"The concept of 'freecycling' has exploded in recent years, especially with the website freecycle.org. You go there and type in where you live and what you need to get rid of -- it could be a baby crib you no longer need or a set of old golf clubs.
Once you've posted the availability of items, you could get dozens of responses from people near you who need them. Then, you put it on your curb and it's gone!
I worked with one woman who had a ceiling fan and aquarium to get rid of. She was ready to pay for a salvage company to pick them up. I steered her toward freecycling instead, and she got 20 responses in one day. And she was able to get baby clothes that she needed from a mom whose child had outgrown them.
I have gotten rid of our child's crayons and magic markers doing this -- someone had a day-care business and needed them."
What’s in your refrigerator right now? Leftovers from dinner at a Chinese restaurant? Yesterday’s pasta? A few stalks of broccoli?
Before you throw out all this, thing about combining these "orphans" into another tasty while they are still good. After all, a smart way to save on groceries is to efficiently use what you buy.
Get creative. Have a bit of coleslaw? Use it to top a turkey sandwich. Extra cooked or raw vegetables? Tuck them into salads, omelets, casseroles. One broccoli stalk won't feed two people, but you can add other veggies and a protein (beef, chicken, tofu) for a tasty stir-fry.
The “Sandwich Generation” describes those who are sandwiched between the dual responsibilities of caring for their own children and for aging parents or relatives.
Former AOL Digital Chief and founder of Launchbox Digital, John McKinley found a distressing lack of resources that helped adults find the right care providers for elderly parents. McKinley vowed to create a portal aimed towards the consumer and this month he launched OurParents, a free elder care matching service, focused on assisting adult children with aging parents find the right care solution that meets the parents’ health care needs.
OurParents offers descriptions, services, quality ratings, and price info for care providers and allows consumers to filter search results by location, cost, quality, distance and special requirements. Free detailed reports about each facility, which includes access to the Medicare ratings, detailed audit findings, community data, and information about nearby hospitals and clinics are available once the user creates an account.
In mid-June, OverDrive, one of Troy Public Library's suppliers of downloadable eAudiobooks, is releasing a new version of its Media Console software. What makes this update newsworthy is that the majority of all downloadable OverDrive audiobook titles will become iPod compatible.
The issue of iPod compatibility with OverDrive eAudiobooks has been a concern for sometime. iPod users were told that downloaded materials couldn't be transferred, or would have to come up with various workarounds for the problem. Last year, to help solve the problem, OverDrive started releasing titles in the OverDrive MP3 format, that can be transferred to an iPod. The problem is the many bestsellers, such as Twilight by Stephenie Meyer, The 8th Confession by James Patterson, and Resilience by Elizabeth Edwards, are not available in the MP3 format. They can be downloaded and played on a computer, but are not iPod transferable.
OverDrive Media Console 3.2 should change that. According to the OverDrive press release, "once OverDrive Media Console version 3.2 is installed, most titles in a library's OverDrive WMA Audiobook collection will instantly become iPod-compatible for users with Windows PCs." It appears that the only drawback is that Mac users will not be able to take advantage of this update.
This news comes at an excellent time for the Troy Library. We have been seeing record numbers of checkouts this year of our OverDrive material. If you haven't used OverDrive because popular titles were not available to be transferred to your iPod, keep following The Tech Desk. We will let you know when OverDrive Media Console 3.2 is available.
In the meantime, if you still would like to check out OverDrive, go to the library homepage and click "Downloadable eBooks, Audiobooks, and Videos" in the left side menu.
For the complete text of the OverDrive press release, click here.
A while back I discovered a wonderful web-based tracking tool on TrackThePack. The website provides a very simple yet elegant design. Below is a screen shot of the site to give you an idea.
The site is very simple to use. Simply enter your tracking number provided by your package carrier, and click on the "TrackThePack" button. The site supports most carriers including: UPS, FedEx, DHL, and USPS. The site is able to automatically recognize the proper carrier, and give you detailed results as to the current location, and timing of your package's arrival. The site even provides a helpful Google Map, detailing the path your package has taken (see screenshot). So next time you need to track a package, go ahead and track your pack with TrackThePack!
While robins may be the traditional sign of the arrival of spring, here in Metro-Detroit we know the true sign: the return of the orange barrels on the highways. With these construction zones come the inevitable traffic jams.
Traditionally, radio or TV station reports were the best place to get traffic information. While this information is generally good, many times stations will report an incident that has already cleared or may not report one that has just happened. If you want to actually see the traffic conditions before you head out, you can click here to view live feeds from Detroit-area freeway traffic cameras.
Think it is bad here? Check out traffic cameras from across the U.S. and several other countries at trafficland.com.
Google Chrome is a relatively new browser that has quickly gained popularity in the Internet community. Since its initial release, Chrome has seen many fixes and improvements to improve its speed and stability. These updates were so significant that Google quickly removed the "beta" tag off of its new browser in an effort to promote its stability and everyday usability.
I do a majority of my Internet browsing on Google Chrome due to its speed and other features. Here are some of my favorite ones.
Speed, Speed, and More Speed One of the most noticeable features of Google Chrome is its speed. It is fast to boot up, and fast to load pages. It feels faster then Firefox, and most definitely Internet Explorer in my everyday use. Each Tab Has Its Own Process Each tab has its own individual process; if one tab crashes, you do not lose the rest of your opened tabs. This is extremely helpful when you are doing research and each tab is important to keep open. The Download Manager
Downloads are handled differently in Google Chrome then they are in IE and Firefox. In both IE and Firefox, the downloads are opened in a new window to be monitored. In Chrome, downloads are started immediately and can be monitored in the task bar, as shown in the picture above.
Simple Design One of the subtle, yet, impressive features of Chrome is the simple design layout of the tabs, address bar and navigational icons. This browser is designed for maximum screen real-estate for viewing web pages. I find the tab layout to be quite helpful. The New Tab Page
While this feature may not seem like a big help initially, it most certainly is a welcome addition. The new tab page shows a lot of information such as your top nine most visited sites, previous searches, recent bookmarks, and recently closed tabs. Searching From the Address Bar
By default, Google allows you to type a search into the address bar. Then, by simply hitting the ENTER key, you are taken to Google search results. If you go to another site and perform a search, you will then be able to simply hit the tab key when typing in the site name to perform a search on that site (see the screenshot above for an example). Updates This past week, Google officially released its first major milestone update to Chrome. This update packed tons of added enhancements, bug fixes, and stability improvements. Here is a quick rundown of some of the enhancements specific to the 2.0 update courtesy of Google.
Like to spend your summer weekends looking at yard sales?
Yard Sale Treasure Map can make your search more productive. This site mashes classified ads from Craigslist with Google Maps to create maps of yard sales in your area during the upcoming weekend.
Just enter your start address, how far you want to travel, and the day of the weekend, from Thursday through Saturday. Treasure Map will plot the sales on a map. You can read descriptions of the sales, delete ones you don't want, add other stops, and plan a route, all before you print your custom map.
