Breaking Even

Interview With Internet Book Promoter Alexis James

I 'met' Alexis online as someone promoting books on behalf of authors. My question was "Wow, you can actually make money helping authors promote books online?" Alexis agreed to elaborate for me and here are some of her answers about how she makes it work.

Promoting a book anytime soon, or wonder how social media types make money online? Read on.

1. Do you work for a company or do you work for yourself?
I work for myself (well, for my clients!) part-time (through my company, www.10thFloorPR.com), and I work for an author/public speaker/counselor/life coach part time (www.maryannelive.com). Though I guess I'm technically still self-employed because I still pay all my taxes myself :-)

2. Do you promote books full time or is that just part of your job?
I do web-based publicity and marketing - or social media strategy, whatever you want to call it! - which includes pretty much anything and everything you can think of. i publicize books, grow social media networks, facilitate blog exchanges, develop contact lists, market events through social media channels, integrate video clips, podcasts, blogs, articles, etc. etc. through multiple online venues, and pursue any number of web-based publicity opportunities to gain exposure.

Beyond that, I do a couple random things here and there: I am a content editor for a start-up travel site (www.valueweekly.com), I blog and write articles for several websites, and I (attempt to) maintain my own blog :-) (www.alexisinthecity.com).

3. How is promoting books online different then promoting other things?
I've been working with authors and promoting books for almost as long as I've been in the web publicity game, so I'm not sure how thoroughly I can answer that!

What I can say is that I've found that the ideal situation with book promotion online is to have an amazing "brand" to go along with it. Some people who aren't as tuned in to the web 2.0 world want you to do that all for them, along with promoting the book! It can be done, but it's much more difficult, with much less dazzling results - and it takes a lot longer! An author doesn't have to have an established, highly frequented online presence - that's what i'm here for! - but when the foundation is already in place it makes things a lot easier.

4. Let's say I've written a book and want to hire someone like you to promote it. What's one piece of advice you'd give me?
Find someone who actually cares about your message. I may be shooting myself in the foot by saying this - because - I'll be honest - I've had clients I've taken on just for the money! - But both people will get so much more out of a partnership where there's an understanding of the underlying work and message of the book/author/persona, etc. I can say that from experience :-)

And ... don't expect results RIGHT AWAY. I've had people start out on a shoestring budget and then cut me out altogether because they weren't selling books. Of course, as an author, the goal is to sell books, but you can't sell books without building a presence and that just takes time - in the online world and in the offline world! If you don't have the time/money/patience to invest in a long-term social media strategy, you're probably better off either saving that money or putting it toward another type of publicity.

5. How did you get started doing this?
I always tell people - what I do now wasn't even a "thing" when I was in college (and it hasn't been THAT LONG since I was in college :-). The online world has blow up FAST and I guess I was in the right place at the right time.

My degree is in journalism, my background is in TV, specifically as a news producer. I started out at network affiliates (ABC, CBS, etc), and when it was clear that industry was dying, I moved over to internet/cable TV (current.com). When that wasn't super stimulating, I went to work for myself, not really sure what I was doing, where I was going, how I wanted things to pan out - only that I was tired of having a "real job," and didnt want to punch a clock any more.

I started out taking any type of relatively related consulting work I could get. I did a lot of article writing, blogging, ghost blogging, website publicity, brand evangelizing, content management, and website content writing etc.

It just so happened I knew a guy who had a small, independent publishing company - and he also did traditional marketing - and was looking for someone to help out on the web side of things. I began working with him and his clients developing their online marketing and publicity strategy (he's one of the people I still work with!), and that helped give me the experience to land the job with Maryanne (the author whose book she is currently promoting).

Plus - I live in silicon valley and have always been pretty plugged into to web 2.0 trends - so I like to think that gives me a bit of an edge :-)

Wednesday Spotlight With Multimedia Artist Randy Devost

There are not many people you can say you've been friends with for over 15 years, especially when you are in your mid twenties. I've known Randy since we were 14. He's always been an artist and our lives have always intersected in interesting ways. Randy is, like me, super into online media (his thesis is on the subject) and I really wanted to interview him for this last Holy Technology! post. I always learn something from Randy Devost.

1. How many hours a day do you spend online? What online pursuit seems to take up the most of your time?

I think if someone was secretly following me around during the day they would see that I'm online an average of 3 or 4 hours a day. I think that is important because personally I feel like I'm online ALL the time. In reality, I'm often on the go and don't own a mobile device. The online pursuit that takes up most of my time would have to be emails and messaging people. The other would be keeping up with culture, news and other info through video, blog, and other info sharing devices and services.
 
2. What are three websites you couldn't live without (professionally)?

Gmail (communication), Google Calendar (coordination), and perhaps LinkedIn (networking)

3. What are three websites you couldn't live without (personally)?

Versiontracker.com (software info), Torrentz.com (file sharing), Facebook.com (what's this?)

4. You live in Quebec yet it seems in my online travels that most websites I stumble upon are in English. Do you think the internet and in particular social media are as accessible to people who speak little or no English?

I think what your asking is called "localization" or making websites multilingual. Personally, I do think that the U.S. is the leader in website development. I use an interesting Firefox add-on called "Flagfox" that allows me to see where a website is coming from. 90 percent of the time a little U.S. flag appears. However, all the major websites that have become extremely popular do cater to non-English speakers. Often, these websites are designed to automatically recognize the user's IP address and set the language settings. I think Americans don't always realize this because they constantly swim in a pool of English-based media generated from within their own country. I work directly in the language industry and you would be flabbergasted by the efforts made to make websites and applications multilingual. In my opinion, its absolutely necessary and has to be considered if companies hope to stay afloat in today's international market.

5. As an artist who works with digital images, do you think artists like yourself should get credit for these images? I guess maybe the right question would be are digital photographs art?

I do think digital photographs can be art. I think photography can be art too. Although, this is an easy thing for me to say. Artists have spent lifetimes trying to prove that photography and now digital photography can be art. It's easy for me to just glean their efforts. Many artists and professionals I studied with at the Maryland Institute College of art were very wrapped up in this discursive subject. They were very passionate and almost obsessed with the debate of the digital image.

Personally, as an artist I'm a bit of a heavy-handed deconstructionist. Video, film, photography, screen media, projections... its all light to me! I enjoy thinking about photography's relation to light and how that links it to all kinds of crazy fields people wouldn't relate. For example, in neurological science they are studying how light effects the brain and our emotions. They are also looking at how exactly our eyes see. In media theory there is something about light being pure information. These types of thoughts really illuminate me as an artist.

What doesn't are more Marxist/economic concerns in art theory. Perhaps I'm just bitter and socially unvalidated, but to me copyright and authorship are the concerns of capitalists. We don't own light, the universe does. I view the concerns of copyright and authorship in a much less noble manner than lets say a poet whose preoccupations grapple with the vast nature of the human spirit.

I think the avant-garde digital photographers of today SHOULD craft their work for appropriation. The more the photos can be taken, altered and used on a massive scale the better in my opinion. It's the neo-tribal online colaborative mentality of today. Come on, get with it. 

6. How has online culture influenced you as an artist? As a member of society?

I think the internet has always existed as a media that allows for anonymous interaction with other people who share common interests and beliefs. It is a very liberating and important media that is continuing to transform the way our culture interacts meaningfully with eachother. I particularly enjoy the aspects of group think and collective intelligence that has emerged out of it. Again, I think there is a new society forming online and those who are vested in this may feel less attached to the old ideas of being born into a certain nationality or culture.

7. I'd love to hear about some tech-related projects you're working on.

The only thing probably worth mentioning is that I'm doing a master's thesis on how and why we go about collecting information online through Social Bookmarking Services (bookmarks, favorites, etc.).

8. I like to give people I interview a chance to ask themselves a question they wish I would have asked and then answer it. Feel free....

What's your three favorite RSS feeds right now? Lolcats photos, Chris Crocker videos, and Breaking Even posts. ;-)

I didn't pay him to say that last one, I swear!

Technology In Education: A Discussion With Jim Burke

Holy Technology! week continues...

One of the most technological people I know is someone who is actually doing a lot with education. Jim Burke is the Western Maine MLTI Mentor/Coach, a position he's held for the past 4 years. He blogs about technology and education at Learning In Maine. Previous to that he was a district-wide technology integrator for 2 years. And prior to that, he was in the trenches a classroom teacher for 32 years in the Oxford Hills School District.

Jim lives in the village of West Paris, within walking distance to the general store. He two grown daughters; Jessica, a physician in Chapel Hill, North Carolina; and Melissa, a stable manager at Iron Spring Farms in Pennsylvania. When not immersed in technology, he enjoy gardening, community theater, carpentry, fishing, and being a jack-of-all-trades at my local church.

I continue to be interested in education and to think about how technology is changing it.

Your blog Learning In Maine really tackles technology in education in such a community way that I don't often run into online. How much time do you spend keeping it going? 
I think community is important, Nicole, and physical community has certainly taken a hit during my lifetime. I'm not sure online communities replace that, but they seem to be what is available and  certainly do open up the world in ways that I couldn't have imagined 20 years ago.  The concept of the LIM blog was to have a place where many writers would share their thoughts and suggestions on learning, with a focus on Maine.  While passionate writers like yourself and several others have made wonderful contributions, I've been hoping many more would jump in.  Be that as it may, I've certainly enjoyed testing my own ideas and finding connections with so many others. 

I think you would agree that to grow a site, you have to  post often. I average about a post a day.  Sometimes that translates into several a day.  Sometimes when very busy with other work, I might miss several days.  Nevertheless, it is important to try to keep it current.  Again, the idea is to connect people with what is happening statewide and beyond.

What's one technology that teachers you work with seem to be really embracing? 
I firmly believe that a tool used by busy teachers needs to be simple and user-friendly.  There are many of them out there!  When the tool gets in the way of learning, then it should be reconsidered.  Many teachers are now using wikis to open an online presence.  Many are using  online web 2.0 apps such as Voicethread.  I encourage the use of Google apps even though many schools still block those sites.Teachers are pragmatic . . . they'll use tools that they can depend on.

If you could make every teacher and student try something out, technologywise, something that you think would change their lives, what would it be?
Gosh, Nicole, there are so many possibilities.  There are some extremely powerful tools on the MLTI laptops, such as GarageBand, Sketch-Up Pro, and iMovie.  As far as online tools, my personal favorite at this moment is the Ning make-your-own social network.  I think it could be a "killer-app" for the classroom!  I certainly would be making use of it if I were still a classroom teacher.

Some older teachers must be reluctant to use technology in their classrooms. What are some ways you help them come around?
There has to be a good reason to use a new technology.  It has to serve a purpose, be dependable and engage the teacher and students.  Like just about anything else in education, it is important to connect at a personal level.  In my work with teachers, that is what I try to do.

What do you see as the next big thing in technology and education?
I'm not much of a prognosticator, Nicole.  Lots of magic out there.  I see incredible developments almost every day.  I see the multi-touch tablet notebook/netbook to have great possibilities.  Imagine being able to sculpt the screen.  Seems to me that adds a whole new level of participation.  The semantic web, what some call web 3.0, will certainly take us to a new level as well.

Will we become enslaved by technology or empowered by it?
This question occupies my thoughts perhaps more than it should.  Perhaps it is because of my age, but I have a love/hate relationship with technology. Where is it taking us?  I think we all need to keep asking questions and not just accept blindly what comes down the road. Neil Postman explained better than I can in "Informing Ourselves to Death" http://www.frostbytes.com/~jimf/informing.html and Jason Ohler gives us some sub-questions to ask http://www.jasonohler.com/resources/handouts.cfm.

Adventures In (Free) Online Dating

A friend asked me last week about being ready to date again and to be honest, I don't think I really am. I do know someone, however, who's really putting herself out there in an admirable way on free online dating sites.

Because I want her to be candid with her answers, I'm interviewing her anonymously.

Which dating sites are you using?
Match, Yahoo Personal, PlentyofFish, OKCupid, DowntoEarth

Which one is working out best for you?
PlentyofFish has been good, but once I was on that it seemed that Match started to work too.

Have you ever used any of the pay sites before (like Match, eHarmony, etc.)?
I am on both Yahoo Personals and Match, mostly because i was unaware of the newer free sites. A few years back when I was last single I used Match so that's what I knew about. There is also LavaLife but that site is not a good for this part of the country.

How do the free sites compare?
I like them, I actually think that I like them better. But when I was online earlier today I found out that PlentyofFish has a paid aspect too.... called a Certified Member. Paying to have your membership prominently displayed can help get people's attention (it works like any featured listing).

What are some "green lights" that you're looking for when you see a profile? Green Lights include people who state that they have what I am looking for. Some big things are people who I find attractive, age, location, family, wants children, non-smoker, and people with the similar interests.

What about "red flags"?
Smokers, people with partial nudity in photos, people who don't want kids, people with no photos.

What advice would you give to someone who's considering online dating?
Do IT! its a good way to get to meet people. Be open to meeting people. If someone asks you out and you are somewhat interested.... GO! If you are uncomfortable meeting someone go to a place you are comfortable, like your favorite restaurant or coffee shop where you know people and meet for lunch during a work day. This way you can keep it short and simple, and if you click then make plans to meet again.

Ah, technology, making our lives more interesting everyday!

Shameless Promotion: The Long Weekend Edition

My fourth post in this week's special Holy Technology! series.

Ah, long weekends. They sure do sound like fun but they involve a lot of preparation.

I'm headed northward skiing with a few friends (and seeing some family and friends at the same time) and since I am headed out tomorrow, I've had lots to do tonight (in addition to my usual French class). So pardon me while I have a glass of wine and share a few cool technology-related links in a relaxed fashion:

"I Married The Eiffel Tower"
Got to love the top ten Google search terms. I don't usually lead with the random but I couldn't resist this time. I saw this was the top term earlier this week and had to click on it. I was preparing for something lame but it was an interesting article about why people feel attachments to and have relationships with inanimate objects.

Some Funny Software Development Quotes
One of my coworkers found this site and it's actually pretty funny, even if you're lowish tech like me. Among my favorites: “A computer lets you make more mistakes faster than any other invention in human history, with the possible exceptions of handguns and tequila.” - Mitch Ratcliffe
(Don't just read the thirteen quotes, the comments are pretty great too.)

How To Build Your Own Treadmill Desk for $40
If I didn't live in 220 square feet of space, I would totally consider doing this. Actually, I obsessively researched it for a couple days but couldn't figure out a way to make it work. Here's the best link I found for those of us who can't pay $1,000+ for a desk. And interesting idea at the very least!

Unclutterer reminds us all of RSS readers
If you don't know what an RSS reader is and you have to keep track of more then a couple websites, you should give them a shot. Seriously. They'll change your life if you let them.

Leave it to the New York Times to give everyone something to talk about, this time...
Managing your email and Sex, Lies, and Photoshop (ladies, watch this video. You'll feel a lot better about fashion magazines!)

And in case you really want to feel behind the ball, Maine second graders know how to Twitter. *Gulp*

Stay tuned tomorrow and Saturday from some cool insights into the world of digital art and online dating from some of my very smart friends...

Cell Phone Etiquette

The third post of my Holy Technology! series this week only.

So I once went on a date with a guy a few years ago and he stuck his cell phone on the table... with it still being on. It was like I was on a date with both of them. Yikes.

It was in part this need of constantly being connected (at least some people) that made me hold out on getting a cell phone for so long. Then I sat next to a guy on the plane to Vegas last year and half of our 5 hours of conversation was on the subject of cell phones and what they meant to our society. He convinced me I was being an old fashioned ninny (not his words) and I finally broke down and got one.

I now love to send little text messages to my friends and calling them in spare moments when I know they're free too. But may I put a few rules out there that I think everyone should follow?

1) Turn off your cell phone whenever you want to give your undivided attention to someone or something, whether it is your date or the meeting you are attending.

2) Give anyone who acts annoyed about not being able to reach you instantly a reality check.

3) If you have to have a more then two minute conversation, please duck somewhere private. Oh, and not the bathroom.

4) Chuck out all these rules if you are, say, an emergency room doctor or waiting for an organ donation.

Please share any additional personal rules you have or even funny situations you've experienced related to cell phone manners (or lack thereof).

Way more rules about cell phones to forward to clueless friends...

How Friendly Do You Get Online?

The second post of my Holy Technology! series this week only.

I'm always happy when I hear from far-flung friends and they say that visiting my blog is like talking to me. They feel they are able to keep up with my life through it, which is also really nice to hear. I like that my blog is something that people who know me or don't know me can enjoy and that it does seem really personal. You'd think my life is quite an open book right? Well, not exactly.

Here are some things I never write about, which you may or may not have noticed before:

1) My job. Sure I work at a newspaper website but I bet you would be hard pressed to think of anything else you know about it. Interactions with coworkers, clients, and even my feelings about my job are all privately held, and rightly so. The same goes for my online business.

2) My friends. All friends and photos of friends on this blog are used with their permission only. I respect people's right to privacy and just because I live a public life doesn't make my friend's lives automatically public. This is why sometimes only initials are mentioned.

3) My romantic life. Details about my relationships are my business only. I did mention moving out of my boyfriend's house six months ago because that really shifted my personal finances (which is the general subject of this blog). As a single person maintaining a professional online presence, I am barely comfortable discussing this subject with my friends and family, let alone the world.

4) Negativity. Other then an occasional post last year about dealing with death (which I still struggle with), you don't hear about my personal problems on this blog. We all have issues to deal with and those are for conversations with friends or a paid shrink.

That said, I have used this blog to talk a bit about death and mental health because I think our culture is so insular about both these subjects. I hope I have shown that dealing with death is an ongoing process and that perfectly sane people can seek mental help.

5) The Grandmother-Boss Rule. Anything I'm not sure of posting, I think of my grandmother and my boss reading it. If it passes both tests, I put it online.

So while my communication style is open, there are some things that I draw the line at talking about.
 
What lines do you draw?

Skittles: Cutting Edge Marketing or Lame Stunt For Attention?

 

The first post of my Holy Technology series this week only!

I heard on one my favorite blogs Nerve's Scanner that Skittles has fully jumped on board with this whole social networking thing. On the "chatter" portion of their website for example, there is a feed that displays every time someone twitters (or tweets) with the word "skittles" in it. (To get past liabilities of potentially racy content, you have to enter your birthdate and aknowledge Skittles' lack of responsibility for content before entering the website.)

I mean the landing page for skittles.com is a Wikipedia page. At first I thought I typed it wrong but then I realized that they did this on purpose. Interesting. You can read all the social networking details here.

So on one hand it's a great idea. Skittles gets a bunch of overly connected people like myself to mention this on blogs and websites and gets me to tweet to my network of followers. But aside from being an interesting concept...Will anyone visit the site more than once? Will this translate into increased sales or is this just a brand building project for Skittles? And is anyone even going to be talking about this next week?

It's certainly hard to tell. Mars is a privately held company so we can't look at the stock ticker to see if Skittle's value has gone up or down recently. Evidence would be purely anecdotal.

So what do you think of this marketing plan? Great idea or just something that'll pass? As socially networked as I am, I find myself moderately annoyed with this campaign.

So You Have A Website, Now What?

Today's Presentation at The Maine Grind's Winter Lecture Series

Today, I gave an afternoon presentation about web promotion at the Maine Grind in Ellsworth, a local coffee shop/gathering place.

The people who came were just as interesting as what I presented. We had good interaction and lots of discussion between group members. I came out if it really energized about what is going on and what is possible, both with their businesses and with mine. After, as if to continue the good momentum, I got to go to a good party with food and friends. I walked back home tonight thinking how lucky I am and how things really do seem to be coming together. I hope you had a similarly great day!

If you want a copy of the Powerpoint presentation I gave, I'm more then happy to send it if you email me. (I think I could probably post it here, I just can't seem to figure out how.)

Otherwise, I linked to some additional resources to those who want more information about social bookmarking, microblogging, social networking, blogging and search engine optimization. It's pretty general but can give a good jumping off point if you are considering promoting your site. I even included some good blogs to read if you are interested in internet marketing/internet PR in general.
List of Resources: As a PDF        As a Word Document

Thank God For Internet Troubleshooting

So Close And Yet So Far From Actually Being Able To Use My Wii

Do you ever have what you think is going to be a little project turn into a big ol' hassle? That's where I'm at!

 I bought a really nice flat panel computer a few weeks ago in part because it could serve as both my television and my computer (having two seperate pieces of technology in a small room just seemed ridiculous not to mention more expensive).

Internet television with my new toy has been no problem; people have actually been commenting on the size of my, ahem, screen. The problem is the Wii, more specifically the remote.

My super-smart boss told me that based on the specs, I would need a modulator (about $20) and a coaxial cable to plug from the modulator to the back of my computer (it has a cable hookup). This would convert the three pronged Wii plugin into something my computer could read. Fair enough. I bought one Friday and hooked it all up, turned on the television part of my computer, and nothing. Hmph.

Monday, I read all about the media center and learned how to *gasp* change channels on my television. Moving to channel three, the little Wii screen came on my computer screen and I clapped my little hands together.

Yesterday was spent trying to figure out issues with the Wiimote. Everything I could find on the online forums was about trying to get your computer to detect the remote, period. My computer is detecting it (it has Bluetooth capabilities, and if yours doesn't you can buy some dongle for it for $5 apparently). My remote is just highly inaccurate, as in I can't even click on icons. I just spent 20 minutes trying to get into Wii Fit and all I was able to do is select the Wii Fit game and my Mii.

I feel like I'm ridiculously shaky with it and I found a way to adjust the settings according to the directions, three normal clicks away. I know getting the cursor to hover over the right place and be able to click on it three different times may be a rest-of-the-night endeavor so I'm going to drag Operation Wii Working into another day.

Here is the most helpful link I found so far, Lifehacker, in case you are struggling with some technology problem like this. It's a great blog with useful explanations. I may have to start reading it more regularly to help get nerdier.

In the meantime, I'm at a loss. Does anyone have any good technology troubleshooting blogs, websites, forums, etc. they find consistently helpful? Resorting to reading the directions tonight was decidedly less so and web searches are not helping. (And if this is something stupid and you know the answer, let me know.)

Technology rocks but sometimes it just makes me want to throw things!

A Moment Of Silence For My Computer

Where have I been? Thanks to those of you who wrote to ask. As usual, there is a good reason for me not writing.

That's right, folks. Mid blog post, my posessed computer officially died its last death (another reminder to save often...). There is no power even getting to it now and not even duct tape is improving the connection like it has the past month.

As far as mooching off someone else's computer, the three local friends I do have with working computers all happened to be gone the last two days.

My new computer (I ordered one since I knew my computer was going to bite it soon) will be ready to be picked up Thursday. Ugh! Until then, it's lunch hour posts and off-hour mooching from friends...

Do know that all  was not entirely lost. I did manage to back everything up except some work I did this weekend. I've only lost four or five hours of work but I know it could be a lot worse then that.

Also, I spent Monday night crafting ahead for Too Cute Tuesday. I had to rely on a kit this week but sometimes, you have to use a short cut, you know?

So please a moment of silence for my computer... Alright, good enough. Back to blogging...

Link Roundup: Fortune Cookie Edition

I am a keeper of those fortune cookie fortunes, if only to remind me of universal truths and because I think they are so gosh darn cute. I have a few posted by my desk and some links to share so I thought I'd combine the two.

Be mischevious and you'll never be lonesome.
Wisebread has an awesome guide about doing your own Halloween makeup. Even if you don't get around to sewing a costume, you can at least do crazy makeup. Warning: this post has sound when you open it. 

The world is ready to recieve talent with open arms.
Almost Frugal has some serious talent for making homemade gift bags. And stay tuned for a series of holiday craft posts from Kelly and other crafty bloggers (myself included).

You will have good luck and overcome many hardships.
Sadly, I missed Blogger Action Day on October 15 due to the sheer bad timing of my vacation. A lot of bloggers did take part though, and Wisebread's entry about poverty fighting superheroes was fantastic. There are also links in the post if you want to get involved with helping others (and possibly yourself) overcome some hardships.

The joyful energy of the day will have a positive effect on you.
Sense to Save sees the positive sides of this recession, mainly the fact that it's putting into question some American values that aren't the best. Could agree more, Kacie.

Your mentality is alert, practical, and analytical.
A Dollar A Day posted a Declaration of Financial Independence posted on her bank ING's website (called We, The Savers).  I feel like printing out and posting it, even if it's from a bank.

Smile when you are ready.
I have this one framed, typed up in a large font. Since I've been in kind of a funk lately, one of my coworkers suggested today I get a mantra. Something to recite whenever I'm scared or nervous about life that'll calm me. I was wracking my brain all day for one and when I started writing this post, I remembered my framed copy of this phrase was once in a fortune cookie. I think I refound my mantra. I love happy coincidences!

So may good fortune find you tonight, and check out some of these great articles that "spoke" to me if you want some good reading.

Photo from Wikipedia

Getting A Cell Phone

Nicole Joins The 21st Century

Today, I did the unthinkable and bought a cell phone. Those of you who know me are probably shocked so I'll give you a moment to recover from your shock.

Ok, now that you've recovered...

I finally bit the bullet on the cell phone for a few reasons. First of all, I missed an important phone call while on vacation that required me to spend $17 overnighting a check. Also, since I've been traveling a lot, I am beginning to see the importance of having one while I'm in transit (I mean, I have to use 45 units off my calling card to make one call from a pay phone! Come on!). And finally, I sat next to someone on the plane who I had a very in depth conversation about the pros and cons of cell phones with. In having this conversation, I realize my beef with cell phones is the lack of manners associated with them, not them as useful devices. Colan (my seatmate) finally convinced me the benefits far outweighed the costs and since he isn't family or a friend, I was able to listen to him objectively.

Being the over researcher I am, I've been asking around with family and friends this past week about good plans and companies to go with. Verizon was recommended, Sprint was not. My Canada-adjacent friends also turned me to the fact that there is an additional plan that can work with Canadian towers without charging roaming fees. I also found out things like 300 text messages a month is more then enough for a 27 year old woman and that the superfast network with the Apple iPhone isn't even available in this area. I do like my internet research but I find talking to a lot of people most of the time even more helpful, don't you?

So I walked into the store armed with all this information today and picked out my phone. The store didn't have it in my preferred color so I'll be picking it up tomorrow.  

My one hesitation with the cell phone is the two year commitment with the plan. My friend Sarah says Congress is working on passing a law that would make it easier to get out of a cell contract early. Until then, I guess two years with a nationwide carrier is doable.

I am also getting a hands free device right away. My friend Robby knows someone who go lymphoma on one side of his neck possibly from cell phone use and quite honestly, with cancer speculation is enough for me to err on the side of caution.

I'm excited to be joining the rest of society in this regard. I'll hopefully be able to be more productive and a better friend with my new toy. (This progressiveness is made possible by my mom, who is paying for my phone and first year of service as a Christmas gift.)

In the meantime, I urge all cell phone users to use manners while operating. Check out this comprehensive list to remind you of some things you shouldn't do.

Article from the University of Wisconsin about cell phone use and cancer
State Laws in Regards To Cell Phones

Image from http://truehowto.com/files/cb/bart.JPG

What's Your Favorite Way To Get The Word Out Online?

I love the viral marketing possibilities of the internet. The fact that a great idea with little to no funding can get the exposure it deserves with a little hard work is one that I completely agree with.

As I'm nearing the end of finishing a few web projects, I can't help but wonder what the best ways of promoting them are.

I've learned a lot with this blog, mostly through trial and error.

Off internet promotion
First, I would have never thought to write a press release when I started my blog. And I think it's fun how many people I know in real life actually read my blog regularly. Just adding my blog address to my email signature and telling people about my blog has given me more traffic then I ever thought.

Blog Giveaways
I've had a few blog giveaways to increase traffic but neither were super successful. Maybe it's the hassle of having to do a little extra work (like commenting on a post) but this is something I will only do when I have something really cool and worth a substantial amount of money to give away.

Social Networking
I also found that some social networking is worth the effort but easily get out of hand. (I literally set a timer or I get sucked in.) The key though is not to use social networking entirely for self promotion. Those people  are annoying; who wants a one-sided friendship, online or off? So I selectively promote posts on social networking sites and the rest of the time work on being friends with people.

Microblogging 
Twitter was slow to start as far as driving web traffic my way but the lack of time commitment it took made me stick it out. It's a nice way to passively keep in touch and forces me to think "clever and brief" which is something very helpful to have in the back of my mind when blogging. Have you noticed I talk a lot?

Paid Advertising
I did buy a web advertisment with the newspaper I work for. I can see from the stats that my profile gets a lot of views (over 1,000) but this has only translated to a few clicks to my website. Could it be that people don't quite understand what an online communications person does? Could it be the economy? Sure, but at least now when I mention to locals what I do, they are moderately familiar with the idea, and that's worth something. Even big companies have to remind people that they exist.

Free Advertising
I still do Entrecard but I refuse to spend more then about five minutes a week on it. The traffic it does drive my way is random and brief but it's helped me find a few interesting blogs. I also love to browse Craigs List and other free online listings. Why not put my name in that directory? Or trade links with that other website I like?

SEO
Thinking of what search engines look for when I'm writing has taken some work. Links into my blog, links out of my blog, key words, it all helps people find me (and me find them). Asking myself "How can I make this something people are looking for?" is a little annoying but a lot of my traffic is search engine driven so it's worth it. It's not quite marketing to people but marketing to a search engine. Interesting concept.

So what I want to know from all you internet savy people is what has worked for you? How do you hear about cool things online? How do you promote any work that you're doing online? I'd love some new fun ideas that have worked for other people! I can get ideas I could try anywhere but I'd love some testimonials. Can I get a witness?

In Celebration of Labor...Other People's Labor That Is

This weekend, I'm back in my hometown this time for a little longer then usual. There's a football game on television and beer at our local dive bar in the near future. Ah, vacation.

I've been meaning to give props to some people who have been well laboring:

Being Frugal is a Walmart mom, which means she'll be blogging about money saving from her own perspective (this is a competitive but unpaid honor) and no doubt she'll get even more exposure to her blog. Good for you Lynnae!

Kelly at Almost Frugal has launched a new food blog Almost Frugal Food. Good blogger with French recipes? J'aime ca!

I entered an economics haiku contest at the Freakonomics. I didn't win but in case you were curious, my entry:

Reading self help books
to better manage money.
Must stop buying books.

Remodeling This Life is now contributing to Blissfully Domestic, where I read a great article about how local honey can help with allergies.

Wisebread made a complete list of female personal finance bloggers, which I'm on. My photo is even in the list! I do appreciate a mention.

Northern Cheapskate gave me a blog award which was my first ever. In passing it onto five of my favorite blogs, I'd give an award to Budgets Are Sexy, Cheap Healthy Good, Can I Get Rich On A Salary, Money Saving Mom, and Almost Frugal.

Anyway, keep up the good work everyone but do take some time to relax. I sure am!

Shameless Promotion and The Periodic Table

Remember the periodic table? I sure do!

A few years ago, in what feels like a complete other life, I taught high school chemistry. That's right. I didn't follow through (at least not yet) in a teaching career for a few reasons. 1) I was young at the time and routinely mistaken as one of the kids (despite dressing up every day so to appear different from them) 2) I was intimidated as hell  and 3) no matter how animated you are, unless you are making things explode, you have twenty faces looking back at you like this:

Maybe someday I'll do this teaching bit again, folks. Just not now.

But somehow I got to thinking about the periodic table today, probably because I read a blurb that the first word written in neon lights was, indeed, neon. Thought I would use the periodic table as the piece that tied all my links together. Ready, class? Let's crack some books...

Helium
The lightest stuff besides hydrogen but way less explosive. Has the added benefit of making people laugh when they suck it in.

Scanner blog Ok so I'll just say it, this blog is way funnier than mine. Completely inappropriate I can't read it at work 1) because it's indecent and 2) I laugh out loud everytime. Celebrity gossip, funny videos, and pop culture fun, it's light and fun.

Oxygen
Necessary to life as we know it. Combines with hydrogen to make water, helps drive photosynthesis. Elemental (ha!)

Six Essential Money Skills Kiplingers has got you covered with six things everyone should know, especially your kids before they leave home.

Carbon
Element that makes up all organic things. Something that is becoming of increasing concern to people as global warming finally hits the mainstream.

Briefs from Xconomy Xconomy is a great blog about not only economical things but really interesting things. These are the kind of nuggets of knowledge that make you think (not to mention sound smart) without reading The Economist from cover to cover.It is one of my favorite blogs I subscribe to. This particular link I saved has briefs about increased kidney stones due to global warming, using the ocean to sequester carbon, and a new kind of battery. This post gets kudos for actually mentioning at least three different elements (at least that I noticed).

Flouride
Strengthens bones. A common additive to drinking water that works well in small amounts.

Your Financial Life on One Page (FLOP) Lynnae at Being Frugal has given me the great idea of compiling everything from my financial life (regular bills, bank account numbers, etc.) onto one page. Simple and invaluable in an emergency situation.

Sulfur
Yellow powdery element. Smells (and probably tastes) bad.

13 Things Your Waiter Won't Tell You I got this link from Cheap Healthy Good. Talk about ruining your appetite but you should totally read this to affirm your at home cooking.

Cheap Wine According to Freakonomics, the your average bunch of economists (and therefor the average person) can not tell a good wine from a cheap wine in a blind taste test. So much for blaming the sulfites. 

Krypton
A noble gas and the only true weapon against Superman.

The Annoying Scrapers Edition Gather Little By Little talks about how people have been ripping off his posts and putting them on their sites. Then they just put a bunch of Google ads on the blog and hope that your work brings them money without giving you credit. Other bloggers talked about it this week too, so I looked into it. I was shocked to find that this has actually happened to me. Someone took my writing sans permission and put it on their site. The only true weapon against bloggers (or any writers really) is stealing their words to make money.

More links another time but for now, it's time to relax. Class dismissed!

Image of periodic table from http://www.dayah.com/periodic/.

Image of bored kid from http://www.orangeandbluehue.com.

Shameless Promotion: The Sex And The City Edition

Monday night I finally got to see the Sex and The City movie. Amazing. You should have felt the collective excitement that raced through the theater as the familiar theme music began to play. Goosebumps. Ok, it also helped that I was watching it in one of those theaters that has old couches and serves alcohol.

Don't worry, you can keep reading. I'm not going to spoil the movie for you. What I thought I'd do this week in my link rounding up is do a little Sex and the City theme. Think articles online that your favorite SATC characters would read. I'll include a character synopsis for those who need it as well as a couple links they would have shared with the gals. Strange coincidence: There happens to be a lot of articles from the New York Times this week. I guess I was really feeling them, post SATC.

Miranda
Character Synopsis: Our favorite logical lawyer and unexpected mother can be counted on for clear headed thinking and great use of graphic prints.
Miranda's Picks:

Madison at My Dollar Plan is now maintaining a Kids and Money site at About.com. You know, for when Brady can read.

A college near you may be giving a class about the crappy economy. "The National Academy of Public Administration and PETLab will get $325,000 to develop a game for college students focusing on “difficult fiscal issues like unsustainable entitlement programs, rising health care costs, and financing investments in alternative energy sources.” That's one way to get younger folks to understand why there will be no social security funds when we come of age. (via Wall Street Journal)

Carrie
Character Synopsis: The writer and main character, Carrie is sweet and quirky. Though endearingly and slightly self-centered (aren't we all?), she is always there for her friends.
Carrie's Picks:

Small Cents is now Almost Frugal. Kelly, one of my favorite PF bloggers (who just happens to live in France) is the planning all kinds of giveaways to celebrate. Do be friendly!

I submitted a blog post to this carnival and never got onto the site. Not quite as bad as getting broken up with over a Postit note but still, rejection hurts.

Even if you have $500 shoes, forget taking so many cabs, ladies. We are in the middle of a mass transit surge. You may be on the bus, but you may have to also ride it, too.

And 101 picnic dishes you can make in 20 minutes from the New York Times. Even if you keep sweaters in your oven, you can make some of these.

Samantha
Character Synopsis: A career-driven go-getter with no inclination toward monogamous relationships. She'll also be the one to tell you like it is, whether you like it or not.
Samantha's Picks:

Do looks matter? They sure do! Check out this Freakonomics Quorum where people rate themselves and their coworkers, and talk about whether their looks helped them get where they are. (If you liked that one, check out their article on how teeth effect your social standing.)

While Samantha is pretty well connected in New York, she may want to check out Ladies Who Launch, an online professional women's networking site. (I'll give it a shot and let you know if anything good comes of it.)

And a 45 year old swimmer living in Maine proves that there is no age limit on a dream. Even if that dream is to make the Olympic swim team. And even if you are 45 years old. Sure, Samantha gets her aerobics a different way (you know, yoga), she could appreciate someone going for what they want with gusto.

Charlotte
Character Synopsis: The Pollyanna of the group, she's a little naive but far from stupid. Classic and a little traditional, she believes in romance and happily ever after.
Charlotte's Picks:

NYT had an article about choosing a husband. Some good questions to ask yourself pre-marriage because I may indeed fall in love with someone you can't or shouldn't marry. Alrighty then?

And men should really listen to their wives, especially when debating whether to listen to another economist or their wives about saving money. When you read the article, check out the comments, too. Fascinating. (good old Freakonomics blog)

Anyway, celebrate your fabulousness with your friends this weekend. You deserve it! (By the way, which SATC character are you? Boys, feel free to answer this too!)

Reader Poll: How Did You Know Your Computer Was Toast?

Clearly if you are reading this blog, you have a computer. And whether you've experienced the loss of a computer firsthand or know a friend of family member that has, you understand what it's like to have a computer completely bleep out on you.

How did you know your computer was dying? (Specific symptoms are helpful). And more importantly, what did you do about it? I'm collecting information to analyze my current technological situation. . . Thanks for your help!

Are Coupons All They're Cut Out For?

First of all, my apologies for the corniness of the title. Even though I usually skirt the edges of corniness, today I just dove right in. Somehow, I just thought "coupon update" was too boring.

I decided a photo would help me summarize my coupon experience so far. Voila.

That's right, my zen experience of coupon cutting has since been trumped by a few facts: 1) the stuff that has a coupon is stuff I never buy (mostly brand name products and prepackaged food) and 2) the whole waiting-for-things-to-be-a-low-price-before-using-the-coupon strategy seems to lead to a lot of crumbling expired coupons into my purse. A few lessons:

Coupon websites will only get you far if you are a certain kind of buyer.

If you do buy a lot of packaged foods or brand name products , here are some sites where you can print coupons:
www.coupons.com
www.smartsource.com
www.coolsavings.com
www.printable-coupons.blogspot.com
www.wow-coupons.com
To be fair, I did find a coupon for Sean's contact lens solution and a coupon for Benefiber that saved us a combined $2. Sean also has a bizarre fascination with the smell of Tide so I'm keeping the Tide coupon in reserve. That was about it.

In-paper coupons seem better in both quality and useability in your area.

My combined coupon savings from coupons I've physically clipped from fliers have saved me much more money (about $6) then searching and printing off of online websites.

Usually there is a reason they are giving a coupon for a product.

As far as deals went, I found the lower unit price was often on a generic product or on a similar version of the product not on sale. The coupon sounded like a good deal...until you had to buy in major bulk (do I need 3 Tide-to-go pens ever?) or try some new gimmick-y product (that cereal that comes pre-poured into a bowl just seems lazy to me!).

That said, there is plenty of useful information online.

Freebielist (free samples by product type)
A great system for keeping track of mail-in rebates (from Sense to Save).
Eating healthy with coupons (from Cheap Healthy Good)

And add these two blogs to your RSS reader:
Money Saving Mom (she breaks down the sales flier for you for the best deals)
Spending Less 101 (how I saved $8 on my senior dog's expensive food)

If you buy online, see my buy online guide. It'll change your life.

Summary: While I'm not cheerleader-excited about coupons, I'm going to only spend my time going for the ones I like.

I'm going to check online coupon sites only monthly; stay subscribed to the coupon blogs above; and read my grocery and drug store fliers religiously. Saving money on food is certainly worth a little effort but only if it pays off.

This post was submitted to the Carnival of Personal Finance.

A New Website For Me!

I made the plunge a few weeks ago and decided to finally do it: get my website designed for me.

You may say, "Don't you know how to design websites, Nicole, I mean you work for a web company!" Here's the thing. I have no design experience. (Why do you think I'm using a template that came with Typepad?) I create the content, folks. I write, podcast, edit video... I don't do cms or know how to use a frame. (I only know these things exist and can use them in a sentence to sound smart).

As far as design, I know what I like, but not exactly what I want. In short, I'm a nightmare client.

I'm paying the company I work for to design the website for me for several reasons:

1) They do a great job. I've seen the thought my coworkers put into other people's designs and I want a product like they put out. Plus they understand me and my blog pretty well from our daily interations.

2) They're affordable. My custom designed Joomla! site is going to run me about $1,000, which is a reasonable rate from what I've seen.

3) I may not be able to design a nice-looking site from the ground up by I can sure mess with a created site. Since I work with Joomla on our newspaper sites, I have an idea of what can be done with my site.

4) Having my own site will teach me a lot of the web stuff I've been avoiding... but not having to set it up takes a lot of it off my mind.

5) Free software means nothing I have to buy... though I did order a $20 Joomla! book to teach me a little more.

Anyway, so if you know anything about websites or Joomla! (I'm going with version 1.5 for you computer types), if you can think of things I should include when I'm thinking about all this, please comment or email me. Suggestions from others are so helpful when you are doing something like this!

And don't worry, I'll try not to turn into more of a nerd then I already am.  

The Three Steps Of Buying Online

A Little Extra Effort Could Save You A Ton

I finally broke down last week and bought myself a digital voice recorder. My boss was supposed to order me one for the podcast I do for our paper but I'm tired of bugging him... plus, I want to use it guilt-free for my own purposes.

When I buy online, I've developed a new pattern. I do three things before I buy anything. I find it's harder to figure out exactly what I want then to do these three things I do afterward:

Step 1: Go to your favorite price comparing website, like www.pricegrabber.com. There is usually quite a range in prices for the item you want. Also it takes shipping and taxes into account, which is nice. Write the three to five cheapest retailers down as well as the price of the item.

Step 2: Check which of the three or five retailers are on www.eBates.com for further savings. Write that down.

(One retailer should stand out to you at this point. It usually does for me.)

Step 3: Go to www.retailmenot.com for coupon codes you can use with your chosen retailer. I don't bother trying the ones with less than a 50% success rate but otherwise, why not?

My digital voice recorder ended up being the cheapest at Overstock.com. (I would have never thought to look there for electronics!) I paid about 15% less for it after doing steps 2 and 3 then if I would have just took the price off of Pricegrabber. Also while Overstock was the second cheapest in the list initially (about $2 more then the cheapest), combining the free shipping with the savings websites put it way ahead in the end.

If there should be another step or two, let me know. I'm working on refining this and making it an easy download...

May Movie Giveaway Winner

Congradulations to Randy Devost who won the May Movie Giveaway contest. Here are some of Randy's favorite forms of cheap entertainment, both on and offline:

Cheap Online Entertainment

• Subscribing to YouTube vlogs (for some) is in many ways better than TV. Cable and Satellite subscriptions are SO EXPENSIVE! Some YouTube favorites of mine are: What the Buck Show, ThoseLilRabbits, Rocketboom, Leslie Hall, etc. I’m interested primarily by shows that make me laugh and inform me on what’s going on in popular culture. You can also watch regular TV programming for free using services like: Joost, Hulu, etc.
• For those who seek the latest dance trends, there are those sharing new dance styles online. Here are a few that are fun to learn and alter upon: Sydney Shuffle, Tektonic, C-walk, Le Tabarnak, etc. Upload your own!
• Using Flickr to create photo slideshows of goals you feel like are impossible and then sending them off to your most critical friends may help add viability to your convoluted fantasies. My last, “Shack on a Wharf,” is about how I dream of converting a fishing shack into my home.” What’s nice is that letting yourself dream helps you stay happy and keeps you motivated for the future. “Life is never bland with dreams at hand.”  -Randy Devost

Cheap Real World Entertainment:

• Learning a new card game with friends
• Running, swimming, hiking, biking, fishing, etc.
• Inviting friends for a night of board games. Have everyone bring a new or strange board game found in grandma’s attic or from a yard sale!
• Sewing parties for guys and girls!
• People watching (malls, public transportation, public squares, etc.)
• Playing “makeover” and letting your friends dress you up.
• Internet cafés or finding new WIFI zones. jiwire.commay be of help.

Thanks to those who participated and thanks to Randy for fun suggestions. Next time you're bored, try a few off that list!

In June, I'm launching another contest. The prize this time: the book "Nickeled and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By In America. I'll make a page for it later today. It'll be a random drawing and it will involve blood. Stay tuned!

Nicole's State Of The Economy Address

I'll be the first to admit that I have little to no-pull in terms of making people think one thing or the other about the economy. I do, however, come to a point where I have collected some cool links that just need to be shared.

I'll cover the economy in seperate sectors of the agreed-upon needs of all people: Food, Water, Clothing, Shelter, and Love (and I'll throw in Government just for fun!).

Food

Food price inflation may not be as bad as we thought (check out inflation explained at Debt-Free Revolution). I also read a completely hilarious blog about media mass hysteria about food prices meanwhile the average barbeque meal only cost $1.65 more than last year... if you know who wrote this post let me know, because I lost the link! Even the Wall Street Journal has reported rice futures going down.

Water

My friend Sarah sent me this fabulous SIGG water bottle for my birthday. It is amazing. It keeps my water cold and crisp and does not leave a plastic aftertaste in my mouth...and, of course, it's refillable. I don't normally endorse products but here's the store if you want to buy one.

Clothing

Apparently, the New York Times is having a hard time believing that Sarah Jessica Parker's newish Bitten line of clothes is so wonderful. They seem to think that attraction towards inexpensive clothes is a phenomenon in these economic times. Those of us who love women's magazines though have seen a "Bitten" example in every issue for at least the past year. Ok slight exaggeration but SJP (and women wanting cute cheap clothes) is here to stay.

Feeling left out menfolk? Please don't: LL Cool J has got your back! (from USAToday.com)

Shelter

If you want to understand how this whole housing debaucle happened, listen to this hour-long program from This American Life. Great storytelling, which you can expect from TAL but makes this whole thing way more understandable.

And if you're a renter, feel free to get angry. Read this fabulous post by Baglady to see why this housing crisis will effect us all whether we rent or not.

Love

Ah, poor Anne Heche. She may love her kids but can't afford to pay child support. OK, if she can't afford it, I think that pretty much lets everyone else off the hook, too. (I have no sympathy for celebrities who make more money in one day then I have in five years then waste their money. Where I'm from we call that gaspilleuse!)(from People.com)

But in the good news bin about love, people apparently love and appreciate small businesses enough to actually pay in a pay-as-you-wish situation. (from Freakonomics blog)

And according to a recent Gallup poll,almost 50% of us are happy and thriving. How happy? People are working on an index for that! (from Freakonomics blog)

Government

Haven't spent your new government stimulus check on a new Wii or a crazy night in Vegas? Good for you! Here are some more productive things to do with it. (from Mighty Bargain Hunter)

And guess what? The government is doing something about credit card companies (from Debt-Free Revolution).

Need even more government fun? Now you can actually prove if you could do a better job then your Congress people. Balance the federal budget...it's a new game called Budget Hero. (Freakonomics blog)

To summarize: things may or may not be as awful as we thought, but we certianly can't control everything. Might as well smile and wave...

Image from www.shorpy.com.

 

I Want My (Internet) TV

Online Television Not The Real Thing Yet But Will Do In A Pinch

We are lucky enough that television (or at least websites with television-like qualities) is making it's way online. Great for people like me who don't want to pay for high speed internet and cable (guess which one won out for me?) Let's check out our options, shall we?

YouTube, Metacafe, Videojug, etc.

Idea: User submited (and theoretically user generated) videos; ability to rate the videos and sometimes embed them into your own website; you can make one video or a hundred.

The Pros: Short enough to "sneak a quick one", easy to keep clicking from one to the next

The Cons: Often short, sometimes crappy, highly addictive to some people

My Take: I don't like these kind of videos. Nerve Scanner, a blog I love, is great about getting the coolest, funniest ones off the web. I'm not patient enough to watch a bunch of ok videos to find one good one. (Meanwhile Sean will watch YouTube karate videos for hours, though he also likes people being clumsy). To each his own I suppose.

iTunes, or any online location for video podcasts

Idea: User generated and submitted content; like a audio podcast, you can subscribe and get all the episodes; most often a series (it's kind of a commitment). Also, iTunes often has a free television episode every week if you are looking for something random.

The Pros: Usually when people commit to making a series of videos, they are more commited to it then the average person. You can expect content that was thought about at the very least, and if you like what you see, you can see more on the same subject by the same people. Easily loadable on the newer iPods.

The Cons: Sometimes videos seem a little more on the informative side and a little less on the fun side. Sometimes podcasts also just "disappear" (as in they stop being updated with no explanation).

My take: I don't count on anything from iTunes. I use it to learn something (like I love the WhoWhatWear Daily video podcast) and when I go on a trip, I'll download some free television for entertainment. Other then that, not much iTunes for me. 

SurftheChannel.com (from Comment faire de l'argent...en economisant)

Idea: A central place you can go online to watch all your favorite shows... and shows you didn't even know existed (hello, "Make Me A Supemodel"!)

The Pros: Hundreds of shows (everything from Little House On The Prarie to Will and Grace) and by hundreds of shows I don't mean just different shows. There are over 300 LHOTP episodes! You can take the experience to full screen too.

The Cons: It takes awhile to load full screen (so just get up and make popcorn while you wait). The quality is also a little bad. Oh and sometimes the videos have distracting subtitles:

My Take: If I'm bored some Friday night and want to watch a little bit of "Make Me A Supermodel" to test drive it, I will. If I really like the show, I may rent a DVD of a season of it. This is the closest thing to a cable experience I can have at this point.

ABC, NBC, (Television Network websites in general), Hulu

Idea: Networks, not wanting to lose their audience or potential for online revenue, have moved some of their shows online. The good news is sometimes independent companies (like hulu) are thinking of better ways of bringing the episodes to the average computer.

Pros: Video quality is usually good, automatically blowing up to full screen well. Full length shows!

Cons: If you have a five year old (and on it's last leg) laptop, your video card may not be up to snuff. I could only watch about 5-10 seconds of any NBC show before my computer spaced out. 

My take: If I had a good enought video card, this would actually be the closest thing to a cable experience for me.

Image from blogsmonroe.com, Check out a post about Hulu here.

 

So the good news is, if you want a television experience, it can happen online. It certainly does have a little bit of a ways to go to make it similar to a real television experience though. If none of what I've listed above works for you, here is someone who has done enough research to rank each site and list what's available in table format.

Review of MaineCreates.com

I met Matt Zito at that SMBIZ4ME Conference I went to last week. I had done a little work before with Maine's Creative Economy (one of my old bosses is on the Maine Arts Commission). I enjoyed talking with him and the idea of having a place online to connect with other people in Maine who have similar "creative" work. (Myspace is great for music and film but kind of leaves out other professions as far as major networking opportunities.)

Here is my take on www.mainecreates.com.

The Bad

The site is a little cumbersome (I have been trying to add to my ideas unsuccessfully for about ten minutes, though I am admittedly not the most web-saavy person). It is hard to browse for something unless you know specifics. For example, I can look at all the cabinetmakers on the site or all people in Ellsworth but there seems to be no "here's everyone" place on the site (you have to select one user at a time). The very specificness of the categories also makes it on one hand, easy to glimpse what people specialize in but on the other, harder to just "run into" people.

The other thing about the site is you can only have 10 connections total. (That seems to mean ten people/profiles, though I'm able to send messages to people I'm not connected to, it just involves an extra step). Limiting the number of connections seems odd; the more connections you make on a social networking site, the longer you stay on it, right? I'm also unsure about how the site determines my "possible connections". Is it by location, or perhaps similar work?

And the site will start charging for access after a year. Hopefully, the revenue can be generated by advertising or some other way besides charging users in the future.

The Good (Because despite my long paragraphs above, the site is mostly good)

Mainecreates.com is clearly a site with a lot of thought put into it (both in design and information organizing). This is clear because people are joining it in addition to myself. (It's less than a month old.) The creative economy is a dynamic part of Maine that needs to be celebrated and needs to connect people.

On a more selfish end, I enjoyed how easy it was for me to create a profile as well as how easy I found people I knew (or people I want to know). If you live in Maine and have a creative job, sign up for an account. It's free and you might meet some people to collaborate with.

I also see that Matt is taking every opportunity to present this site to people (he wasn't impatient talking to me at all, even though I'm just one blogger). The guts to go out on a limb for people who don't have a ton of money but need representation (I'm guessing most creative folks in Maine do their craft as a supplement to their income).

So spread the word about this website if you know someone who could benefit.

Liked this post? See related post: Getting Up In My Business (SMBIZ4ME Conference)...

Are You Twitter-petered?

Behold The Addictiveness of Twitter And You Too Can Have One More Website To Check

For those of us who are online a lot (or just like being online), it's fun to have a few websites you can visit and have a good time with while feeling as if you're getting something accomplished. People seem to like having things they can check. Sean's obsession with checking his email (at least five times a day) is one such example. A couple of my friends obsessively monitor Myspace pages or surf bored.com. And now, we have Twitter.

Twitter is a social networking site for lazy people. (I lump myself in this group; writing and maintaining this blog take up enough of my time that social networking goes to the wayside a bit.) You have a tiny profile (here's mine) and can send little 140 character messages to people who are following you. That's about it.

I don't know even half the people who are following me. I know only a few of the people I am following. But I broadcast my little messages to the world anyway. Twitter has brought a little traffic to my site, not enough at this point to make it worth the thought I put into my little messages. But it is still oddly addictive.

I think bloggers like Twitter because it let's us get out of our niche and be a little more personal (though shameless self promotion, myself included, does happen). Also people are using it sort of like an online "word of mouth" (See Harnessing the Power of Twitter (SheGeeks) or The Power of Twitter (Miss 604) for more info about this.)

It has some interesting implications and takes little of my time for it so I guess I'll remain a little twitter-petered. (For those of you who get why I used a random Bambi picture, go you.) I'm breakingeven on Twitter if you want to tweet with me. And if you have unlocked the hidden powers of Twitter, do share!

Just think; one more thing online you can check besides your usual haunts... 

Image from www.distractedglobe.com

8 Random Things About Me

I've been indirectly tagged by Being Frugal so I've decided to go with it. Here are eight things you probably don't know about me:

1. I am a great cook but a horrible baker. I try to make substitutions when I bake (like when I cook) but that doesn't really work. I get really nervous about baking in general, even cookies. My best cooking work: crepes and "meal with whatever is in the house"

2. My guiltiest pleasures are really bad television, gossipy magazines, and silly movies. I'm intellectual in most other ways but I only feel entertained when things are a little silly.

3. I hate working out. If I was naturally skinny, I'd never do it. (On the same front, if I could, I would eat Chubby Hubby everyday.)

4. I am just like my father. I inherited his looks, his raunchy sense of humor, his constant introspection, and his love of life.

5. My college thesis was examining long chained fatty acids in a sediment core from a Russian lake to determine plant life over the course of 30,000 years. And now I work for a newspaper and have a personal finance blog. Horray for a liberal arts degree.

6. My favorite possession is my grandmother's engagement ring. I have worn it daily since I was 12 years old.

7. I love having a dog way more then I ever let on. I love having her follow me around like my personal "entourage" and I love how she snuggles next to me when I nap. Had I known how wonderful having Sadie would be, I would have gotten a dog much sooner.

8. Sean and I met online. He said he wanted to go out with me because in my personals photo, I "looked happy". (I also found Sadie and my last and current jobs online. Horray for the internet!)

If you're reading this and have a blog, consider yourself tagged!

Getting Up In My Business

SMBIZ4ME Governor's Regional Business Conference Was Interesting, Worth A Day Off

I took the day off work Wednesday to attend the SMBIZ4ME Conference for a few reasons: 1) It was only a half hour's drive away. 2) I heard it was going to be good from a few people. and 3) It only cost $25 and one day off to attend. As someone who has already heavily invested in my brain but knows little about business, I figured the price and the opportunity to network with people in the area would be invaluable. It was.

The vendors set up over breakfast and gave me something to do when I first walked in and was getting my bearings. (I can be social; I just sometimes need to ease into it). I made a few good connections with some Maine publications that were at least theoretically interested in my writing as well as met the guy behind Mainecreates.com. Mainecreates is a social networking site for Mainers involved in the creative economy. (I got on the site to set up a profile when I got home but I see I will be charged for it after a year, which I'm not really down with. But it is a good idea so I set up my own account there.)

In my first seminar, I met Melanie Brooks, who just got hired at MaineBusiness.com. It's a division of MaineToday (another newspaper) but it's focused on business content. She's a blogger, I'm a blogger. She suggested I crosspost on their site. So I'm trying that out to see if that'll be a good use of energy. (Really I want to end up as one of their featured bloggers, I'm competitive like that.) Melanie was fun, energetic, and into blogging; she seems like the kind of person I'd hang out with if I lived closer to Portland, though though the blogosphere can at least be a virtual friend.

All this happened in the first two hours. Did I mention there was all the free coffee I could drink and croissants I could eat? (Out of restraint, I had one croissant, ladies and gentlemen, with an apple chaser).

Meeting a lot of people who are all either thinking about or running their own businesses and having to give my "elevator speech" about my blogging consulting/web content creation business allowed me to not only realize that I actually did have a good, original idea but that I do really believe that I can do it.

As with any event of this nature, there is some golf clapping, boring speech listening, corporate sponsors to thank profusely, and a couple snotty people but that was all minor. (One PR woman in my last seminar seemed ridiculously jealous of me and conducted herself in such a way that I wondered, is she actually a PR person?)

Overall though, I met some wonderful people and got some great ideas. I left feeling energized, even though being nice and civil to people you barely know all day can be fairly exhausting.

Have you had a rockin' professional development day recently?

Cheap Electronics and Electronic Accessories

Yesterday, I drove to my hometown and surprised my mom for Mother's Day. The five hours driving and taking half a day off work were completely worth it to see the look on her face when I walked in.

I like to be helpful when I come visit so I asked her if there was anything she needed help with. She needs a new laptop charger for her computer (I like being the tech person in her life, even though probably to many people, I'm low tech). I got on the case this morning.

I heard about Deal Extreme from Brown Eyed Girl And Her Money as a cheap way to get electronics. I was waiting to check it out until I had something to buy.

I found the laptop charger for my mom's specific computer in a quick Google search. The price looks good ($26) until you go and put it in your shopping cart. Ten dollars is the minimum amount in shipping, which brings the price to almost $40.

I then did a quick search on Deal Extreme for the same product. With shipping included, $21. Now that's a little better.

Brown-eyed Girl had good things to say about it (though I can't find her entry on it at the moment), saying she got the product quickly and it worked well. I believe her, I mean, she is on my blogroll.

So if you need a 4G flash drive ($21) or crystal soil balls for your plants ($2) it's worth a quick check to see if Deal Extreme has what you need. It's the best deal around as far as I can tell. And I mean, who doesn't love a slightly quirky Japanese company?

The Free Version of Photoshop: Nothing To Get Excited About

This past week, Adobe came out with a free web-based software called Adobe Photoshop Expressions. Marketed for a younger (and subsequently poorer) audience (because Photoshop is, even with a good deal, a few hundred dollars), you upload pictures (they have 2 G of free space per account) to your spot and can modify them from there.

I enjoyed how the web site was shamelessly marketing to the young and hip. From "Join the 24/7 photo party. No cover charge.) to the cool, flashy black and grey interface to the registration page with a default birth year is 1990, I felt a little unsure of it. I mean I'm not that cool. I signed up anyway so I could report on my findings to other frugal-minded types.

The airbrush tool (of most interest to me and most every other woman I know) was not as precise and the shortcut tools I know with regular Photoshop (like holding "shift" while cropping to make the photograph a perfect square) didn't work. I feel like most digital cameras come with the other features of Photoshop Express like red eye reduction and photo effects (you know, like tinting yourself pink and stretching your face out). I use the real version of Photoshop at work almost everyday and if I did any kind of real work with photos, I think I'd pony up for the full version of the software.

I guess with all the hype, I was expecting more. That said, it sure beats the pants out of Microsoft Picture Manager, which comes with windows systems. In short, better than nothing but certainly nothing close to Photoshop proper.

Have you tried Photoshop Expressions? What did you think? If you're interested, here's the link.

Image: Here's about two minutes of fun with Photoshop Expressions. Cute but nothing to write home about.

How To Free Up 10% Of Space On Your Hard Drive

I know, I know. My posts are getting more techy and less saving money lately. Essentially the issue is my almost five year old laptop is not running so hot (imagine that) but I can't afford to replace it, at least not right now. When I tried to run a defrag a week ago after deleting some non-essential programs and files, my memory was too full for a defrag. I only had 5% free space and I need 15% to run a defrag.

So time and energy has been thrown at this problem. I have successfully reached my 15% goal and a defrag will run while I sleep tonight.

Here's how I freed up 10% more space on my computer:

• You know those free T.V. shows they have once a week on iTunes? (If you want an archive of them or don't know what I'm talking about, check out this blog.) Well, since I don't have cable, I download one every week in hopes it'll give me my television fix. So deleting all those shows I will never watch (read: Gossip Girl) and watching those shows I'm ashamed to admit I like and then deleting them (ok, I'll admit: My Big Redneck Wedding). Deleting unnecessary video has created some much needed room. Like a show? Burn it on CD or DVD for future enjoyment.
• Uploading photos to my Picasa web albums, which I talked about last post. Free 1,000 MB and, if you don't know how much that is, I've probably uploaded close to 1,000 high quality digital photos and there is still room. As my boyfriend asked in amazement, "Do other people know about this?"
• Delete photos you don't like. I have some unflattering pictures of myself, fuzzy photos, duplicates, etc. that I've been holding on to for too long. I think many people feel guilt about throwing away pictures. I am no longer one of those people. Since I was getting my pictures ready to upload anyway, I took some time to delete. And it was good.
• Delete podcasts. You know, I always mean to listen to the CBC podcasts but sometimes, it doesn't happen. Then I end up with a pile in my iTunes folder and it makes me feel like such a slacker, sort of how I would feel if I subscribed to an intellectual magazine I only read sometimes. I deleted all podcasts that were over a week old that I had no sentimental attachment towards. I kept a few This American Life ones though because they rock.
• Don't forget to empty your little recycle bin/trash can. I know, I know. Just had to remind.

Hopefully this will help my, and maybe someone else's computer run a little better. I like to think of myself as the kind of person who repairs something broken rather than going out and buying new things so here's hoping my computer is not the exception. 

No Computer Issues Google Can't Fix

I am one of those ridiculously focused types who, when I really want to get something done, will obsess until it is. So what I thought was a little photo problem has become way bigger as I begin to dig.

Sean and I went to Moab last April. Beautiful scenery, had a great time, took a lot of silly pictures. I downloaded them with photo software, either Kodak Easyshare or some kind of Adobe photo-looking-at program. I forgot about it.

I go to organize my pictures and decide, hey, I wonder where the Moab pics are. I have looked through all the jpegs on my computer (and everything named moab and kodak). I also searched my external hard drive, which I back things up on all the time. I have tried to reinstall Kodak Easyshare which was not working properly and the software CD won't work. I can't find the Adobe program. So, in short, I have 400 photos on this computer that I can't get to and spent a good eight hours on this problem only to be in the same place I started.

I go to defrag and, wait, there is not enough memory to defrag. You need 11% free and I've got 9%. Yikes. Maybe it's these 12,000 other jpgs I have on my computer clogging up my memory and slowing me down. No more.

I am downloading my favorite albums into Picasa web albums (after putting them on Mr. External Hard Drive) then deleting them to free up precious space. Picasa let's you store 1000ish MB for free (and after that you can upgrade for a small yearly fee) but let me tell you, putting them online will be piece of mind. If I ever find my Moab photos, I will do this immediately for them.

Will some photos off my memory and a defrag help me find Moab? It couldn't hurt. After I do a little cleaning house (here's hoping that'll fix the getting the Kodak program working problem), I will go way back in time to a restore point sometime last summer when these photo programs did work. Then I guess we'll see. My computer (and myself, actually) will probably need some professional help if these steps don't work.

Your comments and thoughts of free or cheap online photo storage are most certainly appreciated. 

You Know You're A Little Nuts When You Buy Things You Don't Really Need And Then Get Really Excited About Them Anyway

You know you're nuts when 1) you spend money you don't have in an uncalculated way and 2) get as excited buying a domain name as you do about a new dress.

Yesterday, against the little bugetary fairy talking in my ear, I purchased a pretty and functional dress at The Grasshopper Shop. For you non-Mainers, this is the type of store that sells $150 dollar jeans, not a place a girl on a budget should go let alone purchase clothing. But everyday as I walk by the window with my powerwalking ladyfriends from work on lunch break, I gazed lovingly in the window at a Donna Morgan graphic print dress. It was too nice and way too expensive at over $100.

Two months passed and I still smiled whenever I saw the pretty, brightly colored dresses, posed perfectly in the window. But I still did not go in.

A thirty percent off sign went up before Christmas. I decided to wait it out.

A week later, fifty percent off. They had me. I emailed my boyfriend, fraught with temptation. "Get the dress" he urged in his email reply. Well, that was all I needed.

I went in, picked the dress I wanted off the rack. One left. My size. I tried it on. It draped well. I paid $40 I don't actually have yet and walked out. The clouds parted and the sun shone brilliantly as a little bird perched on my finger and began to sing...

Ok, everything except the last sentence was true. You know, there is some satisfaction to be had for waiting for something. So Nicole's a big nutball story part one: I get excited over a dress.

Nutball story part two: I bought a domain name today. Do you believe www.nicoleouellette.com wasn't taken? Thank you Network Solutions and my parents who apparently gave me an uncommon name! I thought of the possibilities and even spent about an hour just now making my new domain name point to this very blog. Do I know what I did? Not exactly. Will it work? Not sure. 24-48 hours will let me know. 

In both cases, notice how I recklessly spent money even though I have a tight budget. I know, I know. The key is this behavior not become habit (and the fact that I have adult ed teaching money coming in soon). But my two purchases at $140 total (my domain is good for five years) have brought such joy that I wonder if money can buy me happiness, at least a little bit.