Storage Omaha – Page 24 – Dino's Storage

The Future Is Arriving

For the past three decades, we’ve been hearing forecasts of smart homes that will respond to our every need. The list of over-promised features includes such things as smart refrigerators that will order what you need from the grocery store, lighting that automatically turns on or off when you enter or leave a room, heating and cooling that adjusts itself constantly to your desires and even robot butlers.

Fantasy? Perhaps, but your smart phone actually is bringing the smart home future to you now. There are now ways to control every aspect of your nest from your palm, from how bright your bedroom is to how much energy you use every month.

Here are some of the ways you can control your home today, whether you’re there or not.

Music that follows you around. It now is easier than ever to throw what you’re listening to from your phone to your home speakers – even if those speakers aren’t internet-enabled. You probabaly have heard of Sonos, one of the market-leading connected speaker systems, and they undoubtedly put out beautiful high-quality sound with seamless syncing around the home. But, with speakers starting from US $199, it’s an expensive solution – and there are now much cheaper options providing you have some speakers already.

Gramofon is a classy-looking box that connects your speakers to your WiFi for US $69 and you can link them together to play the same or different music across your house using Qualcomm AllPlay. Similarly, Google’s Chromecast Audio is a smaller version of the same idea, though it can’t be wired into your home network with ethernet like the Gramofon.

There’s also the ingenious Vamp, which lets you turn any passive hi-fi speaker into a Bluetooth one – the tiny red box plugs into your normal black and red connections on the back of any speaker and even provides the power. With Vamp you could rescue any ancient working speaker and make it smart for about $60.

Appliances that do the hard work for you. Tea lovers’ dreams have come true with the iKettle (US $180), a Wi-Fi enabled kettle that you can turn on from your phone. It tells you when the water’s boiled and even keeps it warm until you get there. Th iKettle can send a message to your phone first thing in the morning or when you arrive home after a long day, asking if you’d like to turn the kettle on so the water will be boiled by the time you make it to the kitchen. The same firm also makes a connected coffee maker if that’s your caffeinated beverage of choice.

Other appliances are seeing similar features added, too. Forgetting to press “go” on the washing machine as you’re heading out the door ceases to be a problem with connected washers, which can be controlled from an app on your phone. Most manufacturers now offer this, with laundry apps from brands like LG and Samsung even diagnosing technical problems with your machine and telling you how to fix them without calling a repairman.

In fact, everything from your oven to your dishwasher can be controlled from your phone with appliance ranges like Hoover’s Wizard. Whether you want to ask how much cooking time’s left on your food, get an alert when your chilled drink’s reached ideal temperature or just remotely switch on the cooker hood light, it’s all a tap away. LG’s taken things even further with the LG Homechat, which lets you text your appliances.

Homechat responds to commands like “monitor all products,” (gives you a status update), “going to bed” (stops music after 10 minutes), and Siri-style “what is this song?” inquiries. It’s as zany as it sounds, but as AI and language processing improve, natural conversation will be the way we interact with everything.

While we’re waiting for robot butlers, we do at least have robot vacuums. Neato’s BotVac can be controlled not only from your phone but from your smartwatch too – Apple or Android. Cost is around $800 US.

Stopping the worries when out and about. What about forgetting to turn things off, such as the iron, hair rollers, the heating or air conditioning? All these things and more can be controlled from the cloud.

The Heat Genius system allows you to turn the heating and hot water on and off from a smartphone app, and even lets you control and schedule room heating individually. Similarly, Google has raised temperatures by buying out Nest and offering the Learning Thermostat through the Google Play store, alongside the Nest Cam home security camera and Nest Protect smoke alarm.

Nest products work seamlessly with each other, connecting to a range of third-party smart home tech including Philips Hue lights and Whirlpool washers. It’s an Apple-like approach, encouraging people to look out for the “Works With Nest” logo before making a purchase – much like the “Designed for iPhone” badge Apple uses.

The Nest range is facing tough competition from tado, though: a heating system that claims to pay for itself within a year. It uses your smartphone location to automatically turn the heating off when everyone’s left the house then turn it on again when someone comes back.

Smart plugs are the anxious user’s best friend, letting you check something’s switched off when you’re not at home. Belkin’s WeMo and D-Link’s Home Smart are two of the many branded versions of this handy product. Smart plugs can switch anything on or off from your phone.

Ambience and Security. The new connected showerhead from French firm Start & Blue uses Bluetooth to connect to an app that lets you set your ideal shower length. LED lights on the Hydrao Smart Shower then change from green through to amber and red to tell you when you’ve used too much water.

Systems like Philips Hue and LIFX have made a huge splash with their smart lightbulbs, which let you turn your lights on or off and change the colour with your phone or tablet. Other apps sync your lighting with the beat of your music or flash when you’ve been tagged in a Facebook photo. Wearables company Misfit has also taken on the smart bulb market with Bolt, a connected bulb that, can be controlled through your phone or, for extra futurism, by tapping on Misfit’s fitness wristbands

The Bolt isn’t the only smart bulb to do more than light up a million colors, either: the latest round of products can also boost your WiFi signal (Sengled Boost Wifi Bulb), and even play music (Mipow Playbulb).

You can put a Roost smart battery in your home fire alarm. The WiFI-enabled 9V battery hooks your alarm up to the cloud so it can tell your phone when your fire alarm’s blaring and you’re not there.

Despite the array of products noted above, the market is still pretty fragmented. In the future, products from disparate manufacturers may work together harmoniously. The future of smart homes isn’t just appliances talking to you, but talking to each other. Your washing machine vould let the dishwasher know it’ll be using the hot water for a while, your oven mighjt the ventilation fan know it’s burnt the chicken and might need some help with ventilation.

Spring Is In the Air

Spring fever is real. If you’ve noticed an extra spring in your step because of the weather, it’s not a coincidence. Warmer days directly influence mood and behavior.

Being outdoors in the sun is linked with a mood boost. A 2004 University of Michigan study that found people who spent at least 30 minutes outside in pleasant weather had happier moods. And a 2014 UM study found that being outside could lead to a better mindset and reduced stress.

The weather-mood connection is a positive one, but the original University of Michigan researchers found that positive attitudes seemed to melt in particularly sweltering weather Other studies back that up.

Thanks, Ben Franklin. Folks are generally happier when the days are longer as they are thanks to Daylight Savings Time. There’s grumbling about lost sleep when we make the annual time switch, but the positive is there is more sunlight and people feel better when there’s more sunshine.

And, yes, in spring a young man’s fancy does turn to love. Warm temperatures may put you in the mood, yeah, that mood. There appears to be a seasonal connection to an increase in human conception, according to Scientific American. In Europe, there seems to be a 10 percent above-average increase in births during the month of March, meaning the babies were conceived around June. Research also suggests that men’s testosterone and women’s hormones linked to ovulation spike to above-average levels in June, the publication reported.

Another way folks indulge in Spring fever seems is through a more active lifestyle, according to experts at the University of North Carolina. Exercise can lead to a boost in endorphins — the same feel-good chemical that may come from warmer weather.

Warm weather also may make you more inventive. The University of Michigan study found that being outdoors in enjoyable climates can improve memory and broaden cognitive style, which is linked to more creative thoughts.

Have a Fun, Safe April Fools’ Day

History.com Tells us that the annual tradition of playing practical jokes on each other began with English pranksters on this day in 1700.

The origin of the day, however, is not quite that clear. Also known as All Fools’ Day, April 1 has been celebrated for several centuries by different cultures. Some historians speculate that April Fools’ Day dates back to 1582, when France switched from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian calendar. People who were slow to get the news or failed to recognize that the start of the new year had moved to January 1 and continued to celebrate it during the last week of March through April 1 became the butt of jokes and hoaxes. These included having paper fish placed on their backs and being referred to as “poisson d’avril” (April fish), said to symbolize a young, easily caught fish and a gullible person.

Some historians link April Fools’ Day to ancient festivals such as Hilaria, which was celebrated in Rome at the end of March and involved people dressing up in disguises. There’s also speculation that April Fools’ Day was tied to the vernal equinox, or first day of spring in the Northern Hemisphere, when Mother Nature fooled people with changing, unpredictable weather.

April Fools’ Day spread throughout Britain during the 18th century. In Scotland, the tradition became a two-day event, starting with “hunting the gowk,” in which people were sent on phony errands (gowk is a word for cuckoo bird, a symbol for fool) and followed by Tailie Day, which involved pranks played on people’s derrieres, such as pinning fake tails or “kick me” signs on them.

In modern times, people have gone to great lengths to create elaborate April Fools’ Day hoaxes. Newspapers, radio and TV stations and web sites have participated in the April 1 tradition of reporting outrageous fictional claims that have fooled their audiences. In 1957, the BBC reported that Swiss farmers were experiencing a record spaghetti crop and showed footage of people harvesting noodles from trees; numerous viewers were fooled. In 1985, Sports Illustrated tricked many of its readers when it ran a made-up article about a rookie pitcher named Sidd Finch who could throw a fastball over 168 miles per hour. In 1996, Taco Bell, the fast-food restaurant chain, duped people when it announced it had agreed to purchase Philadelphia’s Liberty Bell and intended to rename it the Taco Liberty Bell. In 1998, after Burger King advertised a “Left-Handed Whopper,” scores of clueless customers requested the fake sandwich.

Have fun with jokes and pranks today, but keep them safe and harmless.

Come to think of it, keeping your things safe and unharmed is a big part of what we do at Dino’s Storage. If you have things to store, we’re the go-to place. Come see us in Des Moines, Winnipeg or Omaha. We also have rental trucks, locks, boxes and moving supplies to meet your needs.

Smartphones Are Getting Outsmarted; Apps Will Be the Next to Fall

You might have noticed this development if you got a new phone over the holidays. Or you will see it if you watch what comes out of the 2016 Consumer Electronics Show opening this week in Las Vegas. Phones are where laptops were about a decade ago. The design and purpose are fixed and well-understood, so all that’s left are incremental improvements – making them a little thinner, adding a little more power or coming up with an occasional new feature like Samsung’s notifications along an outer edge.

From now on, Newsweek reports, all the real innovation will happen outside your phone – in apps, the cloud and other connected devices. “We’re at the cusp of a transition to wanting our technology on us and around us,” Phillippe Kahn, one of the great inventors of mobile technology, said recently. “Instead of having to carry gadgets, technology will just be there. The more we forget the technology, the better.”

Intriguingly, this new world will also be a threat to apps as we know them.

This isn’t to say that smartphones are finished as a business. About 3.5 billion of the planet’s 7 billion people own one. That leaves maybe another billion more potential customers – if you leave out small children, the 1.3 billion who live on less than $1.25 a day and the grandmothers tightly clutching flip phones. And nearly everyone who owns a smartphone today will buy a new one every couple of years, if not more frequently.

Yet, over time we are going to rely less on our phones, and instead get more things done by connecting to applications and services through a dizzying variety of things. Our attention will move from our phone screens to the ether – we’ll feel that our apps are in the air around us, and can be accessed through any connected device we encounter.

Young consumers already seem to be tilting this way. In a survey by Ericsson Consumer Labs, released in December, half of respondents said that by 2021 they might not even be using a smartphone. They expect to access apps in what they say are more convenient ways.

Like what? Cars, for example. Today, if you want your Spotify music and GPS maps and voice calls in the car, you carry your phone into the car, prop it up in the cup holder, and try to stab the screen with your thumb while going 72 miles per hour. We’ll come to realize this is cretinous, not to mention hazardous. Cars of the next decade will connect to the network, respond to voice commands and display info like your playlists or maps on a heads-up display in the windshield. Instead of opening a discrete app to do something, you’ll just say what you want – “play random Clash songs” or “pay my electric bill.”

Amazon’s Echo is another nudge in that direction – along with Apple’s Siri and Google Now. Set up an Echo at home, and the cylindrical device constantly listens for requests. Echo’s software comprehends a properly phrased request, then goes to the cloud to do it – no phone required. The technology is still in its rudimentary stage.

No single device is going to replace the smartphone. The cloud and artificial intelligence software are going to replace the smartphone. We’ll connect through whatever makes sense – a smartwatch, connected eyeglasses, a touch-screen kitchen counter, cars, Echo, Nest, Fitbit, Oculus Rift. Motorola Mobility recently patented a device that would get implanted under the skin and respond to voice commands. If a service needs to know who you are, it might scan your voice, face or fingerprint. No more remembering 259 user names and passwords.

Today each app focuses on one service, so anything you do on a device requires you to think first about which app to open. That’s a barrier when you just want to get something done. The technology needs to act more like a great personal assistant who already knows your preferences and understands your shorthand orders.

Plus, who wants to have to install a boatload of apps on your watch, car, implanted gadget and a dozen other devices? As Google director Aparna Chennapragada says, the goal has to be to “de-silo and unbundle the function of apps” so software like Google Now, Siri or Echo can mix and match app services to accomplish the task you requested. Once that happens, we won’t think of apps the way we do now. In fact, it’s likely we won’t think of apps at all.

The physical gadget of smartphone won’t go away – no more than laptops have gone away. The smartphone, though, is probably heading for a future as more of a pocket screen – something that allows you to watch videos, read news stories and take pictures when you’re out. It won’t be the center of your tech life – it will be an adjunct.

That’s another way smartphones are like laptops. Not so long ago, new laptops were exciting to buy. They contained our lives on their hard drives and were our windows to the world through the Internet. Now laptops seem more like work tools, and new ones don’t seem much different from the one you bought a few years ago. Much the same fate awaits smartphones.

On the flip side, next-generation refrigerators will connect to the network and come armed with sensors and AI software that can automatically take care of important things, like understanding that you just ordered General Tso’s chicken through Echo, noticing that you’re out of beer and ordering more to be delivered. Now that’s exciting.

The Christmas Tree

There are reports of decorated fir trees before the Middle Ages. Some believe that the real beginning of the Christmas tree as we know it may be attributed to the 16th Century German theologian Martin Luther or another clergyman of his time.
The clergyman, according to legend, was walking through a forest at night and was overcome by the beauty of the green fir trees against the starlit sky above. When he arrived home, he wanted to recreate the beautiful scene for his children as he told them about his walk. So he brought a small fir tree into the house and decorated it with lighted candles.
From this beginning, the custom of decorating a Christmas tree spread throughout Germany and into the rest of Europe.
It was introduced into England by Prince Albert, Queen Victoria’s German husband, in 1841.
The German immigrants brought the treasured tradition with them to America, and Christmas trees have been a cherished part of our holiday season ever since.
The Christmas tree has gained in popularity in America since the middle of the 19th Century and is perhaps the foremost feature of Christmas celebrations.
Along with the bright lights, now much safer that the earlier candles, trees are decorated with colorful balls, religious symbols such as angels and crosses, glittering tinsel and chains of popcorn and cranberries.
Under the tree, in Christian homes, will frequently be found a creche of the nativity scene reminding us of the night Christ was born.
Anyone who has seen the beauty of a Christmas tree reflected in the wonder of a little child’s eyes knows it is among the most treasured of our traditions.

The Traditions of Christmas

The traditions of Christmas in America have their roots in many lands, a reflection perhaps of the many nationalities and cultures that make up our nation of immigrants. In this blog we will take a look at the traditions emanating from Rumania and Syria.

From dawn until after sunset on Christmas Eve, Rumanian boys visit neighboring homes to sing a Christmas greeting, Colinde, for which they receive apples, cakes and coins. On Christmas Day they parade through the streets carrying a great wooden cross which is hung with little tinkling bells. The star is illuminated from within by a candle, and is decorated with a transparency of the Baby Jesus and the Magi. Roast pig is the principal food of Christmas dinner.

An ancient Rumanian custom, still practiced today, is called “Blessing the Danube.” Clad in costumes depicting Pontius Pilate, Herod and other biblical characters, people gather at the river bank to sing carols. A young boy breaks the ice and a wooden cross is thrown into the water. All scramble after it for the rescuer will have extraordinary fortune in the coming year.

Christmas Eve in Syria is spent in worship and prayer. A bonfire of vine stems is made in the middle of each church in memory of the Magi who were cold from their journey.

Many Syrians journey to Bethlehem to attend midnight services in the Holy Land. Christmas Day is observed chiefly in the home with prayers and quiet rejoicing.

Young Syrian boys and girls, masked and dressed in gay costumes, go singing from door to door and receive coins, eggs and candies in return.

Legend tells that the youngest camel who carried the Wise Men to Bethlehem fell down, exhausted by the journey. The Christ Child blessed the camel and conferred immortality upon it. For this reason, a camel brings gifts to the children on New Year’s Day. Before going to bed that night, boys and girls set a bowl of water and wheat outside the house for the camel. In the morning, the good find gifts and the naughty find a black mark on their wrists.

The Traditions of Christmas

In Poland families end a fast on Christmas Eve and gather for a dinner to honor the Holy Child. Before supper is served, the father of the house breaks the Christmas wafers, which are marked with Nativity scenes and have been blessed by the church. The father distributes the pieces to all who are present as tokens of peace and friendship. The meatless meal that follows has 12 courses, one for each Apostle.

In England, Christmas is a day of family gaiety and of feasting on turkey with roast potatoes, mince pies and plum puddings. Turkey also is the Christmas meal most chosen by Americans.

In Mexico, the flower of Holy Night, the poinsettia, is seen everywhere during the Christmas season and everywhere, in doorways and arches, there are pinatas. On Christmas Eve, children roam the streets breaking the pinatas with a long stick. When each is broken, a profusion of peanuts, fruits and candy showers down.

On Christmas Eve in Ireland, candles are lighted and placed in every window of the house and doors are left ajar. The candlelight and open door are symbols of welcome, assuring the Irish people that no couple seeking shelter for a Baby who is the son of God will be homeless. The candlelight must shine forth all night long, and may be snuffed only by those having the name of Mary.

A cup and saucer is placed on the table in each Irish home for the entertainment of wandering souls from purgatory, who are believed to come home for Christmas.

The Traditions of Christmas

In Sweden, pagan customs mingled with Christian ritual. In heathen times, it was believed that at Christmas the dead returned to earth, so food and drink were set out for them. Today, children set out food for Santa Claus.

In villages throughout Sweden young girls vie each year for the honor of portraying Saint Lucia on Dec. 13. On that day, a young girl clad in white with a crown of candles on her hair is followed by other young people carrying burning candles as sleeping families are awakened at dawn with an offering of wheat cakes and coffee.

Of course, the famous Scandinavian smorgasbord of cheeses, breads, salads and meats is replicated at holiday open houses and gatherings throughout America each Christmas season.

After weeks of Christmas preparations, homes in Finland are ready for holiday celebrations by noon on Christmas Day. A straw framework, decorated with paper stars suggestive of heaven, is suspended from the ceiling. Lighted from below by the glow of firelight and the Christmas tree, the framework produces a mysterious effect. Straw is heaped on the floor and, like the Christ Child, the children sleep on this manger-like bed.

In honor of Christmas Eve celebrations, each member of the Finnish family takes a traditional sauna or steam bath. After the sauna, all gather about the table while the head of the family solemnly reads the Christmas prayer and sermon. Little children visit other homes during the evening, but return early to see if the man dressed as a yule goat, Father Christmas, has left any presents for them.

Throughout Spain, Christmas is a time of devout religious ceremony that begins on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception on Dec. 8. Before midnight Mass on Christmas, little Spanish children dress in peasant costumes and enact an age-old Christmas Eve tradition of dancing around the Nativity scene to the musical accompaniment of tambourines.

The Christmas observance ends with the children receiving their gifts on Jan. 6. The gifts are said to be left by the Magi passing through on their way to Bethlehem. In the big cities, elaborate parades are held honoring the Three Kings.

Spanish children have no Christmas tree and do not hang up their stockings on Christmas Eve. Instead they hide slippers and shoes for Balthasar and the Wise Men to fill with goodies.

The Traditions of Christmas

Many of the most cherished Christmas traditions have their roots in Germany. In Europe from time immemorial evergreen trees were brought into homes during the winter as symbols of unending life. It was in the Black Forest of Germany that the evergreens were first used as part of Christmas. And when Alsace was German, the tradition of adorning the fragrant firs and spruces with sparkling glass balls and garlands of tinsel began.

The colorful Advent calendars, with little windows to open for each day of the season, also originated in Germany as did the evergreen Advent wreath with four candles that is displayed in many homes with one candle lighted each Sunday until Christmas Eve.

Father Christmas, the kindly bearer of gifts, originated in the Teutonic lands and in Austria good Saint Nicholas parades through the streets in bishop’s regalia.

The Ceppo was the early Italian equivalent of the Christmas tree. Constructed of cardboard and three or four shelves, it was pyramidal in shape and stood about three feet tall. At the top, a pine cone or puppet was placed. Wax candles were lit along the sides and at the bottom, a Baby Jesus, made of wax or plaster, lay in a cradle amidst shepherds, saints and angels. The shelves held candy, fruit and small presents. Objects similar to the Ceppo often are displayed in American homes today, sometimes with the heat of candles placed on the lowest level providing heated air currents to turn an upper level causing chimes to strike.

In France, on Christmas Eve a glass of wine is poured over the Yule Log before it is ignited, and a late supper, to be eaten after midnight Mass, may be cooked over the blaze. In cities, where fireplaces are not common, the tradition is maintained by eating cakes shaped like logs and covered with chocolate icing to resemble tree bark. The luxurious meal eaten following midnight Mass consists of oysters and special wines and sausages. In some American homes, a light meal of oyster stew may be a holiday highlight following midnight Mass.

Father Christmas, the kindly bearer of gifts, originated in the Teutonic lands and in Austria good Saint Nicholas parades through the streets in bishop’s regalia.

Police, Volunteers Work Together for Community

Sparked by the Omaha Police Department’s northwest precinct, volunteers from the community joined together last Saturday to beautify an Omaha neighborhood. More importantly they showed that police and community members can work together for the common good.

The cleanup focused on North 48th Street from Taylor to Sahler Streets.

“The discussion started at an Empowerment Network Omaha 360 weekly meeting,” said Jim Hubbard, northwest precinct crime prevention specialist. “Various members of the community, elected officials, representatives from nonprofits and the Police Department started a discussion, and we kept the ball rolling as a team.”

The goal of the event was to reduce crime in the neighborhood, promote ownership of the neighborhood among residents, encourage productive neighborhood partnerships and create a safe area for youths to walk during Halloween for trick-or-treating.

About 60 volunteers from across Omaha joined neighborhood residents in the cleanup effort. Volunteers included representatives of the Police Department’s northwest precinct, Benson Plant Rescue, Black Police Officers Association, Embrace the Nations, Empowerment Network, Keep Omaha Beautiful, Landmark Group, Dino’s Storage, More Than Just a Village Academy, Omaha Home for Boys, Omaha Public Schools and the University of Nebraska at Omaha.