First of all - hats off to MemoryStock.com! Free Shipping! that got here from Stockton, CA in about 48 hours. (Actually less, but I'm too lazy to calculate the exact time involved.) And the right part - the first time! Once I adjust my laptop's attitude, I am definitely going to order from them again.

Now for the bad news. I have an off-lease IBM ThinkPad R40e 2484-NU2 that we bought (okay, Frankie bought it) from a third-party on eBay. It's not the speediest of laptops and, in fact, came with only 384MB of RAM - of which, the BIOS (Basic Input Output System) recognizes about 366MB. (I'd swear the description didn't mention this dearth of RAM, but then I'm old and forget things.)

For an oldie, moldie laptop - at least the RAM is upgradable to 1GB. Unfortunately, the BIOS doesn't know that. So, we (meaning me) need to update the BIOS. Easy, peasy - right!? {buzzer} Nope!

In order to update the BIOS, I need a solid A/C connection and a fully charged battery. Go on the A/C; no-go on the battery. It quit charging about 6 (or more) months ago. Since the A/C works and I never (okay, hardly ever) accidentally pull out the adapter plug - not an issue. Plus - have you priced laptop batteries lately!?!

Well, now it's an issue. In order to use the RAM we just bought, I have to purchase the replacement battery that I have been trying desperately not to need. If you follow JMark Afghans on Twitter, you may have noticed a Tweet that mentions "Visions of Laptop as Frisbee {film at 11}" recently.

All I can say? If this $30 memory upgrade gets any more expensive? I'm buyin' a hammer. A really big hammer. {film at 11:15}

(Although I haven't confirmed it, I believe that my complex/ISP is blocking access to anything with 'data torrent' in the name. Oops - anything with 'torrent' as any part of the word, including 'torrential' and 'torrentially' and 'torrential floods' and 'torrential downpour'. All other searches work.)

Anyway, back to FB and data security. The security consultant who collected information from 171 million Facebook users supposedly only pulled public information. That's fine, if you wanted/knew your information was public. If you didn't and you haven't corrected the privacy settings - then that's a problem.

To check, log in to your account:

1. Click on Account, in the upper right corner of your home page;
2. Choose Privacy Settings from the drop-down menu;
3. Under Basic Directory Information, click on View Settings ;
   • Items tagged Everyone are, in a nutshell, public;
   • Anything you don't want to 'broadcast' should be changed to Friends, or at least Friends of Friends ;
4. Not sure what shows or what to change? Choose Preview My Profile on the top right:
   • This will show you what information on your profile is public / viewable to strangers;
   • Anything you don't want to 'broadcast' should be changed to Friends, or at least Friends of Friends ;
5. Don't log-off - we have more to check.

Another security / privacy issue on Facebook is enabled Public Search. What this means is that Google and Bing and Yahoo - and all those happy little search engines - have access to everything you post on FB, unless you tell them NO!

To do that:

1. Click on Account, in the upper right corner of your home page;
2. Choose Privacy Settings from the drop-down menu;
3. Under Applications and Websites (lower left), click Edit your settings ;
4. Under Public Search (last option), click Edit Settings ;
   • If Enable Public Search is checked, uncheck it to remove search engine access to your information.
5. Don't log-off - we have more to check.

Lastly, the information you place on Facebook is only as secure as the settings of your friends. While you could ask them all to tighten their security, that probably wouldn't happen - leaving your data exposed through their settings, posts, and gameplay. So, let's just place a few limits - for them - and Facebook's Partners.

1. Click on Account, in the upper right corner of your home page;
2. Choose Privacy Settings from the drop-down menu;
3. Under Applications and Websites (lower left), click Edit your settings ;
4. Under Info accessible through your friends, click Edit your settings ;
   • On the pop-up, uncheck everything that you don't want visible - to games and websites - through your friends;
   • Be sure to SAVE your changes .
5. Under Instant Personalization, click Edit your settings ;
   • If Enable instant personalization on partner websites is checked, uncheck it to remove FB Partner access to your information.

You are now done, to the best of my knowledge, protecting your information and your privacy on Facebook. At least until there's another update and everything resets. {sigh}

Internet access is a privilege not a right for children, but with the new technology and free access to so much information it is also a good idea to have it right at hand. Since children are vulnerable to the whims of others it is also a good idea to make sure that you have control over what they are accessing via the satellite Internet West Virginia connection.

When we decided to install Wild Blue satellite Internet so that our daughter would be able to get the kind of information she needed for her school work we also installed some parental controls so that we would not have to worry so much about where she was going when browsing the net. With those controls we were also right there watching what she was doing by placing the computer in the family room where we could keep a close eye on her travels.

Prior to installing the Wild Blue wireless Internet to the computer we spent some time discussing what could happen while she was spending her time on the net. We cautioned her to be careful about what information she gave out about herself and where she lived. We also made sure that she knew she would give up her computer privileges if she disobeyed our instructions as to how she was allowed to use it. Over all it's been a good experience.

Today's messages brought one of those heart-thumping, panic-inducing, four-letter-word-inspiring shocks - confirmation of an order for a $1,327 notebook computer (with $50 second-day shipping) from buy.com. Given my current cash flow and no-$$$-no-order house rules, I was pretty sure that this was a hoax / spam / phishing expedition. Yet, June 2010 has just been filled with Egads! Gadzooks! and OMG, No! moments - the USPS / PayPal fiasco starting the whole isn't-this-month-over-yet nightmare.

Taking a deep breath and a large cup of coffee, I started investigating this 'confirmation' message. Sure enough, none of the links went to buy.com. Instead, they went to a site for The First Assembly of God Church, in Gainesville, Florida - which, by the way, has been taken down by their hosting service. Apparently, they got hijacked a while back, or God said, "Thou shalt steal!" and they got busted.

Although that did make me feel a little better, I still had to check with buy.com. Turns out - oddly enough - that I don't seem to have an account with them. Another sigh of relief.

Currently, I'm waiting for them to respond to my inquiry into this mysterious order. Just in case.

Think about it for a second. What - exactly - does an image from a web site tell my insurance agent and her claims adjustor if, heaven forbid, I should have to file a claim? I mean, beyond the fact that I obviously liked a particular dresser, headboard, chair, or microwave? Not, as it turns out, a darn thing. Without a receipt, it's just a pretty picture. (Lesson learned!)

However, what I was really looking for tonight?   An easy way for people to put together - and safely store - a list of their possessions. What I found?   EZasset* - an online system that offers a step-by-step process for documenting - room-by-room - everything you own. They even provide up to 1GB of free (my favorite word) storage for your information, solving both problems.

Then, there's my I-need-software-now site:   CNET download.com* - with hundreds of free and free-to-try software downloads. There are a couple (I didn't look at all the pages) of interesting home inventory titles and, being free, if one doesn't suit your needs it's easy to try another. Of course, they don't come with free offsite data storage. But, I'm sure your insurance company would be happy to stick a CD in your file, if you asked them nicely.

Somewhere in between these two ideas is KnowYourStuff™, from the Insurance Information Institute. Their software is free to download and use, with the same step-by-step, room-by-room process as other packages. Where KnowYourStuff™ differs from download-and-use at CNET is Vault ²⁴ - a secure, online storage facility. Unlike EZasset, however, Vault ²⁴ is not free.

So, I'm happy to say, there are several options out there - at little to no cost. Add a little time and energy and, before you know it, you can see exactly what you own. Or, in our case, just how serious a pack-rat you've become.

*   Links are provided as-is and for informational purposes only. No web site safety, usability, or endorsement is guaranteed, offered, or implied.

First, I have to say that using the internet to take classes is perhaps not the most efficient way to learn. I used hughesnet to take my classes, which I have found to be far more reliable than other forms of internet because even the smallest outages can have a huge effect on the learning experience.

Otherwise, it was simply difficult to learn online. Lectures may seem long and boring, but in my opinion, people learn a lot more than they think during these lectures. Some of my classes tried to replace the lecture with online video, which did help, but in the end it is simply not the same thing. Other online classes simply gave up the lecture altogether, and learning was entirely based on the textbook. I don't think I will retain a single thing that I learned in those classes. Anyway, I would not recommend that people take online classes unless you have a really good satellite internet provider.

This is a guest post from Ashley Reingfield. Thanks girl!

A site owner has zillions (almost literally) of options for information and help with a free directory submission. No matter what they tell you, the easiest way to get your site listed is to follow the instructions on the directory website. They may all be a bit different, but they are meant to be adhered to.

Violate the rules? Don't get listed.

It's a lot of work. There are dozens, if not hundreds, of directories on the Internet. Finding them is the key, followed closely by spending the time suggesting they list your site.

Then, there's the waiting. Many of the best / highest ranking / most popular directories are edited and reviewed by real people. Real people with only so many hours in a day to look at hundreds of suggestions. The wait can be long.

By far, the biggest problem I've found are the organizations that guarantee a free listing in any directory worth the inclusion. It cannot be done. But many black hat SEOs will tell webmasters that it can.

And - happily - take their money.