Best RockStartup Ever!

I can relate to the RockStartup Episode 11: Can't Hardly Weight the best since I've been on a weight-loss program since August 2006. I'm what I consider a perpetual dieter since I seem to have a fat gene in my family and the office-wide weight loss, diet, and exercise program is a cool idea. We actually have a gym where I work, but I don't use it very much because I'd rather walk outdoors than on a treadmill. I have a treadmill in my garage that has dust on it - thank God I only paid $25 bucks for it at a yard sale. Anyway, RockStartup is a very cool reality tv web program that gives you a little insight to the minds behind the PayPerPost concept and allows us posties to feel more connected to the people we are working for to get the word out. I love to see what goes on behind the scenes at the company - who does what and who comes up with all these crazy, great ideas and concepts. It's like a marketing course on crack! The confessionals are great; we get to find out what's going on with everyone and how they really feel about things, who's cheating on their diet; I guess V's confession in this particular episode lets me know that the struggles I've faced in my plan are the same struggles that a lot of people face in the weight-loss battle. It does help to have a buddy system for diet and exercise and with the entire office "involved" in the plan, it sparks a bit of competition - I think these guys and gals are full of competition, so this should be interesting! I love the show and can't wait to see if the Heidi Klum diet and Thermabubbles work for Britt and Veronique. Gimme more, gimme more, gimme more...

Check out the webisode I liked best, here...

Online BillPay, Credit Cards & Late Fees - LOOKOUT!

If you have a credit card and use BillPay or mail your payment, you need to read this, NOW! It may be that I'm just paranoid, but I could definitely see this happening...

Cha-Ching!

If you're new to the blogosphere, did you know that you can make money off your blog? Have you heard of PayPerPost? Well, if you haven't, crawl out from under that rock and listen up! My other blog turned 1 year old last month, and just since August of last year, I've made over $3K with my blogs thanks to PayPerPost.com and their creative marketing strategies. Can you believe that? The incentive of making money blogging just makes me want to become a better blogger and deliver posts content that is both interesting and informative for readers who've surfed over or stumbled upon my little corner of the web. If you've arrived here, I want to let you in on a new affiliate program being offered by PayPerPost.com which allows you, the reader, to review my post - this post, and in the process, will allow you to make your first step into blogging for PayPerPost which is the best game in town to monetize your blog. The review allows me to promote my blog, too. Sounds like a win-win situation, huh?



The PayPerPost folks have released a new beta version of their interface, some parts of the release weren't exactly painless to say the least, but it should be duly noted that they're a new company and are still learning - er - ironing out issues. Anyway, the affiliate program allows the reader to review my post which earns the reader $7.50. But, the $7.50 does not come instantly as you must signup, submit your blog for approval (takes about a week), then once the post you made is approved, you'll be paid via PayPal 30 days from the day you originally submitted the opportunity. It would probably be better if PayPerPost could allow the $7.50 to be instantly transferred to the reader's PayPal account so that the newbie postie could get a "warm and fuzzy" about PayPerPost and not have to worry whether they would ever see their cash.

Motorola RAZR V3C Battery

I have a Motorola RAZR V3C and lately I've been noticing that the battery goes dead (from a full charge) every afternoon. I bought a new battery since I thought that the one that came with my phone may have developed a "memory" but that one does the same thing. I think that it has something to do with the lack of signal available inside the building where I work, or perhaps it's constantly searching for an available network, so yesterday I tried turning the phone on "Home Only" network setting and the battery lasted all day until 10 PM last night. I don't really want to have to keep switching between Home and Automatic networks - has anyone else had this issue? Is there a way to put the phone in powersave mode?

e-cards

Today, for the first time ever, my husband sent me an e-card for Valentine's Day. I almost fell out of my chair and knocked over my cubicle wall when I saw that I had an e-card from Jennings! He's learning, bless his heart. He's the total opposite from me when it comes to computers - I had to teach him how to double click - LOL - now, he's sending me e-cards. He didn't send me the one where you hear hear Cupid's best pickup lines, but a more sweet, loving card. Egreetings.com has some very funny e-cards for birthdays and Valentine's Day that are funny, risque and animated that you can personalize your own message and send to your buddies who have a sense of humor and like funny stuff like me. You can get a yearly subscription for $13.99 (which is probably less than what you'd spend on stamps) and with membership you can schedule when your cards are sent so you never miss that special occasion again. Don't wind up buying a plastic rose and cheesy card at the local convenient store at the last minute - give 'em what they want - a good laugh!


Wanna hear Cupid's pickup lines?


How 'bout some inbox cleavage?


Who wouldn't want Singing Chins in their inbox?

Happy Valentine's Day!

Hello Blogosphere and Happy Valentine's Day from NC! I hope you all have a nice, romantic Valentine's Day with your special someone. I got just what I wanted for Valentine's Day - A brand-spankin' new fishing rod and reel - I know it sounds crazy coming from a girl, but I'm a low-maintenance kinda girl - no chocolates and flowers for me - just grill me a steak and give me a rod and I'll be happy! Heh.

Lead Generation with Leaddogs.com

As my previous post stated, our company has a problem tracking the sales leads that are generated by customer service reps. It's up to Sales to look at the leads and determine the priority of the leads, identify market needs, and go after the sale. Right now, there's a problem with Sales being able to analyze the data in some form then targeting businesses and distributors to sell our products and services. Lead Generation can be tricky because of the you need good data to support legitimate sales calls, expensive trips, website modification, and sales & marketing promotion. Leaddogs.com specialized in getting high-quality B2B sales leads that are more apt to turn into a sale. They identify businesses that are ready to seal the deal and develop future opportunities. I don't see why we can't try a service like leaddogs.com to outsource some sales functions - our company has already trimmed so much fat during restructuring that we don't really have the workforce necessary to handle all the leads; we're no stranger to outsourcing either. It's the primary principle of business - you need to spend money to make money...

Sales Leads Database

My ex-boss at work who used to be in Quality (and had a hand in everything else), is now in Sales and has decided to take on the task of creating a sales lead database for all the customer service and tech reps to keep track of calls. He decided not to use some of the existing software that the company had purchased, but to make his own. Jimmy may have to use this database, so I'm sure I'll be hearing about it from him and the others - I'll let you know how it's working...

Flucidity for Real?

I ran across an interesting new concept today which involves one thinking and acting on certain ideas, needs and wants to promote achievement of your personal goals and objectives. The concept is called Flucidity and is coined by the author as the Theory of Everything. The basic steps of the thought process are representation, structure and measurement, potential energy, then interaction and association - pretty simple when you think about it, or look at the examples, but the mind is very complex - and the power of human thought is even more complex. This is an interesting theory which shouldn't be overlooked or dismissed. I'm a firm believer in the power of positive thinking, and Flucidity may just take that a step further - I'll have to think about it...

the whole enchilada...

There's been a lot going on over at the whole enchilada blog, from me being evicted from my office to seeing why I need 9-1-1 on speed dial. Oh yeah, I was PayPerPost.com's blog of the day, too! You probably should check it out just to keep up with me and what's going on - it can be entertaining. If you haven't checked out Spicypage.com or MyBlogLog.com yet - you should - you can link to all your friend's blogs there and find some new blogs that might interest you.

E-M-A-I-L

Email Marketing can be one of the least expensive and far-reaching marketing tools of bringing your product or service to light to consumers and businesses alike. I am connected to my email nearly all-day everyday, and so are many other people that I know, so how much more audience does a business need than one whose connected to the lifeline of their product for over 70% of the day.

Here's my video...


This post sponsored by MindComet.com

Free Podcast Hosting Site

If you're like me, you have quite a bit to talk about. I'm sure you've been surfing around and stumbled on some podcasts somewhere out there on the 'net since podcasting is becoming a popular way for businesses and bloggers to deliver media content about their site or services or whatever to visitors and readers. It's convenient to watch podcasts to since you can download them to your iPod or PC and listen whenever you want, unlike streaming audio. If you want to start doing your own podcasting for your site, MyPodcast.com is a Free Podcast host that lets you record and host your podcast for free!

How Much Is This Blog Worth?

This is pretty cool. This blog is relatively new in the blogosphere, but it already has some value! I was surprised to see what my blogs are worth with this cool little app from business-opportunities.biz

My blog is worth $3,387.24.
How much is your blog worth?

Check out my other blog's worth here...

What's a Podcast, You Ask?

A podcast is a media file that is distributed by subscription (paid or unpaid) over the Internet using syndication feeds, for playback on mobile devices and personal computers. Like 'radio', it can mean both the content and the method of syndication. The latter may also be termed podcasting. The host or author of a podcast is often called a podcaster. The term "podcast" is derived from Apple's portable music player, the iPod. However, known synonyms for the word pod are capsule, case, container, hull, husk, shell, and vessel. A pod is obviously a container of some sort and the idea of broadcasting to a container or pod correctly the describes the process of podcasting. More about the name itself can be found in the History of podcasting article.

Though podcasters' web sites may also offer direct download or streaming of their content, a podcast is distinguished from other digital audio formats by its ability to be downloaded automatically, using software capable of reading feed formats such as RSS or Atom.

Source: wikipedia.org

Please, No Flowers...

It's nice to get flowers sometimes, but I've always told my husband not to get me flowers for anniversaries, birthdays, or Valentine's Day. They're beautiful for a few days, but then they just wilt and die. I'm a pretty low-maintenance kind of gal when it comes to flowers, candy, and candle lit dinners - just grill me a steak, and clean up the kitchen! Now, when it comes to my electronics, give me the best because I do love my gadgets! My problem is, if I asked for some nifty little gadget for Valentine's Day like one of these pink, personalized thumb drives, my husband wouldn't even know what I was talking about! He is technologically challenged to say the least. But anyway, maybe he'll read my blog and get the hint!

What celebrity do you look like?

What celebrity do you look like? Well, to find out, you need to go to myheritage.com - it's a way cool site where you can do this fun experiment for free and find out about how to research your family history...

Here's my daughter's celebrity collage...

All About Home Theater

I bought my first surround sound system about 10 years ago and it consisted of a Sony Pro-logic receiver and some mini Sony speakers for the center and front. I rigged up a subwoofer, later and I was content for awhile. About 4 years ago, I sold that system at a garge sale (it sounded pretty good and brought $300) then bought a new Sony System complete with center, front and rear speakers, a subwoofer and a Sony 5-disc DVD player. The system works great and sounds great, but I would love to upgrade my system so I've been looking around at some Home Audio Theater Reviews. A friend of mine just bought a 62 inch HDTV and I have to admit, I'm jealous - and it's just in time for the big game, too. I don't know if I could bear the rejection of American Idol wannabees on a 62 inch screen, or take the excitement of all my favorite shows coming through some new JBL speakers, but I could sure give it a try!

spicypage.com

Spicypage is a relatively new site that allows the users to vote and share their fave sites with friends and others who have things in common like location, topic, etc. If you want to join, it's free and you can get stats on your blog as well. Pretty cool idea and site...what are you still doing here? Check it out, NOW, but come back here, too!

Vote for this blog here

And My Whole Enchilada Blog here

When Will iPod Phone Be Available?

Want an iPhone? Want to know when the Apple iPod iPhone will be available? Me too! I can't wait to see the iPhone in action and I'd like to be one of the first to test it out, live and in person! Click the link and you can find out how to sign up to get email alerts on when the Apple iPhone will be available for purchase sometime this summer. To tempt your gadget tastebuds, here are some more pics...

Sharper Image iPulse

Today, I read the CNET review of the Sharper Image iPulse for your iPod. It's a cool little docking stereo system with a subwoofer for your iPod that has a neat-o light show. CNET gave the gadget a "very good" 7.3 rating. Check the full review here.

New Motorola Phones

Last year, I upgraded to a Motorola RAZR v3c from a Kyocera slider and I have to say that I am very happy with the RAZR by Motorola. Years ago, I bought my first cell phone and it was a Motorola StarTac. That was a quality phone that had great sound, was durable, and had great signal strength for those days when towers were few and far between. I had almost forgotten how good of a reputation Motorola has and going from the Kyocera, which was a decent little phone, to the RAZR was like going from a Pinto to a Lexus. I love the customization you can give the phone and it's power-packed features including the still/video camera quality - very nice. Motorola has a couple of new offerings including the Motorola K1 and the The Motorola Z3. The MOTOKRZR K1 is a flip or clam style phone like the RAZR that takes crisp photos, offers entertainment and helps you make the most of your time. The MOTORIZR Z3 is a slider style phone with features that you can access when the phone is open or closed. Listen to music, call a friend, play a game or use the full screen viewfinder as a digital camera.

Spammers Beware!

I hate spam, who doesn't? I'll tell you who doesn't hate spam - the scumbag spammers who try to gain your personal information for profit, that's who. I'm so glad to see that some action is beginning to form to deter criminals from using the Internet to trick people into scams. The first person in the US has been convicted under the anti-spam law, called the 2003 CAN-SPAM Act and he faces a sentence of up to 101 years in federal prison. Here's the press release detailing the spammer's conviction.

LA-area man first in nation convicted under anti-spam law
Associated Press

LOS ANGELES - A man faces a sentence of up to 101 years in federal prison after being the first person in the U.S. convicted under a federal anti-spam law, authorities said.

Jeffrey Brett Goodin, 45, of Azusa, was found guilty Friday of running a "phishing" scheme that tricked people into believing they were giving personal information to a legitimate business. Prosecutors said Goodin then used the information to go on a spending spree.

Goodin is the first person in the nation convicted under the 2003 CAN-SPAM Act, the U.S. attorney's office said. The law forbids e-mail marketers from sending false or misleading messages and requires them to provide recipients with a way to opt out of receiving future mailings.

During trial, prosecutors presented evidence that Goodin used several compromised Internet accounts to send e-mails to America Online users. The e-mails appeared to be from the company's billing department and told customers to update their billing information or lose service.

The e-mails referred people to one of several Web pages controlled by Goodin where they could enter their personal information, prosecutors said.

In addition to the anti-spam conviction, Goodin was convicted of 10 other counts, including wire fraud, misuse of the AOL trademark and attempted witness harassment.

Goodin is scheduled to be sentenced June 11.

Achieve Planner

I am a list-maker. I have at least 5 lists of "Things to Do" somewhere on, or in, my desk at home and work right now. There are things I want to blog about, stuff I need to do at home, things I need to take care of at work, grocery lists, stuff to gather to do our taxes, and the lists go on and on. Sometimes, I make so many lists, I think I need to make a list to keep track of my lists. If I spent less time making and looking for my lists, I would have more time to get things marked off my lists. Today, I read about some time management software that might help get rid of my lists, or at least make them electronic. With the Achieve Planner, you can capture, organize, and manage your projects and tasks, plan your week with the weekly schedule, and manage contacts. And, you can even set, plan, manage, and track your dreams & goals with the Goal Setting features.

Dugg Anything Lately?

Digg.com is a very cool website where surfers submit news from the far reaches of the 'net. You can check out all the latest interesting stories arranged by the number of diggs and you can even submit news from wesites and blogs you find interesting or newsworthy or even cool so that others can digg it, too. There's also a blog feature which allows the user to blog the stories as well. If you have been under a rock, you need to digg yourself out!

Get Connected!

Today, I stumbled upon a cable company that can get you connected no matter what your cabling needs. I have a surround sound system that we use very often, and recently, my subwoofer started cutting in and out. I purchased a new cable and realized that when you have a good system, you need good cabling to support the integrity of the signal - it sounds much better, now. While at the site, I found out that TCA offers a product that allows you to connect multiple HDMI appliances to one monitor with their own HDMI switch. Get connected with TCA-Inc.net

Karaoke Revolution Presents: American Idol

Just in time for American Idol Season 6, there's Karoke Revolution Presents: American Idol. So, if you don't want to watch those silly idol wannabe's make fools of themselves, do it yourself with the game that Gamespot gave a 7.3 "Very Good" rating! From CNET's Reviews Section: Konami's Karaoke Revolution series and the talent-search phenom American Idol seem like such a natural match it's surprising that the publisher has taken this long to pair its prolific singing franchise with the smash-hit TV show. Karaoke Revolution Presents: American Idol arrives just in time for the start of the program's 2007 season, and while it hits most of the high notes you'd expect from a game with the American Idol license--authentic venues, video clips of famous performances, (mostly) celebrity judges--the trappings of the television show make the game feel a little lackluster overall. Luckily, that fact doesn't really impact the underlying karaoke gameplay, which is just as entertaining and accessible as it's been throughout the last several versions of the franchise.

Norton 2007 Site

I have a friend who recently bought an HP for her daughter mainly for school, but you know how teenagers are, or at least I do. I found out the critical importance of installing antivirus software and keeping it up to date years ago when I was on dial-up and was struck with a virus that kept rebooting my PC. The PC that Amy bought runs Norton 2007, and she's been asking a few questions about the antivirus and included security programs. I stumbled upon a site that has loads of helpful information including screenshots and help and support forums. Take it from me, if you surf the web or read email, you need antivirus software and you need to keep it up to date!

Surf the Net and Create Your Lanscape

How? With a very cool program called packetgarden that takes data based on where you go and what you do on the 'net and creates your own personal world you can explore complete with hills, valleys, and plants and who knows what else. You just need to go ahead and check it out.

Wirefly: Top 10 Cell Phones of 2006

My husband is not one to want the latest cell phone, computer gadget, or software; we are different in that way. Just last week, his screen on the inside of his flip phone stopped working, so now he can't see what number he's dialing. He can still see who's calling him on the outside of his phone, though. That would drive me nuts and I would look at it as a good opportunity to get myself a new phone! Not him, he said, "I like this phone." Anyway, I think it's beyond repair and he'll probably have to get a new phone. I bought the RAZR last year and I love it. Wirefly announces the Top 10 cell phones of 2006 and I can see why the Motorola tops the list. Motorola makes some tough stuff and the RAZR is sleek and durable, and most importantly, I can HEAR on it, too!

Netflix Offers Movies on Your PC

Today, Netflix announced that it's getting into the download game. Although the service won't be available to all Netflix subscribers immediately, the company should have everyone online to enjoy movies on their PC by June 2007. Check out the press release, here.

I recently placed my Netflix subscription on hold since my son started working at the local video rental store - he can get all the movies I want after they've been out for 2 weeks, so I just decided to save a few bucks. I might have to try this out, especially if you can get TV shows as well - I never have enough recorders!

Restaurant Finance

Jimmy and I have talked about opening a restaurant, but have not really considered how much it would cost to create "the place to be." Not only do you have to have the right space, equipment, furnishings, and staff, but you also need a strong web presence, marketing, branding and a ton of advertisement to make your brand stand out. Guess what, it takes money to do all that - and a lot of it! I ran across ARF, a company who specializes in short term, working capital loans for small to medium-sized merchants. I also found out that by getting a working capital loan, the interest you pay is tax deductible which will give you a quicker ROI. I'm bookmarking them in case we take the plunge one of these days...


***This post sponsored by advancerestaurantfinance.com***

Restaurant Branding

Since I blogged about opening a restaurant, I've been looking around for some good companies who can creatively provide services from website design to branding to marketing. Today, I stumbled upon SPROKKIT which has a very cool website and it looks like they provide the web presence that one would need to be seen on the WWW. I also found a cool restaurant blog to help anyone thinking of opening a restaurant think again.

Netsimplicity Scheduling Software

Meeting-Crasher Syndrome: Have you ever walked into a conference room to attend a meeting and realized that there was already a meeting in progress which you weren't invited?

Ball-Dropper Syndrome: Have you ever forgotten to do an important task because you
jotted it down on a sticky note, then it fell off what you stuck it to?

If you've suffered from either of these conditions, you need to check out Scheduling Software from NetSimplicity. NetSimplicity offers software that will help you overcome Ball-Dropper and Meeting-Crasher Syndrom by simplifying the not-so-simple day-to-day office administration tasks by offering management and scheduling of rooms, equipment, and resources. They even offer a free 30-Day product trial.

***This post sponsored by netsimplicity.com***

B2B Defined

B2B, or business-to-business is a fast-growing marketing strategy on the web. Sure, you can go online and buy just about anything you want, but have you ever thought about where businesses get their products? The web is a huge marketplace for businesses, now and the market is fairly young and due to outpace B2C, or business-to-consumer sales in the near future.

From Whatis.techtarget.com:
On the Internet, B2B (business-to-business), also known as e-biz, is the exchange of products, services, or information between businesses rather than between businesses and consumers. Although early interest centered on the growth of retailing on the Internet (sometimes called e-tailing), forecasts are that B2B revenue will far exceed business-to-consumers (B2C) revenue in the near future. According to studies published in early 2000, the money volume of B2B exceeds that of e-tailing by 10 to 1. Over the next five years, B2B is expected to have a compound annual growth of 41%. The Gartner Group estimates B2B revenue worldwide to be $7.29 trillion dollars by 2004. In early 2000, the volume of investment in B2B by venture capitalists was reported to be accelerating sharply although profitable B2B sites were not yet easy to find.

Restaurant Design Service Online

My husband is an excellent cook - I call him Emeril, Jr when he gets all his dishes out to prep the meal. He should have gone to culinary school, I guess it's never too late. Anyway, he often talks about how he would like to open a restaurant, but the town we live in would probably not be the best place to start since most of the people here try to escape on the weekends. But, just up the road about 30 minutes away, there's a well-known, booming, golf/horse/retirement area called Pinehurst, NC that has several great, independent restaurants that are top shelf. I stumbled upon a website that specializes in Restaurant Design and bookmarked it in case we get ready to take the plunge. Thought I'd share since the restaurant industry is so difficult to be successful in, you really need industry professionals with experience to help with your business plan, strategy, concept and branding. Visit the Restaurant Design website for more information.


***This post sponsored by quantifiedmarketing.com***

TiVo Without a TiVo Box?

I just saw a blurb come across my Google Reader that mentioned TiVo was now available as a software platform. Seems that Comcast customers will have the TiVo software in the Comcast's DVR, cool. I'll have to do some more research on this to see what it entails, but that's really cool for Comcast customers because TiVo is the best. Now, why couldn't Comcast have bought out Adelphia? Dang...

Get Your Own SpritePimp!

Ok, this was easy and only took a few seconds - I made one and you can get your Free Custom Video Game Sprites from spritepimp.com. I chose Mario from Mario Brothers because I used to play that game until my fingers hurt. Yes, I'm a child of the 80's. They are planning some upgrades to the site that will allow the user to right click and save image, but right now, you just create and copy/past the code. You can put whatever text you want in the balloon like your website name. Here's how it looks...




***This post sponsored by spritepimp.com***

GP2X Gaming

My son has a video game addiction, so I try to keep up with the latest on gaming platforms, news, tournaments and reviews. But, I read about the GP2X today and it sounds like it would be a good toy for MOM! The GP2X is an open-source, Linux-based handheld video game console and media player that's created and sold by GamePark. The GP2X was released in late 2005 in South Korea and it's designed to play video and music files, view photos, and play games. One feature the GP2X has is the capability of running emulators which enables the user to run software from another system on the GP2X. Gamepark Holdings, creators of the GP2X just released the GP2X value pack which you can get for a mere $209 from http://www.gp2xstore.com. The Value Pack bundle includes the console, 4 games, video tutorials stored in memory, rechargeable batteries, hand strap, console pouch, and set headphones. I'll have to research this system some more, but at first look, it doesn't sound like a bad deal for $209 bucks, huh?

Please feel free to comment especially if you have one of these - I'd like to know!






***This post sponsored by gp2xstore.com***

What Will Your PR Be?

OMG! I'm so happy! I've been really concentrating on networking with other bloggers, researching, reading all the lastest news and attempting to write quality posts in my blogs. It's finally starting to pay off. My My Whole Enchilada Blog went from a Google PR of 0 (ZERO) to a 2 today!!! And, I just checked the Google PageRank Prediction tool which predicts my blog to be a PR4 in the future. Check out this nifty little tool to see into your blog's PR crystal ball!

Blog of the Day = Mine!

Today has started off well! I made a promise to myself this morning that I was going to get some things done before logging in to my blogs, payperpost, etc, because like my friend Amy, I spend to much time once I get into the blogosphere. Things were going along productively, then my friend, Ron stopped by to tell me that my blog is featured as the "Blog of the Day" on the front page of PayPerPost.com! Hot diggety dog! Leave me some feedback and please take a moment to visit what I like to call, My Whole Enchilada Blog! Thanks, PayPerPost!

Looking for Binoculars

My husband and I do quite a bit of fishing, but not as much as we'd like. If you know me or read any of my blogs, you know that I love the outdoors, photography and electronic gadgets. I'd really like to have a pair of binoculars for the boat, because you never know what you might see when on the lake, and if we had the binocular model that has a built-in digital camera, that would be really cool. I'm not sure how far the technology has come, and haven't a clue about the best brands - I may look into the Eagle Optics website for more info, but I know the next time I see some birds diving for baitfish that it would be nice to see if there was a school of fish churning the water under them.

Automotive Accessories

I work for a manufacturer of automotive accessories for the OEM and Aftermarket industry, so I thought I'd post a link to the website. We manufacture rear parking aids, backup camera systems, cruise controls, heated seats, transmission solenoids, transmission modulators, transmission wiring harnesses, and speed sensors to name the major ones. Check the website and give the Sales department a call if you see something you like or need to locate a distributor.

iPhone on FOXNEWS & Picture! WOW!

Apple was the hot topic all over the news today by unveiling the iPhone! WOW! I want one of these, but I'm hearing gen 2 is already in the works...


As displayed on the Apple Computer website

HP and PayPerPost Scavenger Hunt

I have searched the world over and I can't seem to get my brain to contemplate where the hidden PayPerPost & HP puzzle pieces are, but I have found some exclusive pieces out there that weren't opps from PPP. Anyway, I have piece number 14 here for your viewing enjoyment.



You see, Veronique took a trip to Europe and brought back some photos that she took with her HP camera, because I think she's a Digital Camera Picture-takin' freak like me! The guys at PPP made her photos into a collage, split it into puzzle pieces (because those crazies at PPP do stuff like that), then posties like me scour the net looking for them (because us posties are crazy like that, too). The first one who reassembles the puzzle and takes the BIG OPP gets $1000 bucks (not so crazy, now are we?)!!!

??? HELP!!!

I need some help figuring out how to get my blogs off blogger and livejournal, but I am clueless...

HELP!

UPDATE! I've received confirmation from www.bluehost.com that my website has been deleted and my account credited! Whew - I'm not quite ready for my own domain, but it's going to be coming soon...

B2B Internet Directory

One of the most important things any business can do for itself is get out there on the web. I mean, what better way to reach the masses at a relatively low cost. Every business owner must take some degree of risk to make money and the Internet is a great way to maximize the reach and scope of any business. How many times a day do you say or hear someone else say the word, "Google?" If I'm looking for something or someone that's one of the first places I look. But how do those businesses get up there in the search hits list? That's where business owners need help - we're not all web developers, right? I've found a Business to business internet directory that offers many products and services to businesses to help them get located during searches, promote site traffic and keep up to date on what is happening in their industry. Contained within this directory is a wealth of business information including press releases, case studies, podcasts, opinions, job openings, new products, new services, business events, company profiles, brochures, presentations, and management bios.

Leadmaverick.com gives you incredible depth to find exactly the business you are looking for in your area. They offer a better way to generate leads from search engines which will help others find you more easily by optimizing, formatting and placing your content online for search engines to find. You don't need to hire an SEO consultant - you get real-time reports. I found the information on the website interesting as I am trying to get more traffic to my blogs...

From Leadmaverick.com's website on Content...

Lead Maverick has 12 tools to help you easily add information about your company. We automatically format it and place it online on our search engine optimized websites. Each tool is specifically designed to help you promote and advertise your company, both locally and nationally, by placing your content on websites that help potential customers find you.

Commentary
Similar to blogging, our commentary tool allows you to share your thoughts and opinions on trends and events happening in your business industry. With this tool you can establish yourself as a thought leader for their business needs.

Press Releases
Creating and distributing a press release can be intimidating. With this tool we provide a simple form for you to add your press release. Don’t worry about editorial review, just place your information online to keep the public updated.

Job Openings
Are you looking to hire? Need a way to attract job hunters online? Then this tool is for you. Lead Maverick makes it easy to post jobs online for search engines to find. And best of all, the contact form is built right into the tool.

Presentations
Place all of your presentations online so that potential customers can learn more about your business. If you are like most companies, you have a variety of visual presentations about your business. Put them online.

Company Profile
This step by step form will help you highlight the unique qualities of your company. From the products and/or services you offer to the management team, this simple form will let your describe your company in detail.

Management Profile
Your management team is important. Prospects who want to do business with your company want to know more about the leadership. With our Management Profile tool you can easily post biographies and pictures of your team online.

Events
Are you hosting a public event? Are you a member of an organization that wants to promote its event? The Event tool provides a centralized event calendar in your area so that customers can find the events to attend.

Brochure
You spent a lot of money on your brochure, isn't it time people got it! Our Brochure tool makes it simple to upload your brochure to the web so that potential customers can easily find it. Place as many brochures online as you like.

Case Study
Often cited as one of the most important pieces of information that a prospect uses to make a purchase decision, our Case Study tool provides a step by step form for you to place your case studies online.

New Product/Service
Do you sell a product and/or service? Our Product/Service tool will help you detail the unique aspects of your product/service and helps you target specific types of individuals who will benefit the most from it.

PodCast
Podcasting is a new method for distributing your rich media files on the web. Once added, this information can easily be retrieved and viewed/listened to by millions of people who use RSS readers or services like Apple iTunes.

Search Engine Exposure
At the heart of the Lead Maverick concept is the idea that as you post your content, it is added to our premier directory website. As indicated earlier, this site is highly optimized to make it easy for search engines to find your content.

Desperate Housewives on PC

Well, we've all heard of "chic flicks," but I wonder what the new Desperate Housewives PC game will be called - perhaps a "dame game" - I don't know, but I might buy it just to see what it's like. I love the show, and GameSpot gave the game a Good (6.5 out of 10) rating saying that "Desperate Housewives isn't much of a game, but it does a pretty good job of telling an original, interactive soap opera story in the quirky tone of the hit show." Sounds like a "dame game" to me!

HP Puzzle Challenge

HP and PayPerPost have teamed up to bring the posties another puzzle challenge. In this challenge, the posties are scouring the far reaches of the Internet to try to find puzzle pieces to make up the collage of Veronique's, aka the Flaming Tamale, trip to Europe. She recently returned from a week-long trip over there and I hope she'll share all the tons of pictures she took with her new HP M527 digital camera. HP has some really good deals out there if you're looking for a digital camera. I saw an HP Digital Photo Printing package advertised around Christmas that was only about $150 bucks that included a 5 MP HP camera and a compact photo printer to boot - now, that's a deal that would be hard to beat!

Payperpost.com took some of her trip photos and made a collage then split the collage into 30 pieces. The pieces are going to be distributed on blogs throughout the internet and the first person to find all the pieces can grab a $1000 opportunity! Here is puzzle piece number 48 for your viewing enjoyment!



Brought to you by HP

Firefox 2.0

I've just downloaded Mozilla's Firefox 2 web browser and at first glance, it seems very fast and the import of my IE bookmarks and other content was lightning fast. I'll keep you updated on how this browser performs...

Microsoft Virtualization Training

I am a perpetual student. I have been in school forever. I love to take classes and study - most people think I'm sick, but it's just a thirst I have for knowledge that makes me want to learn more and keep up with technology as much as possible. In the IT environment, you need flexible, affordable training channels that allow you to keep up with the fast-paced industry, and allow you to learn the material and get the training you need without having to travel to and from classs, or attend expensive training seminars. Trainsignal.com offers Microsoft Virtualization Training




This post sponsored by trainsignal.com.

New Firefox and Thunderbird Patches

Mozilla released some patches for 5 critical holes, 8 total, for Firefox and Thunderbird software programs. If you are using either one, the updates should come over within the next few days or you can manually check for updates from the Help menu of the program.

Here's the scoop...
Mozilla fixes Firefox and Thunderbird bugs
Bundle of patches for browser and email client
Iain Thomson, vnunet.com 20 Dec 2006

The Mozilla Foundation has released a batch of patches for its Firefox and Thunderbird software. Patches have been released for Firefox 1.5.0.9, Firefox 2.0.0.1 and Thunderbird 1.5.0.9 and are being sent out over the next few days. Eight holes, five of them rated 'critical', have been patched in the new Firefox browser.

"If you already have Firefox 1.5.x, Firefox 2.0.x or Thunderbird 1.5.x, you will receive an automated update notification within 24 to 48 hours," said the organisation. "This update can also be applied manually by selecting 'Check for Updates' from the Help menu at any time."
The Firefox flaws covered a variety of problems, including the browser's RSS feed, processing remote code and the JavaScript handling software. Mozilla also said that it will continue to support Firefox 1.5.x until 24 April next year, but it strongly advised users to upgrade to version 2.0. Seven flaws, six of them rated 'critical', have been fixed in the group's Thunderbird software. They include mail header processing problems and crashes with evidence of memory corruption.

ClearCube Blade PC

A blade PC, also called a PC blade, is a computer that is entirely contained in a circuit card which is placed in a secure location like a server rack. A cable connects the card to the user's monitor, keyboard and mouse. A blade PC is a complete computer including the components you'd find in a desktop PC like the processor, memory, hard drive, video card and network card. A Blade Server is more expensive to implement, but less expensive to maintain, than typical networks where each station has its own box, since the cards and cabling must be installed prior to implementation. If the company has good planning and money to invest, the blade PC model offers many advantages like lower admin, operational, and maintenance demands. One of the largest manufacturers of the Blade Server is ClearCube.

Email Your Blog Post...

Did you know that you can post to your Blogger Blogs via email? You can setup an email address (that you should keep secret) under the settings tab of your blog's dashboard, then you just write up your post in an email and send it to the address you created. How easy is that? I sent a test post to my photo blogj and it worked. It wasn't instant - probably because of the 49 firewalls and proxy servers it had to go through to get there - but it posted nonetheless...

Cool - now they need to figure out how to include attachments. I'll keep you posted if I figure out anything - perhaps the html can be included in the email?

Office Security System

About 2 years ago, my boss bought a Sony Handycam DVD which cost the company nearly $1000. We used it twice to record some instructional videos, then about three weeks later, we needed to record a video detailing the installation process for one of our new products. We couldn't find the Handycam anywhere and we let our HR department know about it. It was then we discovered a rash of reports of various missing items including cash stolen right out of ladies purses. After it all came to light, the stealing quieted. But now, I'm hearing that a couple of people have reported things missing in their offices - it seems to happen around this time of the year. I think it's time someone install a Security System and use some bait to catch whoever is doing this. There's a portable Security System by LaserShield that is easy to install, expandable, with 24/7 monitoring available at Comp USA, Home Depot, Costco, Kmart, Montgomery Ward, Sears and more; I'm going to let the plant manager know about this before anything else goes missing...

Google Launches Patent Search Tool

Although the US Patent Office has had it's own Patent Search capability for years now, Google launched a US patent search tool which added the ability to search US patent registrations to Google's services. Google is becoming a one-stop-shop for anything and everything. The tool, Google Patent Search, launched in a beta version this week and is currently capable of searching through more than 7 million US patents dating from 1790. Google Patent Search is to add additional patents over time and uses the existing technology of Google's book search.

Data Security

Data Security is extremely important in today's ever changing world of technological advances. I work for a manufacturer that has been delving into outsourcing components and assemblies to overseas markets for a couple of years, now. We have the vendors sign confidentiality agreements and our intellectual property is labeled as such, but who's to say what happens to our data once it arrives on the other side of the world. We've already seen some knock-offs of our products (for which we have US patents) being manufactured and marketed by overseas companies. It's a catch 22 of sorts - manufacturer's almost have to utilize the growing overseas markets, but we're taking a chance in losing some of our market share doing it. What's a company to do? There may just be an answer out there to this burning question...

From the Pinionsoftware.com Data Security website:

Every day business and technical professionals find themselves in a quandary:

How to share high-value, sensitive information and intellectual property while ensuring that it's kept safe and used legitimately. Pinion Software shatters the myth that these goals are mutually exclusive.

We bring digital rights management (DRM) to the world of CAD by way of our Technical Rights Management (TRM) solutions. Simply put, our software lets you secure your information so you can share it with confidence.

Using AutoShred-DWF from Pinion Software which utilizes the DWF platform, manufacturers have the ability to shred or erase files from viewers’ computers
automatically based on set command options, protecting their intellectual property. It's sort of like a spy movie where "this message will self-destruct in 3 seconds" becomes "this document will erase hard drive ." I'm going to pass this along to our IT, Engineering, and Purchasing Departments to get their input...

3rd Zero-Day MS Word Bug in 9 Days

Just a couple of days ago, a hole was found in WMP (see post), and there have been 3 "zero-day" MS Word Bugs reported within the last 9 days. Microsoft "spokespersons" have had a busy week, to say the least, explaining all this to the media. The new unpatched bug was reported Wednesday, and exploit proof-of-concept code has been posted on a Web site.

Here's an excerpt from www.informationweek.com (to read the full story, please click the Post Title above.

By Gregg Keizer
InformationWeek
Dec 14, 2006 01:55 PM

Microsoft Thursday said it was investigating yet another Word vulnerability, the third in the last nine days, while security researchers warned that exploit code to take advantage of it was already spotted in the wild.

The new unpatched bug, or "zero-day" vulnerability, was reported Wednesday by eEye Digital Security, which warned users that exploit proof-of-concept code had been publicly posted on the milw0rm.com Web site.

"Because details are at a minimum for the other two active zero-day vulnerabilities originally reported by Microsoft, it is presumed that this disclosed vulnerability is actually a third and separate vulnerability," the eEye alert read.

A Microsoft spokesperson confirmed that the company's security team was looking into the new problem.

"Microsoft is investigating new public reports of a possible vulnerability in Microsoft Word [and] will continue to investigate the public reports to help provide additional guidance for customers as necessary," the spokesperson said in an e-mail. "Upon completion of this investigation, Microsoft will take appropriate action, [which] may include providing a security update through our monthly release process or providing an out-of-cycle security update, depending on customer needs."

According to eEye, Word 2000, 2002, and 2003 are affected, as is Word Viewer 2003. A successful exploit of the bug could let an attacker seize control of the PC.

Dell Coupons

Are you planning on getting a Dell Computer for Christmas, or giving one as a gift? Maybe you have a college student that needs an upgrade? I bought my Dell year before last and I love it. If you're planning to purchase a system, check out the Dell Coupons at www.cheapstingybargains.com - they're updated hourly, and the site offers detailed buying instructions as well.

Security Hole in Windows Media Player

A critical security hole has been discovered in Windows Media Player versions 9 and 10. It seems that all a hacker must do is post and .asx file on a webpage and lure visitors to the page since .asx files run automatically. One way to avoid this happening to you is to disable Windows Media Player from auto-opening .asx files. The safest way to do this is Open Windows Explorer and go to Tools, Folder Options, File Types, then set "ASX" to something other than Windows Media Player which is the default player. Click the title link of this post for more from research.eeye.com.

CEO of Apple

I was helping my son do his research for a Business Class Presentation for two Computer Companies - Apple and Dell, and was surprised at how interesting I found the CEO (and co-founder) of Apple Computer, Steve Jobs. Here are some quick bio facts we discovered...

- 51-year old Steve Jobs has been CEO of Apple since 1997. Jobs graduated from high school and enrolled in Reed College in Portland, Oregon, but he dropped out after only one semester. When speaking at the Stanford University graduation ceremony in 2005, Jobs told the graduates that, after dropping out, he remained at Reed auditing classes, including one in calligraphy. "If I had never dropped in on that single course in college, the Mac would have never had multiple typefaces or proportionally spaced fonts", he said.
- After leaving Apple in 1985, Jobs founded another computer company, NeXT Computer, considered to have played a large role in catalyzing a little event called the World Wide Web since the developer who wrote the code for the WWW did so on a NeXT workstation.
- In 1986 Jobs bought a little company called The Graphics Group (later renamed Pixar) for 5 million dollars. In January of this year, Jobs sold Pixar to Disney in an all-stock transaction for 7.4 BILLION dollars making him the largest single shareholder of Disney stock.
- Jobs has worked at Apple for several years with an annual salary of $1 (NO JOKE), and this has earned him a listing in Guinness World Records as the "Lowest Paid CEO.” His current salary at Apple officially remains $1 per year.

Now, that's interesting - and you can click the title link to read more about him at wikipedia.org.

PPP Blog

You should know by now that I'm a postie for payperpost.com. Yes, I get paid to blog about the things that I feel relate to this blog. If you have a blog and need to earn some extra cash, you should consider PPP. They don't require you to take specific opportunities or tell you what you have to write about on your own blog, instead, with PPP the choice is yours.

Whether you're a postie or not, you might enjoy checking out the PPP blog while you're cruising through the blogs you read. I've seen things there like the PPP CEO, Ted Murphy, puking after trying to win a pizza-eating contest and once he even transformed himself into a catfish. There's also been a PPP Smackdown Video Challenge initiated by Ted on the blog. Check it out, payperpostie or not, you'll find the videos entertaining.

If you are a postie, you need to be aware of the ppp blog since it contains the latest news, updates and outtages.

Text Messaging: Teens vs. Adults

If my teenage daughter is any indication of the results of this poll,
I already know the answer to this one without even reading the story or viewing the results of the poll. It didn't take me long to figure out that the best way to go with a teen who has a cell phone is to go ahead and add the unlimited text messaging to their phone even if it's $10 or $15 per month - believe me, you'll come out ahead in the long run. Or, you could have text messaging capability removed all together from the phone; I have a friend who had to do this since his son had the unlimited in-network plus an additional 1000 out-of-network text messaging plan, and still went over, way over...

Anyway, here's the poll...
Associated Press
Poll: Nearly half of teens use instant messaging, fyi
WASHINGTON -- Almost half of teens, 48 percent of those ages 13-18, use instant messaging, according to an AP-AOL poll. That's more than twice the percentage of adults who use it.

According to the poll:
Almost three-fourths of adults who do use instant messages still communicate with e-mail more often. Almost three-fourths of teens send instant messages more than e-mail. More than half of the teens who use instant messages send more than 25 a day, and 1 in 5 send more than 100. Three-fourths of adult users send fewer than 25 IMs a day. Teen users (30 percent) are almost twice as likely as adults (17 percent) to say they can't imagine life without instant messaging. When keeping up with a friend who is far away, teens are most likely to use instant messaging, while adults turn first to e-mail. About a fifth of teen IM users have used IM to ask for or accept a date. Almost as many, 16 percent, have used it to break up with someone.

A bow to the traditional: When sharing serious or confidential news, both teens and adults prefer to use the telephone, the poll said. The survey of 1,013 adults and 500 teens was conducted online by Knowledge Networks from Nov. 30-Dec. 4. The margin of sampling error for the adults was plus or minus 4 percentage points, 5.5 points for teens.

Want to Make Text Messaging Easier?

Do you get aggravated trying to type words for text messages using numbers on your cellphone keypad? A lot of people do, especially people who aren't teenagers - they don't seem to mind at all. As a matter of fact, I think my daughter can type text messages using the numeric keypad almost as fast and accurate as I can type on the keyboard. But, if you have trouble like I do with typing multiple numbers to get to the letter you need, then look no further than www.t9.com. T9 stands for text on 9 keys and it's predictive text makes texting faster and easier since it predicts what you're typing by the combination of letters. T9 is pre-loaded with thousands of words, emoticons and punctuation, too. Check out this new program to make your text messaging easier...

While you're waiting for my next informative post you can play this trivia game that demonstrates how T9 works - you can even register to win a Sony Phone, iPod, or BestBuy Giftcard ...

Cleaning Up MySpace

Yesterday, MySpace announced that it will purge anyone listed in the national database of sex offenders from the social network.

From the press release:

"We are committed to keeping sex offenders off MySpace," said MySpace's Chief Security Officer, Hemanshu Nigam. "Sentinel Safe will allow us to aggregate all publicly available sex offender databases into a real-time searchable form, making it easy to cross-reference and remove known registered sex offenders from the MySpace community. The creation of this first-of-its-kind real-time searchable database technology is a significant step to keep our members as safe as possible."

The whole first-of-its-kind, never-been-done-before, thank-God-the-technology-finally-exists thread runs throughout the press release. The language seems calculated to let MySpace escape responsibility for failing to police the sex offenders on its site prior to October, despite the availability of a free online registry demonstrably useful for exactly that purpose.

That said, Sentinel's database promises to be far more powerful than the DOJ registry I used. As described, it'll contain detailed information, including height, weight, eye and hair color, and the complete offense history of each offender -- all completely searchable. It'll be like a Google for sex offenders.

That leaves just one real disappointment in this announcement: How MySpace plans to use the data. With all that information at its disposal, and a "24-hour-a-day dedicated staff" using it, MySpace could seriously enhance its policing. Instead, the company is taking a sophisticated database and wielding it as a blunt instrument, simply banning everyone on the list from registering or keeping a MySpace account, regardless of who they are or what they did.

This is bad because, obviously, banning sex offenders won't keep them off MySpace: it'll just give them a reason to lie about their name or location, even if they aren't up to no good. (My survey found hundreds of past offenders, many with old or minor convictions, whose profiles reflected a seemingly normal life.) Now sex offenders who want to stay on MySpace will all be using false information from the start.

MySpace is essentially refusing an opportunity to detect and imprison active repeat offenders, by moving the entire superset of ex-offenders into the shadows. Does the convicted pedophile have lots of teenagers on his friendslist? MySpace won't know, because he'll be under same veil of anonymity as the flashers and peeping toms.

We know there are some ex-sex offenders who attempt to recidivate from accounts opened under their real names. If you believe they will now stay off MySpace, then the company's policy is good for safety. But if you think they'll simply start spelling their name a little different or lying about their ZIP code, then MySpace has lost the chance to take them off the streets.

MySpace is taking the easy way out. It may be good PR to be able to say that you don't allow past sex offenders of any stripe on your website, but the company should keep its eye on the ball: the goal isn't to keep a former flasher from blogging about his cat, it's to keep current pedophiles from pursuing children. MySpace could tell the difference, if it wanted to. A smart policing effort would use the sex offender database as one of many data points in keeping the site safe. Sometimes zero-tolerance is really tolerance.

Eclipse Business Broadband in the UK

Eclipse Business Broadband offers professional Internet solutions to give peace of mind to businesses throughout the UK. The Internet has become the heartbeat of a company and it's viability is of utmost critical importance. Eclipse offers quality services, and comes highly recommended by experienced Internet users.

If your company is in the UK and you're shopping for quality business broadband, visit the Eclipse website for information regarding products and services from an experienced, national provider of professional Internet solutions.

Other Blogs

I have some other blogs that I'm working on for some of my other interests, and to hopefully spark my husbands interest in computers and the Internet, we are going to collaborate on one as well.

Here are the links...
My Blog at Livejournal is a place for me to rant, rave and remember...

My Photo Blog is where I post some shots that I've taken...

Our blog which will be Jimmy's, I'd rather be fishing...

Braincast Beta is Unforgettable...

I'm always forgetting things. I mean, I can leave one place with the stout determination that there's something I need or something I must do, but by the time I get there, I have no freakin' clue what I was doing. I don't do this a lot, just every once in awhile - probably because I have a ton of things weighing on me at any given time; I have lists here and there for this and that. I'm always calling my voicemail at work to leave myself messages of random thoughts/ideas/tasks I'll need for the next workday. I'm organized, but I still forget things.

There may be hope...

BrainCast Beta powered by viatalk is a free and easy, Internet & phone based message type memo recording and organization system that's compatible with any US-based cellular or landline telephone network system. Users are provided with a toll free number that they can call and instantly leave a voice message that will be delivered to their PC via email within seconds. You can register online and be recording in seconds - that is, if after you've finished registering, you're able to remember what it is that you need to remind yourself. Just kidding, but really, I need to go signup because I almost forgot - here's the link...

BrainCast Beta

A Blog to Check Out...

My friend, sprezz, has a couple of blogs that you might want to check out. He keeps up with the latest news and has a great sense of humor. Check out his Adapt, Adopt, and Improve blog and his Warning Life Under Construction blog, too!

OfficialHomepage.org

Officialhomepage.org is a simple, fast-loading, ad-free homepage that wants to become the preferred start page for Internet users. The officialhomepage.org page is clean and categorzied so that you can navigate to many of the top-rated sites quickly. From the lightning-fast loading homepage, you can jump quickly to top news, sports and social sites as well as check your webmail. There's also no registration to complete to use the site. Make sure you read the About Us and Privacy Policy pages...

Playstation 3

Thank goodness my son doesn't want one. I mean jeez, people were camping out in frigid temps literally risking their lives to be the first to hand over $500 bucks for the latest Sony Playstation 3. One guy was shot by thugs who tried to steal his money while waiting in line to buy the system, and another kid actually bought a system in the store, only to have it stolen once he was outside.

Anyway - I'm certainly glad that none of my offspring asked for the PS3 this year. If you're a PS3 owner, check out IGN's Official PS3 FAQ.

XBOX TV? In time for Thanksgiving...

Microsoft announced that XBOX 360 system owners will soon have access to Hi-def movies and tv programs via the points system currently in use by XBOX Live.

NOTE TO SELF...
remove my credit card from my son's XBOX 360 before November 22nd.

Patrick Klepek - PC Magazine
Nov. 7 In a move that will continue to let Microsoft compare themselves to the iTunes music store, Microsoft announced that hi-def movies and television programs would be available on the (U.S.-based) Xbox Live Marketplace on November 22.

In addition to adding the Video Marketplace to the Xbox Live experience (yes, it will use the same point system that Xbox Live Arcade, Marketplace and the Zune all use), Microsoft announced partnerships with six media companies to provide content for the Video Marketplace.

CBS, Warner Bros., Viacom, Paramount, UFC and Turner will all provide content (in their own release windows) for the Video Marketplace. Microsoft's corporate vice president of Microsoft Game Studios, Shane Kim, said that users can expect 1,000 hours of unique content by the end of the year, with over 200 hours of it available in HD.

Google Has Some Competition and so does Microsoft

Looks like Microsoft will compete with Google to control the Earth - at least the maps and imagery of the Earth. So far, the cities available include San Jose, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Los Angeles and Seattle. Although both systems maps seem a bit outdated, I've used Google Earth, and it helps me in my inspection business to identify landmarks when I'm plotting my route. It's a handy tool and Microsoft is going to have to do some overtime to play catch-up.

iPod Shuffle Shrinking in Size and Price...

I think that my son would love one of these to take to the gym since it's extremely small, light and wearable and it really doesn't matter if you can see the song title playing while you're working out. And, at only $79 - Santa could consider bringing Mom one, too!


Smallest iPod yet going on sale

November 2, 2006 - Mike Wendland - Free Press technology columnist

The new iPod Shuffle, $79. (Apple)
Five years after it changed the music world with the iPod, Apple Computer has released its new Shuffle, the smallest digital music player yet in its line up of iPod models.

Priced at an affordable stocking-stuffer price of $79, the shuffle officially goes on sale today in Apple Stores and major electronics retailers and is predicted to be a hot seller for the holidays, perhaps at the expense of the more costly iPod nano (starting at $149) and the larger video iPod (starting at $249).

The new Shuffle model is super small, measuring about an inch high by a little more than an inch-and-a-half wide and a quarter-inch thick. It weighs a half an ounce, but it holds up to 240 songs.

As such, the Shuffle is about half the size of the original model and comes in a new brushed aluminum case with a built-in clip for fastening to a shirt collar, a pocket or waistband.

Battery life is about 12 hours.

You charge the Shuffle and get its tunes by fitting the headphone jack into a special dock that in turn is connected by a USB cable to the computer, be it a Mac or a Windows PC.

As with the earlier shuffle model, the downside to this entry level iPod is that there is no screen that lists the music so you can select a specific song. Instead, the music is played at random, shuffled, if you will, thereby explaining the name.

But, hey, come on, for $79 and 240 songs and iPod cool, I wouldn't shuffle off to a store to get it. I'd run.

Games Galore for XBOX this Christmas

My son will probably be making his Christmas list right away after he hears this...I read today that XBOX is releasing multiple titles for the Holiday Season. He's a big XBOX 360 gamer who plays in tournaments and even hosts his own local tournaments.

From Ubisoft:

• Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Double Agent
• Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas
• Open Season

From Electronic Arts: Need for Speed Carbon

• FIFA 07

And, there's more announcements to come from Atari, THQ and its subsidiaries, and Activision.

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Windows Live Writer

Windows Live Writer
I just heard about Microsoft Live Writer beta and will be downloading it to try it on for size. Microsoft Live Writer is a free, downloadable desktop application that's supposed to make editing most any type of blog easier. The software lets you apply different formatting, upload pictures, and more. I will let you know the low-down on this piece of software as soon as I can download, install and play with it a little. I have blogs on LiveJournal and Blogger, so it's going to be interesting to see how this software interfaces with those apps.

Bounce the Flash for better photos

I take a lot of photos of parts at work and many times, I have to be able to illuminate a hole or I may need flash to show a slight defect or imperfection. The following came form wikiHow.com, but an even easier way to bounce the flash off your subject for nearly any photo you take is to fold business card over the flash bulb (make sure it is not obstructing the lens) then take the picture. The card allows the flash to bounce off it while filling in the areas around the subject instead of washing out the photo. It works great when trying to capture imperfections in plated (shiny) metal parts, and it also helps to reduce red-eye when taking people pictures...

Professional studio photographers rarely use direct flash to illuminate a subject, because the results are harsh, unnatural and unattractive. Most cameras designed for amateurs have a built-in flash which blasts light directly at the subject, creating the same kind of "deer in the headlights" effect. Fortunately, the addition of an inexpensive "bounce flash" unit can reduce this harshness and give your pictures a professional look.

Steps
Make sure your camera has either a hot-shoe for an external flash, or a socket for plugging one in. Most cameras have at least one of the two.
Invest in an external flash unit with a 90 degree swivel (bounce) head. All major camera makers sell reasonably-priced units with this feature. Some models also rotate, adding even more functionality.
When taking a flash picture indoors, turn off the camera's built-in flash. Point the bounce flash head at the ceiling (rather than at the subject) and take the picture. This will provide a soft, diffused light and it will even cut down on red-eye.
For even better results, buy a cable which connects your camera to the flash unit. You can then remove the flash from the camera and bounce the light off walls, a reflector, or whatever you want.

Google Reader - Read Your Favorite Blogs All In One Place...

Latest version of Google Reader

Google has released a new version of it's reader which allows the user to read blogs of interest all on one page. The reader allows you add blogs from all over the Internet and organize those blogs how you choose. You can add blogs from friends blogger, livejournal, etc. accounts and news blogs like CNET and CNN. Then, you can easily open the reader viewing page and read all the entries at once - easily seeing which journals have been updated since your last view. I am just starting to use this powerful tool, and am really impressed.

Here's what mine looks like right now...

Google's Gmail

Google's Gmail Service

I just signed up for Google's Gmail Service and I have to say - I'm very interested in this new web-based email idea. If you don't know what it is, Gmail is a free, search-based webmail service that includes 2,000+ megabytes (2 gigabytes) of storage. The interesting thing about Gmail is that it's a powerful Google search engine that quickly recalls any message an account owner has ever sent or received. That means there's no need to file messages in order to find them again. You can register for an account using your mobile phone - this is for verification purposes - and is supposed to cut down on spam.

Google's Open SourceCode Search

The new Google Tool which is supposed to allow developers to search for open source code posted to the Internet may (and probably will) benefit hackers as well...It's a great tool for programmers and developers, but so is the Internet itself and some people work all day to exploit the Internet in ways such as uploading and downloading pornography, cheating on their spouse, and stalking children; the open source code search tool will probably be exploited as well - time will tell...

Netflix Contest

Netflix $1 Million Offer

WOW! I actually use Netflix and my husband read this to me Friday morning while I was cleaning up the kitchen. It seems that they are looking for ways to increase the accuracy of their recommendations system. I have some ideas - do you?

Google Page Rank

Google has a page rank scale that actually resides in the Google toolbar and when pages on the Internet are visited, the page rank is displayed. I'm not exactly sure how the page rank is calculated, but it does determine how visible your page may become (or not) when people use search engines to search the web.

Here's how Google explains ...
PageRank relies on the uniquely democratic nature of the web by using its vast link structure as an indicator of an individual page's value. In essence, Google interprets a link from page A to page B as a vote, by page A, for page B. But, Google looks at more than the sheer volume of votes, or links a page receives; it also analyzes the page that casts the vote. Votes cast by pages that are themselves "important" weigh more heavily and help to make other pages "important."
Important, high-quality sites receive a higher PageRank, which Google remembers each time it conducts a search. Of course, important pages mean nothing to you if they don't match your query. So, Google combines PageRank with sophisticated text-matching techniques to find pages that are both important and relevant to your search. Google goes far beyond the number of times a term appears on a page and examines all aspects of the page's content (and the content of the pages linking to it) to determine if it's a good match for your query.

Increase Your Webpage's Visibility, maybe?

Increasing your page's visibility on the web

There are literally billions of webpages out there in cyberspace - who knows if anyone ever even sees your page? I have found places where, although there's no guarantee, you can add your url to the index of a couple of Major Search Engines.

Google: submit your URL to Yahoo!

Like I said, there's no guarantee that these search engines will add the submitted URL's to their index, but it only takes a few seconds so its definitely worth a try!

HTML Beginner Basics...

Make your text stand out using HTML!

I have a friend who recently started blogging and she asked me how to make her words bold. Here are a couple of quick HTML text formatting basics:

Bold text...
Example: <b>my bold text</b>
Preview: my bold text

Italics...
Example: <i>my italicized text</i>
Preview: my italicized text

Bold and Italicized
Example: <i><b>my bold, italicized text</i></b>
Preview: my bold, italicized text

Happy Birthday to hard drives!

Happy Birthday to hard drives!

The hard drive which was invented by IBM debuted 50 years ago today! Today, there have been nearly 2 billion units manufactured and this year, around 450 million units will be made. The cost of 1GB of space today is about fifty cents - amazing, huh? Especially considering that leasing hard drive space 50 years ago cost thousands and you only got a few MB of space.

Technology marches on...

9-11 News

I found a website that has news from 9/11 and the years after called http://www.september11news.com

The site of News Archives of the 9/11 Terrorist Attacks on the World Trade Center in NYC and the Pentagon in Washington says it is the Internet's #1 Resource for September 11th, 2001 News and there's a ton of information on the website including archived news, photos, graphics, images, webs, and newspapers. This is probably a good place to start if researching 9/11, terrorism, etc since the information is already in one place.

Never forget...

Switchboard.com

Do you ever get calls on you home or cell phone and wonder who the heck is calling this late? What did they want? Who are they? Or, maybe you have a questionable charge on you phone bill and don't know why or who the call was made to or who might have made the call? You can lookup phone numbers at Switchboard using the reverse lookup "Search by phone number," feature, which allows you to enter only the phone number then will display the results of your inquiry along with any other available info like name, address, etc.

Drive-by Downloads

Drive-by Dowloads can occur without the user even knowing they've occurred. A drive-by download is a program that is automatically downloaded to your computer without even needing your permission. A drive-by download is installed invisibly to the user and it can occur from simply visiting a website. Sometimes drive-by downloads are installed during another application's install. You need to review your computer's security settings to be sure that they are robust enough to ward off drive-by downloads, otherwise, it may be possible for drive-by downloads to infest your pc without you knowing they even exist...

Webshots.com

I discovered Webshots.com several years ago and it's a great place to store photos and download photos for use as desktop wallpaper and in screen savers. The webshots program also allows the user to load photos from your own personal collection to the program so that your screensaver is a slideshow of your own photo collections. You can group your photos into categories you choose and select which groups will display on your customizable screensaver. I have photos appear on my screensaver sometimes that I haven't seen in years because I've had the program that long. I haven't found a screensaver that I like better than webshots - if I do, I'll let you know...

Dell's on fire, literally!

Dell's burning down the house?
OMG, ther's a report now, that a faulty Dell laptop battery is blamed for starting a house fire. The batteries were first reported to be overheating, then reports started to surface that they were blowing up, now it seems to be getting worse.

From CNET's Dell Blog
Louis Minnear, a South Venice, Fla., homeowner, claims that his wife's Dell laptop battery was responsible for a fire early Thursday morning that left his family of five (plus two dogs) homeless. The fire, according to Minnear, began on the family's couch, where the laptop had been sitting. The computer apparently was a 2-year-old Latitude D500, one of the models affected by Dell's recent battery recall.

The local fire marshal, according to the Herald-Tribune, has not yet arrived at a conclusion on the cause of the fire.

P.S. If you're a Dell owner who's had your Sony battery recalled, backup company Carbonite is offering three free months of online system backup to PC users affected by the exploding-battery fiasco.

wi-fi networks

Wi-Fi Hotspots Search
There are many more sites than those listed here. Some networks charge for access while others are free:

Boingo Wi-Fi Network
CNET HotSpot Zone
Ezgoal.com hotspots
Hotspotlist
Hotspot-locations.com
Intel Centrino Mobile Technology Hotspot Finder
iPass
McDonald's Wireless
NodeDB
PaneraBread
T-Mobile Hotspots
Wayport
Wi-Fi Alliance
WiFiFreeSpot
WiFinder
ZDNet UK WiFi HotSpot page

test you connection speed

How fast is your Internet connection?

Do you ever wonder exactly how fast your connection is or what your upload or download speed is over your connection. These and many other tests can be run from the tools section of the dsl reports website.

Google Toolbar

more on popups

If you saw my previous post, and are still in popup Hell, try downloading and installing the Google toolbar which has a handy-dandy popup blocker built-in. I love the Google toolbar and use it all the time. Try it for free at www.Google.com

There are many more add-ons to the toolbar as well, and Google is always updating the toolbar to make Internet browsing more customizeable and safe!

popups, spam, & spyware - BEWARE!

popups everywhere!

If you have a lot of popups, chances are that you have spyware and/or adware living on your computer that needs to be remedied. There are 2 programs that I use religiously to remove spyware and adware from my system, Ad-aware and Spybot. If you don't yet use these programs, you need to download them ASAP, make sure you have the latest versions, update the definitions, and run them right away! These 2 programs are available for download free of charge and are very powerful and effective when it comes to getting rid of annoying or malicious content that's found a home on your pc.

what the heck is wikipedia?

What the heck is Wikipedia?

Wikipedia is a free encyclopedia that anyone can contribute to writing. It produces results for almost any topic you can imagine. I reference Wikipedia often in my blogs and it's a very useful tool for users to find information on a wide array of stuff! If you're looking for information, check out Wikipedia and find what you've been searching for today!

jumpin' jack flash...drive?

Just what is a JumpDrive?

A jumpdrive or flash storage unit is a media device that plugs in to your computer's USB connection. It's kind-of like a portable floppy drive or portable external hard drive. When you connect the drive to you pc's USB connection, it appears as a drive on 'My Computer' and once it does, you can drag and drop files onto the drive just as you would normally copy files to another drive. The thing is, they are very small and powerful drives that are about the size of a lipstick you can easily carry in your briefcase or purse. You can buy them in many different storage capacity sizes and take your files from your work pc to your home pc and vice versa. It's a very handy little device for users who need to transfer data from one pc to another, then back.

resizing groups of photos all in one shot

Photo Tip
Do you ever have a ton of photos that you need to resize so you can upload them and not take up all your bandwidth? Most digital cameras that are available now have the capability of taking poster size photographs if you wanted to print them that large. With the increase in Megapixel rating on the digital cameras out there now, also comes a large increase in the file size and storage space required to save or email the files. I have a tip that I use when my camera is loaded with images that I've taken at a very high resolution, but need to upload them onto a server and decrease the size. When you download the pictures from you camera to your pc, save them, then select them all, right click on 1 of the pics, then choose 'Send to,' then 'Mail Recipient.' If you're running XP, a box will come up that allows you to make all the pictures smaller, choose this or choose 'show me more options' and from there, either choose small, medium, or large (I usually choose large or medium). Once you've done this, all the pics you selected will attach themselves to the email. Then, you simply email the photos to yourself and when you get the email, you have all the same photos in smaller file size that's easier and quicker to upload to the web and certain other applications!

keyboard malfunctioning - what to do?

Why should I clean my keyboard?
Because dirt, dust, hair, cookie crumbs, etc, can build up causing the keyboard to malfunction.

How to clean the keybord: Some people clean their keyboard by turning it upside down and shaking it to let whatever debris has lodged itself under the keys fall out onto the desktop. A better way to do this is to blow the keyboard out using compressed air. Compressed air is pressurized air inside a can that has an optional tube attached to the side (usually with tape) kind of like WD-40 (don't use that on your keyboard, though)... All you need to do is turn the keyboard upside down then aim the air between the keys and blow away all of the dust and debris that has gathered there. You can use a vacuum cleaner, but be careful that you don't suck up any of your keys!

Another reason to clean your keyboard is to ward off germs especially if you have more than 1 user on a particular PC. You need to turn the system off first, then spray a disinfectant on a cloth and wipe the keyboard and allow to dry. Don't spray anything directly on your keyboard (or any other part of your system, either)...

nasty computer viruses...

Why do people create computer viruses? You tell me and we'll both know...

from Wikipedia.com
A computer virus is a self-replicating computer program written to alter the way a computer operates, without the permission or knowledge of the user. Though the term is commonly used to refer to a range of malware, a true virus must replicate itself, and must execute itself. The later criteria is often met by a virus which replaces existing executable files with a virus-infected copy. While viruses can be intentionally destructive—destroying data, for example—some viruses are benign or merely annoying.

I've had a few computer viruses over the years and they are definitely annoying and sometimes can wreak havoc on your system, but the best way to combat the problem is to have an antivirus program running with up-to-date definitions!

Some free versions of antivirus programs are available at:
AVG Antivirus
Avast Antivirus
Avira AntiVir Antivirus