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Newsletter 01/31/2010
The Eastern shore has just experienced the heaviest snowfall in 15 years. Needless to say, we are snow bound. Yet the sun is shining and it is beautiful white outside. A real contrast to the green we normally see here. This has given me some more time to read, and do other inside activities. One of those activities is watch some TV which I normally don’t do very much of.
I just watched an episode of Grey’s Anatomy. Many of you probably watch this show and enjoy the character portrayal. While on the subject of Grey’s Anatomy, did you know that Henry Gray published a large book in 1918 which include many illustrations? This book was called Gray’s Anatomy. “Gray’s Anatomy of the Human Body features 1,247 vibrant engravings—many in color—from the classic 1918 publication, as well as a subject index with 13,000 entries ranging from the Antrum of Highmore to the Zonule of Zinn.”
http://www.bartleby.com/107
This year, 2010, is the year of the federal mandated census. Actually I believe this is a good thing as is realigns moneys throughout the country based on population, age, etc. It also give us people that like to look at statistics, more data to manipulate to fit what we want. So, go the web site and found more on the census and what it can do.
http://2010.census.gov/2010census/
There is something about glow-in-the-dark stuff that is fascinating to all the kids I know including this one. So, whenever I find some cool idea or cool way to do glow-in-the-dark stuff I always give it a try or at least remember where I saw it so I can try it later or just have it for a reference. This site has a great idea on making a cool glow-in-the-dark wall that has a number of possibilities besides entertaining the kids.
http://fangletronics.blogspot.com/2010/01/glow-in-dark-sketch-wall-and-led-pens.html
The Wall Street Journal has many great articles on their web site but they only let you read the first paragraph or just a little bit without subscribing. This bugs me so I knew there should be a way to view the whole article without pay for a complete subscription. Well there is. Over at this web site they explain exactly how to read any article that you may need.
http://www.labnol.org/internet/free-access-to-online-newspaper-articles/12336
I know many of you have an Apple iPod, iPhone, or iTouch. The problems with these devices is that they are tied to iTunes if you want to make the most use of your device. Now that is not the case. A new application that has more features and works as good if not better is now available. Check out this web site to see for yourself how well ‘CopyTrans’ works.
http://www.makeuseof.com/dir/copytrans4-ipod-iphone-backup-and-recovery-utility
http://www.copytrans.net
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Newsletter 01/24/2010
I suppose most of you have seen the movie Avatar by now. To me it was absolutely amazing as far as special effects, human and animation integration, and actual graphical design. Oh, the 3D stuff was great too! Check out the short clips on hulu.com that features the behind the scenes look at how the movie was made, and the actors comments.
Now that we are into the new year, are you still keeping your resolutions? I didn’t think so. Enough said.
A site you might want to add to your list of search sites is answer.com. This site uses a question and answer format. Post a question and if it doesn’t have the answer it will post it to the community that hangs out on the site. Maybe some user there might know where to find the answer. It has some relevant answers to a few of the questions I poster but it didn’t have the answer to this question. What software was used in the making of Avatar? You might expect a computer geek to try that type of question. Check it out.
http://www.answers.com
While I was giving the site about a good workout, I needed to find some special quotes that I queried. That immediately brought to my attention another site I visit regularly for bits of humor, wisdom, and profound statements. The quotes and words of with, humor, and wisdom found here can be used most anytime for just about anything.
http://www.brainyquote.com
Many of you including myself use Wikipedia to look up reference and information on numerous items. Now there is a ‘wiki’ for biographies. It has been around for a while but I forgot about it until I was searching for information on a notable subject. Again remember is a wiki so make sure to verify things that don’t look quite right.
http://www.s9.com
I believe that I may have put this in an earlier newsletter but it is worth mentioning again. How to sites are great to find out the steps need to accomplish a task. There are many specialized sites that give you great how to information. The best place to start on your how to search is findhow.com. Running a close second is wikihow.com. Both sites are must on your bookmark list.
http://www.findhow.com
http://www.wikihow.com
I suspect that all of you use Google as your main search engine. Most of you know that I don’t because I prefer to use specialized search engines depending on my search subject. Anyway, if you use Google you should know about all of Google’s search features. Take some time to read their search help page.
http://www.google.com/intl/en/help/features.htm
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Trijicon Manufacturing – backs off from its ...
Why does anything related to God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Bible have to be removed and not items related to other religions?
What is happening to our countries morals, attitudes, and values?
The following comes from an article about markings on sights used in US combat weapons.
“The inscriptions are not obvious and appear in raised lettering at the end of the stock number.
Trijicon’s rifle sights use tritium, a radioactive form of hydrogen, to create light and help shooters hit what they’re aiming for.
Markings on the Advanced Combat Optical Gunsight, which is standard issue to U.S. special operations forces,
include “JN8:12,” a reference to John 8:12: “Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, ‘I am the light of the world:
he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life,’” according to the King James version of the Bible.
The Trijicon Reflex sight is stamped with 2COR4:6, a reference to part of the second letter of Paul to the Corinthians:
“For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge
of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ,” the King James version reads.
Photos posted on a Defense Department Web site show Iraqi forces training with rifles equipped with the inscribed sights.
The company’s practice of putting Bible references on the sites began nearly 30 years ago by Trijicon’s founder,
Glyn Bindon, who was killed in a plane crash in 2003. His son Stephen, Trijicon’s president, has continued the practice.” (Manufacturing.net, January 21, 2010)
Trijicon is now going to remove the inscription from its rifle sites.
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US Stamp for Muslim holiday.
The United States Post Office (USPS) has had many commemorative stamps over years and I have enjoyed seeing and using them until now.
A new stamp that has been issued supports the very essence of what our soldiers are fighting against.
Now ask yourself, would you purchase or support such a stamp? OK, you want more information on what I am talking about, so
follow along with me.
Wasn’t the following true?
A Muslim bombed Pam Am flight 103, World Trade Center in 1993, the USS Cole, Marine barracks in Lebanon,
and, the American Embassy in Africa. What about 9/11/2001?
OK, so why is the USPS issuing a stamp commemorating a Muslim holiday?
http://www.usps.com/communications/newsroom/2009/pr09_105.htm
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Off Shore Oil Drilling approved by President Obama
Yes, you read the title right, President Obama approved a $2 billion loan to Petrobas for off shore drilling in Brazil.
He believes this is OK around other countries but not our country? Why? Strange things going on in the White House.
“The U.S. Export-Import Bank tells us it has issued a “preliminary commitment” letter to Petrobras in the amount of $2 billion
and has discussed with Brazil the possibility of increasing that amount. Ex-Im Bank says it has not decided
whether the money will come in the form of a direct loan or loan guarantees.
Either way, this corporate foreign aid may strike some readers as odd, given that the U.S. Treasury
seems desperate for cash and Petrobras is one of the largest corporations in the Americas.” ( Wall Street Journal)
Read the article for yourself.
Oh, one more thing, guess who is the largest individual stockholder of Petrobras and who would benefit most from this?
It is American BILLIONAIRE, George Soros, who was one of President Obama’s most generous financial supporter during his campaign. Duh!
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203863204574346610120524166.htm
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Newsletter 01/12/2010
The new year is progressing as it should with days just cruising along. Why does it seem the older you get the faster time flies by? Oh, I realize this isn’t Sunday evening.
For all of us gadget people, last week was the best week of the year. The annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Wages. Many really cool new gadgets, TV’s, cell phones, computers, etc were all unveiled by multiple manufactures. Cnet.com has an interesting video to watch about the new IP TV’s. Check it out.
http://ces.cnet.com/next-big-thing/?tag=TOCmoreStories.0
Shopping, I really dislike going shopping, that is unless it is shopping on the Internet for some new cool high tech gadget. Sometimes I need to shop for clothes, household items, etc. So when that happens I usually go to the following sites listed below for the best deals. There are many comparison sites and shopping site but I wanted to introduce all of you to 2 that you may not have visited or even knew about.
http://taffly.com
http://www.storeoborealis.com
Ok, so now you found the item you want, but how do you know it is any good? What about if it has had some defects, or what did other people thing about it after they bought it? How about reading consumer reviews of the item you are about to spend your hard earned cash on. This may ease you purchase anxiety.
http://www.giddi.com
Vacations are really cool when they happen, but in the back of your head I know you are worried about the cost of places you stay. Since I am always watching my budget, the following site will help you with your search for very economical housing as you travel.
http://budgetbellhop.com
I haven’t had anything for the younger kids lately , so here is one for them. This is a very kid friendly site for creating cute monsters. This site has many differ options for design a friendly or mean monster. It will keep them occupied for a while and you might even get a laugh from them too.
http://www.memakemonster.com
A wise lady said, “Ladies and gentlemen, to acquire information, much less wisdom, one’s lips cannot be moving.”
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Newsletter 1/3/2010
Welcome to year 2010. What will this year have in store for us? Hopefully we will see an improvement in the job market, stabilization of house prices, and less government intervention in personal affairs (wishful thinking).
One of my resolutions from past years continues on and has served me well. The resolution of not paying more than necessary for anything. I search, bargain, squabble, and deal to get the best price on stuff I need and/or want. To that extent, I do have some help from a few web sites. If you are looking for computer related items check out these sites:
www.Slickdeals.net , http://www.Pricewatch.com. For all the rest of the items you might need, check out the following: http://www.dealnews.com and http://www.cheapism.com.
Cell phone are great when you are not is a ‘dead zone’. On your routing travels you know where the dead zones are, but what about an area you are not familiar? This site has a searchable database of over 100,000+ cell phone carrier comments submitted voluntarily from real customers all over the U.S. This site strives to have relevant feedback of places where your phone most likely will get little or no reception.
http://www.deadcellzones.com
I am a magazine fan. I don’t ever have time to sit down and read a book, so I rely on magazines for reading material. Their short articles are about the right length for me before something takes its place on my to do list. I use to get many via the friendly USPS but I don’t want to waste all those trees or basically the time to remove them from the stack of old out of date unread ones to the trash. I just go to my favorite magazine web site. OK, now you ask how do I find the magazine web site? All you have to do is check out the following web site for a list of all the free magazines that you will ever have time not to read.
http://www.maggwire.com
I always find myself at a location where it would be nice to have access to my computer at home. A Virtual Private Network(VPN) is the best way to access your home or work computer from a remote location. Next you are going to say, ‘that is way too complicated from me’. Actually it isn’t. There are 2 VPN applications that you can use on your computer that work very well and are very secure so you don’t have to worry. Each is easy to set up even for the novice. I have used both and don’t have a preference as each works well. Oh, they are both free.
http://easy-vpn.comodo.com
https://secure.logmein.com/products/hamachi2
The next item is a big concern for all Windows users, virus and malware. I know you probably either bought Symantec/Norton Antivirus or McAfee Antivirus or maybe you are using the freeware version of AVG Antivirus. Now I am going to say something that you are not going to believe. You DON’T need to buy any of these for your computer. Microsoft has 2 programs that are free for all users called Windows Defender and Microsoft Security Essentials. Windows Defender will be installed on your computer if you do the regular scheduled updates. If now you can download and install it. Next is Microsoft Security Essentials. I use this at work and home and have found it to be as good as any commercial program on the market. From ‘Lifehacker’ – “You don’t have to take my word for it, however. Not only did AV-Test.org find that it detects 98% of their enormous malware database, but AV-Comparatives (a widely known anti-malware testing group) found that MSE was one of only three products that did well at both finding and removing malware, including the leftovers. It was also the only free product to grab their “Advanced+” rating—the top honor for an anti-malware solution.”
http://www.microsoft.com/Security_Essentials
Have a great new year and I hope my little tidbit of a newsletter makes next year a better year for you.
“Remember the secret to success is consistency to purpose” (Benjamin Disraeli)
