LIVING A DIGITAL LIFESTYLE NEWSLETTER
Volume 1, Issue 64 May 12, 2009
Today's issue will be tips and articles all courtesy of Kim Komando. You can go to her website here. There will be several links that you can click on for yourself, to take you to different articles. I may include those articles in this newsletter, but then again, I may not. If I don't then you can follow the links yourself. If you happen upon a link that is closed to you, then that means you have to be a Kim's Club member to get access to that information. You can become a member very easily and the information is on the site. (By Kim Komando)
Green Home 2009
HGTV is giving away a custom-built home in Florida. The $750,000 package also includes a hybrid pickup truck. Open to U.S. residents, 21 or over. Deadline: 6/5/09
Using GoToMyPC and GoToMeeting
Q. As a university professor/researcher, I often teach in Europe and Asia. Could I remain connected to my home and office computers while overseas? Would my data be secure if I left my computers connected to the Web? What about Moscow and Budapest? Given the malware there, would I be at greater risk? I have discussed this situation my colleagues. Many would use GoToMyPC if we felt safe. Thank you for your help. I am a member of Kim's Club. I faithfully listen each Sunday morning to your show. I rely upon your good advice and counsel.
-Maureen in Middleton, WI, listening on WIBA 1310 AM in Madison
Q. I take my laptop with me to and from the office. But when I'm out, I frequently need information that's on the office server. Can I connect to the server while I am out of the office?
-Pat in Downers Grove, IL, listening on WLS 890 AM
A. You've heard me talking about these services for years. GoToMyPC (www.gotomypc.com/kim) and GoToMeeting (www.gotomeeting.com/kim) are made by Citrix Online. Both advertise with me. And I use and swear by both.
I don't think that I could run my business and spend so much time with my family without the ability to get work done away from the office using GoToMyPC. Business does not stop while you're out ill, on vacation, or on a trip. This age of instant communications has made business move so much faster.
While they sound similar, GoToMyPC is not the same as GoToMeeting. Let's start with GoToMyPC. It will work perfectly for both Maureen and Pat. I'll start with Maureen's questions. Although her situation sounds complicated, it really isn't.
Maureen would install GoToMyPC on both her office and home computers. Setup takes just a few minutes. To use either computer from anywhere, she would log onto GoToMyPC. You do this either at the GoToMyPC site. Or you can install a handy icon that gives you one-click access to your remote computer.
GoToMyPC is safe. The connection between her computer and GoToMyPC is encrypted. Even if her data were intercepted, it could not be read.
Need to access your office computer? Click here for more info.
Send e-cards for free
Holidays, birthdays, illness and retirement have one thing in common. They're all reasons to send greeting cards. Greeting cards can help you express almost anything. You can apologize or thank someone. You can wish happy holidays or better health.
But sending a greeting card can be a hassle. First you have to find a store that sells them. Then, you'll pay to send it through the mail. There is a better way online.
You can send e-cards for free. You'll customize them on the Web. And then e-mail them to your friends and family. A number of sites offer cool e-cards.
This site offers personalized e-cards. They feature dancing characters with blank faces. You get to upload photos of yourself and friends. Then, place those faces on the dancing characters. The results can be pretty funny.
Here you can create customized photo greeting cards. The site makes it easy to search through thousands of photos on Flickr. Choose your favorite for the greeting card. Then, type your custom greeting and choose a background color.
This is more of a traditional e-cards site. You'll find colorful and animated cards. And there are hundreds of cards in a variety of themes. You can customize the greeting for the recipient. E-mailing an e-card is fast and easy.
This site offers tons of e-cards with a religious theme. You'll find Christmas and Hanukkah cards. You'll also find cards for other occasions. The cards have cute Flash animations. And most feature biblical references.
This site is known for its bite-sized Flash games. But it also has a good collection of free e-cards. Most are short Flash movies. You'll find cards for holidays, birthdays and relationships. You can send these cards to several people at once.
YouTube opens an e-card site for the holidays. You can attach any YouTube video to an e-card. You'll need a free YouTube account to do this. The greeting card site is usually up for a few months. So, jump on this before it's gone!
Cost: Free
Links:
CardFunk - www.cardfunk.com
Phreeting - phreetings.com
123Greetings - www.123greetings.com
DaySpring - www.dayspring.com/ecards
Miniclip - www.miniclip.com/ecards
YouTube - www.youtube.com/greetings
Find mobile-friendly Web sites for better browsing
Denis in Spring Valley, WI, just purchased a Motorola Q. He's been looking for mobile-friendly Web sites. He'd like some recommendations.
The iPhone makes it easy to surf the Web. That's because it has a full-fledged Web browser. You can see pages pretty much like they would appear on a computer.
Things are different with smartphones like the Motorola Q. Their Web browsers are more limiting.
You'll be able to see many Web sites. Just use the address bar to enter a site's name. Unfortunately, though, it isn't easy to use a normal Web page.
You'll need to scroll a lot to see different areas of the page. Pictures and graphics may be slow to load-if they load at all.
So, you'll want to seek out sites designed for mobile phones. Sites have the ability to glean information about your browser. So, they can tell that you're on a mobile phone.
Some sites will automatically direct you to mobile-friendly pages. Google is an example of this. Yahoo! and MSN will also show you a phone-friendly page.
There is a trick that may work with other sites. Try putting an "m." (minus quotes) in front of the domain name. For example, you would type "m.google.com" (minus quotes) in the address bar.
If the site has a mobile version, it should appear. You may strike out with this method more than you succeed.
In that case, visit cantoni.mobi. It provides a list of mobile sites in a variety of categories. You'll find travel, entertainment and shopping sites, among others. It's a great way to start surfing from your phone!
I also have a tip that will get you started surfing on your phone.
Edit your photos online
More and more software is migrating from the desktop to the Internet. That is a very good thing!
With online software, there's nothing to install on your machine. You can access it from virtually any computer.
There's just one problem with most online programs. You'll sacrifice features. So, if you need advanced tools, you'll want to use desktop software.
So, imagine my surprise when I stumbled across pixlr. This online photo-editing program bears a striking resemblance to Photoshop Elements.
You can work with layers, apply effects and so much more. Its Image Editor provides all the tools an intermediate user needs.
Now, there is something to be said for simplicity. Maybe you just want to resize images or make minor corrections.
Advanced options often get in the way of simple tasks. So, for those times, check out pixlr's Photo Express. It provides basic tools for quick editing!
TO VISIT TODAY'S COOL SITE, GO HERE:
pixlr.com
Copyright 2009 WestStar TalkRadio Network. Reprinted with permission. No further republication or redistribution is permitted without the written consent of WestStar TalkRadio Network. Visit Kim Komando and sign up for her free e-mail newsletters at: www.komando.com
That's all for today's edition, folks.
Until next time -
Digitally yours,
Andrea
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Comments: 12
Thanky.
Andrea,
Thanks for that site to edit photos online. I have been needing help with that.