No Keyboards Needed: Presentation Apps For People On The Go

A lot of office workers think that a killer presentation can only be done with a desktop or a laptop. But with everything in the palm of our hands, it is indeed possible to do an impressive presentation using just a smartphone or a tablet.

In the absence of PowerPoint and Keynote, there are a lot of other apps that can give the same (or better) results. Impress your clients with these apps for your presentation on the go.

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Quickoffice: Quickoffice is Google’s mobile office suite that offers presentation templates for smartphone and tablets. Users can create slideshows from different preset layouts. Photos, videos, and charts can also be attached to the presentation. 

SlideShark: SlideShark is available in standard and team editions. People can access the app through their mobile devices, desktops, and laptops. It can convert files into tablet ready format without compromising graphics, fonts, and animations. 

Prezi: Prezi is a cloud-based application, which means users can access it through multiple hardware like laptops, computers, tablets, and even mobile phones. It is perfect for those who like to use a concept-map-like theme for their presentations. It is available for offline viewing. 

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Speaker Deck: This app converts slides into lightweight, embeddable PDF format so it can be easily shared online. It may have fewer options as compared to its competitors, but users will love how the files are lightweight and can be ready to be viewed in gadgets like e-readers and smartphones. 

Hi, I’m Taihwa Terry Ho. Learn more about the latest productivity apps when you follow me on Twitter.

The Advantages Of Educational Mobile Apps For Kids

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A lot of teachers and developmental specialists advise parents to veer from exposing children to mobile devices while they are in their early years. But when children reach school age (3 to 4 years old), the use of mobile devices and apps can aid them in learning different foundational skills.

Improved literacy

Studies show that children who use mobile devices for apps, videos, and other media have improved literacy. It readies children to perform in school and exposes them to activities like reading, writing, and counting.

Greater motivation

Learning can be fun for kids who enjoy using apps. These apps are designed to keep children motivated and engaged. It’s like hitting two birds with one stone—children are playing while learning.

There are learning apps that produce progress reports every time after their playing sessions, which give parents an idea of what the child has learned and the skills they were taught.

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What’s great about these apps is that they are portable and kids can have it wherever they are—at home, in a mall, in a car, or even during a vacation out of town! With educational apps, learning can happen even outside the four walls of the classroom.

I’m Taihwa Terry Ho, and I am fascinated with how technology works for people from all walks of life. Learn more about the latest apps when you visit my Facebook page.

Business Level Up With Productivity Apps

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Entrepreneurs today have a wealth of information and resources available to them with just a click or swipe of the fingers. Faced with an abundance of web or mobile applications, they have tools and partners in solving problems and taking advantage of opportunities they encounter daily. Productivity and efficiency can be attained more easily, thanks to some of these apps that have proven useful in entrepreneurship:

Evernote: Almost the perfect note-taking tool with its variety of features, including quick storing of notes or sketches, sync capabilities via many platforms, creation of to-do lists, easy search, sharing and collaboration of notes with contacts, to name a few.

Dropbox: Quite a valuable program, Dropbox allows teammates to efficiently back up files on the cloud, or even share them to a team to create productive collaboration. Its huge storage size, that is also upgradeable, even makes it more popular and not just with entrepreneurs.

Basecamp: Think of a conference room, but in a private, secure space online. Projects, whether individual or team, can be tracked, scheduled and completed more efficiently with this app.

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Free Wi-Fi Finder: For people on the go, either working from home or conducting meetings outside, a fast and free public Wi-Fi seems necessary to get work done. This app uses one’s current location and shows a map of places with free Wi-Fi, although for some stores Wi-Fi only becomes free once you purchase from them.

Outright: This accounting app is perfect for small business owners or self-employed professionals as it has easy to use and exceptional accounting and bookkeeping tools.

I’m Taihwa Terry Ho, a technophile investing in app development, especially the ones that help make people’s lives easier. Learn more about app development by reading my blog here.

‘Field’ Work: Capitalizing on Modern Tech to Boost Food Security

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Technology is an integral part of many modern economic processes, so it is a no brainer that it should also be used in many agricultural practices. The entire human race relies on agriculture for food. It is important that the most efforts for the advancement of modern technology be spent on agriculture. There are numerous countries that are starving day in and day out. By advancing agriculture to remarkable scales, world hunger can be eliminated and food security becomes more achievable.

There are numerous constraints on the productivity and profitability of agriculture, which are at dangerously low levels in some countries. One of them is the limited use of modern technology in farming. Updated equipment and inputs could advance a country’s agricultural industry by leaps and bounds.

Let us take Cambodia for example. Many of its farms have effective irrigation methods, however, they are still highly reliant on incoherent rain-fed systems which focus on paddy rice production only. With modern equipment, they could increase the yield of harvest and provide a faster route from the farmlands to the market. There will be increased profitability as well because they will arrive in peak condition.

Modern inputs can significantly reduce losses due to weeds, pests, and diseases. Technological solutions are all within reach which can provide sustainability. Mechanization has helped many farmlands, particularly in the developed world, produce yields previously thought impossible.

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Beyond production, however, there must also be a seamless system of delivering these goods to consumers. Modern apps and devices are now available for more efficient cargo transportation, logistics, and even storage.

I’m Taihwa Terry Ho, Silicon Valley-based capital investor and technophile. Follow this link for more updates about the tech world.

The Apple Touch ID: An Easier Way to Pay

Apple has once again made another breakthrough with the launch of the iOS’ Touch ID feature for online transactions. Fore those who are new to the Touch ID, it is the use of a fingerprint scanner to authenticate the user, which allows phone access and payment on iTunes. The Touch ID is a convenient tool for those dealing with very sensitive data. Apple literally took their technology to their users’ fingertips. 

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App developers love how the passcode works, but a lot of users hate it because they often forget their passwords. However, both the user and the developer have found their compromise with this unique fingerprint scanner. 

Using fingerprints to make and take money is a more secure way to do financial transactions. While it is not 100% safe, and people can still get hacked, its level of privacy is higher than other options. A lot of Android users are expecting to see the same features on the Samsung Galaxy and other high-end phones in the platform.

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Recently, PayPal has allowed its users to send and receive money with just the user’s fingerprint. The Touch ID also works for Apple Pay in countries like Canada, Australia, and the United States. 

Hi, Taihwa Terry Ho here. I work as a capital investor, and I focus in mobile app development. Follow me on Twitter to get more updates.

Get Beaconized: The Emerging Beacon Technology

As technology becomes more advanced and sophisticated, doing chores and everyday tasks also gets simpler and easier. In telecommunications, for example, innovations made since the invention of mobile phones have been countless. For the past several years, tech companies and developers have been cultivating newer ways to make communication even much easier.

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The beacon technology has been around for some time now but only recently did developers start innovating further. A beacon is a tiny wireless device that transmits a radio signal, giving its location and ID in the process. It works by using Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) and is placed in strategic locations like hallways, lobbies, and common indoor public areas. It is a low-cost hardware that can be mounted on the wall or any safe surface. BLE is battery-friendly, and the use of it makes instant messaging faster and easier since it transmits directly to smartphones and tablets. When the mobile phone detects the beacon signal through Bluetooth, it reads the beacon’s identification number, calculates distance and location, and then identifies nearby beacon mobile app users, allowing them to communicate within the range of the signal.

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A lot of industries today are welcoming the use of beacon technology. It is now popular in the retail industry where it creates newly improved in-store interactions between customers and retailers. It allows retailers to know preferences of its customers based on their in-store actions. On the other hand, it enables customers to receive personalized retail suggestions based on their preferences. More establishments such as hotels, airports, sports venues and public transports, are now using this simple and effective beacon innovation.

I'm Taihwa Terry Ho, capital investor and technophile. I see promise in developing things people will use every day. Please follow me on Twitter.

Cultivating Good Relationships With Investors

An investment is like marriage. Without trust and commitment, the alliance between the investor and the company will fail entirely or may never reach its full potential.

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Throughout my career, I have witnessed many instances of friction and conflict between investors and business owners. And sadly, a little misunderstanding can actually have a large impact on the business.

To guide you, here are some strategies to help you manage your relationship with your investors:

Interact and communicate. Take the opportunity to know them. Treat them like friends and recognize their value beyond finances. Never select an investor just based on funding. Acknowledge your relationship and like a true friend, always listen.

Set clear expectations. To avoid disappointments and frustrations, do not promise over what you can deliver. Instead, have a shared vision, scale of growth, and potential exit strategies.

Show authenticity and respect. Though you may not feel like it sometimes, interact with your investor on a personal level. Grow together and be real in all aspects of the relationship. Help and support each other as challenges arise.

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Good relationships add value to any kind of venture. In investments, the best results arise when there is trust and commitment—for better and for worse.

Hi! Taihwa Terry Ho here. I am a capital investor by trade and I frequently invest in app development, a field where I see plenty of promise. Follow me onGoogle+ for more of my insights on business and finance.