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With the holidays right around the corner, Amazon has released their sales numbers for the Kindle, stating that they are selling over 1 million copies per week!

“Kindle Fire is the most successful product we’ve ever launched—it’s the bestselling product across all of Amazon for 11 straight weeks, we’ve already sold millions of units, and we’re building millions more to meet the high demand,” said Dave Limp, vice president of Amazon Kindle. “In fact, demand is accelerating—Kindle Fire sales increased week over week for each of the past three weeks.”

The Kindle Fire is now the second best-selling tablet, behind the Apple iPad. Amazon is predicted to ship around 3.9 million Kindle Fire devices during the last quarter of 2011 and Apple is predicted to ship approximately 18.6 iPads during this same time.

Which tablet do you prefer?

There are no words to express what a bad idea this is…

We all know someone (ok, we’re guilty too!) who is tied to their computer during the work day and sometimes after… As the holidays are coming upon us quickly, here are some great gift ideas for the geek in your life.

If you know someone who is addicted to Facebook, give them the ability to pass judgment on things in the real world with these “Like” and “Dislike” ink stamps. They could use them for employee reports or they can go around stamping their co-workers on the head to let them know how they really feel. $12.99 — Amazon

If you’ve ever knocked over a drink at your desk that ended up destroying a keyboard or laptop, you’ll understand how the Spink cup holder can be a real lifesaver. It firmly attaches to the desk with a suction cup and drinks can be nestled within its walls for protection. It’s a great gift for clumsy people, which is why I’m putting it on my wish list. No more sippy cups filled with beer for me! $10.99 — Amazon

In case you haven’t heard, sitting can kill you. That’s why a lot of office dwellers are moving to standing desks. If you happen to know a cyclist, it’s also possible to get desks that are custom made to accommodate a bicycle. Kickstand Furniture designs adjustable desks that can do just that, making it possible to mount a bike on a trainer and cycle as you work. $1,499-$1,650 — Kickstand Furniture

For the full list, visit MSNBC Tech

Top 10 Gifts for People Tied to Their Computers

• Barnes and Nobel announces new Nook tablet for only $249 (CNN Money)

• Just for fun: 9 Equations That All Geeks Should (or at least pretend to) Know (Wired)

• “My Secret Folder” keeps your iPhone personal information safe (Tech News World)

• 25 Apps to make you more productive (PC Mag)

• Holiday Alert! Apps to make your upcoming holiday season a little easier (PC Mag)

• Is consistency important to you? Each PC you purchase at a retail store will probably come with the cheapest components that were available at the time, which means all new computers are not the same.

• Retail computers are slow out of the box.  Each of the consumer computers are so cheap because a dozen of more vendors paid the PC manufacturer to install their software on there, thus your brand new fast computer is approximately 25% slower because of this.

• A 90-day warranty just isn’t enough.  It’s true some computers come with a 1-year warranty,  and you could argue that it’s cheap enough that you could dispose if something goes wrong, but who wants to replace their PC every year?

• Sticking with the theme from #3, if you are going to buy a cheap PC now and replace it every 12 months, you should consider the cost of reinstalling software, migrating data, installing printers and getting the personality of your old PC reinstalled on the new PC.  Hint – you’ll always forget something.

• When you purchase consumer computers, the manufacturer is going to source the lowest cost technician to come out and fix your PC.

• Let’s be honest, at some point, your computer is going to face some malfunction and you are going to be down.  100% of these computers can be reinstalled but this means it will be in the same state that you  got it on Day 1 – see #2.

• Tech support at Now IT Works is available by phone or email and you’ll always speak to a live person.  It’s tough enough contacting technical support for a retail purchase, but when you add the technical hurdle and then a language barrier, expect a headache.

Contact your Now IT Works account manager before making any new purchases for your business.

In a word, the answer to this question is yes and here is why:

1 – When someone loses their phone, or it gets stolen – person(s) unknown would have immediate access to all of your information. Calendar, contacts, email, remote access to your PC (if enabled), spouses information, child/ren school contacts, etc.

2 – It’s not the law yet – but just wait. Connecticut privacy law imposes up to $500,000 in Civil Penaltiies for Misuse of Personal Information (http://www.mofo.com/news/updates/bulletins/14042.html)

3 – SmartPhones are just as susceptible to viruses and bad applications (Droid more so than Apple). Here at Now IT Works, we are launching a mobile security product soon simply to handle this (not specifically a PIN related issue, but mobile security in general)

Finally, PSA aside – all the cool kids are doing it. Of course I’m kidding, but honestly, every person I’ve seen with an iPhone or Droid has a lock on it. Whether they are trying to keep parents, boy/girl-friends or spouses out – everyone does it for the same reason – to keep prying people from accessing the information.

Do you have questions or concerns about the security of your business’s mobile devices? Contact your Now IT Works account rep to discuss.

If your computer gets the infamous “Blue Screen of Death”, does the frowny face make you feel any better about it? Introducing the new Windows 8 Blue Screen error – now you know it’s really bad.

(Source: Geekologie)

• Microsoft says Windows 8 “boots super fast” (MSNBC)

• Wired Giveaway – Win an iTunes download of the Beatles Greatest Hits (Wired)

• Amazon is considering a Netflix-like book rental service (CNN Tech)

• Mobile apps for back to school – from doing homework to relaxing (PC Mag)

Remember when a mouse pad with a personalized picture was good enough? Not any more!

This looks like one of those gifts you get your parents for Christmas when you’ve run out of ideas. Interested in purchasing? (we won’t judge) Visit the site here.