Creative Computer

A Dell Axim review shows the power of Dell handhelds

2006-03-10T13:30:00.000-08:00

It is not easy to do a Dell Axim review. The company, ever since it launched its first Dell Axim in 2002, has flooded the market with one great model after another. Each Dell Axim as been accompanied by a great market blitz and huge consumer interest.

The first of the famous Dell Axims was Axim X5. It was basically a Pocket PC that ran on the Windows platform. Over the next few years Dell launched a variety of models ranging from the entry level Axim X5 to the compact Axim X3 and Axim X30 and the extremely sleek and cool Axim X50 and Axim X51 series.

Axim X5 was launched in two models, one for the basic users and another for the high end customers. The basic model had a 300MHz Intel XScale processor with 32MB RAM and 16-bit TFT screen. The higher end model ran at 400 MHz (Intel XScale processor again) with 64MB RAM. The models weighed about 6.9 ounces and had a form factor of 5 x 3.2 x 0.7 inches.

The Axim X3 was the next model to be introduced in the market. It had a smaller form factor. Its clinching feature was that it supported Wi-Fi. This Wi-Fi supporting model sold for about $400.

The Axim X30 had a 624MHz Intel XScale processor and ran the Windows Mobile 2003 SE. Its 3.5” QVGA TFT screen had 16-bit display and was a real eye-catcher.
Its bright display coupled with excellent speed made it a good buy. Add to this Bluetooth and Wi-Fi support and you had a real winner in your hands.

Cashing in on the success of the Axim X30 Dell launched the X50. Three different models were launched. The high-end one had a huge 3.7” VGA LCD screen supporting 16-bit color and was called X50v while the other two had a 3.5” QVGA TFT screen. The X50v also had 16MB video RAM and a 3D accelerator. All the models ran the Windows Mobile 2003 SE. Also all had Bluetooth support. The X50 mid and X50v had Wi-Fi as well.

The most recent model in this series is Axim X51. It was launched in 2005, and is considered the best handheld ever. Using the Windows Mobile 5.0 it packs in a whole lot of features. It has most features of the X50v such as Bluetooth and Wi-Fi support, 3.7” VGA LCD and a 3D accelerator. Along with this it has 64MB SDRAM and Intel 256MB StrataFlash ROM. It also has USB cradle and VGA-out support. The model is retailed at a slightly high price of $449, which might be out of reach of certain customers.

There is little doubt that the Axim series has made Dell a major player in the handheld market.

Dell Axim X3 is a good pocket PC

2006-03-10T08:32:00.000-08:00

The Dell Axim X3 Pocket PC, which is the slim replacement of the relatively bulky Axim X5, comes in two models: the basic model and the advanced model. The advanced model also comes with WiFi 802.11b wireless networking and is named the X3i.

All three models have the Intel XScale PXA263 processors and Intel StrataFlash ROM, which are both faster and cost more than the NAND Flash ROM that is used in cheaper Pocket PCs. The basic model has a 300 MHz XScale processor, 32 megs of RAM and 32 megs of ROM. It sells for $ 229. The advanced model has a 400 MHz XScale processor, 64 megs of RAM and 64 megs of ROM. It costs $ 329 while the X3i with WiFi connectivity costs $379.

The Axim X3 comes with the Windows Mobile 2003 suite of programs, which include Internet Explorer, Word, Excel, Outlook, and Windows Media Player 9. It weighs 6 ounces, has rounded edges and fits comfortably into the palm of the hand. The plastic casing has a silver finish on the front and back, while the sides are black. The PDA has a central directional pad surrounded by four application buttons.

The basic X3 is reasonably fast and the advanced version has a control panel applet, which allows the user to set the clock speed manually or in the automatic mode. The X3 comes equipped with a 950 mAh Lithium Ion battery. However, the X3i works better with an optional 1800 mAh extended battery.

The X3 offers good sound volume and quality, which improves when headphones are used. It has a 3.5” transflective LCD screen, with 6 levels of brightness and a microphone with an applet to set gain for recordings.

The X3i model has a button to activate and de-activate the WiFi radio, and a black translucent antenna, which flashes in blue when WiFi is activated. The X3 models do not have Bluetooth. When WiFi is turned on, a user can use Windows Mobile 2003 Connection Manager to connect to WiFi access points. A system tray icon displays the signal strength while a pop up menu, which displays the WLAN status, allows users to edit profiles or turn the radio on or off.

In mid-2003, Dell introduced Axim X30 to replace the X3.

Use a Dell Axim coupon to get a bargain price

2006-03-09T11:44:00.000-08:00

Dell promotes its products by offering discount coupons that can be redeemed at the Dell online store by entering the coupon code. For instance, if you want to buy a Dell Axim then all you need to do is to visit the Dell online store, select your product and enter the Dell Axim coupon code in the right field. The shopping program will automatically reduce the price of the Dell Axim by that amount. Depending on your luck, this can turn out to be a big saving.

The users need not redeem the Axim ns immediately. Instead, they have the option to store them in their online Dell Account until they are ready to redeem them. This is a great facility, and is made use of by users who receive these codes as part of Dell promotions or with their Dell Small Business e-mail updates.

The demand for Dell coupons is so high that a small online cottage industry has cropped up to meet the needs of coupon seekers. Several websites like BargainPDA.com and CouponMountain.com provide Dell coupon codes to members. These sites also encourage visitors to host Dell coupon codes that they may have received as part of routine Dell promotions but which they don’t want to use.

However, a danger with these coupon codes is that some of them may have expired without the user knowing about this. When the user, in good faith, puts up the code on the Dell.com website he is greeted by a message that the code does not work.

When this happens, the coupon code user suffers a double blow. First, the user does not get the benefit of the code that he has acquired with such great difficulty. Second, and even more disheartening, is the Dell reaction. The Dell shopping program withdraws the discount that is available on the direct purchase of the product.

The user is therefore advised to check the deals being offered by Dell before entering the code. It is quite possible that Dell may be offering a huge discount on the Axim product you want to buy. In this case it makes more sense to avail the discount and make a substantial saving then take the risk of entering a code that may have expired.

Dell has one more rule. According to this, a user can avail only one discount – either the discount being offered on the Del store or the discount that is hidden in the coupon code.
These coupons are called non-stackable. Del, however, gives you the option to remove these coupons from you Check out field by clicking the Remove button.

The Dell Axim accessory range

2006-03-08T08:18:00.000-08:00

The Dell Axim accessory range includes the lithium-ion battery, back-up battery, styluses, USB cradle, AC adapter, memory card fillers and the case. The following are the details of these accessories:

Battery: The X3, X3i and X30 models of the Axim use a rechargeable lithium-ion battery as their main power source while the Axim X5 series uses non-rechargeable CR2032 lithium battery. The Axims consume power all the time even when they are switched off. This is because the device goes into a suspend mode to retain the memory. This depletes the main battery, if it is not recharged properly, forcing the device to switch to the back-up battery.

The Axim X5 uses a back-up lithium battery similar to those used in watches. The users can sometimes notice fluctuations when the back-up battery takes over. This may be caused by a flaw in the battery meter, temperature changes, loose contacts, or due to the number of programs running at any time. Updating to the latest ROM or doing a soft reset may solve this problem.

Stylus: The Axims use metal styluses that can be replaced easily. The users also have the option to buy specially-designed styluses which work as pens, pencils and highlighters. This is not all. Users can replace the original Axim stylus with a fingertip stylus, a pen cap stylus or a massaging stylus. All these styluses are designed to fit into the slot of the original stylus.

USB cradle: The USB cradle has a single LED indicator. It has a compact and elegant design and it does not slide on the table. It has a 2-meter cable and a slot for charging a spare battery. The power cable with a USB connector is fixed to the cradle.

AC adapter: The Axim comes with a small AC adapter, which does not take up much space. It has a detachable mains cord, a connector and a fixed cable, which connects to the cradle, or device.

Filler: The Axim comes with plastic filler that is inserted into the memory slot. It is meant to protect it from getting clogged with dust and other material. The plastic fillers are inserted whenever there is no card in the slot.

Case: A very basic case made of nylon or other synthetic material, with padding on the inside, is included in the package. It does not have any belt clip but provides the device with some protection. Most buyers change the case soon after buying an Axim.

iPaq Pocket PC hx4700 is my choice for best Pocket PC

2006-03-07T12:43:00.000-08:00

It is very difficult to say which is the best Pocket PC. The leading contenders for this title are: HP iPaq Pocket PC hx4700, Dell Axim X51v, HP iPaq hx2790 and Garmin iQue M5. All these Pocket PCs bring great value to the user, and can easily be recommended for the Best PC title. However, my choice would be HP iPaq Pocket PC hx4700.

The reason for this is not far to seek. This Pocket PC comes equipped with very powerful features and is a great buy for professionals who are always on the move. Some of the pluses of this Pocket PC are: it has the latest Windows operating system, Intel's high-speed 624MHz processor, an innovative navigational touchpad and a sharp VGA screen.

A great thing about this Pocket PC is its memory base. The 128MB of ROM and 64MB of RAM, with a total of 135MB of user-accessible memory, makes it possible to store a large amount of data. This is what any user who is constantly on the move would like.

Even the wireless connectivity is special. You can have both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. receivers turned on at the same time. The iPaq Wireless utility makes your life even easier because it allows you to turn on your wireless connections with one click.

The user also gets all the advantages that come with the Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition. These include Pocket Outlook, Word, Excel, and Internet Explorer. Besides this, the Pocket PC also has HP utilities like Image Zone for viewing images and creating slide shows and Task Switcher.

The 4-inch VGA TFT screen, which supports 65,000 colors and has a resolution of 640x480 pixels, ensures sharp and crisp images. You can use the four programmable shortcut keys that form the trapezoid-shaped touchpad or use the Settings menu to launch the cursor mode, which works like the mouse cursor found on PCs.

The Pocket PC comes with the standard LED buttons: orange for charging, blue for wireless, and green for alarms. The other features include a stylus holder, the power button, the headphone jack, and an expansion slot that accepts SDIO, MMC, and CompactFlash cards. The IR port and the reset button can be found at the base of the device.

Even its design is innovative. It does not come in the traditional silver casing that is the trademark HP color. Instead it has a charcoal-gray body with black accents. The only disadvantage is its size. At 5.2 by 3.0 by 0.6 inches it is slightly bulky for handhelds

There are many who would also consider its price a disadvantage. At $649 it certainly does burn a hole in your pocket. But it is surely money well spent.

Who's Using Your Network?

2006-02-26T13:46:00.000-08:00

Wireless networks are becoming more and more popular, and for good reason. Especially if you have broadband Internet access, a wireless router can give you instant communication with the world that is worthy of the science fiction I grew up reading!

The idea of reading email while lounging by the pool, text or instant messaging while doing the laundry, or lounging in the Jacuzzi listening to your MP3 collection is appealing to us all.

Unfortunately, many, or even most, wireless units don't come with security features already functioning. This may not seem like a big issue to someone who is simply setting up a home network, but there are a number of potential problems you should consider.

The most serious problem is the increase in identity theft. If your network is unsecured, the personal data on your wireless electronic equipment is also unsecured. The order you just placed for a book at Amazon may have given your contact and payment information to an unscrupulous hacker!

Nearly every town in which "WiFi" is common will have "War Drivers" and "War Chalkers" at work. These are people who walk or drive around town with wireless equipment, searching for unsecured networks. The "Chalkers" then live up their name, marking curbs and other public items with chalk so that others can more easily find and exploit your network.

Not all "War Drivers" are hackers, of course. Many just want to use your network for free, but the risk is high if you don't learn how to protect yourself. You can usually find quite a bit of free information as to how to secure your network at the website of your router's manufacturer, or by doing a search in a search engine for a phrase like "secure home wireless."

Beyond the truly malicious, there are also your neighbors who may find your network by accident and enjoy nosing into your activities and using your Internet access at will, slowing down your network speed in the process.

Even many businesses use cheap, home-use quality equipment for their company networks. With the poor security often found on small business networks, anyone with a basic knowledge of wireless can access sensitive company and customer data.

If you are unable to secure your network yourself, there are many service companies who will do it for you. A search of your local yellow pages or an inquiry at your neighborhood computer store should yield professional help and get your private data private again.

Dell Axim software powers a variety of tasks

2006-02-18T12:43:00.000-08:00

The Del Axim software allows you to retrieve e-mail, keep track of your schedule and your contacts, browse the Internet, send and receive text messages. The software also allows you to read and compose Microsoft Word Mobile files, make Microsoft Excel Mobile charts, and view Microsoft PowerPoint presentations.

All these capabilities are provided to Dell Axims by the Windows Mobile software. The software also allows owners of Dell Axims to download third-party software to customize their devices. Among other things, the Axim owners can download e-books, games, maps, and business software. This is not all. The dell Axim software enables users to track sales, check inventory, place orders, and accomplish several other business-related tasks.

It is interesting to note that ever since their launch in 2002 the Dell Axims have been using different versions of Windows Mobile software. The Axim X5 used Windows Mobile 2002, so did the Axim X3 family. A high-end version of the Axim X3, branded as Axim X3i, had a built-in WiFi. It was also the first Windows mobile-based device with WiFi to retail for less than $ 400.

Next came the powerful Axim X30 family. This was the first Pocket PC to use the Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition. The middle and high end models of the Axim X30 family included built-in 802.11b WiFi Certification and Bluetooth 1.1 compliance. However, the sale of the mid and low-level Axim X30 was discontinued by Dell in July 2005.

The Dell Axim series was continued with the launch of X50 models. This series also used the built-in 802.11b WiFi certification (X50 mid and X50v only), standard built-in Bluetooth 1.2 compliance and Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition.

For users of Dell Axims, the Windows Mobile 2003 software has been particularly exciting. One feature that won great appreciation was the Pocket Internet Explorer’s ability to display the full Web page by scrolling up and down only. There is no need for users of Dell Axims to scroll the page from side to side.

Another addition is the full VGA resolution (640x480 pixels), a feature that has enabled Dell to introduce high resolution screens. The other enhancements that the software has brought about are: WiFi Protected Access for tighter wireless security, a shorthand Transcriber function, and access to recently used programs via the Start menu.

Adware, Should I be Afraid?

2006-02-17T10:32:00.000-08:00

Developers offering downloads are paying the price for the malformed truths that have been put forth regarding downloads. While not a political campaign the smears are ever present in the adware arena.

Years ago developers saw they could monetize freeware that was becoming expensive to host. Developers began working with Ad Networks such as the former Aureate and Conducent, who imbedded advertisements in the software. The software in many cases phoned home retrieving ads. In other cases adverts were imbedded directly into the download only being removed when the software was registered. Many well known software companies, including Netscape distributed ad supported versions, which allowed users to use the software for free. Developers were compensated either by install or the number of ads served. Advertisers welcomed new revenue streams to reach potential customers.

Adware or advertising-supported software is any software application in which advertisements are displayed while the program is running. These applications include additional code that displays the ads in pop-up windows or through a bar that appears on a computer screen. Adware helps recover program development costs, and helps to hold down the price of making the application for the user, often making it free of charge. As a result of the AdWare revenue programmers were motivated to write maintain, and upgrade valuable ad-enabled software. Adware was a great consumer trade off, so were did it all go wrong? Unbeknownst to the developers a handful of ad serving companies were logging and profiling the surfing habits of those who had downloaded the ad-enabled software. After downloading free software, the new adware companies delivered pop-up and pop-under ads based on the consumers surfing interests. Adware has been criticized for including code that tracks a user's surfing habits, email address and personal information, which are passed to third parties, without the user's authorization or knowledge. This was the downfall of the ad serving technology and ad-enabled software.

In many cases consumers rightfully believe they have been and are being spied on, which prompted an outcry from privacy advocates. Adware is not a virus and may not be detected by anti-virus scanning programs. It does not spread the same way as most viruses spread. Many users do not know they are downloading a free program along with adware onto their computer. The lack of disclosure tarnished reputations of many well known, but misfortunate developers and software companies. The collapse of a number of venture backed ad-serving companies including Aureate and Conducent.

Fast forward to today. Few applications are now ad enabled. Those that are generally follow strict disclosure guidelines. Some developers opt to insert static (not changing) ads for other applications in their product line, into free versions, but these ads do not change and there is no record of what ads are clicked. Freeware can therefore be used free of charge and there is no evaluation time period as with shareware. Freeware is also often a basic or stripped down version of the shareware version. Developers make money off ads or those who want to upgrade from the free version. There are also developers who provide freeware out of principle, occasionally asking for a donation. The majority of freeware that employs the use of imbedded advertisements are provided in the true spirit of adware without the intent to track users, but just to be safe consumers should read the fine print.

Tolerance and patience is required

2006-02-15T14:44:00.000-08:00

If you work in the field of computers, these “new” words must be learned. However, P.C.’s are designed for use by ordinary people, and the gritty details regarding their construction, can be largely ignored. A journalist, typist, builder or bookkeeper doesn’t need to know what an EIDE or SCSI is, or indeed isn’t.

Hard drive description is not relevant to the majority, as long as the devise is functional.

A “BUS”, though, could be guessed by some, as it carries something, not unlike a conventional bus. In this case, it carries current/electrons/data, and is simply a conductor. A bus conductor, if you like. For now, buses are made of copper with experiments underway to utilise other materials. I read recently that “prions”, which are a type of protein, are been considered as conductors. Will some of our computers’ components be organic? We shall have to see!

Fibre optics, which are, basically speaking, glass pipes around four thousands of an inch (0.1 mms.), in diameter, employ the speed of light, for signal/data transfer. A light (diode), is on or off, at one end, and a photo-resistor at the other end registers its state. Now, wasn’t that simply put! These glass pipes are coated to reflect the light inwards, meaning that light can be “bent” around corners, while within its container/pipe. Heat generation is minimal and electrical resistance is redundant.

Computer related terminology could sometimes be daunting to newcomers. These are relatively new words or hybrids of words, already in existence. Someone with a degree in English, for example, could not necessarily guess, the function of a particular devise, by its name. This is because such a devise never existed in history or in the history of the English language.

It is heat generation and resistance that brings your “fan” into play, keeping everything cool, and electron transfer at a controlled level.

Low resistance= high current. Your starter motor for your car has really thick cables allowing electrons from the twelve volt power source (battery) to do their job in turning over you engine, which is a considerably difficult task. A smaller cable would have a higher electrical resistance, causing it to overheat, and eventually, melt. Keep listening for that “fan”.

It is your computers first line of defence.

In fact, it is the principle of electrical resistance that is employed by electrical heaters.

CACHE is not legal tender in most countries, but a type of memory that your CPU (central processing unit ) first looks for. It does this, not to be awkward, but more because it is the fastest route, from a users point of view.

Types C++ Function Templates

2006-02-15T14:41:00.000-08:00

There are two types of templates in C++, viz., function templates and class templates. This article deals with only the function templates.

There are lot of occasions, where we might need to write the same functions for different data types. A favorite example can be addition of two variables. The variable can be integer, float or double. The requirement will be to return the corresponding return type based on the input type. If we start writing one function for each of the data type, then we will end up with 4 to 5 different functions, which can be a night mare for maintenance.

C++ templates come to our rescue in such situations. When we use C++ function templates, only one function signature needs to be created. The C++ compiler will automatically generate the required functions for handling the individual data types. This is how a programmer's life is made a lot easier.C++ Function templates are those functions which can handle different data types without separate code for each of them. For a similar operation on several kinds of data types, a programmer need not write different versions by overloading a function. It is enough if he writes a C++ template based function. This will take care of all the data types.

C++ Template functions - Details:

Let us assume a small example for Add function. If the requirement is to use this Add function for both integer and float, then two functions are to be created for each of the data type (overloading).

int Add(int a,int b) { return a+b;} // function Without C++ template

float Add(float a, float b) { return a+b;} // function Without C++ template

If there are some more data types to be handled, more functions should be added.

But if we use a c++ function template, the whole process is reduced to a single c++ function template. The following will be the code fragment for Add function.

template

T Add(T a, T b) //C++ function template sample

{

return a+b;

}

This c++ function template definition will be enough. Now when the integer version of the function, the compiler generates an Add function compatible for integer data type and if float is called it generates float type and so on.

Here T is the typename. This is dynamically determined by the compiler according to the parameter passed. The keyword class means, the parameter can be of any type. It can even be a class.

C++ Template functions - Applicability:

C++ function templates can be used wherever the same functionality has to be performed with a number of data types. Though very useful, lots of care should be taken to test the C++ template functions during development. A well written c++ template will go a long way in saving time for programmers.

The Third Biometric System, Enrollment

2006-01-19T11:38:00.000-08:00

On last post template and Matching are wrote.
All biometric systems consist of three basic elements:

Templates, or the data representing the enrollee’s biometric.

Matching, or the process of comparing a live biometric sample against one or many templates in the system’s database.

Enrollment, or the process of collecting biometric samples from an individual, known as the enrollee, and the subsequent generation of his template.

Enrollment

Enrollment is the crucial first stage for biometric authentication because enrollment generates a template that will be used for all subsequent matching. Typically, the device takes three samples of the same biometric and averages them to produce an enrollment template. Enrollment is complicated by the dependence of the performance of many biometric systems on the users’ familiarity with the biometric device because enrollment is usually the first time the user is exposed to the device. Environmental conditions also affect enrollment. Enrollment should take place under conditions similar to those expected during the routine matching process. For example, if voice verification is used in an environment where there is background noise, the system’s ability to match voices to enrolled templates depends on capturing these templates in the same environment. In addition to user and environmental issues, biometrics themselves change over time. Many biometric systems account for these changes by continuously averaging. Templates are averaged and updated each time the user attempts authentication.

Biometrics: Templates, Matching

2006-01-15T15:11:00.000-08:00

As the data representing the enrollee’s biometric, the biometric device creates templates. The device uses a proprietary algorithm to extract “features” appropriate to that biometric from the enrollee’s samples. Templates are only a record of distinguishing features, sometimes called minutiae points, of a person’s biometric characteristic or trait. For example, templates are not an image or record of the actual fingerprint or voice. In basic terms, templates are numerical representations of key points taken from a person’s body. The template is usually small in terms of computer memory use, and this allows for quick processing, which is a hallmark of biometric authentication.The template must be stored somewhere so that subsequent templates, created when a user tries to access the system using a sensor, can be compared. Some biometric experts claim it is impossible to reverse-engineer, or recreate, a person’s print or image from the biometric template.

Matching

Matching is the comparison of two templates, the template produced at the time of enrollment (or at previous sessions, if there is continuous updating) with the one produced “on the spot” as a user tries to gain access by providing a biometric via a sensor. There are three ways a match can fail:

* Failure to enroll.
* False match.
* False nonmatch.

Failure to enroll (or acquire) is the failure of the technology to extract distinguishing features appropriate to that technology. For example, a small percentage of the population fails to enroll in fingerprint-based biometric authentication systems. Two reasons account for this failure: the individual’s fingerprints are not distinctive enough to be picked up by the system, or the distinguishing characteristics of the individual’s fingerprints have been altered because of the individual’s age or occupation, e.g., an elderly bricklayer. In addition, the possibility of a false match (FM) or a false nonmatch (FNM) exists. These two terms are frequently misnomered “false acceptance” and “false rejection,” respectively, but these terms are application-dependent in meaning. FM and FNM are application-neutral terms to describe the matching process between a live sample and a biometric template. A false match occurs when a sample is incorrectly matched to a template in the database (i.e., an imposter is accepted). A false non-match occurs when a sample is incorrectly not matched to a truly matching template in the database (i.e., a legitimate match is denied). Rates for FM and FNM are calculated and used to make tradeoffs between security and convenience. For example, a heavy security emphasis errs on the side of denying legitimate matches and does not tolerate acceptance of imposters. A heavy emphasis on user convenience results in little tolerance for denying legitimate matches but will tolerate some acceptance of imposters.

Indexing Service for Performancing Windows

2006-01-12T15:06:00.000-08:00

The documents created by most applications contain formatting and control information, for example a webpage contains html tags, a Word document contains rtf tags. The Indexing Service uses filters to extract the content from the formatting and control information. Documents with extensions for which filters are not installed will not be indexed by default. If you want to index everything, open the "Computer Management" application as described above, and select "Services ...", then right-click on "Indexing Service" and select "Properties" in the popup menu. In the "Indexing Services Properties" dialog box which appears, on the "Generation" tab, check the checkbox next to "Index Files With Unknown Extensions".
The Indexing service is designed to run continuously and requires no maintenance. After it is setup, it will automatically update the index. When a file changes, the OS sends a change notification to the Indexing Service, causing it to update the index. Folders on remote computers are scanned periodically.

The Windows Indexing Service uses a fair amount of disk space (approximately 30% the amount of the original files). If the shared directories on the network are large, it can consume a considerable portion of the computer's memory and processor cycles. There are several options for configuring the Indexing Service to improve performance.

To configure the Indexing Service select "Start | Settings | Control Panel | Administrative Tools" and open the "Computer Management" application. In the left pane of the "Computer Management" window, click the plus sign next to "Services and Applications", then right-click on the "Indexing Service" icon. In the popup menu, select "All Tasks | Tune Performance". The "Indexing Service Usage" dialog box will appear.

You can also control the Indexing Service by configuring the specific folders to be indexed. When you click on the "Indexing Service" icon in the "Computer Management" window, the right pane should list a catalog named "System". When you double-click on a catalog, you will find three folders, "Directories", "Properties", and "Query The Catalog".

Layered Hierarchical Model of Sisco Three

2006-01-10T07:57:00.000-08:00

Cisco has defined a hierarchical model known as the hierarchical internetworking model. This model simplifies the task of building a reliable, scalable, and less expensive hierarchical internetwork because rather than focusing on packet construction, it focuses on the three functional areas, or layers, of your network:

Core layer: This layer is considered the backbone of the network and includes the high-end switches and high-speed cables such as fiber cables. This layer of the network does not route traffic at the LAN. In addition, no packet manipulation is done by devices in this layer. Rather, this layer is concerned with speed and ensures reliable delivery of packets.

Distribution layer: This layer includes LAN-based routers and layer 3 switches. This layer ensures that packets are properly routed between subnets and VLANs in your enterprise. This layer is also called the Workgroup layer.

Access layer: This layer includes hubs and switches. This layer is also called the desktop layer because it focuses on connecting client nodes, such as workstations to the network. This layer ensures that packets are delivered to end user computers.

Figure INT.2.1 displays the three layers of the Cisco hierarchical model.

When you implement these layers, each layer might comprise more than two devices or a single device might function across multiple layers.The benefits of the Cisco hierarchical model include:

High Performance: You can design high performance networks, where only certain layers are susceptible to congestion.

Efficient management & troubleshooting: Allows you to efficiently organize network management and isolate causes of network trouble.

Policy creation: You can easily create policies and specify filters and rules.

Scalability: You can grow the network easily by dividing your network into functional areas.

Behavior prediction: When planning or managing a network, the model allows you determine what will happen to the network when new stresses are placed on it.

Core Layer

The core layer is responsible for fast and reliable transportation of data across a network. The core layer is often known as the backbone or foundation network because all other layers rely upon it. Its purpose is to reduce the latency time in the delivery of packets. The factors to be considered while designing devices to be used in the core layer are:

High data transfer rate: Speed is important at the core layer. One way that core networks enable high data transfer rates is through load sharing, where traffic can travel through multiple network connections.

Low latency period: The core layer typically uses high-speed low latency circuits which only forward packets and do not enforcing policy.

High reliability: Multiple data paths ensure high network fault tolerance; if one path experiences a problem, then the device can quickly discover a new route.

At the core layer, efficiency is the key term. Fewer and faster systems create a more efficient backbone. There are various equipments available for the core layer. Examples of core layer Cisco equipment include:

Cisco switches such as 7000, 7200, 7500, and 12000 (for WAN use)

Catalyst switches such as 6000, 5000, and 4000 (for LAN use)

T-1 and E-1 lines, Frame relay connections, ATM networks, Switched Multimegabit Data Service (SMDS)

Distribution Layer

The distribution layer is responsible for routing. It also provides policy-based network connectivity, including:

Packet filtering (firewalling): Processes packets and regulates the transmission of packets based on its source and destination information to create network borders.

QoS: The router or layer 3 switches can read packets and prioritize delivery, based on policies you set.

Access Layer Aggregation Point: The layer serves the aggregation point for the desktop layer switches.

Control Broadcast and Multicast: The layer serves as the boundary for broadcast and multicast domains.

Application Gateways: The layer allows you to create protocol gateways to and from different network architectures.

The distribution layer also performs queuing and provides packet manipulation of the network traffic.

It is at this layer where you begin to exert control over network transmissions, including what comes in and what goes out of the network. You will also limit and create broadcast domains, create virtual LANs, if necessary, and conduct various management tasks, including obtaining route summaries. In a route summary, you consolidate traffic from many subnets into a core network connection. In Cisco routers, the command to obtain a routing summary is:

show ip route summary

You can practice viewing routing information using a free CCNA exam router simulator available from SemSim.com. You can also determine how routers update each other's routing tables by choosing specific routing protocols.

Examples of Cisco-specific distribution layer equipment include 2600,4000, 4500 series routers

Access Layer

The access layer contains devices that allow workgroups and users to use the services provided by the distribution and core layers. In the access layer, you have the ability to expand or contract collision domains using a repeater, hub, or standard switch. In regards to the access layer, a switch is not a high-powered device, such as those found at the core layer.

Rather, a switch is an advanced version of a hub.

A collision domain describes a portion of an Ethernet network at layer 1 of the OSI model where any communication sent by a node can be sensed by any other node on the network. This is different from a broadcast domain which describes any part of a network at layer 2 or 3 of the OSI model where a node can broadcast to any node on the network.

At the access layer, you can:

Enable MAC address filtering: It is possible to program a switch to allow only certain systems to access the connected LANs.

Create separate collision domains: A switch can create separate collision domains for each connected node to improve performance.

Share bandwidth: You can allow the same network connection to handle all data.

Handle switch bandwidth: You can move data from one network to another to perform load balancing.

Using Documentation to Get Cisco CCNA / CCNP Certification

2006-01-07T14:49:00.000-08:00

When studying for your Cisco CCNA, CCNP, or CCIE exam, you’ve got a powerful online weapon at your disposal. It’s Cisco Connection Documentation, found at www.cisco.com/univercd. This site contains product, code, and protocol documentation for all Cisco products.

Many exam candidates really don’t start using this powerful tool until they’re studying for their more advanced exams. However, it’s important for CCNAs, CCNPs, and candidates for these certifications to learn their way around this site. It comes in handy for finding default values that Cisco really enjoys asking about on exams, and the protocol documentation found there can help you study as well.

The site can be a little overwhelming for newcomers, but it’s actually easy to navigate. On the site’s homepage, you’re presented with a list of products and several drop-down menus. To get started, I suggest you choose “Cisco IOS Software” in the top-right drop-down menu, and select a code version. 12.2 is a good one to start with. From there, select the IOS Release 12.2 Configuration Guide and Command References.

You’re then presented with a list of technologies, and each has a Configuration Guide and a Command Reference. If you’re studying Interior Gateway Protocols at this point (such as OSPF, RIP, and EIGRP), select “IP Configuration Guide” and then “IP Routing Protocols”.

You then have the official Cisco documentation on how to configure RIP, IGRP, OSPF, EIGRP, ISIS, and BGP. Reading this documentation is invaluable. Many study guides skip the details to give you an overview of the protocol. This documentation doesn’t skip anything. The documentation shows how and when to use any command for that protocol. There are also real-world examples and notes on when to use each command. I’ve always learned something new when reading the online Cisco documentation.

You can then back out and go through the same steps for the Command Reference. For those studying for Cisco exams, this section will quickly answer any question you have about a command’s syntax or default values. Instead of trying to remember which book you saw a value in, just zoom out to this site and you’ll have your answer in seconds. Real-world examples of command usage are prevalent as well.

As with anything, the more you use the online Cisco documentation, the better you get at it. The Configuration Guide for the various Cisco switches give you a great picture of how switches work. I highly recommend reading at least one of their switches’ config guides.

Beyond any exam value the online Cisco documentation gives you, it serves another valuable purpose. The more you use it now, and the more comfortable you get with it, the better you’ll be with it when the day comes that you need it on the job. And trust me – that day will come!

Chris Bryant[chris@thebryantadvantage.com]

Auto-Pilot Link Building Strategy for Content-Sites

2006-01-02T12:17:00.000-08:00

OK, this is what I consider a very effective method to get people to link to you without you having to ask them to do so. The best part is that, people will link to you for your most targeted keyword.

I happen to discover this method after seeing the results that I get on one of my website. I don't have any particular reason for doing it that way on my website, but it seems to work like magic.

Sometimes, I search for people who are linking to me by looking at my referrers. You can also do that by checking your website statistics.

Sometimes, I do a link popularity check at MarketLeap.com.

And to my surprise, I realized that when I visited those websites, they are linking to me using my most targeted keywords.

My Keyword

That is how people are linking to me. And the result, I am ranked number 1 against 2 million websites on Yahoo and MSN. And this is for a keyword that has about 2000 searches per month.

But just how do you go about doing this?

You are about to know the little-known-secret-steps to getting more link partners with your most targeted keyword.

But before I go into that, I just would like to make some statements about this method.

Some people may like this method and some might not. There are pros and cons. I don't really know if this will suit well for business or corporate websites. All these while, I have only used them for content-sites promoting affiliate programs and Adsense, which is I think is most suitable.

If you are thinking about building a passive income with Adsense and affiliate programs, then you should read this.

First, you should do a keyword analysis. You can use WordTracker or Overture Keyword Selector Tool.

http://www.wordtracker.com/

http://inventory.overture.com/

After having your list of keywords, you can compare that to the number of competitions that you against with on Google.

By comparing the numbers, you know which is easier to optimize for. And you can also try checking the popular keywords at Search Guild Search Term Difficult Checker.

http://www.searchguild.com/cgi-bin/difficulty.pl

Another tool that you can use is NicheBot.com.

http://www.nichebot.com

Don't get trapped into the analysis-paralysis zone. Just follow the indicators and look for the most popular and the easiest keyword that you can rank for.

I know that you want to rank for more than one keyword, but just follow me on this and select one keyword that has high in traffic and easy to optimize for.

Now, here's the secret number one. You are going to name your website with that keyword. If your best keyword is "Growing Orchids", then that's is going to be your website's name.

Here's secret number two. Get a domain that has that keyword in it. If you can't get "growingorchids.com" or "growing-orchids.com", you can try the dot-net (.net). And if you still can't get the dot-net, you can add some numbers in front of the keyword like "1-growing-orhids.com". You should be able to get either one of those.

Here's secret number three. In every page of you website, use the keyword in your . For your main page, you should have something like this.

Growing Orchids - Definitive Guide To Orchid Growing and Care

And on other pages, you can have something like this.

Growing Orchids - Dendrium Orchids

Growing Orchids - Ochid Diseases

Growing Orchids - Watering Ochids

Growing Orchids - Lighting for Orchids

The examples above is where you combine the first keyword with another keyword that you are targeting specifically for that page.

Secret number four is optional. Sometimes it still works without the next step. But implementing secret number four will put your website on steroid in your link building effort.

Here's secret number four. You should install a reciprocal link script. This is a script where people can submit their link to you after linking to your website. The link will take care of checking the link from the other person's website and putting a link back to your new link partner.

And now, this is secret number five. You should have a link that says "Add URL" or "Add Link" to your link script. There times when people will search the web for something like this.

growing orchids "add link"

growing orchids "add url"

These people are looking for your website. By putting the link "Add Link" or "Add URL", you are telling the search engine that you have a link page. This way, link partners can find you more easily.

Of course, you can always do this manually. But that will beats the purpose of trying to make everything autopilot. And once in a while, you can check and see where you website links to. If you want to remove any, just do so.

Now, what is the result of all these? Well, by naming your website with the targeted keyword and having a domain name using that keyword, link partners have no options but to link to your website using that keyword.

And since the keyword is your website's name, there's nothing wrong with having the name of your website on all pages.

Some people might just link to you without you even asking. And most of the times, they would link to you using the text you use in the . When that happens, you are still linked with your most targeted keyword.

If you rank well later in the search engines, you can aslo expect to get links from websites built using Traffic Equalizer or Traffic Hurricane.

http://www.trafficequalizer.com

http://www.traffichurricane.com

No matter which page they link to, they will always link to you using your most targeted keyword - "Growing Orchids". And at the same time, you are still targeting your secondary keywords like "orchid diseases", "orchid care" or "orchid greenhouse" because you have that in the as well.

I have been using this method and it works pretty well for me. I am sure people will have their opinion on this whether this is good or this is bad. Some people don't like it not having control over who links to them. But I guess, it boils down to you. It's your choice.

For me, this is great for content-sites working with Adsense and affiliate progams. This is the method that I use on my computer case website, airsoft website and my paintball website.

You can give this a try and see how thing goes.

This is not just Blog Traffic Exchange, it's Crazy Mad Traffic

2005-12-28T18:02:00.000-08:00

BlogMad is allowing early signups for keen users to get ahead on the system before its official launch.It looks like it could be promising.
Once launched, you will be able to spend these free credits on getting huge traffic to your blog instantly!
There are no promises, but it might be worth giving it a try. After all, who is going to turn down free blog traffic? Be Mad at BlogMad

Features

A simple, sleek and sexy interface…
Games…
Lottery
BlogFusion
Phantom Credits
Even More Credits
Bonus Credits

Fine Tuning Your Ad Copy!

2005-12-28T17:19:00.000-08:00

If you spend any time online, you have probably seen something like this: "ARE YOU SURCHING FOR A GAURANTEED BUSSINESS OPPERTUNITY? DOWNLAOD HERE" That may be extreme. Unfortunately it's not at all unusual.

One of the first lessons we're taught is to "wash behind your ears".

We also "don't air our dirty laundry in public".

Who hasn't heard the axiom: "You never get a SECOND CHANCE to make a GOOD FIRST IMPRESSION"?

Why then do so many Internet Marketers insist on ignoring these simple guidelines?

Instead of an attention grabbing introduction, that offensive headline simply sets off all the bells, whistles and sirens which proclaim: "dirty ears, dirty laundry and a lousy first impression---probably a lousy product". Nearly all serious prospects will instantly surf away from such flagrant carelessness.

Proofreading isn't all that difficult. If you're not comfortable doing it yourself, find a friend.....or HIRE someone. Writing good copy is a challenge. Creating an effective website can take weeks or months.

Can you afford to throw away all that work over a few "typos", misspellings and missed punctuation marks?

Spell checkers are not the final answer either. Although they would have corrected the offending headline, they don't differentiate among "their", "they're" or "there". "Too", "two" and "to" are treated equally; so are "your" and "you're".

There is no substitute for intense and accurate proofreading. You also must realize that your own "proofing" becomes less effective with each read through. Your brain and eyes are already conditioned to see what you meant, and not always what you actually created. It is much more effective to have someone who is not familiar with your copy do additional proofreading for you.

Don't hesitate to call on friends and family. My ten year old granddaughter is one of my regulars. She loves to help in any way that she can; and I suspect that she gets a certain thrill out of catching "Poppy" in yet another "goof". Once she is finished proofing the copy, there is the bonus that I can then ask her to explain what she has just read. All too often, what seems so clear to me when I write it turns out to be not nearly so understandable to the reader.

I then ask "the light of my life" to read the copy aloud. Actually hearing what I have written turns out to be one of the most effective ways of finding the need for additional editing.

Nearly everything I publish these days goes out with the disclaimer: "Dear Reader, I spent eight years in a Catholic grade school. I am accustomed to having my knuckles smacked with a 12 inch wooden ruler for making spelling, punctuation and grammar errors. When you find the errors that my proofreading crew and I have missed, please bring them to our attention. A gentle reminder from you won't hurt a bit, and it beats the hell out of bloody knuckles."

So much for my methods. There are professional proofreading services available. Just consider them a necessary part of doing business. A quick "Google" for "proofreaders" just returned 304,000 possibilities. (Make that 304,001 if you want to include my granddaughter.)

A quick recap: PROOFREAD, PROOFREAD, PROOFREAD. Then PROOFREAD AGAIN........

.....and don't forget to wash behind your ears.

Making The Most of Public Domain and Private Label Content

2005-12-28T17:18:00.000-08:00

There's so much public domain content available all over the internet, with Master Resale Rights available and sites springing up left and right with Private Label articles you can use to create your own products, but what do you need to bear in mind, what is the best way to use all this content and what can you create with it?

What to Look Out For:

Copyright - you absolutely must check on this - violating someone's copyright is not clever and can be a really expensive mistake not to mention seriously damaging your reputation. Is it really public domain? All those lawyers fees can really mount up when checking into all this but believe me, you really don't want to end up in court over it.

Public Domain Content - If you have the money to have a lawyer look at copyright for you then fine, go ahead and get started. Where can you find this type of content? It can be difficult to find content that is free to use but here are a few links to get you started:

http://www.gutenberg.org
http://www.wikimedia.org
http://www.gpoaccess.gov/index.html

Master Resale Rights - If you can't afford expensive lawyers what else can you do? One rather less pricey way is to buy Master Resale Rights to a product - this gives you the opportunity to name yourself as the author, use the content in another product, rewrite the whole thing - the possibilities are endless. Just be aware with this that you will need to look at the terms and conditions of what you are allowed to do with the product before you buy.

On a budget? - not to worry, there are still many ways you can find great content without spending a fortune or worrying about whether you can legally use it. Sites such as http://www.infogoround.com and http://www.thelostfiles.com provide guaranteed public domain or private label content for a monthly fee. You could also sign up to some of the well known internet marketer's newsletters. Why? Well if you're serious about internet marketing you should be checking out all the latest happenings anyway, but a lot of newsletter owners will have free ebooks, giveaways and articles to download - some of which you will be able to use as your own.

So you've got your content ready to go and you've checked your rights and permissions but there is one more thing to think about - sites such as http://www.copyscape.com can check for duplicate content on the internet and of course so can the search engines. This could mean anything from the search engines deciding they won't rate your site as highly because the exact same content is available elsewhere to some smarty pants asking you if you really did write that incredibly good article because they've seen someone else claiming that they wrote it too, so you do need to be aware of this when looking to use content you haven't personally created, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't go ahead and make the most of all that wonderful information.

What Can You Do?

You could just read the information to learn from it yourself; you could read it to get ideas for businesses, more articles, content, the list is limited only by your imagination.

How about:

Ebooks
Print Books
Presentations
Membership Sites
Face to face courses
Mini courses
Teleclass content
Webcast content
Podcast content
Blog content
Content for your Autoresponder
Ezine content
Articles for your site to build AdSense income pages
Viral Reports
Tips Lists

When it comes to using all the content you have gathered, you need to look through it all and decide what you want to produce. If you plan to use content from more than one source, such as 2 or 3 articles by different authors to be combined into a report, you will need to go through and change the content into a similar style, check that it is all written in the same tense, make sure the formatting is the same throughout, check for spelling and grammar (for example - spelling for some words is different in the US than the UK) and look through all the articles to see if any of the points made are duplicated.

Once you've done this, make a list of points you want to make in your report, read the articles through again and start combining them together to fit what you want to say - cut and paste to copy sections into the right place.

Next, look at the way your draft reads now and see if it fits your style of writing, your personality and your business. Reword it to fit with this - there's no point in producing a very formally written, stiff sounding report for a hobby site.

At this point you could just tweak it, proof read it, and then go ahead and publish it but to take it a step further and make it really unique, why not look at how you might rewrite it so that all of the content is yours - now you've got the basic idea down and laid out, it shouldn't take you long to reword things, add in some of your own ideas and keywords that fit your site, and maybe a few quotes and suddenly you're looking at something that no-one else has got, that the search engines will love and that no-one can claim you copied.

Time to start creating!

EMAIL, What To Do With It

2005-12-28T17:16:00.000-08:00

Email is wonderful? We receive it every day. Some email is junk, some is Spam of offers from someone to buy his or her product that we did not request. Some email is news from family, friends, or work acquaintances.

A lot of people I have met over the years, believe that mailbox is endless and will store all the email they want to keep. A lot of people will create mailboxes to store their mail in and just keep adding mail to them as they receive it. I do not know what the size limit is or the total pieces of mail it will hold. BUT there is a limit! When that limit is reached, your system becomes trash!

Trash, that was harsh. That is exactly what has happened to the systems I have seen when their mail programs (Outlook Express or Outlook) mail box become full and beyond the design of the software. Not only does the mail program crash and burn but it has taken the operating system with it!

How can you prevent this from happening? EASY. Treat your email as you would your snail mail. How long do you keep your snail mail? What do you do with snail mail you want to keep?

Simple questions with simple answers. Most of us look at where the mail came from and those that are junk, we toss into the wastebasket. The mail we get from people we know we read. We will also look at the mails we receive that are bills. Sometimes, we will look at the sales flyers we get and then toss them. We keep very little mail.

Usually when we do, it is because we have requested written information from someone that we will put into a drawer for safe keeping with all our other papers. Most people will not keep snail mail on file unless it has something to do with their business or an ongoing dispute with someone they have purchased from. Our private letters may be retained but usually they are discarded after we reply to them.

Do the same with your email! Go ahead and have your different mailboxes to sort your mail. Trash your junk mail and mail from unknown senders immediately. Answer any email that you want to respond to and then get rid of what came to you. If you have email you want to save permanently, do so. But save it as a ".txt" file somewhere else on your hard drive. Do not save it as an email file on the same hard disk partition as the operating system. If you have only one partition, save it to a floppy disk.

In saving your email in this manner, you will be able to read the information without having to open your email program or have the operating system working. If you have a "boot disk" that will start your computer to a command prompt (C>:) then you can read anything you have saved as a ".txt" file. You will also be able to read any files saved as a ".doc" file.

While we are talking about email, ensure that you have the "preview pane" turned OFF! Most mail viruses will begin working when the mail is opened. By having the preview pane turned on, when you highlight the email, some lines are visible. The email has been opened by the system and any viruses that were present, are now working! Oops.

A good anti virus package should ALWAYS be installed and operating any time you are online or reading email. Ensure that you keep whatever anti virus program you use, up-to-date!

I hope that you find the thoughts and comments above have given you some ideas on how to better manage your email. By nature, we are all collectors of all things we do not need or use. Our computer systems make collecting and saving extremely easy to do with the email we receive. No one likes lost email or having to restore an operating system that has crashed. If you really want to save an email, save it as a .txt file somewhere else on your system and then delete it from your email program.

VoIP May Be Same Bat Time, but it's Not the Same Bat Channel!

2005-12-28T17:15:00.000-08:00

VoIP - Same Bat-Time, but it's not the Same-Bat Channel!

Unless you've been living in a cave for the last few years, you've probably at least heard the word "VoIP" even if you didn't understand what all the excitement is about.

VoIP stands for "Voice over Internet Protocol" and it's going to change the way you think about making long distance phone calls.

Basically, VoIP technology turns analog audio signals (like the sounds you hear when talking on your regular telephone) into a digital signal (which is then transmitted over the Internet.)

So why is VoIP revolutionizing the industry? Because it means that by getting your hands on some of the free software that's available right now, you can totally bypass your telephone company, and start making long distance phone calls for free!

Here's what's got the bats buzzing in the belfry: This revolutionary technology has the ability to totally change the phone system of the entire world! Maybe you've seen television commercials for one of the pioneers of VoIP - Vonage. Vonage brands itself as the "broadband telephone company", and offers enticing perks to customers who switch to its service, like low-cost 800 numbers, very cheap international rates (fees are waived from the U.S. to Canada, and how about .03 cents a minute to call Paris?)

But Vonage isn't the only company who is interested. AT&T is setting up VoIP calling in several areas of the U.S. and there are other major players on the scene as well, such as Skype, who is relying on viral advertising to get the word out.

One of the really interesting thing about VoIP is that there's not just one way to make a call. There are actually three:

ATA - is the most commonly used VoIP method right now. Using the ATA (analog telephone adaptor), you connect your regular telephone to your computer or Internet connection. The ATA is an analog-to-digital converter and it takes the analog signal from your phone and converts it into digital data and transmits it over the Internet.

This is how Vonage does it, and AT&T 's CallVantage will be doing it. The ATA is free with their services. And using an ATA is so simple that anyone can do it. Open the box, plug the cable from your phone into the ATA instead of the wall socket, and you're set. Depending on your computer, and where you live, and what type of Internet connection you have, you might have to also install the software onto your computer, but even my grandmother knows how to do that these days.

IP Phones - They look just like the phones we're used to. They have a handset, cradles and buttons. But an IP phones use an RJ-45 Ethernet connector instead of the standard RJ-11 phone connectors. They connect directly to your router and all the hardware and software is already built inside to handle your IP calls. Look for Wi-Fi IP phones to be available in the near future, which will allow you to make VoIP calls from any Wi-Fi spot. (Can you see the power of that? Just take your IP phone with you when you travel, and stop in at any Internet caf, hotel or other location where you can use your Wi-Fi laptop, and you can "phone home" wherever home happens to be!

Computer-to-Computer. This is arguably the easiest way to use VoIP. Not only do you not have to pay for long distance calls, there are several companies that are offering free or low-cost software right now for you to make use of the VoIP technology. All you need is the software, a microphone, speakers a sound card and a broadband or cable DSL Internet connection, and your loved ones sound as if they're in the next room. And, except for your normal monthly ISP fee, there is no charge for any computer-to-computer call no matter how far. Holy ET, Batman!

And guess what? Chances are, you've already been using the VoIP technology without even being aware of it, any time you've made a long distance telephone call recently. Many of the major phone companies are already using VoIP technology to reduce their own bandwidth . It's a simple matter of routing thousands of phone calls through a circuit switch and into an IP gateway. Once received on the other side of the gateway, the calls are decompressed, reassembled and routed back to a local circuit switch.

IP telephony is the wave of the future. It makes sense in terms of ROI, from both an economic and infrastructure point of view. It may take some time, but eventually all of the current circuit-switched networks that are in use today will be replaced by packet-switching technology. More and more businesses are already installing VoIP systems. And as the technology makes our way into our everyday language our lives, and our homes, it will continue to grow in popularity.

According to Forrester Research, they predict that nearly 5 million U.S. households will have VoIP phone service by the end of 2006. The two biggest advantages for home users so far are price and flexibility.

Currently, most VoIP phone companies offer plans similar to that of cell-phone companies - what are commonly called "minute-rate" plans for as little as $30 a month. And as with cell-phone plans, you can also get unlimited plans for around $79 a month. With the elimination of long-distances charges, unregulated charges, and all the freebies that come standard with your VoIP service, it can actually amount to a significant savings for you. For example, you may be paying extra for features like:
� Call waiting
� Three way calling
� Call forwarding
� Caller I.D.
� Repeat dial
� Last call return

With VoIP, they come standard. And then there are some advanced features that make VoIP something worth looking into. With some carriers, you can set up call-filtering options, and actually have some control over how calls from certain numbers are handled. For example, you can:
� Forward the call to a particular number
� Send the call directly to voicemail
� Give the caller a busy signal
� Play a "not in service" message
� Send the caller to a funny rejection hotline

With most VoIP services, you can also check your voice mail on the Internet, or attach messages to an email that is sent directly to your computer or handheld. (By the way, if you're interested in any of these features, not all VoIP companies are created equal, so do a little shopping around first, because prices and services do vary).

The second benefit that makes VoIP so attractive for home and small business users is the flexibility. With VoIP you can make a call anywhere you can get broadband connectivity. Since the IP phones or ATAs broadcast information over the Internet, they can be administered by any provider. For business travelers, this means they can take their phone or ATA with them on the road, and never miss a home phone call!

By using a softphone, (which is client software that loads your VoIP service onto your desktop or laptop), you can make calls from your laptop anywhere in the broadband-connected world, with just a headset and microphone.

In a way, VoIP is just a "better mousetrap." But it looks like it's one mousetrap that's here to stay.

Is Home Schooling on the Internet the New Wave of Education?

2005-12-27T23:30:00.000-08:00

Do you have children in school - or are you planning for it soon?

Have you asked yourself if public schools are really doing all they can to improve your child and educate him or her for the real world?

Do you try to stifle desires to send them to private schools because of the cost or the perceived 'elitist' mentality?

Have you ever had a day arrive when your child comes home worn out, agitated and frustrated and thought to yourself "I'd love to keep my child home and teach him myself - if only I had the time."

Now, maybe you can. Here are some of the options.

PRIVATE SCHOOLS COST MONEY

Yes, private schools are sought by the wealthiest and most privileged of society. Although some would likely debate the benefits of private schooling over public schooling most parents probably have considered the option and would jump at the opportunity to give private schooling to their children if it appeared.

Unfortunately, for most families, private schooling is simply not a reality. At a cost of $7000 and upwards, the ability to afford such education is beyond their means. Religious affiliated schools are less expensive, but still not an option for many families with a of cost several thousands per year.

HOME SCHOOLING TAKES PARENTS TIME

Traditional home schooling where the parent is the supervisor of the child's work is another option. With fantastic resources and helpful teachers to assist, it has been a form of education that can be the answer to parents who want the one-on-one education that public schools cannot provide.

Home schooling has been the basis of society for thousands of years - long before schools came about. However, in today's society it can be difficult for parent's to maintain the supervision of assignments that is needed for home schooling. This may become even more of an issue as a child gets into the higher grades and parents are unfamiliar with the curriculum or are working and do not have as much time to assist them.

INTERNET HOME SCHOOLING

A new addition to education, the internet is now providing the ability for parents to give their child an enhanced curriculum, control over education, and online support. This will all cost much less than private school at an average cost of $900 per year.

Older children can benefit from online teachers who are able to supervise the work - a huge benefit for working or single parents. Many accredited Internet schools offer similar courses to those available in private schools.

Joel Turtel, who is the author of "Public Schools, Public Menace: How Public Schools Lie To Parents and Betray Our Children," says that busy working parents can give their kids a quality, low-cost education at home using the Internet. �K-12th grade Internet schools can take most of the homeschooling burden off parent's backs.�

Perhaps this is the answer you've been looking for.

Hook Up With The Love Connection

2005-12-27T23:29:00.000-08:00

Looking to spice up your life a little, add some romance find that love connection? Well, caution: fees can be sky high. For example, AARP Magazine reported that a company called Gentlepeople charges from $15,000 to $50,000 to hook up you up with the right person. And FOX News reported that professional matchmakers across the country are charging up to $15,000 to pair people up. Instead of paying so much money, try starting here and see how you do with some of these tips.

ONLINE DATING Seek out a reputable online dating service. Begin by asking friends, co-workers and other you may know who have tried online dating, and see which places they recommend. Also, head to your favorite search engine and type in online dating services to see which ones come up. Start a journal or notebook and log your progress. Write out the URLs or website links and do some research: list fees, rules and regulations, complete contact information of the site and any other useful information that you run across. Then begin slow. If something doesnt feel right, trust your instincts and STOP.

COMMUNICATION Go slow and dont try to share every tidbit of information about yourself over night. Keep away from subjects that you dont agree upon. When communicating via email and other electronic means (chat rooms, forums, etc.) dont use all upper case letters (thats called shouting), slang or your personal address for safety. Do use a firewall and anti-virus software to keep your computer safe, too. Key in online safety tips and check out online lists for updated safety tips once a month to make sure youre up to date.

Free Firewall Download: ZoneAlarm www.zonelabs.com
Free Anti-Virus Download: AVG Anti-Virus www.grisoft.com
(no affiliations)

FRIENDSHIP As your friendship grows, check to see if you are not only getting along pretty well together, but also handling conflicts well together. If you miss a chat time, for instance, is that it? Are you in the doghouse for a week? And gradually decide if you should meet in person. If so, make sure its a safe place out in public and that you are both legal adults.

LOVE GOALS Gradually develop goals together so youll have a sense of direction. Write them down in a notebook just for the two of you. And over time, develop them, revise them, cross them off your list. The idea is to HAVE goals together and work towards a common good.

So before you fork out thousands of dollars looking for Mr. or Ms. Right, reach out and try to help yourself first. Go slow and steady, and use caution. Once you find your own love connection, you could set up your own matchmaker website!

Could Your Email Compromise Your Safety?

2005-12-27T23:09:00.000-08:00

Hackers, phishers, viruses, worms simply having your computer online can expose your data and personal information to all kinds of malicious and worrisome problems. If youre somewhat new to the 'net' or to computers in general, these four tips could help protect you from identity theft, credit card fraud, or a complete computer takeover all of which can happen without you even knowing about it!

1. Whats in Your Inbox? If your e-mail program allows you to preview the entire message before or while it is being downloaded, turn this setting off. Some e-mails can contain dangerous code that could unknowingly compromise your computer and leave you vulnerable to viruses, worms or worse! Check the options in your e-mail program for a way to disable the message preview pane.

2. Scrutinize Your Messages Dont ever respond to messages claiming to be from your bank, credit card company, or other financial institution, which ask for personally identifiable information such as card or account numbers, passwords, or other private information even if the e-mail looks to have come from the actual company. It may be a hoax designed to get you to unknowingly part with crucial financial or private contact information, leaving you vulnerable to credit card fraud, identity theft or credit card theft. Contact the institution or company that claims to be sending the e-mail and verify the contents of the message with them. Chances are they never sent it. Only use the number on your statement though, and not the number that appears in the e-mail message. It may direct you right to the scammer, who will do everything they can to assure you that nothing is wrong!

3. If it’s From a Friend, it must be Safe, Right? It’s logical to assume that a message from your friend or colleague is safe, but that isn’t always the case! If you receive an email from a friend or colleague which contains an attachment (could be a media clip, a screensaver, a picture or anything else), call them up to check and see if they really did send it. Many viruses and worms can hijack your computer and blast out a virus-ridden email to everyone in your address book, making it appear that it came from you and therefore, making it appear trustworthy.

4. Read Your Messages in Plain Text some e-mails written in HTML (the coding language that makes up many web pages) can be harmless. Others can contain malicious code that can hijack your e-mail program, browser, or your entire computer and send your personal and financial information out to a hacker or scammer without you even knowing about it! Stay safe by setting your e-mail program to only show messages in plain text format (often in the options or settings section of the software). This will prevent threatening code from installing itself and compromising your system and private information.

Possibly one of the best ways to protect your e-mail is simply by exercising common sense. The Internet is a lot like a crowded plaza. Would your banker or credit card lender walk out into the middle of the throng of people and shout out to you to ask for your account information? Would you tell him where everyone could hear? Definitely not! The same caution should be exercised when checking your e-mail. These tips can help you stop scammers dead in their tracks while keeping you from becoming another victim of fraud or theft.

Web Surfing Security

2005-12-27T23:08:00.000-08:00

Too many computer users neglect to do the basic maintenance of their computer. The result is a clear path to their personal information. Hackers are diligently at work everyday trying to find the weakness in your system so that they may be able to steal your personal information. Others would simply like to create trouble and destroy your hard drive.

There is a wide variety of protective software available, such as adware removers, antivirus tools, keypatrol agents, spyware blasters and so on. These are effective only if put to good use.

Think of yourself as a pilot doing a pre-flight inspection. The pilot is responsible for doing a thorough inspection of his airplane before any passenger boards the plane. He needs to be sure that all safety precautions have been taken to guarantee that all mechanical and electronic devices are working and that the mechanical inspections are up to date. He needs to verify that the aircraft is in good operating condition. Once the plane is off, it is too late to start wondering if such and such a device is working properly.

Your computer is your responsibility. Just like a pilot needs to go through a checklist, you also should make yourself a checklist of things to verify before you surf the Internet. Once connected, it is too late to realize that your system is not up to the challenge. If your system is not checked, if you are vulnerable to the attacks, you could pay a severe price.

You need to purchase good tools for this job. It is acceptable to try free tools to evaluate their quality but once you have found a good tool, purchase it and put it to work.

One of the biggest problems for the average computer owner resides in the fact that he/she simply refuses to take the time to read about their new tool. They would like to simply buy it, install it and never think about it again. You need to take the time to educate yourself on the functioning of any tool you buy.

Generally software is well written by qualified programmers. Professionally written software will include all the instructions that you need to obtain the best performance of the tool. If this is not the case, keep on searching. Go to a trusted site such as CNET and read the comments from other users about the tool you are thinking of buying. Take the time needed to do good research and remember you are putting all your information at risk when you connect to the Internet.

Once you are confident that the software you are purchasing is of the highest quality, then take your time and read all the documentation provided. Once you have done this, and only then, install the software. Make sure to add the tool to your list of daily maintenance.

If you have not done so yet, locate and read all the recommended procedures for the software that protects your computer.

Create a text file and save it on your desktop. You will want this file to contain your checklist of things to do everyday before you start surfing the Internet.

Here is a possible list of the things that should be done before you start surfing:

1) Check your antivirus for updates. Regularly run your antivirus. If at any time your antivirus locates a virus, you need to update your antivirus, disconnect from the Internet and do a full scan of your computer with the updated antivirus. Always make sure your antivirus is actively protecting your computer.

2) Clean your computer cache and your temporary files. You can pick up software for this at CNET: http://www.cnet.com

3) Clean your history

4) Update your adware remover. Run your adware remover. Again you can try free adware removers from CNET but please buy the full package when you find one that you know will protect you. You truly need all the functions of the software, not just a portion of the functions which is usually the case with Trial Version software.

5) Update your firewall and check the settings. Some clever hackers can change the settings of your computer, therefore putting you at risk.

6) Check for mail protection agents and make sure that they are active.

7) Run a scandisk

8) Update your browser

This is a sample list. Create one that applies to your computer and to the software installed on it. Keep your list updated and make sure that you do what you put on your list. Creating a list and not following it will be of no use.

We cannot totally protect ourselves against the perils of the Internet but we can at least make sure that we do all that we can. Take the proper precautions and you too can have a safe journey on the Internet.

Tags & Folksonomy

2005-12-27T23:07:00.000-08:00

There is a new branch of the Web growing like a well organized storm cloud. This recent trend on the Web can be used to strengthen your presence with major search engines and reach an active audience that is highly interested in your content. Welcome to the world of "folksonomy" and "tagging."

What is Folksonomy and Tagging?

Folksonomy is a combination of the words folks and taxonomy meaning "people classification management." This allows users some level of control over how the web is organized. One of the most popular tools of the folksonomy concept is tags. Tagging, in the context of this article, is the process of labeling a piece data with metadata.

Using Tagging & Folksonomy to Advertise

Three of the most effective sites currently using tags and/or folksonomy are: Del.icio.us, digg.com, and technorati. Each of these sites is a major player in the folksonomy world.

Del.icio.us is a social bookmarking web application that is growing very fast in popularity. With a free account, del.icio.us users can submit and access all of their bookmarks from any computer with Internet access. By submitting and tagging your own web pages, you instantly give access to thousands of other users with interests in the same tags. Encouraging site visitors to submit your selected webpages to their own del.icio.us bookmark page is a very good way to get more exposure to del.icio.us users. Submitting to del.icio.us is instant and it creates meaningful relevant links important to the major search engines.

Digg.com is mostly a technical news site. If you are familiar with the Web phenomenon Slashdot, then digg will remind you of that geek culture. The difference is that ALL of digg's content is created, submitted, and judged by its audience. If your page, blog or online article is good enough to be "dug" by digg users, you could receive literally hundreds of unique visitors immediately. Virtually any participation (comments, submissions, links in your profile) can get your site traffic from digg. The beauty of digg is that it is so popular that many submissions to digg can instantly dominate some keywords on search engines such as google.com.

Technorati.com is a power house in the world of tagging. If you have a blog, Technorati should become one of your favorite search engines on the World Live Web. Many Technorati Tags are beginning to dominate the Web by having constantly updated, fresh blog content on highly focused subjects. The beauty of Technorati is that blog application such as blogware and others are completely integrated with it allowing blog categories to be instantly tagged and syndicated into the blog search engine. Any blog can be manually added as well to technorati's very open tagging system. Like digg, even if you only happen to get a trickle of traffic from technorati itself many times the link value alone will sky rocket the speed in which your site rank in the search engines.

There are many other folksonomy sites that can help you with "tag syndication." With its encouragement to get users to submit their own RSS feeds as content, My Yahoo! is a great way to increase traffic and links. Web applications like TagCloud integrates RSS and tagging while wikipedia.org is method of allowing social webpage and content development. All these methods and many more have two great things in common 1) they are free (as of this writing) and 2) they give the power to reshape and categorize the Web to the people. If content is King then content management is the the kingdom.

5 Simple ways to keep your computer secure and virus free

2005-12-27T23:06:00.000-08:00

These simple tips will help you stay virus and spyware free, even if you're connected to the internet 24 hours a day.

1. Protect yourself

Good protection on the Internet these days consists of 3 components: anti-virus software, anti-spyware software and a firewall.

Good virus protection doesn't need to cost you a fortune. You can get excellent free anti-virus software at www.grisoft.com. Even the professional version of their software is very affordable.

For spyware protection, go to www.lavasoft.de and download Ad-Aware SE Personal, also free. This will zap the most common spyware and adware found on the Internet.

As for a firewall, Windows XP ships with a decent enough firewall. Just make sure it is always enabled. Alternatively you can visit a site like www.download.com and search for Zone Alarm, which has an excellent free version.

The most important thing to keep in mind is that you need to keep your anti-virus software up to date. An anti-virus program that uses definitions that are months old is just about useless.

Update your anti-virus and anti-spyware software at least once a week.

2. Stop opening every attachment you receive.

Most of the devastating worms and viruses of recent times were distributed via email. These viruses feed on the curiosity and also the ignorance of a huge number of email users. People will get an email from fakename@weirdsuspiciousdomain and they'll just open whatever file is attached to it.

If you don't know the sender, don't open the attachment - just delete it. It doesn't matter if the subject promises you'll see Britney Spears dancing nude on the kitchen table, just delete it.

If the email is from someone you know, always scan any attachments first before downloading or opening them.

If every email user in the world followed these simple guidelines the distribution of viruses via email will grind to a halt.

3. Stay clear of pornographic and illegal software sites

If you want to pick up viruses and spyware quickly, visit some pornographic web sites. One wrong click on a subtle little pop-up or security warning window (which you'll run into often on these type of sites) and you'll have infested yourself with trojan horses, spyware, dialers and other unfavorable software that could leave your computer wide open to further attacks.

The same goes for web sites distributing software, serial codes and cracks illegally (warez).

Simply put - keep out of the dark side of the web and the odds of keeping your computer clean shifts decidedly in your favor.

4. Watch out what you download

Spyware is embedded in a lot of software on the Internet - especially those related to ripping, converting and playing music and videos. That free MP3 player or DVD Ripper you just downloaded may have installed a bunch of harmful spyware without you even knowing about it.

5. Keep yourself informed

Major anti-virus software developers like Symantec and Grisoft updates their sites regularly with the latest virus alerts. Visit these sites frequently to keep yourself aware of what threats are doing the rounds and how to avoid them.

Using these simple and software I have kept my computer virus-free for the past 3 years. It's not rocket science. Just stay alert, use some common sense and you too can stay bug free while still enjoying your Internet experience.

Expansion with Ebooks

2005-12-27T22:54:00.000-08:00

Businesses of all sizes are expanding with ebooks. An ebook is a paperless book in digital format that you can download to your computer, handheld or other reader device. It can be read by using a software program like Adobe (for .pdf formats) or Microsoft Word.

Here are several ways to expand your own business operations with ebooks.

Marketing � An ebook offers an inexpensive means of producing full-color marketing materials complete with graphics and audio components. Find good software or hire someone to help create your ebooks. Grab a digital camera and start snapping shots of your products, people using your products and services, your workers, etc. Then show off your shots, your products and describe your services with awesome power-packed presentations; web pages with interactive links for sound, visual presentations, communications (emails or forum posts) and more.

Education � When your products or services need explained, educate your prospects and clients with ebooks. Have sample or short versions available for trial offers or free downloads. Then include full-fledged detailed editions with product / service purchases. Educate with visual, sound and interactive point-and-click methods. Invite questions and feedback from recipients for improvements on future product and service development.

Communications � How many times do you get an email you with a question - the same question over and over gain it seems � that requires a book-length answer? Maybe questions like, �How do you create a basic website?� or �How can you market on a tight budget?� inspire lengthy replies. Well, now you can write one long reply, turn it into an ebook and send it out � over and over again and free up more time for other things. AND include your own marketing information inside so that readers can look you up on the Internet, pass your information along and give others the opportunity to find you, too.

New Product � Use surveys and take polls for new product creation. Include a link to a web page with a questionnaire and free download for recipients upon completion.

Sales Reps � Arm your sales representatives with professional, top-notch full-color media / product / service information kits presented via your ebooks to share with local newspaper, radio, television and other media reps, visitors and potential clients at trade shows and other events. Set up an introductory page in your ebook, then an index where people can click and quickly find your History, Mission Statement, product and service descriptions and images, Contact information, Testimonials, etc. Then copy the ebooks to disks and CDs to distribute at events. This gives people the opportunity to learn much more about you when they have more time afterwards.

So grab your cyber-pencil or keypad and start writing! Ebooks can definitely enlarge your operations.

Good Password Tips and Password Management

2005-12-27T22:53:00.000-08:00

These days a single computer user may have dozens of passwords. If you use computers at your job you may need to access secured databases, local workstations and numerous accounts online and each is supposed to have its own unique password. Though many people don't require a logon for their home PC, they will definitely have one for email or websites that they manage. Here is a guide to assist you in strengthening your passwords and password techniques.

After reading this article you will know the following:
-How to make good passwords
-Good password practices
-Techniques to manage all of your passwords

How to Make Good Passwords

Choose a password with the following criteria:
-At least 8 characters in length
-At least 1 number
-At least 1 special character
-Upper and lowercase.

Passwords with difficult combinations make it harder for tools like L0phtcrack, Brutus, John the Ripper, Cain and Able and other password crackers to decipher your password.

When creating a password, don't use personal information such as birthdays, children names, or first and last names. Avoid using words or phrases that can be easily guess or cracked with a "dictionary attack." Do not use the same password on the different systems. If you work in a classified environment, passwords should be treated at the same level of classification as the systems they protect.

Good password practices

Never share your password with ANYONE including your Administrators, Help Desk personnel or System Administrators. IT professionals at your job or Internet Service Provider (ISP) will not normally ask you for your password. If they do need it then you should give it to them in person and ensure you change it as soon as they are done with their task. A common "Social Engineering" tactic used by malicious hackers consists of calling up unsuspecting users and pretending to be from the computer support staff. Another tactic is to have trusting users email the password or type it into what looks like a legitimate site; this is known as "phishing."

Be aware of your surrounding when you are typing your password. Watch for "shoulder Surfing" or people watching what you type as you are entering your password. If you use the web to access critical information (such as online banking, or medical information) ensure that the site uses some type of secured method of encryption. You will know this if the site's URL begins with an "https." SSL and Secure HTTP are sometimes indicated by a tiny lock in a corner of the page. If there is no encryption then it maybe possible for unauthorized users to view and/or capture the data you enter and later access the account using a "sniffer." A sniffer is a tool that captures all "clear text" or unencrypted data. SSL and Secure HTTP encrypts data so that it looks like gibberish to tools like sniffers.

Techniques to manage all of your passwords

It is best to memorize your passwords however if you have literally scores of passwords from work, home, online business ventures and the bank and you do not have a photographic memory, you may want to write them down and put it in your wallet. This simple and practical task is what author of Beyond Fear, and system security phenomenon, Bruce Schneier, recommends as does Senior Programmer for Security Policy at Microsoft, Jesper Johannson.

Using Password Management applications such as Password Safe, a free Microsoft application for storing passwords, and Password Vault (also free) can help you to effectively manage your passwords.

Another management technique is to allow Windows (and other Operating Systems) to automatically fill in the data. This is great for trusted SECURE environments such as home systems in which you don not need to hide any account information from anyone, but not such a good idea for the work environment. It should also be noted that systems without a high level of Internet security (protected with firewalls, updated patches, NAT enabled, etc) should not use the auto fill features as the passwords are many times stored on the system in clear text making it easy for malicious code such as spyware, trojans and worms to steal your passwords and account information.

The greatest thing you can do to protect your password is to be aware that at every moment someone somewhere would love to access some or all of your accounts. It is not always cyber criminals looking for you banking information, sometimes it is just curious people who happen upon your username & password. It may even be someone you know. Be aware.

The Seller’s Dilemma on eBay

2005-12-27T22:51:00.000-08:00

Its obvious that eBay provides internet users with an online flea market where buyers and sellers from around the world meet to conduct trade.

However, like most traders who are faced with an innovation of this sort, the first question will always be: It is safe?

The answer is yes, but devious scammers seem to be plotting daily to forward their dastardly schemes and take advantage of eBays power.

So, what is the users recourse? The users of eBay must learn to gather information and take meticulous care in dealing on eBay. Only then can they be less gullible to scammers.

A common consensus is that bidders are often scammed by sellers. But it is possible for things to be the other way around.

Here is a list of the common problems sellers encounter and the means to handle them.

Fake Escrow Services

A winning bidder may request that an escrow service be used to assure both parties of a fair transaction. Unfortunately, the seller is sometimes duped into using a fake escrow system.

To avoid this situation, the seller must always verify the authenticity of an escrow service. eBay recommends the use of escrow.com. If the bidder insists on his or her escrow service, chances are, that person is a scammer.

Victims of this fraud find it difficult to reclaim their items. They may, however, appeal to the legal system afforded by the state they live in. They must also contact eBay regarding the matter for any assistance they may be willing to offer.

Deadbeat Bidders

Deadbeat bidders (a winning bidder who doesnt pay for an item at the auctions close) are more common on eBay. If the winner of your auction does not pay, you may leave that person a negative feedback.

As for the listing fees the seller shells out, eBay lays out a four step procedure that sellers can use to potentially recover lost selling fees. If sellers complete the process to eBays satisfaction, they will receive a Final Value Fee credit and a re-list credit. Filing out an Unpaid Item dispute is the first step toward eBay reimbursing such fees. A person can report an unpaid item up to 45 days after an auctions close.

Trade Dispute

This occurs when the seller and bidder disagree on some terms of the sale. This may also happen if there is a purported violation of any of these agreements.

If communication between both parties does not help, they may consider availing of a third-party dispute resolution outfit to help. SquareTrade.com is one of these outfits that eBay recommends.

An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure

A sellers life may be made terrible because of the constant scamming attacks unscrupulous individuals undertake. But, with proper information and care, he or she can continue trading on eBay with relative safety.

Keep Your Home Wireless Network Secure

2005-12-27T10:52:00.000-08:00

Working from home has its advantages, including no commute, a more flexible work schedule and fresh coffee and home-cooked meals whenever you want.

But working from home while using a wireless local area network (WLAN) may lead to theft of sensitive information and hacker or virus infiltration unless proper measures are taken. As WLANs send information over radio waves, someone with a receiver in your area could be picking up the transmission, thus gaining access to your computer.

They could load viruses on to your laptop which could be transferred to the company's network when you go back to work.

Up to 75 per cent of WLAN users do not have standard security features installed, while 20 per cent are left completely open as default configurations are not secured, but made for the users to have their network up and running ASAP.

It is recommended that wireless router/access point setup be always done though a wired client.

Change default administrative password on wireless router/access point to a secured password.

Enable at least 128-bit WEP encryption on both card and access point. Change your WEP keys periodically. If equipment does not support at least 128-bit WEP encryption, consider replacing it.

Although there are security issues with WEP, it represents minimum level of security, and it should be enabled.

Change the default SSID on your router/access point to a hard to guess name. Setup your computer device to connect to this SSID by default.

Setup router/access point not to broadcast the SSID. The same SSID needs to be setup on the client side manually. This feature may not be available on all equipment.

Block anonymous Internet requests or pings.

On each computer having wireless network card, network connection properties should be configured to allow connection to Access Point Networks Only. Computer to Computer (peer to peer) Connection should not be allowed.

Enable MAC filtering. Deny association to wireless network for unspecified MAC addresses. Mac or Physical addresses are available through your computer device network connection setup and they are physically written on network cards. When adding new wireless cards / computer to the network, their MAC addresses should be registered with the router /access point.

Network router should have firewall features enabled and demilitarized zone (DMZ) feature disabled.

You can test your hardware and personal firewalls using Shields Up test available at http://www.grc.com.

All computers should have a properly configured personal firewall in addition to a hardware firewall.

Update router/access point firmware when new versions become available.

Locate router/access point away from strangers so they cannot reset the router/access point to default settings.

Locate router/access point in the middle of the building rather than near windows to limit signal coverage outside the building.

While none of the measure suggested above provides full protection as countermeasures exist, a collection of suggested measures will act as a deterrent against attacker when other insecure networks represent easier targets.

Should You Consider an Internet Romance?

2005-12-26T04:45:00.000-08:00

Carly's quest in finding a suitable partner for marriage seemed impossible. She found the singles scene at clubs to be uncomfortable and her social circle seemed to consist of more married friends with a shrinking amount of singles.

Although she had heard of internet dating and saw the ads, she had hesitated to take what she imagined was a rather drastic step. What would her experiences be like? How would she find someone online? What were the risks?

If you are in this situation then quite likely you've considered venturing into online dating to meet someone.

Our lives are increasingly dependant on technology as opposed to face-to-face contact. It is not at all surprising that millions have already ventured into online dating as a way to find a relationship rather than waiting for a chance meeting.

But what are some of the findings as researchers spend more time analyzing the behavior of online daters?

In a study reported on CBS News, 15% of Americans with internet access have visited an internet dating site. 27% of them were 18-29 years old. Obviously online dating is a popular pastime.

The same study showed that 33% of unmarried internet users thought that dating online was a safe way to meet people although 34% acknowledged knowing someone who had a bad experience.

In another study reported by BBC News, online dating was seen as a way for women to feel empowered in relationships. The conventional inhibitions that they had in face-to-face relationships were replaced by a more upfront and in-control attitude when given the anonymity of the internet. Could this improve their chances at finding a perfect relationship?

Professor Helen Petrie was quoted in the BBC interview as stating "There are people who lack interpersonal social skills and would find it very difficult to meet people in bars. They may find it easy to meet in an internet room, but they still have the problem of meeting them face to face and if they have gone too far with the internet relationship, they may find that traumatic."

The truth is, many individuals find the anonymity of online dating encourages a certain amount of exaggeration or lying. While some claim that we always hide things at the beginning of a relationship, trying to put our best foot forward, the internet makes it easier to hide such things as facial expressions, income, marital status and even criminal records.

So while you may find, like Carly, that finding a relationship in the 'real' world is difficult - if you are still considering online dating it is wise to use caution and common sense. Be careful what you say about yourself and try to verify as much information as possible before meeting or personally contacting anyone you've met online and never meet them alone.

Merry X'Mas

2005-12-25T18:34:00.000-08:00

Digital Photos and Photo Labs - 6 Things to Consider

2005-12-24T08:35:00.000-08:00

The popularity of digital cameras has skyrocketed in recent years. Every event or celebration you go to now has at least several people snapping away. Once you pay for the camera and memory cards, your costs are zero, until you actually have a picture you want to print. You can take 40 pictures of your new child, niece, nephew, grandchild, etc, and if only two good shots came out of that, then you only pay for those two.

The question is - where should you print those two masterpieces?

Owning your own photo quality printer is definitely faster. There are even people who take a small printer with them and make prints for other guests right away. Almost as easy as a traditional Polaroid camera.

Is it cheaper?

The large chains have jumped into this fray in a BIG way. Wal-Mart, Blacks, Business Depot, and many others. With all this competition comes low, low pricing. A typical 4x6 print from a big chain is cheaper than the retail cost of the do-it-yourself paper that the same chain sells in their photography center. And at home you still have to pay for the ink!

Here are 6 things to consider when getting a photo lab to print your digital pictures.

(1) Price. All the major players have priced their 4x6 size very competitively. The larger sizes though, like 5x7 or 8x10, are usually higher in cost than what you can do it for at home.

(2) Drop Off. Can you upload your digital pictures to them via the internet (very convenient) or do you have to deliver them on a floppy or CD?

(3) Delivery. Does your photo lab let you pick them up in the store, or do you have to wait for the post office or a courier? Picking them up at the store should be a no-cost option. If you can pick them up, is the location easy to get in and out of?

(4) Timing. How fast do they work? One photo lab has a reputation of having most orders ready in one business day. Another is a bit cheaper, but takes a week.

(5) Quality. You may have to talk to relatives, friends, and co-workers about this one. Find others who have already tried various printers. One photo lab's web site states that they will not print a picture with too low a resolution (nothing under 150 DPI allowed). This can be inconvenient, but assures you of a quality print.

Speaking of resolution, a 4x6 printed at 200 DPI requires a digital print that is 800 by 1200 pixels. An older model 1.0 megapixel camera can do this easily. If you have a more modern 3.3 megapixel camera you can create a 200 DPI print that is 8x10. One of the advantages of a better camera, say a 5 mp, is that you can "crop" part of the picture away and still have the 3.3 megapixels required for an 8x10.

There is one more item you need to be concerned with.

(6) A standard "snapshot" for a photo album is 4x6 in size. That is a ratio of 1.5. Most new cameras have a photo ratio of 1.33! What happens if you send a 1.33 picture to a photo lab and ask for a 4x6? They cut off ("crop") part of the picture you took, making it shorter on its longest side. You may not like the part they cut off! The best internet upload systems for photo labs allow you to indicate what can be cut off. Alternatively, use a program on your computer to make the digital picture the correct size and ratio before uploading.

Memory for digital cameras is getting cheaper all the time, so load up on memory, take lots of pictures, and proudly display the ones that turn out well.

Make Page Source Viewing Easier to Read

2005-12-23T06:33:00.000-08:00

When viewing the source of a web page with Mozilla Firefox (by selecting "View" - "Page Source" or pressing CONTROL-U), do you find the small text hard to read? If so, you can change the text size the same way you can change the size of text on a web page. Hold down CONTROL and press the '+' key on your numeric keypad to increase the size, or hold down CONTROL and press the '-' key on your numeric keypad to decrease the size.

Video Games: from Cheats and Tricks to Reviews

2005-12-23T05:22:00.000-08:00

You know, nobody likes a cheater. But when it comes to discovering video game cheats, "cheating" isn't what you're doing. I prefer to think of it as "discovering shortcuts, tips and tricks," or video game hints.

Video games have gotten so complex, since the days of Pong and PacMan, that the game authors have purposely thrown in some back doors and other shortcuts to aid the weary player. The problem is, most of these back doors are so well hidden that these same authors have to leak the game cheats or no one would ever find them on their own.

And it's not only the blood and guts video games that offer cheats. Take the perfectly bloodless "Finding Nemo" for the GameBoy Advanced. Who'd ever guess that there were at least six video game cheat codes hidden there?

Don't make the mistake of thinking that it's just the handhelds either. If you play a video game online, like XBox Live, for example, there are a whole slew of video game hints available.

Of course, video game cheat codes and game hints are sort of useless if you don't own any video games. And that's where video game web sites come in...

Any web site worth visiting will not only have video game reviews and cheats for you to peruse, but they will also have game walkthroughs. Video game walkthroughs differ from cheats in that they actually "walk you through" the process of achieving some goal. Video game cheats, on the other hand, are often cryptic one or two liners like "Enter xx312 in the password field."

There are different types of video game reviews. Each have their good and bad points. Professional video game reviews are typically written by paid reviewers who work for video game magazines. These are generally well-written, in depth, and definitely worth reading. The other most common writer of video game reviews are the actual end users. While an end user will generally have spent a great deal more time actually playing the various video games on the most popular video game systems, you'll often find that they are men and women of little words. It's not unusual to see a review that says "Wow! Kick Bu** man. I love it!" Now, that's probably actually saying quite a bit about a particular video game, but -- your mileage may vary.

The key point to remember is that you don't want to invest in a video game until at least a couple of people have taken the time to write a review of the game. Of course, if everyone took this advice then there wouldn't be any video game review on any game web sites, because everyone would be waiting for someone else to write the review.

Right up there with video game reviews are video game previews. A video game preview is a lot like a movie trailer. They bundle all of the really exciting parts together and give you a fast and furious glimpse hoping that you'll believe that the entire video game is actually as cool as the 90 seconds of video game previews that they let you get a peek at.

The video game industry is at a crossroads. With more and more people clicking the play game online switch, and video game systems like XBox Live and all of the XBox video games out there, it is quite possible that the days of jamming your joystick alone in your room are slated to become "back in the day." As more and more video game systems opt for Internet connectivity, you're likely to find that you never have to play video games alone again.

Would You Use a Nanny Cam?

2005-12-22T04:55:00.000-08:00

Youre a working mum with two children and have hired a nanny to help out. Just three weeks into the 12 month contract you notice that your toddler is shying away from the nanny and cries desperately for you when you leave for work.

No mommy, dont go! is the morning cry in your ears as you head out the door.

After a week of this non-cooperative behaviour you suspect that something might have occurred between the nanny and your child. Your sixth sense tells you that the situation does not feel right, so you purchase a nanny cam to help you investigate matters further.

WHAT ARE THE PROS AND CONS?
One reason why host parents purchase a nanny cam is if they suspect the nanny is negligent in maintaining her duties. However the main reason is if they suspect abuse to be occurring.

The US government has allowed the use of nanny cams so all states of the US have made it legal to own and operate nanny cams. Although there are no restrictions on what is viewed from the cameras there are 15 US states that have made it illegal to record speech.

Hidden cameras have helped catch abusive nannies that would have otherwise continued to abuse or neglect children of the host family.

It is also notable that day care centers are installing cameras to provide parents with the ability to spot check their children from their work place over the internet or from their cell phone.

The use of the nanny cam isnt limited only to spying on the activities of your nanny. Other uses of the nanny cam are as general home security cameras while away on holidays or business. They are also commonly used for the days that the cleaners and pest control arrive to ensure that their work is carried out correctly.

Installing a nanny cam may cause mistrust if it is discovered, and your nanny may feel a sense of deception and mistrust. If this situation occurs then you need to be able to explain why the nanny cam was installed. This could lead to undue tension, whereas approaching the situation directly could be more beneficial to promoting trust and open communication.

HOW DOES A NANNY CAM WORK?
The nanny cam is able to record video on your VCR, TV, PC or onto digital video recorders. Nanny cams are usually motion activated to record only when people or objects are within view.

Some nanny cam systems can record from multiple locations, with some systems handling up to three cameras. The cameras that connect to your PC usually use a USB port, and the camera itself is driven by software that detects when motion is happening.

Some nanny cams are able to email you pictures or even send them to your cell phone. With these applications you have the flexibility to respond quickly if required, or just perform the occasional check up on your house or children while youre away.

WHAT RANGE IS AVAILABLE?
There is a wide range of nanny cams available on the market. Most are wireless and can be hidden, for example, in plants, stuffed toys or in clock radios. Prices vary from $100 to $500, depending on the features and abilities desired in the camera.

WOULD YOU USE A NANNY CAM?
Since a nanny cam is considered inexpensive for the information that it can provide, you will need to consider addressing issues directly with your nanny against the possibility of confrontation with her at a later date.

If you are unable to convince yourself that your children are receiving the proper treatment, then a nanny cam may be just what youre looking for.

There Are Better Imaging Tools Available!

2005-12-22T04:02:00.000-08:00

SUMMARY: There are better imaging programs available than those that came with your digital camera - find out how to get them!

Chances are, when you purchased your digital camera, you got one piece of software, or perhaps a small suite, of digital editing tools. You may have received a paint program, some software to do a few special digital effects, and maybe even an image cataloger.

Don't settle just for these tools! There are tons more tools available from the Internet that you can use to perform what seems like magic with your digital photos. Check out Paint Shop Pro from http://www.jasc.com/, Corel PhotoPaint from http://www.corel.com, and the Adobe suite of tools at http://www.adobe.com.

If you plan on taking a lot of pictures with your digital camera and really want to spice up your photos, don't settle with the standard included software. Give your pictures some pizzazz and try out some newer tools today!

Steadying your Digital Camera

2005-12-22T03:13:00.000-08:00

If you take digital photos that suffer from blurred images, you may be experiencing "camera shake". This is caused by the camera moving while the picture is being taken - sometimes the result of not holding the digital camera steady.

If you can, try watching a professional take photographs with their digital cameras and emulate their movements. When you are out taking pictures, try holding the digital camera closer to your body. Don't let your elbows stick out - bring them in so your lower arms (below the elbow) are parallel to your body. Then, move your elbows in, as close to your chest or stomach as possible, while you are still able to look through the viewfinder. The more you can steady your arms and the less they have a chance to move while snapping photos, the greater the chances your digital camera photos will remain sharp.

Experiment with Exposure Time

2005-12-22T03:11:00.000-08:00

Your digital camera exposure time determines how long your digital camera takes to record its picture. On a well-lit day, exposure times can be very short because plenty of light is available to help record a photograph. At nighttime, exposure time can increase dramatically due to the near absence of light.

Although most digital cameras handle this adjustment automatically, you should learn how to adjust your exposure time by hand. Read your digital camera's manual for instructions.

Why modify this digital camera setting? Experiments in exposure time can produce dramatic effects. For example:

1) Take a photograph of a roaring waterfall in a well-lit area and adjust your digital camera's exposure speed to take pictures as quickly as possible. In great lighting, and with some modern digital cameras, you may be able to see the individual drops of water falling!

2) Likewise, slow your exposure speed to 1/10 of a second or thereabouts. Be sure to hold your digital camera steady, or use a tripod, to avoid camera shake. That waterfall will now look like a stream of water flowing down.

Try adjusting your digital camera's exposure time when recording pool balls, automobiles, or other fast-moving subjects for interesting effects.

Play Music on your Car Stereo

2005-12-22T03:10:00.000-08:00

Your digital audio / portable MP3 player can hold dozens, hundreds, or thousands of songs, but your car CD player can only play about a dozen songs, or if it has MP3-CD support, only a few dozen. Why not hook up your digital audio player to your car stereo so you can listen to your tunes wherever you are?

There are two main ways to do this:

1) If your car stereo has a digital line-in jack, merely buying a male-to-male digital-mini stereo connector should do the trick. If you're not sure which adapter to buy, talk to your local electronics store.

2) If your car stereo doesn't have such an option (many lack this feature), don't fret! You can purchase a device called a Wireless FM Transmitter that lets you play your songs over your car's radio! All you have to do is attach the Wireless FM Transmitter to your music player's headphone jack, set the device to use a radio station that normally has a weak signal, and then tune your radio to such a station. Voila! Your digital audio player's tunes are now coming out of your car stereo!

Granted, option #2 results in song quality that may not match what you'd hear from a CD, but a good Wireless FM Transmitter can provide song quality to at least match that of stereo FM radio stations.

One such Wireless FM Transmitter is the iRock. You can find more information at http://www.irock.com or your local electronics store may have it. Mine works well because my local radio stations using the frequencies the iRock supports put out a very low wattage, letting me hear my tunes in relative clarity. Your results may vary.

Will the Player Work as a Hard Drive?

2005-12-22T03:08:00.000-08:00

Before purchasing a digital audio / portable MP3 player, find out if the player also doubles as an external hard drive.

Why is this important?

If the digital audio player requires special software to copy music to the player, you may be locked into that piece of software forever. Thus, you won't be able to take advantage of the capabilities found in other software to help sort your digital media. If your digital audio player doubles as a hard drive, copying files to the player is as simple as dragging and dropping the files from the desktop.

Another benefit if your digital audio player doubles as a hard drive - you can use it to store other types of files, such as photographs, documents, small games, or more. Instead of using floppy disks, ZIP disks, CDs, or other removable media to transfer files between computers or archive information, you can just use your digital audio player, saving you time and money with this added convenience.

Skipping in Hard Drive-Based Players

2005-12-22T03:07:00.000-08:00

Currently, there are two main types of digital audio / portable MP3 players, those that are based on some sort of flash memory, and those based on miniature hard drives. Currently, most flash-based drives are smaller than their hard drive-based counterparts, and they are more expensive at the higher-end of music storage.

Although hard drive-based players that support gigabytes of music are cheaper than flash-based drives (you may not even be able to get flash-based players that store the same amount of songs as hard drive-based players), one problem with hard drive-based players is that they are more prone to skipping.

While many newer hard drive-based players support anti-skip technology (and if you buy such a device, you should get this feature), realize that hard drives contain mechanical parts. If you keep such a player in your pocket while you walk or jog, the internal hard drive may get jolted, causing read errors and breaks in your music. Flash memory-based players contain fewer mechanical parts and are usually much less prone to skipping or shock-based damage.

What is P.I.M. (Print Image Matching)?

2005-12-22T02:56:00.000-08:00

In case you have ever heard the term P.I.M. or Print Image Matching when reading a digital camera advertisement and wondered what it meant, it is a technology developed by Epson to supposedly better recreate accurate colors when printing digital photos. Naturally this technology is supported only when printing photographs on certain Epson printers, but many digital cameras support this technology including some made by Casio, Minolta, Nikon, Olympus, Sony, and other well-known brands. For more information:

Print Image Matching (Epson) - http://www.printimagematching.com/

Let Someone Else Restore Your Photos

2005-12-22T02:38:00.000-08:00

Don't have the time or the patience to use or learn how to use digital photo editors to restore older pictures? Need help cleaning frayed edges, removing dust and scratches, or restoring detail?

Instead of spending money for classes or software, you may wish to leave photo restoration to others who have experience in the field.

The following companies found on the Internet claim to offer photo restoration for scanned photos. Note that results may vary and these companies are listed for informational purposes only.

American Photo Restoration - http://www.amerphotorestoration.com/

Bellamax - http://www.bellamax.com/

Lilac Digital - http://www.lilacdigital.com/

PhotoEdits.com - http://www.photoedits.com/

PhotoRepairShop(tm) - http://www.photorepairshop.com/

Adjust Redness to Warm Up Photographs

2005-12-22T02:33:00.000-08:00

If you've ever taken photographs, especially in the outdoors, that seem to be a little too 'cold' or dreary, you may want to consider warming them up. Many image editing programs let you adjust an image's color balance. What this means is that you can take away from an image's cool blueness and add some red or yellow to it for warmth.

For example, in Corel Photopaint, if I choose "Image" - "Adjust Color Balance", I can change, in small increments, the photograph's colors to use less cyan (turquoise) and more red. Even small changes can make a big difference in a photograph, brightening up a dull image.

Make a Photograph Look Old

2005-12-22T02:30:00.000-08:00

Have you ever seen those booths at tourist stops that claim to take your picture and give it an 'old timely' feel? You know; the ones in brown, with dust, noise, and scratches to give the photos an 'authentic' aging? You can do the same with most photo editing software. Here are some tips for making your photos look aged:

1. Find a photo that works. Don't take a photo of your family next to a modern skyscraper. Great effects can be created with photos of country landscapes or of historical structures, such as cannons or log cabins.

2. Give your colors a brownish tint. If you have a color balance tool, you can do this by turning your reds and yellows up at the expense of blues. Or, if your image software supports duotone, give your image a brownish tone.

3. Reduce your image's brightness and/or intensity. You want your photograph old and weathered, and such images should not look bright and sunny.

4. Choose an "Add Noise" filter, if you have one, to your image. Corel Photopaint, Adobe Photoshop, and other tools should have this option.

5. Use your photo software's "Dust and Scratch" tool, if applicable.

6. For a truly 'weathered' look, see if your photo software has a rain, snow, or fog filter. Apply a few touches to the photograph to make it seem like it has seen better days.

With these filters and the proper photo editing software, you can make just about any photo look 'timeless'. Just don't try passing off a photograph of a modern computer or sports car and claim you found it in your grandmother's attic!

Watch Image Size When Putting Photos Online

2005-12-22T01:08:00.000-08:00

SUMMARY: Always resize your digital camera photos before putting them online.

If you plan on sharing your digital camera photos on a webpage, please, please, PLEASE do not put full-size photos on your front page! Everyone does not have a high-speed Internet connection, and even those who do may not want to see a 3-megapixel image as soon as they visit your site.

Realize that even a 1 or 2-megapixel image contains more detail than what can fit on a computer monitor at once without scrolling, so your 3+ megapixel images are way too big to fit on a web page.

Use your imaging software to resample front-page images to a smaller resolution, say, 400x300 or better yet 200x150, then hyperlink the images to bigger photos in the 800x600 range. Let people know that clicking on your pictures will result in larger versions of the images being displayed.

Also, compress your photos using the JPG format. You may lose a little picture quality, but the images size will decrease dramatically if your photos were previously in an uncompress format, such as TIF, making them download and display quicker on visitors' machines.

Your Own Web Site: Patient Friend or Darkest Nightmare?

2005-12-22T01:03:00.000-08:00

Most everyone will agree, if you are going to do business online, you need your own web site. It can be a mini-site or a full blown multi-page mega-monster. These days, maybe you just need a blog.

There are those who have written entire books about how they made X amount of dollars with no web site, and no product of their own. That's entirely possible.

Having your own site may open up many possibilities that you could never have imagined. For many who embark upon their own web site adventure, it becomes a learning experience with no equal.

Your site will take on a personality of its own. You may see it as a very patient friend, waiting calmly for you to discover some little hidden function, which opens up a whole range of entirely new possibilities, and starts your thoughts racing - thinking about how to capitalize on that particular feature.

You may get a little careless, or too relaxed with it, then bam! Right between the eyes. Oh, no, you've just wiped out your index page by mistake. Happily, you're not just enthusiastic, but also careful. You have a copy on your hard drive, so that's easy to fix.

Anyway, it's fun, can be profitable, and most certainly could feed that creative flair in all of us. Others may look at it as a nightmare. I guess it depends on your frame of mind.

To prevent your experience from becoming a nightmare there are a few basic things that will help.

1. Research domain names carefully. Don't just pick one you like. You want it to be something a lot of people are searching for, but hopefully has low to medium competition.

Use Wordtracker's FREE trial:http://wordtracker.com

http://www.google.com search will give you an idea about competition for any particular keyword.

Use Overture's search box to find how many times your keyword was searched on last month:

http://inventory.overture.com/d/searchinventory/suggestion

2. Don't get fooled into paying too much for a domain name, unless it's really a special one that fits your purpose and your niche like a glove. Domain names can be had, starting at around $9 or $10 at:

http://www.godaddy.com
or
http://www.teknondomains.com

3. Research again when you go to get your actual domain, the space for you to tack your sign (your domain name) on to. Especially check storage and bandwidth allowed, and of course price.

4. My advice is to use a template to build your actual web pages. You can find them all over the 'Net FREE!

http://www.ibdprince.com - has all kinds of webmaster goodies, including really great looking CSS templates.

http://www.diyminisite.com - templates and videos about mini site creation - click the "not yet a member" link to join. It's FREE. Then go to the download area. No strings.

5. When you actually start creating your web pages, take care that the HTML you use is in line with what the search engine web spiders require.

Get a FREE copy of "7 days to Massive Web Site Traffic." It outlines the steps to a web page that can rank high in the search engines, and even goes beyond just your web pages, to tell you "the rest of the story." I thoroughly enjoyed it.

...There used to be a link directly to the ebook, but now the only way to get a copy is to go to:

http://www.seoelite.com

Scroll through the sales pitch, then close the page. The "7 Days" popup appears. It sounds like a lot of trouble, but believe me, it's worth it.

6. Don't load your site down with slow loading banners and images. Use interlaced low-res images that have been optimized for the web.

7. Write your copy, then play editor: write, hack, rewrite, rewrite, rewrite, until it is crisp, clear, to the point, and utterly understandable.

Repeat your strongest point or benefit a number of times (at least three). Some people just don't get it the first time or two.

Spread your text out a bit. Don't double space, but use very short paragraphs, and lots of headings with some space between the heading and the paragraph.

Target your audience. Don't talk about network marketing to golfers. They may be interested in network marketing, but they probably got to your site via a search for a golf product and that's what they're looking for.

Did you advertise a network marketing opportunity in a golfing ezine? That's acceptable in the "paper and ink" world, but could be spam online.

Keep your fonts constant throughout your site. Variety may be the "spice of life" but can really look lousy on a web page. You can vary the size a bit, and throw in a little color, but stay conservative with the type style.

Know your target audience, and be sure not to speak (write) above their heads. Use words they will understand without Webster's help. You may get by with writing a little below their level, but never above it.

Highlight important selling words and phrases with bolding, italics, underlining, and color. Just don't overdo it.

Don't forget, purchases are never made on logic, but on emotion. Use copy that is designed to trigger an emotional response, such as a sense of loss, one of the strongest: "If you wait, this offer may no longer be available at this price. Get it now at this ridiculously low price, and it's yours forever."

8. The most important point, that will probably do more to promote your online success than any other is this: Pick a niche! Do not get sucked into selling network marketing programs and how-to information, ebooks and such, about online marketing. That's what EVERYBODY is doing. The competition will KILL you.

Find something you are interested in, research it, and if necessary learn it. You are so much better off starting out by learning a niche like "19th Century Knitting" or "17th Century Scrimshaw" than you are jumping into the cauldron of poor souls caught up in the nightmare of selling ebooks that are being given away FREE all over the internet.

Why do so many do it? There was no one to tell them "don't touch that, it will burn you." There's about a million or more marketers out there telling you, "Come on in, the water's fine." So you do, only to find they just wanted to sell you something.

Don't fall for it! It's hard to change direction once you get up momentum, so start out right.

Take Care When Transferring Images

2005-12-22T00:59:00.000-08:00

Watch out for this trap when transferring images from your digital camera to your computer.

When you transfer images from your digital camera to your PC, take great care in that you do not overwrite images currently on your PC.

In most instances where one transfers images from a camera to a PC, the same filenames are used when you transfer different sets of files. Thus, you see that if you don't change the image filenames on your computer, or if you don't make sure you transfer images to different PC directories, your photos on your PC can be overwritten by accident.

5 steps to help avoid instant message viruses

2005-12-21T09:01:00.000-08:00

As with most threats on the Internet, you can help keep yourself safe by taking basic precautions. If you know how to avoid e-mail viruses, you'll already be familiar with many of these steps.

Be careful downloading files in IM. Never open, accept, or download a file in IM from someone you don't know. If the file comes from someone you do know, don't open it unless you know what the file is and you were expecting it. Contact the sender by e-mail, phone, or some other method to confirm that what they sent was not a virus.
Update your Windows software. Visit Microsoft Update to scan your computer and install any high-priority updates that are offered to you. If you have Automatic Updates enabled, the updates are delivered to you when they are released, but you have to make sure you install them. For more information, visit the Protect Your PC site.
Make sure you're using an updated version of your IM software. Using the most up-to-date version of your IM software can better protect your computer against viruses and spyware. If you're using MSN Messenger, install the updated version by visiting the MSN Messenger Web site and clicking the Download Now! button.
Use antivirus software and keep it updated. Antivirus software can help to detect and remove IM viruses from your computer, but only if you keep the antivirus software current. If you've purchased a subscription from an antivirus software company, your antivirus software may update itself when you're connected to the Internet.
Use antispyware software and keep it updated. Some IM viruses may install spyware or other unwanted software on your computer. Antispyware software can help to protect your computer from spyware and remove any spyware you may already have. If you don't have antispyware software, you can download the new Microsoft Windows AntiSpyware (Beta) or another spyware removal tool.

Do the Differences in CPUs Really Matter?

2005-12-21T07:46:00.000-08:00

PU manufacturing is one of the most competitive areas of computer world. In the end, the overall performance of your laptop or your desktop depends on your central processing unit. Parallel to the demands of the users, we can say that CPUs traveled a long way from 386s to P4s and AMDs.

The cache is generally the most decisive factor in the tradeoff equation between the price and performance. Considering the L2 cache on some of the chips, you can easily understand that Athlon, P4 and PIII, having 256K or more L2 cache are the once with higher performance, in other words power chips.

Looking at the budget chips, you immediately notice that Celeron has 128K and the Duron only has 64K. Celeron is actually almost like a PIII with half the cache disabled. These numbers shows that the main budget issue for CPU manufacturers is to put enough cash on the chip.

You should consider the difference between the bus speeds: in the case of Athlon and P4, the bus speed between the Cache and the CPU can be 200 or 400 MHz respectively. This can give your system a major boost when you are using cache intensive utilities. The new CPUs are coming out with quad speed pushes and base 200MHz which results with 800MHz FSB like the new P4.

The numbers you would see under the name Micron in a CPU comparison table is basically the size of the transistors. As the number get smaller, the manufacturers can put more and more on the CPU die. The smaller transistors you have on your CPU, the smaller the CPU die becomes. The smaller the CPU die, less power is required and less heat is produced.

The CPU instruction set is the total code which tells your CPU how to process its data. The more sets you have on your CPU, the more efficient it is most likely to be. However, on this point Intel (Pentium) and AMD does not follow the same path. Intel made the first attempt to improve the basic instruction set by adding the MMX support for multimedia.

The difference's between the CPU's are getting smaller as each company sees the advantages of their rivals technology and tries to either use or emulate it. It is really hard to choose which one is better. So a good advice would be let your wallet decide which CPU your system will use.

Digital Photos and Photo Labs - 6 Things to Consider

2005-12-21T05:05:00.000-08:00

Active Listening Skill Tips for Interviews

2005-12-21T04:21:00.000-08:00

During a job interview, a potential employer asks, Can you take on more than one project at a time? If you respond, Yes, you may want to rethink that answer. According to Dynamic Listening: Interview Skills, a computer based training module from Mindleaders in Columbus, Ohio, you should avoid one-word or one-sentence answers.

Be specific. And speak money-language. Heres a preferred answer to the question above, In general, depending upon the type and length of projects, I believe in efficiently handling more than one project at a time. This could save a company as much as 30%.
Lets check out the definition of active listening skills and learn more to help with your next interview

Active Listening Skills

Just as everyday speaking is not the same as public speaking; listening is not the same as active listening. Active listening means two things: analysis and response to the message being communicated.

An active listener maintains eye contact and good posture with a slight lean towards the speaker. During the interview, the listener nods, smiles and takes notes. Be ware, however, that a daydreamer or pseudolistener, can adopt these behaviors. So a listeners physical response does not necessarily mean good listening skills are at work.

Nonverbal communication, more than just the nod or smile, is important. Gestures, appearance, timing, voice responses, facial expressions, spatial distance all affect how the speaker (or interview) interprets the listener. So a person preparing for a job or work project interview should consider the cultural climate and norms of society of the interviewer. In short, perceived active listening based on nonverbal signals can vary from culture to culture.

Especially in this age of such great cultural diversity, be courteous of others regardless of cultural, sexual or societal backgrounds. If you are a woman and get to a door before a man, open it. If your interviewer doesnt speak English very well and looks puzzled at your words, go back and explain yourself again in different words and re-establish a good communication exchange.

Note: a major part of active listening is paraphrasing. Its not the same as summarizing. A summary is a shortened version of the original message, focusing on the main point. To paraphrase means to re-state the message in your own words.

Active listeners take notes by paraphrasing or restating what the speaker said in their own words, and summarizing main points. A good listener is not the same thing as a silent listener. Good listeners ask questions, even something like, Is this an accurate paraphrase of you have said? to let the speaker know that you understand the message being communicated.

Shocking Facts about Updating Your PC Operating System

2005-12-21T03:09:00.001-08:00

Many everyday Internet Users do not know why they must keep their computer Operating Systems Up-To-Date - and many don’t even know what an Operating System is!
From "ignorance is bliss" to "surprise attack and disaster" - how many thousands of Internet users have experienced this frustration and grief?

This raises the obvious question: �Why haven't they prepared to avoid it?�

The startling fact is that there are many long term Internet users who have never even considered updating their Operating Systems and protective Safe-ware.

Perhaps the complexity of it all contributes to what might be described as User apathy - or indifference and a lack of enthusiasm toward the following:

* The news of yet another vulnerability or patch process.
* The potential damage to computer, personal information and reputation - i.e. the "It can't happen to me" attitude.
* Their own abilities - i.e. I’m too old, too dumb, too whatever - to learn how to fix a computer without breaking something.
* Updating - i.e. �My computer came with an anti-virus program, so why does it need to be updated now?�

The sad fact is that the lack of confidence people have in their ability to build a defense often leads to a reluctance to even accept the reality of Cyber Threats.

Some of the lesser-experienced Internet users rationalize their lack of action with pessimism, even defeatism. Human nature often supports these excuses with defensive attitudes and mis-beliefs like:

* False sense of disaster support - �My nephew, neighbor, son or whoever, is a computer whizz. They�ll be able to fix the problem if anything ever happens.�
* Scepticism - �All this talk about viruses is just so the "news people" will have information for publishing, and so the software manufactureres can scare people into buying more of their products.�
* Ignorance (of the extent of deception, skills and sophistication that the malicious hackers have attained).
* Disbelief (that personal computer might be infected and used by others to spread malicious viruses and worms). �My computer seems to be working ok - a little slow, maybe, but it is getting pretty old.�
* Overwhemed (too many choices with firewalls, anti-virus, anti-spam, anti-spyware, Trojan removers). "Why do I need all of these and which ones should I use?" or "Do I really need to update my Operating System, my anti virus, spam, spyware stuff?"...I’ll just never learn how to do all of this.
* Expense (How much will all this cost and is it really necessary?)
* Fatalism - �Hey, if it’s going to happen, it will, and I’ll just junk my computer and get another one. Mine’s getting kind of old, anyway.�

Here, then, are the Shocking facts about updating PC Operating Systems.
There are many unaware Internet users who have been online for years, but lack in these ares:

* They don’t know what ‘Updating’ really means.
* They have never responded to the popup message associated with the icon in the Task tray that announces new Windows Updates.
* They have never clicked on the Windows Update icon in the Program Start menu.
*They have never visited the Microsoft Windows Update web page at http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com/.
* They have never updated their PC Operating Systems.

Even if they have been able to navigate to the Microsoft Update webpage, many just throw up their hands in despair at the overwhelming number of choices and unknowns, such as:

* Choosing what to update from the long list of options.
* Waiting for Windows to check the registry for available updates.
* Deciphering the Update descriptions (and instructions).
* Selecting or Removing the necessary options.
* Starting the download.

And oftentimes, many people have never even used the Windows Help information to find out how to update their computer Operating Systems.

How many self taught or untrained computer users are going to persevere through all of the hassle described above? Is it any wonder so many computers become infected? The criminal Hackers building their bot and zombie armies have nearly an open and undefended playing field; many are using it every day to steal money and identities.

So, what is the solution to this problem?

If individuals with computer "understanding" would help and assist others with less knowledge, there would probably be less of a problem.

Nearly everyone who has faithfully kept their PC Operating Systems and Safe-ware up to date surely has family members and friends who could benefit from an hour or so of basic instructions. This would make it much more difficult for the criminal Hackers to compromise another persons computer.

Hacker's would eventually be faced with a growing number of adequately protected computers, educated Users and hopefully would finally give-up trying!

Where Would We Be Withouth Flash Memory?

2005-12-21T01:43:00.000-08:00

Flash memory technologies are the valuable parts of modern life. Most people use them to play MP3s, while some use them to store digital photos and the rest to transport data. Using Flash memory is economic in many ways such as size, power consumption, capacity and durability. The technology world was upside down when HP declared that they will be using Flash hard drives for their newly released laptops.

You see examples of Flash memory in the BIOS chip of your computer which lets the user to upgrade the version of BIOS or renew the old version. CompactFlash and SmartMedia are mostly found in digital cameras and memory sticks, being the most popular ones. They are generally used to transfer data from one computer to another. One should also name the game consoles like Playstation while talking about the Flash memory.

Flash memory is considered a solid state storage device. Solid state means that there are no moving parts inside it like the disks in hard-disk or the floppy-drives. Everything is electronic instead of mechanical. Flash memory is a type of EEPROM chip. It has a grid of columns and rows with a cell that has two transistors at each intersection. The two transistors are separated from each other by a thin oxide layer. One of the transistors is known as a floating gate, and the other one is the control gate. The floating gate's only link to the row, or wordline, is through the control gate. As long as this link is in place, the cell has a value of 1. To change the value to a 0 requires a complex process called Fowler-Nordheim tunneling. So you can simply say that everything in a Flash memory is controlled electronically. However, unlike RAM when the power supply goes to 0, the memory state stays the same. That explains the fact that your auto radio actually uses RAM drive to store the radio stations rather then flash memory.

Going back to the news coming from HP, Flash memory will be used in hard disks. If you think about the cost aspects of this decision: the power consumption in the computer will be much less, the noise factor will be much better than in the laptops with usual HDs. The heating of the computer will be only related with the CPU and Mainboard and HD will not be a factor anymore. Simply imagine a computer that works with a USB stick.

The Flash hard drive seems like an innovative idea and will be most likely used or emulated in different manufacturing companies. New generation Flash hard drives will not only improve the �defects� of the usual hard drives but also increase the data transfer rates drastically.

Product Development for Home Based Businesses

2005-12-20T04:15:00.000-08:00

Developing products can be a challenge in the home based business environment. Where do you go for a laboratory to create and test new product lines? Where do you turn for new packaging and marketing? Where do you turn for help?

You're there. YOU are the crack team, as Donald Trump says. So forget about looking around. You're it. Here's what to do for your own product development.

First find a need. You want sales, so find something people want. How? Communication is the key. Ask your friends, your contacts, your business associates, your clients. See what they could use to make their lives easier. Poll them, survey them, email them, call them. Post questions on forums and chat rooms. Be like television's Lieutenant Colombo (or the original Pink Panther) and enjoy the search, but don't give up until you get your answers.

Second, get organized NOW, if you aren't already. Take good notes as you go along. Keep organized, well-labeled computer and print folders and files in handy places. Use an organizer with a calendar if you need to. Third, create a product based around the need you discovered above. No need to be Einstein or invent the wheel. Search and find others in the industry to help and see how others did their product creation before you. Then copy their methods not �exactly�, but rather �similarly follow in their footsteps.� I.E. read trade journals, search the Internet, review archived magazine articles, ask your local librarian to help you and research �how to� get your idea off the ground based upon how others have done it in the past. Then team up, share ideas, share resources, share marketing funds and share revenue, etc. with those experienced. Reach out and don't be afraid to find help and share. No need to go it alone or be greedy.

Third, along the way, get legal or other authoritative help as needed. Start with the Small Business Administration and find out if you need special permits, licensing, fees, contracts, legal structure, etc. Comparison shop, if possible, and get set up properly.

Fourth, there are plenty of ideas to go around. After one success, you can move on and duplicate it again and again. Do it. And give back to the community. Help others get their businesses established and growing.

In summary, product creation can be challenging. But the results can be so rewarding. So take the plunge and forge ahead!

5 Surefire Ways to Increase Sales

2005-12-18T07:53:00.000-08:00

The Internet has changed how people do their business. Even small business owners are able to reach global market inexpensively nowadays, selling anything from apparel, collectibles, to computer software, service and coaching.

The core of every business is sales. Many of the strategies to increase sales offline are applicable online, but not all of them. On the Internet, everybody can effort to fail fast and learn from it. Better still, after years of testing and tracking what works online, people can just learn from other people's experience and cut the learning curve tremendously.

Here are 5 of the surefire ways to increase sales:

1. Establish a sound affiliate program
If it is just another affiliate program, then don't expect to have different results. Focus on building a sound affiliate program, with the tools and materials to support affiliates to promote a program easily. After all, affiliates work like clockwork and should be seen as a team. Provide them with the right promotion tools and they will more likely promote the program.

Give the customers an option to join the affiliate program after purchase. Satisfied customers are one of the best marketing for any business. Spread the good words through word of mouth. Best of all, they are paid just for doing that.

2. Follow-up after first purchase
The hardest task in any business is acquiring the first sale. Make sure that capturing customers' name and email addresses are the least information gathered from a sale. With that information in hand, follow-up with existing customers, probably through an automated mechanism like timely autoresponder.

This effort has been proven to decrease refund on products and increase customers' satisfaction. Every once in a while, mention a related product that might be of interest to the customers. Write a review and provide real results. Such promotion is extremely inexpensive, but very effective in practice. The product can be anything, including an affiliate program.

3. Use up-sell technique
Just before a customer check out to the payment gateway, prompt for optional upgrade to the better, bigger, or nicer product for a fairly steep discount, preferably not available elsewhere.

A certain number of customers will choose the option, which translates into additional sales, almost without additional effort.

4. Provide discount coupons
Coupons urge customers to come back and shop. Promotional coupons work for both advertising and some forms of joint venture. Customers love to know that they get lower price for what they buy. Coupons make it so real and tangible.

5. Cross-promote with other related products
There is no limit as to how this could be accomplished. Joint venture with other business or even competitors is feasible as long as it brings a win-win situation.

One example would be to give away sample of other product or service as part of the whole package. As long as the sample is relevant to the customer, this promotion could only be seen as an added value instead of pure advertising.

There are many other tactics to increase sales but above tips have been proven to work again and again. Choose one at a time and take action. Good luck.

Money Saving Solutions

2005-12-18T04:25:00.000-08:00

Wouldnt it be great to get a little help with your money handling? Here are a few simply solutions to try.

1. COUPONS These are not just for food! Check online, in print media and in your postal and email boxes for money saving coupons to use with your next computer, software, bookstore, office supply store or any store purchase. Enjoy a social life, too. Head to the fitness center, take your spouse out to eat and get your pet groomed all with coupons. Plan ahead and keep the in a drawer or specially marked container. Purge monthly or quarterly. Trade with friends, neighbors, co-workers, church and organization member, colleges and family.

2. INCENTIVES Many credit cards, restaurants, movie theaters, stores and other places offer incentive programs. Find one or more that fit into your purchasing plans and earn things like free air travel miles, movies and pop corn, gasoline, meals, a percentage back in the form of a check, gift certificates and more back in exchange for your participating in their program. Keep up with the times, too. If your child is grown, no need to use your Toys-R-Use Visa and get back certificates for toys any longer. Call the bank and see which other programs they have, ask your friends which ones they use, surf the Internet for new offers - and switch.

3. ALTERNATIVES Look for alternative solutions before you spend. Often there are generic packages of the products you want (items with no brand names) and there are home remedies and local pharmacists to ask for alternatives to expensive medications and treatments. And many places offer discounts for package deals, like family haircuts instead of individual ones.

4. ATTITUDE Dont focus on what you dont have. Instead, focus on what you do have. Make lemonade out of those lemons; recycle what you can, reuse what you can, donate what you can. No need to have new things all the time, or even part of the time. Be happy with what you have now and make it work for you! Head to the library for free help in thousands in books that can show you step by step how to get exactly what you want.

So look before you leap to grab your wallet. Take a time out, sip some tea and plan ahead with coupons, incentive programs and alternative buying solutions. Make your money stretch just a little bit farther and give yourself a raise!

Spam and Phishing, Europe and the USA against the scourge

2005-12-17T07:52:00.000-08:00

From the analysis of Trend Micro, a company that specializes in computer security, you can clearly see that the year 2004 was a record year for the distribution of computerized viruses: 30 attacks, 28 of which medium risk and two high risk. Three worms held the first position: Bagle, Mydoom and Netsky, which, together with their variants, were the cause of 25 of the registered attacks.

Email was the preferred channel of diffusion of the several hackers, but others chose to channel illegally to create more, serious damage. The indiscriminate sending of email messages and/or newsletters, Spam, without the consent of the receiver, is illegal. In some countries (the most developed ones), the authorities established that: to send email published without the consent of the receiver is illegal. If this activity is done systematically for profit, you also violate a criminal norm and could be reported to the judicial authorities.

There are several sanctions, and in the worst case, imprisonment. The considerable damage that these activities have done to companies and people has been enormous moreover another tragedy called Phishing, the name given to the system that captures information, like passwords or other personal information, used by many hackers pretend to be reliable people with a real need for information send false emails containing eBay, Pay Pal graphics and official logos and also offer Banking and Credit Card services, asking you to fill in a form enclose in the same email or on a web page with your personal data, and often with your passwords or Credit Card numbers. The form has nothing to do with the official organism imitated in the mail so the password or Credit Card number ends up in the data bank of the hacker who had sent the false email. The experts define this illegal practice as a form of "Social Engineering".

The latest news reported on this issue is that in order to fight the main threats coming through the web: Spam and Phishing, Europe and the United States have promoted two very distinct initiatives that will start at the same time. The intention is to defeat that virtual monster that has caused damage worth millions of Euro year after year, and according to the experts, will involve a considerable number of people. "Safer Internet Plus" is the project carried forward in Europe. The main target of the project is to beat Spam. The American project on the other hand is called "Digital PhishNet" and is based on the collaboration of several institutions, such as the FBI and private companies. The target is to identify and to bring to justice those people responsible for online fraud, thanks above all to the technique of Phishing.

Glossary
Computerized virus, means small programs able to change clone itself, self send in order to damage or make a network or a single machine vulnerable.

Spamming means the indiscriminate sending of email and/or newsletter messages, without the consent of the receiver.

According to the definition in "Wikipedia" the word Phishing is the capture of personal information, like passwords, personal information, the hacker hiding himself as a trustworthy person with a real need for that information. It is a form of "Social Engineering".

Social Engineering is the most simple and reliable means of obtaining information that you could not learn otherwise for example username or even your personal data (address, telephone number, etc).

Find Your Niche - the Internet Marketer's Goldmine

2005-12-16T07:51:00.000-08:00

If you haven't heard the word 'niche' being batted around by Internet Marketers then you haven't been listening. Finding a niche has become the antidote to competing in overly saturated online markets.

What is a niche?

According to Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary a niche is described as "a place, employment, status, or activity for which a person or thing is best fitted... a specialized market".

Have you noticed that despite the closing of many businesses in these harsh economic times, the local hobby train store is still around? That the 'hole-in-the-wall' eatery is thriving? Or that trends such as scrapbooking can start with a bang and still close within a year when four similar businesses start up in the same area?

The online business world reflects the same trends as experienced in the offline world - often with faster turnover and startup rates. Those who promote a product or site that targets a small, select audience can tap into a market that is otherwise not being served. Despite the limitations of the client base, the targeted nature of the business creates a devoted and active market - the aim of any business.

HOW DO I FIND A NICHE?

Finding a niche requires diligent research. Whether you have access to software that harvests and sorts information or you take a manual approach you must first start with ideas.

With a pen and paper (or computer, if that's more comfortable) brainstorm a list of businesses, products and industries. Create a list of keywords and phrases you think would be used by individuals looking for these items online.

Use a software program such as Wordtracker or a free resource such as the Overture Keyword Selector Tool to find keywords for your niche that have a high amount of traffic.

Although a program like Wordtracker makes it easy to find details such as how many sites compete for that market, you can also do your own research.

Concentrate your attention on question phrases such as "how do I..." or "where can I...". These questions will clue you into potential markets that need servicing.

Next, look in Google Answers. Type one of your keywords into the search area. What questions are being asked and how much are people willing to pay for answers? If you find a group of keywords with a high number of questions then enter these words in your browser's search engine.

What sites come up? Do they provide answers or solutions to the problem? How are they making money? Can you see an opportunity to service these individuals?

Finding a niche can open the door to a profitable online business. Research the market and be certain that your product or service is valuable to this group. Find forums or groups that target this audience and pay close attention to their concerns.

If you can help these people you WILL make money. The best of both worlds!

To All Internet Marketers - How To Get My Business

2005-12-16T07:49:00.000-08:00

More and more people are realizing that the Internet offers great potential to set up a healthy business for pennies on the dollar. This is good news for internet marketers - but it also means that they need to lift their game.

Why? Because the would-be "netpreneur" has access to way more training than ever before. It's possible to get up to speed very quickly on what is needed to get started online. This, in turn, means that people quickly recognize what offers true value and what does not. They see so many sales letters that they become, to a certain degree, immune to the typical hype. They're willing to spend - but they want value for money. They want to be treated like intelligent and discerning adults.

So here's a message to all 'gurus' (and aspiring gurus) who are keen to get their share of the dollars waiting to be sent flying their way via cyberspace.

1) What does it take to make people want to buy "you" rather than some other internet marketer?

2) What might make people want to unsubscribe from your list?

3) And what pushes them into asking for a refund?

What Makes People Want to Buy?

- They buy if they can see that a product will give them new knowledge and understanding.

- They buy if the purchase will speed up business growth.

- They buy if a product will automate a task that eats into their time. (People quickly learn to spend their time on marketing and product creation, rather than repetitive tasks.)

Tip: Once newbies have been exposed to a few sales pages, it's not long before they learn to look beyond the sales hype. They study a sales letter carefully to work out what the product will "really" offer them. (Do they need this? Or will it duplicate something else they own?)

They also learn to look for value for money. Some higher-priced products are worth every cent. Some cheaper products add very little to what they already know.

(Note: Savvy internet marketers already realize that if they put together online interviews offering truly valuable information, they are far more likely to attract and keep new customers. A quick example: Jane Smith listens to a one-hour audio interview on search engine optimization and traffic. She finds out some really useful information she has not so far heard anywhere else. She decides that this guy knows what he's talking about and shells out a couple of hundred dollars for his products.)

What Makes People Want to Unsubscribe from a List?

- Getting four identical emails trying to sell them the same product, because the sender hasn't figured out how to move them from one list to another after they buy.

- Getting a 'canned' email sounding full of excitement about a new product or service - which turns out to be a duplicate of the email they get from six other marketers who are affiliates for the same product.

- Getting email from a product creator about anything under the sun because you bought XXX product from them. If your customers sign up for a newsletter, they expect mailings.

What Makes People Want to Ask for a Refund?

In the past, buyers tended to shrug and write off a bad purchase. But increasingly, people are prepared to stand up for their rights. If they feel they have not received value for money, they will ask for a refund.

So what makes them decide to ask for their money back?

- Software that doesn't work as it is supposed to.

- Physical products (CDs, DVDs) that don't work on their systems.

- An e-book that is full of content easily found in an hour's net-surfing.

- An e-book that has skimped on content or that has been poorly written.

- An e-book that not only skimps on content but is full of links to up-sells to get the 'really valuable' information, or is full of affiliate links.

The last case, an e-book full of affiliate links or links to an up-sell...is something you should be giving away free as part of your viral marketing campaign. Charge for it and you risk your reputation for being a source of quality information.

Other things that bite into your customer's valuable time.

- MP3's that are streamed from a website rather than being downloadable.

- e-books that are in ".exe" format only, so the customer can't print them out in one 'hit' (and can't access them on a Mac computer).

Give your clients anything that they can listen to or read away from the computer. Most of them spend enough hours a day at the keyboard already. They'd rather load an audio interview
into their MP3 players and listen while they go for a walk or relax in the sun. They'd prefer toprint out an e-book and read it or mark it up while sitting in an easy chair.

Please, please don't tether them to the computer!

And finally, about those "name squeeze" pages. People are very quickly getting tired of having to give up their email addresses just to get to a sales page. Do you want them to buy or not? These days, unless there's a huge buzz around the Net and they want to see what it's all about, prospective customers are just as likely to click the 'back' button on their browser, or close the window and leave.

After all, there's always another internet marketer waiting to sell them a product. Probably one very similar to yours. Marketers who respect their client's time and intelligence are the ones who will get their loyalty - and their cash.

Tips For Designing Your Home Office

2005-12-15T07:48:00.000-08:00

Setting up a home office is one of the most important tasks you will face when you make the decision to work from your own home. Your home office can be a corner of your kitchen or living room or, if space permits, a former spare bedroom.

Size is less important that functionality. When deciding on where to set up the nerve center of your business, there are some factors you need to consider.

Is the area well lit?

Proper lighting is extremely important. Spending hours at a time in a dimly lit work space can create eyestrain which, after long periods of time, could lead to more serious problems with your vision.

Are there plenty of electrical outlets?

Take into consideration what appliances you will have in your work space. Your computer system will require an outlet for your cpu, monitor, scanner, printer, speakers (sometimes) and other ancillary equipment you may have.

Is the area well ventilated and dust free?

All of that computer equipment needs to breath to remain cool and functioning properly. If you have ever fried a computer you know how important it is to keep the fan clean and dust free.

Do you have telephone access?

In addition to having a telephone handy for business purposes, you will also require telephone access for your modem. You may also consider a separate telephone line for your business. It is much easier to track telephone business expenses for tax purposes if you have a separate phone line. Its also important that your clients can reach you. If your clients have to compete with your teenagers telephone habits, chances are they will call someone else. Make certain that this separate line is set up to receive phone calls while you are online. Most major telephone companies now offer that service. You may pay a few extra dollars a month for it, but it will pay for itself over the long haul.

How much foot traffic is there liable to be?

You want your office to be as isolated as possible. Can you imagine trying to speak with a client or figure out html code with kids screaming in the background? Not a very professional picture. If you have no choice but to have your office in a high traffic area, adjust your work schedule to coincide with family activities. Sit your family down and explain the importance of your work and why you need their cooperation. It wont always work out that way but at least its a step in the right direction.

It goes without saying that you need to have normal office supplies. Even if your work is online you still need the pens, pencils, note pads and so on.

One of the stickiest challenges you may encounter comes from your friends. People who do not work from home seem to think that if you do, you have all the time in the world to visit. This can become a major problem if you do not set the parameters. Setting out the ground rules is important to the overall health and well being of your business. Let your friends and extended family know your business hours and explain to them that you are not available during those periods of time. The sooner you do this the better.

Conduct your business in a professional manner. Just because you work at home does not mean that you should throw out the rule book. Maybe you have read the humorous comment about working in your pajamas. It sounds good in sales messages, but the truth is you are much better off if you awaken in the morning and prepare yourself for your work day as if you were still trekking off to the office, because you are.

You will be much better prepared to focus and get down to business if you dress the part. That doesnt mean that you need to squeeze into the normal office attire. It does mean that you set the standards for your business and much of that has to do with mindset and self-image. Dressing comfortably is a one of the serendipities of working at home, but you will be much better prepared for business if you dress the part.

I have one final word of advice for the new work at home entrepreneur. Having your office right down the hall can be a blessing, but it can also be a curse. Remember to take time out for yourself. Most people believe that working at home comes with certain privileges, and it does. However, it can also become all-consuming and take total control of your life.

Dont allow that to happen. Create your schedule and live by it. Make sure you turn off the lights, shut down the computer and go home at the end of your work day.

Ham Radio - Passion for Communication

2005-12-14T07:47:00.000-08:00

Ham radio has a long and important history. As society and technology continue to move on to new things, a small segment continues to enjoy the hobby as well as to educate and help during disasters.

WHAT IS HAM RADIO?

Ham radio is the the term coined for amateur radio enthusiasts who learn to operate radios as a hobby or for practical use. Hams - as operators are called - can use various methods for transmitting messages including Morse code via telegraph, voice transmission via radio or messages through a computer. New methods of transmitting television allow for images to be received around the world by hams. Some hams have contributed to the development of new technologies for other uses.

The term 'ham' has unknown origin although there are several theories.

WHO USES HAM RADIO?

Ham radio operators can be anyone - doctors, homemakers, truck drivers - who enjoys communicating with new friends. Hams can talk across town or around the world.

Ham radio was used by the military in the World Wars and by ships. The well known 'SOS' is just one of the codes that operators use to relay messages to one another.

In emergencies ham radio operators volunteer to assist with transmitting messages when normal communications are unavailable.

Hams are all over the world - even in space! While in orbit or on the space station astronauts have spoken with other operators as well as children, teachers and parents. The program is called ARISS, Amateur Radio on the International Space Station.

Hams are young and old, men and women and of every background and occupation.

WHAT DO YOU NEED TO START?

In the United States you must obtain a license from the FCC (Federal Communications Commission).

To be licensed by the FCC you must pass an exam. The exam is administered by a volunteer ham operator and you are then mailed your license. You can often find websites or groups where you can locate a tutor who will answer questions or offer instruction before you take your exam. One such resource is the ARRL website (www.arl.org). The ARRL is the National Association for Amateur Radio and provides training and resources for getting started as well as updates and news for the ham radio community.

HOW MANY HAMS ARE THERE?

The ARRL site claims over 170,000 members. FCC licenses have been issued to over 600,000 individuals in the United States and there are over 3,000,000 hams in Japan and many more throughout the world according to statistics found at www.ah0a.org.

With so many people to talk to, there are even competitions to see how far away you can transmit and many other events within the community.

The History of the WWW and HTML

2005-12-12T07:43:00.000-08:00

When you are surfing through the web you generally see some pages that are not displayed properly, the frames become all mixed up and the content become unreadable. Many surfers think that it is a problem of coding and the blame incompetent coders. Actually, if you feel better placing blame, it belongs with the greedy program distributors like Microsoft and Sun Systems which turned the great educational idea of Tim Berners-Lee into a competition area and a complex language not having a standard form.

Tim Berners-Lee is the inventor of the Web. In 1989, Tim was working in a computing services section of CERN when he came up with the concept (web); at the time he had no idea that it would be implemented on such an enormous scale. Particle physics research often involves collaboration among institutes from all over the world. Tim had the idea of enabling researchers from remote sites in the world to organize and pool together information. But far from simply making available a large number of research documents as files that could be downloaded to individual computers; he suggested that you could actually link the text in the files themselves.

In other words, there could be cross-references from one research paper to another. This would mean that while reading one research paper, you could quickly display part of another paper that holds directly relevant text or diagrams. Documentation of a scientific and mathematical nature would thus be represented as a web of information held in electronic form on computers across the world. This, Tim thought, could be done by using some form of hypertext, some way of linking documents together by using buttons on the screen, which you simply clicked on to jump from one paper to another.

Tims simple but effective idea turned out to be the greatest communication device of humanity even if it was not supported by big companies and manufacturers. For instance, Hewlett-Packard, in common with many other large computer companies, was quite unconvinced that the Internet would be a success; indeed, the need for a global hypertext system simply passed them by. For many large corporations, the question of whether or not any money could be made from the Web was unclear from the outset.

Later, especially after Mosaic, the first web browser was released; the competition between the companies became more obvious. The later version of Mosaic in competition with the Microsoft Internet Explorer added new features to the HTML language like n-compass and active-x controls respectively. Meanwhile, the World Wide Web Consortium was formed to fulfill the potential of the Web through the development of open standards. They had a strong interest in HTML. Just as an orchestra insisting on the best musicians, the consortium recruited many of the best-known names in the Web community headed up by Tim Berners-Lee. During 1995, all kinds of new HTML tags emerged. Some, like the BGCOLOR attribute of the BODY element and FONT FACE, which control stylistic aspects of a document, found themselves in the black books of the academic engineering community. You're not supposed to be able to do things like that in HTML, they would protest. In the end, the technology of web was for the pure purpose of science and technology. It was not supposed to turn into a multimedia tool . It was their belief that such things as text color, background texture, font size and font face were definitely outside the scope of a language when their only intent was to specify how a document would be organized.

While the W3 Consortium was working on already the HTML 3, the web design was benefiting the competition between the Netscape and IE. Even for the good intentions of the consortium, the big corporations insisted on creating their own derivatives for HTML. This was creating many compatibility problems. Finally, following the success of the November, 1995 meeting, the World Wide Web Consortium formed the HTML Editorial Review Board to help with the standardization process. This board consisted of representatives from IBM, Microsoft, Netscape, Novell, Softquad and the W3 Consortium, and did its business via telephone conference and email exchanges, meeting approximately once every three months. Its aim was to collaborate and agree upon a common standard for HTML, thus putting an end to the era when browsers each implemented a different subset of the language. The bad fairy of incompatibility was to be banished from the HTML kingdom forever, or one could hope so, perhaps.

The incompatibility was not banished but was at least minimized. However, HTML kept on growing and the last versions like the dynamic HTML, like HTML 4.0 brought new colors and usages for this language. Especially after the edition of style sheets, it became extremely difficult to standardize the view of a web page depending on the browser you use.

As you can see, HTML was written for the pure purpose of information sharing but turned into a mass communication mechanism. It was supposed to be an organizational language, and yet became multi-media source where you can edit the layout and add images, sound and many other multimedia files. We can blame the evolution process of this language for the non-standardized nature of it.

All You Ever Wanted to Know About Hex codes for Colors (RGB)

2005-12-11T07:41:00.000-08:00

While editing an HTML page, doing an animation job, or even editing a photo you might encounter some weird color code in the program which looks like #FFFFFF. Instead of trying to understand the code, you would just use it with the help of some web palette or any editing program. However, this code actually gives a lot of ideas how the display of a computer or even the TV works.

The three primary colors are red, blue, and yellow. Remember that from elementary school art? They're called the primary colors because there are no two "lesser" colors that make them up. Purple is not a primary color because it can be created through combining equal parts of blue and red. In the world of mechanical things that make color, like a television, or a computer screen, color is created through the mixing of three basic colors to make other colors. It's a process known as "additive color".

You would think that the TV's and computer monitors of the world would simply use the three primary colors to start with, but nothing in life can just be that easy. The three colors used to start additive color mixing are red, green, and blue. By starting with one composite color, green, you can still create yellow because it's included in the green. In addition, now you are actually starting with four colors, red, green, blue, and yellow. The second process of working with colors is "subtractive color." Subtractive color is the concept of combining colors to make another, like mixing red and blue paint to get purple. That may sounds like additive color, but in reality, colors are made by subtracting a hue out of the color scheme by adding more of another. Adding more white to black makes it more silver subtracting more black as more white is mixed in. If you add all the colors together in a subtractive color method, you get black because you added them all together and all those colors subtracted from all the others leaving no set color: black.

A computer, on the other hand, works with light, not paint or any other goopy stuff. Mix a computer's additive colors, red, green, and blue, together, you get white. Shine a white light at a prism or a lead crystal glass. You'll get a rainbow of colors. Actually, that's how a rainbow is created. White light is being shown through water in the air. That separates the white light into the "rainbow" of colors. You can also try the Newton Color Cycle, paint a circle with all the colors of a rainbow light a bulb on it and turn the circle in an adequate speed; you will actually see a white surface.

The hexadecimal code that describes the colors while dealing with computers works with the same principle, the 6 digit number represents the hues of three additive colors in two digits, namely red, green and blue. Hexadecimal system has 16 digits starting from 0 till F meaning number 16.

For instance #FFFF00 would represent yellow. Notice the red and the green are at full tilt. There is no blue. By mashing the red and green up against each other, the red cancels out the blue and all that is left is the yellow. It's actually a subtractive color method being employed in an additive world.

Another example can be DC143C. This code creates a shade of red called "crimson." The red setting, DC, is pretty intense. There's not much green. Blue is set a little less than halfway up. As you can see easily hexadecimal code is just about adjusting the right hue. Considering the 3 different colors with, 00 to FF, 256 different hues; we end up with 256-3 different colors which explain our 64 bit representation of colors.

So the next time youre in need of riveting conversation, you can bring up your new knowledge about Hex codes for colors!

Artificial Intelligence (AI) - More than Just Sci-Fi Movies

2005-12-10T07:36:00.000-08:00

It is not my aim to surprise or shock you--but the simplest way I can summarize is to say that there are now in the world machines that can think, that can learn and that can create. Moreover, their ability to do these things is going to increase rapidly until--in a visible future--the range of problems they can handle will be coextensive with the range to which the human mind has been applied. --Herbert Simon

The movie Terminator and its sequels, like many other example sci-fi movies, were narrating the war between the intelligent machines that were created by men and humanity. They were all talking about something called AI, Artificial Intelligence: machines that can think and learn as humans do and can have emotions that are very similar to the ones of humans.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the area of computer science focusing on creating machines that can engage in behaviors that humans consider intelligent. The ability to create intelligent machines has intrigued humans since ancient times. Today with the advent of the computer and 50 years of research into AI programming techniques, the dream of smart machines is becoming a reality. Researchers are creating systems which can mimic human thought, understand speech, beat the best human chess-player, and countless other feats never before possible.

AI is basically a combination of computer science, physiology, and philosophy. AI is a broad topic, consisting of different fields, from machine vision to expert systems. The element that the fields of AI have in common is the creation of machines that can "think". However, one must define thinking, hence the term of intelligence. Is it all about understanding problems and solving complex equations? What about perception and comprehension? Probably the best answer to the question how can we define artificial intelligence came from British computer scientist Alan Turing. He stated that a computer would deserve to be called intelligent if it could deceive a human into believing that it was human.

Evidence of Artificial Intelligence folklore can be traced back to ancient Egypt, but with the development of the electronic computer in 1941, the technology finally became available to create machine intelligence. The term artificial intelligence was first pronounced in 1956, at the Dartmouth conference. After that point, Artificial Intelligence has expanded with the theories and principles developed by its dedicated researchers. Through its short modern history, advancement in the fields of AI have been slower than first estimated, progress continues to be made. From its birth 5 decades ago, there have been a variety of AI programs, and they have impacted other technological advancements.

Including most of the software like the word processors or computer games and the computer as we know it today, we owe many things to the research in this area. It is used in medical research; unfortunately in military technologies like the smart missiles; it is used in many fields that you dont even notice in your daily life. Considering the technological development of this era of information, AI systems will be embedded in the daily life of ours more and more. No need to be paranoid, but one day there will be machines that are as complex and potent as the human brain.

Forget Dial-Up. Switch to DSL Broadband Internet Connection

2005-12-09T07:34:00.000-08:00

In our modern, fast-paced environment we have come to expect instant gratification. That also pertains to how we access the internet. For years, the only option was a dialup connection. Believe it or not, there still are places in the United States that do not have access to other alternatives.

If you are fortunate enough to live and work in an area where another alternative is available by all means make the switch. If you need to have a little bit more information before shelling out the extra bucks each month, then lets take a look at some of the options that may be available in your locale. Before we do that, however, we need to explore the technology a little further and take a look at some terminology.

What is Broadband? Broadband refers collectively to technology that allows data transfer through your phone lines at a much higher rate than standard dialup.

What is DSL (Direct Subscriber Link)? DSL allows you to connect to the internet at the same time you are using your phone without any interruption. It does this by putting digital bits that are not heard into the frequency of your phone line.

What is Bandwidth? Bandwidth is the size and speed of the connection. You need the fastest speed and reliability where the connection has a higher priority, i.e. FROM the internet TO your home or office, while a smaller bandwidth is used in the opposite scenario FROM your home or office TO the internet.

The bottom line is that DSL is faster, more efficient and more reliable than standard dialup. If you have ever tried downloading large files on a dialup connection, you know how long it takes. When it comes to listening to music, watching any kind of videos or playing games, it is virtually an exercise in futility on a dialup connection.

DSL is relatively inexpensive for what you get:

You can enjoy streaming live audio and video, watch movies online, listen to radio stations and live news and thats just for starters! If you like to play computer games, you can do that while online and still not miss any important phone calls!

Downloading data, sound or video files can be accomplished in almost the blink of an eye. What used to take a half hour or more to download will be done in minutes or in some cases even in seconds! And all of those photographs that youve taken with your digital camera to send to the grandparents? No need to wait for developing. In seconds you can send the photos!

If you are lucky enough to live in an area where DSL is available, by all means jump on the bandwagon and bring your surfing experience into the 21st century!

A Comparison of Windows vs. LINUX

2005-12-08T05:35:00.000-08:00

Many of you who are reading this article are using Windows as most of the other internet users do. There is a huge difference between the number of users of LINUX and Windows. Some say Windows is much better than LINUX because it gives you an easy handling of the hardware and software. Some say LINUX is much better because it started as Open Source software and thats why it is much more flexible than Windows. Then why there is a huge market difference between these operating systems?

The answer to this question is quite easy. Since 1985, computer users and programmers became so accustomed to using Windows, even for the changing capabilities and the appearances of the graphical interface of the versions, therefore it always stayed as the product of Microsoft. On the other hand, LINUX has so many different versions from a variety of companies some of which are namely Lycoris, Red Hat, SuSE, Mandrake, Knoppix, Slackware, Lindows. These companies release their own versions of the operating systems with slight changes, and yet always with the same kernel. This variety and the fact that none of these companies are even close to competing with Windows, mostly causes the difference in the market. Nevertheless, this reality might drastically change after Novells purchase of SuSE.

Linux and Windows differ in many aspects. First of all, the Linux GUI is optional while the Windows GUI is an integral component of the OS; speed, efficiency and reliability are all increased by running a server instance of Linux without a GUI, something that server versions of Windows can not do. The detached nature of the Linux GUI makes remote control and remote administration of a Linux computer simpler and more natural than a Windows computer.

Secondly the command prompts of these operating systems are quite different. In general, the command interpreters in the Windows 9x series are very similar to each other and the NT class versions of Windows (NT, 2000, XP) also have similar command interpreters. There are, however differences between a Windows 9x command interpreter and one in an NT class flavor of Windows. Linux, like all versions of UNIX, supports multiple command interpreters, but it usually uses one called BASH (Bourne Again Shell). Others are the Korn shell, the Bourne shell, ash and the C shell (pun, no doubt, intended).

The costs are amazingly different. While you have to pay some hundred dollars for a new version of Windows, you can simply go and download Linux. As it comes from the nature of Linux, there are no manuals or simple installers for the free version, however. You really have to know what you are doing while using this free package. There are also some easy automated packages of Linux for low prices, as well.

The security issues with Windows, as most of you already know, are the biggest cons of Microsoft. Most of the malicious files, spyware, adware programs deal with Windows. You generally do not deal with these kinds of unwanted circumstances unless you are working with Windows. The user-id and password protection for Windows can also be easily bypassed, whereas Linux offers a strong protection.

The only area that Windows beats Linux in this competition is the software availability. As it was mentioned above, most of the software releases are configured for Windows. If you are using Linux, you have to emulate Windows with a special software and then you can use your windows based programs. Another option can be to install Windows as a subsystem to Linux which takes all administrative abilities of Windows and gives them to Linux.

After mentioning some of the different aspects of these operating systems, it can be said that all Linux needs to compete with Windows is some user friendly interface and a strong company support which can provide the users with technical information and user manuals.

Program Review: Zone Alarm

2005-12-07T05:31:00.000-08:00

Internet is the source of infinite data and information. We use it to check e-mails, news, products and download software. However, it is not a very safe place with newborn viruses everyday. Talented hackers are waiting to mass with your computer. Every time you connect to Internet, not many of you feel totally secure and confident. Not many of you think that windows firewall is yet enough for your security.

There is good news for those of you who are paranoid enough to look for additional software solutions for Internet security found in the security release of Zone Labs: Zone Alarm. Zone alarm was designed to protect your Internet connection from hackers and attempts of the adware programs on your computer to connect to their servers. It basically contains a firewall, an application control, an Internet lock, and different zones of security.

The firewall controls the door to your computer and allows only traffic that you understand and initiate. It gives you a whole documentation about all the access attempts and watches all the ports of your computer. When a connection is set, first it gives you a warning and also it gives the IP address of the connection. Therefore, it is a great tool to keep your ports under control and see the attempts of other users to hack into your computer.

The application control allows you to decide which applications can and cannot use the Internet. When a program attempts to use your Internet connection Zone Alarm asks you what you want to do about this connection; allow or deny. By this way, you can eliminate the adware programs like gator (the most common one which gives pop-ups every five minutes) or bargains etc.

The Internet lock blocks Internet traffic while your computer is unattended or while you're not using the Internet. It can be activated automatically with your computer's screensaver or after a set period of inactivity.

Overall, this program protects your computer in a very concrete way. Zone Alarm makes configuring a firewall, which sounds like a troubling task to the majority of computer users, incredibly easy with a wizard. Maintaining and updating settings also is a snap when you're using the stylish interface and its simple slider controls. It is an excellent firewall solution for about most average user. Most of you will feel more secure with this program; especially when you see the Internet logs of the software and zonal solutions that it offers.

Microsoft and History of Windows

2005-12-05T05:28:00.000-08:00

CHICAGO (CNN) -- Microsoft chairman Bill Gates tried to demonstrate his company's latest product Monday, but the product -- Windows 98 -- didn't cooperate. Gates was demonstrating the newest version of Microsoft's Windows operating system when it crashed during his presentation at the Comdex Spring 1998 Convention. The software is supposed make computers simpler to use.

April 20, 1998 -Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/TECH/computing/9804/20/gates.comdex/

The news excerpt above is familiar to most of you especially if you have been dealing with computers for sometime. Bill Gates, departing from IBM which had built the most commonly used Operating System DOS, decided that users needed graphical interface to improve the usability of the systems. It was going to increase the computer literacy ratio and also the sales. So there started his journey with the mythical Windows 1.0 and went on with success and sometimes failures until the most stable product of Microsoft: Windows XP. Now all users are waiting for the 64 bit supported Longhorn.

The first graphical interface operating system was Windows 1.0 which was released in 1985. It gave great advantages to users including the use of the cursor and the pointing devices. Before, users had to type the commands in the DOS environment. With this improvement, they could simply click on a program and use several different programs at the same time. The next versions of Windows, namely 2.x and 3.1 were slightly improved using the advantages of the improved processors of Intel (286 and 386). The programmers started talking about extended memory and also about Windows software development kit (SDK) which caused the new releases of Windows to be much more popular. By then everybody was programming Windows based programs and users did not have any other choice but use Windows to access these programs.

The next innovative add-on to this system was the networking support. A superset of Windows 3.1, Windows for Workgroups 3.11 added peer-to-peer workgroup and domain networking support. For the first time, Windowsbased PCs were network-aware and became an integral part of the emerging client/server computing evolution.

Then came the great New Technology of Microsoft: Windows NT. It was the completion of a 10 year project and a completely new operating system which was built from scratch. The most distinguishing aspect of this system was that unlike other windows products, this operating system was 32-bit. It offered solutions for high-end users and also for personal purposes. The following NT versions came with higher security updates for the networks and powerful program support.

In parallel to the developing NT products, Microsoft released also the successors of MS-DOS and Win 3.x products: Windows 95 and 98. These were also 32-bit operating systems which were optimized for multi-media users. Especially, the later versions of 98, with the Direct X, internet features, high hardware capabilities, met the requirements of most of the users. The crash of Windows 98 on TV in front of Bill Gates was already forgotten and the sales of Windows 98 Service Pack 2 satisfy both the company and also the users. However, the issue of monopolization came up again with the integrated internet browser of Windows 95 and 98. Most people claimed and argued that this integration was an attempt to monopolize the internet and it was against the antitrust rules: Antitrust laws prevent monopolies from tying two products together to force customers to take one product when buying another.

Year 2000 was the year of both satisfaction and disappointment. For the new millennium, Microsoft released two products: ME and 2000. Millennium Edition was a total disaster from the point of users. It was much less stable than 98 and it was creating so many problems with different hardware installations. The security bugs caused a lot of home users to lose their data and open the doors for viruses and crackers. On the other hand, with the applied technology of NT and improved capabilities Windows 2000 was a great solution for professional users. Its stability reminded many of the users the older and much slower, 16-bit OSs of Microsoft.

Seeing the great success of the new NT based operating system (Windows 2000 professional) and the great disappointment with ME, Microsoft decided to unify the business world with consumers by means of optimizing Windows 2000 for personal use, adding new features to support the multimedia equipment. By doing the last retouches on the general graphics of the OS, Microsoft released its most popular OS in two different editions: XP Home and XP Professional. The "XP" in Windows XP stands for "experience," symbolizing the innovative experiences that Windows can offer to personal computer users. You and most of the world are now using XP and none of us can complain much after the security updates and the release of the second service pack.

At this point, Microsoft is working on their new product called Longhorn. They claim, it is going to be their most secure and efficient product, supplying the programmers with improved capabilities to create functions and also serving a much more concrete wall of protection for network users.

Overall, Microsoft has been doing their job for over two decades and extending their experience about the operating systems, creating better products with less bugs or security holes. One can say that Bill Gates was the biggest loss a company like IBM could ever have.

Home Based Business Opportunities

2005-12-04T05:27:00.000-08:00

It seems home based business opportunities are a bit more common in the US than in Europe. However the European marketplace is quickly catching on to the phenomenon of home based business and network marketing. The advantages of a home based business are evident: low cost, flexible working hours and tax benefits, to name but a few. But these advantages have pretty much been there for many years, so why the sudden growth? Why do so many people start their own home based business right now, and why would network marketing be a good thing to consider for so many others?

First of all there is worldwide economic uncertainty and many economies are either facing a recession or are in the middle of one. Turn open any newspaper and you can't miss articles on companies downsizing and laying off employees by the thousands. Network marketing offers people the chance to create a part time auxiliary income, right beside their day job. This kind of extra income has proven a great help to many families across the world. Of course many network marketers have made a full time living out of there business. Some of them have made fortunes. But this level of success, although available to anyone who is willing to do the work, will not be for most people. Most network marketers run a part time business for a small number of hours a week earning them a couple hundred bucks a month.

Then there is the phenomenon of cocooning, where the consumer tries to shield itself from all sorts of marketing messages. Do-no-call lists are in place, making it harder and harder for companies to get their messages across to the consumer. Network marketing, which is based on moving a service or product to the end consumer based on personal relationships, delivers a strong answer to these challenges. More and more traditional companies have discovered that network marketing is a very cost effective way to reach consumers.

Of course we can't forget about the internet. This technology has greatly helped making the world smaller, making it easier to find and disperse information. Network marketing companies have pioneered the internet to inform, train and motivate their independent distributors.

The cost of home office equipment has decreased considerably.
These days you can set up a home office for just a couple hundred bucks. Some may argue that you don't even need that much. Any computer with an internet connection and a phone would be enough for most network marketers to operate their business. This makes it affordable for everyone to start a home based business. Compare this to the cost of running a normal business and it becomes clear why more and more people are being attracted to a home based opportunity.

And then there is the growing lack of trust in the corporate world. Not too long ago, people where quite used to having a job for life. Or at least until they decided to quit. Nowadays many people have come to realize that job security is a joke. Too many people have lost their jobs more than once only to find out that they were nothing but a number to their corporate employer. It's not just the fact that you have to go out to find another job to feed your family. It's also the fact that you've been listening to your employer bloating about the importance of their human assets when in the end in turns the employees where just considered human asses.

Network marketing not only offers people a chance to create some extra income, it also provides them with the opportunity to get some of their dignity back. Helping them realize that they don't necessarily have to depend on their employers paycheck. The support structures that many good network marketing companies offer are a great help to individuals joining this type of business. Not only will they receive the proper training on their company's products and services. They will also be educated on personal development

The advantages of a home based business are evident and in the near future we will certainly see more of it. Looking at today's trends in the economy it doesn't take a genius to figure out that the era of monolithic companies offering jobs for life has ended. It's time to have the courage to bet on yourself again and home based business is a good way to do so. And for those people that decide to take this step, taking a serious look at network marketing is just common sense. Even in a time where common sense isn't that common anymore.

Vlogs and Wikis and Pods, oh my!

2005-12-03T05:25:00.000-08:00

Perhaps you've heard about blogs - the hottest communication story of last year. Commentators from Newsweek to the Wall Street Journal, from CNN to PBS have devoted time to the phenomenon. Blogs are just one of the new technologies that are changing the way politicians communicate with voters and businesses communicate with customers.

For marketers, these changes mean more direct interaction with customers and potential customers. By speaking and listening directly with the customer marketers are able to reduce the expense for public relations and advertising. Of course, these developments are worrying some in the pr and advertising industries, as well as the news media.

Many things about marketing communication won't change, of course: you still need to have something to say. And the best way to apply all these technologies is still within a business niche. With that said, here are some of the other ways communication is changing:

1. Podcasting is the hottest idea on the internet. Starting in 2004, people began downloading homebrewed radio shows to their iPods. So instead of "broadcasts" they're "podcasts". Unlike streaming audio, podcasts require the file to be downloaded. The advantage of podcasts versus streaming is that you can take it with you when you're not on the net. The disadvantage is that streaming audio is much easier for a customer to play at his or her computer. The solution is to do both - create an audio file for streaming, and an mp3 for podcasting. The same recording can be used for both.

2. A vlog is a video blog. Unlike podcasting, vlogging can refer to either streaming video or downloadable shows. Combined with the rapid development of internet video delivery, vlogging seems poised to take off. As with audio, you can prepare your video file in both streaming and downloadable formats. Also like audio, you can begin with very low-cost tools and work your way up to full blown professional equipment. Remember that people like good production quality, but they like watching something interesting even more.

3. Wikis are websites that are editable by the site users. Content becomes part of a dialogue among the users, instead of something fixed. This interaction can build strong communities, and produce large sites with enormous information. Up until recently, wikis have been difficult to use, and limited to techs. New approaches to wikis are making them easier to use, and reinforcing the next trend:

4. Social software. Community sites that encourage sharing and conversation are springing up in many areas. Photography and music have been drivers of this trend, in addition to political activism. Interaction builds community, and community is where the market is.

5. Almost all of these tools involve RSS, a technology for feeding information to people who want it. Unlike email, which is "pushed" by the sender, rss feeds have to be "pulled" by the user. While still not completely mainstream, rss is a rapidly growing delivery system.

For the small marketer, the price of reaching customers directly has dropped. Large corporations, though, are picking up on these technologies rapidly. To truly gain an edge, the small business person needs to develop a strategy for these channels before the big companies figure them out.

Satisfaction with LAMP and Web Open Source

2005-12-02T05:24:00.000-08:00

Many computer users complain about Microsoft products, even about the mostly used product of Microsoft: WINDOWS. Familiar complaints include, they dont let the user alter his own settings, and they dont leave us free to do whatever we want. We see the same concept in the for-sale templates and in the servers which are built for lowest user input (like Microsoft Servers, ASP, etc.). The executable binary - .exe - is all you get from closed-source proprietary sources.

Dont you think the user deserves to see the source files, to understand the error message that keeps on popping up, to learn how to make that widget default to a different directory, or how to add a cool new function? Dont you think the user should be in charge of his or her own product instead of the monopolizing producer of the program? Once you see the code, you already started down the path of becoming an Open Source programmer. Thats the beauty of Open Source.

Do you really think LINUX was built by a big corporation? Or that the APACHE server was a side tool to newly released software? Or that the PHP language was invented by a group of scientists and licensed for free? All of them were created by some intelligent student or a professional coder who wanted something specific for their needs. After the core was created and released, all interested programmers or those who were in need of new functions contributed to the program somehow. Then in time, they became the foundations of the web as we know it today.

The philosophy of Open Source software among other things is that many hands and eyes make for good software, unlike too many cooks spoiling the soup. Bugs are more likely to be caught, and more importantly, fixed, if everyone has access to the source. As in cryptography, closed systems cannot be proven to be free of flaws or errors. While its no guarantee that bugs exist, open systems can be examined for flaws; closed systems can only be tested against known bugs (security through obscurity). It is the unknown unknowns that can bite you.

So briefly, it is quite obvious that LAMP (LINUX, APACHE, MySQL, PHP, PERL) dominates the Internet web. The reason is that LAMP gives value to the user input and this makes it easily adaptable for different purposes and very flexible for different usages. If you want programs to use for web purposes which you can easily modify and for which you can learn a lot from and thusly turn into a developer yourself, then do not give up using LAMP or other open source software.

Indirect Advertising

2005-12-01T05:22:00.000-08:00

I am reasonably certain that anyone reading this article is familiar with all the free online advertising methods such as the all-too familiar Sp-m emails, Classified Ads, FFA pages, Banners, Text Ads, Traffic Exchanges, Newsletters, Guaranteed Visitors, Paid to Read, Paid to Join, Link Swaps, Pop-ups, as well as many other types of 'In-Your-Face' advertising, some of which may have been dreamed up since this article was written.

What I would like you to consider is this: What do you think when you see this kind of stuff yourself? More to the point, what is your 'Frame of Mind' at that moment?

My guess is you think, "Here we go again..." and your shields go up. You pull up your waders and trudge on through, oblivious to the thousands of messages ricocheting off your armor as you collect a few more hits for your own website promotion or product offer.

With Millions of would be online Millionaires doing this hour after hour and day after day, is it any wonder that the Internet slows down to a crawl and even stops at times?

Now consider the "Frame of Mind" of a visitor that came looking for you to see what you are doing. Maybe even to ask a few questions and give you permission to email them. Does this sound like a more productive environment?

The online equivalent to this scene is being played out today and every day and you can participate for free. It is called 'Social Networking' and more information on this is easily found with your favorite search engine.

Imagine if you are no longer perceived as another 'Salesman' but as a "Fellow Business Person" with similar problems and often good ideas for their solutions. Much like Napoleon Hill wrote about in his world renown-book, "Think and Grow Rich", you could be a team member of a virtual Mastermind Group. Chamber of Commerce Mixers have been an example of this approach for years and have been very successful for some who get it. Now you can accomplish nearly the same thing for your home business from your own computer.

Keep in mind, this should not be just another place to plaster your links. The strongest relationships are formed by giving first. Do a mental inventory and come up with something you know or have that would help others more than yourself. Find a way to offer it with no strings attached, no signup or email address required, just give it freely. I know it sounds crazy in this dog-eat-dog world, but trust me it works.

Alright, now it is all up to you. Continue contributing to the degradation of Internet bandwidth with the huge numbers of attempts required (many not even reaching their target) to get a single response, or try something that builds future relationships with new friends that are truly interested in what you are doing and not just trying to sell you something.

Why Do I Need A Firewall?

2005-11-30T05:07:00.000-08:00

The Internet, like any other society, is plagued with the kind of hooligans who enjoy the electronic equivalent of writing on other people's walls with spraypaint, tearing mailboxes off, or just sitting in the street blowing their car horns. Some people try to get real work done over the Internet and others have sensitive or proprietary data they must protect. Usually, a firewall's purpose is to keep the hooligans out of your PC while still letting you get your job done.

Many traditional-style corporations and data centers have computing security policies that must be followed. In a case where a company's policies dictate how data must be protected, a firewall is very important, since it is the embodiment of the corporate policy. Frequently the hardest part is making 100% sure that it's safe to do so.

A firewall can be a piece of software, a dedicated computer hardware or a combined software/hardware configuration.

What do firewalls protect against?

Some firewalls permit only email traffic through them, thereby protecting the network against any attacks, other than attacks against the email service. Other firewalls provide less strict protections and block services that are known to be a problem.

Generally, firewalls are configured to protect against unauthenticated interactive logins from the "outside world". This, more than anything, helps prevent vandals from logging into machines on your network. More elaborate firewalls block traffic from the outside to the inside, but permit users on the inside to communicate freely with the outside.

Unlike in a situation where a computer is being attacked by someone dialing in with a modem, the firewall can act as an effective "phone tap" and tracing tool. Firewalls provide an important logging and auditing function; often they provide summaries to the administrator about what kinds and amount of traffic passed through it, how many attempts there were to break into it, etc.

What can't they protect against?

Firewalls can't protect against attacks that don't go through the firewall. Many corporations that connect to the Internet are very concerned about proprietary data leaking out of the company through that route.

Unfortunately for those concerned, a magnetic tape, compact disc, DVD, or USB flash drive can just as effectively be used to export data. Many organizations that are terrified (at a management level) of Internet connections, have no coherent policy about how dial-in access via modems should be protected.

It's silly to build a six-foot thick steel door when you live in a wooden house, but there are a lot of organizations out there buying expensive firewalls and neglecting the numerous other back-doors into their network. For example, a site with top secret or classified data doesn't need a firewall at all - they shouldn't be hooking up to the Internet in the first place, or the systems with really secret data should be isolated from the rest of the world.

Another thing a firewall can't really protect against is traitors or idiots inside a network. While an industrial spy might export information through the firewall, he's just as likely to export it through a telephone, FAX machine or compact disc. CDs are a far more likely means for information to leak than a firewall.

Firewalls also cannot protect against stupidity or carelessness. An attacker may be able to break into a network by completely bypassing the firewall, if he can find a "helpful" employee inside who can be fooled into giving access to a modem pool.

If people on the helpdesk believe that every call is internal, that's a problem that can't be fixed by tightening controls on the firewalls.

Lastly, firewalls can't protect against bad things being allowed through them. For instance, many Trojan Horses use the Internet Relay Chat (IRC) protocol to allow an attacker to control a compromised internal host from a public IRC service.

Invest Wisely When Buying a Laptop

2005-11-29T05:06:00.000-08:00

Have you priced a laptop computer lately? Buying a new laptop is a big investment; and just how big of an investment you want to make is entirely up to you. Look in your Sunday newspaper flyers to see countless models on sale each week. Initially selections were made by looking at the specifications and the general appearance. However thats not the sole criteria any longer. Everyday more and more people are now stepping inside the mobile world. With so many models of laptops now available, how can you be sure about the choice you make? Below are several factors you should consider: CPU (Central Processing Unit), Video Card, hard disk, noise, battery life and RAM (Random Access Memory).

CPU is the main component which determines the performance of your computer and also the heating and the battery life. There is a trade-off between the CPU performance and the battery-life and power consumption (heating). If you want a laptop which would replace a desktop and if you are not planning to travel with it a lot then there are several different offers with desktop CPUs integrated in the laptop main board (such as a P4).

If you are fond of mobility and are going to use your new laptop for your business purposes or school, then you should consider buying a laptop with more suitable CPUs. AMD Athlon can be a solution: Athlon processors are designed for users who are looking for economical solutions, both purchase and usage. Older models of Athlon are no where near Intel Pentium products from the point of performance, and yet new models like 2800+ are potent enough to compete with P4 2.8 GHz.

There is one more model of CPU that many of the customers prefer: Centrino. Centrino is the new attempt of Intel to balance the tradeoff between the performance and mobility issues. With the 2 MB second level cash, the Pentium CPU is modified for the laptop which eases the burden of the CPU and implicitly pulls down the levels of heating and power consumption.

RAM and the graphic card are also two important factors for the quality of the laptop. There are two kinds of RAM on the market: SD RAM and DD RAM. In any case, there is no tradeoff, no comparison: DD RAM is better, and yet, you still have to be careful about the clock specification of the RAM. If you buy a RAM with 333 MHz clock speed, you will see the performance improvement it supplies to the whole system. Another thing to consider is that some computers have 512 MB RAM with two slots (256 x 2) which is not very good for the new laptop you are going to buy. Overall, if you want a good laptop, you should consider one equipped with a 333 MHz, 512 MB, DD RAM.

There are various video cards on the market today. The first thing you should check is the ON-Board specification in the video card. These cards are integrated into the main board and generally use your main RAM as for the video memory. If you are going to use your laptop for general purposes, not for gaming or 3-D design which would require 3D hardware acceleration, these laptops with onboard video card are for you. However, if you are a professional Counter Strike player, you would be disappointed with the screen delays and freezes.

The last technical detail is the hard disk. While buying a hard disk there is a detail which is much more important then the capacity: RPM. Rotation Per Minute determines how fast the data transfer rate is to the CPU to be processed so this specification also plays a huge role while dealing with multimedia stuff.

So if youre in the market for a new laptop computer, one suggestion is to consider buying a Centrino laptop with an onboard video card with a big RAM if you are planning to use it for school or business purposes and also randomly for movies and music. Nevertheless, Pentium computers with AGP or PCI Express video off-board video cards would give you the performance of a desktop if you dont mind the weight, noise and the heating of the laptop.

With so many decisions to make, take your time; do your homework and invest wisely.

Finding Products to Sell on eBay

2005-11-27T05:03:00.000-08:00

One key for business success using eBay is sourcing products to sell. The first questions eBay sellers should ask themselves are: "What can I sell?" and "Where can I buy?"

There are two kinds of sellers on eBay, garage sellers and business sellers. Garage sellers are people who sell products they are not going to use any more and that are usually not new. Garage sellers are not profit driven, their main objective is usually to get rid of some stuff they don't need. They will be happy to make some money by selling something that is no longer useful to them. On the other hand, business sellers are people who will buy and sell products for profit, they consider eBay a business and need to earn profit on the products they sell.

The first key to success for business sellers is an old marketing rule, RESEARCH. The products you need to sell are products that eBay buyers will want to buy. Apart from being a massive market place, eBay offers you a cheap source of research that you can conduct without moving from your computer.

If you are a business seller, it is fundamental that you spend some time researching before you decide which products you want to sell. Follow these research guidelines:

1. Search for the categories that are most popular. The first index is the number of listings that exist under each category. In addition, you need to look at how many bids the products have.

2. Look at the ratings of the sellers who are listing products in each category and study their profiles. See how many products they are selling and how many products they have sold in the past.

3. Analyze prices. You need to become an expert in your category and you need to know at which price a product is worth buying as well as the expected final winning price of your auction.

4. Select no more than one or two categories. "Specialization" is another basic rule of marketing. It is better to become an expert on something, as this will inspire confidence and trust in your potential customers. Online marketing is all about trust.

For conducting good research, you need time and organization. There are different software programs in the market that can help you save time as well as optimize your research.

Now that you are becoming an eBay expert and have conducted a proper search, you are almost ready to start your business. Before starting to sell, you need to buy! Here are some ideas from where you can source products:

1. Write your own e-book and sell it. If you have any passion or are an expert on a subject for which you can find a niche in eBay, do not hesitate to spend some time on writing your own book. The advantage of this is that after your initial time investment, you can sell and sell copies of the book without having any additional costs. Selling information products is one of the most profitable businesses. Even if you are not an expert writer, you can find other people who can write the book for you.

2. Use drop-shipping. There are wholesalers that will sell you products and send them to the address that you tell them. The advantage of this source is that you do not need to carry inventories, so your investments are minimized. After your auction is finished, you send them your customers address and they will do all the shipping. If you decide to use this kind of source, you need to make sure that your auctions winning price can be higher than the price you will pay for the articles. At minimum you should expect to double your costs.

3. Buy from eBay. Many eBayers success comes from knowing how to buy well on eBay and sell the same products at a higher price. If you know your category very well, you can easily find opportunities that will allow you to buy and resell making profit. Again, solid research is fundamental.

4. Buy Asiatic products. If you are willing to carry some inventories, you can invest on Asiatic products and buy them for a very cheap price. You can easily start importing Asiatic products from the Internet at www.alibaba.com.

5. Sell local products. If you live in an area that produces local products which can be bought at a cheap price and shipped to other areas where people would pay more, you should take advantage of the situation.

Best wishes for your success

Reward Your Customers

2005-11-26T04:54:00.000-08:00

The formula for success for any business is to get your
customers to make repeat purchases. There are a number
of factors involved for getting repeat customers: pricing,
quality of products and services, excellent customer
service etc. One of the best ways is to reward your
customers for their repeat purchases. Here are three
effective customer reward programs you could implement:

Number Of Purchases

This program is based on the number of purchases made
by any customer. You could give away a f.ree product or
service to any customer that makes ten or more purchases.
To make the program more effective you could require a
set time period that all ten purchases must be made by.

Dollar Amount

You can require a certain dollar amount be spent before
the customer receives a reward. Tell customers if they
spend over $50 in one month at your web site they get a
50% discount on their next purchase. You could also just
reward one customer who spends the most every month
with a bigger reward like a v.acation.

Points System

Reward customers a point for every one-dollar they spend.
Lets say customers can get a f.ree computer for 300 points.
That means customers will spend $300 dollars on your
products and services to get enough points to get the f.ree
computer. To push slower selling products or services just
o.ffer more points per dollar spent for those particular items.

The kind of rewards you give should depend on what your
business can afford. Cheaper rewards could be gift
certificates, coupons, clothes, or movie passes. Expensive
rewards could be jewelry, vacations, bed and breakfast
gift certificates, electronics or computer equipment.

You may want to invest in a good database program to
keep track of your rewards program. I also recommend
contacting a legal professional for advice, set-up and the
structure of your rewards program. I hope these ideas I've
given you help make your business more successful.

Quote of the Day:

"All adverse and depressing influences can be overcome, not
by fighting, by by rising above them." -- Charles Caleb
Colton

Daily Devotionals Help Start Your Day off Right

2005-11-25T04:53:00.000-08:00

Some say an apple a day keeps the doctor away. Many Christians will tell you spending time with God first thing in the morning will keep the gloomies away. No one will dispute that there is no substitute for spending time in the Word of God, in your Bible. However, if you just have a few quickie moments in the morning before your children wake up or before you scoot off to the office, reading out of a daily devotional book may be just what you need to get your day started right!

Go to any bookstore, online or off, and you will find a plethora of daily devotionals. It can be very overwhelming. There are also a number of online sources where you can get daily inspirations sent directly to your in-box. You should have at least one devotions book in print. Doing so will give you a chance to sit quietly away from the computer. You may have a spot at the kitchen table or in your comfy chair in the living room or perhaps you feel like the only alone time you ever get is in the bathroom. Take your book where you can give the text and God your undivided attention.

Listed below are merely a few examples of some of the devotional books available. All have been personally recommended by readers who are currently using and enjoying them.

Rick Renner's Sparkling Gems from the Greek is a daily devotional that has one Greek word study for every day of the year; with hundreds more word studies in addition to the 365 primary ones. It's much more than a devotional - it's a study tool that you will want to refer to over and over again.

Journey by Lifeway is a monthly women's devotional magazine that offers guidance for a growing, personal relationship with God. Each weekday devotion deals with issues and real-life situations. Features include: a daily key verse, devotional vignette, personal application, and suggested prayer focus; monthly messages from popular author and speaker Beth Moore; and other inspirational articles. Available in monthly subscriptions.

People use Daily Guideposts to deepen their relationship with God and strengthen their faith. Each year has a different theme; 2005s theme of "Rejoicing in Hope" contains inspiring, thought-provoking and comforting daily devotional stories. A prayer and daily Scripture reference are included for further meditation or Bible study.

The Our Daily Bread devotional published RBC Ministries is an effective resource for those who desire constant awareness of Gods Word and its significance in the life of the believer. Available at many restaurants and grocery stores.

Rise & Shine by Liz Curtis Higgs overflows with the best of Liz s early writings, gleaned from her columns in Todays Christian Woman and seven nonfiction titles. This devotional contains daily Scripture verses, simple prayers, and gentle reminders of Gods love and is packed with poignant stories, honest humor, and biblical lessons.

As mentioned above, there are so many more excellent daily devotional books to read. The purpose of this article is to encourage you to dust off the one sitting on your shelf, or to pick up a new one and start each new tomorrow with a fresh perspective. Enjoy!

Movies on the Internet - Good for Us, Bad for Them?

2005-11-24T04:51:00.000-08:00

You're watching TV one evening scanning through the reruns thinking it's pathetic how little there is to watch anymore when a fantastic movie trailer comes on. It's everything you love - the right actors, the wit, the action - and your heart beats a little faster in anticipation - if only you could watch it RIGHT NOW!

Well, the film industry has heard you. Along with the speed of the internet, consumers have now come to a new stage of demand. It used to be that we WANTED everything immediately - now we EXPECT it.

This is not the sort of thing that goes unnoticed by industries that cater to public reception. And now it has been announced that we may not be far away from simply walking over to our computer and downloading the newest releases.

During a meeting at the Cannes Film Festival, Culture Ministers from across Europe, film industry representatives and Internet Service Providers were among those who met to discuss the possible policies needed to distribute movies online.

BBC news reports European Union media commissioner Viviane Reding as stating: "In Europe, as in other continents, the opportunities for people to enjoy films online are set to increase tremendously over the next few years".

Naturally there are still many issues to be resolved before movies are readily available to the public online. Piracy and broadband capabilities are still being questioned.

Piracy became the prominent issue when music files were being illegally shared over the internet. While the music industry fought against such services as Napster, they are still far from recovering their market revenue and the film industry is not anxious to join them.

What can't be debated is that there IS a market, and no industry likes to bypass that because of possible problems.

Right now European broadband may not be up to the task of downloading such large files but has plans to proceed with distribution soon.

In America there has already been movie distribution with the inevitable legal proceedings against individuals facilitating unauthorized downloads.

Although the fight against piracy is being taken very seriously by the industry, it is still parents who are at the forefront of setting the example and instructing children on the ethics of downloading such material. Responsibility is learned.

In any event, the next time you see a great movie advertised and you are handy to the internet, perhaps you should stay in, avoid the lines and the traffic and check it out online!

Is Your Website Designed to Sell?

2005-11-23T04:50:00.000-08:00

Why do some websites sell better than others? Do you need a marketing degree to create a website? Does design have much impact on sales?

You may not realize this but many of the successful internet marketing businesses realize that design, or layout of the website should be as much of a marketing decision as the ad copy. Why is that?

Web designers can do some amazing things with graphics and colors. You will also have a much more professional looking site when an expert applies his handiwork. However, it is very important to understand some of the key elements that smart marketers will make certain to appear (or NOT appear) on their highly profitable sites. If you are aware of these you may be able to select a designer who is knowledgeable in marketing as well as design.

COLOR:

Designs with a dramatic color can make compelling choices for setting a mood. But reading on a computer screen demands as much contrast as possible, otherwise the reader will develop vision fatigue. You do not want to irritate or tire your visitors in any way or they may leave, so be certain that the main body of your website copy is black writing on a white background - or as close to that ideal as possible.

Colors also change appearance on different monitors, so what looks cool and calm on one monitor may be bright and glaring on another. Simple works.

GRAPHICS:

Striking, bold graphics can be a real eye-catcher for visitors. Still, successful internet marketers are pretty much unanimous in stating that you should avoid flash graphics as much as possible. Again, they tend to tire visitors eyes or create a distraction from the written copy. Even if they are initially impressed by the work it may subconsciously annoy them. Simplicity is again the best way to go.

LAYOUT:

The first 'fold' of your site is similar to opening a tractional paper letter. If you remove a letter from an envelope that is folded in three, you will obviously view the top 'fold' first.

This fold is what individuals will see without scrolling down the page. It is CRUCIAL that important elements like descriptive headlines, your contact number, newsletter subscription form etc. all show in the first fold. Do NOT place banners here unless they are the main element of your business as you will be giving prime space to other websites and your customer (which you fought hard to get in the first place) will be gone just as quickly.

These are just some of the important elements you should be aware of when designing your site.

Do You Need to Learn Computer Programming?

2005-11-22T04:47:00.000-08:00

The answer to the question, Do I need to learn programming? is: It depends. It depends on what exactly you mean by programming. You need to know a little bit of web programming like HTML and Javascript so that you do not need to depend on someone else for additions and editing your work (if you intend to build your own website). Those two languages are some of the basics that everyone should know.

If youre referring to software programming then the answer is: No you do not need to learn programming. You do not need to learn it to get ahead as it is usually the concept or the idea which can make you money and not a programming tool or language.

Further, the world is getting more and more specialized. In order stay in tune with it, you need to find your niche and build with it. Nobody can be good at everything. It's about delegation. Unless you plan to become a professional programmer, and getting a formal education for it, leave development up to other experienced developers.

Additionally, from a practical standpoint, it is dangerous for everyone to try to do web programming. Some of the coding, for example one of the variables the tell-a-friend script pulls from the form is openly included in the message it sends out. The problem with that is if someone who knows what theyre doing, with regard to programming gets a hold of it, they could easily recode the tell-a-friend form into an open spam relay. It is a script with a major hole just sitting there waiting to be exploited. That's the risk you run when you don't understand the ramifications of every line of code. If you do not have the time or desire to learn serious coding, and some basic code security techniques, you will only make life harder for other netizens and in the end, for yourself.

So unless you plan to become a professional programmer and take the time to study these things, theres really no need to learn programming. Rather, hire someone who is a professional and let them do the work for you. Finding a professional programmer is easy too. All you need to do is visit http://www.rentacoder.com and put out a bid for your project. You'll get programmers from all over the world quoting on your project. Entrepreneurs use them all the time and have wonderful results. Hiring someone is not only far more effective, but it leverages your role as the project manager and takes you out of the creator mindset.

Simple Steps to Planning a Class Reunion

2005-11-21T04:46:00.000-08:00

Twenty years have gone by and you cant believe it. Either you were a class officer, so planning the reunion defaults to you; or no one seems to have planned a reunion, so you were roped into the planning committee. No worries, putting together a reunion doesnt need to be overwhelming.

For starters, youll need about six people for your planning committee, and one person to lead the group. The phrase, the more the merrier isnt always best. Decisions need to be made and too many people will cause you to get stuck in the quagmire. If others want to help, put them on sub-committees to delegate tasks to later.

Just like a wedding, its important that you get a ring and a dress. No, thats not right. Its important that you get a date and a location. You cant move forward if you dont solidify those two factors. Before deciding on a location, get an idea of how much money you are going to spend. Do you have any funds in an account leftover from previous reunions? How much per head will you charge your classmates to attend? Some events end up costing $50+ per person, and your attendance will be lower if you dont keep it reasonable for people to attend. If you only want to be able to charge $25 per person, then that will influence your decision on location (union hall vs. country club).

Will you be hiring a DJ? If so, get this person reserved next. Dont wait for the last minute to try to find someone. Youll need to pay deposits on the banquet hall and the disc jockey. The last big thing youll want to decide is if youre going to be having dinner or just hor duerves. If youre just going to have snacks, you can save a bundle by doing the food yourself. You dont need to have that catered.

Start getting a hold of classmates. This is a daunting job. Its a little easier now with the internet and all the people-search resources. Women are a little harder to find because of all the possible name changes. Ask people to ask people to ask people. This is truly a word of mouth venture. Also contact parents. Other suggestions are to do a lot of publicity. Post your reunion notices on www.classmates.com and www.reunion.com. Send out press releases to media: newspaper, TV and radio. Build a website preferably with the domain name of your school and year dot com. Having your own website will simplify things as you can put all the pertinent information on the site, then in all your other notices, give a contact phone number then see website for details. Also contact your Alma Matter to see if they can post the info on the marquis out front. Mail invitations; even simple flyers made on the computer will suffice, but give them something to stick on their refrigerator.

Keep decorations simple. No one really cares. Theyre coming to see each other, not how pretty the room looks. You can spend a bundle on room dcor if youre not careful. Photocopy pictures from the yearbook, cut them out, stick on poster boards and laminate. Voila. Get copies of the school newspaper and leave those on the tables. Dont go overboard here. Its a waste of money.

Door prizes are optional. People always like to win stuff. Solicit business owners for donations if you want. You can delegate this task to someone who may have wanted to help but you didnt need any more decision makers. 50/50 raffles are always fun too. Check to make sure raffles are permitted before conducting this though. Most places dont have a problem with this type of activity.

One final word, if your banquet hall rental fee does not include after-event clean up, but offers that at an additional charge, take it! This option will be much appreciated at the end of a long day of setting up and pulling off your event. You dont want to mess with clearing tables and emptying trash at one oclock in the morning.

More importantly, have fun and dont sweat it. The details arent as important as old friends reconnecting.

Warning: Instant Messaging Can Be Addicting

2005-11-20T04:43:00.000-08:00

Is he online yet? Oh! She just signed on Sup cutie! BRB, phone Hey sexy, missed you!

Instant messaging can be better than a fine box of chocolates. It makes you feel good. Talking to someone on IM (Instant Messaging) gives you a rush and makes you forget that you have a stack of papers on your desk or a pile of laundry waiting or that you stink and need a shower!

There are lots of ways you can meet people through IMing. Chat rooms used to be pretty popular, and they still are in some circles. But more and more people are looking for the one on one conversation through instant messaging. You can set up your profile to reflect certain interests and others with similar will often IM you with a simple hi to see if you take the bait and start talking. Obviously posting your photo will get more people talking to you. Theres the whole internet safety issue to be considered, which we wont cover here other than to just say, be careful what personal information you give out.

But heres the deal about IMing. People can be whoever they want to be behind the shield of a computer. They can sound like Mr. (or Mrs.) wonderful. You may be lonely, with or without a spouse at home, and this new IM buddy can tell you want you want to hear. Theyll be funny; theyll be witty; and tell you how easy on the eyes you are. Theyll ask you about your day and want to listen to what you want to hear. Maybe you even want to venture out onto your wild side and exchange a little smut talk. Whats the harm, right?

Well the harm is that before you know it youre having phone sex. Your mind is consumed with this person on the computer. You may be fantasizing about this person when youre supposed to be working or spending time with your family. Before you know it youll be meeting for real time sex, only to be let down or humiliated or both. Once you meet this person, then what? Youve had sex. It was horrible and humiliating, or perhaps it was great and fantastic. But youre thinking about this person constantly; almost to an obsession. If you have cable or DSL access, great. You can check all day everyday to see if this person is online. If you have dial-up, youre dialing in way more than you really have time to.

You may not even realize it, but the talk at home to your spouse is getting nastier by the day. You may even think you hate your spouse. Youll start to hate everything he/she does. All you want to do is live for your new found love, your new found life. It can be better than the Calgon commercial .... "Take me away." Your kids are misbehaving, the house is falling apart (in part because youre spending so much time on the computer now) but who cares. Youre being pleased in every way imaginable. That is, until someone slaps you back into reality and makes you realize what you have at home is better than what you have on the net. Just that being with your spouse so long the two of you forget what each other likes, and takes each other for granted. When in reality, your fantasy man (or woman) is right at home.

If youre not married, it can be equally as daunting. You find yourself spending more and more and more time online trying to find The One. You may even find yourself saying and doing things you would have never ever imagined yourself to do. Youve gone down a road you never anticipated to, and your justification is that this new person has broadened your horizons.

Do not kid yourself into thinking that could never happen to you. Yes it could. And it does, to the most unsuspecting people. Everyday moms, dads and business people can, and do get swallowed up into this web. This is about you. This can be you and you need to be ever mindful of that. No one is exempt from this trap. No one. Got it?

Before you decide to sit down and chat, to answer an IM, or to seek someone out, take into consideration what you have at home is better than some fantasy on the other end of a computer. Even if all you have at home is yourself. You will not be satisfied by spending your time IMing. You just wont. Youll always want more and the bar will keep moving your goal will be farther away, but your morals will decline in the process of trying to achieve it.

Consider the consequences of your actions first. There will be consequences, guaranteed.

Worldwide Freecyclers Get (and Give) Free Stuff

2005-11-19T04:41:00.000-08:00

Currently over one million members in almost 3,000 communities world wide are sharing their unwanted goods. The catalyst that facilitates all the getting and giving of unwanted items is an organization called Freecycle. It's a grassroots movement of people who give stuff for free in their own towns. Each local group is run by a local volunteer moderator. All of the trading is done online. Membership is free. Freecycle is open to individuals and non-profit organizations.

The Freecycle Network was originally started in Tucson to promote waste reduction and help save desert landscape from being taken over by landfills. That was in May 2003. This world wide phenomenon has spread throughout the globe.

The process is quite simple. Go to www.freecycle.org and find a group near you. If theres not one in close proximity, consider starting one yourself. Then when you want to find a new home for something you just send an e-mail offering it to members of your Freecycle group. Some groups have restrictions on what you can and cannot post, however most limitations are simply that it needs to be completely free, legal and appropriate for all ages. It doesnt matter what you have to offer; computer parts, couch, clothing, an old window, broken car, perfume, etc. If you have it and its unwanted, almost guaranteed, someone else can put it to good use.

If something is posted that youre interested in obtaining, all you need to do is respond to the member's offer. It's up to the giver to decide who receives the gift and to set up a pickup time for passing on the treasure. Sometimes its as simple as Ill leave it on the front porch of 123Main St., come by anytime.

Many local networks also allow WANTED: posts. If youre looking for a 10 gallon aquarium, check with Freecycle first. Odds are great someone may have one sitting in their basement collecting dust. While each individual network may have slightly different restrictions, most are run similarly. There are generally four types of posts and these words must appear in the subject line of your email: Wanted: xxx, Offer: xxx, Taken: xxx or Found: xxx.

It is generally recommended to elaborate a bit on your emails as to why you are in need of something or why you are interested in picking up the item. Please save your entire life story for another forum, but responses like Im interested will likely get deleted. Whereas something like: Im a single mom who just moved here after my divorce. I would love to pick up your wash machine tonight. I would greatly appreciate not having to squeeze in time to go to the laundry mat after work. will likely get consideration. Just be sincere dont make up a woeful story in hopes to get something. The intent of Freecycle is to help others by giving and getting. Its a great, fun organization.

Personal Computer Clean Up for Windows XP

2005-11-18T04:36:00.000-08:00

What happens if you dont give your vehicle regular oil changes? What kind of results can you expect if you dont ever change the spark plugs on your lawn mower? How do you think your computer will run if you dont perform regular maintenance on it? The answer in all cases is: It wont run very well.

If your computer is running sluggish, if it periodically needs to be rebooted or doesn’t boot up as quickly as it used to, it sounds like its time for a Clean Up. The following instructions below will give you step by step instructions on how to ensure your PC continues to operate at its fullest potential. These instructions are relevant for machines running Windows XP and using Internet Explorer.

To begin, open up Internet Explorer, thats the blue lower case letter e, generally shown in the lower left corner of your screen. Next click on the word Tools up at the top of your screen. Once open, click Internet Options. In the middle of that box youll see a section called Temporary Internet Files. Click the Delete Files button. Click the box Delete offline content too, then OK. Once that is done, click the Delete Cookies button within the Temporary Internet Files section. Click OK there too.

Next click the Settings button. Check for newer versions of stored pages should be clicked to Automatically if it isnt already. Change the Amount of Disk Space to use to 8MB. Click OK twice.

Next go to the green Start button in the very lower left corner of your screen. Click My Programs, Accessories, System Tools, Check Disk Clean up. Use offline content or anything else it asks. It will take a few moments while it is checking how much space it can clean up. When you get the new pop-up window, make sure there are checks in every box. Click OK

After running Disk Clean up, go to Ad-Aware, update and run the program. If you dont have Ad-Aware SE Personal, its a free very comprehensive spyware removal tool and it's remarkably simple to use. You can download it through Lavasoft http://www.lavasoft.de/support/download/ Highly recommended. After running Ad-Aware, reboot your computer.

You should perform the above maintenance about once a week. Then on an as-needed basis, run Disk Defrag, which you can find in Start, My Programs, Accessories, System Tools, Disk Defrag.

By following the above simple steps your computer should continue to run at optimum performance!

The Very Basics of Ebay - Getting Started

2005-11-18T04:29:00.000-08:00

So you want to sell stuff on eBay, but you have two minor problems: you don't know how and you don't have stuff. Not a problem. Keep reading for some tips to get you pointed in the right direction.

Before you begin youll need some basic equipment: Computer, Internet access, digital camera, and some space to put your stuff. Thats really all youll need to get started. Youll also need shipping and packing supplies but that is addressed later.

Next youll need to learn how to list auctions. Go to the eBay sellers overview: http://pages.ebay.com/education/sellingtips/index.html. This will be your lifeline. There is a plethora of information there on everything you always wanted to know and more. Dont be overwhelmed; just take it one step at a time. Youll see there is information on listings, on bidding, on photos, on feedback its all there.

Next youll need to figure out what to sell. Before you zero in on a particular niche you need some experience and some feedback. Buyers are generally leery of buying from someone who is brand new and has a feedback rating of less than 10 evaluations. While you are getting your feet wet, look around your own house first. Youd be amazed at what people buy. You could list outgrown clothing, magazines, candle holders, CD, books, flannel sheets, recipes, the ugly old lamp that was Aunt Mildreds, all those goofy Christmas gifts sitting in your basement, that old baby gate with a stain on it. Get the idea? You never know what someone will want.

Although you need experience, you dont want to list something that isnt likely to sell. Do your research first before you invest the time in putting together a listing. An easy method to use is do a search on eBay, then look up COMPLETED ITEMS, then sort by HIGHEST price. Then youll see if your Tommy Bahama shirt is really worth anything. Or youll see that your old baseball cards had 23 listings and not one of them sold.

Pricing is another challenge. Again, youll need to do your research. See what theyre going for. Dont have overly high expectations. You know how you feel when you go to a garage sale and you see a pair of jeans for $15 or books for $4 each. Many people come to eBay to look for a bargain. Consider how much you have into the item. If you have an item from around the house, you may consider that something is better than nothing, so you may be inclined to start the bidding quite low. If you bought it with the specific intention to resell, you will, at the very minimum, want to break even, so take the price you paid for it and consider other costs, i.e. listing fees, final value fees (all explained in your lifeline eBay seller overview above). People are much more apt to bid if the bidding starts LOW. Sometimes though, you will have collectibles that are worth a chunk of money. Dont give away that vintage postcard that is worth $56! Do your homework.

The next big question is how do you get paid? You determine what you would accept. Online payments such as PayPal (paypal.com) are very convenient. You can also decide that youll accept money orders or personal checks. The more options you leave your buyers, the more likelihood youll get more bids.

You also need to decide how you want to ship your items to the winners. Many sellers use USPS, others prefer UPS. If you use USPS and ship via Priority Mail, you can get your envelopes and boxes free from USPS. If you ship First Class or Parcel Post or UPS, youll have to shop around for deals on boxes or envelopes and bubble wrap or packing peanuts.

Overwhelmed yet? Yes there is a lot to learn, but its not nuclear science. Just take it one step at a time. Its a learning process. Some yahoo groups (or MSN or AOL, or whatever your preference) are great sources for support and camaraderie with others who are doing the same.

So in summary, if you want to just start pushing buttons and learn on your own, YOU CAN DO IT. If you do better chatting with others, those resources are available too. Use what is available.

Offline Advertising Tips

2005-11-17T04:27:00.000-08:00

Many people jump into online business enterprises and neglect real-world or offline advertising opportunities to grow their operations. A good mix of offline ads with your online campaign is good strategic planning. It helps present your message and even reinforce it for those who have already spotted your online presence. Plus you can target people who have Internet access and email capabilities by remembering to add your URL or web site address and / or your e-mail, autoresponder or ezine subscription address in all of your promotions.

To make the most of your offline advertising, here are a few tips from the pros:

1. COMPUTER RELATED When placing print classified or display ads targeting a website, target magazines that have a computer related section for your ad, when possible. This will help attract people with Internet access and email.

2. LISTS Purchase or rent postal mailing lists and set up regular direct mail campaigns. If you make sure the lists include email addresses, youll be able to cross promote via email and know they probably have Internet access, too, to help draw them to your site.

3. COMMERCIAL SPOTS Check into commercial spots on local cable television. Pricing ranges vary, and you could get a bargain early morning spot & catch business people who are early risers. Target your campaign around shows that feature Internet use / computers, too, when you can. See about being in the same spot just before or after a regularly scheduled program to target the same readers over and over, so that theyll commit your site to memory and click it on.

4. DECKS / MAILERS - Advertise with other businesses in card decks or direct mail packages. Check to make sure they are targeted for your audience.

5. EVENT MARKETING Create a CD-ROM, disk or DVD about your website, products and services. And distribute them at trade shows, workshops and other special events. Note: Have your contact information and website on the cover in case the items do not function right when installed.

6. FREEBIES - Give away free pens, pencils, mouse pads, note pads, yellow stickies, etc. that carry your website on them and contact information. Put your advertising on the mouse pads and give them away at computer or internet events.

So reach out and advertise offline to compliment your online strategy. And remember to include your URL or web site address and / or your e-mail, autoresponder or ezine subscription address in all of your promotions

How To Prospect Local Clients For Your Web Services

2005-11-16T07:55:00.000-08:00

All successful sales people know that their success is greatly dependent on their ability to effectively prospect. In other words, the "sale" begins here. 100% of all businesses are prospects for you.

You cant name a legitimate industry that is not a candidate for your web services. Sales are based on numbers. The more business owners you contact, the greater the odds of setting an appointment to meet with them.

The business can be a manufacturer, retailer, wholesaler, lawyer, home improvement contractor or hospital administrator they all have their reasons for needing your web services.

This is why you should have no difficulty in coming up with at least 100 fresh new leads on a weekly basis. It is best to contact prospects on Monday mornings. The more your business grows the more apt you are to begin receiving referrals from your existing customers. That, however, still does not preclude prospecting for new customers.

Its important to create a prospect lead system. You can do that the old-fashioned way by creating a manual card file using plain 3 x 5 index cards. Or, you can set up a contact management program on your computer.

Whichever method you choose, follow this checklist:

1. Information you will want on each lead:

Name of the business
Address with zip code
Telephone Number
Name(s) of owner(s) with title(s) if available.

2. How to create your 100 leads weekly:

While out on the road, speak into a recorder, listing names of business and other pertinent information that you see while traveling.

Later, while listening to the recorder, transfer the information to a card or your contact management program.

Using the yellow pages, create leads from a variety of businesses.

Visit your local library and use either Contacts Influential, Inside Contacts or any other printed directory and create leads using the geographical section (by zip code) or the SIC (Standard Industry Code) Section. SIC has all businesses grouped together by type, i.e. plumbers, insurance, etc.

3. Newspapers are a terrific source for leads.

Begin to read the newspaper differently than you have in the past. Make note of what businesses are advertising and what they are advertising.

Read the business section for announcements of new businesses.

Read the legal section for listings of new incorporations.

4. Pick up every free print directory you can find. Usually you will find these free papers located in stands outside of frequently visited businesses, like grocery stores and restaurants. They run the gamut by specialty industries like: real estate, senior citizens, automobiles, etc. Quik Quarter and PennySaver are two that come
to mind.

5. Stop throwing away your junk mail! There s gold in there. Any business who is already actively engaged in advertising is a prospect for your directory. If they are using print media you can be assured that they are accustomed to spending a great deal of money on advertising.

6. Here is a list of additional sources for you. You can probably come up with many more:

Magazines
Radio advertising
TV advertising
Chamber of Commerce Directories
Better Business Bureau Directories
Direct Mail Coupons
Billboards
Church Bulletins
Business cards displayed at
restaurants/laundromats/stores
Trade Shows
Visuals like drive bys and mobile units
Referrals

7. If you use a contact management system on your computer to organize and track your leads, you will still want to have a card file system to use for those leads you obtain from other advertising. Cut out the newspaper ad or coupon and staple to an index card. Organize these leads into a card file system that parallels your contact schedule.

8. Remember to use logical calling times for the businesses you contact. Typically, you would not want to contact a restaurant during their "prime times" like breakfast, lunch or dinner and remember our previous comments about contacting the construction industries.

These are just a few of the resources you can put to work in building your business locally.

How To Start Your Own Business and Travel First Class For Free

2005-11-15T07:57:00.000-08:00

Have you always dreamed of owning your own business, having the time and money to visit exotic locations and being able to fly first class?

If you love traveling, live in or near a city with a large national or international airport, and you have the kind of lifestyle that lets you pick up and go on a moment's notice, then you might want to think about starting your own business as an "air courier".

What is an air courier? It's a person who is hired to transport a specific item from one destination to another, within a specified deadline.

And, before you start imagining sinister men in trench coats carrying guns with silencers, and beautiful foreign women transporting secret microchips, let me reassure you that traveling as an air courier is 100% legal and aboveboard!

What you are asked to transport varies tremendously -- it can be almost anything -- legal documents such as letters or business contracts, children going from one country to another, medicine that was forgotten during a vacation, reports, computer disks, product prototypes -- the list is endless.

In fact, because of the "instant gratification" mindset today where we are used to information and communication that travels faster than the speed of light, air courier companies have seen their businesses grow tremendously over the last ten years. What that means for you is increased opportunities for free travel.

Who can become an air travel courier? Anyone who is over 18, holds a valid passport and who is in good health. It also helps if you're flexible and can pick up and travel on very short notice.

Why is this a wonderful opportunity?

When sending a package by air, the shipper has two options -- the first is to send the package as "cargo." Cargo travels alone (especially since the tragedy of 9/11), is shipped in bulk in large containers that usually aren't sent until the container is full, in order to maximize revenues for the airlines.

In addition, especially when cargo is sent overseas, there are sometimes long delays getting the package through customs, there are endless regulations that must be followed, inspections that must be passed, etc.

For the air courier companies, who have to make sure the package is not only delivered, but reaches the intended recipient as quickly as possible, these delays are unthinkable. (If they don't make their deadlines, then their competitors will. Think of the slogan from one such company..."when it absolutely, positively has to be there overnight...")

On the other hand, if the same item is considered "personal baggage" and is carried with a ticketed passenger, it arrives with the passenger, and generally passes through customs quickly, without all the delays.

Plus, a person can book a ticket for a specific flight arriving at their destination at a specific time -- not so for cargo. Which means that a shipment that could take days or weeks if it's classified as cargo, can take hours instead because it's classified as baggage.

Because very few of the air courier companies have the resources to employ full-time couriers, the industry itself has come to rely on freelance air couriers, which, even when having to pay someone to travel, and covering the cost of their airfare, is still a better ROI when compared against the paying full-time wages, holiday and sick pay, insurance and all of the other costs involved with having employees.

This is where you come in.

As an air courier, you are providing a valuable service in a growing market. And from the traveler's point of view, you might find yourself flying to Paris one day, and Hong Kong a week later!

Once you've been hired, the process is pretty simple: the company contacts you, to check your availability. When you confirm, they book the flight and let you know when to be at the airport. You're met at the airport by a representative, who gives you your ticket, a list of item or items you're transporting, and your baggage claim tickets. They'll usually even have checked you in, saving you many hassles. You get to sit in first class, and enjoy the flight. That's it. You don't have to contact the recipient in the city you're flying to, actually pick up the package on your way to the airport, or do anything other than be responsible for it going from one airport to another.

At your destination, you'll be met by another company representative, who will take the baggage claim tickets, and give you your return ticket.

How long do you get to stay? That depends on you and the air courier company. Sometimes your schedule will be tight -- you may only get hours between flights. Other times, you'll have a day or two. Obviously, as your reputation increases and the companies you work for know that they can rely on you, you have more room for negotiating.

There are several ways to get started. There are actually companies who recruit air couriers, and the fees for joining are usually nominal. The benefits of going through a certified company can be many. For example, they often provide information that it could take you a long time to figure out on your own. They also offer forums, newsletters and other resources to help you succeed. Because they have built a reputation, you might find it easier to get started in the business by working for one of them at first.

But, you can also find the information completely on your own, and start off freelancing. Look in the yellow pages for air couriers that are located near your local airport. Figure out where you'd like to travel to, and make a list of the locations they serve. Because there are companies who transport items both internationally or just within the states, where you travel is largely going to be a matter of personal choice.

Also, make sure that you investigate each company before applying with them. You want to make sure that they are a solid business, with a good reputation. Once you've narrowed down your choices, get on the phone, and find out what their application process is. Many companies today prefer that you apply online. Whatever the process is, make sure that you provide them with all the information they request.

Timely tip: After submitting your application, follow up with a thank-you letter, on your new "company" letterhead. Remind them of your availability, that you can accept short or no notice flights. Find a way to position yourself above that of the other couriers.

Once you've gone through the process the first time, you'll have a much better idea about which other companies you want to apply to and how to hone your interview skills. (So don't make your first application with the biggest company that you want to work for the most.) Obviously, if you limit yourself to one or two companies, you'll also be limiting the amount of work you'll get and the locations you can travel to.

Timely Tip: Put together a database of the companies you've applied to, the date you applied, and contact information. Follow up with the company regularly, but don't be a pest.

Once you've been hired, don't be surprised if you start getting calls within the first couple of weeks. There is a growing need for professional, responsible air couriers.

Here are some things to keep in mind when you start working:

1. Be professional. Remember that while shorts and flip flops may be comfortable for vacationers, you're working and representing the air courier company.

2. Often the only baggage you get to take with you is hand carried. Invest in microfiber clothing in basic colors, and learn to pack essentials only. If you do get to stay for longer than a few days, you can always pick up some essentials once you're there.

3. Give your own business card to the company representative in the country you travel to, and make sure that your email and voice mail information is included.

4. Apply to all the companies you've decided you want to work for, and then follow up with the ones that haven't contacted you regularly -- perhaps a polite letter or even a one-page newsletter that lists the latest on industry related news.

5. Stay organized. Don't over commit yourself, and try never to have to cancel a trip.

Being an air courier is a great way to make money and see the world. Bon Voyage!

Autoresponder Services that Boost Your Business

2005-11-14T07:57:00.000-08:00

In the world of ecommerce, millions of sites are fiercely competing with each other to gain new clients. For any ecommerce site to succeed, it must capture the interest and the trust of its visitors. It is not enough that your site is impeccably designed or has the latest in animation of content. You should focus your efforts not only in attracting visitors but also in leading them to make a purchase. There are dozens of marketing strategies you can use to attract more buyers and pump up your sales. One of them is by establishing an excellent and professional reputation for prompt and efficient response.

As more potential customers visit your site, you should expect a flood of inquiries and requests for information. This is an excellent opportunity for you to capture more clients and lead them to buying from your site. Thus, it is important that you carry out an efficient and prompt response to every email you receive. The fastest and most effective way to do this is by utilizing Autoresponder services.

Autoresponder services use a computer program that automatically returns a prewritten message to anyone who sends an email to your site. It is widely used for responding to consumer inquiries and visitor comments and suggestions. Autoresponder services are also used by e-zines in responding to people who subscribe or unsubscribe to their online magazines. Companies, who send out their e-newsletter regularly, also use Autoresponder services.

How can effective Autoresponder services help boost your business? The answer lies in its ability to return a prompt response to any e-mail the site receives. By responding rapidly and efficiently, you create a very good impression on your potential customer. Good Autoresponder services help you get important information back to these customers immediately. An effective Autoresponder service helps you communicate your message promptly, creating a sense of professionalism and efficiency that your clients will definitely appreciate.

Another very important advantage of Autoresponder services is that it saves time with multiple marketing tasks. Certainly, you do not have enough time to personally make and send all correspondence. Autoresponder services allows you to send thank you letters, newsletters, product information, brochures, orders etc. to hundreds of clients almost immediately and simultaneously. Autoresponder services are also indispensable in any email marketing campaign.

Choosing the right Autoresponder services is very important. What then should you look for in an Autoresponder service? First, you should pick an Autoresponder service that is reliable and can give you 24/7 service. You cannot afford to lose a customer because your Autoresponder service failed to answer his query or request for information. The ability to respond promptly is the first thing you must look for in any Autoresponder services.

Another key factor you should consider when choosing Autoresponder services is flexibility. Good Autoresponder services allow you to customize unique responses that will have maximum effect on the customer. You should avoid creating an impression that the customer is communicating with a machine instead of a real human being. Excellent Autoresponder services lets you provide the information that is specifically targeted for what the potential customers are looking for. Because any email from potential customers essentially represent the customer's intent on getting more information about your product, which can ultimately lead to direct sales, all emails are important. Thus, a top Autoresponder service must fulfill all these duties to help you boost your business.

How To Manage Windows Passwords

2005-11-13T08:14:00.000-08:00

AutoComplete

AutoComplete is a feature of Windows that locally caches the user names and passwords, as well as form entries for various logon accounts within the users profile. These are for the various servers that host the many different websites on the Internet. If the user is on a domain, this feature allows a user to connect using user names and passwords that are different from those used to log on. The user can store these for later reuse.

Protecting your accounts

Storing user names and passwords do not remove the risk of using weak passwords. To protect against this use strong passwords to prevent intruders guessing or stealing the password. Users must protect their accounts from misuse by providing password protection to the various sensitive websites. Ensuring the use of strong or complex passwords contribute to protect against possible identity theft. Make sure to use strong passwords for all accounts for maximum protection.

Windows AutoComplete Function

Windows features an integrated approach that allows users to save their various passwords within their local profiles. This useful tool is AutoComplete and is not without various pros and cons. The following are some basic adjustments to fully maximize the effectiveness of this tool

Adjusting AutoComplete Settings

You can tailor the AutoComplete feature to save and suggest only the information you want. You can choose whether to use AutoComplete for Web addresses, forms and passwords or not use it at all. You can clear the history for any of these. On the Tools menu, in Internet Explorer, click Internet Options then click the Content tab. Under Personal information click AutoComplete and select the check boxes for the AutoComplete options you want to use.

Deleting AutoComplete Entries

The AutoCompete feature saves previous entries you made for Web addresses, forms, and passwords. To delete entries from the Address bar, you must clear your History folder. You cannot clear individual entries from the list of saved entries. On the Tools menu, in Internet Explorer, click Internet Options, then click the General tab. Under History click the Clear History and all past history settings should be deleted.

When typing information in Web forms, and typing passwords, you can remove an item from the list of suggestions by clicking the item and then pressing the Delete key. For Help on an item, click at the top of the dialog box and then click the item.

If you find that you wish to transfer these specific settings to another machine, the easiest way may be using third party utilities. One such tool is Personal Information Keeper, available as a free shareware download, from HighCriteria.com. It's useful for not just managing username and passwords, but also the storage of often used website addresses. This program can also generate complex passwords just by setting the complexity details.

The program is small and creates a master file that can be protected with a master password. The password becomes the master password for all the others stored within it. This simple approach, not unlike Windows AutoComplete tool, is powerful and potentially dangerous. Remember, if someone gets access to the one master password they have access to all of you other accounts! Nevertheless it's a great time-saver and allows easy backup of your sensitive personal information.

Beware of Spyware

Do remember that if you decide to utilize one of these "free" personal management tools that it isn't laden with Adware. Such programs can be innocent enough at first, but may inundate you with advertisements. Gator is such a program that appears very useful at first, but will eventually get the ads popping up to your computer after a short while.

Buying the Perfect Computer

2005-11-12T08:15:00.000-08:00

It's easy to make a mistake when buying a new computer. Many people end up spending a ton of money on something expensive that they'll never use to its full potential, while others buy something so small that they have to do expensive upgrading in a matter of months.

There's few things more disappointing than finding out your 6 month old computer can't do what you want it to do, or that you don't really need that $400 graphics card to run Microsoft Word.

Don't just buy blindly. Hopefully this article will help you ask the right questions and get the right hardware for your needs in return.

Power Supply:

Often overlooked as a component, your power supply is an important part of your computer as it powers all the internal components. The power supply you need will largely be determined by the components in your PC - in particular CPU type, graphics card and number of internal devices.

For Pentium 4 and all AMD CPUs, a minimum 300W power supply is recommended. If you want to run one of the new ATI X8xx or GeForce 6xxx series 3D graphics cards, don't even try anything weaker than a 400W power supply.

Never overlook the significance of a power supply - an underpowered system will be prone not only to unreliable operation, but also to component damage.

CPU:

On the entry level side of things you have a choice between AMD's Sempron CPUs and Intel's Celeron D. These CPUs are not for the hardcore gamer - they're for the average user who only want to run office applications and use the Internet.

For the hardcore user/gamer there's the Pentium 4 and the AMD Athlon 64 CPUs. There's little to choose between the two big guns in the CPU business. The slowest Pentium 4 CPU readily available at present is the 3Ghz version, while AMD's equivalent, the Athlon 64 3000+ will likewise satisfy most users' demand for processing power.

Go faster than that and the increase in cost becomes quite significant, and you'll have to weigh that up against your budget and your demands.

Motherboard:

The most important thing to keep in mind when picking a motherboard is to get one that's fairly future proof.

For Pentium 4 that means a motherboard that supports socket 775 CPUs, and for AMD a motherboard that supports socket 939 CPUs. Also, make sure your motherboard has enough expansion slots (most commonly PCI slots) to support all additional cards you may want to use in future - including sound cards, TV cards, wireless network cards, etc.

If you're a gamer, also make sure that your motherboard supports either an AGP 8x (obsolete soon), but preferably a PCI-Express 16x slot for a 3D graphics card.

3D Graphics Card:

While most motherboards these days feature an onboard graphics card that is suitable for the casual user, these aren't adequate for gamers.

With the old AGP 8x architecture almost obsolete, the way to go is a PCI-Express graphics card if you have a motherboard that supports it.

For casual gamers who want to play a bit of Sims and Harry Potter, nVidia's GeForce 6600 and ATI's X700 series of cards will do the trick.

For the hardcore gamer who wants to play cutting edge games like Doom 3 and Battlefield 2 at rocking frame rates, don't get anything smaller than a GeForce 6600GT or ATI X800 with 256MB of GDDR3 memory on the card. 128MB is also acceptable if you don't want to play at resolutions higher than 1152x864.

Before buying a graphics card, make sure that a) your motherboard has the appropriate slot for it and b) that your power supply is strong enough to support it.

RAM:

RAM is fast memory used by your computer to execute tasks. When your computer runs out of RAM, it starts swapping data to the much slower hard drive, which slows down your entire system.

With RAM being so cheap these days I'd recommend you get at least 512MB. If you're going to run Windows XP, don't get less than 256MB or you'll slow even the fastest CPU powered computer to a crawl.

For hardcore gamers, less than 1GB simply isn't an option anymore.

Hard drive:

The smallest hard drive you can buy at the time of writing is 80GB. That's more than the average home/office user will ever fill, while it's not nearly enough for music/video collectors or avid gamers.

At the moment the first big price jump in hard drives comes between 200GB and 250GB, so 200GB would be a great option if you need some serious space. Be sure to make comparisons if you need more space - for example, two 200GB drives are much cheaper than one 400GB, even though you get the same amount of space.

On the other hand again, two 80GB drives are more expensive than one 160GB drive.

It's also worth getting a SATA hard drive if your motherboard supports it. It's much faster than IDE drives, which are still abundantly available.

Optical Drives:

Fortunately CD-ROM drives have quietly vanished off the market, so you can now get more versatile DVD-ROM and CD-ReWriter drives very cheaply.

If you want to be able to write DVDs, naturally go for a DVD-RW drive, and make sure the drive you get supports double-layer writing so you can use the new 8.5GB double layer DVD discs in it, which is a whole lot of backup storage.

So, that's just a quick rundown of the things to keep in mind when buying a new computer. Fortunately it's almost impossible to buy a slow computer these days - only gamers and other users of high-demand software need to pay special attention to what they get.

WiFi Comes to Digital Cameras

2005-11-11T08:16:00.000-08:00

First we had to get over the whole film thing after a nation of baby boomers had been raised on Kodak, Polaroid, and 35mm film cameras of various shapes and sizes. We were all use to the idea of sending in our film for developing and waiting for our pictures to come back.

Then along came digital cameras and the world was taken by storm with this cool new technology. Suddenly you could take a picture and see the results immediately. At first these cameras were slow and not such great quality but still kind of cool. Then things heated up and now we have fantastic digital cameras of all sizes and shapes that can take wonderful images which can be shared instantly with your family, or the rest of the world for that matter.

Now comes the latest in technology integration. WiFi and digital cameras. No need to even plug your camera memory card into a computer, or a printer at all. Now you can buy a digital camera that transmits the images via wireless technology. Yes, that is right, a wireless connection for your image uploads.

Now, you may be among those in the population that have not even gotten their hands around the whole digital image sharing thing yet. But this promising new technology may lead us to a world of fewer cables to plug in, quicker transfer of our images, and in the case of events in the world, the ability to share images of news almost instantly.

As we saw in the recent bombings in London, folks with cell phone cameras recorded the devastation they saw in the underground and shared it with the world in almost real time fashion. These new cameras may be able to take that sort of thing to an all new level. Imagine cities that implement widespread WiFi access and photographers with WiFi cameras capturing images of news and other special events. They could transmit those images right away and let the world see them.

Here is how it works:

Nikon has released two models of digital cameras that are WiFi enabled. The idea is to be able to transmit your pictures straight from the camera to your computer or printer through a wireless adaptor. You bring up the images to transfer, hit go, and they get sent through the air to your printer. The Coolpix P1 and P2 will be in the $400-$550 range in pricing and the adaptor is extra.

They are competing with Kodak which released its own version of the WiFi camera in their Easy Share line of cameras this year. Kodak has already gone to making it easy to share photos by transmitting them at so called "wireless hot spots", usually cafes or stores where wireless access is sold or given away to customers. These efforts by the leading camera makers seem aimed at adding value to their already impressive digital technology.

Digital cameras continue to be hot sellers despite what some in the industry thought would be a slowing of sales this year. Many had predicted that cell phone cameras would slow digital camera sales, but this is not happening.

If you are a leading edge gadget buyer and have a wireless mindset then you may want to be first on the block to get one of these Wi-Fi digital cameras.

Wanna' Be A Web Guru? Here's a Jump-Start Plan

2005-11-10T08:17:00.000-08:00

Guess what my fast-start recommendation is? You got it - write articles for other publishers. Why is this such a common suggestion? Could it be because - it works? This is the fastest and easiest way by far to get a following of people who recognize your name and listen to what you recommend.

When I was newly online and learning about online business, clicking on the links in articles, forums, and discussion groups signatures was my primary method of finding good information.

I reasoned that if the person was published, odds were that they were somewhat of an expert on that subject. And, if they were experts, the products and services they sold or recommended were likely to be good. Those were the people whose products I bought and whose lists I joined.

If you include a signature with each article, including a line or two about your business and your website URL and/or email address, you may be very amazed at the traffic it will generate for you - the best kind of targeted traffic, too!

Are you having trouble just getting started? I understand. And I can't tell you that writing isn't hard work. It certainly is for me. But once you write the first article it gets much easier. In fact, you may discover, as I did, that you have a hard time stopping!

Here's a "jump-start plan" to get you going:

1. Get a notebook and pen, or if you are a "cut and paste" writer like me - a word processor or computer, and just brainstorm ideas for articles. If you are at a total loss, go and read some articles in other's e-zines or websites. That may spark an idea for a different approach to the same subject or remind you of your own experiences in that area.

Think about what You need or want to know. What have you learned from experience that might help others? Once you get started you will come up with many ideas. Write each one down. If you think of a good title for that article, write that down too. Make it "catchy."

2. What you should do next depends on you. There are several ways writers work, depending on their personalities. You may like to order and organize your points first by making an outline of the information you plan to include or the points you intend to make. Then all you have to do is go back and "flesh out" the points, adding useful facts or links to more information.

Or, you may be a natural teacher, and write just as though you are explaining the subject to the reader in person. Either method is fine, just do what is comfortable for you. One method may work best for one kind of article and the other for another kind.

3. In either case, don't forget to add "personality" to your writing. Share some of yourself with your readers, make your writing uniquely your own. It's fine to read e-zines and others' articles to see what people may be interested in and spark your own ideas, but don't pattern yourself after someone else. People want to feel that they know You - Your knowledge and personality. This is what builds loyalty.

If it fits with your subject, don't be afraid to mention your product or service and give the URL or email address, but DON'T write a "glorified ad" and call it an article! That can offend a publisher so that they won't even consider articles from you in the future.

4. After you've finished writing your article, read it through aloud, preferably to someone else who will ask questions if they don't understand some point. (You may get an idea for a sequel here too!}

5. Run a spell checker! If you own Microsoft Word or something similar, run the grammar checker also. Have someone else proofread it for you. Even professional proofreaders will tell you that they try to have someone else proofread their own writing, because it is next to impossible to catch your own mistakes.

6. Once you finish your article and make any necessary changes, you will need to submit it to as many websites and e-zines as you can. Search the web for "article directory" and you will find many places to submit your article for free. There are also, of course, paid services and software that will do the submissions for you, but you may want to wait until you have successfully written a few articles before you choose to pay.

As I said earlier, writing is hard work for me, and I reworked my first article many times before I was satisfied. But if you persevere you may discover that it can be loads of fun as well as a great promotion method and a quick path to "web-guru-ness."

Mouse Properties

2005-11-09T08:17:00.000-08:00

Mouse properties can be changed to accommodate different situations. If you are left-handed, you can change the mouse properties so that it is easier for you to use the mouse. Another important and often forgotten aspect is: people with limited mobility can find it difficult to use the mouse. As an example, I introduced my grandmother to the Internet, she had no idea how to use a computer but she is smart and learned quickly. However, her right hand was not able to double-click the mouse fast enough. She had a bad case of arthritis in her right hand and she was quickly getting very frustrated. I changed the mouse properties so she could use her left hand, slowed down the double-click speed and now she surfs the net everyday.

Adjusting the mouse properties is an easy procedure if you know where to look for it.

To access the mouse properties,click on Start, select Setting and then select Control Panel. Once you are in the Control Panel, double-click the Mouse.
The Mouse Properties dialog box will open up. On the Button Tab, you will see Button configuration. This is where you can change the mouse from a Right-handed mouse to a Left-Handed mouse. As a rule, the mouse will be pre-configured as Right-handed. You can tell it is so because the radio button next to right-handed is selected. To change to Left-handed mouse, simply click on the radio button next to Left-handed.

Lower on the same screen, you will see Double-click speed. You can change the speed of the double-click by moving the slide bar towards or away from Slow or Fast.

For people with mobility problems, drag the slider bar to Slow.

You can then check the speed of the double-click. To do so double-click on the jack-in-the-box.

Next, select the Pointers Tab. Here you can select a different pointer shape. Some shapes are easier to see for people with poor vision. Have the person next to you as you do this and select the pointer shape that they can more easily see.

Another problem grandma had was her poor eyesight. She is 94 and her eyes are not what they once were. She was finding it very difficult to follow the mouse pointer. Again, the mouse properties came to the rescue.

The Motion Tab allows you to adjust the speed of the pointer as it moves across the screen. If you select the Show Pointer Trail option by putting a check in that box, images of the previous mouse position on the screen appear to create a trail, which makes it easier to see for people with poor vision.

If you move the slider bar of the pointer speed, you can reduce or increase the speed of the pointer as it moves on the screen.

Once you have made your entire selection, click on Apply to save the settings.

Remember you can always go back and make adjustments.

The computer is made for everybody. Make sure to introduce these features to people who have poor mobility and to those who have poor vision

How To Protect Yourself From Identity Theft

2005-11-08T08:18:00.000-08:00

Identity Theft is a real and growing problem. So what is identity theft exactly? Basically, identity theft is when someone uses your social security number, your bank credit card number, your driver's license number or any other form of identity without your knowledge or permission.

Many people have fallen victim to identity theft through many different means. Some of these ways are easily preventable due to their common sense obvious nature. Other ways identities are stolen are more dubious and discreet.

So, the question becomes, how can you protect yourself from someone stealing your identity?

To protect yourself from identity theft, the first thing you should do when considering how to divulge information about your identity to someone you do not know or may not trust is to use your common sense. Never make one-sided assumptions or take things for granted where your identity is concerned.

Credit card company statements and bank statements you receive in the mail contain your account information including your account number. Any of these items need to be shredded with an inexpensive shredder you can buy at any office supply store. Do not throw credit card statements, old credit cards or bank statements, etc. in the trash as that presents an easy way for someone going through the trash to steal your account information and use it as if they were you.

Another thing you can do to protect yourself against credit card fraud and unauthorized credit card usage is to sign the back of your card as "Check ID". If a store clerk asks to see your card, he or she will check the signature on the back and compare it with some other form of ID you have. This safeguard will not work where a purchase can be automatically completed (like at a gas pump).

When you are buying items at a store or withdrawing money from a bank or ATM machine using your ATM debit card always protect the visibility of your PIN number as you punch it in.

Do not carry your social security card with your number on it in your wallet. Keep your social security card or anything with your social security number on it in a safe place where no one has access to it but you. If you must dispose of anything that has your social security number on it, do not forget to shred it.

When online, do not open files sent to you by strangers or even files that are from someone you know but were not expecting to receive any from them. Do not click on hyperlinks or download programs from people you do not know either. Opening a computer file from an unknown source could expose your system to a computer virus, a Trojan or spyware. These types of programs could be ones that could log your keystroke information containing your credit card numbers, passwords or other sensitive information as you type it in.

If you use Ebay or Paypal, read the company website policies concerning how they handle communication to you about your account information. Never trust an email you may receive out of nowhere from Ebay or Paypal asking you to "update your account information" as this is more than likely a ploy to steal that information and use it illegally.

Use a firewall program and a router while you are online if you have high speed internet that leaves your computer connected to the internet 24/7. The router and the firewall program both make it much more difficult for a hacker to see your computer's actual IP address which means that you have a better chance of safely sending and receiving sensitive information over the internet. Windows XP operating system SP2 has a built in firewall which you should make sure is enabled in your settings.

When you are shopping online, always use a secure browser and shop from a web site that offers secure transactions when shopping online. Most browsers in use today have this protection feature including the popular Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox browsers. Secure website shopping carts you visit will show up as "https://thestoresdomain.com" in the web browser address bar.

Practice keeping your computer clean from spyware or Trojan programs that log keystroke information by using virus protection software and spyware monitoring and removal software. These programs should be updated regularly, and updates for you're operating system and other software programs should be installed regularly to protect against the compromise of your computer files and password information. Ideally, virus protection software should be set to update itself frequently. The Windows XP operating system will update itself automatically if you enable this feature, which you should.

The consequences of identity theft once thieves have your information can be quite severe and range from going on a spending spree to taking out auto loans in your name. For these reasons and others, it is a good idea to monitor your credit report periodically. A credit report can be obtained from Trans Union Corp. New laws have made it easy for you to get at least one free credit report that you can use to see if accounts have been opened in your name.

Why Blogging is Essential to Your Business

2005-11-07T08:19:00.000-08:00

In the 'good old days' - about three years ago - you used to keep in-touch with your customers using phone calls, email messages and face to face meetings. Nowadays the world has changed. People expect even more frequent updates, yet it's nearly impossible to meet with every business contact on a regular basis.

Thankfully, blogging has come to the rescue. Setting up a blog on your web site - and having an associated RSS feed - means you can keep in constant touch with your clients and potential customers. Plus you don't have to email them and they can get your latest news without having to visit your web site.

So how does this all work? A blog is really a fancy name for a web page that gets updated regularly. It's nothing special. There are several methods of writing 'blogs', but they are nothing more than computer programs which allow you to easily update a web page. Far and away the easiest way to start a blog is with a website called blogger.com.

However, for keeping in touch with your customers, RSS is the key. RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication. What this means is that your blog can be automatically delivered to people who want to read it - you don't have to send it to them and neither do they have to come and collect it. All they need is the address of your RSS Feed and their RSS Newsreader can do the job for them. There are several RSS readers available and new web browsers incorporate the ability to read RSS feeds and keep them updated.

Whenever you add new content to your blog, the RSS Feed automatically gets updated in everyone's Reader program or web browser. That means you are guaranteed to be able to keep in touch with clients and prospects. You don't have to do anything other than produce the content. Equally, you don't face the problems of email filters and anti-spam programs blocking your email. Furthermore, people tend to read RSS Feeds because they have subscribed to them whereas they tend to ignore non urgent emails.

As you can see, there are several advantages to Blogs and RSS Feeds. But it doesn't stop there. Search engines love them. That's because blogs provide fresh and new content - precisely what searchers are looking for. Hence the search engines are actively pushing blogs higher up the search engine ranking. This means if you don't have a blog for your business, you are seriously reducing your chances of a high search engine ranking. You need a blog nowadays to get noticed by the search engines.

So, blogging is essential. Not only does it improve your web presence, it also means you can keep in touch with clients and prospects more easily. And all the marketing research you can find will tell you that keeping in regular touch with your customers is an important component in gaining new business. So get blogging!

Join the Internet Shopping Bandwagon

2005-11-06T08:20:00.000-08:00

Are you ready to join? The Internet shopping bandwagon, that is. Shopping online has become increasingly popular over the last few years, with new and improved safety measures, specialty shops and giant retailers like Overstock.com; all designed to entice shoppers.

In fact, VeriSign (the leading provider of security for web sites on the Internet) suggests e-commerce data from the holiday season in 2004 totaled 8.8 billion dollars in online purchases (based on an analysis of online sales volume processed through VeriSign payment services, which comprises more than 35% of North America's e-commerce and represents in excess of 120,000 online retailers).

Additionally, e-commerce transactions are estimated to be close to 168 billion dollars for the year 2005. In fact, in the year 2010 it is projected online sales could top the 315 billion dollar mark (Forrester Research 2005). One may ask, why such an increase?

Many factors can explain such increases. Improved security measures, ease of use and convenience are just a few of these factors. Let's explore these factors.

Security Measures- Despite all the fears of identity theft, online transactions account for less than 4% of identity theft. There are numerous software programs available (some for free) that the user can download to protect themselves from viruses and spyware. Worried about spyware? Download a free spyware program at www.safer-networking.com (called SpyBot Search & Destroy). Additionally, look for the locked padlock in the toolbar and make sure the http changes to https in your browser. The "s" indicates that the web site is a secure site and adheres to the industry standard for security values Secure Sockets Layer (SSL). Therefore, your personal information is encrypted and stays private during transmission over the Internet. Always delete sensitive information when exiting any website and do not give your credit card number to anyone requesting it in an email (phishing scams). Follow these simple steps a safe online shopping experience.

Ease of use- We have all seen the banner advertisements, just click on them and they take you to the web site advertised. Email advertising is growing in popularity as well and includes a link to click on to take the user to the site after they read the text ad. There are some unique and catchy names of web sites that are easy to remember. Have a favorite web site or shopping site? Just bookmark it and add it to your collection of favorites!

Convenience- Ever wait in long lines during the holiday season? What a time saver online shopping has become! No lines to wait in, no parking hassles, no traffic, no gas expense, no crowds and your merchandise can be shipped right to your door! Or, if you prefer, you can have your purchases gift wrapped and delivered to another address. All you do is sit at your computer with your shopping list and get done in a few hours what may taken you several days and trips to the mall to accomplish!

There are many more advantages to shopping online (we have just covered a few) as well as some disadvantages, but carefully weighed out; the smart shopper will discover a happy medium between the two and e-commerce will continue to grow and be a force in the economy for years to come.