My Tech Talk

Are you searching for a terrific gift idea for friends or family? Look no further than your collection of digital photos. Put that photo collection of family and friends to good use by creating memorable gifts.

Photos make great personalized gifts, especially when you can have them printed by Kodak onto memorable, enduring products.

As a long time Kodak Gallery customer, I can vouch for the quality of their products, their excellent customer service and the enjoyment giving such personal gifts will bring to the recipient. If I was not a satisfied customer, I would not be their affiliate nor recommending their products.

Why Photos Make Great Gifts

• Unique
• Long Lasting
  
• Affordable

Consider these creative gifts from the Kodak Gallery for your photos:

(Click a photo to visit Kodak Gallery for further product details)

Mouse Pads

Photo Coasters

Specialty Puzzle

Photo Playing Cards

Magnet Frames

Travel Mug

Hopefully this list will help you with your holiday shopping.

ONE IMPORTANT TIP:  Always look for coupon codes for your Kodak Gallery purchases. You can search on Google for “Kodak Gallery Coupon Codes” or visit the DealTaker web site to see their list of coupon codes, which displays a lot of them.

Comments and feedback are always appreciated.

Do you need to shop for a savvy Web 2.0 loving, Internet surfing computer enthusiast? This type of person enjoys social media and online services.

Below are a few gift ideas to help you find the right gift for this special someone:

Virtual Gifts

• Visit the Facebook Gift Shop. You and your gift recipient will need to be Facebook members, of course. As a gift giver, you purchase “credits” (100 credits = $1) and redeem them for virtual gifts.
  • Pros: Easy to do yet thoughtful, a variety of gifts available for birthdays, Valentine’s Day, Christmas, etc.
  • Get Started: Login to Facebook and then type “Gifts” in the Search field.

• Is your special someone a Wordpress.comblogger? Then give the gift of Wordpress.com credits. With credits, bloggers can use additional services like domain mapping, custom CSS or additional storage space. Don’t worry if you don’t know what those services do. Remember, it is the thought that counts. Your grateful blogger may even sing your praises in his/her next blog post!
  • Pros: Useful gift that lasts for one year, inexpensive ($10-$20 should do the trick).
  • Get Started:Login to Wordpress.com and click on the “Upgrades” tab and then the “Gifts” sub-tab.

(Note: If you are not a Wordpress.com user, you’ll need to sign up for a free account. You’ll need to create a blog to complete the account setup but you are not obligated (of course) to actually do any blogging.)

Movies, Music and Photos

The following reputable web sites offer e-certificates for their products and services.

• Netflix - Give the gift of comedy, drama, action and adventure delivered in a little red envelope. You can choose to a gift subscription for any number of months.
  • Pros: Easy to give, convenient, budget friendly.
  • Go Get It! Visit the Neflix Gift Subscription page.

• iTunes - A gift card to the iTunes store will allow a recipient to buy music, movies, TV shows and “apps”, short for software applications. ( The “apps” only apply to iPhones and iPod Touch models.)
  • Pros: Easy to give, convenient, versatile. Prices start at $15
  • Go Get It! Visit the Apple Store online to purchase and ship a gift card today.

(Note: If you use an iPod yourself, you can also send an e-gift card through the iTunes software.)

• Kodak Gallery - A picture is worth a thousand words. So, a $15 gift e-certificate to buy 4″x6″ prints of digital photos for .15 cents each from Kodak is worth…100,000 words!
  • Pros: Budget Friendly, Delivered by Email, Can be used to buy some other photo products* too (restrictions apply*)
  • Go Get It! Visit the Kodak Gallery web site for more details and to buy an e-certificate.

Thinking of Others

Consider donating money to a charity or a cause in the name of your special someone. Below is one that I recommend:

• Tribute Gift to “Nothing but Nets” - Malaria kills and nets save lives. The goal behind this charity is to save lives by sending bed nets to Africa to keep mosquitoes away while sleeping. Read about it in detail how “nets save lives”.
  • Pros: Generous, thoughtful and affordable.
  • Go Get It! Visit the donation page to choose your amount. Don’t forget to check the “Tribute Gift” option at the bottom of the screen.

Mobile Software

• Handango.com – Purchase a gift e-certificate and your special someone can load up their smart phone (Blackberry, Windows OS, Palm OS, Android) with software. Hundreds of software programs are available: Games, city guides, budgeting and expenses, nutrition and fitness, translations, bibles, ringtones, maps, GPS, music, medical, horoscopes and more.
  • Pros:Versatile, helpful, Email-able, an unexpected gift.
  • Go Get It! Visit the Handango web site to purchase.

(Note: Take a moment to verify that your gift recipient has a “smart phone” like a Blackberry, Blackjack, Palm Treo, etc. Handango does not make applications for the iPhone at this time.)

If you have any ideas to share, please post a comment below. Thank you!

More to Read:

SuccessfulSoftware.net’s blog post: What do you buy a programmer for Christmas?

I love reading the comics in the newspaper. However, I have one slight problem: I don’t subscribe to a newspaper. And, I’m not alone. Newspaper subscriptions have plummeted and some comic strip creators have taken notice and taken action, most notably, Berkeley Breathed.

Sadly, he has chosen to end his beloved “Opus” comic. You can read about the end of the Opus comic in a letter Mr. Breathed posted on his web site. Here’s what was written in a San Francisco Chronicle article by a reporter who interviewed Breathed recently:

After he brought Opus back in 2003, he noticed that his core audience - readers 13 to 30 - was no longer reading the newspaper. “It wasn’t just that the market had shrunk and some readers had left,” he said. “They had virtually disappeared. “I hadn’t appreciated that until I came back and realized that if I strolled into a college campus after three years of doing my strip, no one had ever read it….Breathed thinks comics will be left behind when newspapers go “fully digital.”

(You can click here to read the full article by Regan McMahon, published on 10/27/08: Berkeley Breathed’s Opus Bows Out.)

Comics.com has helped carry the comic strip torch into the online world. Recently, the web site received a Web 2.0 makeover which will help comic strip fans share their favorite funnies via social bookmarks and RSS for free.

With web sites like this, I hope that comics continue to tickle the funny bone long after newspapers have gone “fully digital.” We could all use the laughs, especially in these dreary economic times.

Below is one of the final Opus comics, courtesy of the new Comics.com web site.

JustTweetIt is a terrific online directory of Twitter users.  If you’re a Twitter user looking to add followers, take 5 minutes to visit the site and add yourself to the directory. At the same time, it is easy to find Twitter users to follow.  The directory is organized by interests, so you can find people who share your love of marketing, blogging, music, social media, politics, books, gadgets or _________ (fill in the blank).

If your goal is to use Twitter to promote your ideas, business or blog, then this site is definitely for you.

Click here to learn more about Twitter in general.

Click here to read about 9 useful sites for finding people to follow on Twitter. Well 8, because I just told you about one from the list.

Click here to follow me on Twitter.

Schools, youth groups, charities and other non-profit organizations earn money by recycling technology products through the Cartridges for Kids program.

Cost to participate?

It is free.  Cartridges for Kids supplies participating non-profit groups with program marketing materials and shipping at no cost.

What items can be recycled?

• laser, fax, copier, and inkjet cartridges
• used cell phones
• laptops
• PDAs (Palm Pilots)
• GPS Systems
• iPods

Click here for a detailed list of acceptable items to recycle.

How much can we earn?

The answer varies, depending on how what items are being recycled and how much is being recycled.

For example,  recycling one Blackberry 7520 model = $5.00.

For a breakdown on pricing, visit the recycling list page.

How do we sign up?

Click here to enroll your non-profit organization now.

Upon enrolling your non-profit organization with the program, you will be sent an enrollment package which includes:

• Program Guide
• Poster
• Fliers
• CFK Stickers
• Pre-paid shipping labels

Getting Started

Click here to read about how to create a successful program.

Also, look on their home page for information on “6 Ways to Boost Your Organization.”

Cartridge for Kids can be an on-going fundraiser for a non-profit organization looking for some additional cash to fund their operation.

Data Center

JungleDisk’s online storage service will give you a secure and reliable method for backing up your data on a regular basis.

I’ve been using it for a couple of months and it works as advertised. I’m very pleased with their service and software.

Pricing

Unlike many other online storage services, you aren’t required to pay a monthly or annual fee. You do need to pay $20 for the JungleDisk Desktop Edition software, which includes a lifetime of free updates.

After buying the Desktop Edition software, you are charged for data storage (.15¢ per GB per month) and data transfer services. Take a moment to read about their pricing.

Features

JungleDisk has partnered with Amazon.com so that data stored online will be put onto Amazon’s S3 datacenters. By using the datacenters of a well-known and reliable company, JungleDisk provides its customers with stability and peace of mind that their data will be accessible and secure.

Read this to find out why JungleDisk is better than other online services.

Once purchased, the software license for the JungleDisk Desktop Edition is good for an unlimited # of computers. You won’t be required to by multiple licenses. It is compatible with Windows, Mac, and Linux. Click here for details on how the Desktop Edition software works.

I do recommend spending the extra dollar per month to buy the optional Jungle Disk Plus service. With it, you can access your data files from any web browser and the software will be able to resume uploads of large data files (like video files) should the connection be disrupted.

JungleDisk Workgroup Edition offers a backup solution for workgroup or office environments.

Free to Try

JungleDisk offers a free 30 day trial. To get started, visit the download page.

JungleDisk in the News

The company was recently acquired by Rackspace.

Read the company announcement from JungleDisk about the Rackspace acquisition.

If you have multiple emails, then you spend time checking multiple inboxes. Well, it is time for you to reclaim that precious time.

NutShellMail will consolidate your inboxes from email accounts and social networking web sites (specifically Facebook, LinkedIn and MySpace for now) for FREE.

Watch a Video Demo of NutshellMail’s Service

Before setting up this service, I’ve had emails languish in seldom used inboxes that I forget to check. Now, that doesn’t happen to me anymore.

And NutshellMail is free.

You get back precious time in your day and it doesn’t cost you a nickel?

Wow!

Here are some additional features:

• Parents can configure the service to check their child’s inbox.
• The service is compliant with most corporate email policies
• The “boomerang” button delivers emails from a secondary inbox into your primary one.

I really like this service. It saves time and it is free.

Click here if you want to sign up for a free NutshellMail account.

There is a free online utility called QUIKMAP from Web-Wise-Wizard that can help you determine the X,Y coordinates needed to map an image. Click on the Quick Map button when you visit the web site.

To use the utility, you upload your graphic and then move your mouse over the image as it appears on the web site. It will then identify the X,Y coordinates you’ll need and you can write them down.

Click here for more instructions on the HTML code used in image mapping.

Image mapping involves identifying a specific area within an image, often to associate a link to it.

For example, a person may want to make the compass (see photo) a link to a web site, but not the entire graphic. To accomplish this, HTML image mapping is used to pinpoint the location of the compass with X,Y coordinates. (No, I didn’t map the compass in this example.)

Web-Wise-Wizard also provides a useful glossary to clarify the technical terms used to describe web graphics and images. Click here to visit the Web-Wise-Wizard Web Graphics Glossary.

The beauty of the Yahoo Briefcase service is in its simplicity.

The service has been around awhile and it isn’t heavily promoted these days. Yet, it still exists which indicates that it is a good piece of technology.

You Should Take Advantage of Yahoo Briefcase if….

1. You’re working on a file and want to continue your work from another PC.

2. You want to manually backup your hard drive online , provided your data is 30 MB   or less.

3.  You like free products and services that actually work as intended.

4. You aren’t super tech savvy, but you know how to login to upload a files.

If you need to store a small amount (30 MB or less) of data online so you can access it from another computer, then you should consider using this free service from Yahoo.

These days 30 MB is not a lot of space. For most, this isn’t enough to serve as a “data backup” solution.  Instead, let’s call it a “data storage” solution, where you can conveniently access a handful of important files from anywhere.

The Best Features

1. Simple Setup: Get a free Yahoo account. Then go to http://briefcase.yahoo.com to access your briefcase. (Remember to bookmark the page) No additional software or configuration is required.
2. Simple Interface: Adding a file follows the same process as attaching a file to an email.
3. Simple Organization: Just like your own computer, you can create folders to better organize your online files.
4. Free 30 MB of file storage.

Limitations

1. 30 MB of storage space is not a lot if you’re looking to store lots of photos or video files. However, it is more than enough for most MS Word, Excel, or PowerPoint files, Quicken backup files, as well as a handful of digital photos.
2. Yahoo Briefcase does not enable online sharing with other users.
3. You can’t sync your files from your hard drive to the Briefcase. You must upload each one.

Click here if you’re ready to fill up your Yahoo Briefcase.

Computer users read the TOP 10 LIST to learn how to save money by reducing technology expenses or managing finances online.

Barter, Bargain or Bundle

10. Are you paying for technical support?

Why not barter for the support services of a tech savvy friend, colleague or family member?

You can barter a home cooked meal, baseball tickets, a ride to the airport or yard work and save money. Many times, a savvy computer user can resolve minor issues by remotely logging into your computer. A number of free online services exist to facilitate remote computer access, including:

• GoToMyPC.com

• LogMeIn.com

Read a MyTechTalk post about LogMeIn.

9. Look for Bargains online.

Price comparison web sites can help you find the best deal. There are web sites out to help spot a bargain. Also, don’t overlook used equipment. One man’s trash is another man’s treasure. Join the Yahoo Group called Free Cycle to see what people in your community are offering up for free (and it isn’t just tech stuff).

• Price Comparison: MySimon.com, Shopping.com, PriceGrabber.com
• Bargains: Ben’s Bargains, Dealio.com
• Free: Information on Free Cycle

8. Bundle Up. Take advantage of bundled services from Telecom or Cable companies in your area.

For example, AT&T and Comcast offer customers a lower price to bundle TV, Internet and Phone Services for a lower price.

Don’t Pay for Software or Hardware

7. If you need to renew your subscription for McAfee or Norton anti-virus products, consider switching to a reliable alternative: AVG Anti-Virus.

It doesn’t include a firewall, but most Windows computers with XP or Vista have a built in firewall that is more than adequate. ZoneAlarm also offers a free firewall software.

• Free AVG Anti-Virus Software

6. Do you really need to buy that Microsoft Office 2007 software?

Sometimes, the answer is No. If you are a computer user who writes the occasional letter or creates a spreadsheet from time to time, take a serious look at downloading the free Open Office suite of software programs. It contains word processing and spreadsheet programs along with several others that rival Microsoft’s software package. Google Docs is another option.

• Open Office Software
• Google Docs

Read a MyTechTalk post comparing MS Office and Open Office.

5. Store your data online for free or cheap.

Don’t buy an external hard drive for $100 or more unless you’ve got 100s of megabytes or gigabytes of data. If you need a lot of storage space, chances are the free offers out there won’t provide enough room for all of your data.

• Free options: Mozy.com (limit 2 GB), Yahoo Briefcase (limit 30 MB)
• Inexpensive: Mozy.com, Carbonite.com
• Cheap: JungleDisk.com (service utilizes Amazon.com’s reliable and secure data servers)

Read a MyTechTalk post on Mozy.

Upgrade or Downgrade or Replace

4. Upgrade computer memory or replace an older hard drive.

If your computer is 3 or 4 years old and slowing down, you may not need to replace it. Both are inexpensive options that will boost performance. You may also consider reformatting your current hard drive and re-installing Windows. If that sounds like a daunting task, then you’ll need to follow through up on #10 to get some tech-savvy help.

• Memory upgrade: Average cost $100
• Replace Hard Drive: Average cost $100-$150

3. Downgrade your Internet service.

Cable Internet is the fastest option for the home user, but it does cost the most too. Consider switching to slightly slower, but cheaper, DSL. If you already have DSL, you may inquire if there are different “tiers” of service and the prices of each one.

2. Replace your phone service with Skype and save money on local and long distance calling.

Skype is a service that allows you to make phone calls from your computer. If you call another Skype subscriber, the call is free! If you call a landline or mobile phone, there are fees charged. So, figure out which friend or family member you call the most and convince them to switch to Skype too.

Manage Your Money for Free

1. Mint.com offers a free service to track your income and expenses.

This web site offers a free service that rivals Quicken software.

You do need to be comfortable with online banking and finances to take advantage of their tools. Mint sends email reminders about upcoming bills and can be configured to alert you via email to transactions (like bank fees or deposits) or any unusual spending activity. Sometimes an email reminder can prevent a late fee and keep money in your pocket.

If you have any money saving ideas to share, please post a comment.

Technorati : Advice, Hardware, Online, Save Money, Software, Technology, Top 10

Read Michael Horowitz’s article, originally posted on CNET News, for some good common sense practices to help secure your web mail account on Yahoo, GMAIL, Hotmail and others.

Being Smart About Web Mail

Tags: Email, Yahoo, Gmail, security, Internet

View Original Article

Tags: Yahoo, online calendar, organize

Here’s a link to McCain’s Senate voting record.

Here’s a link to Obama’s Senate voting record.

Forget the hype.

Forget the spin.

Ignore the commercials, the editorials and the talking heads.

Watch the debates, but compare what is said with their past voting history.

Take a few minutes to review the Senate voting records of our 2 presidential candidates, John McCain and Barack Obama.

The Washington Post has compiled this information on ALL members of the United States Senate and the House of Representatives:

The links have additional information on the 2 men, but the voting records should provide a good indication where the candidate’s stand on a variety issues.

The Internet has put the facts at your fingertips. Reading them is up to you.

Remember to vote in November!

Technorati : Election 2008, McCain, Obama, Voting Record
Del.icio.us : Election 2008, McCain, Obama, Voting Record

Voters in the 2008 Presidential elections deserve to know the facts. Candidates can get carried away with rhetoric at the expense of the facts. FactCheck.org is an unbiased web site dedicated to confirming, clarifying or denying the facts referenced in statements made by Barack Obama, John McCain, Joe Biden and Sarah Palin.

As they said on the classic TV show Dragnet, “Just the facts, ma’am.”

Well, that’s all FactCheck.org cares about. They want to help voters understand the facts so that Americans are choosing a President based on substance and not style.

Another web site to visit is PolitiFact.org, which is a service of the St. Petersburg Times/CQ.

Get the facts and make an informed decision this November. Vote for the candidate that you think will help you the most, but please base your vote on substance and not style. America’s future depends on it.

The NFL Football season begins tomorrow. Millions of men and women will devote hours of time each week playing fantasy football at the expense of family time.

Well, why not include them in the fun?

Fantasy football can easily be enjoyed by families, much like board games or card games.

Don’t overlook its educational possibilities either. Math skills are key to keeping score, so young children can play with an adult and practice their addition, subtraction and multiplication while spending time with Mom and Dad.

Well, now there’s a free fantasy sports site for family fun. Check out http://www.familyfantasysports.com and enjoy the best of both worlds on Sundays this Fall: Family time and football!