Time has a way of running away and this is an apology for the late postings two weeks in a row.
This & That Echoes Again
If you are a regular CyberScribbles reader, you know the “This & That” columns are miscellaneous websites I’ve found that I have not lumped into one category. This week, visit a pair of “real estate” sites whose offerings are unlikely to make the pages of the Beacher. Then peek in on a guy who has inventoried everything in his household and put it on display for anyone to see. Find garage sales in Indiana or anywhere else and start your own inventory; then get serious and view a Webby Award-nominated up-to-the-hour global news-in-pictures website that deserves acclaim.
Missile Bases For Sale (.You will wonder if you’ve entered the Land of Oz when you visit this Kansas-based realty website. Come to think of it, own an underground missile site and you’ll have no more concerns about tornadoes. Or suntans. Sites are for sale in Kansas and Texas, and one of them has already been converted into somewhat pleasant-looking living quarters. If you are in the market for something completely different in the way of housing, this is the website for you.
Caboose Homes . First, this is not hobo-style living. You can build or rent yourself a unique living space if the romance of the rails is in your blood. A few years ago when we brought you a story about the Parke County covered bridges, my friend Miff and I stumbled upon a real caboose retreat home when we got lost on a lonely country road. We thought it was cute, but it is unlikely we would find it again. However, there is a rental up near Lake Superior for anyone who wants to brag about spending their summer vacation in really different surroundings.
An Orderly Guy .Go ahead and peek into my underwear drawer, says Mr. McClintock. I didn’t. Instead, I ruffled around through his kitchen cabinets and basement boxes. I could not believe that I was still poking around in this man’s stuff 30 minutes after arriving at his website. By the way, he lives in a 2-story bungalow and he could probably hire himself out as personal organizer. He would need many gigabytes for a website devoted to my own household inventory.
Garage Sale Lister . Want to find where this weekend’s garage sales are going to be? Visit this site and you can peruse listings from any state. In Indiana, most were Indianapolis-based. The closest I found was Dyer. You can post your own garage sale listing if you want. Full-time RV-ers might want to bookmark this website. Garage sale addicts need to check it out.
10 X 10 News . “10x10 is an interactive exploration of the words and pictures that define the time.. Every hour, 10x10 collects the 100 words and pictures that matter most on a global scale, and presents them as a single image, taken to encapsulate that moment in time. Over the course of days, months, and years, 10x10 leaves a trail of these hourly statements which, stitched together side by side, form a continuous patchwork tapestry of human life.” That quote comes straight from J-Blog (j-blog.com) and cannot be said any better. You might want to consider doing a screen capture of a particular date to put in a newborn’s scrapbook.
Wednesday, May 25, 2005
Sunday, May 22, 2005
Statistics for Anything
Come on, fess up. You and I and a lot of other people often tend to take at face value the daily news fed to us from television, radio, the dailies, and even from some online blogs. We stop questioning assumptions, and rely on what might be fuzzy data. The Internet can set us straight, if we choose to dive a little deeper. The Internet can be a fun playground, yet it is also a fine repository of substance. For example, I spent the better part of an hour reading through an autumn, 2004 statistical report from the Social Security Administration’s Deputy Chief Actuary Alice H. Wade and her staff. I was looking for the source material for the proposed Social Security program changes. Dry reading? Yes, thirty pages-ful. My guess is that very few of our elected officials have read those pages, or if they did, could not get past the complex statistical data. Not that I could, either. But, the point is, it is there on the ‘net for us to examine. And there are other websites that I bring to your attention this week that sift through (or bring you) statistical data so that you, not a spinmeister, can draw your own conclusions.
Stats.org . The experts at the Statistical Assessment Service located at George Mason University check out the facts and figures behind the news. They are quick to point out false conclusions. Pick a category and then read their corrections to popular misconceptions. Categories include education/family, drug use, health/disease, polls/surveys, gender issues, crime, and media factoids, among others. Their up-to-the-minute blog covers current news items and corrects inaccuracies. Mark this as a first stop on your way to sharpening your critical thinking skills.
The Numbers Guy . I’m giving what I think is a back door entry to Carl Bailik’s column in the Wall Street Journal. Bailik is a freelancer with an advanced math degree who shows his readers how low numbers can be used and abused. If this back door link does not work when you try to access it, I guess you will have to subscribe to the Wall Street Journal (if you don’t already) or else rely on the guys and gals at stats.com.
Statistical Resources on the Web . Thank the University of Michigan for putting up a huge database of links to all sorts of statistical information. Just a sampling of the many found here: business & industry; consumer; cost of living; housing; military; health; and comprehensive subjects. Best Place to Live? Look here. An excellent research site to add to your bookmarks.
Fedstats.gov . This is a search gateway to federal agencies so that you can find topics by choice. This was my jumping-off point to finding Social Security Administration’s Deputy Chief Actuary Alice H. Wade’s research. But if you are more interested in maps or geography, census data or military budgets, you can use this site as your search engine.
Fast Facts . I thought I had found a treasure trove of some links to unusual information, such as Floptracker (Internet companies that have gone bust), or Notable Presidential Pardons. Yet when I tried to access Floptracker, I had no luck. Maybe you will have better luck when you choose one of the links on Fast Facts.
Nationmaster.com . I found this site a long time back and was waiting for a time when it would be appropriate to mention it in a weekly column. This site makes a good research tool, but for much of the info you need to be a “supporter,” meaning that you can access the huge statistical database for $10 a month or $30 for six months. Some information on the site is free, such as its “Factoids” area, and it is interesting reading. If you want charts, graphs, or comparisons, Nationmaster has 4500 of them to dig into. Even if you don’t want to be a supporter, this is still an interesting website to look at, particularly for any sort of business person.
Stats.org . The experts at the Statistical Assessment Service located at George Mason University check out the facts and figures behind the news. They are quick to point out false conclusions. Pick a category and then read their corrections to popular misconceptions. Categories include education/family, drug use, health/disease, polls/surveys, gender issues, crime, and media factoids, among others. Their up-to-the-minute blog covers current news items and corrects inaccuracies. Mark this as a first stop on your way to sharpening your critical thinking skills.
The Numbers Guy . I’m giving what I think is a back door entry to Carl Bailik’s column in the Wall Street Journal. Bailik is a freelancer with an advanced math degree who shows his readers how low numbers can be used and abused. If this back door link does not work when you try to access it, I guess you will have to subscribe to the Wall Street Journal (if you don’t already) or else rely on the guys and gals at stats.com.
Statistical Resources on the Web . Thank the University of Michigan for putting up a huge database of links to all sorts of statistical information. Just a sampling of the many found here: business & industry; consumer; cost of living; housing; military; health; and comprehensive subjects. Best Place to Live? Look here. An excellent research site to add to your bookmarks.
Fedstats.gov . This is a search gateway to federal agencies so that you can find topics by choice. This was my jumping-off point to finding Social Security Administration’s Deputy Chief Actuary Alice H. Wade’s research. But if you are more interested in maps or geography, census data or military budgets, you can use this site as your search engine.
Fast Facts . I thought I had found a treasure trove of some links to unusual information, such as Floptracker (Internet companies that have gone bust), or Notable Presidential Pardons. Yet when I tried to access Floptracker, I had no luck. Maybe you will have better luck when you choose one of the links on Fast Facts.
Nationmaster.com . I found this site a long time back and was waiting for a time when it would be appropriate to mention it in a weekly column. This site makes a good research tool, but for much of the info you need to be a “supporter,” meaning that you can access the huge statistical database for $10 a month or $30 for six months. Some information on the site is free, such as its “Factoids” area, and it is interesting reading. If you want charts, graphs, or comparisons, Nationmaster has 4500 of them to dig into. Even if you don’t want to be a supporter, this is still an interesting website to look at, particularly for any sort of business person.
Friday, May 20, 2005
Sweepstakes & Contest Sites
Just think how personal computers have changed the flavor of sweepstakes entries. Forget the scissors and postage stamps, because entering can be accomplished online. If you want to focus on a new hobby and have a computer, you might get addicted to entering all the dozens and dozens of giveaways. Here are a few sites I researched to get you started.
Sweepstakes Today -- “where dreams can come true.” While recovering from surgery, Craig McDaniel had lots of time on his hands to enter sweepstakes online. Initially, he won small prizes, but his tenacity led him to bigger rewards. He decided to create his own website (Sweepstakes Today) and he keeps track of almost 500 current sweepstakes offerings for those who register (free) at his site. Some of the prize offers include autos, boats, houses, vacations, and scholarships. McDaniel also runs member forums and lists sweepstakes tips. One of his top tips suggests that an entrant set up a “junk” email account at one of the free email providers. When entering different sweeps and contests, this email account will also collect the inevitable unwanted ad promos and stuff that clogs email boxes. Because we already know that contests generate mailing lists for its sponsors, you are likely to see an increase in your junk mail. But that’s the price you pay for entering these sweepstake, contest, and freebie offers. It’s up to you to weigh the pros and cons and decide whether to play or not. But gee. Who would pass up a chance for a free car or a 50,000 home makeover? Or even a home with land?
123 Sweepstakes . I was surprised—pleasantly—when I logged on to this website and found it not to be a slick, ad-filled, pop-up bannered nuisance. On the contrary. 123 Sweepstakes is apparently authored by a regular, non-commercial personal website owner who happens to use Geocities’ free web hosting to post enough information to keep you intrigued about sweepstakes for months to come. You’ll find pages and pages of sweepstake sites, game sites, contests, and giveaways. Also: forums, scams information, and tools for sweepstakes hobbyists. The homepage provides up-to-the-minute information about the latest sweepstake offers. It took all of my will-power to stay away from entering any of these sweeps (for now, at least)—so that I could finish the research for this week’s column. I can see how entering contests and sweepstakes can become addictive. Be forewarned.
Online Contest Index . This no-frills page just lists an index of contest categories and their links. And, anyone can add his or her own contest—a marketing technique many webmasters use to get more hits to their pages. Look at some of the categories I found listed here: computer contests, quizzes, science-related, writing, scavenger hunts, giveaways, children’s, and free stuff. Dive in and add to the pool of entrants. You never know when you might hit the jackpot. Or, win a bar of soap. Yes—prizes range from small to huge.
Reward TV Here’s a chance to combine two addictions: television-watching and contest-entering. What you do when you register at Reward TV is answer a multiple choice format of trivia questions to collect “TV points.” Each evening, games are posted with questions about one of several regularly-broadcasted prime-time television shows. You answer some trivia questions about the show, and also answer questions about the commercials that come with the shows. When you win enough points, you can redeem them in three ways: to bid on online auction items; to “purchase” shopping spree items, or to enter sweeps that offer such things as paying off your car loan, paying utilities, or groceries. I had a peek at the online auction reward area and saw that bidders had bid 3 Million points to win a $25 Penney’s gift card. I have no idea how long it takes to accrue 3 million points. But then, if you are a fan of shows like “Everybody Loves Raymond” and know every last trivia detail, then maybe you’ll want to register at Reward TV. I wonder if Tivo users have an advantage, but my guess would be yes.
Red Hot Sweeps . You are wondering if people really, truly win sweeps and contests. The forums here—or at least the one called “Winners & Braggers” will confirm the fact. Real people share their news of good fortune. I can affirm the validity of some contests: in my lifetime, I’ve won several radio-call in contests (prizes ranged from carpet cleaner to a weekend stay at a resort hotel) and long-time Beacher readers might remember when I won a 4-day trip to Paris from a Chicago radio station just for submitting my name. So—go for the booty. What do you have to lose?
Sweepstakes Today -- “where dreams can come true.” While recovering from surgery, Craig McDaniel had lots of time on his hands to enter sweepstakes online. Initially, he won small prizes, but his tenacity led him to bigger rewards. He decided to create his own website (Sweepstakes Today) and he keeps track of almost 500 current sweepstakes offerings for those who register (free) at his site. Some of the prize offers include autos, boats, houses, vacations, and scholarships. McDaniel also runs member forums and lists sweepstakes tips. One of his top tips suggests that an entrant set up a “junk” email account at one of the free email providers. When entering different sweeps and contests, this email account will also collect the inevitable unwanted ad promos and stuff that clogs email boxes. Because we already know that contests generate mailing lists for its sponsors, you are likely to see an increase in your junk mail. But that’s the price you pay for entering these sweepstake, contest, and freebie offers. It’s up to you to weigh the pros and cons and decide whether to play or not. But gee. Who would pass up a chance for a free car or a 50,000 home makeover? Or even a home with land?
123 Sweepstakes . I was surprised—pleasantly—when I logged on to this website and found it not to be a slick, ad-filled, pop-up bannered nuisance. On the contrary. 123 Sweepstakes is apparently authored by a regular, non-commercial personal website owner who happens to use Geocities’ free web hosting to post enough information to keep you intrigued about sweepstakes for months to come. You’ll find pages and pages of sweepstake sites, game sites, contests, and giveaways. Also: forums, scams information, and tools for sweepstakes hobbyists. The homepage provides up-to-the-minute information about the latest sweepstake offers. It took all of my will-power to stay away from entering any of these sweeps (for now, at least)—so that I could finish the research for this week’s column. I can see how entering contests and sweepstakes can become addictive. Be forewarned.
Online Contest Index . This no-frills page just lists an index of contest categories and their links. And, anyone can add his or her own contest—a marketing technique many webmasters use to get more hits to their pages. Look at some of the categories I found listed here: computer contests, quizzes, science-related, writing, scavenger hunts, giveaways, children’s, and free stuff. Dive in and add to the pool of entrants. You never know when you might hit the jackpot. Or, win a bar of soap. Yes—prizes range from small to huge.
Reward TV Here’s a chance to combine two addictions: television-watching and contest-entering. What you do when you register at Reward TV is answer a multiple choice format of trivia questions to collect “TV points.” Each evening, games are posted with questions about one of several regularly-broadcasted prime-time television shows. You answer some trivia questions about the show, and also answer questions about the commercials that come with the shows. When you win enough points, you can redeem them in three ways: to bid on online auction items; to “purchase” shopping spree items, or to enter sweeps that offer such things as paying off your car loan, paying utilities, or groceries. I had a peek at the online auction reward area and saw that bidders had bid 3 Million points to win a $25 Penney’s gift card. I have no idea how long it takes to accrue 3 million points. But then, if you are a fan of shows like “Everybody Loves Raymond” and know every last trivia detail, then maybe you’ll want to register at Reward TV. I wonder if Tivo users have an advantage, but my guess would be yes.
Red Hot Sweeps . You are wondering if people really, truly win sweeps and contests. The forums here—or at least the one called “Winners & Braggers” will confirm the fact. Real people share their news of good fortune. I can affirm the validity of some contests: in my lifetime, I’ve won several radio-call in contests (prizes ranged from carpet cleaner to a weekend stay at a resort hotel) and long-time Beacher readers might remember when I won a 4-day trip to Paris from a Chicago radio station just for submitting my name. So—go for the booty. What do you have to lose?
Friday, May 13, 2005
Free Computer Help
Often, your computer technical problems can be solved without getting on the phone and calling a help desk. It all depends on your willingness (or courage) to find and fix minor problems yourself. While I don’t necessarily recommend tackling major computer problems without expert assistance, I do believe that you can find solutions that you can indeed fix yourself. Here are some helpful, free websites that offer technical assistance of all sorts. I recommend that you look at at least one or two of them. They are friendly places, willing to share their expertise with you. When you have invested in a computer, it pays to learn as much as you can about how it, along with software and other peripherals work. So check out these websites!
Answers that Work . The tech gurus here state that 65% of computer problems are caused not by viruses but by the programs that are running in your system’s background. The advice here about problems is ample and varied. They provide a task list that give information about a background program’s usefulness (or not), and they provide removal procedures when recommended. But that is just one feature of the technical help at this site. It provides a large reference library with answers that you download and have handy to read offline. It provides hot tips, useful downloads, and the latest virus information. If you need a driver for a program you’ve installed, just come to this website and you’ll likely find it here—eliminating the need to search the entire Internet trying to find what you are looking for.
Five Star Support . The site bills itself as a “Computer Learning Community” and indeed it lives up to its billing. The advice given covers Windows, Linux, Internet Explorer, Outlook Express, AOL, networking issues and more. You can find tutorials for dozens of issues; it has a community bulletin board where members help members solve tech problems; answers to frequently asked questions; and the site provides a free monthly newsletter full of helpful tips. I liked the fact that a nontechnical person (such as me) could understand the help provided. A novice will feel welcomed here, and will not be led astray with incorrect information. That’s because tech experts share what they know. A site worth bookmarking.
Computer Hope . Another website that offers its services freely, allowing you to access a large database of computer-related information. There is nothing fancy on this website, but if you want to troubleshoot your computer problems, this is a nice place to start to search for answers.
Tech Support Guy Another resource for free help, this site opens its forums for you when you register for free. No gimmicks, just answers that you have been searching for.
Suggest A Fix Most of the websites listed this week use the expertise of a community of site members to share solutions. This website does not have as extensive a database of technical answers, but it may be all you need. You won’t know until you review one or two of the sites mentioned in this week’s column.
Protonic. Get personalized answers to your tech problems fast—via email. Just register to log in . This site offers a free newsletter emailed to you weekly. Protonic is an all-volunteer help site, as are many of the others listed above.
Answers that Work . The tech gurus here state that 65% of computer problems are caused not by viruses but by the programs that are running in your system’s background. The advice here about problems is ample and varied. They provide a task list that give information about a background program’s usefulness (or not), and they provide removal procedures when recommended. But that is just one feature of the technical help at this site. It provides a large reference library with answers that you download and have handy to read offline. It provides hot tips, useful downloads, and the latest virus information. If you need a driver for a program you’ve installed, just come to this website and you’ll likely find it here—eliminating the need to search the entire Internet trying to find what you are looking for.
Five Star Support . The site bills itself as a “Computer Learning Community” and indeed it lives up to its billing. The advice given covers Windows, Linux, Internet Explorer, Outlook Express, AOL, networking issues and more. You can find tutorials for dozens of issues; it has a community bulletin board where members help members solve tech problems; answers to frequently asked questions; and the site provides a free monthly newsletter full of helpful tips. I liked the fact that a nontechnical person (such as me) could understand the help provided. A novice will feel welcomed here, and will not be led astray with incorrect information. That’s because tech experts share what they know. A site worth bookmarking.
Computer Hope . Another website that offers its services freely, allowing you to access a large database of computer-related information. There is nothing fancy on this website, but if you want to troubleshoot your computer problems, this is a nice place to start to search for answers.
Tech Support Guy Another resource for free help, this site opens its forums for you when you register for free. No gimmicks, just answers that you have been searching for.
Suggest A Fix Most of the websites listed this week use the expertise of a community of site members to share solutions. This website does not have as extensive a database of technical answers, but it may be all you need. You won’t know until you review one or two of the sites mentioned in this week’s column.
Protonic. Get personalized answers to your tech problems fast—via email. Just register to log in . This site offers a free newsletter emailed to you weekly. Protonic is an all-volunteer help site, as are many of the others listed above.
Tuesday, May 03, 2005
This and That--Again
Sometimes I find things around the Web that don’t fit neatly into categories. Or, they do fit into categories, but I may not have the time to explore them in more depth. This week, take a spin to investigate the USDA’s newly revised Food Pyramid, to a recipe page filled with a global variety of offerings, and to some lesser-known Indiana webpages.
My Pyramid . The old food pyramid that we learned in school is now obsolete. The government has developed a new one that is more personalized to each individual, and they’ve been quick to offer a series of interactive webpages to instruct us about how to balance our energy intake and outgo. One can register at the sight or look around as a guest. I did the latter, surfing directly over to the activity tracker part of the site. But first, I had to fill in some basic information (age, gender, level of activity), for which I was given my personal food pyramid and serving suggestions. When I got to the activity tracker page, I became frustrated with the amount of time it took for the page to “process” the types of exercise I regularly do. A form gives you first, choices of activities( eg. Watersports) to click on. Then it gives another submenu with more choices (eg. Swimming: backstroke, moderate) to click on. I figured it would take me at least 15 minutes to enter my meager number of exercise routines before I could find out how my “energy balance” rated. Golly, they even had a category for pulling rice stalks out of water under the water sports category! But when it came to lap swimming, they had several different categories that you have to click, then wait, then go back and start from scratch again. The purpose of the website is to provide “steps for a healthier you.” By the time I gave up clicking, I was ready to head for some stress management websites for more steps I needed for a healthier me. Leave it to the government to make things easy and simple for us.
Cheap Eats . Don’t let the title fool you. It’s not about fast food or throwing things together to make a meal. And of all places, I found this sleeper of a recipe site—but not really a recipe website—at the Chicago area Mensa homepages. What a great find, too! Author Cynthia Clampitt offers up a lengthy list of exotic fare from around the globe. She has traveled to most of these places and has sampled them first hand from the natives. A selection of goodies includes Huushuur (Mongolian Fried Meat-filled pastries), Mtori from East Africa, Lamb and Quince Stew from Turkey, Doro Wat from Ethiopia, Aba curriya from Sri Lanka, Koshry from Egypt, and Avocado Mousse from Costa Rica. That is just a small selection of the many dishes she provides recipes for, along with background information about each. If you have a hankering to dish up something very different, take a look at these webpages. While you are still at the Mensa website, skim over to a feature on Mothers’ Day by Joan Skoggin. She insists that August 28 is the true Mothers’ Day, but you will have to read her feature essay to understand why.
Indiana Women’s History Association . I had no idea that such an organization existed in Indiana. I might add that it could use more input from our Northwest Indiana counties about women who should be included in its listings. Many of the listings include contemporary women who have been strong advocates of particular causes. Celebrities such as Jane Pauley, Sandi Patti and Polly Bergen are noted, along with a list of names of women that we never read about in our Indiana history books. If you know of someone who should be included, there is a place on the website to submit your information for review. Get busy! We have many notable women from our area who deserve to be among those highlighted at this site.
My Pyramid . The old food pyramid that we learned in school is now obsolete. The government has developed a new one that is more personalized to each individual, and they’ve been quick to offer a series of interactive webpages to instruct us about how to balance our energy intake and outgo. One can register at the sight or look around as a guest. I did the latter, surfing directly over to the activity tracker part of the site. But first, I had to fill in some basic information (age, gender, level of activity), for which I was given my personal food pyramid and serving suggestions. When I got to the activity tracker page, I became frustrated with the amount of time it took for the page to “process” the types of exercise I regularly do. A form gives you first, choices of activities( eg. Watersports) to click on. Then it gives another submenu with more choices (eg. Swimming: backstroke, moderate) to click on. I figured it would take me at least 15 minutes to enter my meager number of exercise routines before I could find out how my “energy balance” rated. Golly, they even had a category for pulling rice stalks out of water under the water sports category! But when it came to lap swimming, they had several different categories that you have to click, then wait, then go back and start from scratch again. The purpose of the website is to provide “steps for a healthier you.” By the time I gave up clicking, I was ready to head for some stress management websites for more steps I needed for a healthier me. Leave it to the government to make things easy and simple for us.
Cheap Eats . Don’t let the title fool you. It’s not about fast food or throwing things together to make a meal. And of all places, I found this sleeper of a recipe site—but not really a recipe website—at the Chicago area Mensa homepages. What a great find, too! Author Cynthia Clampitt offers up a lengthy list of exotic fare from around the globe. She has traveled to most of these places and has sampled them first hand from the natives. A selection of goodies includes Huushuur (Mongolian Fried Meat-filled pastries), Mtori from East Africa, Lamb and Quince Stew from Turkey, Doro Wat from Ethiopia, Aba curriya from Sri Lanka, Koshry from Egypt, and Avocado Mousse from Costa Rica. That is just a small selection of the many dishes she provides recipes for, along with background information about each. If you have a hankering to dish up something very different, take a look at these webpages. While you are still at the Mensa website, skim over to a feature on Mothers’ Day by Joan Skoggin. She insists that August 28 is the true Mothers’ Day, but you will have to read her feature essay to understand why.
Indiana Women’s History Association . I had no idea that such an organization existed in Indiana. I might add that it could use more input from our Northwest Indiana counties about women who should be included in its listings. Many of the listings include contemporary women who have been strong advocates of particular causes. Celebrities such as Jane Pauley, Sandi Patti and Polly Bergen are noted, along with a list of names of women that we never read about in our Indiana history books. If you know of someone who should be included, there is a place on the website to submit your information for review. Get busy! We have many notable women from our area who deserve to be among those highlighted at this site.
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