Aren’t you excited?  You just set up wireless Internet access for your computer at your home or business.  Now, you can roam anywhere with your laptop and have full access to your Internet connection.  But, if you haven’t turned on wireless security, so can everyone else near you.  That’s right, most wireless routers are shipped to work right out of the box, which means no security is turned on and anyone with a wireless link can access it. Dig out the instructions to your wireless router, find the section on security and turn it on.  Basically, you will use either WiFi Protected Access (WPA) or WiFi Encrypted Protocol (WEP).  WPA is better, if you have a choice.  Both require a password before someone can access your network.  Folks, I’m serious about this.  If you don’t’ do this, your neighbors can use YOUR Internet and even see what’s on your computer.

I’m Eric Spellmann taking you to the Next Level.

More Information

JiWire
http://www.jiwire.com

WPA vs. WEP Security
http://www.openxtra.co.uk/articles/wpa-vs-wep.php

Have you ever Googled yourself?  You know, typed your own name into google.com to see what comes up.  Try it.  You may be surprised.  In fact, I recommend that everyone do it at least once a month to make sure someone isn’t saying something about you without your knowledge.  While you’re at it, do a search of myspace.com for your name.  They are one of the largest online communities with millions of people talking about millions of people.    Parents, it is definitely in your best interest to do searches on your kids’ schools and names at these sites.  Teens often use sites like myspace and friendster to gossip and slander each other.  And, as the news has pointed out, you can find yourself in some legal hot water from a liability situation if you’re not careful.

I’m Eric Spellmann taking you to the Next Level.

More Information

Google
http://www.google.com

With the wacky economy, you may want to take more control of your investments.  To do that, you may to set up a trading account.  But who do you trust?  What do you need to know before you take on Wall Street? First, do a little research.  Find out what each online trading company offers.   For a ranking of the best and worst online brokerages, go to InvestingOnline.org. They’re the closest thing to a Consumer Reports on these businesses.  They also give some expert guidance on common mistakes new traders make.  Another great site is investor.gov.  The US government has put together some incredible resources for new investors.  Folks, this is kind of like Poker.  You should get comfortable learning this skill with play money.  My favorite site to test your trading theories is WallStreetSurvivor.com.

I’m Eric Spellmann taking you to the Next Level.

More Information

Investing Online
http://www.investingonline.org

US Govt Investor Site
http://www.investor.gov

Wall Street Survivor
http://www.wallstreetsurvivor.com

What if you already have an Internet account, but want additional e-mail boxes for your family or yourself? Web-based e-mail is for you. It’s free, but you’ll see ads while reading and sending mail. If you don’t mind that, though, you can send and receive as many messages as you want. Hundreds of web-based e-mail sites exist on the Net. Knowing which ones are worth using is not an easy undertaking. After doing a lot of testing and reviewing, one does stand out of the crowd. gMail gets my kudos for performance, security, and ease of use. The really neat thing about using web-based e-mail is that you can check it from anywhere. Even if you are at a cyber-cafe or an Internet terminal at the airport, as long as you have web access, you can check your messages.

I’m Eric Spellmann taking you to the Next Level.

More Information

gMail
http://www.gmail.com

Yahoo Mail
http://mail.yahoo.com

Hotmail
http://www.hotmail.com

Others
http://www.freecenter.com/email.html

Robots and living computers seem to be a staple of Science Fiction movies. But now, some of that science fiction is becoming science FACT. Scientists have discovered that some microscopic creatures behave very similarly to computers. Imagine tiny biological chips in your computer that can transmit and receive information thousands of times faster than today’s chips. Chips that can be grown instead of manufactured. Now, granted, we are still in the EARLY stages of this exciting field, but just think, your next computer may come from the dairy aisle at the grocery store.

I’m Eric Spellmann taking you to the Next Level.

More Information

Biological Computer Born
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/358822.stm

It’s impossible to visit a website these days without seeing a banner ad.  How are people making money off of them?  Well, you need to understand three terms: exposures, click-throughs, and registrations. Every time someone sees a banner ad on a site, we call that an exposure. Content providers typically charge around a penny per exposure. So, if you put your banner on a site and it gets 4000 exposures, you owe $40. Click-throughs work differently. They only count if someone actually clicks on your banner. You will usually be charged ten cents per click through. Registrations are the most expensive, but also the most valuable. If someone clicks on your banner and actually buys something or signs up with you, content providers typically charge one to three dollars.

I’m Eric Spellmann taking you to the Next Level.

More Information

What is a Banner Ad?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banner_Ad

How Banner Ads Work
http://www.howstuffworks.com/banner-ad.htm

I’m noticing a trend.  Dynamic image making is becoming very popular.  Don’t let that technical name scare you.  Once you see it, you’ll be hooked.  Basically, a number of sites, like the Church Sign Generator, allow you to create, on the fly, an image of a “real” looking church sign.  You’ll have fun sending these supposedly real photos to friends and family.  Some of my other favorites are the Vinyl Record Generator, the Newspaper Clipping Generator, and the License Plate Generator.  For links to these and a huge list of others, check my blog at ericspellmann.com.

I’m Eric Spellmann taking you to the Next Level.

More Information

The Main Site
http://www.says-it.com/

Newspaper Clipping Generator
http://tools.fodey.com/generators/newspaper/snippet.asp

License Plate Generator
http://www.acme.com/licensemaker/

Other Generators
http://generatorblog.blogspot.com/

Ever dream of flying? The Google Earth program will let you do just that. Basically, this program is the “Google Satellite Maps” service on steroids.  A while back, Google bought a company called Keyhole. You may remember THEM as the company that supplied those cool “fly-bys” for major news organizations.  The Google Earth program uses sophisticated streaming technology to deliver the data to you as you need it.  With thousands of gigabytes of aerial and satellite imagery, this program depicts cities around the world in high-resolution detail, and in some cases, 3D! A local search option lets you search for restaurants, hotels, and even driving directions. Layers show parks, schools, hospitals, airports, shopping, and more. It does require a fairly powerful computer, but any PC built in the last two years ought to be fine.

I’m Eric Spellmann taking you to the Next Level.

More Information

Google Earth
http://earth.google.com

Remember the last time you were at an ATM trying to get a quick 20 dollars for a date? Did you notice that the little screen of the machine seemed to have an after-image “burned” into it? We call that screen-burn. It occurs when the same image stays on certain computer screens for days on end. Older computer monitors had this problem, so someone created a software program called a screensaver. The theory was pretty sound. A graphic, sometimes a random pattern would constantly change the image on the screen preventing screen burn from occurring. Some of the screensavers got pretty cute. In fact, entire companies were established that exclusively produced this software. There is a deep, dark secret that these companies don’t want you to know, though. Listen closely: Today’s monitors DON’T need screensavers. They are incapable of developing screen burn.

I’m Eric Spellmann taking you to the Next Level.

More Information

Screensaver.com
http://www.screensaver.com/

Yet More Screensavers
http://www.ratloaf.com/

Top 100 Screensavers
http://www.top100screensavers.com/

Did you know that the Government has more information on the Internet than all other companies and organizations, even Microsoft. Why is that? Why would the government be in a frenzy about moving their information to the Net? Well, as with all things in Washington, it has to do with money. As you already probably know, the government, by law, is required to make certain information available to the public. Now how did they do that? Did you ever hear of the GPO (the government printing office)? Millions of brochures, reports, and books were generated every day to meet this legal requirement. What the government soon realized, though, was that by using the Internet, they could dramatically cut their printing expenses, by putting the same information online.

I’m Eric Spellmann taking you to the Next Level.

More Information

Library of Congress
http://www.loc.gov/

White House
http://www.whitehouse.gov

Texas Government
http://www.texas.gov/