Tweets, Statuses, Etc...

You know what really Grinds My Gears? Stupid tweets. You get on Facebook or Twitter to seek out information on people or the current topics that are going around the web. You dont go on Twitter just to find out that Timmy just ate a slice of Pepperoni pizza.... Its ridiculous when people post statuses that have absolutely no value to anyone. Lets look at one of my friends the other day...Someone actually said, " Drinking coffee right now." Im goign to let all facebook and twitter users know...I DONT CARE IF YOU ARE DRINKING COFFEE. Put something meaningful or insightful up on your facebook... something people can actually use in their lives. Besides all of that, whenever someone does actually put something meaningful up on there wall dont trash it. Make sure you leave something positive or uplifting to help that person through their tough day. If i have to be that guy who goes around and calls people out on their lame facebook statuses...i am alright with that.

http://www.buzzfeed.com/mjs538/25-bad-facebook-advertisements

Self-Proclaimed Genius: Internet Edition

You know what really Grinds My Gears? People who think the internet makes them an expert. There might not be anything that bothers me more than people who think they can say whatever they want just because they can hide behind a username and a computer screen. Chances are, no one will ever find out who they are so they don't have to be embarrassed about all the ridiculous things they type up in their parent's basement. With all the blogs I frequent or happen upon I find countless examples of people going on for days about subjects they have absolutely no experience with or knowledge of. Information and news catches on instantaneously these days so even if something is completely false, it will probably be in everybody's inbox or news feed by lunch. Half the reason people get things wrong is because the source they get it from is completely unreliable. Situations get out of hand, bad information is spread, and people get dumber as a result. The latter of the three is one that society in general can ill afford at this point. Be smart with what you say and who you say it to. If you do not know what you are talking about...do us all a big favor...and shut your monitor off.

Computer pet peeves

There are many things that grind my gears when it comes to technology, but one thing that really drives me nuts is all tehe unecessary pop ups or advertisements tht get in the way of tasks I'm trying to complete. Whether it is waiting for an advertisement to get over on youtube so you can watch the video you want, or whatever it may be, all that stuff drives me crazy. I just want to be able to get things done quickly with no distractions from outside sources. One annoying example just happened as I was logging into to my google account today. There was a pop-up saying that I needed to type in my phone number and submit it to protect my google account. I just thought that was outrageous and I looked around for the x button but I couldn't find it! Then I was really ticked. Somehow it eventually went to my account so that I could do this post! It's sometimes just the little things that drives me really nuts!

new facebook

Do you know what really grinds my gears? well, let me tell you. The new facebook. It absolutely drives me nuts. All the new applications and ways of doing things is causing facebook to become extremely slow. I will scroll down on my home page to try to look at something and then it will like freeze for a second and then will automatically shoot me back up to the top of the page! it ticks me off like nobody's business! Maybe it is just my computer? I would really like to know if this happens to other people. I would much rather have something that is simple and easy to use and fast, then to ahve something with a ton of apps that is super slow and estremely frustrating! ah

I want my Information, and I want it now.

You know what really Grinds My Gears? Loading Times. I'll be honest with you, im not the most patient of people, so this could just be something that affects me, but there is nothing that Grinds My Gears more than the wait time it takes to load of a new piece of technology. Take the iphone for example. I have a 3gs...nothing fancy like the new iphone or ipad, and so last night i started to download the new software package for my iphone around midnight. It took until 2:30 AM until it was finished! Can you even imagine having to look at an estimated time bar that says over two hours?! IT was nuts, and besides that i feel like i have this problem with all technology...

Watching that stupid time glass on your computer, or multi-color pinwheel if you have a mac is probably the only thing that can turn my mood 180 degrees. LEt me know if this is just me...or if everyone gets as frustrated as me when they have to wait for their device to start working. I know this sounds impatient and so like our "New Generation" of kids these days but ill admit it. I want my Information, and i want it now.

http://www.cemag.us/article/development-technology-patience-key

GPS...Recalculating

You know what really Grinds My Gears? GPS. First of all, have we really gotten to be that dependent on technology that we can't look up and read a street sign anymore. We have to have the directions read to us out loud by an angry lady with a heavy Australian accent who coincidently half the time has no idea where we are, or where we are going. On the way home from Springfield this weekend I had the words "recalculating" and "GPS Signal Lost" seered into my mind for three hours straight. It makes me nervous basing the direction I travel off a machine which relies on a satellite hovering miles above the Earth that can't even get a signal half the time. If we rely so heavily on the GPS for directions and then all the sudden it loses signal, where exactly are we suppose to go? Guess we have to pull over and play on our iPhone until the Australian lady decides she is ready to play tour guide again. How do you feel about GPS's in the car? Has yours ever steered you wrong?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZXM_g3mqew

Hot to Not.

You know what really Grinds My Gears? Sneaky people with technology. Lets look at a hypothetical situation shall we? Lets say you are a very nice young lady, but you dont have a boyfriend and you are lonely, so you go onto one of these internet dating sites people use. Matter of fact, lets make it more simple and just say you went online and met a guy. He's charming, sweet, attractive, and most of all RICH. You decide you will give this guy a chance, and let him take you to some fancy french restaurant. When you get there you are looking around but cant find the attractive guy in the picture...instead you see some 56 year old man waving you over to the table. When you get there he kisses your hand, and tells you hes your date. You have been a victim of the web. This guy duped you into believing that he was some hot 30 year old rich banker! The web is sort of a scary place, and when people abuse it, it can be dangerous. Besides that you see these people all over the web but never know it. The web was created for good, not for trickery and identity crimes! Lesson learned folks...Background check your next virtual date people.

http://aluratek.com/cms/blog/rude-gadget-habits-4-annoying-ways-people-technology/

Texting Zombies...LOL :)

You know what really Grinds My Gears? Texting and Walking. With how user-friendly phones are today, its hard to not use them whenever and wherever you want. Sitting, standing, walking, driving, in class, in the hallway, in your bed, in a meeting, during a test, etc. Texting is just a standard part of everyday life now. Everyone has a cell phone and just about everyone knows how to text. Some people have to put their glasses on to do it (My Folks). Some have to change it to the Spanish setting (Rudy). Some are notoriously awful spellers (Jordan Quinn). We all have faults when it comes to texting, but one thing we all have in common is that we text while we walk. I cannot tell you how many times I have been shoulder checked by people because they don't have the decency and good sense to look up from their phone for two seconds and make sure they aren't about to plow over somebody. We have allowed using our phones to engulf our lives so completely that we cannot even wait until we get in a seated position to use them. We put our safety at risk and the risk of others when we keep our eyes glued to the phone. It goes from bumping into side tables and stubbing toes to walking out into traffic unaware. There will be a law against texting and walking soon...just ask the lady in the video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVrM3mX3aFo
http://www.jokeroo.com/videos/funny/texting-fail.html

Ipad vs. regular labtop

You know what really grinds my gears?? When my sister has an awesome Ipad and comes to use my computer to get on facebook and surf the web etc. Now i know that Ipad's have the capabilities of Facebook and the internet, so what is it that makes my sister set aside her Ipad and have her come use my computer!? I felt like telling her to just give me her I pad if she isn't going to use it.. If anyone knows the differences between Ipad and a regular labtop then please let me know!

Facebook Button?

You know what really Grinds My Gears? The Facebook Button on Phones. Our society needs everything we want at the exact moment we want it. That's a known fact. Instant Gratification. We are so conditioned to it that we hardly even notice it anymore unless our internet is running slow. It gets worse and worse with each generation because of the technology that is being bettered daily to make it easier to get the information and tangible items we want as soon as we want them. As if it wasn't already bad enough here comes the HTC Phone storming in with nothing other than a "Facebook Button" on the bottom of their new phone. Now we not only see the little blue symbol on our computer screens, television sets, billboards, posters, movies, and just about any other form of media one could think of, but now it is right there glowing in our faces every time we look at our phone. Every time a HTC user does something on there phone they deem "Facebook Worthy" they have the option to upload it instantly with the touch of a button for the whole world to see. No more filter, no more think time. What do you think the repercussions of adding instant technology like this to items that our world already revolves around will be? Is it overkill or is this the direction we have been going for a long time and our momentum is just going to keep on carrying us?

 http://clutchmagonline.com/2011/07/htc-launches-phone-with-facebook-button-love-it-or-leave-it-alone/

Phone problems

You want to know what really grinds my gears? Ok well even if you don't want too, I'm going to tell you anyway.. I have Sprint service. . I can't even tell you how many times my phone just randomly freezes, and at teh worst times! I'll be having a serious phone call that is extremely important that is time realted, and then my phone will just randomly freeze up for fifteen minutes and then work just fine again. Not only do I get ticked off, but the people I was talking to become pissed off as well because they think that I just hung up on them! Is there anything I can do to prevent my phone from randomly freezing?

Automate me

You know what really grinds my gears? Automated voices. No matter how much you need information they always seem to be talking at one word per minute, and always at the end they finally give you the options to go into an extended line. Why wouldnt they put the options at the beginning of the voice message, and put the store hours at the end. Honestly i doubt that most people are calling for store hours, especially during the day. Besides that why is it always a woman?"It's much easier to find a female voice that everyone likes than a male voice that everyone likes," said Stanford University Professor Clifford Nass. Apparently this all started back in WWII when women's voices stood out more over the radio.

http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/21/tech/innovation/female-computer-voices/index.html

Automate me

You know what really grinds my gears? Automated voices. No matter how much you need information they always seem to be talking at one word per minute, and always at the end they finally give you the options to go into an extended line. Why wouldnt they put the options at the beginning of the voice message, and put the store hours at the end. Honestly i doubt that most people are calling for store hours, especially during the day. Besides that why is it always a woman?"It's much easier to find a female voice that everyone likes than a male voice that everyone likes," said Stanford University Professor Clifford Nass. Apparently this all started back in WWII when women's voices stood out more over the radio.

http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/21/tech/innovation/female-computer-voices/index.html

Communication Breakdown.

You know what really Grinds My Gears? The breakdown of communication through technology.You all know what i am talking about... the text that you sent to someone that got taken the wrong way, or the facebook message that you sent to your girlfriend that was taken totally out of context. There is no redeeming yourself after that. The mind has already been made up, and honestly it takes a lot to try and change that. Even when my buddy, wasn't able to receive text messages, his girlfriend still got mad because he wasn't responding. Technology complicates all types of relationships due to words and conversations taken out of context. Think about it. When you read a text message you insert your own voice inflections, and excitement or gloominess. Either way you have to decode a message and add your own emotion to it. THis is what makes texting and emails so dangerous. the range of emotion that could be put into something like that ranges so much. I know ive gotten put in the doghouse multiple times by girlfriends because i didn't pick up on their, "hint," through texts that they were upset.

Lets switch it up and if you have something important to say...how about you just give someone a ring...

Facebook..."Friends"?

You know what really Grinds My Gears? Stalkers on Facebook. As if there weren't already enough concerns about weird, middle-aged creeps finding ways to communicate and locate our under-age children. Here comes Facebook that has practically interconnected the entire planet into one enormous online community. The problem is that usually we don't let the molesters hang out at the playground with the kids...or at the Chuckie Cheese. Now, these predators can pose as much younger individuals in order to gain access to people's lives, and there is no way to tell. Facebook pages can be completely fabricated in order to present desirable traits and characteristics that will attract the interest of certain individuals. In addition to this, there are also now apps that can be used to alert Facebook Friends where and what an individual is doing, at the exact time that they are doing it. This also opens the possibility to make them prime targets for these online predators. Adding someone you don't know on Facebook is a risk every time you do it. They might be genuine people that are randomly adding you or have a legitimate interest in you as a person. Or they might really like the way your living room furniture looks through your window from behind the bushes...

If You Hate Automated Voice Messaging Systems...Press 1

You know what really Grinds My Gears? Automated Message Handling Systems. It isn't bad enough that you have to mute the game and spend the better part of your Saturday or Sunday dealing with billing issues, but now you have to deal with a robot on the other end of the line which also happens to be an idiot. Companies have gotten away from traditional customer service representatives and gone over to Automated Message Handling Systems (AMHS). This revolutionary idea is supposed to increase efficiency and allow customers to handle their disputes with the company without having to engage an actual employee. All this has managed to do is leave customers screaming into the phone at an automated voice whose first language isn't even English. These systems were at least remotely bearable when all someone had to do was listen and press a button, but that wasn't enough. Now you actually have to talk to the system and hope that it interprets what you say correctly. As a last result, a customer can actually manage to pull a rep. off of their solitaire game if they have survived the bludgeoning and personal angst that is sure to be suffered from dealing with one of these systems for an afternoon. Is anyone else as fed up with these systems as I am? Do you think customer relationships and personal interaction is suffering?

Retype My Captcha

You know what really Grinds My Gears? Captchas. How many times have you failed to put in the correct password and ran into one of these bad boys? trying to read what they say and retype it is one of the most annoying things on the web. These bending, and poorly written letters are called Captchas. A Captcha is a type of challenge-response test used in computing as an attempt to ensure that the response is generated by a person. Now i understand the security measures that are being taken into effect here but cmon man. Make these bad boys reasonable enough for us humans to read! Now i know that every single person who has used the internet has eventually, or will eventually stumble upon one of these guys and it will throw them for a loop. While sometimes they aren't terrible, most of the time they are difficult to read and unreasonable. There has to be a better way to test if the user is human or not...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CAPTCHA

http://www.johnmwillis.com/other/top-10-worst-captchas/

There is truly nothing more that grinds my gears than when somebody is texting me and facebook chatting me at the same time..Why can't a person just pick one?? Someone will send me a text and then ill just respond to that person on chat adn then they won't respond on chat and will send me a text answering the question I posted on chat! That drives me nuts! Perhaps some people do it on purpose just to be irritating.. Or maybe they dont even realize they are doing it! I am not sure.. But that is definitely something that grinds my gears! Technology is great but too much of it can become very overwhelming!

There is nothing more that grinds my gears then when facebook freezes and im in the middle of trying to chat with a few people online. I am not exactly sure what causes it... Does anybody know? There are also other times where i willl press enter while im chatting with someone and instead of the Enter button sending the message for me like it is supposed to do, it will jump down a space as if to start a new paragraph! That drives me nuts!! I wish there was a better button to send messages insted of the enter button.. Maybe there is or maybe I just need to get better at typing!! I would like to know if anybody agrees with me on this!

Can My Blog Be Your Homepage?

You know what really Grinds My Gears? Pushy Websites. Not particularly the ones who want you to sign up for things, and add you on their email list...which is in fact annoying. Today i am talking about every websites obsession with making you their homepage! Now i know for them that would be great, because every time you open your web browser they would have free advertising and they can show you information without you even opening their site. Anytime you need to get on the internet, you have to go through their page...but honestly, whatever happened to getting a little Yahoo news every time i get on the internet. Now thats information. The point is...i dont want to put anything else as my homepage other than my default...that extra click onto facebook wont stress out my day because i had to move my mouse a couple inches. Now there is nothing wrong with setting facebook or myspace on your homepage, but it really grinds my gears when websites like facebook are way too pushy. If i want you as my homepage...I'll let you know.

http://www.businessinsider.com/annoying-things-in-tech-2011-8#facebook-needs-to-calm-down-with-the-im-asking-for-our-cell-and-trying-to-get-us-to-set-facebook-as-our-home-page-7

World of Wireless

You know what really Grinds My Gears? Slow Wireless Internet Connections. We live in a society where we have to have everything we want exactly when we want it. We can try and deny this, but the simple fact is that instant gratification has taken over and completely crippled patience as a virtue. When you combine this with probably the greatest technological advancement ever, the internet, one starts to understand where frustrations can arise. There are two different types of cable modems that dish our wireless connection: G and N. G has a standard listed indoor range of about 125 ft. and about 460 ft. outside. N has a standard listed indoor range of about 250 ft. and about 820 ft. outside. The problem with these distances are that any interference what-so-ever can cut the wi-fi signal down to 50%. In some extreme cases the signal won't go over 25 ft.! What are your experiences with slow wi-fi signals and have you ever tried something completely out of the box to try and boost the signal to make your internet faster?

http://www.brighthub.com/computing/hardware/articles/47819.aspx
http://www.pcmech.com/article/the-truth-about-physical-wireless-range-between-g-and-n/

Predictive Text

You know what really Grinds My Gears? Predictive Texting. With multiple websites devoted to the embarrassing texts that kids send to their parents due to predictive texting, i think we have ourselves a problem. Lets face it, it sounds like a great idea to have a phone that can almost predict your every word while you are typing...but what happens when the obscene and fowl words that you have inputed in your phone gets sent to a girl you like or one of your grandparents. The examples i could bring up are endless, but i dont think they would be appreciated. This really isn't a technology problem, but more or less, a people with technology problem. Why dont you people read your texts before you send them? It doesn't make any sense to send off a text message without a proofreading first. I do it every time, and i dont think its that hard! Learn a lesson people, and think about what you are sending before you send it. We are getting to be adults and you cant be sending out text messages talking about how dirty you are. Clean it up.

http://digg.com/news/technology/biggest_tech_pet_peeves

Electric...Cars?

You know what really Grinds My Gears? Electric Cars. $36,000 for a car that is no bigger than the one that my folks got my sister when she was six? You have got to be kidding me. It looks like someone decided to stick a couple of double-A's in their piggy bank and drive it to work one day. Not to mention the engine sounding like the blender i bought at Wal-Mart freshman year. Then there are the efficiency issues. The AC and Heat both run off of the battery unlike in a gasoline powered engine. This means the driver will have to be mindful of how much they use these luxuries on the drive. There are also concerns for potential electricity distribution issues. Circuits demanding much for energy than usual may have the tendency to blow quite frequently. That is a hazard when the vehicle isn't even moving. With the small size of the vehicle it also raises safety and hauling issues. Most electric cars will be one or two seaters and have very little to offer in the way of safety features. With the limited amount of oil and sky-rocketing gas prices an alternate means for powering our vehicles is inevitable. Whether it is hydrogen, electric, or some other means, let's hope that all the necessary steps are taken to ensure the vehicles will be a viable option for the future.

http://www.intuitor.com/moviephysics/electricCar.htm

You know what really grinds my gears!? When im playin Halo Reach or Call of Duty on xbox live and I'm doing really well (i.e. a lot of kills and no deaths) and then my internet connection gets screwed up and I end up dying... over ... and over.. and over agian! I just don't understand how the connectino can be toatlly fine on xbox live for half of the game and then all of the sudden screw up.. I also am using a computer for facebook in the same room and it is completely working fine so that REALLY GRINDS MY GEARS when that happens! It happened to me 7 times yesterday......

XBOX 360

Red Ring of Death

You know what really Grinds My Gears? The "Red Ring of Death". Ever since the new and "improved" Xbox 360 gaming console came out from Microsoft, it was suppose to be a revolution in gaming over its predecessor the original Xbox console. The Xbox and Playstation consoles have made a quantum leap in gaming from systems such as GameCube, Dreamcast, and the Nintendos. One major flaw however has plagued loyal Xbox gamers for years now. A design flaw in the Xbox 360 allows for poor ventilation within the system, making it extremely susceptible to overheating and internal functioning issues. This basically renders the system useless and leaves teens all over the world staring at a blank screen. I have seen many consoles and controllers launched into the air, out windows, and into walls due to this little design flaw. The second the green ring goes red, you know that something is getting broken. The "Red Ring of Death" as it is called has prompted a massive recall of the systems, and forced Microsoft to install a trade-in policy. How does technology that is going to be that widely used get off the assembly line and out of the design rooms with flaws this big?

http://todaysnewsfast.info/xbox-360-red-ring-of-death/what-is-the-xbox-360-red-ring-of-death-anyway/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xbox_360_technical_problems

Text Room: A New World

I was texting about eight different people today around ten a.m. in order to get some ideas on what we should do for this up and coming weekend. I was repeatedly recieving text upon text of ideas, and other people wanted to know what everyone else was saying... Suddenly it dawned on me that the iphone needs a new app in their arsenal. They need a app that shows up like a chatroom on your phone but its all through texting.when you open up a text message it shows what everyone has been saying, and you can view it just like a chat room. Basically cutting down the amount of texts that you have to send to people, and then everyone has to go to one spot in ored to figure out the information. I searched the product and have found nothing like it. Such a small change in the format of texting could make a very big inconvenience into a serious luxury for everyone. Just make sure you are sending in something you dont mind everyone taking a look at.

Which Way Does the Door Swing?

You know what really Grinds My Gears? Guys that don't know proper door holding technique. There are a very  particular set of rules that need to be followed in order to ensure a successful door hold. When it comes to door holding, a lot of guys seem to lose or completely abandon their god-given gift of depth perception and just wing it. There is always a ten foot rule when it comes to gauging how a door should be held open. If the young lady is within ten feet of the door, open it with a certain sense of urgency to ensure that she does not get within the swinging radius of the door. This eliminates the chance of you rendering her unconscious, thus negating any attempted chivalrous act that has just taken place. If she is outside of ten feet, open it slowly and carefully pretending to take your time. If you open it too quickly you will be forced to stare at her for a long period of time  which will in turn creep her out, also negating the door hold. Chivalry isn't dead, there is just a lot of user error going on. Following the simple guidelines that are supposed to be ingrained in our DNA as well as not trying too hard or completely abandoning the concept altogether, will help avoid some of these acts that make us appear socially awkward.Yes this means pushing the red handicap button and letting her go first no longer counts...

Like...Like...Like...

You know what really Grinds My Gears? The "Like" button on Facebook. Is it really necessary? It isn't bad enough that we have to spend the better part of our day scrolling through mind-numbing amounts of uploaded pictures and reading statuses(with countless spelling errors i might add) about how many times couples break up daily. No, they just had to go and add a "Like" button. If you like something that someone has said or a picture that they have put up then say so. Are we really that lazy that all the energy we can muster up to show our appreciation for a friend is a single click of the mouse? The answer to that question is yes by the way. The "Like" button is just one technological handcuff that is stifling creativity and melting away IQ points of young people across the globe. If many years from now your wife comes into the living room to see if you like what she is wearing and all you have been conditioned to do is click a button to show approval...guess who is sleeping on the couch tonight. If you really like something that someone has done then at least be generous enough to leave them a nice comment or better yet look up from your computer screen for two seconds and tell them to their face...they won't acknowledge it because they are busy texting but at least you tried.

There's a time and place for everything.

Walking down the hall in between classes and all you are looking for is a place to sit down...coming back to your room after a long day and want to sit down on your couch and relax....

Today i have been stopped twice by people sleeping in inconvenient spots. To the guy sleeping on the couch in Metz today...Get your butt up! Nobody wants to see you in your pajamas taking an afternoon nap just because you had an 8am class this morning. NEWSFLASH...There are other people in Metz that would love to do nothing more than to just sit down and pop their feet up while chatting with some of their peers. Moving on...after that scenario i come back to my room to just watch a little T.V. and check my emails. My roommate has spread himself across the entire couch and taken up all of the seating....and it gets worse. His bed is in the living room, literally three feet from where he is currently snoring into my ear as i sit on the floor. Not to mention i have heard his alarm clock go off at least three times now, and he has yet to not hit the sleep button.

Listen people...Sleep in your bed if you are tired. Quit irritating everyone else because you think you have some type of entitlement to every couch you see.

Thats what really grinds my gears. Oh wait...there goes my roommates alarm again...

How Fast Do Real Friends Walk?

You know what really Grinds My Gears? People that run to catch up with their "friends" when they are behind them. If these people you are so desperately trying to catch up with were really your friends...they'd stop. The fact that they haven't yet and you are almost out of breath means that you should probably go ahead and unfriend them on Facebook because they don't like you. 3/4 of Americans don't stretch properly before exercise and you think its safe to take off all happy-go-lucky down the hallway. Do you really want to be the person that snaps a hammy trying to sprint after people that genuinely do not care about what you are going to tell them? Doubt it. If you're having to sprint to catch up with your girlfriend...she's going to dump you. If you have to sprint to catch up with your boyfriend...you're clingy. Next time you come out of the blocks, catch a flip flop, and dive face first into the pavement trying to catch up with the cute girl that sits behind you in English, smile knowing that the embarrassment and bodily harm you have just undoubtedly caused yourself saved you from the real pain of realizing she was never going to stop in the first place. You're Welcome.