Category Archives: Music News

Groundbreaking Technology Making Landlines Obsolete

Groundbreaking Technology Making Landlines Obsolete

According to a CDC study conducted in May 2017, nearly 46% of American homes still have a landline telephone. Because the number of landlines is decreasing rapidly, companies are charging higher rates to sustain revenues. For those still with a landline telephone, it may be time to look into a new option.

What’s Happening to Telephones?

While many people abandoned their landline telephone service years ago, some are now coming around to the idea that their cell phone shouldn’t be the only means by which they can dial out of their home. Yes, landlines still exist, but its infrastructure can hardly be supported and is often failing. With the landline exodus when cell phones came to market, today’s pricing has become unsustainable so these landline companies can stay alive.

But, this isn’t the only option! Even though smartphones dominate today’s telecommunications, there’s now a smarter, more efficient solution that carriers don’t want you to know about.

What is This Technology?

This industry is one that’s changing fast. While the vast majority of individuals and companies still rely on conventional phones, the Harvard Business Review found that an estimated 10% of international phone traffic now travels over the Internet using voice over Internet protocol, or VoIP. Most telling, this year, for the first time, U.S. companies bought more new Internet-phone connections than conventional phone lines.

It’s called VoIP and it’s changing the way we use phone services in our own homes.

How big is this change? Millions have already switched over to this new phone service. More than 200 airports are utilizing VoIP internationally, and 79% of businesses are as well, according to market research firm In Stat.

We Tested VoIP for Ourselves

As VoIP has become increasingly popular, we were a little skeptical. How could international calls truly come without an expensive cost? So, we tested out VoIP for ourselves.

Setting up any VoIP service is actually pretty quick and easy. Connect any service, such as Skype or Vonage, via your internet. Within seconds, you’re able to call any friend, any family member, or anyone else as long as you have their number. The best part; you only (sometimes) have to pay a minimal fee if you call out of the United States (some services offer free international calling as well).

Instead of paying per minute, some services let you buy VoIP credits in bulk or a small one time membership fee. Additionally, you don’t have to sacrifice any call quality. As long as you have a good internet connection, you’ll be able to chat as easily with someone in New York as you would with someone in Mexico or Greece.

It’s as if you’re getting a traditional landline phone service for either mere dollars or for free (as long as you have an internet connection).

Our Verdict of VoIP

We firmly believe there’s no reason to have a landline phone service for your home or business anymore, VoIP is clearly a better service and technology. You can save hundreds of dollars each year by switching to VoIP, and you won’t miss a single call.

Where to Find the Best VoIP Deals

Setting up a new VoIP service is very easy because it connects to your high-speed internet. Better yet, when you cancel your landline, you may even keep your current phone number.

Whether you have Spectrum, Comcast, or one of the other major cable companies in North America, you almost certainly have the option for VoIP service today. That said, you most likely will be able to find deals anywhere where you look for VoIP.

If you’re interested in affordable VoIP, start a search today.

5 reasons you should have more morning sex, according to a relationship expert

5 reasons you should have more morning sex, according to a relationship expert

Okay, so the buzzing or blaring of your alarm clock going off at dawn isn’t exactly a turn-on. But don’t let that stop you from making a.m. sex sessions a regular thing for you and your partner. Much like a quickie, morning sex can be exhilarating and energizing, and it helps you start your day on a high note.

These aren’t the only benefits morning sex offers your mind and body, says Megan Fleming, PhD, sex and relationship therapist in New York City. Let Fleming fill you in on five wellness-inspired reasons to consider getting it on before you have your first cup of coffee.

1. You’re rested and ready

As anyone who has ever had sex just before bed on a regular hectic weeknight knows, a mind-blowing orgasm isn’t likely to occur if you’re feeling tired and tense. Arousal only happens when you’re relaxed and your mind is clear, says Fleming, not doing a mental run-through of tomorrow’s meeting or absorbing tragic stories on the nightly news. When are you more rested and stress-free than after logging eight hours of shuteye?

What’s more, in the morning, you and your partner are already comfortable, warm, and conveniently right there next to each other in bed. “Take advantage and optimize that time,” suggests Fleming.

2. His hormones are running high

Your man might perform better on a Tuesday morning than a Saturday night. Here’s why: Men naturally produce more testosterone in the morning, so more often than not he’s going to have a higher sex drive and libido early in the day, explains Fleming. “Morning sex is an opportunity for him to capitalize on that and hopefully focus more on pleasuring you too,” she adds.

3. Your brain is still in twilight

When most people first wake, they’re usually not on their A game right away; it takes several minutes at least to emerge from a sleep state and start functioning at full throttle. This in-between period is a sexy time to get it on. “For many of us, when we’re in that sort of twilight sleep-wake state, our brains haven’t fully come online yet,” says Fleming. That makes your first waking moments “an opportunity to engage and connect in sexual play when you’re not yet thinking about the 100 things you have to do that day.”

So the next time you wake up and reflexively grab your phone to check your work email in bed, don’t. Tune in to your partner for a couple minutes of connection instead, before the day’s responsibilities start to consume you.

4. You’ll start the day with a smile

No matter what time of day you get busy, having an orgasm will release feel-good neurotransmitters and chemicals like oxytocin—also known as the love or cuddle hormone, explains Fleming. And while these happy hormones are always welcome, getting a jolt of them first thing in the morning is extra beneficial, since it helps put you in a bright mood and sets a positive tone for the rest of your day.

5. It helps you out of a sex rut

There’s this deeply ingrained idea that sex is a nighttime activity. But in reality, night is often the most inconvenient time to get it on, especially when partners have naturally different bedtimes and your daily schedule is so tiring, you really just want to sleep in your bed, literally.

Having sex in the morning, then, is a novel departure that allows you to experience the action in a different way. “For some people, morning sex might be an opportunity to break a routine,” explains Fleming. “Any time we can add in something new or change things up so we don’t get caught in a sexual script is great.”

US authorities tell immigrants to go home if they want to see their children

US authorities tell immigrants to go home if they want to see their children

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents have been directed to give immigrantsthe option of agreeing to deportation to see their children again, even those migrants who have filed credible fear reports should they be sent back to their home countries.

That directive, outlined in a government form obtained by NBC News, came after President Donald Trump signed an executive order that he said was aimed at reuniting the 2,000 or so immigrant children who were separated from their parents by the US government at the border.

But, the directive does not give parents the opportunity to reunite with their children while they wait on the conclusion of their asylum, a claim that many migrants crossing into the US are likely to make if they are coming from violent countries in Central America where gang violence is rampant.

“We are seeing cases where people who have passed credible fear interviews and have pending asylum claims are being given this form,” Lee Gelernt, a lawyer with the American Civil Liberties Union, told the news network, noting that even those migrants who seem likely to be in danger should they be sent back to their countries are being asked to essentially self-deport.

Forcing the parents to make the decision between leaving with or without their children, advocates say, is essentially preventing those migrants from asking for asylum.

US asylum laws requires border agents to allow migrants to make an asylum claim before a judge, even if they have been given deportation orders.

The 2,000 children were separated from their parents at the US border earlier this year under Mr Trump’s “zero tolerance” policy, which instructed US immigration forces to separate parents from their kids if they were caught crossing the border illegally.

The policies sparked a national and international backlash, with many questioning how the government planned on reunifying the families — or if there was such a plan at all.

Mr Trump, facing that intense criticism, later signed an executive order that was intended at ending that policy.

Parents who have arrived in the US with their children after June 20 are being kept together in detention, instead of being forced apart.