HoundsGood: Chronicles of a Virtual Volunteer

I nearly fell out of my chair when I read that there was actually a calling to be a hacker. I mean, you can get a paying job with your existing computer hacking skills, or you can learn them for an exciting new career. Did I read that correctly? In fact, I did. An important part of IT Security is finding out if software or a computer system can stand up to the abuse and meddling of hackers and viruses. What better way to do it than to let your in house and contract hackers to have a go at it before it reaches the market place?

This kind of work is called “Ethical Hacking.”  There are actually all sorts of classes that you can take in the effort to make your websites more secure.

Did you also know that there are items that should be restricted from Google so that an attacker does not use your site as a “drive by attack.” or worse, use Google as a roadmap to your site which most likely contains sensitive information that you have not secured? Join us for the Secure Coding course and we will show you how to “programmatically” keep your sensitive information out of the prying eyes of Google’s spiders.

Just about anyone can benefit with that type of training. If you want to get more involved, there are also Ethical Hacker certification tracks at the EC-Council. I think this is something I am going to look farther into. The more skills I have, the more employable I will be for a “day job.”

What do you think?  Is this something that can channel the energies of people who would otherwise be up to mischief?

There are so many certificate programs available by correspondance course. In fact, when I was a kid, my cousin and I used to poke fun at the skills you couldn’t possibly learn outside of a classroom setting. I wouldn’t want to have a nurse attending on me that just read books and had no patient experience, for example. Today, things have changed dramatically with distance learning, and specifically, online schools. It is very appealing with the busy schedules that everyone seems to have.

I learned something new today. There are not for profit schools, just like your local colleges are, but there are also for profit programs. The proponents of for profit programs cite several benefits. AllOnlineSchools.com has an article about it. A line or two, in particular, caught my interest:

Because these schools follow a business model, they see their students as customers and can be more responsive to meeting students’ needs. As they strive to attract new students and be market-competitive, for-profit schools may be pushed to innovate and improve at a faster rate than traditional schools.

I would argue that nonprofit schools need to be as equally customer service oriented to keep enrollment up. Change is usually slower to come at a nonprofit institution, as they are often larger.  However, a board of directors typically makes decisions. I was in the unfortunate situation where my degree program or matriculation path was discontinued.  It was later reinstated, and it took several years to do so after a chairman had made the decision.  I imagine with a for profit school, if there was enough student complaint, they may act more quickly.  Nonprofit institutions are essential for preserving historical record and for most degree programs.  I can imagine, however, if you are going for a degree that changes at the speed of light, such as jobs relating to the internet, a more flexible school may be in order.

For me, if I were to do it again, I would choose a combination of the two.  There is nothing like a hands on education, but I would supplement it with online learning in subjects that don’t require power tools or learning how to use catheter.

Spring is in the air, and a few things usually happen. “Blue Sky Fever” runs through offices in epidemic proportions. This disease is caused by the weather being too beautiful to possibly go to work. If you are not in a relationship and wish to be, the season sometimes causes you to look a little more longingly at watching happy couples walk by. If you are in one, sometimes one hears wedding bells a little bit louder. In that case, and you are a gal whose guy agrees, than Diamonds may just be a girl’s best friend.

However, I am finding that while many people take care to buy American or environmentally friendlier automobiles and other big ticket items, they neglect to think about those things when it comes to diamonds. Diamonds, of course, are natural, so you don’t have to worry about any artificial poisons, etcetera. The big buzz about diamonds is making sure you are not buying “conflict diamonds.” What is a conflict diamond? According to United Nations, conflict diamonds, also called blood diamonds, are traded on the black market in war-torn areas. They sometimes find their way into the hands of legitimate dealers as well.

Diane Irvine, CEO for Blue Nile commented on the subject in an interview with Puget Sound Business Journal:

We take it very seriously. We have very rigid rules in place. We work with all our suppliers to ensure they are a legitimate source of diamonds. If customers are interested we are able to speak of that and assure customers we are a legitimate and clean source of diamonds.

First there was sustainable coffee, and fabrics, and now there seems to be sustainable diamonds. It seems that not only can you use Blue Nile because of the frugality of saving money, but you can also rest easy knowing that they strive to eliminate products that would go against your sensibilities.  If you make small purchases thinking about the bigger impact, think about the large ones too.  There is not necessarily a “necessary evil” lurking about.

I was a tutor for a very short time in college. I didn’t quit because I was poor at it, I just didn’t have a regular schedule and it was hard to keep up with, being that I had a heavy classload. While I know that everyone needs a little help now and then, some days I wonder if all of the commercial tutoring programs popping up are a result of not having as much parental involvement and attention in regards to schoolwork, or if it is just the recognition of a long term need finally addressed.

I was reading about Clubz Tutoring and it seems to be a little different from what one traditionally thinks about when it comes to tutoring centers. The tutors work strictly one on one and come to your home, just like the high school or college student parents used to enlist. Only, instead, the tutor won’t cancel out because of their own mounting schoolwork. In many ways, I think having a tutor coming to the home helps instill better Study skills, for the fact that the child doesn’t think that study is for the center only, and the tutor sees the child’s routine in person and can offer feedback. All tutors have a bachelor’s degree or higher and are well versed in a particular subject, or with teaching study skills.

Maybe, an opportunity like this could be the perfect antidote for people who are finding that they are underemployed or unemployed, but hold a degree.  It might be a good way to help others while paying the extra bills.

Everyone is thawing out now in the north, and the urge to take a hike with the dogs or hop on a quad is very enticing. Sometimes, once you buy an ATV or similar vehicle, you park it in the fall and don’t think much about it. I need to let you know that if you have a Yamaha Rhino, there is a major recall due to the glut of Yamaha Rhino Rollover lawsuits.   The vehicle is considered a “side by side ATV” rather than a utility vehicle.

The problem has occurred due to the high center of gravity of the vehicles. While they may be fine for driving on an even road, if you take a corner a little two fast or encounter some bumps, you may have a hard time righting it. If the passenger instinctively sticks his/her leg out to right the vehicle, as there is no passenger door, they are in danger of rolling it and crushing their leg, or worse.  Some passengers have reported broken collar bones, and spinal cord injury as well.

Of course, one may believe that reckless driving has nothing to do with the way the vehicle is made, but these actions don’t constitute unsafe or inexperienced driving, but the vehicle rolling in normal situations.  It is very similar to the problems early SUV had with high center of gravity, and narrow wheel bases.  Countless people rolled them, as once they rocked a little, they could not compensate.

If you go on a trip this year and the cabin has similar vehicles, or even if you have one in your own garage, don’t ignore the recall notices.  In otherwords, let’s not have someone need to start a nonprofit organization because of the widespread injuries.  It could be the life of a friend, yourself, or your canine companion running alongside that you could save.

There are a lot of websites and blogs that were created for the sole purpose of an individual promoting their real or perceived financial need. I always wondered how someone could come up with such a cleaver idea or such a compelling case why complete strangers should bail them out of their credit card debt, that maybe they should be hired for those that are in a more serious state of affairs.

There is a site that purports to be giving away free scholarships that are not based on academic or athletic merit.  You participate in activities on the site to earn more points.  Each points puts your name in the hat another time to win in their $10,000 monthly giveaway.  The minimum prize that you can win is $3,500 in scholarship money. To win, you need to be 18 years or older and have enrolled or plan on enrolling in a college or university program during the next twelve months. If I won, I would enroll. I have been wanting to go back.

Many of the activities that win points are quizzes, surveys, and polls, or reading informational articles on the site.  There are also ways to get points by using Digg, Myspace, or other social media to promote the idea. I do see information interspersed here and there about deals for students on credit cards. Perhaps that is how they partly fund the site.

I think this is a great idea.  There are so many potential students glued to the computer that maybe this will make their time pay off even more.

Previously, I have talked about Dragon Naturally Speaking and how it can be a breakthrough for people who are limited in their online journaling. There are many gifted voices that are silenced or very limited as far as the internet is concerned because of physical impairment. Paralysis of the upper body or severe carpal tunnel may inhibit someone from typing or typing effectively. Varying degrees of visual impairment also causes a barrier. Dragon Blogger is a tool, that with the use of a microphone, can have someone blogging as fast as or faster than they could type depending on the speed of your speech.

There is a special coupon code that will give you ten to twenty five percent off the purchase of the software. This is an after Christmas special and expires December 31st. It is the perfect thing to buy while you may have extra days off during the holidays, or keep a New Year’s resolution. In addition, the purchase will be eligible for a 2008 tax write off if you happen to be using it for your business.

I am excited to see that there is not only a Standard and Preferred Version, but also a version for MacIntosh!  Software makers are getting better at concurrently developing a Mac counterpart of their software, thank goodness.  I can’t wait to try it.    There are a few people I know that like to multitask or have an impairment that makes typing difficult and I would like to see them try it.   Just a note: you will need a noise cancelling microphone.  Those are easy to obtain online or from your favorite electronics store.

Now that I think about it, John McCain got a lot of flack for not using email.  It wasn’t because he was behind the times, but because of the lack of range of motion in his arm that makes it uncomfortable and not possible to really be effective on the keyboard with two hands.  Maybe if his staff discovered Dragon Blogger, he would have been blogging from the road and would have come across to people as more cutting edge!

• $50 Coupon Code- DNSMSBG -Dragon NaturallySpeaking 10 Preferred
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It is a sad statistic, but fifty percent of marriages end in divorce.  Do we all get wrapped up in pleasing eachother that we never work on communication skills before we all get married?   The most common issue in marriage is said to be about money, but it really is about a breakdown in communication.   When you think about it, the money issues that are most often cited are usually not about the actual money, but how people communicate their priorities with it.

If you need assistance and guidance to help a hurting marriage or to strengthn a good one, the National Institute of Marriage is there to help.  They have developed a variety of programs and resources to help couples who are having challenges, and are fighting for their marriages, so that they can weather the storm.  Someone wise once told me that a marriage that is breaking does not just hurt the couple, but the community.  It also dissolves friendships, confuses children, and displaces pets.  The programs use a Christ-centered approach and focus on the fact that you are not alone in your struggles.

There is Marriage 911, which is a “first response” program with materials that you can work with at home.  When you know that you are headed for disaster, and can see the warning signs, but don’t know quite what to do, it may be something that you want to look into.  There are also intensive counseling programs where a couple works intensively with two NIM therapists in a group setting over a four day period.  The program has been proven to be extremely effective in fostering hope and giving couples a foundation to move forward with.  Of course, nothing is a quick fix, but if someone gets a little bit of hope back and takes the time to listen to others and to where their partner is coming from, they may be able to salvage and move forward in their quest to save their marriage.

I am not one to read a lot of motivational books, not that I am not into bettering myself, but many of them set out to whip you into shape when you are whipped quite enough from your day to day life.    We all have our own stuff to deal with, but on top of it it is hard to look at the news sometimes.   Sometimes it is the actual content of what is going on in the world, and another big part of it is the sensationalism used to portray it and the inability to unplug sometimes with all of the emerging media.   It is hard to know sometimes if the world is really going to heck in a handbasket, or we are really suffering from a case of “TMI” (too much information).

Afterall, movie stars of the silver screen partied just as much as stars today, but they listened to publicists and certain parts of their life just wasn’t printed.

Life Inspirations Volume I is a book of inspirational poetry written by writer, musician, and minister Ozell Adkins.   Although it is not a “self help” book per se, the intent of the poetry is to act as inspirational letters to meditate on, consider, and to convey a message of hope and encouragement, that God’s purpose for your life is greater than any problem you may have. Many people go through times where they just want to give up, and Mr. Adkins wrote this collection when he himself was at a turning point.  His wish is to inspire people in a gentle way to “reach beyond” into the next stage of your life.

I wish Mr. Adkins the best of luck with his book.  There certainly is a need for more support and encouragement towards eachother, and it is nice to see someone that has their heart set on encouraging others.  This book was recommended to me, and I will surely be taking a closer look at it.

Training and education (for people) is something I often cover, as it is the key sometimes to gaining skills to open the door to volunteer opportunities. Of course, it also helps us qualify for higher pay to provide for our families and pets as well.

There is a nationwide directory of student loans and schools at Premierstudentloan.com. There are many different credit unions and other sources listed that specialize in Florida student loans, so you can talk to someone in your neighborhood, or at least within a reasonable drive, rather than feeling a little unsure about who is on the other end of a national toll free number. There is also a page for schools and lenders in Orlando.   You can check out some resources while you are on vacation!