A guide and some tips on what to do before going for a PET/CT service.

Positron emission tomography – computer tomography, also more commonly known as PET/CT is a system often used for medical diagnosis by capturing images of various areas of the body. The PET/CT is a combination of two devices – the and . The combined system takes images from both devices sequentially and then combines the images into a single superposed image. The results are images that contain both anatomic parts that can often be seen by x-rays and the spatial distribution of metabolic and biochemical activity that can often be seen by PET scanners. PET/CT services are used in , particularly in the field of oncology, radiation therapy, cancer staging, and surgical planning.

A person who needs to undergo a PET/CT service needs to prepare for it beforehand.  Below are some things that you will need to do and that will be asked of you before, during, and after going for a PET/CT service.

• Fasting. It is important for you to fast for at least four hours before going for a PET/CT scan. Make sure that you have not taken any solids in the last four hours before your scan. You may drink very little amount of water if there is any medication you are scheduled to take. The fasting is required to reduce your body’s glucose level and to lower circulating insulin levels, allowing for better target-to-background ratio.
• Arrive early. Make sure that you get to the medical facility for your PET/CT scan way ahead of schedule. Try to arrive 30 minutes before the scan to allow your body to rest completely for at least 15 minutes so that your muscular activity will go down as well.
• Injection. Before undergoing a PET/CT scan, you will need to be injected with a contrast to enhance the captured images of your body. The substance that will be injected to your body contains radioactive isotope that will be easy to trace inside your body by the scanner. The contrast injected to your body will be excreted through your kidneys so if you have any medical condition involving your kidneys, make sure your doctor performs a blood test to ensure that the contrast is safe for you.
• Allot two hours. Although the actual scan will only take around 30 to 45 minutes, depending on the areas being captured, it is best to set aside at least two hours for the whole PET/CT exam to include preparation time.
• Relax. A PET/CT scan involves lying down on an automatic bed which moves into the CT gantry and the PET gantry for the scan. Although a lot of claustrophobic people can easily handle a PET/CT scan, it is important to remember to relax to prevent any anxiety you might experience.

A cell phone signal boosteris a device that is able to collect signal through their indoor and outdoor antennas, both for receiving and making calls. Aside from mobile devices, cell phone booster is also used in computer air cards for faster access.

The most common way to do this is to connect an antenna directly to your chosen device. The best-selling antenna in the market is the BlackCat Cell Phone Antenna. You can also opt to elevate and pole mount a cell phone antenna if needed. There is a specific adapter need to connect the antenna so be sure that you find the right one that fits your mobile or air card.

Another leading product is the Wilson 3 Watt Direct-Connect Cell Phone Amplifier. By adding this amplifier to the cell phone antennas, it will boost up the power and get higher signals. If you don’t want to go through the process, you can always purchase a wireless cell phone repeater system, the E-Z Install Wilson Wireless Cell Phone Booster or Repeater Kits. It is a do-it-yourself cell phone repeater kit that can be installed easily.

Unwired Signal’s products will surely boost your cellular signals, increase voice quality, and data performance of your devices minus the dropped connections. For many years in the business, Unwired Signal has been serving the top quality service for their customers. All of their loyal customers have great feedback on their signal booster products that provides better signal capacity, strength, and clarity. Try their products now and never be disappointed.

Recently, my friends have been taking to ordering delivery online for midnight snacks. Since they live the city, most restaurants and fast food chains deliver 24 hours a day seven days a week so they are assured of eating something whenever they need to burn the midnight oil when they are working and get hungry.

This is one of the disadvantages in living in the suburbs. Most stores close at 9PM and you have no chance in ordering delivery anywhere unless you get out of the house and drive to their place, granted they are still open.

Anyway, a friend who works as an IT specialist told us they were the ones who set up the online delivery system for most food chains in the country, They have recommended the best network monitoring tools and relay systems for these chain of restaurants so they are guaranteed that no lag time, mix-ups and downtime will be experienced, aside from the payment gateway.

These chains of restaurants now employ NS specialists who do windows server monitoring and VMware monitoring to make sure all systems run smoothly. It can be a big investment but the return of investment (ROI) is quick and boost of revenues are faster.

Friends have been asking what camera I use because they like the pictures of the food I post here in my blog. After reading several digital camera reviews and upon the recommendation of my photo enthusiast friends, I decided to get a Panasonic Lumix LX3. I am very happy with it, and I still have to learn my way around it. I know it will be better if I learn how to control its settings better!

In response to the controversy about PCI compliance being a law, I can’t help but give my own view about the whole matter.

First, as a consumer and a loyal cardholder, I rely on credit cards for my regular transactions – groceries, bills, and other stuff. These cards are my constant wallet companions. And because I use them on a regular basis, I am also obliged to pay for them. No matter how difficult it seems sometimes, I always make the deadline. So on behalf of all the other loyal cardholders out there who keep their obligations, don’t we deserve the same effort from these credit card companies when it comes to securing our usages free and safe from criminal activities? We use the card so don’t we at least have the right to be protected?

Second, penetration testing, network security assessment, and all the other procedures required by PCI compliance are meant not only to protect credit information of consumers and cardholders, but they’re also meant to secure card transactions and the rights of both the merchants and the credit card companies too. So why should it be refused? In the end, even if will entail a great cost and some huge changes, it will ultimately benefit all of us, right? So why do we hesitate?

I say, if you don’t like the changes, don’t use the cards. It’s that simple.

The Blackberry and the iPhone are two of the most popular smartphones in the market today. Patrons of the two brands are very loyal to their chosen phones, which is why a cousin of mine is undecided on what to get for herself this Christmas. Although the advantage of fast iPhone development is obvious, Blackberry development is not exactly lagging behind. Currently though, she is leaning towards getting a Blackberry although not primarily for its mobile development. Below are her reasons for considering the Blackberry.

• Keyboards. Although she is not sure yet which particular Blackberry model she will get, what she loves about most of them is that they have keyboards! They make typing easier even when you are doing other things.
• Expandable memory. Unlike the iPhone, which comes in fixed capacities of 8, 16, or 32 gigs, the Blackberry allows you to have bigger memory capacity through its memory slot.
• Removable battery. The battery for iPhone is fixed which means that you either charge it or you are stuck with an iPhone with a drained battery. The Blackberry lets you have a spare battery.
• Blackberry messenger. My cousin knows a lot of people who have Blackberry phones and she is eager to connect with them through the peer-to-peer Blackberry messenger.
• Multiple browsers. You can load use different browser applications on a Blackberry whereas iPhone users are restricted to its standard Safari browser.

We are living in the digital era – the age of computer technology where everything can be stored micro-digitally. Businesses, government offices, schools, hospitals and even families depend on technology to store their information, network, pictures – virtually everything that is important in their files. That is why it is also important to invest on back up and recovery services just in case your computer or network goes down.

For example, Datalink has IT strategies and tactics aligned have solutions for business needs. Each solution is built using a customized platform of hardware and software from multiple technology innovators, along with a comprehensive suite of professional and support services.

1. storage virtualiztion
The IT network of businesses is very complex. Datalink offers a solution for fewer management points; increased sharing among applications; a reduced infrastructure footprint; and shared server, storage, and network resource pools.

2. backup and recovery
This is an integral part of any computer network. With Datalink, they make sure to study your network, its essentials and how it works to be able to come up with a customized plan solution from capacity management to continuity planning. They design and implement innovative, high-value solutions and provide ongoing management and support for the lifecycle of their offered solution.

3. data center consolidation
Like any growing business, your network should also have the capacity to expand its operations without having to go down and disrupt operations. Datalink offers computing resources which enable your network to rapidly adjust to new demands and reduce the risk of disruption.