Book Reviews and Money Saving Tips

Free is a byword on this blog. I’m always looking for good free stuff. My Win7 system is sluggish so I went to ZD.net Downloads to see what was available as a Free download for system optimization. System Optimize Expert came up when I filtered for Windows and Free. Its description sounded good so I downloaded and installed it. I ran Scan and soon as I ran it a pop-up for their Pro version popped up. Seconds after I started the scan System Optimize Expert reported that I had hundreds of problems and did I want to fix them? I replied affirmatively and it said, the free version only fixes 5 problems, did I want to upgrade to the Pro version. I clicked cancel, went to Control Panel and uninstalled the program. Frankly I don’t care if it is accurate or not, the practice of claiming to be free and then finding some outrageous number of issues that can only be fixed by upgrading seems highly suspicious. I might add that ZD.net should more accurately evaluate if a download truly...

I have an eReader from Augen.  It cost $89.00 at Kmart.   It is a bit quirky regarding some downloads but for the most part it works as an eReader.   There is no, make that NO technical support from Augen.   It does have a color screen that is NOT touch.  I have loaded in some family photos and music.   I can read and listen to music.   I can surf the web at speeds akin to my old 56k modem.   It is not a great eReader but it was cheap. After much research I decided that the Nook was worth looking at.   It has a color touch screen, supports Flash and WIFI surfing.   From my reading it seemed like it is a thinly disguised iPad want-to-be.   The price compared to any other name brand tablet is ridiculously cheap, $249.00.   I have had a craving for a tablet ever since my dearly beloved sister’s two week visit and her insidious purchase of an iPad2.   I don’t...

How is that for a start.   I have the Augen eBook.   I reviewed it here last July.  Overall it is a good product for the money but you do get what you pay for.   In this case that is a non-existent technical support department.   The reader has not worked well with DRM books from the start.  DRM is digital rights management and it is a protection scheme by the powers who dictate that kind of thing.  If you google it you will find many articles on “cracks” for DRM.  It is obvious I am not the only one that finds DRM annoying and I am an author.   The problem is that DRM causes books to behave badly.   In my case, DRM handling by Augen means periodically dropping lines of the story.   Since I review books on Pick of the Literate and Azure Dwarf’s Horde of SciFi and Fantasy I get a lot of books protected by DRM.   Dropping lines can have an impact on the plot and the enjoyment of...

Nutone HD80NT Exhaust Fan Incorrectly Rated for Continuous Operation I bought this exhaust fan from Home Depot at a price of $94 plus tax.   It wasn’t the most expensive exhaust fan they had but there were a whole boatload a lot cheaper.   I bought this was expressly because it was the only one I found that stated clearly on the box that it was rated for continuous operation.  NOT! From the Nutone Web Site Model HD80NT  80 CFM Heavy Duty Fan •          80 CFM, 2.5 Sones •          Totally enclosed motor design for continuous operation. After installing it which was a total pain as it was replacing an existing fan but that is another whole story, it ran for a whopping three days before is started making straining noises.   I turned it off and let it sit for 8 hours and turned it back on, it ran for a day and started making noises again.   I s...

Recently I purchased a car on the Internet.    I have never purchased a car before that I had not driven or seen.    It was a first time experience.   I wanted a car of a specific color.    My local dealer could not find that color.   He kept trying to talk me into other colors to no avail. I did discover that you can order a Porsche or Audi from the factory in a custom color.   It will cost approximately $2500.00 over the best price you get from the dealer.    $2500.00 is a bargain considering it is a minimum of $5000.00 to get a new car painted by a quality body shop.   My local quality body shop did not want to do it.   Tom was concerned about door jams, windshields, under hoods, trunks etc.    Both dealers I approached wanted $20,000.00 to paint a new car, which to my mind, just meant they didn’t want to do it.   Therefore I was on a quest to find the specific color I wanted.    I...

Recently I experienced a technological fright fest. Leaving our condo, my friend and I each engaged our GPSs. Since we were in the same car, we planned on going to the same destination. We hit the main highway and his GPS said, “turn right” and mine said, “turn left”. Since he was driving, we turned right. My GPS said, ‘take a U turn at the first opportunity”. It proceeded to get worse. Enduring the conflicting driving instructions for a few minutes, the technologically distrustful wives entered the fray with the suggestion we look at a map, imagine that? A paper map is hardly a substitute for a technologically superior GPS or the savvy user thereof. Then, the technologically distrustful, wives suggested looking at the road signs. Gasp, that is for the gadget challenged unwashed masses use, not for the scientifically superior gadget freaks. If you are married you are able to predict the next sentence. While protecting our GPSs from the wrath of wives, we actually listened to the...

A guest post by author Donna Reish. With the ever looming economic recession weighing down our spirits (but not our wallets), money is a seemingly endless concern. In response to this economic slump, frugality has become somewhat of a trend. Scouring through the internet we can find numerous tips and tricks for saving money. While these tricks have the potential to be extremely helpful, rarely do we stick to them. All too often, we discover a great new way to save a few bucks, try it out, and then drop it. What we really need are tools aimed towards frugal living. While iPhones and Smartphones may cost a small fortune, their money saving potential may prove worth the initial expense. Try these four fabulous apps to help you save and manage your money. The first step to being frugal is learning to properly manage your money. Thankfully your iPhone or Smartphone offers dozens upon dozens of tools to help you keep track of your accounts and expenses. Two of the most popular mo...

Comcast recently announced several new additions to their on-demand choices.   Bones, Gray’s Anatomy, Private Practice and others were added to on-demand.  Sounds great doesn’t it? Wrong, there appears to be roughly twice as many commercials on-demand as there are on broadcast.   On-demand has sunk to new and even lower standards.   Comcast, you are guaranteed to put new life into TIVO sales.   DVR use will double except my guess is that using Comcast’s DVR will mean more commercials.   Oh, and I saved the best for last.   Comcast disabled the fast forward function so you can’t even fast forward through the commercials.    Nice move Comcast!   Disabling fast forward really endeared me to your service. Comcast are your intentions to aggressively drive your users to FIOS or Direct TV? I watched Bones tonight on-demand and that will be the last time I use on-demand to watch Bones. ...