As health care continues to improve, people are living longer and longer nowadays. While this is a great thing, it can be problematic, as a need for elder care increases. No one wants to see the elderly get hurt, but not everyone has family to take care of them.

Luckily, the needs of the elderly are not being ignored, as not only is caring for them noble, but a potential money-maker too. Today, Microsoft shares that a new solution has been created by Intel-GE Care Innovations; a joint venture between the two massive companies. What makes it particularly cool is that it utilizes the Kinect sensor, which is commonly used with the Xbox One.

Bluetooth has proven to be quite the impressive standard; it has seen wide adoption, and is found in most modern cellular phones (both smart and dumb). Hell, it is even found in many automobiles nowadays.

While an incremental update to the Bluetooth standard probably won't make the evening news, it is a very important moment in the tech world. Today the Bluetooth Special Interest Group announces exactly that -- version 4.2 is now officially adopted. Even though the version number change is slight (from 4.1), the new version is big on new features.

When you are a developer, the world is not all roses. Sure, it is very rewarding to bring your ideas to life, but sometimes your imagination is limited by the software with which you are forced to use. You see, many services offer an API, which enables your software to connect with it. Ultimately, if it is user-based data, you can push and pull information to and from a users account.

Google's calendar is such a service that offers an API, but sadly, applications were limited to 100,000 requests per day. While this might be sufficient for some developers, it apparently was not good enough for all -- the search giant is increasing this to 1 million daily requests.

With so many people in the world, it is easy to feel like you don't matter. In the USA in particular, the country is deeply divided, causing nearly half the country to feel misrepresented on the issues. Even worse, citizens may feel alone in their ideals and beliefs, as they don't necessarily know how others feel.

Today, Microsoft is not only aiming to help people be heard, but also offering transparency into the thoughts of others. Bing Pulse 2.0 is a new way for participants of live events, or TV-watchers at home, to vote in real-time on various topics. In other words, it is a great tool to engage an audience.

While the majority of people use and trust Google as their search engine, it is not the only option. Many people use alternatives such as Bing and Yahoo too. The latter in particular should see increased use, as it is the new default search engine on Firefox.

Today, Yahoo is sharing the top searches of 2014. While many of the results are to be expected, some may surprise you. For instance, Xbox One was searched for more than PlayStation 4 -- does this signal an increased consumer interest in Microsoft's console over Sony's? Possibly. Please read on for more results.

Apple makes some really great products. Quite frankly, you really can't go wrong with anything it makes. Sure, I prefer Windows and Linux distributions on the desktop, but OS X is a fine operating system too. The true bread and butter for the fruit-logo company, however, is not its desktop operating system, but mobile -- iOS. I own an iPad and enjoy it for what it is, but I find iOS to be a spectacularly terrible operating system, as it is too restrictive and dumb-downed. For some, the designed simplicity is a benefit, but for advanced users like myself, lack of a user-accessible file system is a non-starter.

The truly terrible crime, however, is that Apple does not allow browser engines other than its own. Google chose to offer a neutered version of Chrome for iOS, but Mozilla famously did not bring Firefox. I was rather proud of Mozilla for sticking to its beliefs and refusing to give in to Apple's policies. Yes, it sucks not having Firefox on iOS, but I supported the decision. Today, however, Mozilla concedes as it is bowing down to Apple in an effort to target more users. In other words, Mozilla is biting into a shiny red apple, but I fear that it is poisoned!

When you are issued a business laptop from your employer, it is often clunky and ugly. Of course, it gets the job done, but it is depressing to use a boring machine in the office, but then go home to use a nicer one. In other words, business-class laptops can be yawn-worthy, but they do not have to be.

Luckily, HP subscribes to this way of thinking. Yes, the firm also produces clunky business laptops, but today, it is announcing a machine that we have been waiting for. The all-new EliteBook Folio 1020 is both the thinnest and lightest business-class laptop in the world.

If you have ever created or sat through a PowerPoint presentation for work, or created a report for school lately, you've surely seen or used clip art. There is nothing inherently wrong with using images to enhance a presentation or document, but the clip art in Office has been downright terrible. The images are typically outdated and cliched examples of business life, drawn by artists who likely came straight from hell (I kid -- actually, I bet they are very nice people).

Today, we may have finally seen the last of these horrid Pablo Picasso-esque nightmares, as Microsoft kills the Office clip art and image library. This is surely a time for celebration, but you are probably wondering where you will get images for your next quarterly presentation. No worries, Microsoft will now be directing users of Office to Bing Image Search instead.

As a fat guy, I am an easy mark for the Girl Scouts. When they knock on my door and ask me if I want to buy cookies, that question is rhetorical; of course I want them! Heck, they don't only get me at home, but in public too. Coming out of the grocery store, they will often be camping out for sales. There too, I gladly buy a box of cookies, feeling ashamed as I walk to my car.

I can't speak for all fat people, but myself and others may feel embarrassed to buy cookies, when we are already so out of shape. Yes, it is for a good cause, but you imagine people seeing you buy them, and judging you; perhaps rightfully so. Today, however, this changes as the Girl Scouts are going online with Digital Cookie; you will soon be able to buy the cookies directly online. In other words, I can buy Thin Mints and Do-si-dos without shame or judgment.

Having a strong and unique password for every website you visit is a great idea. Unfortunately, there is a major problem with that -- it can be impossible to remember them all. If it becomes a tedious affair, users will start recycling passwords for multiple sites, which is a huge best-practice "no-no". Think about it; if a hacker gets your password from one site, they now have it for other sites too. Even worse than recycling passwords? Writing them down on Post-It-Notes and sticking them on a monitor.

While it is easy to judge people for not securing their passwords, remember, it is not their fault that current systems are deficient. True, there are password management solutions by various companies, but how can a user know which one to trust? Luckily, consumers will soon have a very trustworthy name available -- Intel. Today, that company announces it is acquiring password management solution PasswordBox.

Christmas is coming, which means lots of festivities are about to happen. For me, however, the holiday is all about one thing -- smells. No, I'm not crazy, although many will disagree. What I mean to say is, the smells of Christmas resonate with me more than any other aspect. Of course, the smell of pine trees conjure images of decorated trees with gifts underneath, but don't forget the smells of cookies baking and grandma's perfume. All of these scents comes together to culminate Christmastime.

While it is not typically associated with the holiday, the smell of mint makes me as giddy as a child on Christmas morn. Why? It makes me think of Linux Mint, one of my favorite distros. Fans of the operating system are getting an early Christmas present, as the release of 17.1, "Rebecca", is here.

Thursday is finally here -- Happy Thanksgiving y'all! Later today, I, like many other Americans, will be eating a beautiful turkey dinner with friends and family. As is a tradition on Long Island, I drove to 711 this morning at 7 am to get a copy of our local paper, Newsday, to get all of the Black Friday circulars. While I am not planning to do any shopping today or tomorrow, I still enjoy looking through the advertisements.

While I am a huge proponent of capitalism and spending for the economy, it makes me sad to see so much commercialism on a family-focused holiday. Truth be told, one of my family members is in the hospital this week, and I have been visiting every day, but it is very sad to see the lonely sick people who have nobody visiting. While today is a day to be thankful for what you have, I hope you also take the time to reflect on what others don't have. Many of you, our readers, are very tech-oriented and probably own some Bitcoin. If you are feeling generous today, and want to help others, the American Red Cross is now accepting the virtual-currency for donations.

Laptops and tablets can be quite the germ-factories. Not only do people touch the screens and keyboards with things like gross Cheez-Doodle-covered fingers, but many bring computers into the bathroom too, though most won't admit it. Germs are a real concern for me, and I like to be in a clean environment.

Unfortunately, it can be a mystery to know the best way to clean a tablet or laptop. Do you bring it in the shower with you? Spray it with Febreze? Put it on the hood of your car and drive through a car wash? Actually, those are all horrible ideas -- please don't do any of them! Today, Microsoft is enlightening Surface Pro 3 users with the best way to clean and sanitize the tablet/laptop hybrid for use in a hospital or clinical environment. Sure, it may be overkill for the average home user, but when it comes to germs, I would rather be safe than sorry.

Despite what many people say, size does matter; well... at least when it comes to screen-size and productivity. Sure, a large screen limits portability, but it also makes it easier to do work and multi-task.

Tablets became wildly popular, in part, because they had larger screens than smartphones. With that said, the Phablet craze has created smartphones with such large screens, that it can limit the allure of tablets like the iPad. Some analysts and pundits predicted that the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus would cannibalize iPad sales and use. Well, a new study by the company behind the popular Pocket app, shows that the latter may be true.

In the USA, the holidays are almost here for many people. This Thursday, Thanksgiving, officially kicks off the festivities of both spending time with family and shopping. We eat turkey and spend time with our loved-ones until late Thursday night, but then the following day -- known as Black Friday -- kicks off a month-long shopping extravaganza. Up until December 25th, Christmas Day, retailers will be trying to bait shoppers with rock-bottom prices and interest-free payment plans.

Unfortunately, not all advertised sales are as good as they seem. In other words, what looks like a great deal, may be average at best. HTC is getting into the Black Friday game, and it is offering a truly great deal; 50 percent off the all-new RE Camera. It is normally $199, but you can score it for a super-low $99!