Benefits
and
Special Offers
Bob Click
Contact Information:
Bob Click of the Greater Orlando Computer Users Group.
The DealsGuy Web site.
O'Reilly Book Discounts
SPCUG members get 20% off O'Reilly Books. Peruse O'Reilly's online store and when you're ready to order, email O'Reilly or you can call the order line at 800-998-9938. When you order, mention code DSUG.
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The Deals Guy
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Talking about "paid referral URLs," I'll try to leave out the ones that are obvious, but I think some are actually just a shorter way to take you to an information page. I'm going to leave it up to your own discretion whether you will use a numbered URL or not, now that you know the possibilities.
Some feedback on FreeDSL says that if you don't keep the service for one year, there is a stiff termination fee. I noticed that you are forwarded to a different URL, but the information is the same. Thanks for the feedback.
Offer Still Good-Including Two New Games
The Hang2000 game is still good and Ken Winograd e-mailed me that he has released two new games that are very educational. They are "States3000" and "Presidents3000" and are based on an improved Hang2000 engine. You can check for more info at his Web site. There is a "private" URL for Macintosh users group members only and this one is only for PC user group members.
I'm Keepin' Mine
I think you can still take advantage of the Sizzlin' Summer offer for the Friendly Robotics lawn mower. I have kept a diary on my Web site (Announcements page) for you to read. I've had some minor problems, but so far I love it. They have offered to send me a new mower to correct a bad charging message, which I'll take advantage of. That doesn't keep the mower from doing its job and I certainly have the neighbors intrigued. How embarrassing that I didn't include the ordering number (1-888-244-5178) last month. A few people e-mailed me about it.
This One's For You Cheapskate Investors
I know many of you are trading stocks for as low as $8.00 per trade, but how about trading securities for FREE. FreeTradez is the latest entry in the online brokerage field. They said they went into operation on June 19, 2000, with the intention of doing options trading towards fall. They are offering trades with NO commission charge, even for limit orders; plus, they offer Nasdaq Level II quotes.
You guessed it, advertising pays for it. If you type in a ticker symbol, up pops an ad from that very company. Or, get this, if that company wasn't interested, the ad at the top of your screen will be for their competitor or a related company. How's that for strategy! And another company will sponsor confirmations. Your monthly statement has an ad from that same company.
Most trades should be executed in one second, but if it is not executed in 45 seconds, your account is credited with $5.00. A day trader can set a price at the bid, or below the bid. Just so you know, anytime you type in a stock symbol, an advertiser pays them. And yes, they accept trades any time of the day or night. Check them out.
Convert Those Old Videos (After Brushing Off The Dust)
Here is an announcement I received some time ago from Bill Loesch, vice-president of consumer products for Pinnacle Systems. I've not tried their products, which appear to be just for PCs. "Do your members want to edit those baby videos collecting dust in their attics, or maybe preserve the memories of their best vacations? With Pinnacle Systems' Emmy-award-winning technology, video editing is simple. All you need is a Pentium-based computer, a video camera, and/or a VCR. Sign up your Users Group at the Users Group Support Program Web site and review our products for your newsletter. User group members receive a 15% discount off suggested retail price (SRP) on all our Studio line of video editing products; arrange for a customized demo from a Pinnacle Systems representative in your area. Sincerely, Bill Loesch."
Check Out E-mail Hoaxes.
I hate to take up column space with this kind of stuff, but I have been deluged with so-called warnings lately and many people read this column. If you are a person that "insists" on sending out all those "warnings" to your friends, do them a favor and check further before you send them any more spam. Here are some informational sites gleaned from newsletters I receive. Out of all those URLs I read and tried, several either didn't work, or else I couldn't find the correlation, but here are the ones that worked for me:
http://www.symantec.com/avcenter/index.html
http://www.avp.ch/avpve
http://www.datafellows.com/virus-info
http://www.datafellows.com/news/hoax
http://www.icsa.net/services/consortia/anti-virus/aler-hoax.html (I had problems with this one but I'm including it anyway.)
http://www.kumite.com/myths
http://www.snopes.com (This one also has music so it loads slowly.)
http://hoaxbusters.ciac.org/
Can Your Web Browser Get A Ticket?
Not likely, but I assume everybody is interested in accelerating his or her browser power. Murray Davis of Akron/Canton PCUG passed this one on to me. Your browser's cache is meant to help if visiting a Web site again by already having the data to load it. However, you have little control over that cache. There is PC software to speed the whole process called "NetSonic." It works with any browser, and they can share NetSonic's cache, thus saving space on your hard drive as well. It also retains Domain Name Server information. There's more, so I suggest you visit their Web site and take a look at this FREE program. They are hoping you will like it enough that you will eventually purchase their more full-featured "NetSonic Pro" that sells for $39.95 ($29.95 if you use a special URL given to me by their marketing people). Find out more about the software where you can also see a description for the Pro version. Unfortunately, I had to wrap up this column a bit early and the special ordering URL doesn't find the $29.95 price. If it is a problem this month, I'll feature the special offer next month for the Pro version. That will give you time to see if you like the free version enough to buy it.
A Way To Combine Both Your PC And The Web For Some Projects
Beth Fordyce from Southeastern Michigan Computer Organization referred this to me some time ago and I'm just now following up. I e-mailed French Prescott of Enfish Software and the following is what he told me:
"Enfish's current release product is 'Onespace.' This product has superceded the Tracker Pro, our original flagship product. It incorporates the same tracking and search function of Tracker Pro, but it now extends the product to bring Web content and the user's own content into one unified workspace.
"For example, if you're working on a project-say the annual Christmas party-you can earmark the relevant Web pages (maybe caterers or decoration suppliers) and see it all in context with all the e-mail you send and receive about the project. You'll see any documents (word processing, spreadsheets, etc.) related to the planning, and any other files that you specifically indicate are involved. Onespace does the tracking on your own system automatically and you can use search tools (much like Internet search engines) to expand the tracking. The user can set up and configure the working area to fit individual needs."
This product is a FREE working download from the Enfish site. The latest release version was made available July 19. French gave me many more details, so check the above Web site for more information. Looks like it is for PC only. I've seen good reviews on it.
More Invasion Testing For Hacker-Worried Computer Owners
You've all read in many places about Steve Gibson's "Shields Up" for testing your machine for hacker invasion, a great service at no cost. In case you want an additional test to check further, I read that you can visit Webtrend's site. Or try Hacker-Wacker and click on "Free Security Scan."
My thanks to James Anderson (Editor) for sending the data for IBM Humboldt Users' Group in Eureka, CA, to add to my distribution page. They've been regularly using the column. Also, French Prescott, Editor for Big Bear Computer Club in Big Bear Lake, CA, asked to start using the column. French is also the contact for Enfish Software in this month's column. I look forward to more information from groups already publishing the DealsGuy.
That's it for this month. Meet me here again next month if your editor permits.
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