HoundsGood: Chronicles of a Virtual Volunteer

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of GoViral. All opinions are 100% mine.

Getting a pet for someone as a Christmas present is never the right move. Often, the giver does this to be a hero to the recipient as a huge gesture. Other times, an individual puts a pet on their wish list without thoroughly examining the suitability of the pet. After the holidays, or more so in the six months following the holidays, shelters are packed with Christmas presents. They arrive either immediately as the recipient is not allowed to have a pet where they live, or in the next few months when the pet is past the tiny and helpless stage and starts to roam around.

Here is a pet that you can really give someone without there being any consequences for the pet. MyFelix is an adorable java based feline that is ready to wiggle his way into your heart. This is a preview, where you can pet Felix. You can share him via email as well. When you download him, you will also be able to teach him tricks. He might even roam around your desktop. Occasionally, he may have a message for you. There may be contests you can enter in or special offers. You will not be asked to register MyFelix or provide your contact info when you download him, which is an added bonus.

To download MyFelix, you need Microsoft® Windows XP or higher. I can preview him on a Mac, but he is not Mac compatible right now. Hopefully a Mac OS version will be developed. MyFelix will have to just hang out on my PC. I’ll go over there and visit him once in awhile. Shh…don’t tell Mac.

I was thinking about a conglomeration of things over the past few days.  One thing is that the older distinguished gentleman in my life, Alex the weenie dog, is 10 1/2 years old.   October 31st is the anniversary of the day I met him as a 17 month old young man.  For some reason I remembered looking online at rescues and different things at that time on my old, slow computer.  Remember when people had Geocities and Angelfire sites?  You got a free site, but there was no guarantee that the site would stay up and running.  If yours was popular, it would crash until the cache was cleared at the host.  Of course, in some cases, visitors were treated to some amazingly beautiful (not) popups that crippled their computer.

Nowadays, website hosting has come way down, so there is little excuse to not be able to pay for a site if you are serious about telling people something, but I think there still is a market for the free site.  Not everyone wants a blog site, and besides, what is a ten year old to do when they want to show the whole internet their collection of Pokemon cards?  Whoops.  Pokemon cards are so out, but chalk that up to my trip down memory lane.  At that time they were the big thing. I found out that there is still a place where you can build a free website at Hpages.com.

While I recommend that for registered rescue organizations and nonprofits that you get your domain, these would make great secondary pages. Also, I think that when you are starting out and just want a place to post your photos, etcetera, it is a good place to try out your ideas.  Some may say the format of a static free website is obsolete with all of the blogging platforms that are out there.  On the contrary, I think that blogging only works if your site is not going to be static.  Nothing is worse than when your blog hasn’t been updated in months.  People stop visiting.  A static site, however, may be what you need for your family pictures or neighborhood grassroots effort that does more in person than it does on the web.

There are actually few nice features that you can use that makes the old free sites a real far cry.  There is a feature where you can disable right clicking on your site.  This way, no one can copy your photos onto their hard drive.   You may think that it is no big deal, but if you have a personal page with photos of your family, it is a good move.  When you get a site, the domain name will have .hpages.com attached to it.   While it may not be a good idea for a business, it is perfect for a personal site.  Someone can’t randomly type in domain names and find your page if it is something you only want to share with a small group of people.  Of course, if people link to it, search engines will find it, but not if no one does. The other nice thing is that you do have access to stats. They may not be as detailed as a paid service, but they are definitely quite adequate for the needs of a smaller site. Of course, I don’t have any stats yet as I just registered to give it a whirl ten minutes ago.

My friend’s laptop bit the dust. She did have a service provider where she could access her mail from a website. However, she had it said up to automatically download to outlook and not leave any backups on the server. She would periodically go in and delete things off the web server. That worked out well, until one day her laptop had a meltdown. Only so many emails were stored in her Blackberry, so all she had were the last few days of messages. She called me wondering if I was an expert on Outlook Mail Recovery, as she lost precious photos and records of conversations. Sadly, I am not.

Fortunately, there is a software program that you can use. What some people who use Outlook only for email don’t realize, is that there is also journal, calendar, and other features which someone may have poured their life into. You should never have important phone numbers and other info only in one place, but most people do just that.

Remo Outlook Mail Recovery will retrieve messages you accidentally deleted or were corrupted.  The files will be in plain text, HTML and RTF formats, and attachments and imbedded  HTML can also be retrieved. Remosoftware.com has a free download available that you can take for a spin if you are just like my friend.  You especially want to get it if your small non profit is depending on you.

Here’s another cost saving idea for the charity or the individual that doesn’t have unlimited funds (imagine that!). Before you jump into a hosting contract, shop around for web hosting. Don’t just look at the bottom line as far as the actual price, as if you have to spend hours of down time either chasing after a live person in the customer service department, or hours of down time of your site, the expenses of an inexpensive host add up. If you have someone that is extremely committed to the organization, such as a founder, who has unlimited talented when it comes to servers and the internet, then your group is a rare species. You may be able to afford to get a bare bones service. However, what happens if that person leaves?

You want to look for the features offered. In other words, value over price should win out. Spending just slightly more and getting something that saves you time and volunteer hours is key. Watch out for the hidden add ons, though.

Although Webhostingchoice.com doesn’t have users chiming in about the various hosts, and offers an editorial review of top web hosting web hosting companies solely, there is some valuable information to be had. I never knew this before, but did you know that some hosts register your domain in their name instead of theirs, making it impossible for you ever to transfer? That could cost you a lot of money right there being locked in. Research before you jump, that is for sure.

My dad works for a non profit organization, and often they are lucky to have very knowledgeable volunteers who have retired. They now have time for some honest to goodness brainpicking. However, sometimes, in order to pick a brain, he needs to describe what is occurring. He is really at a loss at how to describe something to those giving him tech support. That is when my phone rings. It usually would involve me saying, “No, your computer didn’t develop a mind of its own like Hal 9000. I can probably help, but I would really need to sit in front of the computer and see what you mean.”

I was really intrigued by the idea of remote control software, where I could literally take a look at his work computer from my home, through the internet. I could not just access, but control his PC in order to set things right. In that sense, it is much more complex than merely sharing a file. On a larger scale, IT departments of companies sometimes have capability to do this. Of course, Proxynetworks.com has software that is set up for one computer to act as the master with many host computers. Of course you could also purchase software for a peer to peer situation, a master with many host computer, or more than one master computer.

I could sign up for a free trial, and later on, purchase the software. It may seem steep to someone to think about purchasing this sort of software it for personal use. However, I have considered the amount of money through the year normally spent on doodads for my dad, and have also weighed the number of hours of work he loses from describing a “thingamabob.” It is probably the best investment I can make. After all, there was also a “crunching noise” that is equally as nebulous. Since, I have come to find out that the “crunching noise” was just the computer loading and is nothing to fear. No rodents have taken residence.

Part time jobs have been hard for me to find lately. I have a lot of skills, including management skills, but for part time jobs, they think I am overqualified. They imagine that I would get bored and would want to run the place! I have to assure them that I most certainly only want a part time job. There are entry level temp and office jobs that I am after, just for a few days a week. While I have advanced project management skills, I am finding I need to go back and learn some of the very basic programs one might need to learn if one was a part time receptionist. Unfortunately, most places don’t have a Macintosh, and don’t use Adobe design programs. I need to go back to basics. After all, I have two hungry dachshunds to feed.

What companies do need, if I were to get a part time job that was a bit more than a receptionist job, would be to learn microsoft access. It would put me head and shoulders above the rest, as I could actually build and manage databases, and not just input at the desk. it will make a great deal of difference. I found that Brainstorminc.com offers many different online training programs, including for Access.

Hal9000, my surly PC, has recently been retired through reason of general malfunction. It had so many viruses and trojan horses that it practically ceased to be. Once, everything was solved by using the time machine feature and reverting the hard drive back to an earlier date. It seemed genius at the time, until exactly a year and a half later when it approached the period in time in its timeline where the problem happened. That is the best way I can describe it. I tried to do the same thing all over again, and it only lasted a short while.

Since, I went back to a Mac. No matter what software I downloaded, I could never get the PC to work right again. There is one more Antivirus Software that I hadn’t tried and that is VIPRE. PC Magazine gave it 4 stars, as it doesn’t bog down your system, and delivers on its promise as both an antivirus AND an antispyware software combined.

Right now, there is a 15 day free trial to test it out.  If it revives Hal9000 back from the computer graveyard, it certainly will change the game here.  I will still remain loyal to my newer Mac, but it will be like sitting on the floor with a box of old photos.  There are still some wonderful things on the old clunker that I would like to see again, and to transfer to safety.  Who knows, the PC could prove to be earning its keep again.  I’ll report back any interesting results.

I may be considered on the moderate side when it comes to recycling and the environment. I reuse things as many times as possibly can, but I am not exactly in the camp of Sheryl Crowe’s “Just One Square” bathroom usage pledge, if that makes any sense. As far as my computer accessory usage, I take papers that printed out incorrectly and reuse them to jot things down, etcetera. When I am finally done, I shred the sensitive stuff and throw the rest in the recycling bin if it is still clean. Using less paper can be a very good thing as haste makes waste. In fact, many folks that are more progressive about the impact on the environment around them than I am applaud the idea of email instead of putting pen to paper.

The idea does occur to me that we may not be using as much paper, but we are certainly using a lot of electricity to save that paper. Tapping away on the computer involves lots of electricity. Over on the WebHostingGeeks blog, I was reading about “green hosts.”

On Tuesday February 17, Fasthosts was announced as being a part of United Internet’s Global Green Initiative, a program that uses renewable energy to prevent an estimated 30,000 tons of carbon dioxide from being released into the environment. Additionally, Fasthosts is deemed a certified green host by Green-e, a voluntary non-profit certification organization that specializes in programs for renewable energy. The UK reseller host also announced that it would be purchasing enough RECs (renewable energy credits) from the non-profit BEF (Bonneville Environmental Foundation) to entirely offset electricity usage at its data center located in Kansas…

…Many companies are boasting green hosting but not all are making the efforts required to run an eco-friendly service. In fact, several web hosts simply offset their greenhouse gas emissions by investing in green initiatives in other locations, ultimately facing criticism for merely paying someone else to pollute the environment. The Fasthost partnership with BEF gives the assurance that revenue generated from RECs provides direct support for new watershed ecosystem restoration and renewable energy projects. According to an October announcement, the majority of the RECs will be contributed to the Power Company and Bowersock Mills facilities in Lawrence, Kansas.

I am going to try to dig up more information, but now, I suppose, this means that for some consumers, the game has changed for web site hosting providers. Some readers may now feel inclined to not only choose a host that is based in your home country, as was highlighted in a prior article, one that provides a competitive price, and the features you are looking for, but now you may want to patronize those that are ecology minded. It should be interesting to see how the computer climate changes as more companies change their policies and boggle a computer geek mind like me even more with the vast selection to choose from.

I wrote before on my astonishment that people could sell their Word Of Warcraft identities.  You can create a character, gain skills, and then sell them to someone so they don’t have to start out from scratch.   Now, I discovered that you can order a wow game card right online from Buymmoaccounts.com.  Instead of going to the store, you will be sent a code right in an email to begin or continue playing right away. The cards give you a sixty day play time to start or to add to your existing time.  Guess there is no reason to have to get out of bed now.

What is still rattling around in my mind is a way to have some sort of WOW tournament for charity. They have golf tournaments, so why not. Would it be a marathon, where people are pledged how long they can play, or would it work differently? Hold that thought, I’ll come back to it later.

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?

In the past week, I have caught up with some of my friends at various charities who I have not crossed paths with in awhile.  While most of them are at the forefront as far as computer systems go, there are some that are not.   A few groups use a computer only when absolutely necessary, and they wait awhile after that.  As a result, some of them are wrestling with the Conficker worm that some of us tangled with and beat weeks ago.  I was not affected, but I know many who were.

The problem that developed later was that the worm would put a message on your screen, giving you a link to buy software to get rid of it, or at least protect yourself. It looked pretty convincing, too. When people downloaded it they were actually getting….surprise…the worm! It was the old Trojan horse scheme. Then, of course, it was almost impossible to get rid of. My friends who are limited in their computer knowledge were the ones that innocently fell for it.

One way to be sure that you are buying legitimate software from a legitimate company is to Buy Antivirus Software Products from Cyberdefender.com. Don’t do a search for them, but only directly type in the name of their site. This way, you can be sure that you are getting the tested software and are not directed a site that just contains the keyword.  If you know of any other safe, and legitimate sources of worm busters, please share.

On Sunday, I went to my cousin’s house for Mother’s Day. The adults sat around the table in the kitchen. The “kids” sat at the long table in the basement, and the “little kids” sat in front of the tv. The “kids” by the way, are 25 to 42 years old. The “little kids” are the children of the kids. I know it doesn’t make much sense, but there you go. The “little kids” were transfixed on the video games and the “kids” were eating cake and giving a running commentary of what the “kids” were up to. They were playing Wii, and there is apparently a function where you make a “Mii” which are characters that you use to be “you” in a given game. I don’t think they actually got around to playing any games, but commiserated on “making people” for hours. In fact, they even started arguing about hair color!

Maybe the Mii is a stepping stone to rollplay games where the character you create is a huge undertaking.  I didn’t realize how serious people war until I heard on the radio that there is a site called Buymmoaccounts.com , which is for all intents and purposes a brokerage for world of warcraft accounts.  Apparently, people build up their characters, powers, and rankings, and when they want to take on a new identity, they sell their account! I am familiar with World of Warcraft but had no idea that this occurred.  If you want to start off in the Warcraft world with a higher rank, or a different set of skills than you are versed in, buying an existing account would save you hours and days of time if you are very competitive.

There are accounts that range from the $200 range upwards of $700.  You can buy an “Undead” person, a Troll, an Elf, or whatever else you fancy yourself as.  Below, this might be a picture of my family when we are all fitted out with our new identities. Of course, there probably would be heated debate over who gets to be what. I don’t see my dogs anywhere in there, so I guess I ducked out of camera range.

If you are hankering for a new identity, Click Here if you don’t believe me!  I just was hoping I could buy myself a new persona in real life.  I am pretty happy with myself, but some days I just wake up and feel like a Blood Elf.

The National Geographic Society doesn’t really use Star Trek teleporters to save money, but more importantly, valuable resources on travel.  It would have been cool though, right? Instead, they have been using LifeSize HD video conferencing equipment. It is a teleconferencing system that allows researchers, writers, and employees to get together in real time, from wherever they are on the planet.

Of course, they could always do a conference call, but you can’t exactly show people your dinosaur bone through the phone. Webcams might work, but they don’t exactly have “whole room” technology where multiple people can tune in at one location. I remember the old video conferencing units that were jumpy, and caused you to break down and pick up the phone instead. Nowadays, technology is more advanced, and you don’t have that unbearable ten second lag and “one at a time talking” that used to happen. Money is saved, fuel is saved, and productiviy has increased.  I would call that great stewardship of grants and donations!