My 2¢ Worth

here are about 35 days left of our so-called Grueling Six Week Advertising Sale. That's 10% off all advertising in this publication for the next 35 days.

advertising in Web Sm@rts was already a great value and now at 10% off, it's even better. Click on over to paradigmwebdesign.net/WSadsub/ and submit your ad today.

n another note - you should take a moment to visit my Home page. I just had my Web copy rewritten by Linda Offenheiser whom I interviewed last year in issue 04-39.

inda did a great job! She took my dull, boring Web copy and transformed it into exciting copy which should "sell" visitors on my services.

f your site's copy needs some work or you have an ad you like jazzed up a bit, I strongly suggest you contact Linda. I found her to be very professional and pleasant to work with. Check out her Web site at www.stress-freecopy.com/.

Feature Article

Do You Have Online Tunnel Vision?

by: Susan Nichols Vector Central Marketing

This week, as we work online, let's do our best to be patient with each other. It's also important to realize that the person to whom you're emailing might be taking a day off — What!!! A day OFF??? Can we do that as online publishers and web site owners???

YES we can! — YES, You can!

It's very important to break away from the stress and demands of "all those emails" that flood in every day. How many do you receive? In the hundreds? Some days, along with my daily online work, I just can't get to it all - can you?

We are working in an online environment where we can not visually see if the co-worker in the adjacent office is taking the afternoon off, going to a meeting, having a family emergency, sick with the flu, or... taking the week- end off, as normal workers should for their family growth and to keep good health.

Is your health important??? Well, what a silly question for me to ask! Of course it is!!! Can it be ruined by working 24/7 - Yes, it's logical that no one should work round the clock. We all know the statistics, the stress books, the ones in the hospital from not recognizing when they had gotten caught up with "Online Tunnel Vision."

Have you become one-with-your-computer? Is your monitor attached to your brain? If so, then you have "Online Tunnel Vision!" Have you looked out the window in the last 3 hours? Do your eyes hurt? Get up and take a 15-minute break! Have you even gone to the bathroom lately? Urologists state that one of the reasons for kidney infections is from repeatedly not going immediately when you "need" to. Does your back hurt? Get up and take that 15-minute break!!!

What's the solution to break away from Online Tunnel Vision? Just "Get Up and Walk Away" for a few minutes or even hours. Your computer has no control over you - or does it??? Don't wait till you're sick in the hospital to realize that your life and family is more important than meeting the constant demands from your online mailbox. Your snail mail arrives only once a day at your office and home. Online mail arrives "every" single second of "every" single hour of "every" single day! Now, That's Demanding, isn't it!!! Only "we" can control ourselves from allowing these demands to saturate our mental logic and ability to keep this constant insistence from our mailbox to ruin our health.

1. Limit your hours of working online each day.



2. Be a good boss to yourself. You deserve 15-minute breaks!!!



3. When you receive an email from someone who is annoyed that you didn't answer immediately, do your best to be kind to them in reply, but let him/her know that you're human. Aren't they? Sure they are, but they've forgotten.



4. Yes, you have "all" that work to do today, but a good boss would tell you it's time to go home after 8 -10 hours and get some rest. Control your computer! Separate yourself from it! That's right - just get up and walk away. I'm going to do that right now and guess what - you're still reading this and it didn't disturb the world for me to take a needed break. I'll be back in a few minutes. ;)



5. Ahhhh! That was a nice 15-minute break! Try it - Just get up and walk away and do something relaxing for 15 minutes. Then come back and send me the results.

May your day be blessed!
Susan Nichols, Vector Central Marketing
www.vectorcentral.com
Contact:
www.vectorcentral.com/ezine-contact-form.html

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About the Author: Susan Nichols, editor of the Interactive Marketing Ezine, assists businesses with essential marketing methods to generate online success! Susan is also an expert in Solo Ad designing. Whether in plain text or designed with custom backgrounds, Solo Ads are one of her specialties! Subscribe: www.vectorcentral.com/subscribe-ezine.html

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Second Article

Your Computer Can't Keep Time

by: Stephen Bucaro Bucaro TecHelp

A computer needs a certain amount of information to operate; for example, the date and time, the amount of memory installed, the number of drives and their configuration, and so on. In the early days of computers, either the user typed in this information each time the computer started, or it was set using DIP switches and jumpers. Today, computers store this information in a CMOS chip that uses a small battery to retain the information when the computer is shut off.

CMOS (complementary metal oxide semiconductor) is type of chip that consumes very little power; therefore, while the computer is turned off, the battery discharges very slowly. But the battery will totally discharge if you leave your computer turned off for a year or so. Even if you turn your computer on every day, the battery is designed to last only a couple of years. Occasionally a battery will fail prematurely.

Today's plug-and-play computers can detect most of the necessary settings, but if your CMOS battery is dead, your computer will not be able to retain the date and time. The computer will also lose any custom settings, for example, the boot sequence. If you set a password in CMOS, you may be locked out of the computer. If the CMOS battery does fail, you might receive the message "System Configuration Lost" when you start the computer. It would be wise to record all the CMOS settings as a precaution.

To record the CMOS settings, watch for an on-screen prompt when you first start your computer. The prompt tells you to press a key, usually the Del or F2, to enter CMOS. To enter the CMOS configuration utility, you have to press the indicated key while the message is on the screen. After the CMOS configuration screen appears, follow the instructions provided to page through all the screens and record all the settings.

If your computer loses its time setting overnight, the CMOS battery may not be holding a charge. The CMOS battery is located inside the case on the motherboard. Changing the battery is usually a job for a computer technician. In fact, a layman might not even be able to find the battery.

If you want to locate the CMOS battery in your computer, be aware that a static discharge from your hands can damage components inside the case. After taking proper precautions, open the case and look on the motherboard for a battery. If you have a diagram of your motherboard, locate the battery on the diagram first.

Different motherboards use different types of batteries. The battery may be shaped like a barrel or a coin. Some motherboards use a component that resembles a chip which contains the CMOS and the battery (made by DALLAS or Benchmarq). Batteries come in different voltages, so make sure you get an exact replacement.

Sometimes the battery is mounted in a holder. Sometimes it is soldered to the motherboard. De-soldering and re-soldering a battery is usually a job for a computer technician. An inexperienced solderer can cause a lot of damage. If you want to try to do it yourself, first practice on an obsolete circuit board. You may change your mind.

If the CMOS battery has failed because it's too old, this might be an opportunity to upgrade your motherboard. When upgrading a motherboard, the most important considerations are to make sure the new motherboard is the correct form factor for your case, and that the new motherboard has the correct bus connector slots for your expansion boards.

**************

Copyright©2002 Bucaro TecHelp.
To learn how to maintain your computer and use it more effectively to design a Web site and make money on the Web visit bucarotechelp.com To subscribe to Bucaro TecHelp Newsletter Send a blank email to bucarotechelp-subscribe@topica.com

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