Vacation hassles? Take a picture!

I'm departing from my usual post on Internet resources today.

Instead, here is an article I wrote about how to survive those vacations that don't turn out quite the way you expected ...

Vacation Hassles? Take a Picture!

Looking for some fiction to read this summer? Try a travel brochure.

Those beautiful glossy pamphlets promise you the time of your life, with nonstop fun. To illustrate their promises, they show pictures of perfect people with perfect bodies and perfect teeth, frolicking and smiling. No one has sunburn, sore feet or indigestion. The children always look squeaky clean, and they never have tantrums. There are no mosquitoes, no flat tires, no thunderstorms . . . and no inner brats!

Meanwhile, back on earth, your actual vacation may look something like this:

1. You've been driving for several hours, when you notice that the "check engine" light on your dashboard is illuminated. You get off the highway at the next exit and find a garage that can fix the car, but it won't be finished til l the next day. And it's going to cost a small fortune.

2. You're on a camping trip. It's been raining for two days straight. The campground is one big mud puddle. And your matches are wet.



3. You splurge for a resort hotel, but when you get there they can't find your reservation, and the hotel is fully booked. You produce your travel agent's confirmation, but the reservations clerk merely says, "I'm sorry. There's nothing I can do."

4. Everything is crowded. You have to wait in line for food, for transportation, even for the bathroom. Other people are loud, pushy and rude.


You'll never see situations like these in a travel brochure. But I'll bet you've experienced at least one of them on your own trips. I know I have. And in retrospect I realize that my inner brat made things seem a lot worse than they were. It blamed and complained, making not only me miserable, but my family as well.

No vacation is perfect. Inevitably something will go wrong. Aside from real tragedies (which, fortunately, are rare) most vacation hassles are about inconvenience, bad weather and minor mishaps -- all temporary, none life-changing.

Predicaments such as delayed flights, sold-out attractions, small injuries and unexpected downpours can ruin your vacation if you allow your inner brat to gripe and grumble over every annoyance.

Instead, try this: Take a picture. Capture the mishaps. They may turn out to be your most precious and amusing memories.

I recall a sweltering summer day many years ago, when we ran out of gas on the highway because my husband was sure we had enough to bypass one rest stop and get to the next. He was right - almost. We made it just past the sign that said, "Fuel, Food: 2 miles."

Instead of yelling at him with a thousand I-told-you-sos, I wish I had taken a picture of him standing in front of that sign, apologetically holding an empty gas can. It would have been the perfect souvenir from our trip.

If you happen to encounter frustrations on your upcoming vacation, get out your camera and take a picture. Looking through the lens will give you a less emotional, more objective view of the situation. Plus, you’ll have a souvenir that will later remind you that crises have a way of working themselves out.

by Pauline Wallin, Ph.D.
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Pauline Wallin, Ph.D. is a psychologist in Camp Hill, PA, and author of "Taming Your Inner Brat: A Guide for Transforming Self-defeating Behavior" (Wildcat Canyon Press, 2004)



Pauline
teachmeinternet.com

Find bargains in misspellings

Next time you're looking for items on eBay or Craigslist, check for misspelled items as well.

Sometimes these misspelled items go unsold because they don't show up in the search results. For example, if you're looking for an iPod on eBay, you may miss an "i0od" for sale, which is the same thing, except that the seller accidentally hit the key above the p when listing it.

Here are a couple of tools to generate misspellings and search eBay and craigslist:

TypoBuddy - eBay and craigslist. Has advanced search options, as shown in the screenshot below.




FatFingers - ebay only. Has advanced search options.

Auction bloopers - eBay only. But the results automatically open an eBay page with all the misspellings.

Pauline
teachmeinternet.com

Better quality search hits

Are you searching for authoritative information online, but getting overwhelmed with irrelevant results from Google?

You can try other search engines, but if you insist on sticking with Google, try using one of these filters:

1. Site filter - Add one of the following to your search term: site:edu or site:gov or site:org
Note - no space between the letters and the colon, and no "dot" needed before the suffix.

Why use this? Think about where authoritative information comes from - educational institutions (websites ending in .edu), government agencies (.gov) and professional organizations and associations (.org)

Here's an example of a regular search for herbal supplements:

























Now here's the same search on sites that end in edu:































And on government sites:



























These screenshots may be a little hard to read, so feel free to go to Google and try these searches on your own. One thing that you CAN easily notice, though, is that the site:edu and site:gov results have no sponsored links (which are ads) while the regular Google search has lots of them along the right-hand side.


2. Filetype filter - Add one of the following to your search term: filetype:pdf or filetype:ppt
... again, no spaces between letters and colon.

Why use this? Journal articles and other educational documents are typically in pdf format. As for ppt (powerpoint) format, these usually originate from educational presentations that have been uploaded online.

Here's what my search results looked like when I filtered by filetype:

PDF:

























Powerpoint (ppt):



























Will the above types of filters guarantee accurate, reliable search results? No.

But you will get better overall quality of your search results.

BTW this works on the Yahoo search engine as well.

Try one or more of these filters. Then leave a comment here on how you made out. ;-)

Pauline

teachmeinternet.com

Email inbox overflowing?

Is your email inbox overflowing? There IS something you can do about it. Here are 2 ways to handle it:

1. Create rules within your email program. You may already have your spam filter enabled. This is simply a rule built into your email program, which sends messages identified as spam to a specific folder.

You can set rules for other messages as well, which bypass your inbox and send the messages directly to a designated folder or to the trash.

For example:

• If you subscribe to listservs or other email lists, you can have them automatically sent to one folder, or a separate folder for each list.
  
  
• On the lists you subscribe to, if there are people who continually post annoying or offensive messages, you can set your email program to delete messages from those people before they even appear in your inbox.
  
  
• Tired of those stupid jokes forwarded by Aunt Betty, but don't have the heart (or the guts) to ask her to stop sending them? Create a rule that will send all messages from Aunt Betty to the trash. OR, you can specify that only certain messages from her go to the trash - such as those with FW: in the subject line (or however your email program displays forwarded messages.)

For specific instructions on how to create rules, click on the Help section of your email program,


2. Subscribe to newsletters, ezines, email lists and website updates on the web.

The most convenient way to read these is via RSS feeds (RSS stands for "really simple syndication.") Here's how they work:

A website or blog owner sets up their content to be distributed as a "feed" to the web. You can pick up feeds from dozens - or hundreds - of sources and read them all on one page in your web browser.

You'll need an RSS reader, which you can set up for free. Try Google Reader, Netvibes or Bloglines.

Whenever you come across web content that you would like to subscribe to, look for the little orange RSS symbol like you see in the upper right corner of this page, and click on the link that says "subscribe."

Next time you open your RSS reader, all the updated content will be there for you. If you were getting updates via email, you can cancel them - thus making your inbox all that much lighter.

Not all email list services offer RSS feeds, unfortunately. But most of them do have web interfaces, where you can read the messages at the list archives page, rather than in your email.

Even though this is not as convenient as RSS (because you need to go to a separate web page for each list that you subscribe to) there is an advantage over downloading list messages to your inbox. If you read the messages online, you can access them from any computer that is connected to the Internet.


Pauline
teachmeinternet.com

New Google search options

Most people don't know that Google has some pretty cool advanced search tools. Here's a screenshot of what you'll see if you click on "Advanced search" next to the Google Search box:



Now, many of those functions can be accessed right on the search results page, by clicking "Show options" at the top of your search results, as circled in red below. (Since this is only an image, not an actual search page, the link won't work here.)


To get an idea of what these search options can do for you, watch this video:



Pauline
teachmeinternet.com

Think big, with mind mapping

Do you sometimes get "big" ideas that don't get implemented? Maybe it's because they need to be fleshed out with details and tasks.

To help organize your thoughts, you can diagram them on paper, with ideas and sub-ideas branching out in different directions. But this gets quite messy looking, especially if you decide to move things around or add lots of detail.

Mind-mapping software helps control the clutter. It also enables you to share your ideas and brainstorm with others.

Mind mapping can be used for:

• Writing projects - keep track of ideas for books, theses, reports, etc.
  
• Business development - organize goals, assignments and tasks
  
• Event planning - coordinate preparations for weddings, parties, vacations, and other events
  
• Weighing alternatives - compare different scenarios and what-ifs
• Organizing collections of documents or web links

Here are some free sources to check out:

Mind-mapping software to download to your computer:

Freemind - Open-source softwarre with lots of features, but aimed at the single user, rather than for group brainstorming. At the freemind website you'll find screenshots, tutorials and discussion groups.

XMind - Free and paid versions of mind mapping software. The paid version has more features, of course, including customization and the ability to export your mind map to other formats.


Online mind mapping tools that work in your web browser (thus accessible from any computer connected to the Internet):

Mind42 - Comprehensive tool that allows sharing and embedding into websites

Bubbl.us - Easy to use, laid out in colored shapes. Allows sharing and embedding into websites

Gliffy - Create your own flow charts, using a selection of shapes, images and arrows.

Want to learn more about mind mapping? Visit mind-mapping.org and mindmapsearch.org.


Pauline
teachmeinternet.com

Fun illusions

Here are a few illusions you might enjoy. They occur because of the way our brains process information. Have your speakers turned on for the videos.

First some optical illusions - even when you know how they work, your brain still fools your eyes!



Get more information and explanations of how illusions work at Professor Michael Bach's website.


Now here are some auditory illusions.



Several of the above illusions are explained here.


And now here's one that you're fooled only with your eyes open:




Pauline
teachmeinternet.com

Check weather, road conditions and traffic cams

I just got back from a 400-mile car trip with my daughter Janis. We drove through some fairly bad weather and snow-covered roads, but thanks to the Internet we were well prepared.

Prior to leaving we looked up hourly weather reports and road conditions. And along the way, using Janis's web-enabled cellphone, we checked traffic cams for real-time pictures of where we were headed.

These helped us decide which route to take. (BTW, nothing looked good, so we chose the road less traveled...)

If you want to check weather and road conditions for your next trip, here are some ways to do it:

1. Google search - use search terms such as:
[town or city] weather - e.g., Denver weather
[geographical area] road conditions - e.g. western New York road conditions
[location] traffic cam - e.g. Florida turnpike traffic cam


2. For up-to-the-minute road conditions and construction zones, check your state or provincial department of transportation.

Here's a link to those in the USA

. . . and in Canada

Both USA and Canada

If you're in another country, search your federal or regional government's website for road and traffic information.


3. See maps and charts of developing weather conditions at weather.com and Weather Underground.

Both of these have applications for your mobile phone

Keep in mind that weather is not totally predictable, and that conditions could be better or worse than expected.

Thus, be prepared. These brochures will give you some guidelines:
Ohio Dept of Public Safety: Winter Driving Tips
Alaska Dept of Public Safety: What's So Different About Winter Driving?
Have a safe and happy holiday season!


Pauline
teachmeinternet.com

Homemade gifts are back in style

50 years ago the term "homemade" implied inferior. Back then, mass production made more uniform (and therefore more 'perfect') items.

But homemade is making a comeback. As the world becomes more automated and impersonal, home-made is a welcome reminder of the human touch. And YOUR homemade gifts are a part of YOU - they represent your individuality, your personality and your love.

. . . Something to think about in this gift-giving season.

Here are some ideas for home-made gifts:


Cookies: How many chocolate chip cookie recipes do you really need? How about 50 all on one website? There you'll find recipes for Amish cookies, low-fat, slice-and-bake and more and more chocolate chip cookies. Fill a glass jar or mixing bowl with the cookies and wrap a ribbon around it.

Bread mixes: Commercial mixes for homemade bread are expensive. You put together such mixes yourself for just pennies - and make a wide variety that cannot be found in stores. Cookingbread.com has great photos with step-by-step instructions that even novices can follow.

To make a gift, simply mix the dry ingredients and put them in a self-sealing bag. Include instructions for adding liquids (for both bread machines and regular oven baking) and put everything in a loaf pan or a basket.

Other food gifts: Spiced nuts, granola mixes, your favorite brownie or muffin mix. If you don't have a favorite recipe, you can find good ones by one of these search strategies:
1. Add the word "winners" to your search - you're apt to get recipes that came out on top in contests.
2. Use a clustering search engine such as clusty.com, which will yield a list of sub-categories for your search.
3. Search the Yahoo Directory (not search engine) for recipes. You'll get links to main recipe hubs.

Of course, there is more to home-made than food. You can make soap, candles, sachets, photo calendars, and more. Here are some websites to give you ideas:

Familyfun.com shows a handy list of categories - last-minute gifts, gifts for pets, for kids, and for teachers. They also have some interesting ideas for wrapping your gifts.

HowStuffWorks.com has lots of gifts that kids can make.

Make-Stuff.com is a goldmine of ideas - not just for gifts, but for cleaning and personal care products, as well as recycling old items. (Did you know there are over 20 things you can do with old CDs?)

Don't have time to make gifts? Think again. For just one afternoon you would have spent shopping, you could whip up several one-of-a-kind presents that cannot be found in stores.

But if you really don't have time, or if you really don't enjoy making things, you can still give something hand-made. Try Etsy.com or TenThousandVillages.com, where you'll find craft items from all over the world.


Pauline
teachmeinternet.com