Sunday, November 30, 2008

The Best Source For Investment Advice: Manage Your Money With Investopedia

The moment I arrived at Investopedia I liked what I saw. There were many advertisements but no pop-ups and the page looked surprisingly clean and sleek. Well that's no surprise considering this site was developed by Forbes.
But as is said all the time, looks aren't everything but Investopedia definitely doesn't lack in the content area either. To begin with, this page offers free investing newsletters sent to you every day with the latest news, advice and stock pick.
In addition to this, the expert panel of investors part of this website's staff constantly publishes insightful articles that will inform you about everything from stocks to forex to real estate and mortgages to retirement. And this information is all very succinct so you don't have to waste your time searching through articles to retrieve what you need.
Moreover, if you're like me, you're confused every time you turn on CNBC with all the financial terms that they use. Well, just visit the Investopedia financial dictionary, which will give you the definition of pretty much every money-related word.
When you have learned the language, why not learn the real stuff. Whether you're a beginner or an advanced investor, this website has something that they can teach to you. You can educate yourself in countless areas including retirement planning, online investment scams, inflation, index investing, short selling and technical analysis.
Last but definitely not least, one of my favorite aspects is the stock simulator. I had never seen anything like it; it was unbelievably detailed and yet easy-to-use. This innovative feature lets you use fake money to pick stocks and make a portfolio. Furthermore, you can compete with other users to test your investing prowess. You can even sell shorts and quickly obtain statistics from this page. Personally, I have gained about $1300 with my picks.
And if I can do it, you definitely can too so check out Investopedia before you venture into the wild and wacky world of stocks.

Last Black Friday Feature: How Was Your Black Friday Spree?

You may know that I am Canadian so I didn't go for a huge shopping spree on Black Friday. However, I know you did so just for next year in case I decide on making a trip to the US for that day, how was your experience?
Was it fun? Was it tiring? How much did you buy? What was the best store you went into and which item that you bought was your favorite? Which mall did you go to? What will you remember about this day for a long time? Do you look at any stores or shopping in general differently now that this day has passed? How about some advice?
Please tell me everything!

Friday, November 28, 2008

Black Friday Feature: Shopping Time!

Come on! Get off the computer and shop! There's no time to waste because the deals aren't going to last for very long: Stock is going to run out and prices are going to gradually rise again.
Head over to your favorite mall and check out your favorite stores. Then, go to another mall and another. Follow the tips that I've posted and you'll make the most of this special occasion. Here they are in case you missed them:

Tips
Things Not to Do
Best Stores

One last thing you need to know: If you're having trouble with finding the perfect mall, try this comprehensive and easy-to-use U.S. Mall Directory. It basically allows you to search for any mall by either city, zip code or the name so you won't have to drive around town peeking into each shopping center.
Ok. If you're still reading this, you honestly need to hurry up and get out of your house. Really. Get out and shop!

Black Friday Featured Shopping Tips: Top 10 Best Black Friday Stores

10. Staples

With a number of HP printers 40% off and a 26" LCD HDTV at only $299 (online), Staples really has made its mark in the world of Black Friday shopping. And it isn't just pencils and erasers either.

9. Home Depot

The orange "Do-it-Yourself" guys at the Home Depot are offering some great deals today. Magic Chef 1000-Watt Countertop microwaves are starting from only $69.99 and assorted Christmas decorations start at only $9.99. Also, tons of tools feature huge markdowns such as a 52-Piece Dewalt Drill and Driver Set for just $9.97.

8. Toys R Us

America's largest toy store is giving you some pretty big discounts with DVDs at half price, World of Warcraft games at half price and Annabell dolls and accessories at 60% off. But hurry in because these deals won't last long.

7. Ikea

I'm not particularly fond of Ikea's furniture but this store is definitely offering some pretty big discounts. For instance, a "Malm Queen Bed Frame" is only $99.99 and the "Arstid Table Lamp" is priced at $19.99.

6. Sears

You'll be surprised at how low the prices go here. This is not usually an incredibly popular store but I imagine that today will be quite different. Sears is giving away $60 gift cards with purchases of 4 Michelin, Goodyear, Bridgestone or BFGoodrich Tires, 7-piece towel sets for only $3.19 as well as women's fleece and activewear at 60% off. In fact, you'll find almost the entire store at 50-60% off.

5. Aeropostale

Aeropostale, one of the premier teen clothing shops, is slashing prices by 50% on everything in the store with the exception of clearance items. That means all of your favorite hoodies, t-shirts and fragrances from this brand will be half price.

4. Best Buy

Get a Toshiba Satellite Laptop for a mere $379.99 ($270 off) or a Sony Cybershot 10.1 MP Digital Camera for only $299.99 ($100 off) at Best Buy. You can save hundreds of dollars on pretty much everything in the store so try to jam into a crowded Best Buy to get these huge savings.

3. Sports Authority

You can go to Dick's Sporting Goods and get average deals or you can go to the Sports Authority to get the real deals. Close to all the athletic equipment in the store is marked down by at least 25% such as the entire stock of youth Nike and Adidas apparel for 25% off as well as the an Everlast Heavybag Kit for only $49.99.

2. Amazon

This year, Amazon, has decided to offer Black Friday deals on pretty much all of their items including their form of the doorcrasher, which they call the Lightning Deal. You don't have to stand in long line-ups or tire yourself roaming through mall after mall; just head to Amazon and you've got all you need. They'll give you a Canon Powershot 10 MP digital camera for $159.94 ($70.05 off) and a Magellan 4.3-inch display GPS System for only $199.99 (67% off).

1. Every Other Store

Don't stop at what I just mentioned, go to any and every store you want to go to because each one will have its unique savings.

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

5 Ways to Get Free Songs for Your MP3 Player

These days, music isn't exactly the cheapest commodity. In fact, Apple's iTunes charges you $1 for every song you download but I didn't have to pay a single cent for any of my 770 MP3s. Here's how you can do the same:

5. Wait for gifts.

This is not the easiest or most reliable solution. You'll have to wait for Christmas or your birthday and it's not fun listening to 20 songs until one of these occasions. However, doing this definitely works and you won't have to pay for your music.

4. Keep an eye out for free song promotions.

Occasionally, Pepsi or Lays might put out a promotion where you can win free songs every time you buy one of their products. This is a very grueling and time-consuming process and isn't exactly free but it serves its purpose.

3. Search for free songs on the internet.

Just go to Google and search for "free songs" or something like that. This will bring up a bunch of results (20,000,000 to be exact) that literally give you free songs. Still, many popular songs that you may want to download will be unavailable at these sites. If this is your choice though, I'd recommend eMusic.

2. Use the Google cheat.

Many people don't know this useful little "hack". To employ it, type the following into the search bar:
-inurl:htm -inurl:html -inul:asp intitle:"index of" .mp3

1. Download Limewire.

This is a file-sharing program that lets people download shared MP3 files for free off of other users. Almost every song in the world is on this software in addition to the many other file types. On the other hand, often the files that are on this applications have malicious viruses that can harm your computer but these aren't very strong so pretty much any firewall can destroy them.

Black Friday Shopping Tips: Top 10 Things Not To Do When Shopping


10. Do not get grumpy.

It's not going to help you to let your emotions run high. The only things doing this will accomplish is discouraging you and bringing down others around you.

9. Do not look for good parking spot.

Face it. You're simply not going to find the few spots right beside the entrances. Don't waste your time and get to the shopping. Settle for any spot you can find; a little bit of walking can't hurt you.

8. Do not bring your kids.

First of all, the huge crowds are extremely dangerous; children can easily get lost or even get kidnapped. Moreover, the little ones have the stores that they want to go into and stay in forever, which becomes a huge hassle. Allow them to make a list of things they want and take that with you during your shopping spree.

7. Do not bring valuable things.

There will be an amazing number of people in the malls on Black Friday and there's bound to be at least a few crooks in each one. You don't want to get your most precious jewelery stolen or lost.

6. Do not wear high-heels.

Ladies, this will be a long day especially if you're one of the really enthusiastic breeds of shoppers. Where comfortable running shoes that you will not become quickly tired in and brace yourself for a ton of walking.

5. Do not become intrigued by items you know you can't buy.

Hey, here's a rule: Engage yourself in stuff you will buy but ignore the stuff that you won't. It's just a waste of time and energy occupying yourself in admiring an awesome $20,000 swimming pool when you live in a condo.

4. Do not get out of line in frustration.

Every store is inevitably going to have unbelievably long line-ups that you simply cannot avoid. If you really want something, trust me, it's a good idea to wait in line for a while because there is not other time where you can purchase it at such a low price.

3. Do not go to stores with less than 20% off.

Retailers have sales all the time but generally not of this magnitude. However, some companies are a bit cheap and are only offering say 10% off its stock. You can get 10% off any time you want! Look for the exceptional deals with say 50% discounts.

2. Do not use a credit card for everything.

You've been witnessing the second worst economic meltdown in the history of the United States and financialists are dubbing it the "credit crisis". As you probably have distiguished, the reason for this is the fact that people are constantly not spending cash but using credit, which often gets them into big trouble.

1. Do not not shop.

This is pretty self-explantory. If you don't shop you're losing out on the biggest sales of the year. You should be hungry for these with the recent inflation levels.

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Black Friday Feature: Interesting Black Friday Search Trends

You may have realized that "black friday" is one of the most popular searches on the web around this time but here's what you may not know about Google's listings.

-The number of searches for this term increased by almost sixty times (over average) last year at the highest point
-Pretty much the only searchers of "black friday" come from the United States and Canada
-The number of searches for "black friday" at this time has steadily increased over the years
-The city that is the greatest provider of searches in Louisville, Kentucky
-Two of the top 10 "black friday" cities are in Florida
-Rochester (6th) is the only city in New York that is part of the top 10
-English as the language of a particular search dominates all other languages in searches of "black friday"
-Generally, the spike in search quantity occurs right before Black Friday itself
-There are around 22,400,000 search listings for the term "black friday"; that's about 1/6 of the number of results for "Barack Obama" but seven times the number of results for "boxing day"
-The first result for a search of "black friday" would lead you to BlackFriday.Info
-Six of the first ten results include multiple mentions of the word "Black Friday" in their titles

Monday, November 24, 2008

Personalize Your Google Search Results With Rankings and Comments: The Newest Feature in Google's Arsenal

Google customization is the newest little perk that this massive search corporation has added to its repertoire. Google's innovators are constantly trying to increase their already huge dominance in the search market, and here's their latest ploy.
In your search results, you will now see small icons depicting an arrow, an X and a speech bubble. These each represent different things you can do.

To begin with, the arrow beside the title of each listing is called the "Promote" button, which allows you to basically put this result at the top of your page. This is great for debate or thesis research because you can place all of the most reliable sources at the top of your page for easy access.

On the other hand, the X, dubbed the "Remove" button lets you demote a website to the bottom of your results. You can employ this as a sort of pop-up blocker, in order to ensure that you ignore web pages with huge amounts of advertisements.
Combined, these two features can be utilised as an alternative to bookmarking on your browser or with such services as del.icio.us (now known as Delicious). So your favorite sites won't only be in a small list but a big list. Namely, the biggest list on the internet, Google.

Now, don't think I forgot about the last symbol, the speech bubble. This, the "Comment" button lets users essentially give public feedback about a listing to help out other searchers.
Lastly, recently Google introduced a one more way to personalize your own results: You can now quickly and easily add a specific URL to your results.
But don't abuse these tools; if you do your searches may soon become inaccurate and messy. Of course, it consumes much time rating and commenting on each individual site so I don't recommend you do that.
Still, what Google has made can be very useful as long as you use it wisely.

Black Friday Feature: The Top 10 Best Teen Clothing Shops


On Black Friday, every store is going to have amazing deals and some of the best items may actually become less expensive than the worst ones. Thus, I've simply compiled a list of the hottest and best-quality teen clothing brands.

10. Urban Outfitters

This store has a chic style, with a variety of items from graphic tees to jeans to footweare. Each of their items adds a modern twist to slightly formal pieces.

9. Hurley

Hurley is mainly a retailer of street clothing catering to the needs of the hardcore punk. Their real features are their skate and surf wear.

8. Ecko Unlimited

This is a brand a lot like Hurley mainly designed for street use but it really highlights their artists amazing work with fancier clothing.

7. West 49

Although only available in Canada, rumours say that they may soon be expanding to the U.S. West 49 is one of the fastest growing lines of clothing and is mostly for boarders.

6. American Eagle

American Eagle really has apparel for everyone and is quite a large chain. However, I really don't like this AE because it's design is just simply not-so-appealing.

5. Adidas

Adidas adds a European tone to all of its clothing and specializes in sportswear. Hence, it isn't as popular in North America as it is in other parts of the world but soccer players generally prefer this brand.

4. Aeropostale

Personally, this is my favorite because it has excellent quality, detailed and well considered designs as well as a variety of different styles. And it does everything without putting a gaping hole in your wallet.

3. Nike

Nike is a leading brand in athletic equipment and apparel and is one of the biggest clothing corporations in the world. Its recognizable Nike Swoosh has really become an icon around the world symbolizing fine clothing for any occasion.

2. Hollister

Based in California, this line has really established itself in the clothing market.
Hollister makes clothes that have an old-fashioned and often grungy theme. There's no denying that this is one of the best in the business of quality and will not disappoint in that department.

1. Abercrombie & Fitch

This store definitely has superior quality but not without a massive pricetag. So Black Friday would absolutely be a great time to be looking for this but you're still likely going to be paying more than $20 for a t-shirt, which you can get for 15 at Aeropostale any time. Also, it's items, for the most part, have very plain designs so it's beginning to fall in comparison to some other brands.

One more: Tommy Hilfiger

Tommy has made a name for itself with its polos and shirts, making it a choice for casualwear. Here is one of your choices for a first-date outfit.

Sunday, November 16, 2008

Black Friday Feature: Why You Shouldn't Go Shopping at Walmart on Black Friday


Let's face it, Walmart has not only become a force in the economy but a building block of our everyday lives. Pretty much everybody goes to one of these huge department stores at least once in a while to purchase many things such as food, clothing and beauty supplies. The main reason so many consumers flee to such a store is obviously because of its low price guarantee. Americans, Canadians and for that matter Indonesians know that Walmart usually offers some pretty big discounts.
On the other hand, if you're considering visiting Walmart on Black Friday, it isn't such a great idea.
To begin with, as some people know, the actions of this corporation aren't exactly the most righteous and often, I find myself questioning shopping at all at such an immoral place.
Now, going back to the topic of Black Friday. First of all, this date is simply not the time to be making petty purchases of such things as candy and postcards; you should be thinking big. This is not to say Walmart does not have "big" things but its version of these products simply do not have the same quality as many other stores. Black Friday is a time where the price of everything drops dramatically and therefore, you can afford to buy that maple desk or gold wristwatch instead of the cheap stuff. Instead of going to Walmart for a hoodie or t-shirt, head over to Aeropostale, which is, by the way, offering 50% off pretty much everything in stock according to some sources.
In addition, I'll bet you can find better products at other specialty stores for even lower prices that what they are at Walmart. Sure, I'll admit that this retail chain has the best deals for the majority of the year. But for a few days, you should have no doubt in your mind that Best Buy is where you should go for electronics and Dick's Sporting Goods is where you should go for athletic equipment.
Last but not least, most people don't understand what I'm telling you right now so they're going to be running into Walmarts all across the country. This in turn means that the line-ups and crowds at your local "We Sell For Less Everyday" store will be enormous, humongous, gargantuan etc. Thus, it'll be unsafe if you're bringing children along and it'll also be a unnerving hassle just manoevering through isles.
With all this, on Black Friday, Walmart should not be on your list of shops to go to.

Saturday, November 15, 2008

Black Friday Feature: Shop Online for the Fantastic Sales at Amazon


You wake up, you wash up, you eat breakfast, you drive to work, your boss yells at you, you go to a meeting, you finish that report and finally you come home, check on the news, eat dinner, watch House and go to bed. This is probably your basic daily schedule and I know it's not exactly easy to take a few hours, let alone a whole day, for shopping.
But you'll be glad to hear that you don't have to be scampering around malls to get Black Friday deals because Amazon, for the first time, is offering special prices on numerous items in time for this special day.
And it isn't just books either, they have tons of things in tons of categories such as cellphones, magazine subscriptions and even clothing. But you don't even have to wait that long because every few hours, Amazon introduces new "Gold Box" deals that give you great discounts before Black Friday arrives.
Moreover, the system of categorization that this website uses is extremely simple and will have you quickly finding exactly what you want. Further, if you thought they just host a few links to partners' sites, that's not the case. In fact, they actually sell each product themselves, and you can certainly trust such a company with any online purchases.
Let your friends go through the exhausting process of peeking into every store, crowded with people. You don't have to because Amazon's deals are just as good if not better and don't include the side effects of mall shopping.

Black Friday Feature: An Introduction to Black Friday, Some Information


Black Friday is considered one of the busiest shopping days on the calendar in the United States, where many shops open very early and offer doorbuster deals to lure customers. As well, this day is often looked upon as the start of the Christmas shopping season and this year, is on November 28. In fact, each year, Black Friday falls on the day after Thanksgiving Day.
This day leaves shoppers in a huge frenzy with long line-ups at pretty much every store and enormous sales volume in every major retailer. Likely, this is why corporations brace themselves for the customers each year, preparing with massive price cuts of up to 80% is some places, huge amounts of decorations, advertisements employed in every place possible and extra staffing.
Website owners also are known to make individual websites just for the occasion, offering guides to the shopping day.
One interesting fact about this special day is the origin of its name: Black Friday is known to be a very chaotic, feverish and even stressful shopping day and is therefore a direct connection to "Black Tuesday", the notorious label of the stock market crash in 1929, which shared these aspects with Black Friday.

Come back for more Black Friday news, information and advice!

Friday, November 14, 2008

Black Friday Feature: Top 10 Tips You Need To Know Before Shopping

10. Bring Refreshments

Hey, believe it or not, shopping can be pretty tiring. I suggest you bring a few bottles of water, a few granola bars and some soda to keep from waiting in the long line-ups at snack places.

9. Take it Off

Black Friday is one day you can't afford to miss. In fact, some employers are even deciding to allow workers to have this day off with pay. And even if this isn't the case, the money you will save will still compensate for any lost salary.

8. Find a Shopping Location that Suits Most of Your Needs

You don't want to be wandering from one mall to another, wasting gas, time and energy. Just look for somewhere that has everything on your wishlist, from clothing to electronics to furniture to sports equipment.

7. Try to Purchase Bigger, More Important Items for Greater Savings

Black Friday is not the day to be buying cartons of milk or bags of chips; you should be thinking to make major purchases to really take advantage of the low prices. For instance, that TV you've been wanting might be something you'll want to shop for.

6. Plan a Route of Stores You Want to Visit to Save Time

This is a biggie. It would be dumb and frustrating, and not to mention exhausting to be scurrying in circles through an enormous shopping center, filled with people. Take a bit of time beforehand to go to your Black Friday destination's website and print a map to lay out your trek.

5. Search Through "Official Black Friday" Websites to Find the Best Deals

Although pretty much all stores will have humongous mark-downs, you should see that you get the best prices on the best items. Some websites can be found with a simple search of "black friday" on Google can lead to good pages.

4. Make a Shopping List

This can determine how much you can buy and can be based on priority, considering your budget. As well, a shopping list can help you with your route.

3. Grab a Few Coupons

I think this is pretty self-explanatory; coupons are money in the bank and no experienced shopper can go without them. You might not think these are important on such a day but you might regret not printing a few off.

2. Don't Try To Buy Everything

This is a mistake many shoppers are bound to make and it's quite inevitable that you will spend more than what you planned but keep in mind that even with the incredible sale prices, you don't have all the money in the world. You probably shouldn't purchase the products that are 5-10% off because there are many that are 70-80% off.

1. Don't Waste Your Time

Looking at products that you have no intention of buying is absolutely off limits on such a hunt for things. Black Friday is no time to dawdling, glancing over everything that "interests" you because trust me, there will be a lot of cool stuff. Also, if you want ultimate efficiency, you might want to split up if you are a large group, organizing a meeting place. After this, you can enter stores that cater to what you want.

Thursday, November 13, 2008

Next Time You Need Song Lyrics, Forget MetroLyrics

So, I'm planning to sing "Viva La Vida" by Coldplay at a school function but I don't have I clue about the song's lyrics. Thus, I do the only sensible thing, Google "viva la vida lyrics" and the first result is from MetroLyrics. I haven't recently been searching for lyrics so I decide that this must be the most reliable search. And what greets me when I get there but an annoying pop-up? In fact, I can guarantee that at least one every day, you will be hit by one of these when using MetroLyrics.
Did I mention the advertisements; there are 3 banner ads as well as a block of text ads. I mean, you can have a few ads but this site's usage gets to the point where it begins to thoroughly agitate you.
Another thing is the fact that this site is constantly pestering you for lyrics ratings (come on, lyric ratings?), comments, poll questions and widget downloads. How about the clutter of everything as well; this is one thing that I cannot stand. When I have to work to obtain the information I want, then the web designer isn't doing a very good job.
Sure, there are themed songs, song lists and featured album sections but if you really want the complete picture of the music world, go to Yahoo! Music. By the way, the good guys at Yahoo! now offer lyrics on that page as well.
But one last thing that left bad taste in my mouth, you can't copy the lyrics that are on MetroLyrics, which can be ever so inconvenient. So don't try ignore all these cons, just go to a different lyrics website.

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Google Mail's Leap To Video: Gmail Video and Voice Chat


As you may know, Gmail is one of the world's most used e-mail services, offering many great features such as a 20 MB attachment limit, over 7 GB of storage space and a handy labeling system. Another useful aspect is the web-based chat system that has wide selection of emoticons, group chats, personal messages and now video and voice chats.
Recently introduced, this component basically displays a view of streaming video from your buddy's webcam above the current chat. But if that doesn't satisfy you, you can also pop out to full-screen mode. However, if your friend doesn't hasn't enabled video chat, you can still operate a one-way video chat or just utilise the run-off of this, voice chat, which only requires a microphone.
It works like this. Where there used to be an "Options" button at the bottom left, you'll see a "Video and More" button instead (if you have video chat installed). So, you simply click this and a little box will pop up where you can select "Start Video Chat" or "Start Voice Chat". This will "call" the person you want to talk to, which notifies his/her computer with a ring that this person can choose to either ignore or respond to. When he/she has answered, you should see Gmail begin to do its job.
And the great thing about this is that you'll be able to actually see all the facial expressions, hear all the laughs and directly show others your favorite photos in person. In addition, Google provides these features with impressively high quality sound and video.
The old-fashioned text chat just isn't good enough these days. Video chat really re-defines internet communication and Gmail's version of this leads the pack so install this little program (it's only takes a few seconds) and start really taking advantage of the advances of the internet age.

Download
A Little Guide
An Informational Video

Monday, November 10, 2008

Share Your Christmas Wish List With The World: Wishlistr


Have you ever wanted something really badly? I know I have and now there's a new way to use the web to share your wish list with others. Wishlistr has introduced something that's been a long time in the making.
With this website, you can create an account in literally less than 5 minutes then make a wish list of everything you've ever dreamed of (if you're like me, there's a lot of crap), filled with your own template, direct links to the items and short descriptions. Then, you can publish your wish list so the entire world can view
your daily cravings. And what really makes this a cool site is the fact that you can add friends by searching for their profiles. Or if you can't find them, just invite them to check out Wishlistr and your own little compilation.
Yeah, yeah. I know the same old story; you don't have time. Well, making a wish list only takes a few minutes and is unbelievably fun. Plus, with this site, you can effortlessly import a wish list from Amazon or your bookmarks on Delicious.
Another great feature of Wishlistr is the fact that you don't have to spend days shopping around for gift ideas. Just go over to their guide to today's hottest accessories, all categorized into specific areas.
Wishlistr is one thing you won't come across often so go over and try it out.

Check out my wish list at www.wishlistr.com/profile/notculpable

No-Nonsense Free Image Hosting: Use.com


Let me tell you a little story. So I was bored and I'd been spending the past 10 minutes just typing in random website names in my address bar, usually coming up with spam websites such as this (WARNING: Pop-ups).
But then, I decided to type in "use.com", just to see if somebody had taken that domain.
And where did I arrive but at a free, easy-to-use image hosting site. Use.com allows people to upload photos, videos and even web URLs without any registration. They then put your item with millions of others in a gigantic library of these things, which are fully searchable, making this site a bit like Flickr, except with a lot less hassle.
In addition to this, if you are a real internet junkie and want to utilise a picture for web purposes, you'll be happy to know that Use will provide your full image/video code in HTML whether you need a thumbnail or a full image.
Here's some more coding help: Use will make a custom auction-type template, which you can put onto numerous auction websites such as Craigslist and eBay, with a sleek background, border, text description and image slideshow. And all you have to do is copy and paste the code when you're satisfied.
Another helping hand for eBay is a little scrolling bar of your item images, with quick links to each auction. Just enter your username and password (don't worry, I tried it) and specify a background color for a pathway to a surge in sales.
With all this, just check out Use; it may even earn you a few bucks.

The Blackberry on your Desktop: Windows Calendar

If you've looked over the idea of upgrading to Windows Vista from lousy XP (hopefully, you have not lost your sanity and bought a Mac), then here's another reason to do so: A convenient event organizer, by the name of Windows Calendar, has arrived. No more having to settle for the complex mechanics of any online calendar or even worse, using pens and paper. You've got all that in an application on your computer, that comes standard with any Windows Vista package.
Sharing the aesthetic interface of all Vista components, Windows Calendar is as easy-to-use as it gets. Quickly, you can create a new task/appointment, which you can detail with locations, descriptions, times and even reminders.
Also, the innovative three-column design lets you speedily catch a glimpse of everything in your demanding schedule. In addition to that, if you have a lot of things to do, a search bar is exactly what you need to save a few extra minutes.
And here's another handy feature; Windows Calendar is fully compatible with the often used iCalendar format so you can effortlessly subscribe to web calendars- maybe the programming schedule of your favorite TV station- or even publish your own calendars to the web.
As well, if you need more than one calendar to cover your day-to-day life, you'll be glad to know that this application can support up to 100. Moreover, you can share any of these calendars with your family or friends through email invitations or directly within your computer.
Naturally, as with all Microsoft software, there's a simplistic guide to get you off and running. So what have you got to lose? Try it.

Sunday, November 9, 2008

My Advice For Apple and Steve Jobs: Go Into Video Games


Apple's best days have yet to come; It's still rising and investors and customers alike know it. The long line of iPods have been massively popular worldwide and the Mac is slowly beginning to creep up on the PC. However, this giant really hasn't taken enough of a plunge into tech yet, only really producing, MP3s, phones and computers. I believe though, that Apple can easily gain market share in any industry it wants to, and can perhaps overtake Microsoft in many of these industries. One of these may be video gaming.
Microsoft has long been in this wild and wacky world with its Xbox and Xbox 360. In addition to that, Nintendo and Sony pose huge competition. On the other hand, the iPod is probably one of the most popular items out there today: Virtually, every teenager in North America has one of these devices. A hot little handheld game console would be able to sell for sure.
To begin with, Apple has made a name for itself with its i-things and I'll bet you many young people will be dying to get their hands on another one of these. Also, the iPod has really become a trend even with youngster and walking down the street, you might see several adolescents bobbing their heads to their favorite tunes. This will undoubtedly help Apple with video game sales. Plus, Apple has some of the top marketers in the world: Steve Jobs and his crew are described by many as geniuses so really, there's nothing they can't sell. To supplement, their designers will make a sleek, new device; their innovators are sure to think of a few never-before-seen features; their financial talent is sure to set a healthy price; and Steve Jobs is sure to string everything together. What more can you ask for?
And what about an iCam (camera), an iRead (ebook reader) or an iTravel (GPS system)? If a few of these are made, soon Apple will be a real technology force.

5 Reasons Why I Don't Use iGoogle As My Homepage


5. It's too cluttered.

I don't want to come onto the internet every single day looking at a huge jumble of pictures and words. The mess of iGoogle just doesn't appeal to me.

4. iGoogle is overwhelming.

Every time I take a look at my iGoogle page (which I don't do that much any more), I see so many different gadgets that I have to attend to. I don't want to waste my time looking at every unique and extremely alluring thing on iGoogle.

3. You have to constantly browse for gadgets.

If you have nothing better to do, then this is fine. However, I have a life and don't want to be scrolling through the pages and pages of new and "featured" gadgets that would consume me even more.

2. The loading time is a bit too slow.

For the most part, I use Google Search to initiate my surfing and don't wish to be stalled in the middle of some dumb website that I don't have any intention of actually using.

1. You get quickly addicted to iGoogle.

It's hard not to do this because it's sort of intriguing searching for new tools or just admiring the beauty of your little collage. In fact, some people spend quite a bit of time just blissfully observing their artwork. And then there's the themes. And then there's the gadgets.

Saturday, November 8, 2008

Why You Don't Need Cuil Search


With a greatly (over)hyped launch, Cuil has hit the world of search engines and is trying to gain market share quickly. One problem; there are hundreds, if not thousands of them already. So basically, what I'm saying is you don't need another search engine: In other words, you don't need Cuil.
To begin with, you obviously can use other renowned and more effective search engines such as Google, Yahoo! and MSN Live Search.
Each of these websites are much more convenient with several additional search features such as images, video, maps and more (Yahoo! leading the way with pages for music, food and travel).
Also, naturally with the many more pages indexed in Cuil's database, you would get more search results. However, most people aren't going to search engines to look for a lot of things, but a few, relevant items. This is one quality Cuil just doesn't possess enough of. In fact, there is not even as much as a small advanced search tool to help narrow down your results.
Moreover, hand in hand with the thumbnails beside some results, are numerous inappropriate images that really make you question the capability of the Safesearch option.
And of course, how can you forget this little trait that major search engines all have. Simplicity. Cuil's search result page is intensely cluttered, making it hard to appreciate the web content. Here's a cold, hard number; 3. 3 columns doesn't cut it when you want speedy reading.
So although Cuil does have some good potential and considerable aesthetic appeal, it's not something that you want to waste your time on right now.

Monday, November 3, 2008

10 Reasons Why MSN Chat Sucks


Most people I know would never even think of uninstalling their favorite little program, MSN. Well, here are a few reasons you should do so, before your life is ruined.

10. You can't take back things you say.

People might take a comment badly or you may say something that would offend someone. Of course, if you do something to embarass yourself, the news can spread like a wildfire because of the Internet.

9. It's an easy pathway cyber-bullying.

MSN encourages cyber-bullying with its interface and soon, you may be the victim of a vicious attack.

8. If you decide you want to chat with a robot, there's tons of advertisements.

This application has to be one of the most popular out there; every company wants to get their hands on one of these advertisements and some of them lead to surprisingly obscene sites.

7. Alerts.

You know those little pop-up boxes at the side of your monitor whenever something happens. That gets to be pretty annoying. Although you can stop them, this still comes as a huge downside and even frustrates people to the point where they just want to smash their computer.

6. You become dependant on MSN for all of your contact and scheduling needs.

This may seem petty but one day, it might come and bite you in the butt. If anything happens to your precious little MSN, you're dead.

5. Obligation to talk.

Here's a big one. When one of your friends is on and starts chatting with you, you can't just abandon them and sign out. That really sucks when you have a big assignment due at school the next day.

4. From the people that I ask, I see how addictive MSN really is.

Like a force of nature, MSN begins to ruin lives, dominating everything. It will terrorize you and your future but you can stop the madness. So if you or a loved one is in trouble, call MSN Users Anonymous. Fully confidential and very helpful.

3. It might be subtle, but MSN is very unhealthy.

First of all, sitting there all day "chatting" isn't exactly the best thing you can do to your body. And of course, think about your eyes; don't they deserve a bit better than to be sentenced to hours of the computer screen?

2. MSN takes up a lot of time. Really. A lot.

When you get obsessed, you can spend days of valuable time just trying to fill lines or expressing your emotions with little colored circles. Think about what you can be doing with this time. Just right now I came up with, "write a book, watch TV, make a magazine, invent something and of course, change the world." I guess Barack Obama can't spend his time on MSN.

1. You don't have a real social life.

If you haven't gone insane yet, you'll probably recognize how lame nattering on MSN is. I seriously don't think this is "cool" or really makes you socialable. This is just an excuse for computer nerds, really.

Sunday, November 2, 2008

A Social Network of Books and Author Community: LibraryThing


Sharing your own library of books has never been easier with the introduction of LibraryThing. This very useful site that is quite similar to Facebook in that it features a homepage, not cluttered, but packed with gadgets/tools. These little things are perfect for people of any age as long as they have interest in books and don't like being loners.
Now, the basis of LibraryThing is for you to write recommendations and reviews and tell others about your own book collection. Thus, as with most other social networks, you can join groups with specific topics and add friends, often helping with your next book choice. Of course, you can send messages to others in the form of comments on their profiles as well. Speaking of profiles just like everything from Myspace to Orkut, you can update your mini-bio with "About Me", "About My Library", "Homepage" and "Location" sections (and more).
In addition, there is a forum for you to share ideas on, both general and group-related; a guide to local events pertaining to the world of words; a popular publication list; and a list of the hottest reviews.
And to cap it all off, get this: LibraryThing is willing to give away free pre-release books as long as you do the petty task of reviewing them with the Early Reviewers program. But you'll have to request quickly because of how much everybody loves this program.
With all this, maybe you'll stop listening to garbage Mariah Carey and start reading.

Saturday, November 1, 2008

The Best Books Delivered Wirelessly: Amazon Kindle

If you have been on the Internet in the last few years, then you know what Amazon is. If you read at all (unlike me), you probably have used it. Here's another reason to keep using it, the Amazon Kindle.
The Kindle is a totally new, totally cool device that lets you read books on the go without having to fill your bags with them. It, with the help of the Internet, allows owners to purchase electronic versions of all their favourite books from the Kindle. With this little gadget, you can flip the pages almost all of the New York Times' Bestsellers for $10.00 each. And if you think about everything that has to go into organizing these sales, it's a pretty damn good deal.
In addition to that, you can have renowned U.S. and world newspapers delivered to you daily. But that's not it, throughout the day, the Kindle automatically updates you on the world's most popular blogs including BoingBoing and Slashdot.
Plus, you can email your Microsoft Word documents and images to your Kindle for easy viewing. Editing your latest report is perfect for those traffic jams in rush hour in my opinion.
Of course, there's no internet costs to you because of the advanced technology that the Kindle employs to connect you quickly.
One last cool feature: If you come across a word that you don't recognize, turn it over to Wikipedia, right on your Kindle. And it will surprise you how many times you'll need this little thing.
But don't take my word, go over to the Amazon Kindle page and check it out!