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Black Friday which started as a brick-and-mortar store affair is now mainstream online, meaning you don't have to leave the sitting room to do shopping any more - right with your pajamas, you're good to go shopping at any online store at your convenience.

But, with the ease also comes other risk factors to have at the back of your mind while doing your shopping online on Black Friday.

Below are 5 tips for staying safe online, so you can start checking out items on the shopping list for Black Friday.

Use Credible Websites

Trust is the watchword to staying safe online, so it is always recommended to shop at popular and trusted sites. If peradventure you don't know the site address and wish to utilize search engines, do not drift past the first page result as only the trusted and established sites can make the cut.

Security signs to lookout

Misspellings or websites using different domain extensions like (.net instead of .com, for instance) are some of the things to lookout for online. And ensure you do not enter credit/debit card details on a site without SSL Certification, that is, the site will start with HTTPS:// (instead of HTTP://), and a padlock icon will appear in the status bar on the web browser.

Avoid Public WiFi

Now is certainly not a good time to try out a free hotspot, only use the wireless facility if you have a virtual private network (VPN) connection. And if you must use a public WiFi, stick to known and popular providers.

Create Strong Password

The humble password remains the Achilles heel in many security breaches. So adhere to rules in creating unique and strong password for your account, as shopping online involves creating account, beating this old horse isn't completely out of place.

Think Mobile

Mobile apps are quite unmistakeable in the various app stores, more reason it is recommended to use apps for online shopping. The mobile apps are provided by the eTailers directly and you can find whatever you want to buy and then make the purchase without going to the store or the website.

In conclusion, it is advised to know what is too good to be true. In other words, avoid bogus offers, as many of such "offers" will come in via social media. Stay safe shopping online as there's no need to be any more nervous about shopping online than at offline store after all.

5 Tips for safe Online Shopping on Black Friday

Black Friday, for those not in the know, is the day following the fourth Thursday of November, generally regarded as the beginning of Christmas shopping in the United States. But now, it has spread over to other parts of the world, and major retailers around the world cut prices to insanely low rate, as much as 90% off, making it the biggest shopping day for bargain hunters.

It falls on November 27, this year - and Nigerians already given to eCommerce, have come to expect much on Black Friday deals.

Albeit, the trend is relatively new in Nigeria, this year's event may perhaps be a record breaker given the growing adoption of smartphones and increasing knowledge on the activities of eCommerce in the country.

While, Black Friday isn't restricted to online shopping, as offline stores are equally caught in the seasonal fever, we'd be concerned in presenting to you our best picks for online shopping with regards to trust and low price bargain.

Jumia Nigeria




Jumia Nigeria is arguably the eCommerce store that first introduced the Black Friday deals in Nigeria back in 2013, and since then has carved a niche for itself in the heart of consumers. The online store is promising to bring an extensive selection of products from top brands at rock bottom prices to consumers this Black Friday. With perhaps the most convenient and easy payment methods available, your Black Friday shopping will be an unforgettable experience with Jumia Nigeria. Simply head to their Black Friday page for more information.

Yudala Nigeria



This relatively new eTailer is a no pushover, with quite some stunning magic up its sleeve, it has positioned itself as the eCommerce store to beat in the growing competition in Nigeria. Launched in mid 2015, Yudala Nigeria delivers a hell of shopping convenience with an online and offline presence in more than 10 locations in Nigeria. With a promise of delivery to your doorstep anywhere in Nigeria in 24 - 48 hours, you simply can't beat the reach. You can get more details on their Black Friday page.

Konga Nigeria



Konga is the "YAKATA" eTailer, the huge market disruptor when it comes to price slashes in Nigeria. Konga Black Friday sales is actually starting from the 26th to the 27th of November, and they're promising free delivery to boot! Get more details here: http://www.konga.com/yakata.

Are you getting ready for the biggest online shopping of the year? You won't have anything to worry about choosing from the above online stores.

Black Friday: Where to get the best deals online in Nigeria?

Apple's new streaming set top box, Apple TV, has laid the ground work for a truly live TV experience, allowing users to order for whatsoever they're watching right on the screen. Apple TV connects to compatible big screens through HDMI input, while a dedicated App Store ensures unending entertainment contents such as movies and music videos, or even live game streaming.

The iconic fourth generation set box was unveiled on September 9, with a bevy of new features, including an awesome remote touch-pad and Siri voice recognition.

Siri support takes the obvious task off watching TV, allowing users to search and select contents through voice command, and quite capable of sifting through multiple apps at a go to find the exact music, movie or games.

While, the remote touch-pad has two microphones for picking up Siri voice commands, with built-in accelerometer and gyroscope that let it double as a game controller.

Apple's focus on a dedicated operating system, tvOS, with powerful hardware ensures better user experience, and effective tools for developers to create apps. It brings a redesigned iOS 9 feel to the TV set, with all the apps highlighted to make it easier to find contents for your TV.

Apple TV includes 2GB RAM, which is ample enough for the device to run a full-fledged App Store, with an A8 chip that's much faster than the A5 in the previous version, supporting up to 1080p video at 60 frames per second.

Albeit, keyboards are not supported, with Bluetooth 4.0 Apple TV can support third-party gaming controllers.

Apple TV is now available for US$ 149 (32GB) and US$ 199 (64GB), depending on the storage space to store apps, games, TV shows, movies, and music.

Apple TV: Is Streaming contents (videos, music and games) the future of TV?

The rumor was everywhere earlier this month about a purported Google's plan to merge Android with Chrome OS, and thereby face-out the later. The WSJ report claimed the Android/Chrome OS merger would happen in 2016, with Google set to launch new devices running the combined OSes in 2017.

While the Chromebook, the foster child of Chrome OS would ostensibly be subjected to an early death according to the report.

Lockheimer, SVP Android, Chrome OS and Chromecast has cleared the air refuting the report in its entirety, maintaining unequivocally that Android and Chrome OS will remain two separate products, and that Chromebooks aren't going away anytime soon.

What are the 7 Reasons Android will never merge with Chrome OS?

  1. Android caters for smartphone and tablet devices
  2. Chrome OS is mainly for netbooks and other lightweight computers
  3. Chrome OS is designed to work with "keyboard-based" platforms
  4. Android is optimized for all things touch
  5. Chrome OS is first Cloud
  6. Android is app-centric
  7. Security is fundamental for Chrome OS


Additionally, Chrome OS is built to run entirely off the Internet, and won't allow you to install programs or store any data locally; instead, all apps will run from the Web - with preferences and settings stored online.

Google, however, hinted that Chrome OS may eventually reach other platforms - like tablets and TVs, with a possible convergence of Android and Chrome OS. Albeit, Google is working on bringing the best features of Chrome OS and Android together, they will ever remain two distinct products.

7 Reasons Android will never merge with Chrome OS

Google started tinkering with deep learning neural networks back in 2011, resulting the first generation machine learning proprietary system, DistBelief. While, TensorFlow is the second generation iteration of that same technology, which is now a core part of its commercial products like Google Voice Search, Google Photos, and YouTube.

The company earlier in the week announced open-sourcing the platform, making the highly scalable machine learning system available for everyone from researchers, to developers - with the end to accelerate research in machine learning.

Albeit, machine learning is still in its infancy, open sourcing the library will enable researchers and developers to build systems capable of breaking down data to make more accurate decision based on the information.

What platforms does TensorFlow support?

TensorFlow is flexible and quite capable of running on older systems, making it ideal for every platform. It allows you to carry-out computation on one or more CPUs and GPUs on desktop, server, or mobile platforms.

Who can use It?

TensorFlow is an ongoing project, meaning it isn't complete, which opens room for everyone - including: students, academicians, independent researchers, developers and even hackers.

Google has made available a version for academic researchers with built-in binaries, and another version as API for developers. The company intends to build an active open source community and through their feedback and contributions ensure improvements to the source code.

What you need to know about Google's Open Source AI Platform - TensorFlow

Google's cutting-edge machine learning intelligence introduced with Inbox by Gmail app, is perhaps the best message management enhancement ever to hit the email system. The Artificial Intelligence (AI) powered app is able to automatically sort out your priority emails and also suggest/set reminders on calender events.

Now, the company has unveiled additional feature, Smart Reply, which enables the Inbox by Gmail app to analyze email contents and auto suggest appropriate responses.

As always, skeptics have already started to question the level of users' privacy exposed in the background processing involved in Gmail Smart Reply.

Gmail Smart Reply is built on a system of "recurrent neural networks", with "long short-term-memory" (most useful in predicting an accurate response) devoid of any human interception, meaning that no human is reading your email messages.

The machine learning works on data set that the developers' themselves does not have access to read and thus eliminating any privacy concerns.

How the technology works?

According to Google, the encoding of email is handled by one network, which after consuming the words of a message, produces a list known as vector. The vector captures the meaning behind the message, then a second network utilizes "the vector" to create an appropriate reply.

The feature has been rolled out on Inbox by Gmail for Android and iOS, so if you already have the app installed, you'll need to update to get the new AI experience.

Gmail AI: What's Privacy concerns about Smart Reply?

Generally, businesses have come to understand that social networking sites are great ways to build their brand. From creating brand awareness, as an online reputation management tool, to learning new technologies, and as a lead generation tool to intercept potential prospects.

Now, how does Startup founders fall in with this growing social networking trends? It's no longer optional, but inevitable for entrepreneurs to connect for support from partners, investors, customers and even their employees.

Below is a graphic presentation on 18 thriving networking sites especially for entrepreneurs to find advice, capital, or possibly co-founders - Infographic brought to you by Wrike - Free Project Collaboration Tools.

18 Top Networking Sites for Startup Founders

INFOGRAPHIC: 18 Top Networking Sites for Startup Founders

The Internet of Things (IoT), a network of physical objects or "things" embedded into electronics, with software and sensors, which enables these objects to exchange data, is indeed the new frontier to conquer in the emerging technology landscape.

Microsoft released Windows 10 IoT Core as a streamlined version of Windows targeted at small, embedded devices with or without screens. While, Google also announced Brillo, as underlying operating system for IoT devices, derived from Android.

Albeit, little is known about Brillo at the moment, we thought it wise to make a comparison of the two platforms based on major elements involved: Core services and Platform security.

Brillo Core Services

Brillo is built on Weave, which enable devices to connect with desktop and mobile, and also ensures secure network connections. With Metrics component, to help analyze data to understand usage patterns. The reports are useful to debug remote devices employed in field works and also to make available the latest versions of the software.

Windows 10 IoT Core Services

Windows 10 IoT Core utilizes same configuration and tools as other Windows 10 editions which eases integration with desktops and mobile. It is designed to work with Microsoft Azure IoT services, which brings improvement and efficiency, leveraging on advanced data analytics in the cloud.

Platform Security: Brillo vs Windows 10 IoT Core

Windows 10 IoT Core delivers same security standards available for Windows 10, with built-in defenses to help protect critical business information from leaks or theft, employing latest technologies like Secure Boot, BitLocker, Device Guard and Credential Guard.

While, Brillo is harping on enterprise-grade encryption to limit exposure to attacks, and intuitive update system which allows recovery of compromised devices quickly.

In conclusion, it is penitent to note that Google as a late entrant in the IoT landscape, means Brillo is certainly in the early days, but with promising interest from developers may perhaps be a repeat of the Android magic.

Platform Wars: Brillo vs Windows 10 IoT Core

Google's foray into web-hosting services is no longer news; the company launched Google Domains back in January 13, which still in beta is available only for United States. It provides domain hosting and a handful of extras like: free email hosting/forwarding, blogger integration and a host of website builder tools.

Google Domains most remarkable feature is perhaps the one-click Blogger integration, which eliminates manual input of MX records and other required verification codes.

And the fact that it's running on latest hosting technology, means up-time and delivery speed is unmatched, with added Google security and  rare domain names offerings like .coffee, .florist, et al.

How you can transfer/register a domain name in Nigeria and other countries

Despite the fact that Google Domains service as at the time of this post is only available to users in the United States, below is a detailed guide on how to register or transfer a domain name in Nigeria (other countries).




As you can see from the above image, the registration page has all countries included, so filling up your correct country information is not a problem.




However, the checkout page (Payment page) is actually where the U.S. restriction comes to play, so to successfully register/transfer a domain name from any other country, you need a U.S. issued card (e.g Payoneer MasterCard), simply fill in the card details as required.

And when it comes to ZIP CODE as most Payoneer Cards are issued from Belize City, which officially has no ZIP CODE, you can enter any nearby city's code and it works successfully.

Google Domains: How you can transfer/register a domain name in Nigeria and other countries

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