101 How To's

Get in Shape

2008-05-11T07:40:00.000-07:00

Almost everyone is getting conscious about their health. Not only women, but men are also concern with their body getting the right and healthy shape. I, myself did some research about this. I also want to get in shape. I just know that getting in shape will really boost my health and at the same time my self-esteem. I now wish to share with you the summary of all the readings I had on different tips on how to get the right shape for your (my) body.

Mind over body

Losing weight is looked by most of us as a great challenge. This is quite true in the sense that we need to tame ourselves from staying away from goodies that will ruin our plan. The key is getting the right mind set. We've learned from grade school that "eating is healthy food is a must". There are two things that should be emphasized with this lesson:

1. Eating is a must = Never skip meals
2. Eat healthy food = No junk food

Engraving these two equations in our minds will greatly influence our actions toward our eating habits.

Another line to keep in mind is: YOU ARE NOT ALONE. Getting healthy is the trend (finally). If you think you're losing self confidence because of your shape, you have to know that people are with you with this burden. You need not to be so shy about anything. If you have some plans such as getting a work-out program on your favorite gym, share it with your friends or with your family and invite them to join you. Going on with a new healthy routine will be more fun if you're with the people you want to be with.

Look for Substitutes

We want to get in shape without depriving ourselves from eating delicious food. However, we should remember the second equation stated above: "NO JUNK FOOD". So if you love soda or creamed chocolate shakes, try to make a major head turn from it and look for fruit shakes. Fruit shake is refreshing and at the same time, healthy. If you love eating snacks, stay away from ice cream and get a bowl of fresh fruit salad. There are a lot of healthy goodies around us, we just often end up munching chips and popping soda.

Gym is one thing, but there are a lot of alternatives

Did you know that jumping ropes gives you a great cardiovascular workout? It is very cheap and portable at the same time. Also think about the calories you'd burn up with a couple of minutes of jumping.

You love dancing? You can burn up hundreds of calories for an hour of having fun with your groovy moves.

AND BY THE WAY...

Forget these not:

1. Avoid fried food
2. Salads with fatty mayonnaise is a "no-no"
3. Sugar = calories
4. Sit up straight

and...

Include these on your to-do list

1. Take your multivitamins
2. Sleep
3. Drink lots of water

Good luck to us! Cheers!

Deliver an effective speech

2008-05-03T08:35:00.000-07:00

I like to share with you some points that may help you with public speaking. As from what most of us have experienced, talking before a crowd can actually weaken our knees, wet our palms, shake our voices, and so much more. These points may somehow assist you whenever you need to speak before the audience (may it be a large crowd or three panelists).

Point #1 Know your audience
Being a speaker to a crowd, first thing you should consider is to know your listeners. This will greatly help you from point of planning the outline of your speech to choosing appropriate words and strategies of getting their attention.

Point #2 Nothing beats preparation
If you have the time to prepare for your speech, please do so. Try to make a simple plan on how you want your points to be delivered. Making an outline will be a great help. In this manner, you will keep track of each point you want to drive to your audience. This will also help you avoid forgetting important details that you want to emphasize.

Point #3 Don't let them scare you. Scare them.
Put this in mind: The reason you are speaking in front of them is because you have something for them to learn. In addition, if you have prepared, you have nothing to be scared about. Audience often evaluate the speaker even before you speak. If they see that you are confident, they will most likely think you're competitive enough to listen to. If you show them you're scared, you will never get their attention.

Point #4 Catch their attention and never let it go
Since you know something about your audience, this point should be easier. The next thing to accomplish is to catch their attention. You can do so by giving a very interesting introduction. You can crack jokes, tell a short story, you choose. It really does not have to be related to your speech. It's about getting their attention and making an impression.

Once I was asked to talk for at least 3 minutes inside a classroom. I used the technique of the senator delivering a political speech in the movie "Maid in Manhattan". It's about how he handled the tension whenever he spoke in public by merely using a paper clip. Silly introduction but it really worked.

Point #5 No 'uh...' and 'ah...' fillers
This syndrome may be avoided by good preparation. The more you do this, the more your speech gets boring.

Point #6 Be sensitive to your audience
When you speak in front of a crowd, you should be aware if you still hold their attention or if you have already lost them. In this manner, you can do necessary acts to get them to listen to you. No speech has ever been successful without the audience attention.

Point #7 Do not practice in front of a mirror
You see, the point #6 talks about being sensitive and conscious about what your audience feels. If you will be practicing on a mirror, you only see yourself, which makes you focus also to yourself. Practice in front of your friends instead. Ask their cooperation to observe and then give their comments (or constructive criticisms) for you to make your speech more effective.

Well, I really hope this would help you with your speech. :p

How to know if you're profiting from selling?

2008-04-28T20:15:00.000-07:00

Break-even Analysis. This is a small tool that helps entrepreneurs project how many units of their products must be sold in order to break-even. Break-even is the point where total revenue is enough to cover total costs.

Break-even analysis is a simple computation. It points out the relationship between revenues, costs and profits. in computing break-even you need to get the following data:

Price - Unit price of the product being sold
Variable cost (per unit) - costs that change in proportion to output (raw materials, energy costs etc.)
Total fixed Cost - expenses that do not change regardless of production (rent, property tax, equipment)

Your firm breaks even when total revenue is enough to equal its total costs.

Here is the formula of Break-even analysis:

Example:

Assume that Claire's Printing Services charges $0.20 per print. If fixed costs are $30,000 a year and variable costs are $0.10 per print, Clair can compute her break-even point as follows:

As a planning tool, Claire can set his goal. This tool can tell her how much volume has to increase to break-even if she's currently operating at a loss or how much volume he can afford to lose and still break even.

USEFUL FREEWARES!!! (Part 3)

2008-04-24T06:54:00.000-07:00

Here's the third part of the post.

Related Links:
Part 1 (Application Launchers)
Part 2 (Instant Messaging and Phone Calls)

Part 3:

Utilities

Absolute Uninstaller - After uninstalling some applications, there are some leftovers that are kept in the registry. These junks sometimes affect the performance of your PC. Uninstalling applications with this tool leaves nothing behind.

Screenshot:

Download it here

CCleaner - This is a tool that helps you maintain your system's performance by clearing your PC from unnecessary files that it keeps. Temporary files, unused registry files and other files that are not needed are erased with just one click.

Screenshot:

Download it here

Revo Uninstaller - it's like add/remove programs but has more features, where it deletes ALL files of the application being uninstalled from the registry.

Screenshot:

Download it here

Glary Utilities - It offers numerous powerful and easy-to-use system tools and utilities to fix, speed up, maintain and protect your PC.

Screenshot:

Download it here

Task Killer - This allows you to end non-responding programs.

Screenshot:

Download it here

CoolMon - This displays your PC's vital statistics such as usage of CPU, RAM, and hard drives.

Screenshot:

Download it here

USEFUL FREEWARES!!! (Part 2)

2008-04-24T00:53:00.000-07:00

Here's the second part of my post USEFUL FREEWARES.

Related Links:
Part 1 (Application Launchers)
Part 3 (Utilities)

Part 2:

Instant Messaging and Phone Calls

Skype - Make free calls (to other Skype users). Use it to call landlines and cell phones with low fees. It is also used for instant messaging, file transferring, and video conferencing.

Download it here

Trillian - Trillian allows chatters to use multiple instant messaging accounts (MSN, ICQ, AIM, IRC and Yahoo Messenger etc.) with one active program. With this tool, you can chat with your friends from different accounts ALL AT THE SAME TIME. Chat all you want.

Download it here

Meebo.com - log on to your IM accounts with this one web-based interface. There's no need for you to install. Add your friends from different accounts in just one list.

Visit Meebo here

USEFUL FREEWARES!!!

2008-04-23T22:54:00.000-07:00

FREEWARES are all over the net but not all of them are actually useful to everyone. I have posted a list of freewares with short description. Just look around. Maybe you can find something useful for you. Have fun!

Related Links:
Part 2 (Instant Messaging and Phone Calls)
Part 3 (Utilities)

Part 1:

Application Launchers

ObjectDock - Quick launch that mimics the look of Macintosh dock, with different icons and animations that you can modify. Vista ready

Screenshot:

Download it here

RocketDock - Like objectdock, this allows the user to customize icons that they want to appear on their desktop. This tool is also fully customizable.

Screenshot:

Download it here

Launchy - Helps you launch ('launch'y) documents, files, bookmarks, etc. with a few key strokes, allowing you to forget about your start button.

Screen shot:

Download it here

How to have an Effective Powerpoint Slide Presentation

2008-04-23T08:36:00.000-07:00

In presentations, may it be for work or for school, slides to aide the reporter IS A MUST. For making slides for any type of presentation, we usually use MS Powerpoint. Thanks to this application, preparing visual aides never been this easier.

Since this is widely used, I have some points that you might want to consider in creating powerpoint presentations.

Point #1: USE BULLETS, NOT PARAGRAPHS - presentation tend to look boring whenever you show paragraphs onto your slides. Slides only help you to emphasize the thought you want your audience to catch. Paragraphs NEVER catch attention.

Point #2: USE APPROPRIATE TEMPLATES - set the ambiance or environment of the room (where you are presenting) in accordance with your topic. Say you are giving a presentation on a science project, maybe you could catch and hold your audience's attention by showing them slides designed with pictures, animations, etc. that relates to your topic.

Point #3: PICTURE, TEMPLATE AND TEXT HARMONY - Use colors that are 'eye-friendly'. This do not only apply to your template, but also to the images and texts you use. Make sure that texts are still readable even they are mixed with the pictures and images.

Well, these three point have always worked for me. I hope you get something from it too. (^_^)

Have you tried making slide presentations on Microsoft 2007? If not, I suggest start making powerpoint presentations with the newest Office version. It's loaded with totally useful features. Maybe I can post some of my presentations that I made with MS Office 2007 for you to see them. Be back soon!

How to Turn Off OpenDNS

2008-04-17T07:01:00.000-07:00

I was asked by a friend to search for a solution about OpenDNS. OpenDNS is a free DNS service available for all. It offers the following features:

blocks phishing sites
gives you the power to filter out adult sites and proxies among more than 50 categories
provides the precision to block individual domains

To know more about OpenDNS, visit their official website at www.opendns.com

It has a full support on how to activate the said service. However, it lacked the support on guiding the subscribers on turning it off.

Luckily, I bumped to this site, which solved my friend's problem about OpenDNS. Jesse Ryan (br0kenb1nary), provided a tool that can turn on and off OpenDNS service. You can download it here or download it directly from his site. Click here to go to his site.

Have fun!

How to Tweak Windows XP

2008-04-16T02:56:00.000-07:00

Do you want a faster PC? Aside from an upgrade, there are other ways to optimize your PC's performance. Are you ready?

If your PC is XP with SP2 or SP1, then this is for you. What we are trying to do here is to tweak your PC. 'Tweak' maybe sounds a little different, but thanks to our generous guides out there, we can now experience the ultimate performance that our XP can give. This procedure is safe. Just follow the steps correctly.

Compared to other OS, I bet Windows appears to be the most user friendly. But actually, it's not. If you have already visited your registry, I think you understand what I am talking about. We can see a lot of folders with names we cannot understand. That makes it complicated.

We will be following the guide of Black Viper.

Part One: Let us make it really safe. Before we go to tweaking, we will be making different profiles. In this way, we will not lose the default settings of Windows. To make other profiles, here's Black Vipers Guide. Follow steps 1-14.

(If you will read a little introduction about it, you will learn a lot. )

Part Two: Here, you will be choosing what configuration you think best suits you. Here's a quick explanation. We will try to configure which service will be disabled,automatic or manual. You can choose from 8 configurations. How to know what configuration will suit you? In this link, please scroll down to 'Table Header Information". There you can see see configurations namely DEFAULT Home, DEFAULT MCE 2005, DEFAULT Pro, DEFAULT Pro x64, DEFAULT Tablet PC 2005, "SAFE" Configuration, Power User Configuration, and Bare Bones Configuration. They also have their description.

Part Three: Tweak it. All you have to do is to open your services, and using the profiles you made, just copy the configuration laid out on the table in this link (Scroll down until you see the table named 'Black Viper's Windows Service Pack 2 Service Configurations').

To go to services, click start -->> control panel (Classic view) -->> administrative tools -->> services

Your PC is now TWEAKED!! With your new configuration, you will experience a faster PC. just be sure to choose the correct configuration profile upon rebooting your PC.

Cheers!

Optimize your PC

2008-04-15T08:02:00.000-07:00

There are a lot of ways to optimize your PC. Number one on the list is to protect it with necessary tools and antivirus (see this post).

However, if your RAM is too low, the only thing you can do is to upgrade it. What we are trying to do here is to get more memory for your PC.

Maybe some of you have already bumped into this kind of solution. You have the money but the problem is you really don't know what RAM to buy.

To some, I know what you're thinking. I know this is a little technical, but I promise to explain it in the most simple way. All you have to do is to find out what RAM is compatible to your system. Actually it's only a three-step procedure:

1. Connect to the internet
2. Click this link
3. Scroll a little bit and Click Scan my System button (it looks like this:)

After seeing the results, make sure you list the information released bring it to the store where you can buy memory upgrades for computers.

Most stores are selling 512MB - 1 GB of RAM. Just give them the information you listed and they will give you the RAM compatible to your PC.

How to set up an Internet Cafe

2008-04-14T19:11:00.000-07:00

This is one of the most common business nowadays. Entrepreneurs see the potential of this business because of various reasons. First, not everyone can buy their own desktop. Second, gamers playing LAN games are everywhere. Third, students may have their own desktops and internet connection at home but they still go to internet shops to finish some school papers.

What are the things to consider before deciding to put up an internet shop/cafe?

Location - proximity to your target market is very important. If you plan to target the students to be your market, your location must at least meters away from a school, library or places where students most likely hang out.
Competition - Maybe you already find a location near a secondary school. If you saw more than 5 competitors, maybe you should consider looking in some other place. However, if you think the market is not yet saturated with internet cafe/shops and there are remaining potential market to be catered, then you may go for it.
Equipment - Here's a list of equipment that you will need:

Desktop - There are some internet cafe/shops started with 5-7 desktops then later on expanded to more PCs. If you are on a limited budget, maybe you can do the same.

NOTE: According to some research, hi-tech looking cafes are most preferred by the customers. You can get this look with flat screen monitors instead of the old style monitors. Instead of speakers, install headsets to each station. Add web cams too!

Printer - Manufacturers have already released 3-in-1 printers where you can scan, photocopy and print documents in one machine. This is expensive, but it will save you a lot of money. It's really worth it.
Air Conditioner - Cafes are usually air conditioned. This makes your customers comfortable. However, you should not leave it running all day. It should be controlled always.
Gadgets for data transferring - this maybe bluetooth, card readers, Infrared etc.
Routers, hubs and cables - these are used for connecting the PCs to each other and to the server. Make sure you install them correctly or it won't work. Seek help from IT

Internet connection - Choose a connection provider that has a good service and support. Since you are operating your business with it, you cannot afford to have a failing connection. If you would experience constant disconnection from the internet, you will lose your customers.
Furniture and fixtures - Aside from tables and chairs for your desktops and customers, you will also need a counter for your server. This counter must be arranged carefully. Make sure that you maximize the use of your space. Equipment on the server station (counter) must allow you to move freely and efficiently to lessen the waiting time for the customers. This will make them feel satisfied with your services.
Softwares - Usual programs you can find on internet cafe/shop are web browsers, office programs, pdf reader, .zip/.rar extractor, LAN and online games, picture viewers. You should also have an internet cafe software on your server and clients for easier management of payments and time.
Signs and Symbols - It's important to make your customers aware of the services you offer. You can do so by putting signs that can be easily seen.
Rules and policies - This is where you set up limitations to your customers. You want to make your cafe/shop as friendly as possible. You should set some rules like "no adult sites", "no shouting" etc. This should show your customers that they are safe in your cafe. However, you should not overdo it. If you're restraining your customers too much, you will lose them.
Protection - make sure your PCs are protected and most importantly, your server. Make sure customers will not be able to change any of the settings of the desktops. See to it that antivirus and other protection are installed so that you can minimize possible damages to your PCs. Since flash drives are widely used, you may want to scan it first before allowing it to be used to your PCs. (Some pointers here!)
Pricing - Customers are highly price sensitive. You should set a price that can draw customers to your cafe without jeopardizing your income. You can look at other cafes' prices as your reference.
Ambiance - you should establish the ambiance of your cafe. You can make it look more comfortable with the use of wallpapers, some not-so-loud music and proper lighting.

There you have it. You may want to start reading some more about these factors. Below, you can find a normal pricing of internet cafe in Manila. (in Peso Php)

Computer Renting (gaming and surfing the internet) 15.00 - 25.00
Printing 3.00 - 5.00 (black)
10.00 - 30.00 (colored)
Scan 10.00 - 15.00
CD Burning (data) 20.00 - 40.00
CD Burning (Audio) 50.00
Data Transfer 20.00 - 40.00

How to earn money with your email

2008-04-13T08:02:00.000-07:00

Get paid to read e-mails! Yeap! There are websites offering this opportunity for those people who are interested on earning extra cash online. Honestly, I am one of those people who spend lots and lots of hours surfing the internet looking for this kind of opportunity.

Although I am not an internet wiz, I am quite careful with websites who are offering pay for every action you take for them (e.g. reading mails, taking surveys, playing online games etc.). I have an experience that I paid so much money to my bank because my credit card was scammed by those kinds of websites (I paid 5,000 a month T_T).

After that terrible experience, I have learned my lesson not to enter my credit card number to any kind of websites who present themselves as legit. However, I’m still interested on earning some extra cash online.

After some nights of researching, I’ve stumbled upon these opportunities where I get to read emails and I get paid for them. I read mails with ads on them and most of the time their products and services are really interesting.

These websites have companies as their clients. These websites help their clients to find target customers for their business. For that, these websites get paid. In short, it is a form of marketing. To get customers to view their ads, websites have constructed a strategy where everyone (websites, companies, customers) will be in a win-win situation. They invite people (consumers/customers) to be a member of their website to view the ads. As they view these ads, these customers get paid. If they like the ads, they will buy the product/services offered by the websites’ clients (sales for companies). This will make the website a marketing partner of their clients (strategic alliances). Here’s the greatest kicker of it. They offer FREE REGISTRATION! That means you do not need to enter your credit card, therefore, no risk of losing anything! You can also cancel your account if you don’t find their offers interesting enough. Isn’t that great?

I’ve posted some banners below. They are all offering FREE REGISTRATION. Just click them and see it for yourself. With this opportunity, you can make an equation like this:

Click = extra cash

Click them now and give it a try!

How to Protect Your PC / Laptop

2008-04-10T01:25:00.000-07:00

Computers and internet connection is now considered as a major necessity by almost everyone. Because of the convenience it offers, internet connected computer is now a must in every household.

Although it is widely used, some still do not know how to take care of their computers.

Have you experienced one or most of the following?

Extremely slow loading
Trying to run an application but it won't open
Inconsistent performance of your PC (sometimes it works okay, sometimes it really sucks)
PC suddenly shuts off
Unstoppable ads popping out while browsing
Settings are modified or changed without your/admin user's consent

These are only some of several common problems encountered by computer users. These problems are usually caused by viruses, spywares, and the like. Well, here are some points that might help you in protecting your PC.

POINT # 1 : Antivirus

If you have not installed any antivirus yet, you should get one now. You can download free versions of antivirus that really works well. Installing an antivirus is NOT ENOUGH. Your antivirus must always be updated and maintained. PC attackers (virus, spywares etc.) are updated daily. If your antivirus is not updated, newly developed PC attackers might (and will) bypass your protection.

Do not forget to schedule full system scan for maintaining your PC. It is also recommended to scan external drives (flash drives) before you open anything from it.

Try this FREE VERSION of antivirus:

AVG Free 7.5 For Windows

POINT # 2 : Clear Everything after browsing

You may not know this but as you browse the net, there are cookies sent to your computer. These cookies are stored in your Temp folder. Unless you delete everything after your browsing, this small files are being piled up in your Temp folder. Cookies consume space in your computer that may cause slow loading of your PC. These small files also help the site you've visited to identify your PC, and worse, they may collect some information from you.

Clearing Temp folder is easy. If you are using Firefox, simply click Options from Tools Menu, then go to Privacy tab, and then click show cookies, then click remove all cookies.

If you are using Internet explorer, Go to the Tools menu, then Internet options, then in the General Tab, click Delete cookies and Delet Files. If you really want to make sure that everything is deleted, click Settings, then view files. If you see there are still left in the Temp folder, select it then press delete.

Another way of cleaning your temp folder is using a small freeware: CCleaner. This small tool clears everything in one click. You can also update it since it is totally FREE. To download CCleaner, click this link.

POINT # 3 : Block Changes from Your Registry

Windows responds to your commands with the registry as its library (of programs/applications and command lists). As you may have noticed, files in a folder, for instance, have file extensions (.doc, .exe, .ppt, .jpg, etc.) These extensions are recognized in the registry. Say you, the user, double clicks filename.doc. Windows will respond by opening filename with MS Word (since .doc extension file calls for MS Word application, as recorded in the library or registry).

When a virus penetrates your computer, it usually targets the registry. It aims to change some keys in your registry, making Windows OS really confused (LOL XD) That's why when you're trying to open a program, Windows is not responding as you expect it to obey properly. Confusing Windows may be avoided by protecting your registry from unnoticed changes. You see, registry must only be changed when you are installing a program. If it is not protected, virus may easily take control of your PC, which leads to PC crash, thus ending the life of your OS and in worst cases, life of your PC.

You may protect the registry by installing Spybot. Spybot covers your registry and blocks EVERYTHING that attempts to penetrate or change the it. When something tries to enter your registry, Spybot will notify you, asking you if you're allowing it or not. If you're not doing any changes, then it suddenly pops out, most probably, it's a virus. However, if you are installing something, for example, you should allow your registry to be modified or to be changed. SpyBot is free and goes with updates. To download Spybot now, click here.

Have fun with your fully protected PC! ;)

How to make money by clicking your mouse

2008-04-08T17:15:00.000-07:00

People surfing the internet get paid by just clicking ads. This may sound to good to be true, thus, makes it appear that this is a scam. But before anything else, you should know that ALL of the following websites I will be referring to you requires NO REGISTRATION FEES. In that way, you will not have to worry of losing your money with those scams. If you're interested in earning extra cash, then, you may try 'em out. When you find it not enough, you may then leave it without losing any cent.

Bux.to is a new innovative, international and FREE English based service that allows advertisers to reach thousands of potential customers by displaying their ad on bux.to website, "Surf Ads" page. Members (with FREE REGISTRATION) receive exact calculated percentage of all advertising revenue BY JUST CLICKING ADS and browsing the ads for 30 seconds. Click here to register now

1-800-Mail links advertisers to consumers. Members get to view ads (of their own interest) and they get paid. Signing up is FREE plus you get $20 bonus. 1-800-Mail has PTC (paid-to-click) and PTR (paid-to-read) with fair payout. Click here to register now

AdverCash All you have to do is click an ad. browse the site (link from the ad) for 30 seconds. That simple! Sign up now for FREE REGISTRATION! For every 20 ads you click, you generate a lottery ticket for FREE! Click here to register now

ClixMania offers FREE MEMBERSHIP and provides list of ads for their member to click and view for seconds. The pay they give to their members may vary, depending on their advertisers. They allow payouts via AlertPay and/E-gold for those who earned $6.99. Click here to register now

Honestbux pays its members by viewing ads for a few seconds. When you earn $10 (not hard to reach), you may request your payment via paypal. Honestbux offers FREE SIGN UP so new members will not have to pay any registration fees to participate. Click here to register now

How to Earn Money with Paid Surveys?

2008-04-08T01:16:00.000-07:00

Earning online. This is the most wanted type of income-generating activity by almost everyone, particularly those people who often stay home and those who have very strict schedules. These people are usually moms, students, self-employed, entrepreneurs and the like.

Believe it or not, there are legits who really pay individuals who participate to their surveys. This is actually a win-win situation for both parties (as long as you are not scammed). With your participation, these researchers would gather their data that they need in their study. On the other hand, you end up earning some extra cash.

Of course, this is not a "quick-get-rich" program. You have to be patient on answering multiple surveys before you gain some money. However, there are some cases that people really make a living out of paid surveys.

Some of these paid surveys ask for registration fee. That means if you don't have extra bucks to give them, you cannot participate. To some, paying registration fees is already risky for the fear of getting scammed. Due to this refusal, some conducting paid surveys made their registration free of charge. In this way, people won't be hesitating to try out the surveys. When they actually get the pay, they would likely continue and be more confident with their membership. they would probably consider investing some money to it.

There are countless websites that advertise these paid surveys. Most of these surveys are available only to US citizens. But there are still offering surveys looking for international respondents. Are you interested? I could share you some links to these paid online surveys. Check the links below:

How to Bake Chocolate Crinkles

2008-04-08T01:10:00.000-07:00

Everybody loves sweets. This fact made me try out this idea for fun and at the same time for extra cash. With a very low capitalization, friends as my target market, and an old oven, I started earning money from these sweet delights.

You probably think this is hard. In fairness with you, a actually thought it was. But then, when I tried it, it's so easy to do, and at same time, it's fun.

There are only 4 stages in this activity:

Gather all that you need
Start baking! (FUN PART!!)
Packaging (FUN PART!! 2)
Free tasting - then Selling them to your friends

I'll try to guide you with each stage. You really do not need to get nervous because this is REALLY FUN!

Stage One: Gather all that you need

Here's a checklist that you will be needing: (Chocolate Crinkles) yeilds to 3 dozens

3/4 cup oil
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 1/4 cups cocoa powder
2 teaspoons vanilla
3 cups Gold Medal all-purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoon salt
Confectioners' sugar

You will also need:

Bowl
spatula for mixing ingredients
baking sheets
oven

Stage Two: Start Baking

After gathering all that you need, the next thing to do is to preheat your oven to 350°F and prepare your baking sheets by brushing a little shortening (avoid using butter/margarine because they easily burn and produces dark crusts).

So, let's get started. The procedure is very simple.

All you have to do is to combine all the ingredients in a bowl until they are well-blended.
With the dough you made from no. 1, form 1-inch-sized balls.
Roll in confectioners' sugar then put them on the baking sheets.
Bake until cookie cracks on top. DO NOT OVERBAKE. Center should still be soft
After baking, let the cookies cool down (not in the refrigerator, of course XD)

Stage 3: Packaging

Packaging and labeling is a form of marketing strategy. With this strategy, you can create good impressions to your target market. In addition to this, it also attract the customer's attention.

You can pack your cookies in various ideas. The only thing to remember is to make sure that your container is safe for food storage. This is a MUST. You can't sell them if your cookies are not safe to eat. Two factors should be considered in this stage: Food safety and its freshness. Your packaging should address these two.

Always remember: Cookies should be kept in an air-tight container. This will preserve your cookies freshness. :)

Here are some ideas for packaging:

Stage Four: Free Tasting and Selling Your Cookies

Free tasting is also a form of marketing strategy. It is almost the same with product trial. In this activity, you create your market. This is the stage where you invite your customers to try your cookies. If they like your product, they would definitely consider buying some of your cookies!

Since you are a beginner, I would suggest to conduct your free taste to your relatives and friends. They are your first target market. With this, they can actually suggest more ideas for you to improve your baking, packaging, pricing and other areas that would probably need improvement. However, if they love your cookies, they would most likely refer you to their friends and other relatives. That is what we call exposure.

In pricing, consider the fact that you're new to the industry. Price is always a factor. If your cookies are going to be too expensive, people would refuse buying them. Make sure you would earn some profits and at the same time, lure your customers with it.

You can do this activity with your free time. Maybe you can schedule this activity for seasons that would make people buy your cookies as gifts for their friends and love ones.

Happy baking!!!

How to Download Media Files

2008-04-07T23:52:00.000-07:00

Most internet surfers enjoy the chance of listening to their favorite music, watching interesting videos and getting ideas from catchy pictures. This is only a part of what internet can offer us. Most people call it file sharing.

Maybe most of you already know how to do it, but I bet there are still some in need of this guide.

I want to share with you the way I download music and videos from the internet. I hope you'd learn something from this.

Downloading Steps:

Use Firefox browser. Most of internet surfers now prefer Firefox than Internet Explorer. From my experience, it loads faster and it is more convenient to use.
Download and install 'download helper' add on to Firefox. To do it now, click here.
After installing the add on, you will have to restart Firefox. You will now notice a small icon located at the right side of you're address bar. It looks like this:
Now, go to you're site where you love listen your favorite music. In this tutorial, we will use www.imeem.com
While you are listening to the music, you will notice that the icon beside your address bar (shown above) is in motion, and it is already colored. It looks like this:
You will also notice a small drop down arrow, right beside the icon (shown above). Click it, and you will see a file named something like -zydeBOCftz391EhZAmquPBy... That is the song we're currently listening to. That is the file we would like to download. :p As you click to this filename, download window from Firefox will pop up and download the song.

NOTE: Downloading completes as the buffing finishes. You should not leave the page unless it has already finished downloading. You may, however, open another window (not tab) of Firefox browser to surf the net while you wait for it to be complete.
NOTE: Downloaded files are in .flv format.

After downloading it, you may want to convert it to another format since .flv files are not playable to some players (iPod, mp3 players, etc.) There are free converters online. You may use them to avoid installation to your desktop. To try one, click here.

If you want to keep a free media converter for future use, SUPER converter works well. Click here to download.

Thats it! You're now done! This process also works for downloading media files from youtube, myspace, friendster, multiply, you name it. So, try it now! ;p