Tech News and Information

How did I come up with ideas for articles? Where do I get my technology news and information? I thought that I would give you a list of sources so that the curious could learn and maybe find a tool to help them in the future. When I am trying to come up with an idea for an article I listen to podcasts, look for a pattern in the tech news, read technology newsletters, or get ideas from readers.


Web Resources

Tech Meme - They aggregate technology news from multiple sources

Wired - I used to have a print subscription, now I have a digital subscription and use the website. They cover technology, science, trends, and how it impacts society.

New York Times Technology articles - I setup a recipe in IFTT (If This Then That) and I automatically get technology articles sent to my e-mail.

Nicole Hennig - she sends out a monthly newsletter that is aimed at Librarians. She has also written books, articles, and taught webinars. She is very smart, extremely talented, and I'm a little jealous. Her blog is a wealth of resources

These are all places that I check up for the latest articles on new technology, upcoming devices, computer programming, and the developments in the technology sector:
Engadget
Gizmodo
Hacker News
The Verge



Podcasts

Daily Tech News - first thing every weekday

Tech's Message - technology news with a UK perspective

Android App Arena - I watch when a category interests me

iOS Today - From time to time to hear app suggestions and Apple developments

This Week in Tech - To get a discussion about the week's biggest technology stories

This Week in Google - More of a discussion on the role of technology companies in our society, what is ahead for technology, just a little about Google

Exponent - a podcast that looks at the business and management side of the technology industry




Fixing I.T. and Programming Problems

You Tube - great how to videos

iFixit - Tools, tear aparts, how to, diagrams, and much more

Stack Overflow - coding, programming, and other insanity

Bleeping Computer - a community of I.T. people that have answers to problems

Black History Apps

African American Historic Sites Database Virginia (Free) iOS and Android - This app teaches users about locations in Virginia where historic African American Events took place. Users can browser through a list or select locations from a map. Many of the locations have beautiful historic photos.

Black History Tribute (Free) iOS only - A very basic app that lists historic Black Americans alphabetically or by category. When a user selects a person they can see a photo and read a short biography.

The Book of Negroes Historical Guide (Free) iOS and Android - Created in conjunction with a television miniseries that was created for the CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Channel) and then re-aired on BET (Black Entertainment Television it is based on a novel of the same name. The actual historical event that occurred during the American Revolution. The app teaches users about the actual historical events that the television series and novel were based upon. A gorgeous, well designed app that has high production value. It feels like a museum exhibit come alive on your device.

NMAAHC Mobile Stories (Free) iOS and Android - Created by the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture they app presents museum exhibits and items so that users everywhere can experience the museum from their device. The photos and exhibit items give an emotional depth and connection to the historical events from which they came. Easy to use and high quality.

 Black History Word Search (Free) iOS only - A simple app that feels dated, the app allows users to search for the names of famous Black Americans. It does not give any additional information but might encourage users to learn more about a Black American they have never heard about.

 Harriett Tubman Underground Railroad Byway (Free) iOS and Android - The app has been made to be used following the Underground Railroad Byway in Maryland but it's not necessary. The app provides audio and pictures to inform the users about historical events and locations. It would be fascinating to use in a car while traveling the route but the quality makes the content enjoyable without actually being there.

Better Understanding The Lingo

There are a lot of things that adults (and some times teens / young adults) see on the Internet and have no idea what it refers to or what it is short hand for. This week I will give you resources to better understand Internet slang, text messaging lingo, and Internet culture in general.

* WARNING: There are aspects of these items that are adult / mature in nature. There may be in cases discussion of sexuality or other topics that are of an extremely provocative *

Emojipedia gives the history, background information, and definition about an emoji. It explains how the emoji means different things on different social media platforms. It also shows how the emoji is displayed on different platforms.

Emoji Dictionary seems to be more crowd sourced (users can add their interpretation or definition). This website illuminates what an emoji can be slang or inside talk about a subject.

Netlingo has several categories to explain terminology from business, marketing, IT, and the Internet. This page deals with a long list of acronyms that are used online or in text messaging.

Know Your Meme take those pictures that you see with text and discusses their origin, background, when they became popular, what it can be shorthand. It's really fascinating.

Giphy provides a tremendous amount of giphs (looping videos that are usually 2 - 4 seconds). It doesn't really give any explanation or information but can be a resource to find gifs you might use on social media. The website also helps users create their own giph. There is a Giphy keyboard for people that love giphs that can be installed on iPhones. 

Imgur is home to many of the viral pictures and short videos that make their way to social media. A very entertaining site with a devoted community of users that comment and submit images. 

Reddit is an online community that often makes it into the technology news for the bad behavior of its users and the difficult role of the site's owners. The site tries to be a place where people can discuss and share all kinds of things but sometimes this means users push the limits of what is acceptable. The front page of Reddit is usually entertaining and contains stories, images, memes, that become popular later on Facebook and Twitter. There are groups to discuss and learn about a wide array of topics. One of the ones a lot of my friends enjoy is "Explain Like I'm Five"  which simplifies a concept to very basic terms.

Urban Dictionary has lots of terms that teens and adults use as slang, lingo, short hand, etc. There are a lot of mature and adult items on the website. The link that I provided is there guide to acroymns.

I thought this Time magazine article might be helpful, "116 Teen Text Terms Decoded for Confused Parents"