Are leaks becoming the new free publicity stunt?
The first thing that a savvy marketer will say when answering this question is to tell us that this is nothing new. Leaks have been a crucial part of...
Areas of focus
Social mediaConsumer technologySoftware & cloud
Track record
Publication history and recorded editorial activity on TECHi. These counts describe published work, not investment performance or independently verified qualifications.
- Published
- 727
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Selected reporting
Selected articles from Rocco Penn's published portfolio.
Microsoft positions itself away from the fray with new Lumia ad
Microsoft has had its shares of difficulties in two big arenas of late - selling phones powered by their operating system and posting advertising videos...
UFO activity in February, 2013
Every month, we highlight the best UFO footage on YouTube. We skipped February, not because we didn't want to but for some reason our source over at...
In lieu of a Bible, iPad app used to swear in promoted Atlantic City firefighters
There was a time when not having a Bible at when firefighters or other public officials were sworn in would have meant a quick trip to someone's home....
Lead story
Earlier TECHi work
This piece is from an earlier period. It is not current market analysis.
2014 Ford Fusion: Well mannered on the outside; driving excitement on the inside
The 2014 Ford Fusion enters the mid-sized sedan class with major completion such as the Nissan Altima, the Honda Accord and Mazda 6. The Fusion shines in...
Article archive
Earlier archive
Earlier published articles and coauthored reporting on TECHi.
Fire-breathing dragon named world's largest walking robot (videos)
If you're going to make a walking robot to break records and draw crowds, you might as well make it a dragon. The "Tradinno" project by Zollner was...
If the Petman robot doesn't scare you, you're not paying attention
Boston Dynamics has made us cringe more than once in the past with their BigDog and LS3 robotic abominations in the past. This time, they've gone too far...
Did the SimCity debacle take out the EA CEO?
The short answer is, "yes". The long answer is that Electronic Arts (EA) has been struggling to keep their empire in the world of gaming for some time....
BigDog tosses cinder blocks across the room like a robotic boss
If there's one thing that can be said about Boston Dynamics, it's that they never cease to amaze us with the capabilities of their robotic creations....
A basic guide to getting hacked
Learn how hacking works in 2025, common attack vectors, and practical steps to protect yourself from cybercrime. Updated statistics and security best practices.
If you want to learn how to use Vine, Adam Goldberg is the master
If it's possible to be a true filmmaker using only the 6-seconds allowed on Twitter's Vine app, actor Adam Goldberg would be the director, star, producer,...
Silicon Valley is buying protection from DC through skyrocketing lobbying spends
The greatest threat to startups is lack of momentum. For companies that make it over the startup hump, it's competition.
Vote for clarification and changes to Facebook’s data use policy
Facebook Ireland who is in charge of the interaction that happens between the U.S and Europe are making changes to the Data Use Policy on Facebook but not…
Frozen Computer Screen Office Prank: How-To Infographic
Looking to liven up another boring work day at the cubicle farm while also managing to frustrate unsuspecting coworkers? If so, this visual how-to guide...
Facebook provides page posting best practice guide
Posting as a business on your Facebook page is not always the easiest to do, knowing how to entertain and capture people’s attention takes time and true...
Autonomous nano quadrotors amaze (and terrify) with complicated formation runs
Quadrotor technology developed at the General Robotics, Automation, Sensing and Perception (GRASP) lab at the University of Pennsylvania is able to fly...
The Silicon Valleys... of the world
Just as movies are made outside of Hollywood and cars are built outside of Detroit, entrepreneurs, startups, and venture capitalists are present in places...
Flying robots that build things open doors to automated architecture
In the movies, it always start innocently. They are designed to help humans, to do the mundane or difficult tasks that are better suited for non-sentient...
The best places to work in Silicon Valley
Jobs are scarce in most sectors. Silicon Valley is one of those rare areas where the top tech talent is actually being aggressively sought. They aren't...
American drone weapons consoles infected with keystroke-logging virus
US Predator and Reaper drones in Afghanistan were hacked and a virus inserted into their remote cockpits at Creech Air Force Base in Nevada, logging every...
How to make a strong password
They are the keys we use to get to some of the most important parts of our online lives. Email, bank accounts, social networks, work applications -...
Two Takes contributions
Xiaomi might unveil its first smartwatch later this week
If Apple did it, you can bet your ass that Xiaomi is going to do it too. In all fairness, the majority of Apple’s competitors do the same thing, but most of them are just following Apple’s lead, whereas Xiaomi tends to just blatantly copy whatever Apple does. Whether or not this will be
Check out the OnePlus smartwatch that will never exist
In the two years since OnePlus exploded onto the smartphone scene with the OnePlus One, rumors that the company is working on everything from a smartwatch to a tablet have popped up, though no evidence of these claims has ever been presented. Now, just a couple of weeks after the release of the OneP
Nintendo will release its next console in March 2017
Consoles tend to last six to eight years before their successor is released, so the fact that the Wii U will be replaced in just four years should tell you how much of a failure it is. Numerous reports have claimed that Nintendo wants to move past the Wii U debacle as quickly as possible, and the co
Self-driving cars are making their way to racetracks
There really is no better place to show off the latest car technology than the racetrack, and there are few technologies as deserving of a demonstration as self-driving cars. That’s why it was so exciting last November when the Formula E bosses announced that there’s going to b
China’s next Five Year Plan is all about the internet and technology
China’s thirteenth Five Year Plan since 1953 was unveiled on Saturday, and it’s all about the internet and technology. For those of you who are unfamiliar, Five Year Plans are a series of regularly implemented initiatives that are designed to help develop China both economically and soci
Yahoo is killing off most of its digital magazines
Yahoo’s financial woes have forced the company to put all of its focus on the businesses that are actually making money, while everything else is either being put on the back burner or killed off entirely. Most of the company’s digital magazines will be suffering the latter fat
Legacy archive
Historical articles
364 articles from Rocco Penn's earlier editorial era on TECHi. These remain available at their original URLs but aren't part of the current beat.
Are leaks becoming the new free publicity stunt?
The first thing that a savvy marketer will say when answering this question is to tell us that this is nothing new. Leaks have been a crucial part of...
Tesla vs. Chevrolet: the unlikely battle is on
Who would have ever thought Tesla and Chevrolet would be featured in the same article but here they are. Due to the announcement the Chevrolet Bolt will...
Volvo's Flybrid KERS system shows impressive numbers
There is plenty of kinetic energy flowing through and around an automobile when it's driving down the road, but collecting and storing it for use has been...
Best UFO sightings of 2013
Compared to 2012, 2013 was actually a pretty light year for UFO sightings. It wasn't that there were fewer or that they were less spectacular. It's that...
Cisco expects a 10% decrease in revenue this quarter due to NSA scandal
Cisco is expecting a 10% decrease in revenue this quarter due to the NSA scandal and the company's involvement in U.S. spying. Cisco Systems warned its...
UFO Activity in October, 2013
It's that time of the month again. Time to look at portions of the best UFO videos from the month of October, 2013. I'll admit that this month was a bit...
#Video: Is the triangular UFO over Amsterdam real or fake
As UFO videos go, this is one that could easily go either way. It's so over the top (especially the ending) that it instantly smells like a hoax. The...
#Infographic: A relatively unbiased look at GMO
There is a growing number of people who are fighting the spread of food contaminated by genetically modified organisms, whether intentionally or not. The...
#Infographic: Microsoft's history
They have a new CEO being chosen right now. This is an extremely important time for Microsoft because they're huge, they have a ton of revenue, and they...
UFO activity in September, 2013
After a short hiatus, it's time for us to get back into posting the top UFO videos from the previous month. September was a busy month for UFO activity...
UFO activity in May, 2013
Sometimes the best footage of unidentified flying objects isn't with cameras pointed in the sky but at the ground. In a couple of cases during the May,...
Call of Duty: Ghosts will depict America as a broken nation
Fans of the extremely popular Call of Duty video game series have experienced many emotional premises that dominate the game play and drive the story...