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Free Inbound Faxing
"I occasionally need to receive an inbound fax, but I don't own a fax machine. Going to Kinko's or the local drugstore to pick up a fax is a nuisance, and nothing is private there. Is there some way to get my faxes online, but still have a real phone number that people can use to send faxes to me? Oh, and free is nice..."
Continue reading "Free Inbound Faxing"...Free Online Translations
"I have a site that attracts visitors from all over the world, so I often get emails in Spanish, French, and German language. Sometimes even Russian and Japanese! Is there a tool that will help me translate to English? I also want to write back in their own language, so I'd need to translate from English to Spanish, and other languages."
Continue reading "Free Online Translations"...Mechanical Turk
"Can you explain what Mechanical Turk is all about? A friend of mine uses it to make money by doing small jobs, but I've heard some people say it's more like slave labor. What's the deal with Mechanical Turk?"
Continue reading "Mechanical Turk"...Ebay Tips for Sellers
"I'm thinking about selling some stuff on eBay to make a little money for the holidays, but my previous attempts to sell on eBay haven't worked out very well. Can you give me some power tips for eBay sellers to help me succeed?"
Continue reading "Ebay Tips for Sellers"...Ebay Tips for Buyers
"I've tried several times to buy items on eBay, but the bidding options are confusing to me, and I always get outbid at the last minute. Can you give me some tips on saving money and winning eBay auctions?"
Continue reading "Ebay Tips for Buyers"...Internet Knowledge Quiz
How much do you know about the Internet, cyber-culture, the heroes and the villians of the online world? Find out by taking the Useless Internet Knowledge Quiz!
Continue reading "Internet Knowledge Quiz"...The Top Twenty
Every few months I go through the Ask Bob logs and see which articles were the most popular. Here is the current Top Twenty, ranked by readership volume...
Continue reading "The Top Twenty"...Jott - Note to Self
Jott is a cool new service that will convert your voice into email or a text message. Just call a toll-free number from your cell phone, and leave a voice message. Jott will translate your spoken words into text, and then forward the text to an email address or send a text message to a cell phone.
Science Fiction Sites
It’s sometimes difficult these days to differentiate between science fiction and fact, because the two worlds often borrow ideas from each other. If you've ever read Alfred Bester's classic 1956 sci-fi thriller "The Stars My Destination", or Ray Bradbury's space novels from the same era, you can't help but think that scientists in years to come were influenced when designing real-life computers and space vehicles. Check out my Top Ten Sci-Fi Sites list, and don’t be surprised if many of them contain concepts that exist in our age of quickly advancing technology...
Continue reading "Science Fiction Sites"...Top Sites for Kids
"My eleven year old wants a Myspace account, but I think she's a bit young for that. Are there some other sites I can encourage her to visit, with games and activities that are appropriate for pre-teen kids?"
Continue reading "Top Sites for Kids"...Gas Mileage Tips
High prices at the gas pump continue to put the squeeze on family budgets, recent fluctuations not withstanding. It seems like $3 per gallon gas is here to stay. While there’s no magic pill or bolt-on gizmo that will magically turn your gas guzzling car or truck into a 50 mile per gallon (MPG) wonder, there are a number of things that can help you to cut down on the amount you spend on fuel each month...
Continue reading "Gas Mileage Tips"...Ten More Tech Gadgets
Every geek needs gadgets, but even the computer novice will love these plug and play USB add-ons. Here are my latest top ten gadgets, sure to add a little fun to your desktop.
Continue reading "Ten More Tech Gadgets"...Downloading Ringtones
The ringtone craze started in Finland back in 1998 with a monophonic commercial ringtone service called Harmonium. The popularity of ringtones quickly spread throughout Europe and then into Asia. The U.S. was late to catch hold of this craze, however, today the U.S. is one of the fastest growing ringtone consumer markets in the world. Here's how to download or create your own ringtone...
Continue reading "Downloading Ringtones"...Specialized Searches
Everyone knows that you can throw a word or phrase at Google and it will return web pages that match. But Google is more than a search engine... it's a verb. Here are some very cool specialized Google searches that will save you time and make you wonder what Google doesn't know...
Continue reading "Specialized Searches"...What is Web 2.0?
"I keep seeing articles that mention something called Web 2.0, but they never give a good definition. What is Web 2.0? How is it different than the one Al Gore invented, and when is Web 3.0 coming?"
Continue reading "What is Web 2.0?"...Top Ten Tech Gadgets
Looking for some uber-cool gadgets to trick out your personal computer? Here are my picks for the top ten gadgets, guaranteed to make everyone else in the office (or home office) jealous...
Continue reading "Top Ten Tech Gadgets"...What is Second Life?
"Some of my friends are really into Second Life, they say it's the future of the Internet. Looks like Sim City on drugs to me... What is the big deal with Second Life -- who is playing and why?"
Continue reading "What is Second Life?"...Free Satellite TV on PC?
"I saw a website advertising software that's supposed to give you free satelite TV on your PC. The program costs $40, but they claim it lets you watch hundreds of live worldwide channels free of charge. Sounds too good to be true... is this a scam?"
Continue reading "Free Satellite TV on PC?"...What is Broadband?
"I see commercials on TV telling me to switch to broadband, but I'm not sure what that means. They talk about DSL lines, cable access, satellites and megabits, which further confuses me. I've had dialup access through AOL for years and I'm pretty happy with the service. What is broadband, and do I need it?"
Continue reading "What is Broadband?"...Photo Printing and Sharing
To say that digital cameras have revolutionized photography would be an understatement. It's not just the way we take pictures that has changed, but photo printing, photo storage and photo sharing have all gone digital as well. Free digital photo printing, storage and sharing have become some of the most popular online activities, and a crop of websites have been developed to make all these digital photography tasks a snap. Let's put the lens on some of the best photo printing, photo storage and photo sharing sites...
Google SMS
You've got a burning question... but you're stuck somewhere with no internet connection. News Flash... Google SMS lets you search the web from your mobile phone! Google SMS serves up answers to specialized queries, and it's as simple as sending a text message. Even if you DON'T have web access on your cell phone or mobile device, you can send your query as a text message and get phone book listings, dictionary definitions, stock quotes, sports scores, product prices, driving directions and more...
Continue reading "Google SMS"...Websites for Kids
"As a parent with young children, I worry that there are so many dark alleys on the Internet for kids to wander into. Can you recommend some GOOD sites and offer any help on keeping kids safe online?"
Bad Stuff
The Web is just brimming with "best of" sites. But what about the bad, the ugly and the truly awful? In the spirit of admiring the atrocious, displaying the deplorable, and highlighting the heinous, let me present you with some Really Bad Stuff. Nothing dirty or illegal of course, but stuff so bad it'll make you laugh. Read on...
Send a Free Fax
"I don't have a fax machine, but I've heard that there are places on the Web that will let me send a free fax. I visited one site but they wanted my credit card to open a free trial account. Is there a truly FREE internet fax service?"
School and College Directory
"Is there a simple directory or search engine for locating schools in a particular city or state?"
Online Games
Looking for some challenging word play, or a little mindless diversion? Here are a bunch of websites where you can play online web-based games right in your web browser. Most of them are programmed with Shockwave, Flash or Java so there's no need to download anything.
Continue reading "Online Games"...Going Viral - Internet Classics
Ever since the Web went graphical in the early 1990's, there have been people motivated to create websites that exist only to be amusing, annoying or completely useless. And like a car wreck, we just can't keep ourselves from looking at these things... and telling all our friends. Consider these Internet Classics required viewing. They're part of Internet lore and legend, and everyone should see all of them at least once.
Continue reading "Going Viral - Internet Classics"...Fiddling While Your Hard Drive Crashes
After reading about the sounds that a dying hard drive makes in Click of Doom, long-time reader MmeMoxie sent me a link to something absolutely hilarious. It's music based on the sounds of hard drive failures...
Continue reading "Fiddling While Your Hard Drive Crashes"...Directory Information Overload?
Sure, there are lots of online yellow pages websites. But all too often, I find it frustrating to get the phone number or address for a business or public facility. Point, click, search, wade through multiple pages of search results, drill down into confusing category headings, and MAYBE you can find that phone number. Here's good news... it just got easier to do what should be a simple task.
Continue reading "Directory Information Overload?"...House Values
Ever wonder what your house is worth? Getting a property valuation from a realtor or appraiser can be a hassle, and might cost several hundred dollars. Now in just a few clicks, you can learn the estimated value of your house and the other homes in your neighborhood. For free!
Computer Humor
"Every day I get the same lame jokes in my email that have been making the rounds for years. Are there some websites you can recommend for really good computer humor?"
Continue reading "Computer Humor"...One Laptop Per Child
Nicholas Negroponte has a dream... to provide a laptop with internet access to hundreds of millions of children in developing countries around the world. Negroponte's "One Laptop Per Child" is a non-profit group that has been working for several years to create a fully functional $100 laptop, powered by a hand crank.
Continue reading "One Laptop Per Child"...Bots and Intelligent Agents
Remember back when you were a kid, watching The Jetsons and wishing someone would invent a robot to do your chores? Decades later, we still haven't realized the promise of a machine to clear the dishes off the table, but nowadays there ARE some useful robots roaming the Internet, ready to help you with shopping, information gathering and other tasks.
Continue reading "Bots and Intelligent Agents"...
