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|   Oct. 25, 2008—Vol. 12, No. 43 Support this free newsletter—please visit our advertisers
CALL ME DURING THE SHOW
 HALLOWEEN IS RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER Here are some Halloween tips to help you make the most of the holiday:
• You've taken care of the costumes, pumpkins, trick-or-treat plans and party details. But don't forget about all the great photos you can get. I make it easy in a tip that teaches you the tricks and secrets to taking Halloween photos. • Finally, we put together a terrific Halloween shopping guide. There's still time to shop so that your orders arrive before the big day. Click here to find the ghostly site. GET HELP FINDING ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY SOFTWARE This company offers a user-friendly database of assistive technology tools. You can easily find the names of screen reader programs, for example. An easy-to-use matrix helps you compare the programs' features. TechMatrix is specifically designed for teachers of special needs students. Aside from assistive technology, it covers programs that help students with particular subjects. But anyone who needs a hand using a computer will find it helpful! PAY IT FORWARD: Forward this newsletter to friends and family. Encourage them to sign up for our newsletters! There's always something new to learn about this digital world! MAKE MONEY AT HOME AND SPEND LESS Last weekend, I spent most of my national radio show talking about how to make money using the Internet. There are many things you can do to earn some extra cash. Or maybe you can start selling your castaways online. In case you missed some of that show, I posted almost everything from it on my Money Center. For instance, I have links to many free programs. Whatever you need to do, you should find a free program. I've got free coupons, and lots of other free stuff. Want some extra cash? I have many links to legitimate opportunities. Unlike the offers in spam, these have been vetted. They're Kim safe! I've been getting e-mail from folks who are looking for a specific call or tidbit I passed along during that show. If you are a Kim's Club member and you missed the show from the weekend of Oct. 18, you can download it. Just pick that show from the archives. And if you are not a Kim's Club member, to learn more and join us, click here. SAVE MONEY--GET YOUR SOFTWARE FOR FREE Not so when you visit my Download site! I pick one program to feature as a Download of the Day. They're always worth the download! All downloads are thoroughly tested and Kim-approved. You never need to worry about infecting your machine. Here are some of my favorite freebies from the past week. Just click on the links below to learn more about the programs. Hurry back, though—there's still a lot of ground to cover! • A deleted file isn't the end of the world—or is it? This free program will help you recover deleted photos and more. Want a tip? Before you buy a program, search the downloads at Komando.com. Better yet, bookmark the Downloads page. Once there, press Ctrl and the letter D. That will add my downloads section to your browser's favorites! And remember this: If I say a program is free, it's FREE. There are sites on the Internet that try to sell free programs. There are also many ads on the Internet for similar programs, which aren't free. If somebody tries to charge you for a free program, back up. You've clicked on the wrong thing. Saturday's download—Your office computer has the programs you need to work efficiently. What if you need to work outside the office? Why not take all of those programs with you? You can actually fit an office suite onto your thumb drive. It's the perfect way to work.YOU COULD BE A WINNER! Each day, I pick one lucky winner. Each prize has a value of at least $150 (give or take a few cents). In all I have $35,000 in prizes to dole out! Want the best video and audio performance in a standard definition (480p) DVD player? Then enter today's Giveaway of the Day sweepstakes. You'll have a chance to win Rotel's RDV-1045 DVD Player. Get stunning picture quality with this prize, valued at $499. 10/17 - Ellen Richards of Elmira, NY (WWLZ 820 AM) – I hope Ellen likes guitar music! eMedia makes it easy to learn to play guitar with the Guitar Method CD-ROM package. It's valued at $150. This 4 CD-ROM set will make Ellen a guitar pro in no time! 10/18 - Paul Logue of Estes Park, CO (KHOW 630 AM, Denver) – Paul will never get lost again. He won the NAVIGON 2100 max GPS unit. This $299 GPS device is ultra-thin and stylish with a 4.3-inch touchscreen display and advanced features. He'll have peace of mind, knowing he's always headed in the right direction! 10/19 - Kenneth Zier of Oshkosh, WI (WOSH 1490 AM) – Kenneth has a new way to keep organized and to stay in touch. The Palm Centro smartphone ($150) gives him voice, text, IM, e-mail and the Web. All of this is in a sleek phone that fits into his pocket! 10/20 - Andy Harvey of Winston Salem, NC (WSJS 600 AM / WSML 1200 AM) – Andy is now wirelss! He won the Linksys Dual-N Band Wireless Router ($279 value). This convenient, portable wireless network gear is perfect for travel and home use. 10/21 - Yvonne Starlin of Topeka, KS (WIBW 580 AM) – I sent Yvonne a quality camcorder that will fit right in her pocket. I'm talking about Pure Digital's Flip Ultra Camcorder. It shoots DVD-quality video and offers advanced editing features. It's valued at $150. 10/22 - Brian Coleman of Hallandale, FL (WIOD 610 AM, Miami) – Brian can take the office with him wherever he goes! He won Citrix GoToMyPC software valued at $180. With it, Brian can access his office computer safely and securely from any Internet connection. It's so easy! 10/23 – Nelson Llumiquinga of Gilbert, AZ (KFYI 550 AM) – I hope Nelson has a Nintendo Wii! I'm sending him THQ's Wii Video Game Trio. This game set, a $150 value, is a real blast! Have fun with it, Nelson! Congratulations! To see the entire list of winners so far and check out the winners as they are selected, visit the Giveaway of the Day Winners Page. Since many of you have asked, I usually pick the winners no later than noon, my time. So check the day after you enter. You may see your name on the Winner's List before we call you! But do us a favor--if you know you won before we call, try to act surprised! We love hearing people scream with delight! Just remember: To win daily, you have to enter daily. Here's a secret: Not all people who visit my site, get these newsletters, listen to the show, etc. enter our contests. I don't know what the odds are of winning. But I bet they're a lot better than your state lottery's! WHAT ARE YOU WATCHING ONLINE? Fortunately, there are plenty of entertaining videos online. And I'm doing my part to help! Each day I feature a new video as my Video of the Day. All of these videos are good clean family fun. Enjoy! Don't miss these popular videos from the past week:• You wouldn't like being locked up in a pen. And neither does this little beagle. Watch as he makes his daring escape. We all love a good spoof. Lucky for you, I have plenty of spoof videos on my site. Here are some of my favorites from my Video of the Day archive: • Things will be easier in the future, won't they? This video may make you rethink that.
SHARE MY VIDEOS: Share my videos with your friends or family! Simply click the ShareThis button below the video you like. Click the Send/Email tab to e-mail the video with a personal message. Or click on the Social Web tab. From there you can share the video online. It works with services like Facebook, MySpace, StumbleUpon and more. NOTE: Are you having trouble seeing my daily video picks? Do you get a message that the video is not available? Sorry to say, it's probably not the video. It's your computer, my friend. Get help on my troubleshooting page. These problems are pretty easy to fix. PRIVACY AND SECURITY TIP: How to avoid bad Web sites STILL TO COME: Useful tips, important news and a few laughs!
• Slash your monthly broadband bill • Important security tips; and some awesome freebies! Back to the top   WORKING WITH AUDIOBOOKS IN ITUNES Ripping audiobooks in iTunes used to be a hassle. Sure, getting the files into iTunes wasn't difficult. But you had to take several steps to get the files to act like audiobooks. Fortunately, things are easier in the latest version of iTunes. In iTunes 8, you simply have to tag a file as an audiobook. This will move the file from your music library to your Audiobook library. You'll probably also want iTunes (or your iPod) to remember your position in the book. That's easy to do, too. First, right-click a file in iTunes. Select Get Info and open the Options tab. You'll see a dropdown box labeled Media Kind. Click the box and select Audiobook. Also check "Remember position." Click and select Yes. Click OK. You can also speed things up a bit. Hold the Ctrl or Shift key as you select multiple audiobook files. Right-click one and select Get Info. Confirm that you want to edit the info for multiple tracks. Then you can make your changes. There's just one problem with this. You'll still have a number of different files for the same audiobook. You'll probably want to join the files together. That way, you don't have to jump to different tracks to hear your book. You don't need to re-rip your audiobooks. My tip makes it easy to join files together in iTunes. It also gives detailed instructions for ripping audio books in earlier versions of iTunes. Of course, if you have an old version of iTunes, update it! I have a download link on my site. It won't cost you a dime. Did you know that you can get free, legal audiobook downloads online? They're a great way to keep yourself entertained on the cheap! To find these free downloads, start on my site: WHERE DID MY WEDDING PHOTOS ALL GO? I'm sorry to hear about your situation, Derrick. Your wedding is one of the most important days of your life. You certainly don't want to lose any of the photos from it. That said, I'm a little confused about what's going on here. When you take photos with a digital camera, you don't need to save them. The camera automatically writes them to the memory card. Or, a camera may write photos to internal memory, if it has any. Most cameras won't let you take pictures without a memory card inserted. Some do, though. The photos are stored in buffer memory. This is where photos go before they're written to the memory card. If you turn the camera off, the photos disappear. There's no way to get them back. There are a couple of other instances that could prevent photos from being saved. You could have turned off the camera before the photos were saved. Most cameras won't cut power until photos have been saved, though. Or, you could have removed the memory card unexpectedly. Not only would you lose the photos, you could damage the camera. I hope you didn't do any of these things. Rather, I hope you accidentally erased the photos. You at least have a chance of recovering them. There are a number of free programs that can recover deleted data. I have a handy dandy chart that compares the programs. You can then download the right one from my site. Want to know why you're able to recover deleted data? My tip explains it all. You may then want to download Eraser. It makes deleted data unrecoverable. It's handy for deleting sensitive files. You should also run it before you get rid of an old computer. TIME TO CREATE YOUR OWN NEWSLETTER ARCHIVE We've trimmed the newsletter archive a little. It was getting hard to manage. Newsletters still will be available on the site for a full six months. Now, you can keep your own archive of my newsletters. That way, you can dig out old tips you want to reread. Or, you can copy parts of the newsletter for later reading. Just select the portion you'd like to copy by highlighting it. Press Ctrl + C to copy. Open a Word document and press Ctrl + V to paste. The tip on transferring LPs to CD is a popular one. Not a week goes by that someone doesn't ask for it. I won't repeat the instructions here, though. Instead, you can read the tip on my site. There's also an easy solution to transferring your LPs to CD. You can purchase a special turntable that connects to your computer using a USB port. These things really make digitizing old records a snap! You simply set it up, play the record, and like magic, that music is on your PC. I tried a lot of these gadgets. You can find my personal favorite for sale in my secure online store. KEEP YOUR PC RUNNING LIKE NEW TELL THE WORLD TO GO KOMANDO
• Keep reading! I have more money-saving tips! Back to the top
 TRIM YOUR BROADBAND FEES PAINLESSLY You may get broadband, telephone and television from up to three different providers. Bundling those services with one company can lower your monthly bills. You may pay less for the services you already use. Or, you may get an extra service at no extra cost. Cable companies and telephone companies are now fierce competitors. Cable providers offer broadband, television and Internet-based phone service. Telephone companies offer DSL broadband. They are also teaming with satellite providers to offer television programming. There are many other ways you can save on broadband. And they're all in my column! So, be sure to read the rest of my column for free on my site. A LITTLE ABOUT ME: HOW TO CALL ME DURING THE SHOW WAIT! THERE'S MORE!
• What is DisplayPort, and do you need it? Back to the top
There are a couple of ways to share your printer with other machines, Christine. Some require you to invest in new gear. But you can also do it without spending a dime. Let's start with the free way first. All you need to do is enable printer sharing on your desktop computer. Then, you specify the network path for the printer on your laptops. On the desktop, click Start>>Control Panel. Double-click Printers (Printers and Faxes, in XP). Right-click on your printer and select Properties. Open the Sharing tab and choose "Share this printer." Enter a name for the printer and click OK. Now you're ready to add the printer to your laptops. In XP, Click Start>>Control Panel. Double-click Printers and Faxes. Click Add a Printer. Click Printer Connection. Browse the network for your printer and select it. You should be able to use the printer as if it were connected to your laptop. Adding a printer is a little different in Vista. Click Start>>Control Panel. Double-click Printers. Click "Add a printer." Click "Add a network, wireless or Bluetooth printer." Click Next. You should see a list of printers. Select the printer and click Next. Name your printer and click Next. Click Finish. This setup doesn't cost anything at the outset. However, it could prove to be more expensive in the long run. That's because the desktop must be turned on for the other computers to access the printer. You'll use more energy. It will also contribute to wear and tear on the desktop computer. A better solution is to use a print server. This connects your printer directly to your network. All the computers on your network can access the printer. No single computer needs to remain on. You'll find both wired and wireless print servers. Expect to pay about $50 for a wired model. Wireless ones start around $65. Make sure you buy one with the right type of connection for your printer. But, before you purchase a print server, take a look at your router. These days, many include built-in print servers. A USB port on your router is a good sign of a built-in print server. Check the manufacturer's site if in doubt. Another solution is to use a Bluetooth printer adapter. When connected, this adds Bluetooth functionality to your printer. Your computers can print over the Bluetooth connection. A Bluetooth adapter probably isn't the ideal solution, though. First, each computer needs Bluetooth. Some laptops have built-in Bluetooth. Otherwise, you'll need to purchase Bluetooth dongles. These are about $20 each. A printer adapter will run about $100. That costs can add up quickly. Besides, Bluetooth has a limited range. Wi-Fi offers a much better coverage area. Next time you purchase a printer, add wireless connectivity to your list of must-have features. More and more printers feature Wi-Fi. You don't need to worry about cables or print servers! For more help with printing, visit my site:
• Why is my printer printing smut?! • Save money on printing costs • Buying a budget printer NEW AND IMPROVED BUYING GUIDE A MESSSAGE FROM THE KOMANDO.COM POSTMASTER SEE SOMETHING UNDERLINED? CLICK & LEARN
STILL TO COME IN THIS WEEKEND'S EDITION:
• The lowdown on DisplayPort Back to the top
MY BOO-TEE-FUL AFFILIATES THEY CALL IT "THE REAL TEXAS"
HOWL AT YOUR LOCAL STATION FRIGHTENINGLY EASY TO FIND ME NEAR YOU SO MUCH FUN, IT'S SPOOKY! STILL TO COME IN THIS WEEKEND'S EDITION:
• What you should know about DisplayPort 
KIM'S TIPS FOR KOMANDO KIDS: Find scholarships to pay for college CONTEST SITE: Pay off your mortgage! FREEBIE OF THE WEEK: Respect the scalp FREEBIE FROM KOMANDO.COM: Highway pursuit driving sim GET A COOL SITE EVERY DAY OF THE WEEK In case you missed any this past week, here's a list of some of our favorites: Your office computer has all the programs you need to work efficiently. What if you need to work outside the office? Why not take all of those programs with you? You can actually fit an office suite on your thumb drive. It's the perfect way to work. Let's keep it going; there's plenty more to cover:
CRIMINALS HOPE TO TRICK YOU WITH AIRLINE SPAM The criminals hope recipients will open an attached ZIP file. The file purportedly contains an invoice and an electronic ticket. However, the file actually contains a worm that installs attack code. The criminals used a similar attack earlier this year. Watch out for these messages! EMERGENCY PATCH FROM MICROSOFT That fix patched a flaw in Windows' server section. Don't let that fool you. If you use Windows 2000, XP or Vista, you need this patch. Microsoft puts out unscheduled fixes with great reluctance. This vulnerability is very dangerous in 2000 and XP. It is less of a problem in Vista. I'd still fix it, though. To run update, click Start>>All Programs>>Windows (or Microsoft) Update.GET YOUR FREE SECURITY SOFTWARE HERE SHARE IT: Spread the word. Share the link to my security center with your family, friends, baseball team—everyone! They will thank you for it! Back to the top
 The LED (light-emitting diode) technology is exciting, too. LEDs use less energy than traditional LCD displays. The LED picture is better, with improved contrast and dynamic range. Apple has taken other steps to make the monitor greener. For example, the glass and aluminum enclosure can be recycled easily. And it has eliminated many toxic elements like arsenic from the display. You are very astute to pick up on the DisplayPort connection. That's a relatively new connection type. It could cause trouble for many people. (LED and DisplayPort are unrelated technologies. A monitor may have one or the other. Or, like Apple's, it could include both.) DisplayPort has its advantages. It can handle massive amounts of data—almost 11GB per second. The mini version of DisplayPort can also drive larger displays than mini DVI. That makes it a better connection for laptops. Mac laptops have a mini DisplayPort connection. Also, unlike DVI connections, DisplayPort carries audio. It can carry eight channels—that's enough for 7.1 surround sound. DisplayPort cables can be up to 15 meters long. Compare that to DVI's five-meter limit. When you compare DisplayPort to HDMI, some of the advantages disappear. The latest version of HDMI can handle about the same amount of data throughput. HDMI doesn't have an official cable length limit. But a well manufactured cable can be about 15 meters. HDMI can also carry eight channels of audio. DisplayPort does have advantages over HDMI, though. It can be used to daisy chain multiple monitors. Multiple monitors require only one connection on your computer. And you don't need to configure software. DisplayPort can handle other data. It can carry data to and from a Webcam, for example. This means monitors with DisplayPort can contain USB hubs. You don't need to run a separate USB cable to the monitor. DisplayPort is an open standard. So, manufacturers needn't pay a licensing fee. Ergo, the monitors should be slightly less expensive than ones that use HDMI. Now for the downsides. First, DisplayPort is new technology. You'll find limited support for it. Also, not all of DisplayPort's advantages may be realized in products that support it. For example, the Apple display to which you refer requires a USB cable. That's if you want to use the built-in speakers. That may also hold true for the USB ports. (Since the display is as yet unreleased, details are murky.) You'll also find that DisplayPort is not compatible with DVI and HDMI. Adapters are available. They include a chip to convert the signal. The ones I saw cost upwards of $20. The Apple display is specifically intended for use with the new MacBooks. The MacBooks have a compatible adapter. So, you shouldn't encounter any problems connecting the display. Relatively few other products support DisplayPort, though. HP and Dell sell monitors with DisplayPort connections. You'll also find a few video cards that have them. That's about it. So, I would avoid DisplayPort for now. That is, unless you want to buy a MacBook or upgrade your computer. Wait until it gains more traction. If you're dead set on a monitor with an LED backlight, you're still in luck. Other manufacturers make them, including Samsung, HP and Viewsonic. But none of those monitors require DisplayPort. For everything you need to know about monitors, visit my site:
• Save money—use your TV as a monitor • Vision problems? Magnify the monitor • Tweaking your flat-panel • Resolving resolution IF I HELPED YOU, CAN YOU PLEASE HELP ME? 1. Tell your co-workers, employees, team members, fantasy sports buddies, family members and friends to check us out. I have a form that makes it easy. 2. Link your blog, online profile or site to my site. Instructions and cool artwork await you. Have a great weekend. Thank you for your support of my show and newsletters! I appreciate it! Kim :)
 A SPOOKY TALE FOR HALLOWEEN Have a great day and I'll see you on the radio! Give me a call! I'd love to hear from you. It takes just three easy steps: 1.) Call the LIVE broadcast. That's this Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the East Coast, or, if you live on the West Coast, 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. 2.) Know the phone number. It is, of course, toll-free 1-888-825-5254. 3.) Talk to our call screener Andrew and tell him what's on your mind. That's all there is to it! Kim :) GET MORE TIPS FROM ME TO YOU
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I'm in the market for a new monitor. I've been considering buying Apple's new LED monitor. It's very expensive. Since it's greener than many monitors, though, the extra cost is worth it. My only concern is the DisplayPort connection. There doesn't seem to be another connection on the monitor. What are your thoughts on this?
The new Apple monitor won't be out until next month. But it looks stunning in pictures. 
Copyright © 2008, The Kim Komando Show. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of The Kim Komando Show is prohibited and strictly enforced. Newsletters may contain links to sites on the Internet owned and operated by third parties. The Kim Komando Show is not responsible for the availability of, or the content located on or through, any such third-party site. Information in this document is provided "as is" without warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, including but not limited to the implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose and freedom from infringement. The user assumes the entire risk as to the accuracy and the use of this document. We will not be liable for any damages of any kind arising from the use of this information, including, but not limited to direct, indirect, incidental, punitive, and consequential damages. You may also unsubscribe by sending a request via postal mail. Please include your name, e-mail address and a printed copy of your Newsletter e-mail. Send to: |
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