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Living in the Pacific Northwest is a privilege in many ways; from the gorgeous scenery to the sense of community, the region has much to offer its residents. Many individuals who work in the tech industry have also discovered that Seattle is rapidly being recognized as a tech hub – this is just one more reason to live in Washington State. Seattle is now home to some of the most successful companies and brands in the industry, including Apple, Microsoft, Facebook, and Twitter. If you’re in the tech industry or plan to be after college, you may want to consider the following reasons that Seattle has risen as a premiere destination for tech industry professionals.

Seattle is Unique Unto Itself

While it’s true that an overwhelming number of tech companies have either set up shop or established major branches in Seattle, the city is unique. It isn’t a carbon copy of the Silicon Valley, and its economy would still thrive without the tech industry. That means that it offers plenty of other personal and career benefits to tech workers – and those who work in the industry may have a better chance of experiencing sustainable success. The Silicon Valley tech explosion ultimately resulted in an area that became dependent on the tech industry to survive, and that simply isn’t the case for the Emerald City. So, if you’re looking for a techie city that isn’t over-dependent on the tech industry, this is it!  

Working for the Major Players

If you’re looking for a job in the tech field, you probably couldn’t pick a better place to live. You might apply for a position at some of the most successful tech companies on the planet. You could find yourself working for a major player, such as Amazon, Uber, Hulu, or Adobe. The list of highly successful tech companies with headquarters or offices in Seattle continues to expand, making your potential to secure an amazing job in the area greater with every passing day.  

Startups May Have a Better Chance of Survival

Because Seattle continues to grow as a tech mecca, the chances of creating a startup in the city and seeing it survive may be greater than they would be in the Silicon Valley. If you are working to get a startup company off the ground, you may currently be able to choose from a broader selection of viable job seekers than in any other part of the world. The major companies only have a finite number of positions available, leaving startups with a wealth of viable job candidates worth considering.

Tech Conferences

Another benefit of living in Seattle is that you have numerous opportunities to attend industry events. A wide range of tech conferences have been scheduled to take place in or around Seattle this year. Talent 42 (a tech recruiting conference), the Seattle Biz-Tech Summit, and the Seattle Tech Security Conference are only a few of the tech events people might attend. Other industry events in or near Seattle include Data Days, FullCon Tech, and Mobile Future Forward. The tech conferences, seminars, and summits in the area present countless occasions for networking with industry peers and learning from thought leaders in the field.   

If you’re in the tech industry, Seattle is the place to be. This spectacular city has ascended to the status of major destination for everything tech-related. A move to the Emerald City could result in your getting the job of your dreams – in addition to living in a magnificent setting that offers an array of famous landmarks and exciting local attractions. 

Cybercriminals have been making waves through internet scams in recent years. The risk of having your identity stolen due to online information loss has increased exponentially and a remarkable one in four people will experience identity theft. Your information could be stolen and then sold online for large amounts of money, allowing cybercriminals to open credit cards and more in your name.

69% of Americans are more afraid of having their credit card information hacked than nearly any other type of information theft. In 2014, roughly half of Americans, 47%, experienced a credit card hack. So how can you avoid becoming one of these numbers? The key is in digital security.

Verify Links

One of the easiest ways to gain access to your computer and information is through downloads or links in your email. Even if a link comes to you from a friend, it could mean their account was hacked and the link is a trojan horse or worse. Opening links without verifying with the friend that their account is stable can lead to a potential computer infection and information loss. Always verify links and downloads before making your computer vulnerable.

Limit Information Release

Every piece of information you release about yourself becomes a part of the puzzle online hackers are putting together. By finding your full name, date of birth, physical address and credit card numbers, a hacker is fully equipped to begin opening accounts in your name, in effect ruining your credit score and finances.

To avoid becoming a part of this growing statistic, be aware of how you are releasing your personal information. Avoid posting physical addresses, personal information or even your pet’s names on social media. All of these pieces of information can be used to crack your passwords and access your personal information.

Monitor Your Credit Report

Every year you are entitled to a free credit report from one of the three following companies, Equifax, TransUnion or Experian. These are the only three credit reporting companies, so be careful not to release your information to anyone else. If you have any reason to believe your information has been released or you were a part of a data breach, notifying these companies is critical.

A sign that your identity has been compromised could come in a number of ways. It could be health insurance benefits maxed out, strange charges on bank statements or a poor credit score. Contact one of the above companies to have them put a fraud alert on your account if you believe your information was compromised. This can help you save money and sanity during the identity reclamation process if you catch it early.

Related articles

• Children’s Identity Theft
• Guide to IRS Form 14039: Identity Theft Affidavit

Some people hear the word digital and they automatically translate it to mean hard data, or cold, clinical dots and binary format. But, through this or that power of transformation, you can always use digital technology to promote the arts, and indeed, some of the most beautiful arts have been coming from digital formats lately, thanks to new, complex but intuitive interfaces.

So what are some of the ways that you can do this, either as a person or as a brand for instance? The five follow techniques illustrate a few options, including setting up a YouTube channel, organizing your entire social media process, using cloud servers when possible, utilizing software suites, and using digital tools as a medium for practice.

Set Up a YouTube Channel

One of the easiest and most accessible ways to start promoting the arts as associated with your brand or company is by starting a YouTube channel – for example, look at the one Park West Gallery put together. You can do things like show interviews of curators, or show examples of your art, or tutorials about how you’ve made certain artistic advancements. With the right editing techniques, the videos themselves can even be considered art!

Organize Your Entire Social Media Process

As far as promotions in general go, establishing a social media presence is vital these days. That way all of your promotions come from the same point with the same voice, and all links are taken care of logically and professionally. The cleaner your digital social presence, the better looking you are as an artist, and the better the artists look that you’re collectively promotion. It’s almost difficult to separate the two these days!

Use Cloud Servers When Possible

Maintaining cloud servers is another interesting way to promote the arts. You can store pictures, videos, information, and whatever else you want on a cloud backup, and then give access to whomever needs it as required. This is a great way to both promote projects that are stored via the web, and also even to do collaborations across time and space.

Software Suites Are Great Learning Tools

And think of the power that something like Adobe’s Creative Suite gives people to express themselves. For a reasonable amount of money, amazing resources are available to promote both personal and professional artistic use – more than any time in history, now is when you can use computers to make what’s in your head into a real thing!

Using Digital Tools Saves Resources and Enhances Creativity

And finally, there are an amazing number of digital tools like styli and tablets that allow people to learn the arts with computers and electronics rather than resources like paper and pen. Though the medium is different, many of the techniques can be taught either way.