Basically, if four people own smartphones, one of those four people also owns a tablet device. What’s the difference in the use of these two types of devices? The biggest difference has to do with video watching. It seems as though people are using those tablet devices to watch video; not so many folks use their smartphones for video-watching.

What does this mean for those traditional, video-watching devices, like…televisions? People are choosing to watch videos on their tablets, and as they spend time on these devices, they also spend dollars. Interestingly, people are often still watching TV, sometimes simultaneously to watching the shows on their tablets.

Maybe they’re watching TV and doing other stuff on their tablets, but nonetheless, advertisers have been essentially making two distinct ads for the same product—one for TV and one for tablets.

But more people are turning to their tablets for all their viewing needs, which presents a problem for many advertisers. Whom should they target? Which market—the traditional television or the tablet? Both? Many long-time TV advertisers have been pretty slow on the tablet-uptake.

There have been tons of data that point to the connection between Internet use and TV. Advertisers in particular are noticing those sponsored links and television shows. Once an ad plays on TV, the number of hits that link gets increases dramatically.

Perhaps, if the trends continue, the advertisers will start to cater to those of us who love our tablets. There’s just something wonderful about holding the NBA finals—and the whole, wonderful Internet—in the palm of your hand.

You can find a lot of different support companies on the market, and it’s tough to pick the right one. If you’re in the service sector then your group needs to be running constantly, lest there’s a miscommunication, or worse, none at all. Having a good tech support company can help you avoid problems like that.

An IT support company will help you out with maintaining machines and making sure that they’re working right. They keep track of what’s going on with your computer systems and hold on to your data in case of disaster, like a spilled latte. If you’re thinking about expanding your business, say with your own servers, then it might be a good idea to have a support group on call to help promote a more efficient workplace.

It’s not easy to hire support staff, and a service can save you money on that. Plus, they’re on call all the time, so you don’t have to pay somebody to get out of bed at 2am for a server failure.

Having an IT support group effectively gives you more hands to work with if there’s a problem. That means that you can stay running and fix problems faster. Picking the ideal company shouldn’t be based on cost so much as experience and availability. Cheap services might as well not even be there, as they may not meet your needs. Get a feel for the different providers in your area and get a quote. They’ll usually offer a range of prices, and you can narrow your search based on who gives you the best bang for your buck. Be aware of hidden charges, though.

Before you sign up for one, you might consider talking to people that have been tasked with hiring a support service, as they might have some helpful advice to impart. If you want to get a little piece of mind then pick the service based on performance. If you don’t like it you can always fire them.

Earlier this month, Microsoft settled a patent infringement suit against Barnes & Noble regarding their Nook reader’s Android underpinnings. Microsoft has taken legal action against many companies that use Android in their products, but the deal that was struck in this particular lawsuit makes it especially interesting. As part of the deal, Barnes & Noble is spinning off their Nook e-reader and college textbook business into a subsidiary company in which Microsoft will invest $300 million. This new subsidiary will also release a Nook app for Microsoft’s upcoming Windows 8 platform.

This gives Microsoft stake in the digital text book market along with Apple and Amazon (Google sells ebooks and tablets, but not textbooks) and gives Windows 8 tablets day-one access to an established ebook ecosystem. At its least, this let’s Microsoft, without relying on Amazon, remove a strong barrier to would-be Windows 8 tablet buyers who want access to ebooks but don’t want to risk investing in yet another new proprietary format. At its best, Microsoft is going to come out as an extremely strong player in the education market.

Imagine you are a new college student in your college bookstore. Your school is now offering digital versions of the majority of the books you need so a tablet seems like a no-brainer. You already have a Windows computer at home, so the integration and compatibility you’d get with a Windows RT tablet looks familiar and appealing. You know you’ll need Microsoft Word and Excel for school, but there are no Microsoft Office apps for the iPad or Kindle Fire. Maybe there’s a third-party app? You’re not sure. The iPad is a very compelling choice, especially with that retina display, but there’s no desktop iBooks app, nor are there iBooks apps for other tablets, computers, or even a litte e-ink reader. The Nook app, however, runs on just about everything out there and their Nook Study app is designed especially for working with textbooks. The Kindle Fire is cheaper and works fine for reading or watching movies, but it’s not really something you can take to class and expect to get much work done. That’s what Windows is good at, after all, getting work done. Besides, there’s a Barnes & Noble on campus that already has all the text books you need in stock.

Microsoft may have only secured a necessary component for their tablet in this deal, but with the right infrustructure and marketing push, they could have secured a ticket straight to the top of the education market. And once you realize that with that position comes bulk institutional purchases and required buys for students, that’s no small matter for a company that’s struggling to find a place in mobile computing.

Mastering the MBA: The MBA is such a popular masters degree that your program of choice will probably depend on exactly what field you intend to pursue with that degree. MBA programs can take a variety of specialty turns, from e-commerce to leadership to finance. And there are programs that run to every extreme in terms of time and schedules as well, some are intensely focused, designed for the hurry up and get it done crowd, while others allow you to pursue the degree at a more leisurely pace. For busy adults, a part-time MBA may be ideal, since you it gives you time to hold down a job, family, or both. In this case, The Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and Berkeley’s Haas School of Business both offer the best degrees available. For finance look into the Wharton school at UPenn, or the Booth programs at Chicago University. Booth and Wharton both have highly acclaimed executive programs, too.

Medical Degrees: If your field is medical, consider getting a masters as a physician assistant. Yes, this might delay your climb all the way to the top of the medical ladder, but the physician’s assistant degree is one of the most secure jobs available in the US. Doctors are out there, but they are in desperate need of qualified assistants. Taking a physician assistant degree can provide a secure income and valuable experience for future job climbing, or even future pursuit of an MD.

The Tech Field: Right up with physician’s assistant masters is the computer science degree, another easy winner. As with the medical degree, the specific type of program is more important than the school that teaches it. However, if you want to specialize in information systems, think about Syracuse University or the University of Michigan, two big names in the field.

Engineering: Engineering is a popular masters degree. Because of the high level of specialized knowledge required by engineers, a masters in a particular specialty is necessary to find truly career level prospects. The bachelors is just a starting point. If you are going to go after the valuable masters, the top programs are easy to spot: MIT and Stanford take top marks for Computer and Mechanical. For Civil Engineering, try Berkeley.

Education: Education is also a popular masters program. These ubiquitous degrees, which are almost essential to teach in any classroom, work best if received from schools such as Vanderbilt, Michigan State, or the University of Wisconsin.

This is only a small sampling of the types of programs you can find. Masters degrees exist for such a variety of fields that one of your best options is to spend time searching programs yourself to find the most prestigious degrees. From science to law, there are programs available that will make firms sit up and take notice: All you have to do is find them. The Grad School Rankings that U.S. News provides is a good place to start, but the Internet is filled with forums and reports to help you make the choice.

One reason for this inequality between city and country options for internet is logistical.  While it would be possible to get DSL service to rural areas, it would take quite a bit of copper wire out there.  Copper wire is the way DSL service is transmitted.  Rural areas often have older technology, and copper wire does represent a newer technological norm.

Like the copper wire conundrum, cable-based technology presents problems for rural dwellers.  Since cable is a comparatively new phenomenon, it is much less viable in rural areas.  Cable also requires more cable stations for transmission of cable signals.  These are few and far between in rural areas.

DSL and cable companies are loathe to spend the money necessary for rural services.  It costs a pretty penny to install copper wire; it also costs money to set up the infrastructure necessary for cable networks.  These kinds of services represent a big expense without an immediately visible payoff.  There are, of course, fewer people in these rural areas, and fewer potential buyers of cable and DSL internet services.

Perhaps these options will become more and more readily available for those of us who choose to live far from the city.

If you are pursuing a distance degree, you can (and should) look into your institution’s standards—you want your degree to have value.  Accreditation is perhaps even more important for distance-degree students than for traditional students.  Distance degree students are often pursuing their distance studies as a springboard toward advanced studies and better jobs.  But credit transfers are virtually impossible to and from non-accredited schools, as is federal funding.  Your future employers will not take a non-accredited degree seriously.  And along with a potentially valueless degree, you will have a subpar overall learning experience.

Determining Accreditation on Your Own

If the school’s website has no accreditation information posted, look it up at the Department of Education’s website or the Council of Higher Education’s website.

Sometimes accreditation information can be misleading, or downright phony.  Make sure that the accrediting council is one of these recognized councils:

Middle States Association

Northwest Association of Schools & Colleges

North Central Association of Colleges and Schools

New England Association of Schools and Colleges

Southern Association of Colleges and Schools

Western Association of Schools and Colleges

The Distance Education and Training Council

If you are pursuing a specialized or professional degree in fields like education, business, law, or engineering, your program may need additional, specific accreditations.

What I’ve found tends to happen is one of two things: Once you are in communication with your project partners, you never hear from them again (in which case you wind up doing the project entirely on your own), or else someone else muscles their way in and selfishly directs the total output of the group. This article is about how to handle a virtual online project in a group, in such a way as to not be pulling your hair out at the end of it.

An online project has several elements: You have a virtual instructor, who teams you up with several (usually three or four) other students; you have an assigned project you are to accomplish as a group; and you are in communication with your group partners, either through email or chat room; and the project usually consists of something resembling a Microsoft PowerPoint presentation, or other virtual slideshow.

The key here is to realize you are all connected. Unless you want to do the entire project on your own (and believe me, there are people who are MORE than willing to allow you to do that for an easy grade), you need to encourage your team mates to participate. Try to spread the work equally as much as possible. Also, try to keep in mind other people’s talents and abilities, and gear their part of the assignment towards their likes. Once you do that, it’s relatively easy to identify who will take responsibility for what part of the project.

You will need a coordinator/leader, someone who does the actual typing and connecting of the project parts, and you also need to keep everyone focused on the outcome. Make sure everyone understands what is required, and when the project is due, in order to meet timeliness goals for the class.

If the project is massive, and is expected to take place over several weeks, try to keep a schedule of what parts of the project are due by a certain time. You will find that by scheduling, you will stay on task better. Coordinate online meeting times for everyone’s schedule for maximum participation. If you find that one (or more) members are not able to participate because of time constraints, try to work within the less flexible scheduling problems.

Should there be any personality conflicts, the leader should be the one to step in and resolve any issues.  Try not to be too critical of other people’s work, but strive for a combined effort. Disagreements are inevitable, but compromise is also possible in the worst circumstances.

Finally, make sure the finished project is acceptable to all the participants, once it’s complete. The leader should be the final arbiter of any disagreements, so that when the project is finished, everyone is satisfied with the product. Make sure everyone understands that the overall grade for the project will be much better in the long run, if everyone works together.

Group online collaboration can be stressful. But like any other social situation, if you purpose in yourself to be patient with others, try to learn from others, and learn from your own mistakes, you will find that the grade you receive will be better, and you will enjoy the experience that much more.