Newsletter 11/01/2009

Since Halloween was last night….
Is it possible to build a scientifically designed haunted room or haunted house? Wired magazine blog site has a story about such a room that was built.
See what the outcome was of their project here.
http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2009/10/scientifically-haunted-house

Have you wanted a barcode with your name or something really special to fool people? How about a custom bar code for …
Anyway this site let you make a standard UCC/EAN-128 or GS1 DataBar Expanded barcode. Strange but so is Halloween.
http://www.morovia.com/free-online-barcode-generator/

Thing to use on or after Halloween.
In the cool stuff section, how about a pair of bicycle pedals that have red LED lights built in so you always have night light. These require no batteries and when you pedal they generate the electricity to power the LED’s.
http://www.dosun.us/portablelight/index_light.htm

This is from a blog I read that says that these are the best indoor plant to create oxygen.
“1. Areca Palm – You need at least four shoulder-height plants per person in the building and, if you are living in a polluted city, make sure you wipe the Palm leaves every single day for the plant to effectively convert Carbon dioxide into Oxygen.
You should in fact grow two sets of Areca Palm’s — keep the other set outdoors and rotate that set with the indoor one every 3-4 months.
2. Snake Plant — Unlike most plants which release Carbon-dioxide at night, Snake Plant (also known as Mother-in-law’s Tongue) does the reverse as it converts CO2 into Oxygen at night so you can safely keep it inside the bedroom.
You need at least 6 to 8 waist height plants per person to improve the indoor air quality to a healthy level.
3. Money Plant — Other than releasing oxygen in the air, money plant can also eliminate formaldehyde from the air that is commonly released by cigarette smoke and adhesives (used with wood furnishings).”

If you recently purchased the new Windows 7 from Microsoft or plan to purchase it in the near future, you can get a bunch of free themes from Microsoft.
ttp://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows/downloads/personalize?T1=themes

While talking about the new Windows 7 here is a list of some of the keyboard shortcuts used on Windows 7.
• Win+Home: Clear all but the active window.
• Win+Space: All windows become transparent so you can see through to the desktop.
• Win+Up arrow: Maximize the active window.
• Shift+Win+Up arrow: Maximize the active window vertically.
• Win+Down arrow: Minimize the window/Restore the window if it’s maximized.
• Win+Left/Right arrows: Dock the window to each side of the monitor.
• Shift+Win+Left/Right arrows: Move the window to the monitor on the left or right..

Newsletter 10/11/2009

I listen to radio via the web at work and at home. If you are so inclined, this following will help.
Free online music is easier to find than ever with the multitude of internet radio stations now available to listeners. With the growth of the World Wide Web and advances in telecommunications, finding free music, news, sports and talk is only a few clicks away. However, there are now so many options available that you might have trouble figuring out exactly what’s out there.
http://www.onlineradiostations.com

Documents are what make this world happen. There are documents for about every possible thing, item, procedure, rule, etc. So what are the 100 most influential documents in US history?
I can think of ten immediately. The Bill of Rights. What about you? This web site has the results of votes from the people. It is presented by the National Archives and is worth a visit and read and compare yours against what is listed.
http://www.ourdocuments.gov/content.php?flash=true&page=vote”

While you are at The National Archives web site, check out the ‘Digital Vaults’. This section has pictures, photographs, documents, and film clips of the items mentioned in the previous post and much more. I liked taking some time to make my personal film clip of historical events that I thought were most significant. Oh, be sure to view the Flash version as it is very impressive.
http://digitalvaults.org/

Food, one of my favorite things. Since it is high on my priority list, I should know how long each type of food lasts on the shelf, in freezer, or in the refrigerator. Since I don’t I had to do some searching to find the answer. Indeed I did with a little help from my wife. The answer to all of the above questions on any food is quickly available at the following link.
http://www.stilltasty.com

By now most people who watch any TV have heard at least one of David Letterman’s top ten lists. I found a site that its whole purpose is to produce and show you top ten lists. If you are searching for a top ten list it has to be here or will be here sooner or later.
http://listverse.com

Newsletter 09/27/2009

Wow, it’s been a long time since I sent out a newsletter. I need to get going again so here is this week’s issue.

I had surgery to remove my gall bladder early this month so that slowed me down a bit but feel fine now, but
my in box of things to do looks like the Empire State building. I am making progress but it will take a while to catch up.

Ok, now to the business at hand.
How do you do this…, or this…, or….
There are many things that you know how to do and there are many things that you wished you knew how to
do but don’t know where to find out the correct way to do it. This web site has the answers to most of you questions.
I found many easy examples on how to accomplish things that has made my ‘to do’ list easier to accomplish. Check it out.
http://www.ehow.com

There are many dictionaries on the Internet that you may use to look up words but the following one is a visual
dictionary that show words linked to similar words, words that are similar in meaning, words that are a derivative
of the original word. All this in a cool real time graphical web page. A fun way to use a dictionary that is actually very useful.
http://www.visuwords.com

Are you looking for an hard to find book, out of print, etc. This is where to look. From the web site.
“BookFinder.com is a one-stop ecommerce search engine that searches over 150 million books for sale – new, used, rare, out-of-print, and textbooks. We save you time and money by searching every major catalog online, and letting you know which booksellers are offering the best prices and selection. When you find a book you like, you can buy it directly from the original seller; we never charge a markup.”
http://www.bookfinder.com

If you are interested in Law for any reason and need a good place to start your search check out the following web site. Again directly from their home page.
“Searching the Web is easy. Why should searching the law be any different? That’s why Fastcase has created the Public Library of Law — to make it easy to find the law online. PLoL is the largest free law library in the world, because we assemble law available for free scattered across many different sites — all in one place. PLoL is the best starting place to find law on the Web.”
http://www.plol.org/Pages/Search.aspx

Since mentioning the above site and doing some more searching for cases, I found this resource. Directly from the home page:
“FindLaw is the web’s premier free legal information site, reaching hundreds of thousands of unique visitors daily. FindLaw incorporates case law, legal news, cutting-edge commentary, legal technology trends, practice tips, message boards, RSS feeds, over 60 newsletter titles, and much more, to create a vibrant online community for today’s legal professional.”
http://www.findlaw.com

Our government collects more information on more subjects and things than any other place in the world. It make sense to search its vast archives to find
The answers to what you need. Right now jobs are hard to find, prospective college students are having a hard time finding the correct profession to pursue and if you are thinking about changing professions, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics might just have the answer. Check out the Occupational Handbook.
http://www.bls.gov/oco

Search engines are our guide to the vastness of the Internet. Each major search engine has selective search area that are not always know by everyone.
Yahoo for instance, has many specialized search tool built into it search engine. Keeping with the theme of this week’s newsletter, education is of major concern.
What about doing a special education search?
http://education.yahoo.com/reference

Newsletter 8/23/2009

Need a quote for your newsletter, web site, or a paper you are writing? This site has all kinds of quotes on many different subjects for you to use. Most of the quotes are from famous people present and past. An example from the web site is at the bottom of this newsletter.
http://www.brainyquote.com/

Years past when the Sunday newspaper arrived, the first thing I did was find the funny papers so I could get my weekly laugh. With the electronic age you can get your favorite comic via email daily. Why wait for Sunday to read your favorite comic is bright color. Just find the comics you want and have them sent to you.
http://comics.com/

I know that someone reading this is out of work due to the very down economy we are facing right now. IF you are still employed I am sure you know someone who is not and might need some help finding a position. Indeed.com is a search engine for jobs, allowing job seekers to find jobs posted on thousands of company career sites and job boards.
http://www.indeed.com/

Some of you use cable modems to access the Internet and some of you use DSL. If you are interested in what is happening in this industry or want o read a review of a possible Internet provider, this is the place to go. DSLreports.com is the largest online community based on interest in consumer broadband (and related) information, news and tools.
http://www.dslreports.com/

It is that time again to make sure you are not on all the phone solicitor’s lists. The National Do Not Call Registry gives you a choice about whether to receive telemarketing calls at home. Most telemarketers should not call your number once it has been on the registry for 31 days. If they do, you can file a complaint at this Website. You can register your home or mobile phone for free. Your registration will be effective for five years.
https://www.donotcall.gov/default.aspx

Genealogy is a pastime for some and serious business for others. If you have an interest, the National Archives offers insight into the lives of people, their families and our history. Because the records at the National Archives come from every branch of the Federal government, almost all Americans can find themselves, their ancestors, or their community in the archives.
http://www.archives.gov/genealogy/

While you are searching don’t forget the largest database in the world of information, no not the Internet, but the Library of Congress. I can’t think of anything that the government does has at least one copy or multiple copies. The Library of Congress offers a wide variety of online databases and Internet resources to the public via the Web, including its own online catalog. In addition, LC provides an easy-to-use gateway for searching other institutions’ online catalogs and extensive links to resources on the Internet.
http://www.loc.gov/rr/tools.html

Age does not diminish the extreme disappointment of having a scoop of ice cream fall from the cone.
Jim Fiebig.

Newsletter 07/26/2009

In a world where are you hear about is the negative things the news media puts out, there are still many bright spots. An example.
University of Cincinnati neurosurgeons say they used a new technology involving the creation of a 3-D map to remove a large tumor from a patient’s brain.
The surgeons used multiple brain scans that were fused and installed into a surgical guidance computer, whose function is similar to that of a global positioning system. By revealing the fist-sized tumor’s relationship to all the functional centers, electrical pathways, arteries and veins in the patient’s brain, the surgeons were able to chart a safe pathway to the tumor.

Some of you that are reading this remember a magazine called “Life”. It was a premier magazine in the ‘40, ‘50 and ‘60’s but died as all magazines did that could not change with the times. The articles and pictures that were in this magazine were some of the most spectacular ever published. Google has now archived the pictures and made them searchable for all to enjoy. The pictures range from the 1860’s to the 1970’s.
http://images.google.com/hosted/life

Home prices seem to have hit just about bottom now so some of you probably are in the market for buy a vacation home, rental house, or just wanting a change. When in the house buying market, you need to keep current on what the interest rates are doing in your area. The best site for this is bankrate.com. Besides showing the current rates, this site has the best mortgage calculator, it has CD rates, credit card rates, financial info, retirement calculators, and much more. An excellent site to bookmark.
http://www.bankrate.com

A few years ago Microsoft publish a CD called Encarta. It wasn’t a big sellers but did have some good information for a CD encyclopedia. One feature I did like was the “this day is history”. Well it is now available on the MSN web site for all of us to use. So, the next time you wonder what happed this day in history, check out this site.
http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/features/onthisday.aspx

John Dillinger. Al Capone. The KKK. John Gotti. Patty Hearst. The Unabomber. Bonnie and Clyde. The FBI has investigated them all… and many more spies, terrorists, and criminals besides. At their web site, grouped according to their top investigative priorities and related categories, are many of their famous and most significant cases over the past century. The monographs and write-ups are now available for your use. Check out some to the great stories.
http://www.fbi.gov/libref/historic/famcases/famcases.htm

The next site will be of interest to all the computer geeks and Internet junkies reading this newsletter. DSL is one of the ways we get are high speed Internet connection and DSL Reports web sites keep up to date on all the happening related to DSL service. IF you want to check the quality of your DSL service, including speed, etc., you can do that too. Actually it has a lot of information for all you non computer geeks too.
http://www.dslreports.com/

“I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else. “
C. S. Lewis

Newsletter 06/28/2009

I hope everyone is now beginning to enjoy the summer. It finally feels like summer here, as we have had so much cool weather and rain.

I have succumbed to the social networking crowd and now have a Facebook account. Actually I am enjoying using it much more that I figured I would. I see why so many people have accounts an share info with friends and family and of course there are the games, networks, groups, and all the other custom applications built in Facebook.

While on the subject of social networking sites, I also have an account with Linkedin. It is more of a business related social networking site and with many business related networking features. Give it a try, especially if you are a consultant or looking to expand your business or business network of associates. It has helped many people find jobs, get new accounts, and locate business partners. I have used it for checking with others in my industry on what things work and what doesn’t.

MedicineNet.com is an online, healthcare media publishing company. It provides easy-to-read, in-depth, authoritative medical information for consumers via its robust, user-friendly, interactive web site. MedicineNet.com has had a highly accomplished, uniquely experienced team of qualified executives in the fields of medicine, healthcare, Internet technology, and business to bring you the most comprehensive, sought after healthcare information anywhere, or so says their web site. Check it out for yourself.
http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/hp.asp

With all the political rederick that goes on, and the biased TV stations, how do you know what is true? Good question. I found a web site that its purpose it to find out what is right and what is not. Factcheck.org is here to help you make sense of the political garbage that goes on. They have many features at their web site that will help with finding out what is true and what it not. While you are there be sure to check out ‘The Fact Check Wire’.
http://www.factcheck.org

StateMaster.com is a unique statistical database which allows you to research and compare a multitude of different data on US states. They have compiled information from various sources such as the US Census Bureau, the FBI, and the National Center for Educational Statistics. More than just a mere collection of various data, StateMaster.com goes beyond the numbers to provide you with visualization technology like pie charts, maps, graphs and scatter plots. A very good feature that is available is called ‘The Full Wiki’. Its goal is to become a platform for an enriched user experience for wikis using open licenses. They want to provide serious hosting resources to make projects feasible.
http://www.statemaster.com/index.php

It is time once again to remind all of you that the National Do Not Call Registry gives you a choice about whether to receive telemarketing calls at home. Most telemarketers should not call your number once it has been on the registry for 31 days. If they do, you can file a complaint at this Website. You can register your home or mobile phone for free.
ttps://www.donotcall.gov/default.aspx

Newsletter 06/21/2009 Father’s Day

First, Happy Fathers Day to all the fathers out there and all the good work you do for your family.

The idea of Father’s Day was conceived exactly a century ago, by Sonora Dodd of Spokane, Wash., while she listened to a Mother’s Day sermon in 1909. Dodd wanted a special day to honor her father, William Smart, a widowed Civil War veteran who was left to raise his six children on a farm. A day in June was chosen for the first Father’s Day celebration — June 19, 1910, proclaimed by Spokane’s mayor because it was the month of Smart’s birth. The first presidential proclamation honoring fathers was issued in 1966 when President Lyndon Johnson designated the third Sunday in June as Father’s Day. Father’s Day has been celebrated annually since 1972 when President Richard Nixon signed the public law that made it permanent.

Did you know that the most collect calls are on Father’s Day?

I missed a couple of issues because I needed a little time of to accomplish some much needed tasks and update some other web sites. So back to the newsletter.

I have posted a few things on the blog that I didn’t send via the newsletter. A bit about police radars, an opinion on our countries financial situation and comments from past people regarding the same, and finally an article on oil in the US that most of you probably haven’t seen.

Father’s Day, usually brings out the BBQ so to try to keep father and the rest of the family healthy, I present the following list of the ‘world’s healthiest foods’ as listed by The George Mateljan Foundation, a not-for-profit foundation with no commercial interest. There goal is to be a new force for change to help make a healthier you and a healthier world. I was surprised to see some of the food that I eat regularly on the list but it is missing one very important food, ‘chocolate’. At least honey and maple syrup made the list.
http://www.whfoods.com/foodstoc.php

Since the George Mateljan Foundation didn’t pay tribute to the best food group on earth, I feel that I must do my part in educating people on the benefits of chocolate. First as you all know I am not an expert on anything but do feel I know where to find the experts opinion on most things, and WebMD.com is a leading source for all things medical, so you must check out their opinion on chocolate.
http://www.webmd.com/diet/news/20030827/dark-chocolate-is-healthy-chocolate

Now that we have established the benefits of chocolate, lets indulge a bit. I know moderation is the best practice but with all the fabulous things chocolate related, it is really hard to keep control. So why not just go to chocolate.com and bask in all of chocolates’ greatness.
http://www.chocolate.com

Now that I have had my chocolate, on to business at hand.

I am sure you have all heard the CPI or Consumer Price Index. It always seems to go in the wrong direction at the wrong time. I know that my price index keeps getting higher and higher. I‘ll bet your does too. So what does the government know about it? This site covers the CPI in detail and may provide some insight to helping you really know what it means. The link is to the database, charts, and calculators section of the CPI.
http://www.bls.gov/data

Actually I like the explanation of the CPI and the information related to the CPI that is found at Investopedia.com. This has been one of my top sites for all things related to investing, finance, stocks, bonds, etc. The explanations are very easy to understand for us common folks plus the wealth of information that is available on this site is phenomenal. It is a must bookmark.
http://www.investopedia.com/university/releases/cpi.asp

Newsletter 06/07/2009

Do you use Windows Explorer to view files and folder on your hard drive? I suspect that most of you do a lot and the rest of you have at least occasionally need to see a listing of files on your hard drive. One annoyance that Explorer has is that it does not show the size of each folder. I usually want to know how much space each folder is using so like a good geek I found a small little program that does this. Just download and install this program called foldersize and the next time you use Explorer you will see the size of each folder. Sorry Vista users, the version Vista is not ready yet.
http://sourceforge.net/projects/foldersize

In a previous newsletter I told all of you how to search and show HD quality videos in YouTube. If you forgot just search my blog and you will find the issue that give instruction on display HD videos. Next if you are sending a link to a YouTube video and you want to make sure the High Quality version is viewed instead of the poor standard version, add ‘&hd=1’ to the end of the link and it will link to the high quality version.

Autodesk has just released a Flash based program on the web site that let you design the layout of all the furniture and fixtures in your house. You can layout you house in 2D then switch to 3D and view your walls and how the changes you make will look. All the tools are there including multiple types of furniture, lamps, etc. This is a great visual design tool, so go design a new layout of your house or just have fun playing with some new furniture you would like to get and see how it will look in your home.
http://dragonfly.labs.autodesk.com/

Everything you need to help you find, apply, and get into the right school. School search, admissions tips, test preparation, financial aid, scholarships, school rankings, and more, is a quote from Yahoo education site. Actually it has a lot good stuff especially if you are looking for a college, searching for courses, or just trying to find a some facts.
http://education.yahoo.com/

ScienceDaily.com is one of the Internet’s most popular science news web sites. Since starting in 1995, the award-winning site has earned the loyalty of students, researchers, healthcare professionals, government agencies, educators and the general public around the world. No other web site offers readers the depth and breadth of breaking news about the latest scientific discoveries that Science Daily does in such a user-friendly format – all freely accessible with no subscription fees. Check it out.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/”

With a web site with the name of Instructables.com you would think it should explain and help you build something, repair something, make something, cook something, paint something, and well, you get the picture. I have used this site for many years and have found some of the coolest stuff to make, the neatest way to do things, and the quickest way to repair something, that I was feeling guilty that I had not shared this site with all of you. Ok here it is, so go and fix something, build something, make something, or just read some great articles.
http://www.instructables.com

Does this sound like you? Does leaving the house without your cell phone, which you didn’t even have the first 20 or 30 (or 60) years of your life, is now a cause for panic and you turn around to go and get it?

Newsletter 05/31/2009

Internet crime, computer fraud, identity theft, its all around us or so says the news media. My question to you is have you experienced any of these? You may have or have not. If you have it is not a fun thing to have happen. To help you combat the above the following sites should be on your list of sites to visit.

The Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) is a partnership between the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C), and the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA). IC3’s mission is to serve as a vehicle to receive, develop, and refer criminal complaints regarding the rapidly expanding arena of cyber crime. The IC3 gives the victims of cyber crime a convenient and easy-to-use reporting mechanism that alerts authorities of suspected criminal or civil violations. For law enforcement and regulatory agencies at the federal, state, local and international level, IC3 provides a central referral mechanism for complaints involving Internet related crimes.
http://www.ic3.gov/default.aspx”

This website is a one-stop national resource to learn about the crime of identity theft. It provides detailed information to help you deter, detect, and defend against identity theft. On this site, consumers can learn how to avoid identity theft – and learn what to do if their identity is stolen. Businesses can learn how to help their customers deal with identity theft, as well as how to prevent problems in the first place. Law enforcement can get resources and learn how to help victims of identity theft.
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/microsites/idtheft/

Phishing is a scam where Internet fraudsters send spam or pop-up messages to lure personal and financial information from unsuspecting victims.
http://www.onguardonline.gov/topics/phishing.aspx

Fight identity theft by monitoring and reviewing your credit report. You may request your free credit report online, request your report by phone or request your report through the mail. Free credit reports requested online are viewable immediately upon authentication of identity. Free credit reports requested by phone or mail will be processed within 15 days of receiving your request.
https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp

To continue on this them, I believe we need a Digital Bill of Rights. On August 25, 2008 Erick Schonfeld posted a very good article containing his thoughts on a Digital Bill of Rights. I agree with him completely and we should write our senators and congressmen to have them pass this or a similar bill of rights.
http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/08/25/what-we-need-is-a-digital-bill-of-rights/

One last thing, that maybe helpful or just needs to be buried.
The Social Security Administration Death Master File contains information on millions of deceased individuals with United States social security numbers whose deaths were reported to the Social Security Administration. Birth years for the individuals listed range from 1875 to last year. Information in these records includes name, birth date, death date, and last known residence.
ttp://www.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=3693

In the 1400’s a law was set forth in England that a man was allowed to beat his wife with a stick no thicker than his thumb. Hence we have ‘the rule of
thumb’.

Newsletter 05/25/2009

Memorial Day and the 3day holiday for most of us is over and the beginning of summer is unofficially here. I hope you took time to day to remember the fallen soldiers that helped make and keep the USA a great place to live and honor. At 3:00PM today NASCAR stopped the race and shut all the cars off for 1 minute to pay tribute to our fallen heroes. What a great sport NASCAR. What did the professional ball sports do? Nothing. One more thing, NASCAR is the only professional sport that starts all events with a prayer and the National anthem.

“Memorial Day was officially proclaimed on 5 May 1868 by General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, in his General Order No. 11, and was first observed on 30 May 1868, when flowers were placed on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery. The first state to officially recognize the holiday was New York in 1873. By 1890 it was recognized by all of the northern states. The South refused to acknowledge the day, honoring their dead on separate days until after World War I (when the holiday changed from honoring just those who died fighting in the Civil War to honoring Americans who died fighting in any war).”

I was watching a cardinal fly around while on my morning walk. Such a vibrant red color and very beautiful bird. So, what does a computer geek do but search for info on birds. The following site has just about all you need to know about birds plus links to other sites if you care to pursue further.
http://www.stateofthebirds.org/introduction

Let expand the thought of birds to include all species of life. The Encyclopedia of Life (EOL) is an ambitious, even audacious project to organize and make available via the Internet virtually all information about life present on Earth. At its heart lies a series of Web sites—one for each of the approximately 1.8 million known species—that provide the entry points to this vast array of knowledge. OK, I didn’t check out all the species nor do I want to, but if you have a lot of time on your hands go right ahead.
http://www.eol.org

NASA last trip to space was to repair the Hubble Space Telescope. The Hubble has brought us many fascinating photographs of space and we owe it to ourselves to take a look at the Hubble project. The Hubble information Center takes you on a voyage from the beginning to the present with many stops along the way to admire what it has accomplished.
http://heritage.stsci.edu/index.htm

There is so much serious things going on in your and my life that we sometimes forget to take time to smile and enjoy a simple thing as a comic in the newspaper or on the Internet. Why not take the time to subscribe to the comic of your choice and have it sent to you via email every day. It may not solve your problems but at least you will get to smile for a minute or two.
http://comics.com