Software engineering

Software engineering is the application of a systematic, disciplined, quantifiable approach to the development, operation, and maintenance of software, and the study of these approaches; that is, the application of engineering to software.
The term software engineering first appeared in the 1968 NATO Software Engineering Conference and was meant to provoke thought regarding the current "software crisis" at the time. Since then, it has continued as a profession and field of study dedicated to creating software that is of higher quality, more affordable, maintainable, and quicker to build. Since the field is still relatively young compared to its sister fields of engineering, there is still much work and debate around what software engineering actually is, and if it deserves the title engineering. It has grown organically out of the limitations of viewing software as just programming. Software development is a term sometimes preferred by practitioners in the industry who view software engineering as too heavy-handed and constrictive to the malleable process of creating software. Yet, in spite of its youth as a profession, the field's future looks bright as Money Magazine and Salary.com rated software engineering as the best job in America in 2006.Software engineering is the application of a systematic, disciplined, quantifiable approach to the development, operation, and maintenance of software, and the study of these approaches; that is, the application of engineering to software.
The term software engineering first appeared in the 1968 NATO Software Engineering Conference and was meant to provoke thought regarding the current "software crisis" at the time. Since then, it has continued as a profession and field of study dedicated to creating software that is of higher quality, more affordable, maintainable, and quicker to build. Since the field is still relatively young compared to its sister fields of engineering, there is still much work and debate around what software engineering actually is, and if it deserves the title engineering. It has grown organically out of the limitations of viewing software as just programming. Software development is a term sometimes preferred by practitioners in the industry who view software engineering as too heavy-handed and constrictive to the malleable process of creating software. Yet, in spite of its youth as a profession, the field's future looks bright as Money Magazine and Salary.com rated software engineering as the best job in America in 2006.

Circulation Improving Leg Wraps

Sitting in one position for far too long? You’d best get up from time to time to get the blood circulating in the lower part of your body, but for those who can’t afford the luxury of doing that due to never-ending datelines, there is always the Circulation Improving Leg Wraps.
These leg wraps inflate and deflate to improve circulation, soothe sore muscles, and reduce swelling in your lower extremities. Similar to hospital compression boots that stimulate circulation in sedentary patients, the leg wraps have six airbags that wrap around the entire leg and inflate and deflate to help blood vessels expand and contract. The compression intervals stimulate circulation in the thighs, hamstrings, calves, and feet and help facilitate blood flow back to the heart. The corded remote allows you to select from three levels of intensity and choose from seven programs that pinpoint different areas and at varying intervals. Adjustable Velcro closures ensure optimal fit for all sizes. Plugs into AC.
Guess only folks in First and Business Class will be able to use this when flying since those cabins come with built-in AC outlets, which is kinda ironic as they have all the legroom in the world. Hopefully more and more airlines will throw in AC outlets into economy class seats in the future. The Circulation Improving Leg Wraps can be purchased for $149.95.

Kohler Flipside Showerhead

This is one of the more ingenious home improvement ideas that we’ve come across so far - the Kohler Flipside Showerhead. It offers unprecedented value for money, considering your $105 is stretched to bring you four showers in one. This handheld sprayer will come in a chrome-like finish, featuring a flippable inner sprayhead that offers the following shower experiences — a relaxing dense downpour, a focused, invigorating spray, a drenching, circular-pattern spray, or a standard, traditional shower. Perfect to suit a multiple-personality person in your home or at least four heads living under the same roof.

Cell-PAK 3G + Wi-Fi HotSpot in a box

It looks as though the in-thing these days is to remain connected at all times, and the Cell-PAK 3G + Wi-Fi HotSpot in a box certainly looks set to fit the bill. This highly portable device offers instant secure broadband Internet connectivity for those who are always on the go without having to rely on external power or carry around additional wires. Targeting businesses and individuals who rely on mission-critical wireless communications to get the job done, the new Cell-PAK 3G + Wi-Fi HotSpot in a box from Proxicast is a wireless “grab & go” solution, enabling mobile wide-area cellular Internet connectivity (WWAN) and local 802.11 a/b/g Wi-Fi access (WLAN) without cramping your style courtesy of its commercial-grade LAN-Cell 2 mobile 3G cellular router.
Whenever you’re in unfamiliar territory where wired communications infrastructure is unavailable, damaged or overloaded, the Proxicast Cell PAK will step in as an able substitute, offering crucial fast, effective and reliable high-speed cellular broadband communications. It is essential to have this if you happen to live in an area prone to natural disasters, as come hurricanes, floods, fires, earthquakes or other natural and man-made disasters, the Cell PAK will still be able to function, keeping you connected to the rest of the world. Which reminds me, that would mean getting some sort of backup power for the rest of your devices (solar would be good) since a natural disaster might leave you disconnected from the power grid.
The Cell-PAK is a tough, self-contained, battery-powered, portable Wi-Fi HotSpot with built-in 3G cellular Internet access. It is both impact and water-resistant, featuring a MIL-spec rated case and on-board power pack. It will switch to the best available service automatically, playing nice with any available Internet service including DSL, cable or other Ethernet-based networks; to any serial modem-based service including POTS lines and satellites; or even the LAN-Cell PC-Card slot which is able to handle a 3G modem from any cellular carrier worldwide. Definitely over-rated for bloggers and casual users, that’s for sure.

Unitech PA600 MCA has anti-microbial case

Unitech is back with a brand new device for the medical circles - the PA600 MCA (Mobile Clinical Assistant) that functions as a Windows-powered handheld computer, targeting healthcare providers. Not only is it able to handle the most rudimentary of computing tasks often associated with the medical sector, it also comes with an antimicrobial case (now that’s a nice touch) and a built-in RFID reader. The PA600 MCA is tough enough to shrug off four-foot drops according to the company, but that doesn’t mean one ought to go around testing such claims on purpose. It sure as heck won’t be able to stand up to a fling against the wall – a very real scenario should a patient get out of hand and assault the PA600 MCA in the process.

It must be noted that the Unitech PA600 ought not to be confused with Intel’s similarly named MCA reference platform for Windows tablets. It will run on Windows CE 5.0 in a handheld form factor, and for those familiar with devices for such industries, they will find the PA600 MCA to be extremely similar to an earlier offering which lacked 802.11b/g and RFID functionality. The PA600 MCA comes in a white-and-blue color scheme, and what’s interesting about it is the above-mentioned case made of special antimicrobal material. This material was specially created to prevent the spread of MRSA (methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus) infections, which are more and more commonplace in hospitals these days.

Features of the PA600 MCA include built-in RFID capabilities, a 1D/2D barcode scanner, a 3.5″ touchscreen display with 320 x 240 resolution, an 18-key numeric keypad, all powered by a 520MHz Marvell PXA270 processor alongside 128 RAM, 320MB of flash storage and an SDIO expansion slot. You can choose to hook up the PA600 MCA to an optional docking station for added versatility when working from a desk, and USB ports are available to transfer data to and from a USB flash drive. No idea on how much it costs though, although it is readily available at press time.

The Wind Chime Alarm Clock

Although waking up in the morning isn’t always something to look forward to, you shouldn’t have an alarm clock that makes it worse. Provided you aren’t hard to wake up, there’s no reason you shouldn’t wake up in a pleasant manner. As opposed to that obnoxious beeping that always rudely wakes you up. With this alarm clock you could wake up to the wind chimes instead of a beep.
Of course this still allows for you to wake up to the usual beeps too, if you discover that the chime just isn’t enough. To get an idea of how loud it is, you can check out the seller’s website and watch the video. Although it is a much more pleasant sound, I personally don’t think it’d be enough for me. It runs on 3 AAA batteries and also has a stopwatch function. You can purchase it for $19.95 from Vat19. At that price, it’s worth it to give the clock a shot.

The automatic Mini Sky Umbrella for the delusional

No one likes to deal with dark gloomy days, but we deal with it anyway. Well if you’d like to stay in denial about how bleak the day is looking, you could always pick this umbrella up. Even if the skies are gray, right above you can be bright blue with puffy white clouds. That is, just as long as you keep this umbrella open. Then to keep up the illusion, you could just keep all the curtains drawn for the day at home and work. The umbrella would also be great for the lazy types that can’t be bothered to put any effort into opening their umbrella.
It automatically opens and closes all by itself, all you have to do is push a button. Perhaps someday soon instead of pushing a button, we could just think about it. Those would be the days. Although this would be nice for the lazy, it’s also good for the clumsy types that have issues juggling opening the umbrella and carrying a purse out in the pouring rain. It’s a kind of pricey umbrella though, it’ll cost you $34.95.

The USB Jewel Bracelet Thumb Drive

For the ladies that enjoy bright and shining stones to catch her eye, this bracelet would be a great purchase. It would even work for a somewhat tech savvy mom for Mother’s Day. Which isn’t that far off, so you might want to be looking now for a gift for your Mom. This stainless steel bracelet would be hard to overlook on the arm of any person. Even if there were no shiny stones, this would still be eye catching with the bright silver coloring.

Although this looks like just a bracelet, it conceals within a thumb drive to store away any needed data. The bracelet can be purchased in either the all silver or with gold accents. The gold version still has the silver band. From the looks of things, the thumb drive stays attached to the bracelet. That would make it so that you’d have to take it off during use. It comes with 8GB of storage for $33 from Brando.