If there are any topics you would like to see discussed in the future or if you have any comments, please contact me at JoeT@HighCaliber.com
Bullet Points
New Windows Calculator
A free replacement for the Windows Calculator is now available from Microsoft
that includes all the math functions of the current Windows calculator plus
many different types of conversions.
Calculator Plus has a new interface and lets you perform such conversions as
lengths (for example, meters to feet), temperature (Fahrenheit to Celsius or
Kelvin), volume (liters to pints), energy units (joules to calories), power
(watts to horsepower) and weights (kilograms to pounds). It also includes a
European currency converter. Installing it does not uninstall your regular
Windows calculator. Learn more about it and download it here:
Regularly cleaning PC equipment plays a big part in preserving your systems.
Dust buildup can cause overheating which in turn can damage hardware components.
The following five steps should help keep dust at bay and equipment
functioning optimally.
Do a full system cleaning monthly.
Take the system apart and use canned air to remove all dust. Clean the
external and internal surfaces of the computer to get rid of dust
and any other particles. Don't forget to blow the dust out of the
power supply and CPU fan, which are especially prone to accumulating dust.
Clean the keyboard and mouse.
Use a dust vacuum and a alcohol/water solution to clean these dust- and
dirt-collecting components.
Run a CD-ROM cleaner.
As with audio systems, CD-ROM drives can be cleaned with special kits. This
is especially useful if you are in a dusty environment.
Clean the monitor.
Use a cleaner on the surface of the display to remove fingerprints and
dust on the screen. Always spray the cleaner on a cloth to clean a
monitor rather then spraying cleaner on it directly. If you're cleaning an
LCD, use a product designed for that purpose and don't press too hard on
the screen. It's also a good idea to take the canned air to the vents on
the top and/or sides of monitor cases to get rid of accumulated dust and
dirt.
Clean the floppy drive with canned air.
A good blast of air can remove dust collections inside floppy drives.
Cleaning PCs regularly can improve performance and extend the life of your equipment.
Cool Mapping Site
Most of you have probably already used MapQuest or
Yahoo! Maps to locate a destination or get driving
directions. Here is an alternative to these tried and true mapping sites with some very innovative
new features:
There are still a few kinks in this one but I suspect they will get worked out soon.
Search the Web Via Email
It is possible to search the web using email. This can be especially
useful if you're accessing the Internet with limited resources such as
with a PDA or cell phone.
To search the Web, send a blank email to search@icerocket.com with
the desired search term on the subject line.
To search newsgroups, use the email address news@icerocket.com
To search for pictures, address the email to pics@icerocket.com
In all cases, an email will be sent back to you with the search results.
Email Etiquette
In order to be savvy when using email, there are certain rules that
you should try to follow. They will make your e-mails more effective and
also reduce the likelihood of offending anyone on the other end.
When you are composing your e-mail, type in a subject line that is
meaningful. It should give the other person a good idea of what the email
pertains to.
Do not type your messages or subject lines in caps. This is equivalent to yelling.
Keep your emails as short as possible and on topic.
Watch the tone of your email since it is easy for the recipient to misinterpret.
An email is very similar to a letter, so always add your signature or name at the
end of the message.
Do not add unnecessary attachments since they can slow send and download times, and
take up space on the sender's and recipient's computers.
Do not include private information in the message unless you are using
additional technology to ensure that the message is being sent securely.
If you are sending an email to a mailing list, don't send messages that are
off-topic or irrelevant.
Once you have composed your e-mail, always take a few moments to read what
you have typed. Check your spelling, grammar, and punctuation before clicking
the Send button.
Finally, you should recognize that there are times when a phone conversation
or speaking with someone face to face is more appropriate than sending an email.
Email marketers seeking to increase their open and click-through rates should
keep subject lines short and hyperlinks plentiful, according to a study from
EmailLabs.
A recent study of 650 companies compared and tested message size, the number
of embedded links and the length of the subject line.
Here are the findings: subject lines shorter than 50 characters, as well as
an increased number of hyperlinks, led to better open and click-through
rates. Message size did not appear to be a factor in boosting rates,
although messages in the 20 to 79 kilobyte (KB) size range had slightly
better response rates than messages from 3 to 19 KB.
Subject lines with 49 or fewer characters had an open rate that was 12.5
percent higher and a click-through rate that was 75 percent higher than
subject lines with more than 50 characters.
The difference in open and click-through rates was smaller but still
distinct when evaluating the number of hyperlinks contained in the email.
Messages with 25 or more links had an open rate 12 percent higher than those
containing fewer than 25 links, and a click-through rate of 29 percent
higher than for emails with fewer than 25 links.
The EmailLabs analysis was based on the results of 23,475 email campaigns
sent by more than 640 companies between January 1 and March 31, 2004.
