Mrs. Mecomber’s Scrapbook

Did you know that you can send text messages to cell phones from certain Instant Messaging programs? Yes! I use the MSN Instant Messenger, and I have my friends’ mobile phone numbers in the contact lists. When I want to send them a text, I right-click on their icon and choose “Send a message to a mobile device.” There is a special phone number the receiver must allow in his phone contacts before receiving regular messages.

I use it a lot, but I will say that it is not 100% reliable. I don’t know if it’s an MSN thing or not, but sometimes my husband doesn’t get his messages right away. So if you have an emergency message, it’s probably best to use your cell phone. But the IM texts are handy, and they are free to send!

When my two daughters were taking Algebra, we scrambled to find scientific calculators. This was before WalMart had them, and there was no office-supply store nearby. We used a regular calculator for a while, but it didn’t go far. Finally, we plunked down $25 for a scientific calculator! And we had to get TWO of them! Ugh. God forbid if one of the girls had homework but left the all-important calculator at school. That happened a few times, ugh.

I have found an online scientific calculator! It’s eCalc. What a lifesaver! It’s free to use. Computer calculators are a little hard to use, especially the one that comes with Windows operating system. You have to click the mouse to punch the calculator “buttons,” which I find very tedious. But an online calculator is better than no calculator, and the one at eCalc is pretty nice. It’s a great back up for those forgetful evenings.

a screenshot of the scientific calculator

I updated a few blogs with WordPress 2.6. I admit– I am extremely cautious about these things. I am relatively new to WordPress (although I spend a lot of time studying the software), and am still wary of certain things. One thing I have learned is to ALWAYS back up the blog before making any major changes. Very, very important.

Anyway, WP 2.6 seems very stable. I absolutely LOVE the word count feature! This is what sold the new version to me. In the past, I have always had to copy and paste my content into a Notepad Pro+ document and do a word count through that. Doing such usually added ten extra steps- all for a word count! I just love that WordPress has included it. And come to think of it, what took them so long to include it?? Anyway, these WP guys deserve a vacation at some Barbados villa rentals! They’ve done well! I give a Thumbs Up to WordPress 2.6.

Ya gotta love Wordpress plugins. They make things soooo easy. Here’s the latest treasure I found: a plugin that automatically inserts a Digg button in every post. It’s very customizable. There are option where you can choose to include or exclude the Digg button on your homepage, or individual posts, to put the button at the top or at the bottom, etc. A great plugin that I’ll be using for my other blogs. You can find the information and download link at the Wordpress plugin page here.

Oh wow, I haven’t really been paying attention to this blog very much recently. Sorry! I used to post tutorials and other helpful stuff. I’ve been so busy now that the great gardening weather has arrived! And I’m busy working on some other blogs, currently. I promise I’ll have more great stuff here, soon! As always, if you have any questions, be sure to leave a comment and ask. I do try to answer promptly.

My kids listen to classical music as they do their schoolwork. I’ve tired of buying CDs (at $10 a CD, it can get very expensive). Here’s a cool website that plays free classical music: Musopen. You can download the music, too! The collection isn’t very large, but it’s growing.

I’ll admit it, when personal computers first came out, and then the Internet, I believed it was all a fad. Similar to something like pet rocks or transistor radios, lol. But the computerization of our culture and the cultures around the world has absolutely exploded, so much so that people are building entire careers around it! That is amazing to me. And even more amazing, is that careers in computing– particularly IT professions– is extremely lucrative. I have a brother-in-law who is an IT guy, and he makes really good money. Of course, if a person is serious about a career in computers and computer “language” as I call it, you should definitely look into Cisco certification.

The Cisco Learning Network is one of the most professional and comprehensive websites for learning everything there is to know, connecting with others and participating in a vast network of knowledge, opinions, and news, and continuing an education within the network. Get the lowdown on the latest news and articles, stay on top of the ever-changing IT career opportunities, and best of all, participate in Cisco’s certification programs.

I don’t know if I would ever choose a career like this (I think I may be too old now, lol), but I certainly encourage you young people to check this out. If anything, Cisco’s certification program would make a great “backup” career should a primary career falter or slow down. The economy and job opportunities are going through a great change, but I think computers and computer experts are here to stay. Time has proven that the IT world is not a fad! If anything, I think that a career in IT has yet to peak. Network security is hot hot hot, and people who know the ropes are going to be in very high demand.

Shall I ever stop being surprised what is available online? I love using the Internet to shop, and I’ve discovered all sorts of remarkable things to buy. This is cool– Tactical assault gear, just like law enforcement guys wear! My young sons love stuff like this. The clothing and footwear look extremely durable. Actually, we are impressed with the boots, the “Advance Coyote Brown” boot, because it looks incredibly comfortable, durable, and very affordable! I don’t think my local shoe store has anything like this, for such a low price!

Flashlights, hats, bags, holsters, gun and ammo cases– this place has got it all. Everything looks so durable and well-made. Selections from this site would make the perfect gifts for the outdoorsman in your life. Isn’t it amazing, all the cool stuff to be discovered online, now? Whereas once we were limited to getting our guys a tie or a baseball hat at the local department store, now we can get them high-quality tactical gear delivered right to our doors! I just love the Internet!

Wow, say that title ten times fast! LOL! I read a terrific post at Irregular Tuna about how to fight back against fax spammers. When I had a fax hookup, I used to get this ALL the TIME. It drove me beserk! It is the rudest, most hideous kind of spam. Ink costs a ton of money, and a fax machine just spits it all out. I don’t understand how a spammer would think that this type of scheme would bring in business?! Are they crazy, or do they just work for the ink manufacturing companies?! Anyway, here’s how to fight back:

Every day at work we get spam faxes. We’re a small company, and our fax machine uses ink jet cartridges which can be quite pricey. Today we started responding to the faxes. We’re faxing several black pages back to the spammers for every one page they send us.

I don’t have a fax machine rigged up anymore (I do have a special printer/scanner/copier/fax machine for my laptop, but I only connect it when I need to use it). But if I ever have a constant fax machine, I’m fighting back! lol!!

It’s something I’ve been wanting to do for quite a while– I have a video and I just want to capture one frame (that, and buy a huge lcd monitor, but that’s for another day!). Up until now, I haven’t seen any free software for this. But I came across something called Virtual Dub. My Online Discoveries has done an excellent review with screenshots, and I don’t think I can improve on it.

Basically, this little software program slices and segments still photos from your video files, and you can view them within a file. The program looks good, and is in my “programs to download” list. If you try it and like it, let me know!

I discovered a tutorial on how to disable the caps lock key on computer keyboards. I don’t know about you, but the caps lock being where it is on the keyboard drives me beserk. I am ALWAYS hitting that DURN THING AND THEN I HAVE TO GO BACK A RE-DO ALL THAT I HAVE TYPED. Gr! The computer keyboard is still designed the way it has been, for… what is it now, 100 years? since the typewriter burst on the scene. Very little modification has occurred.

The tutorial, here at the How-To Geek (a good website) is short and sweet. This tweak does require you to tinker with the computer registry. Like the electric circuit panel of your home, you don’t want to be sticking your hands in there if you don’t know what you’re doing. With caution and a backup, you can’t really go wrong, however.

With the caps lock disabled, the Internet will be a quieter place! And now we can go about doing useful things,like blogging about wine racks or something. Heh.

Hello Frugal Hacks visitors! I am new to Frugal Hacks for this blog, but I’ve been on the blogroll for my other blogs, New York Traveler.net and New York Renovator, so several months. I’m a frugal gal, and what you’ll find here are tons of geeky tips, helps, tutorials, and advice– all free! I also blog about programs, downloads, software, and news (especially security issues)– for free! Very rarely do I ever buy any computer programs, and I review what I find useful and present them here.

If you are a simple blogger or blog reader just looking for tips and news about free programs, you will find many helpful things here. If you are a “professional” blogger and are looking for news and buzz about things that will help your blogging, you also will find help here. Like my description says, I talk technology for the average computer user. I like the KISS method (Keep It Simple, Silly!) I hope all my hard work will help you!

If you have questions, need information, or need some tech help, feel free to leave a comment here or fill out the Contact Me form (click the tab at the top of the blog). I will try my best to help you. I may not be able to help, or I may not get back to you immediately, but I promise I will try.

Thanks for visiting! I hope you visit again!

When I was a kid, I remember desiring sunglasses. All the people on television wore them and they looked SO COOL. But I wore prescription glasses, and sunglasses were what my parents called a “luxury.” Today, however- with the Internet– the world is the limit! Replica Sunglasses are affordable, easy to buy, and offer free shipping in the Continental U.S. for orders over $20! Sunglasses are now believed to be helpful during the summer, to protect your eyes from the sun’s UV rays.
ReplicaSunglasses4u, a new discount sunglasses online store, offering replica designer sunglasses. I saw Adidas, Calvin Klein, Armani, and more. The store is offering a buy-two-pair, get-one-free special! They also have a 30-day money-back guarantee. Reading glasses are available, too. If you’re gearing up for summer and want to look like a million bucks while protecting your eyes, check out ReplicaSunglasses4u.

Are you a writer of press releases or articles, or a blogger looking to improve your presence in the SEO world? Keyword density is absolutely critical. I do a lot of searching press releases, articles, and news items as a researcher and a blogger. It is so hard to find things sometimes because of poor keyword density. How on earth can I find something if the keywords aren’t there? It is a frustrating experience sometimes.

Well, I found a free tool, the Press Release SEO Tool that will scan your text and provide percentages for your keywords. It’s a terrific tool, simple to use, and it’s FREE! So if you need to improve your keyword density, this tool will help you show you what you’re doing and give you the information to improve it.

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