Personal Technology Tips in Plain English
Archive for April, 2009
Keep Yourself From Embarassing Yourself
Apr 28th
The smart whiz kids over at Google’s Gmail came out recently with a new feature that basically prevents the digital equivalent of beer goggles, hence the name Mail Goggles.
It’s one of those things in life that are super simple, no brainiac needed. Every time you send an email from Gmail, there’s a delay before it actually gets sent so that you can realize that the email attachment that you wanted to send wasn’t really attached — now you can go off and attach that file so you don’t have to send one of those “OOPS!” emails right after the first one.
I started to think, hey, that’s not so special? And guess what…I was right! Read the rest of this entry »
Deal Alert: Wifi-G Router $16 including S&H
Apr 27th
I was boxing up an extra router I had to ship to my brother.
He’s going to extend this WiFi network by simply plugging in a 100ft Ethernet cable to the main router and hook up a 2nd router somewhere else in his home.
Then by simply going into the web-based control panel, he just needs to turn off DHCP support, basically just turning it into an additional wifi antenna to extend the reach of the wifi signals.
As I was packing it up, I got to the shipping part and my online printing app told me it was $17-31 to ship the box via UPS or USPS. That’s nuts!
So I quickly searched for router deals and voila! I found a simple WiFi-G Router for $16 including shipping and handling. That’s cheaper than if I were to ship the used router I have sitting here in front of me!!!
Plus it would be new, under warranty, etc.
If you haven’t set-up a WiFi network or just want to extend your current one to have a better signal wherever you might be in the house (or outside), this is a great deal.
If you’re paying for high-speed internet from the cable company or FiOS, this is the cheapest way to maximize the dollars you’re already spending each month.
WiFi-G Router: LINK to Buy.com page
These deals come and go. But this one is HERE. So if you need one or know of someone that needs one, this is a very inexpensive way to get a WiFi network up and running.
How To Make Free Calls on Skype (including Skype for iPhone)
Apr 17th
If you’re too cheap to shell out the $3/month for outbound calls on Skype, you’re limited to free Skype-to-Skype calling.
That’s pretty good as it is since the entire world is waking up to Skype and millions of people are now on Skype. As the network effect grows, I wonder what Skype is going to do after it obtains total world domination (but that’s a different blog post in itself).
It’s catching on so much that eBay, the owner of Skype is spinning off the business as a separate sustainable entity. Sypke for Business is even a legitimate consideration for small business owners or consultants on the road.
But the fact remains that you’re a cheapskate, looking for a way to make completely free long distance calls through your computer to non-pc phones like cell phones, or landlines.
Perhaps you just need outbound calling capability for the rare occasion that your cell phone is not with you, out of batteries, or if you’re not in the USA (and trying to call back home).
Here’s the tip of the day for Skype – which also works on the iPhone as well by the way . . . Read the rest of this entry »
??????? ?o ?ooq???? uo ?no ??do?d d??? o? ??? ?s??s?? ???
Apr 9th
Sometimes you just need to mix it up a bit and have some fun in life.
That goes for your e-life online as well. As in Twitter and Facebook.
One of the best ways to get noticed and flip people out once in awhile is to literally do just that:
Here’s how. . . Read the rest of this entry »
Quick Recommendations for Neat-o iPhone Apps
Apr 8th
Seems like people can’t get enough after I posted some practical and neat recommendations recently for Apple iPhone and iPod Touch owners. The tip on transforming the iPhone into a Amazon Kindle Device was popular too!
The Apple iPhone App Store is what makes the iPhone unique…until Microsoft finally unveils the Windows Mobile Apps Store which it’s working on as we speak.
But until then, here are some more recommendations for new apps to download and try on your iPhone or iPod Touch from Walt Mossberg of the Wall Street Journal. He’s one of my favorite personal technology general interest writers that I follow becuase his advice is simple, straight-forward, and marketing-spin-free. I’m sure you’ll agree after viewing his video recommendations for iPhone applications: Read the rest of this entry »
The First Tip I Share With Apple iPod or iPhone Owners
Apr 6th
Everyone seems to love my recent tip on how to send free text messages from an Apple iPhone or any other web-enabled cell phone or device (read: iPod Touch). One person commented that although he already has the 200 text message per month plan, he routinely goes over, so that was a great tip on how to save some money each month.
But not everything is about saving cold hard cash. Sometimes saving some frustration is worth a pot of gold — especially if you can get rid of the tiny stresses of life on a daily basis. Today’s tip falls into that category.
This tip if my #1 tip for anyone that uses an mp3 player like the Apple iPod Nano, or iPod Touch. Even Apple iPhone users will rejoice after learning this tip.
And in the interest of being democratic, this tip is actually quite useful for just about anyone that uses a pair of earphones… Read the rest of this entry »
How To Send Free Text Messages From Your Apple iPhone (or any other cell phone)
Apr 5th
The original iPhone cellular plan from AT&T included 200 free SMS Text Messages per month…
But AT&T and Apple got wise as they started to sell millions of new iPhones and no longer include free text messaging in the data plan.
Now, you have to pay $5 or more to add on buckets of text messages or else you’re stuck paying $0.15 per text message a la carte.
And especially if you have a teen daughter that did nothing but send 10,000+ text messages in a single month at school, home, and everywhere else, you’ll be stuck with a massive cell phone bill (imagine getting a cell phone bill from Verizon Wireless for $4,756.25 in a single month?) you need to know about this free service.
Here’s a great tip for how to send free text message from the iPhone WITHOUT any additional text message plan.
Of course this also works on any other web-enabled smart phone like Windows Mobile devices… Read the rest of this entry »