How To Enjoy Freeview TV in Your favourite place
So your installer has selected the right aerial for you from the available aerials for Freeview. You’ve got your digital Freeview TV set up and connected to your Freeview aerial. You sit down on the sofa, snuggle up to your partner and enjoy your favourite programmes.
Can you Always Watch the Freeview TV you Want?
When it’s time for the news, your partner wants to watch the new drama that’s starting on another channel, or perhaps there’s a really crucial football match that shouldn’t be missed by just one of you. It’s okay. You can go to bed early and watch whatever you want on the TV in your bedroom. But actually, you can’t do that if you can’t get Freeview TV on that set.
What about when your living room is crowded with your son’s teenage friends watching the reality TV series you hate, and joining in with the shouts and jeers from the crowds on screen? Wouldn’t you be happier if they were in another room altogether, so you could watch the Freeview channels you wanted in peace?
Did you Have a Multi-room System Installed With Your Freeview Aerial?
Unfortunately, unless your installers set up a multi-room system for your Freeview reception, with additional set top boxes for independent channel control where needed, your other TV sets still won’t give you free view from your aerials for Freeview. The best way to get the multi-room TV system you want is to have an experienced Freeview aerial installer design and install it for you from the word go.
Get an Affordable Freeview Multi-room System Added
But if that didn’t happen, all is not lost. There are a number of methods of connecting extra TV sets to aerials for Freeview. The simplest way is to add extra TV points and connect them to a central box in your loft, which is connected in turn to your free view aerial. You will also need a Freeview reception box for each TV set does not have Freeview built in. These cost from only $20 a box.
A reputable aerial Freeview installer will provide all this separately from the original installation, and you will be able to watch your own selection of Freeview channels wherever you have a television connected in your home. And with a digital Freeview aerial you will have a high quality of television picture all over your house. Watching TV from your bed will be a luxury you can enjoy whenever you like!
Kind of Internet Connection for Stream Radio in Your PC
Internet Radio is very simple in today’s world. Basically you can use the same computer with the same software to stream to 1 listener or thousands of listeners. What is important is that you know how much bandwidth you need and the bit rare you want to use to stream your music.
Bandwidth – Is the amount of data your internet connection can carry from one point to another in a given time period. Than means, Small bandwidth, you will get a few listeners. A big bandwidth will allow you to have more listeners.
Bit rate – Simply refers to the audio quality of the stream, this is measured in computer terms in ‘kbps – kilo bits per second’ or ‘k’ for short. Listening to a station in 128k stereo would sound like CD quality, where as 24k would sound more like listening over the phone.
OK BUT HOW MUCH DO I NEED?
Well here a brief idea:
- 1 MB = 1024 kb so that means if you stream at 128 kbps
- 1 MB Upload connection = 8 Listeners
- 5 MB Upload connection = 40 Listeners
- 10 MB Upload connection = 80 Listeners
Remember, these are the typical upload connection speeds most people have at home. Also this will vary if you are surfing at the same time you are streaming and if you have a home phone using the internet line to make a call. These means if your use the same connection to do multiple things at the same time it could make your streaming skip and your listeners will hate that.
If your plan is to have as many listeners as you can, I recommend you get the services of an Internet Radio Server (Radio Hosting) This service will give you the capacity to have multiple listeners, keeping your home internet connection with low traffic so you can surf easily and stream at the same time. This will allow you to have more listeners.
Let say your connection is only 1 MB upload and you are streaming at 128 kbps, REMEMBER 1 MB is 1024 kb, that means you will only use 128 kb of the 1024. Your will use that 128 kb to stream to an Internet Radio server or hosting company and your listeners will connect to that server instead to your computer directly. Another big advantage is with this service you will have a static IP.
Static IP – This is the number of your computer when you surf online. It usually looks like this xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx (x are numbers). The reason you want a static IP is that unless you have one your IP will change every time you access the internet. That means if you are streaming from your computer you will have to provide to your listeners the right IP of your computer every time so they can listen your streaming. With Static IP the IP number never changes so you can create a link to your Online Radio Station with that IP and you never have to change it.
That is why an Internet Radio Server Services is so convenient. Not only will it give you a Static IP it also give you a fast internet connection to handle more listeners.
The Perfect Meeting: When to Meet Face to Face With a Conference Call
Anybody who is in business knows how important communication is whether it is communication between you and your employees, you and your associates, you and your clients, or you and your customers. But with the changes and advancements in technology these days there are many more ways to communicate and choosing which form of communication is best can be more challenging than it was before.
One common way to communicate in your business dealings is through conferencing. Many individuals these days choose conferencing over meeting face to face but not every situation is suitable for holding a conference call. In order to make the most of your business and hold the perfect meeting it is important to know when to meet face to face and when to choose a conference call.
One situation in which it is important to meet face to face rather then hold a conference call is when your company takes on a very large account and you will be working often with a client. Individuals who plan to spend a large amount of money will feel much more comfortable if they can meet the person they are handing their money to face to face. After the initial meeting conferencing may be suitable but in the beginning you want to meet on a more personal level.
Another situation in which a face to face meeting may be more suitable is when you are going to have to go over a large amount of documents or if you are going to be signing a contract. This is because you want to be able to go over the original copies of any paperwork that may be important to your business and since you will have to sign any contracts it just makes more sense anyway.
When it comes to conference calling there are numerous situations in which this may be the more beneficial way to go. One such situation is when you are dealing with overseas associates, partners, or clients on a regular basis. Conference calls are a very inexpensive way to maintain regular communication between your business and other businesses or individuals.
Another time when a conference call may make more sense is when you or your business faces an unplanned situation. Rather than get in the car or hop on a plane and go to where the situation has occurred you can communicate with those that you need to through a conference call. This is a much quicker as well as a much less expensive solution.
You may also find that a conference call works well for troubleshooting situations regarding training, a particular product, or any other internal type affairs that may be part of your business. Not only is it quick and cheap but you can involve as many other individuals as you deem necessary without it costing you anything extra.
Both conference calls and face to face meetings are important and necessary tools for your business. And you can make those tools both work even better for you if you know when to use which one.
How to Avoid Roaming Costs When Traveling Overseas
I am often asked by clients and friends who travel abroad, just how can they avoid getting ‘stung’ by the roaming rate rip-off that mobile carriers and networks around the world seem so desperate to force on us all. Even in the EU, where roaming rates are capped and controlled by the EU Commission, clients can still pay 5 times their home calling rate to make a local call. And that only takes care of EU calling, long haul rates and calls beyond the Eurozone are not covered by this legislation!
One client found us after he returned home to Japan and received a $74k invoice when he had been streaming video over his Smartphone linked, or tethered to his PC and watching videos! OK, that is an extreme case but how do you avoid the trap of coming home to ‘bill shock’ after the event? Here are my 5 Top Tips for protecting yourself:
Tip 1: Check what exactly your provider will charge you for Voice, Data and Texting in your destination country. See if they offer any packages available for travel users. Often these are free to select but are usually ‘opt-in’ rather than part of your standard offer.
Tip 2: Rent or buy a local SIM card for your phone. Local rates are almost always cheaper, even for calling home and if your mobile is unlocked you can drop in a local country SIM and take advantage of local rates. Make sure your phone is not tied to your home carrier, (call them to check) and then simply use a locally sourced pre-paid SIM or for higher users and the best rates, you can rent a post-paid short-term contract SIM from a number of phone rental and SIM rental providers.
Tip 3: If you run an iPhone 4 or iPad, again some Apps can be very data hungry. Just like Tip 2, you can rent a microSIM with a Data Pack for local usage or purchase a prepaid solution to fix your costs.
Tip 4: Get hold of a Data Management App to keep an eye on data usage for your iPhone or PC. These are cheap and give you visibility of how much data you use versus any plan you may have. For iPhones check out Bjango Consume or for PC’s such as DataView that can be free with rentals of Data Services or at a minimal cost as stand-alone.
Tip 5: The most of obvious saving option is to switch off all roaming, if you can stand to be out of touch. Ask your carrier to bar this so you aren’t tempted or maybe just check your messages once a day and then you are in control. BUT, do turn off data roaming unless you absolutely need it. If you link up your laptop, auto-updates, such as those provided as a ‘service’ by Microsoft can run in the background without you even knowing.
Like any service, it’s ‘buyer beware’. You will have agreed to roaming in your contract somewhere so be pro-active, understand your rates and make an informed choice. A week before you go think ‘Passport, Tickets, Money, Mobile’ and stay connected for less.