Lately, I've seen a bunch of interesting articles about technology addiction, which is something that fascinates me not only because I publish a technology website for parents, but also because I think it can negatively affect your relationship with your kids and your spouse.

Not being able to put your darn phone away is one thing. But this New York Times article focuses on a study that found the overuse of technology can affect our ability to connect with others.

All the more reason to think long and hard about your technology habits, especially when it comes to your marriage.

If you've ever dealt with home security salesmen, you'll know they're kind of pushy. Home security is obviously serious business, but the lengths they go to in order to suggest "upgrades" to their services are a little off-putting and I've never really enjoyed the process.

Luckily, there are now a number of "modular" security systems out there that make it easy to install and run them without much fuss. In fact, they are designed to be removable, so when you move, you can simply take the hardware with you.

As the Big Blizzard of 2013 bears down on us, everyone is rushing out for provisions. Water ... check. Canned food ... check. Extra blankets ... check. But people are forgetting one very important, critical accessory during this major weather event: the right iPhone app. Yes, the right application can mean the difference between life or death if you are stuck out in the cold or buried under 10 feet of snow. Check out the 5 best apps to help you survive any blizzard.

The next time you get a garbled, what-the-hell-does-this-mean text message from a friend or loved one, don't necessarily dismiss it as an autocorrect fail. Apparently there is now something called "dystexia," in which a person suffering a stroke or some other form of aphasia, a term meaning any symptom where language has difficulty being processed, can send out text messages just as screwed up as anything autocorrect can come up with. And when one 25-year-old pregnant woman recently texted her husband a bunch of gibberish, he knew enough to insist she go to the emergency room. Good thing he did!

As a gadget fiend, I love to help folks pick out the best gear. To that end, here's a quick guide to some of the cool things to shop for (and not to shop for) this holiday season.

Buy - Windows 8 Touchscreen Laptops

Don't Buy - Windows Desktops

Windows 8 is here whether we like it or not, and the new OS works best on a brand new touchscreen mobile device rather than a stodgy old desktop. Unless you're looking at an "all-in-one" PC - a PC with a big touchscreen and built-in processor and storage - you're not going to be happy running Windows 8 on a non-touchscreen device. Newer laptops will be a bit more expensive - about $999 for the Yoga pictured above - but it will be worth it if you're planning an upgrade.

Brandon got accepted into a PhD program. Maurice has an adorable toddler who’s learning how to walk. Jason is the consummate mover and shaker, meeting luminaries and taking his field by storm. Tomika is traveling the world and posting pics of her exotic adventures. Tiffanie got engaged and is flashing a gorgeously unique ring. Emily bought a palatial new house with her husband. Cheresa is a newlywed after eloping to Vegas with her boo thang. Jeremy and his wife are in the hospital celebrating the birth of their new baby.

And Janelle finally tracked down this nail color I’ve been waiting to be restocked at the local Rite Aid. Hot diggity damn.

I don’t know about your Facebook friends, but mine are consistently doing the darn thing. There’s always some amazing life event unfolding, some tremendous accomplishment to post about, some heartwarming feat of personal triumph to share with the world, greeting me at the top of my newsfeed. I click like, like, like.

Facebook is becoming one of those friends whom you invite over for tea and, in a moment of weakness, tell him some very personal information about yourself, and then he runs all over town spilling the info to everyone. Like Facebook will ask you what's your phone number? And they'll make it seem like you HAVE to give it because that is the way they are going to contact you to keep your account SAFE. So you give it over -- against your better judgment 'cause you know how sneaky Facebook can be -- and the next thing you know, it's blabbed all over town! When will we learn that we just cannot trust FB with our personal info? Yet we keep handing it over. Sigh. Why you do me like this, Facebook?

I don't think it's just me when I say that there are so many ways to screw up a relationship now. It used to be fairly big things like standing someone up, cheating, being a big-time loser. Now I hear of people breaking up over of some of the most bizarre things like, "He followed his ex-girlfriend on Twitter but he still wasn't following me." I mean, maybe that isn't so bizarre. Maybe that's just the world we live in now. Technology is infused with so much meaning. And there are so many ways to misread things! Or to read them correctly. Who the hell knows. At least there's a site that will interpret text messages for us.

But I do know that you can screw up your relationship big time by being careless about technology. Here are 11 things you want to avoid if you hope to keep your relationship going.