Refers to the casual user in contrast to the professional user. Consumer products vary in quality, ranging from flimsy, inexpensive devices to very well made; however, the term implies non-professional usage. See prosumer and consumer electronics.
 | Reproduced with permission from Computer Desktop Encyclopedia. Copyright (c) 1981-2008 The Computer Language Company Inc. All rights reserved. |
Additional Resources
- Congress looks at next-gen ad networks
- The Center for Democracy and Technology will testify Wednesday about the privacy concerns over ad networks like NebuAd, which has come under fire over a deal with Charter Communications to deploy user-tracking technology, ChannelWeb reports. "For years, Web sites have entered into agreements with advertising...
- Blog posts 2008-07-08
- A Modest Privacy Proposal
- The Senate Commerce, Science & Transportation Committee is holding a hearing tomorrow on Privacy Implications of Online Advertising. Appearing before the committee headed by long-time Senator Daniel K. Inouye (D-Hawaii) are lawyers for Google and Microsoft, as well as Facebook's chief privacy officer -- and Robert R. Dykes, the chairman...
- Blog posts 2008-07-08
- Ticking bombs in enterprise land
- I believe the enterprise software industry is heading for major problems. It started when I read Francine McKenna where she talks about what she sees as a doomsday scenario for at least one of the Big Four audit businesses. Francine's focus is on questioning the effectiveness of current methods for...
- Blog posts 2008-07-07
- Vodafone Portugal's iPhone 3G rates
- Vodafone Portugal's iPhone 3G ratesIphone pricing in Portugal-robberyThis is a complete hijack! Worst pricing for the iphone until now! The prices on the other carier in Portugal (Optimus/Orange) are equally insane! High pricing for the phone and really high prices each month, with little included (100 min+100SMS+250 or 500Mb of...
- Discussion threads 2008-07-07
- Demographics forging a new Net market: It's not your kids' Web
- It's easy and fashionable to talk about "digital natives" that have grown up online, but the demographics of the United States are shifting radically to the grey and Web services developers should heed that news and make changes in their products and plans as a result. Old coots, like me,...
- Blog posts 2008-07-07
- Pioneer ups Blu-ray discs to 16 layers, 400GB capacity
- Pioneer ups Blu-ray discs to 16 layers, 400GB capacitySounds Affordable...LOLBurn discs in an age of flash media?It's really annoying when Tech writers try to sound cool by making silly remarks.What do you mean by "age of flash media?" As in buying an 16 GIG SD card for each DVD you...
- Discussion threads 2008-07-07
- Google's new foray into image search
- In an interview with Beet.tv's Andy Plesser, Google's director of product management for consumer search properties, R.J. Pittman, discusses the search giant's development of software for facial recognition and scene analysis.
- Videos 2008-07-07
- Study: Offshore outsourcing dings customer satisfaction; Taking back office offshore ok
- A trio of professors working with the national Quality Research Center at the University of Michigan finds that offshore outsourcing hurts customer service ratings, but farming out back office operations has a limited impact. The working paper, conducted by the University of Michigan as well as Nasscom,...
- Blog posts 2008-07-07
- Why you'll have a long wait for Microsoft's next OS
- Why you'll have a long wait for Microsoft's next OSPerhapsbecause I said best bitsThe next OS from Microsoftshould employ the best bits of what is available, whether they are Microsoft ideas or not - most of the best ones have not been. For example, it should at the very least...
- Discussion threads 2008-07-07
- Nikon announces D700: Full-frame dSLR for $2,000 less than flagship D3
- Nikon announces D700: Full-frame dSLR for $2,000 less than flagship D3I wonder how much Ms. Chen was paid by Nikon......to conveniently overlook the existance of the Canon [i]5D[/i]?The Canon is a full-frame 12Mp camera that costs several hundred dollars less than the [i]D700[/i]. It's used by a lot of professional...
- Discussion threads 2008-07-04
- I have to stop using Gmail :(
- I have to stop using Gmail :(You can enable POP3 support in Gmail...If you switch on POP3 support in Gmail, then you can still comply with archiving procedures: http://mail.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=13273That way, you can both send and receive e-mails with an e-mail client like Thunderbird or Evolution or even Outlook Express. I...
- Discussion threads 2008-07-03
- Seven Tech ways to make America better this July 4
- Seven Tech ways to make America better this July 4Drill Here. Drill Now. Pay Less.Get the environazi boot of our neck.Build more refineries.Reduce government regulations.Eliminate the Endangered Species Act.Build more dams for flood control.Build more highways to relieve traffic congestion.Relax nuclear power plant requirements to build more reactors.Your mindset is...
- Discussion threads 2008-07-03
- AT
- ATprohibitively expensive for college students (parents!)These rates are obscene. Note that the unlimited plans don't include any text messages, which is what the kids really need. So you need to pay an additional $15 or $20 for text. I am currently paying for one iPhone for one college student but...
- Discussion threads 2008-07-03
- Microsoft Equipt: good deal, lousy name
- Microsoft Equipt: good deal, lousy nameJust what is "Equipt"?This name certainly does not contain any hint as to why someone would want it. Product names should be at least somewhat related to the purpose of the product.I also dont like software subscriptions. It seems that they are simply another way...
- Discussion threads 2008-07-02
- OMG! texting is so expensive
- OMG! texting is so expensiveSeems ReasonableI don't understand the allure of texting, but that's beside the point. The price increase seems perfectly reasonable to me, if texting is too expensive folks can stop texting.RE: OMG! texting is so expensiveIn America people just buy liabilities. Without them I wouldn't be...
- Discussion threads 2008-07-02
- Microsoft's never-ending pursuit of Yahoo: More awkward than an 8th grade dance
- Microsoft's never-ending pursuit of Yahoo: More awkward than an 8th grade danceCorporate Communism!This is an example of what I call Corportate Communism. Microsoft is showing it's anti-capitalist leanings. When companies like Microsoft can't compete in the market, they buy the competitor. Some argue that's capitalism. I...
- Discussion threads 2008-07-02
- Now I know we're in a recession
- Now I know we're in a recessionPricingYou can't sell coffee at those prices in a mainstrean coffee chain on a long term basis. Certainly not when it's either a coffe or a gallon of regular unleaded :-) A Sophie's choice indeed.Well, Starbucks in Vienna, Austria, EU, does (Starbucks is more...
- Discussion threads 2008-07-02
- Blockbuster comes to its senses: Pulls Circuit City bid
- Blockbuster said it is withdrawing its proposal to buy Circuit City. In a statement late Tuesday, Blockbuster said its decision to pull its bid was based on "market conditions and the completion of our initial due diligence process." What Blockbuster didn't say is that no one could...
- Blog posts 2008-07-02
- Powerset's smarts are Microsoft's gain
- Larry Dignan pours lukewarm water on Microsoft's acquisition of Powerset. Talking about Google's near monopoly in the search market, Larry says: Microsoft can reinvent search, but it's still running up a natural Google monopoly. The analogy here is Windows: Microsoft didn't have the best operating system on the planet....
- Blog posts 2008-07-01
- Pssst! ... wanna save up to 40 percent on a robotic massage chair?
- Okay, I know I'm going to get flamed for furthering ethnic stereotypes, but I have to admit, us Jews love a good bargain. So I'm going to risk getting my butt chewed because I feel compelled to play yiddische consumer advocate. As some of you may know,...
- Blog posts 2008-07-01
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