I will try to merge this blog with the comic, so none of the posts are lost. But please copy any articles or links that you would like to keep, just in case.

Thank you for reading Witchy Tech! If you have any techie questions, go ahead and send them anyway! Look for answers or blog posts in the blog attached to the comic.

~Samantha

I went to the link provided me in the invitation email, put in my zip code and tried to find an available number.. no number available. Okay.. it says in the help that zip codes are restrictive, so put in your area code instead. I put in my area code and… NO NUMBERS IN MY AREA CODE! ARRGH!

I suppose I will have to wait and read the reviews of other folks. Did you get an invitation?  Try it out and let me know what you think! If you would LIKE an invite, SIGN UP HERE ON GOOGLE and see what happens.

If you just want more information on Google Voice, check out this video provided by Google.

Energy expenditure during active video game play is comparable to moderate-intensity walking. Thus, for children who spend considerable time playing electronic screen games for entertainment, physically active games seem to be a safe, fun, and valuable means of promoting energy expenditure.

“Comparable to moderate intensity walking” sounds like it would be good for adults, too! This is marvelous for me as it is WAY too hot here in Texas to get out and move around. For those of you in the chilly climes of the north, such an indoor activity might be welcome in the middle of winter.

I really love it when things that are fun are good for you. Later, taters! Going to play some Wii games now!

For more details on the study: American Academy of Pediatrics.

Yes, I have asked them to stop. So have others…but they are addicted.  It wouldn’t be so bad if it was all in good fun, but there are other things involved.  Not only some basic “netiquette” but some spam prevention and corporate image protection! Yes, it’s true! Read on for more:

If you MUST forward emails (and I really don’t think you MUST.. is someone holding a gun to your head FORCING you to do it?!?):

• Please delete ALL previous email addresses, information and comments when forwarding email.
• When emailing more than one person, keep email addresses private by using the BCC (“blind carbon copy”) feature of your email program. If you need others to know who you sent it to, type CC and a list of names at the bottom of your email to keep addresses private.

Not only is this polite (conversely, not doing so is RUDE), but it could prevent some bad things from happening:

1. If anyone’s email is a work address, the company name or the recipient’s professional name could be associated with the dirty joke or political bent or whatever is the content of the email.  Remember, we have trusted YOU with our private email address, not your friends. Would you want to risk your friend’s business reputation?

2. Every forwarded email is a spam harvester’s bonanza of valid email addresses. Many email services automatically add names to your address book.. including spammers. Just hitting “forward to address book” can include a spammer. Even if your email program does not do this, or you only forwarded the email to certain people, THEY might “forward to address book.”  Remember, we have trusted YOU with our private email address, not your friends.

(Yes that was worth bolding twice. There are close family members who I have only given the email address I use for websites/newsletters/junk because they can’t be trusted with a private one.)

3. NEVER forward any of those “scare” emails.. the ones saying “there’s a virus going around and here’s how to get rid of it…” or “eating cheese causes death…” or whatever current scare is going around. NEVER do anything to your computer that you are told to do in an email.

Check out the following articles:

CC’ing Your Company’s Image

E-mail Security Tip: Forward Responsibly

Note in that last article the first section is “Willing to receive:” : Make sure your recipient WANTS your forwarded emails.

If someone asks you not to be included on your forward or mailing list, please don’t be offended.  This doesn’t mean we don’t want to hear from YOU, it means we don’t want any more JUNK.  Surely, you can drop us a line and let us know what’s going on in your life without including jokes, videos, scare mail, etc., can’t you? You can’t say that you think we’ll be interested in those if we specifically ask you not to send them.

HERE ARE MY PREFERENCES:

For the record, I DO NOT WANT any forwarded emails or articles. I do not want any videos, or .pdf or any kinds of files in my inbox unless we have agreed in advance. If you think there is something I would be interested in, send me a LINK to where I can find it online…. and JUST me.  Yes, I’m talking to YOU.

DO NOT put my email address in ANY forwarded emails. I don’t care if it’s all family or all people YOU know, THEY may not know not to forward my address anywhere.

DO NOT ASSUME that I agree with your political or religious views and that it’s okay to send me stuff in this regard. I do not want it. These are deleted immediately. Nothing that comes to me in an email is going to change my mind, for one thing. And for another, I don’t like being “grouped” with the rest of your cronies.

I delete anything with videos or other files attached.  Don’t even bother to send them. There are tons of services to which you can upload video, .pdf or other files.  Upload them and send a LINK.  (but first check around.. I have not received one forwarded video or .pdf that I didn’t also find already up on YouTube, google, or some other website.)  Recieving these files in my inbox (and waiting for them to upload to my computer) irritates me and puts you on my !@#$ list for the day.

I love getting emails that are actual communication from friends and family.  When folks send me links and images related to a conversation we’ve been having (either in real life, on a forum or blog, or through the email), I am thrilled.  But when the conversation is over, I DO NOT WANT TO BE ON YOUR MAILING LIST.

What are your preferences? Are you a constant forwarder? Are people still keeping you on their forward list?

I have mentioned memory card readers before, but this is one I specifically carry around for loading my images to OTHER people’s computers! That’s right… when we visit family and friends and there are lots of pictures being taken, someone always says, “OH! Let me have a copy of that!”

This is also a great alternative to using your camera cord! If you have lost your camera cord, this would be a very inexpensive alternative to getting a new cord… at least initially… I suspect these can burn out pretty quickly.

Here are some memory card readers on Amazon.com. Some of them are less than a dollar. I got mine at my local WalMart for $9. Hmmm… I feel cheated!

BEFORE YOU BUY: Be sure that the reader fits YOUR SIZE memory card. If you aren’t sure of what kind of memory card you have, take it out of the camera and look at the writing. They all have the type of card printed directly on them. If it has rubbed off, look up your camera online and see what kind of memory card it reads.

This is a practical way to prolong the life of a laptop, especially if all you need is a web browser/email program. This may also make buying a 2nd-hand laptop a bit more appealing. I don’t recommend buying a 2nd hand laptop if you want to do MORE than browse the internet, though. Get one that is more than sufficient for your needs if you can! But some of us just want some freedom from the indoors and the DESK! Which is what prompted Trent to dig a laptop out of the closet and make it work for him (and save a dollar… The Simple Dollar blog isn’t about depriving yourself of things you want to save money, it’s about getting the things you WANT without spending more than you HAVE to and pocketing the rest.)

Here is his explanation on Social Media.  You can see why it is such a power house these days.

Mr. Wonderful thought that since I have been working on the computer more, especially for art, I needed a professional-sized, high-resolution monitor.  Being a professional, he would know! So I gave in.

WOW, what a difference.  I am now looking at you through a HUGE monitor.  (A Hewlett Packard model  HPw2408h, if you want to know.) I love it. The color is so rich and clear and the desk area is so wide, I can have several windows open and usable at once! No minimizing!

But then we played some sound through the built-in speakers.. it was AWFUL.  Remember those old transistor radio speakers?  Sounded like that.. very tinny.  I am not a music type person, so after listening for a while, I got used to it.. but those first 10 minutes or so were just terrible. I decided that if *I* noticed them, they must be pretty awful.

When I mentioned this to hubby, he asked if I wanted to take back the monitor.  I told him no.. I got the monitor primarily to look at,  not listen to so this would do… maybe just get some nice speakers.  Well, he came home last night with some *serioius* computer speakers.  (Altec Lansing VS2421 for those of you taking notes.)

These things have a subwoofer box that goes under the desk, the left and right speakers up on stands (for free and clear sound) and a controller that sits here on the desk for power, volume, treble control, aux input (for listening to mp3 player through speakers!), headphone jack and a built in mic for chatting or recording.

I have to say, I am very pleasesd with the whole set up.. monitor and speakers.  Sitting here computing, drawing and listening to videos and music is a much better experience.  Thank you, honey!

All you need is an “adaptor”…something to interpret a wireless signal into something that the computer can read. These are called “wireless adaptors” or more recently, “dongles.”  Ideally, you want one you can plug into the USB port of your computer.  Depending on the type of adaptor you choose,  a wireless adaptor can cost anywhere from $10 to $30.  The biggest difference in brands seems to be sensitivity and range, so read packaging or catalog descriptions carefully to compare.

The main thing you need to know before you go out the door is what kind of wireless signal does your computer need to support?

• If you are hooking up your desk computer to the wireless network, look at the router (not the modem)… printed somewhere on there (or in the paperwork) is the type of signal it broadcasts. (Mine is “Wireless-N” and is printed on a sticker on the bottom of the router.)
• If you are adding a wireless peripheral to your computer, like a wireless keyboard or wireless headphones, look on the box or paperwork for that device. (I am adding a wireless graphic pad to my desktop computer, which uses a “bluetooth” signal.)

After you have purchased your adaptor, installation is very simple.  They all come with a disk of “drivers” (the software for the adaptor) and a quick start guide.  Just follow the directions and you will be set up for wireless computing in a jiffy!

This is my first experience with a touch screen.  I feel the need to carry lens wipes with me all the time! The phone looks nice and sleek, though and I love using it, smudges and all.

In order to update our phones, we had to sign up for a new calling plan.  I finally have free texting (my  plan was so old, they had to call corporate to activate the upgrade).  Texting is easy because not only can I do it from the phone keys, but I can do it from a QWERTY keyboard at the touch of a button (I say button, but it’s just the smooth screen, of course.)  I have to pay close attention, though… it’s easy to hit the wrong key.  It’s no fault of the phone, I’m just used to FEELING the keys so I have to watch carefully. My daughter laughs that my texts can come in two parts since I sometimes hit the “send”  button when I mean to hit the space key.

The most interesting thing is that this phone picks up the mobile TV signal! The phone has a little antennae built in that I can extend, but I usually don’t need it if I’m in town.  I can watch news and entertainment channels directly from my phone. While this is handy when waiting in the school parking lot for the kids, I don’t think it’s quite worth the extra $15/month on my cell phone bill.

The LG Vu has a camera and internet access, plus it takes a microSD card for additional storage.  There is a charge for sending and receiving stuff over the internet, so I won’t be using those features that much, but it will be very handy on long road trips.

I do have a blue tooth headset with it and like it a lot, but I prefer to use the speaker phone feature.  The sound is nice and clear on both ends.

I have used this phone for a couple of weeks now and would not hesitate to recommend it to anyone who wants an updated, nicely featured phone.

P.S.  Now that I have free texting, I can Twitter on the go!  If you twitter, feel free to Follow Me.