker is going to be taken to the bank. [From: Daily Mail]

Internet Makes Men Happy, Survey Says

by Lee Bains, posted Oct 3rd 2008 at 11:31AM



According to a Reuters report, a recent Australian study shows that over 50-percent of men see the Internet as the key to happiness, while a measly 39-percent of women feel the same way.

The "Happiness Index" study also demonstrates that, collectively, women's happiest activity is spending time with family, an opinion shared by just 45-percent of men. While we are certainly in no position to criticize these Aussie Web-lovers (we do run a blog, after all), we believe we'd be remiss not to criticize the apparently pitiful number of family men Down Under. Then again, we're not sure if the stats would be that much better here in the states... Is playing online games really more satisfying than spending time with your children?

For all those kids out there that find themselves in this sort of predicament, fear not. If you hip your daddy to some of these new widgets, he might just be grateful enough to play a game of catch sometime. [From: Reuters]

Workers Spend Quarter of the Work Day 'Goofing Off,' Study Finds

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Sep 26th 2008 at 3:36PM

Workers Spend Quarter of the Work Day
Network security firm, Voco, says that workers spend about 25-percent of their time "goofing off" online, often without their managers realizing it. In particular, Information Technology (IT) workers and tech-savvy employees are able to get away with all sorts of online shenanigans, including browsing eBay auctions, dating sites, social networking pages, and even downloading music and movies from peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing services.

We've already heard that Facebook alone costs businesses up to $264 million dollars a day in lost man hours, but other studies show that personal Web use on the job can actually make employees more efficient. For example, it may be better to let an employee take five minutes from their day to attend to personal matters via e-mail or to do some online banking rather than have them leave the office for an hour or so to deal with such matters in person. That said, blowing a quarter of your work day by messing around online is a bit excessive.

We're all for a little R&R on the job, but don't take it too far. Sleeping or getting, um... intimate, at the office is probably a bad idea.

If you need a little help getting away with your cubicle diversions, check out our guides to looking busy or viewing blocked Web sites. Just don't blame us if you get caught. [From: Ars Technica]

Study Shows Video Games Help Kids Socialize

by Dan Reilly, posted Sep 17th 2008 at 5:01PM


Sorry, moms. According to a recent study from the Pew Internet & American Life Project, 97-percent of American kids aged 12 to 17 partake in video games, and two-thirds of them play while hanging out with friends or family. Another 25-percent socialize online, so it looks like the stereotype of the awkward, withdrawn gamer is less true than many believe.

The survey asked just over 1100 kids from diverse backgrounds and their parents about their gaming and interacting habits. Read on after the break for the highlights:

Continue reading Study Shows Video Games Help Kids Socialize

35% of Business Travelers Would Choose BlackBerry Over Spouse

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Sep 17th 2008 at 2:26PM

35% Would Choose Blackberry Over SpouseWe're a little frightened to find out how many of you out there would choose your BlackBerry over your spouse. A new survey from StudyLogic finds that over 35-percent of business travelers would choose the ol' CrackBerry over their significant other.

Additionally, 87-percent of those surveyed said they brought their smart phones and BlackBerrys into the bedroom with them. It appears business travelers are obsessive about their e-mail: An astounding 84-percent said they checked their BlackBerries before going to sleep, and 80-percent checked their handhelds first thing in the morning. Even creepier: 62-percent said they 'loved' their smart phones. Not a word we'd use very often to describe our relationship with our gadgets.

We already know that some of you are having less sex in order to spend time online, but we're wondering how much time you could possibly you could possibly spend actively on a BlackBerry.

So what do you say, would you choose your BlackBerry over your wife? [From: TG Daily]

Would you choose your Blackberry over your spouse?

Majority of Web Users Have No Idea What Social-Networking Is

by Tim Stevens, posted Sep 6th 2008 at 5:30PM

More than Half of People Don't Know what Social Networking IsEveryone knows what Facebook and MySpace are, right? Facebook just hit 100-million users, and MySpace hit that mark more than two years ago. Mix in all the other various social networks out there and you surely have billions of people, right? How is it that only 42-percent of people know what a social network is?

Marketing firm eMarketer asked 13,000 people in 17 countries whether they knew what a social network was, and 58-percent did not, while only 26-percent indicated they belonged to one.

Perhaps even more interesting is the fact that, of those who had accounts, over a third indicated they were bored with them. Who can blame them? Whether it's MySpace spam friend requests or the constant inundation by Facebook's deluge of chainmail-like applications, being in a virtual network seems like even more work than being in a real one sometimes. [From: Valleywag]

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