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Create Fun Family Traditions With Technology

(Family Features) When you hear the word "geek," visions of someone overly intellectual and socially awkward may come to mind. Add the title "dad" to that geek and the picture becomes a middle-aged man wearing black socks with sandals and a pocket protector. But a survey titled "Confessions of a Geek Dad," conducted by Answers Research on behalf of Cisco Home Networking Business, shows today's geeks are cooler, connected and more engaged fathers than you'd think.

According to the survey, 71 percent of geek dads say they spend more time doing activities with their kids than their fathers did with them. Also, 72 percent say they're more excited about teaching kids how to use tech tools than the traditional workbench tools their dads taught them. And it looks like this "tech tool school" is always in session in the home, with 93 percent of geek dads saying they assist their kids with their tech toys.

"These statistics help describe a new generation of dads who've grown up with an ongoing evolution of new technologies and now use tech to connect with their family," said Cat Schwartz, tech expert and blogger. "These dads aren't just tech-savvy; they know how to translate that knowledge and excitement into fun and memorable traditions with their kids."

Schwartz says creating new family traditions with tech in the home is easy and fun -- regardless of whether you're a geek dad or not. She offers these tips to get started:

• Begin with Opening the Box - When a new device comes into the household, involve the entire family in the set-up process (or at least watch it). This helps everyone understand how to use the product, so they can hopefully fix it if it stops working. It also allows you to discuss guidelines when using the device, and talk about the features and controls that impact your kids.
  
  
• Don't Suffer the Buffer - It's frustrating when you're streaming video or music and it stops and starts due to buffering issues. You can't achieve maximum performance from tech devices without a strong wireless router. The Linksys E4200V2 Maximum Performance Dual-Band N900 Router offers powerful speed and performance, and features an easy three-step set-up, parental controls and 24/7 support.
  
  
• Establish Tech Rites of Passage for Kids - In my home, we reward our kids with a phone at age 12 for their safety. We put rules into place as to how minutes will be earned and when they can carry and use it. Also, we sync all of our phones to our wireless network to connect from while at home, so we save minutes on our data plan.
  
  
• Special Creative Keepsakes - Harness technology to introduce fun traditions. At least once a year, we take a family photo that we send to loved ones. With today's digital cameras and imagery editing tools, we can digitally add images of family members unable to be with us. It's a fun way of bringing everyone together when we're miles apart.
  
  

"One of the best things about technology is that there is a continual stream of new and exciting innovations," says Schwartz. "This gives parents so many options to create fun tech traditions that are unique to their family every year."

For more information on Linksys routers, visit www.Linksys.com.

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