image courtesy of flickr.com/Xurble

Nothing burns a brotha up more than having to dodge soccer moms with “neckdontworkisis” trying to coordinate offspring pickups/dropoffs!

neckdontworkisis (neck-dont-work-isis); n:
- The inability to turn one’s head around and look in one’s blindspot BEFORE switching lanes during a phone call while driving.

Multiply that with old people who should be forced to take a eye exam/driving test EVERY YEAR and road yachts full of anxious family members struggling to get to Grammy’s house to suffer the misfortune of tasting her green bean casserole, and VOILA’ – the perfect storm for what is known as “Holiday Traffic”. So during one of the busiest travel days of the year, please allow Brotha Tech to give you some tech tips & gadgets that will help you stay safe…and sane!

The Lowdown:

- Actually use your GPS/Navigation system:
Don’t use your smartphone as a GPS, unless you can attach it to your dashboard/windshield (I am a culprit). Why? Unless your arm is made of steel and/or you can drive for MILES with your knees, it’s not a good idea to take your hands off the wheel and eyes off the road in order to fool with your phone’s tiny screen to find out where your next turn is. I know it’s quick to whip out your phone instead of playing with the GPS screen that places all the letters alphabetically, instead of keyboard style, but do us a favor and deal with it!

- Program your GPS ahead of time:
Most of the built-in GPS systems don’t allow you to operate the system while the car is in motion; but for most of us who buy aftermarket systems from Garmin, TomTom and others, all we have to do is ignore the “do not operate while car is in motion” notice after the unit powers up, and keep on trying to decide between the “shortest route” and the “fastest route” while flying down the interstate. Just take the time and do it while you are warming up the car, please.

- Speed/Voice dialing is your friend
If you MUST call Grammy and update her of your ETA every 2 hours, program her number onto one of the numbers on your keypad. Or setup your voice dialing (voice dialing is getting better, I promise).

…and while you are on the phone (you didn’t think I was done with soccer mom did you?)

- Take that phone off your ear and get a Bluetooth Headset or Car Kit!
For some strange reason, people MUST talk while they are driving. Even stranger is that people think they can drive as good or better while they are talking while driving. Fact of the matter is, a distraction is a distraction. Trying to explain to Grammy why your brother isn’t coming this year because he thinks nobody likes his perky, half-his-age new girlfriend is a recipe for disaster if you are trying to navigate Thanksgiving traffic. So at the very least, do it as safely as possible.

- Do I even have to tell you not to text while driving?
Twitter, Facebook and your BlackBerry Messenger Contacts will be okay if you are off the grid for awhile you spend time with your family singing holiday songs in the family ride.

Here are some useful links:

CEA’s Position On Driver Safety
Using your Car Electronics Safely

…use some common sense and stay safe out there folks!

Oh, and before I forget, HAPPY TURKEY DAY!

(Tell Grammy I said Hello)

image courtesy of flickr.com/Penny Sense

If you’re like me, then you don’t shop for the holidays. If you’re better than me (I hope so) then you will probably buy something for somebody for the holidays. Most of us have been able to get over our “scared to death to buy something online” and will do a great deal of their holiday shopping online. So let Brotha Tech give you some tips on how to make those online purchases as non scary as possible.

The Lowdown:

- Get a Paypal or Google Checkout account. They are accepted just about everywhere online. You create an account, enter all of your personal information in one spot (with one login), and use that to make all of your purchases. If you do run into a snafu, you have one source to cuss at deal with versus dealing with whatever merchant (and there are many) that half-assed your transaction.

If you really don’t wanna go through the painful 5-minute registration process then:

- Designate ONE credit card/bank account as the online purchasing account. It will be easier for you to track a charge/purchase if you KNOW what card/account you used. Then, I would contact the company that issued the card/account and see if they have purchase alerts that will notify you by email of recent charges you made. So if something fishy pops up, you will see it almost immediately, and have the opportunity to react faster. Most companies give the you the ability to customize the alerts so you only get notified if there are a string of quick purchases or large purchases of x amount or higher.

I like the “BBD” (Bigger Better Deal) just like the next person, but if finding that deal means buying from a shady-looking site where you need a secret handshake just to see the merchandise, it’s better that you just:

- Trust your gut. If it’s too good to be true… If it walks like a duck, quacks like duck… (I’ve got more if you don’t catch my drift). If you have even the slightest reservation about the site – LEAVE. You will be able to find that exact item listed on a bunch of other sites, I promise!

Bottom line, online shopping is supposed to give the shopper the freedom to shop at home in your drawls pj’s. You shouldn’t have to be stressed out about whether or not your every keystroke on a site is being recorded by some loser who spent a whole lot of time, effort, and money into taking your hard-earned holiday cash.

I know I may have missed some online shopping techniques, so tell me, how do you ensure your safety while making purchases online?