Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
Wednesday, November 2nd, 2011
For the three people out there who don’t use GMail, this might not be for you, but then again details of the new GMail layout might be enough to convince you that AOL, earthlink or hotmail accounts are really a thing of the past.
Nevermind the fact that Google’s GMail gives you nearly unlimited space, or the fact that you probably already have a Google login ID and password. This new design and added functionality makes GMail even easier to use and gives you more of what you want, the ability to easily communicate with friends and colleagues.
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Tags: Contacts, conversations, email, friends, Gmail, Google, themes
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
Tuesday, September 6th, 2011
Cooler temperatures have finally arrived and the summer is finally coming to an end, marking one of my favorite times of year. With the blockbuster movie season wrapping up we will soon turn our attention to the “small screen” as the 2011 Fall TV Lineup lands in our living rooms. Are you prepared? Do you know what you will be watching? Better yet, do you know what your DVR will be recording, so you can watch it later.
I’d venture a guess that most everyone who reads this article has at least one DVR in their home. In many cases, it might be more. These devices are absolute genius and have completely altered TV viewing in my house. We can now watch an hour-long program in 40 minutes and a half-hour program in about 20. We can store up several episodes of a show and have our own mini-marathon on Saturday to get caught up. There is only one prerequisite for all of this. We have to actually set the DVR to record the programs that we want to watch later and that can sometimes be a bit of a challenge. What shows are on? When does the season start? What time slot are my shows in now? Are there multiple shows I want to watch airing at the same time?
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Tags: ABC, broadcast, cable, CBS, DVR, Fall TV, FOX, guide, NBC, program, programming, recording, TiVo
Posted in TiVo & DVR Tech, Uncategorized | 5 Comments »
Friday, August 5th, 2011
For years, Outlook has been the defacto standard at offices and, as a result, many of us have become comfortable navigating our emails with features like folders, flags and preview panes. At the same time, millions upon millions of users have shifted to GMail for their personal email. This meant learning and using two different email programs simultaneously and a bit of frustration for those who wanted the functionality of Outlook in their GMail. Some of that frustration may have been eased yesterday, when the official GMail blog rolled out a new feature for GMail lovers… the Preview Pane.
Preview Pane, available as an add-on feature from Gmail Labs, should probably be a standard choice for GMail users, but adding it to your account is super easy and JumpstartMyPC has the step-by-step for anyone interested in enabling this new feature.
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Tags: email, Gmail, google labs, horizontal, How-To, Outlook, Preview, preview pane, step-by-step, vertical
Posted in Uncategorized | 3 Comments »
Thursday, March 10th, 2011
So your laptop died. It happens to all of us at some time or another. Be it due to spilled coffee or a momentary loss of fine motor control (a.k.a. butterfingers) or maybe your laptop just didn’t wake up one day. But it’s been a few years since you were in the market for a laptop and the rules have changed. In the past, hardware engineers worked tirelessly to condense the same technology we use in desktop computer to a size and form factor that could be easily carried around. The computers that were considered small would often weigh upwards of five pounds and take up as much space in a bag as a large binder. This is no longer the case.
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Tags: computer, Laptop, Netbook, Notebook, recommendation, review, Samsung, Samsung NB30, Shopping, tablet
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
Wednesday, February 16th, 2011
Originally Posted – 10-28-2010
Earlier this year, we wrote a series of articles on the Texas Trade Up Appliance Rebate Program. This highly successful program, designed to “promote awareness of Energy Star appliances and decrease energy consumption,” is coming back and we want to make sure that you, your friends and your family are prepared. Don’t miss out on this chance to save energy and money.
The original appliance rebate program, which took place in April of 2010, was responsible for putting nearly $12.5 million back into the pockets of Texas residents. This cash-for-clunkers-esque program offered rebates to residents who took the opportunity to upgrade their aging and/or energy-guzzling appliances like dishwashers, freezers, refrigerators, air-conditioners and more. Rebates ranged from $45 – $1,600 dollars (per appliance). The program was successful, but a strict set of steps had to be followed if you wanted to take advantage of the rebates.
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Tags: appliance, appliances, cash-for-clunkers, date, energy, energy efficiency, powerful smart, rebate, Savings, SECO, Texas, Winter
Posted in Uncategorized | 3 Comments »
Friday, February 4th, 2011
Hooray!!!!!!! Schools are closed. Businesses aren’t opening either. Snow storms have already passed through or are on their way. You find yourself with an entire “extra day” to do with as you please, yet you aren’t quite sure what to do.
Well computer fans, you are in luck. Here is a little list to get you going on this FREEzing Friday.
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Tags: cable, Gadgets, games, Organized, Slow Computer, snow, snow day, to do
Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
Thursday, September 16th, 2010
Every year, there are a few landmark dates that you plan and prepare for. Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter, the first day of school, etc. For the true fan of the “small screen” that day is Monday, September 20th. Why, because next Monday marks the beginning of the Fall TV season (with a few exceptions) and if you don’t already have your DVR(s) locked-and-loaded, your time is running out.
Dozens of returning shows might already be programmed into your season pass, series manager or whatever your DVR software calls it, but this year that will not be enough. With over 20 new series scheduled to begin, and many of them looking to be solid introductions for their respective studios, an overhaul of your scheduling lineup is in order.
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Tags: ABC, Castle, CBS, channel, CSI, Dancing With the Stars, Fall TV, FOX, guide, Hawaii Five-0, House, Law & Order, Modern Family, NBC, Survivor
Posted in TiVo & DVR Tech, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Wednesday, July 21st, 2010
If you have ever taken your laptop with you on a trip, you’ve had this issue. If you’ve ever taken more than one gadget (iPod, PSP, GameBoy, Camera) to work, you’ve been frustrated by this issue. If you’ve ever used a laptop or messenger bag to transport your tech, you’ve fought this issue. Carrying any kind of electronic device(s) means carrying the power cable and any/all other accessories with you wherever you go. As soon as the second item hits your bag, things get complicated.
Cables tangle, screens get scratched and everything in your bag drops straight to the bottom. This makes finding any one item next to impossible (without dumping the contents of the entire bag) and, most likely, it is going to shorten the life and look of your gadgets and devices. For any tech/gadget nerd, this is just not acceptable and, if you are anything like me, you want to take care of the items that you paid so much for. There is a bit of pride in owning an iPod that is 2-years old, but looks like you just bought it. Throw-in the fact that “no scratches” and “like new” make great tag lines for any product you want to sell on eBay, and you’ve got yourself a good set of reasons for taking care of your gear.
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Tags: airport friendly, backpack, Blackberry, Camera, Case, Cocoon, GRID-IT!, iPad, iPhone, iPod, iPod Touch, organize, protect, PSP, sling, tote
Posted in Online Shopping, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Wednesday, July 7th, 2010
If you’ve been following along with our series on Scanning and Saving Important Documents you’re ready for our third article (if not, jump to related articles at the bottom of this post). In our last article, we covered the scanning and related software, leaving you with some image files and questions about what to do next. Today, we’ll outline file naming, folder structures and storage.
As always, we have a couple of things to remind you about before jump into our project. First, keep your document and files protected. Second, this is your project. Our articles are suggestions on how to handle this type of project, but you should definitely structure and organize your document scanning in a way that keeps things simple for you. After all, if a project like this became too complicated or confusing, who would actually finish it?
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Tags: disaster, document, flood, hurricane, important, insurance, legal, papers, saving, scan, scanning, Security, taxes, tornado, will
Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
Thursday, July 1st, 2010
In our last article (Hurricane Preparedness – Scanning and Saving Important Documents), we helped you you put together a list of your important documents and, with any luck, you have already located them. Our next steps will be to scan these documents and save the files in a storage/filing method that meets your needs. There are quite a few variables at this point (from hardware to learning curve) but the time and effort you put into this project will pay off in the event of a natural disaster, like a hurricane.
Before We Get Started: Once more, I would like to warn everyone that your personal documents should be protected at all costs. This applies to the originals and the scanned images from here on out. Identity theft is very real and very possible with the proper information.
Tags: document, dpi, hurricane, important, PDF, prepare, preparedness, scan, scanner, secure, settings, Software, TIF
Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
