Here’s the deal.  I have 6 different websites that opened up automatically each time I opened Firefox.  These are the standard set of websites that I viewed daily.  That set of 6 sites is what Firefox considered to be my “home page”.  I knew I could always close all the tabs except one, hit the “Home Page” icon, and I would be looking at my set of 6 websites.

Chrome doesn’t work exactly the same way.

With Chrome, I can still go into Settings and tell it my 6 websites that I want to open up in 6 tabs every time I open Chrome fresh.  But if I already have Chrome open in one window, I cannot open those 6 “home page” sites in another window.  If I hit the Home Page icon, it just opens to a new blank page – no website at all.  The only way to get those home pages back, one in each tab, was to close Chrome completely and open it fresh.  Sometimes that was inconvenient.

I went hunting around for a solution, and someone on an online forum tipped me off about this great Chrome extension called Daily Links.  It does exactly what I need it to do.  To get it, click on Chrome’s “Customize and Control” icon, then click on Tools – Extensions.  Search for Daily Links and click to add it to Chrome.

Here’s how it works:

Find Daily Links in your list of Chrome extensions, and click on Options.  You will see a few different things to configure:

Now you need to add the website address (URL) for each page you want to display in a tab.  Just type in the URL (or click on Select Bookmarks and choose from there) and click “Add”.  You can add as many as you want, but don’t go too crazy – 20 websites loading at the same time means they will all load pretty slowly.

Here’s the cool part – you can customize the listing so that certain sites only show up on particular days.

For example, I subscribe to a certain YouTube channel that puts out a new video every Monday.  So I have that one included in my links for Mondays, but not any other day – why open a website when the content will not be new for another week?

Or, if you have a comic strip site that has new content on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, you could have that site only show up on those days.  Your list of sites would look something like this:

The green arrows are there so that you can move a site up or down the list based on priority, so the sites show up in the order you prefer.  And of course the red X deletes a site from the list completely.

In most browsers you can do something similar by creating a folder on your Bookmarks toolbar, filling it with shortcuts to your favorite websites, then right click on the folder and choose “Open in tabs” or something similar.  But that doesn’t give you the day-specific option (unless you create a different folder for each day – and that sounds like a lot of work).

Now that I am using Chrome more than ever, I will probably be finding more cool things you can do with it.  What do you like or dislike about Chrome?  Have you found any great extensions for it?

What is Java?  Simply put, Java is a computer programming language.  One of its advantages is that it can be used to create applications that are “cross-platform” – that just means that the programmer can create the application once, and know that it will work on a PC computer or a Mac computer, or even Linux.

Java can be used in a couple of ways:

1. In an application, such as a game.  There is a popular game called Minecraft that requires you to install Java on your computer in order to play the game.

2. As a plug-in for your web browser.  For example, if you use GoToWebinar to attend an online webinar presentation, it requires that you have Java enabled on your browser as an add-on.  If your browser (Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome, Safari, etc) does not have Java enabled, you won’t be able to see the webinar content.

What is the security problem with Java?
Recently, there have been several security issues discovered with Java.  Two things to note about that: First, these are major security flaws.  Like the kind that will allow malicious software to infect your computer just by you visiting an infected website.  Second, Oracle (the company that created Java) is very slow to patch up these security problems.  So the bad guys have more time to exploit the issue and infect more computers.

How do you avoid or eliminate having a Java-related problem?
The safest solution is to just not have it installed on your computer (I’ll tell you in a minute how to get rid of it).  In other words, if you don’t use any websites that require Java, and you don’t use any actual programs that require it, take it off your computer and don’t worry about it any more.

That brings us to this question – what about the people that DO require Java in their web browser?  For example, online webinars as mentioned earlier.  There are also many banks in Europe that use Java as part of their online banking programming.  I also have a client that regularly plays games online at Pogo.com, which is one of the few websites that still use Java to present their content.

If you are one of those users that does still need to use a web browser that has Java enabled, simply choose to have it enabled on just one browser – and only use that browser for that purpose.

For example – if Firefox is your default web browser, disable Java so that it won’t work with Firefox.  But for that one website that you need to use, that requires Java, use a different browser such as Google Chrome.  Have Java enabled on Chrome, and ONLY use Chrome for that one website, that single purpose.  Or vice-versa – use Chrome for everything, and only have Java installed on Firefox for that one site.

How to disable Java in your web browser
It’s fairly easy actually.  You need to do this for each web browser you have installed on your computer (unless you are going to keep it on just one of them, as mentioned in the example above).

To disable Java in Internet Explorer:
Click Tools – Manage Add-ons – look in the “Toolbars and Extensions” category and disable anything Java

To disable Java in Firefox:
Click Tools – Add-ons – look in the Plugins category and disable anything Java

To disable Java in Google Chrome:
In the address bar, type:  about:plugins and hit Enter on the keyboard – look for Java in the list, and click on the “Disable” link

Practically speaking, you should be fine just by disabling Java in your browser(s).  However, if you want to be sure it’s gone, go to Control Panel, find it in the list of programs, and uninstall it from there.  You may need to restart the computer after that.

A couple other things to note:

- Java and Javascript are two different things.  Java is the problem child.  Javascript can stay.

- Oracle, the company that created and maintains the security for Java, is developing a rather unsavory reputation.  First of all, because they are not showing all that much concern for fixing the serious security issues with Java.  Patches come out when they come out, and that’s the way it is.  But the other thing is that when they do come out with the security updates, the installation comes with other crappy stuff piggybacking on them.  Junk like the Ask toolbar, or some security scanner for your browser.  You have to UNcheck a box to opt out of these things or they get installed automatically.  As you probably know, they make money every time someone inadvertently doesn’t pay attention and one of those annoying things gets installed.  There is no excuse for sneaking in that kind of stuff with these updates.

And what is even worse – they have the crapware installation set for a 10-minute delay.  So if you see the notice at the end that says “Java is updated, and the Ask toolbar has been installed”, then go to Control Panel to immediately UNinstall it, it won’t be there.  So you go on about your business assuming it did NOT get installed, but then it really does sneak in 10 minutes later.  It seems like Oracle is trying very hard to be a company that everyone hates, and deliberately deceitful practices such as this will certainly achieve that for them.

If you need help with Java, get in touch with me and I can get it configured properly through my Remote Support service.

If you’re not familiar with Hulu, you should go and check out their website.  It’s basically a way for you to watch TV shows and movies (clips as well as whole episodes) on your computer.   The majority of content is from the US, and a lot of people outside the US really want to see it.  But Hulu has copyright agreements with several of the US production companies (such as Disney) that means they are not allowed to let non-US viewers see their content.

That means that when you go to the Hulu website, the first thing it will check is your IP address (this is like your “address” on the internet).  If you have an American IP address, you’re fine.  If your IP address indicates you are in Europe, Asia, or even Canada, you can’t get into the site.

Unless you know the secret to getting past that little barrier:  all you have to do is get an American IP address.  With that in place, your computer basically tells any website that you visit, “Hey, I’m in the USA!” and you get all the privileges that go with that.

Note: while on the surface this procedure may seem a little sketchy, you really have nothing to worry about.  There are no laws, either in the US or abroad, that prohibit you from watching Hulu (although I encourage you to check your own laws if you happen to be in a country with severe governmental restrictions, such as communist China).  The only restrictions in this situation are that Hulu can’t make the content available to non-US IP addresses.  The French police aren’t going to arrest you for watching The Simpsons on your laptop in Paris.

Here’s how you do it (this is based on Windows 7):

1. Press the Windows key + R to open the “run” box.
2. Type: ncpa.cpl into the run box and hit enter or click OK
3. On the icon for your current network adapter, RIGHT click and choose Properties.
4. In the list, click once to highlight Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4), then click on Properties.
5. Change your DNS settings to the following:
Preferred DNS server: 149.154.158.186
Alternate DNS server: 199.167.30.144
6. Click OK to close that window, then go to Hulu and see if you are able to view anything.

I have tried this with friends in both Europe and South America, and it worked successfully with both of them.  I would like to have someone try it from China, since their government is so restrictive about web content anyway.  However, keep in mind that these blocks are not in place because of any government or law – it’s just an agreement that Hulu has entered into with some of their content providers.

Important note: if you do use this workaround to view Hulu outside the US, make sure that when you are done watching your show(s) that you set your DNS numbers back to what they were before (or blank, if they were blank).  Otherwise, your internet connection will run more slowly when you visit the other websites that you usually view.

See you in 2013!

Here’s the problem: when you order something online, it is most commonly sent by one of three carriers: UPS, Federal Express, or the US Mail.  For UPS and Fedex, there is always a tracking number.  The US Mail also has a tracking number if it is specifically sent that way.

So, when the vendor ships out your item, it usually means that you get an email with a notification that the item has been sent.  I do the same thing when I sell a laptop to someone and ship it out – it’s nice to be able to track where your item is, and know what day it is supposed to arrive.

The difficulty lies in the fact that those emails are all laid out differently, with a mix of fonts and formats, and you have to go and hunt down the tracking number that’s buried somewhere in the text of the email message.

Then, once you know the tracking number, you need to go to the carrier’s website (UPS, Fedex or USPS) and enter the tracking number in order to get information on the shipment.

That’s a time-consuming hassle even if you’re only expecting one delivery.  What if you order stuff all the time, or you have 8 – 10 items ordered at the same time?  You could spend half the day just trying to figure out when your stuff will arrive.

Fortunately, a while back I discovered a better way.  It’s called Tracky.  Like a lot of the great tools on the internet, it’s free.  It also does not require you to install anything on your computer.

First step: enter your email address in the form on the front page (Trackyapp.com).  That’s it!

Using it is incredibly easy.  Whenever you get an email notifying you that a product has been shipped, you just forward that email to track@trackyapp.com.  From that point on, you don’t have to do anything.

You will get an email confirming that Tracky is following the progress of your package.  Then you will get an email saying “Your package from _____ is arriving today!”  That way, you can know to expect it and even make sure you or someone else is there if a signature is required.

You can also go to the Tracky site and see about the estimated arrival date of everything they are tracking for you.  At the moment, I am not expecting anything, but I can still see the most recent ones that I was following:

There are also Tracky apps available for your smartphone (Android, iPhone, or Windows phone).  Personally I don’t use the mobile app – all of the notifications come to me by email, and I get that on my phone anyway.

Here’s the basic idea behind the Fiverr.com website:

There are a lot of people in this world
that will do just about anything for $5,
and now there’s a place where you can hire them.

I’ll tell you about Fiverr here, and even give you some examples of the things you will find there, but the real way to experience it is to go there, register for a free account, and hire someone to do something for you for $5.

The “gigs” at Fiverr are divided into categories and subcategories:

Gifts – greeting cards, video greetings, unusual gifts, arts and crafts, handmade jewelry, gifts for geeks, postcards from…, recycled crafts

Graphics and Design – cartoons and caricatures, logo design, illustration, ebook covers and packages, web design, photography and photoshopping, presentation design, flyers and brochures, business cards, banners and headers, architecture, landing pages

Video and Animation – video and animation, editing and post production, animation and 3D, reviews by actors, puppets, stop motion, intros

Online Marketing – web analytics, article and PR submission, blog mentions, domain research, fan pages, keywords research, SEO, bookmarking and links, social marketing, get traffic, video marketing

Writing and Translation – copywriting, SEO, creating writing and scripting, translation, transcripts, website content, reviews, resumes and cover letters, speech writing, proofreading and editing, press releases

Advertising – hold your sign, flyers and handouts, human billboards, pet models, outdoor advertising, radio, music promotion, banner advertising

Business – business plans, career advice, market research, presentations, virtual assistant, business tips, branding services, financial consulting, legal consulting

Programming and Tech – .Net, C++, CSS and HTML, Joomla and Drupal, Databases, Java, Javascript, PSD to HTML, WordPress, iOS, Android and Mobile, PHP, QA and Software testing, Technology

Music and Audio – Audio editing and mastering, Jingles, songwriting, music lessons, rap music, hip-hop music, narration and voice-over, sound effects and loops, custom ringtones, voicemail greetings, custom songs

Fun and Bizarre – Your message on…, extremely bizarre, celebrity impersonators, daredevils and stunts, pranks, dancers, just for fun

Lifestyle – animal care and pets, relationship advice, diet and weight loss, health and fitness, makeup, styling and beauty, online private lessons, astrology and fortune telling, spiritual and healing, cooking recipes, parenting tips, travel

Other – whatever doesn’t fit into another category

I’m guessing you can probably just look through those subcategories and see some ideas for ways you might use this service.  It’s certainly a great place to get someone a personalized Christmas or birthday gift.

Here are a few that I found interesting (believe me, there are a LOT more):

And here are a few of the more… UNUSUAL… ones I came across:

You really have to explore the site to appreciate everything that is offered.  Some of the gigs are really useful, and it’s pretty amazing to be able to get this stuff done for only $5.  Others are really weird.  Check out the video below.  This guy is advertising his own Fiverr service, where he will come on camera and create a video saying whatever you want him to say.  Doesn’t get much creepier than this:

A few things to keep in mind:

1. As you go through the various listings, when you find the ones you might want to come back to, click on the “Collect” link.  This keeps track of those so you are able to get back to them (you need a free account to be able to do that).

2. Before buying, check the seller’s rating and feedback.  Don’t buy from someone with a lot of dissatisfied customers.

3. The basic gigs are all $5, but there are usually some add-ons that you can purchase for extra money (such as getting the job done more quickly than normal).

4. You could be a Fiverr seller – if you find yourself looking at these various things and saying, “Wow, I could do that!” then it might be something you should look into.  The sellers actually get $4 for performing the service (Fiverr keeps $1 as their cut).  But if you can perform a task quickly multiple times a day, it might be a way to make some extra money from home.

Have you used Fiverr?  What did you use it for, and what did you think of it?

]]> http://computertutorflorida.com/2012/12/how-to-get-almost-anything-done-for-5/feed/ 2 Today's tip is one you have either heard of and already used and know how great it is, or you have never heard of it before and you are about to discover a whole new world of possibility. - Here's the basic idea behind the Fiverr.com website: Today's tip is one you have either heard of and already used and know how great it is, or you have never heard of it before and you are about to discover a whole new world of possibility. Here's the basic idea behind the Fiverr.com website: There are a lot of people in this world that will do just about anything for $5, and now there's a place where you can hire them. I'll tell you about Fiverr here, and even give you some examples of the things you will find there, but the real way to experience it is to go there, register for a free account, and hire someone to do something for you for $5. The "gigs" at Fiverr are divided into categories and subcategories: Gifts - greeting cards, video greetings, unusual gifts, arts and crafts, handmade jewelry, gifts for geeks, postcards from..., recycled crafts Graphics and Design - cartoons and caricatures, logo design, illustration, ebook covers and packages, web design, photography and photoshopping, presentation design, flyers and brochures, business cards, banners and headers, architecture, landing pages Video and Animation - video and animation, editing and post production, animation and 3D, reviews by actors, puppets, stop motion, intros Online Marketing - web analytics, article and PR submission, blog mentions, domain research, fan pages, keywords research, SEO, bookmarking and links, social marketing, get traffic, video marketing Writing and Translation - copywriting, SEO, creating writing and scripting, translation, transcripts, website content, reviews, resumes and cover letters, speech writing, proofreading and editing, press releases Advertising - hold your sign, flyers and handouts, human billboards, pet models, outdoor advertising, radio, music promotion, banner advertising Business - business plans, career advice, market research, presentations, virtual assistant, business tips, branding services, financial consulting, legal consulting Programming and Tech - .Net, C++, CSS and HTML, Joomla and Drupal, Databases, Java, Javascript, PSD to HTML, Wordpress, iOS, Android and Mobile, PHP, QA and Software testing, Technology Music and Audio - Audio editing and mastering, Jingles, songwriting, music lessons, rap music, hip-hop music, narration and voice-over, sound effects and loops, custom ringtones, voicemail greetings, custom songs Fun and Bizarre - Your message on..., extremely bizarre, celebrity impersonators, daredevils and stunts, pranks, dancers, just for fun Lifestyle - animal care and pets, relationship advice, diet and weight loss, health and fitness, makeup, styling and beauty, online private lessons, astrology and fortune telling, spiritual and healing, cooking recipes, parenting tips, travel Other - whatever doesn't fit into another category I'm guessing you can probably just look through those subcategories and see some ideas for ways you might use this service.  It's certainly a great place to get someone a personalized Christmas or birthday gift. Here are a few that I found interesting (believe me, there are a LOT more): And here are a few of the more... UNUSUAL... ones I came across: You really have to explore the site to appreciate everything that is offered.  Some of the gigs are really useful, and it's pretty amazing to be able to get this stuff done for only $5.  Others are really weird.  Check out the video below.  This guy is advertising his own Fiverr service, where he will come on camera and create a video saying whatever you want him to say.  Doesn't get much creepier than this: A few things to keep in mind: 1. As you go through the various listings, when you find the ones you might want to come back to, click on the "Collect" link.  This keeps track of those so you are able to get back to them (you need a free account to be able to do that). 2. Before buying, check the seller's rating and feedback.  Don't buy from someone with a lot of dissatisfied customers. 3. The basic gigs are all $5, Scott Johnson no 8:46 <iframe width="320" height="24" src="http://computertutorflorida.com/?powerpress_embed=4640-podcast&amp;powerpress_player=default" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe> http://computertutorflorida.com/2012/09/read-multi-page-web-articles-on-one-page/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=read-multi-page-web-articles-on-one-page http://computertutorflorida.com/2012/09/read-multi-page-web-articles-on-one-page/#comments Mon, 03 Sep 2012 08:00:42 +0000 Scott Johnson http://computertutorflorida.com/?p=4371 Read more »

Check out these facts from NBC:

What is new and different about NBC’s coverage of the 2012 Olympic Summer Games in London?

NBCUniversal will provide 5,535 hours of coverage for the 2012 London Olympics across NBC, NBC Sports Network, MSNBC, CNBC, Bravo, Telemundo, NBCOlympics.com, two specialty channels, and the first-ever 3D platform, an unprecedented level that surpasses the coverage of the 2008 Beijing Olympics by nearly 2,000 hours. NBC will broadcast 272.5 hours of coverage, the most ever for an Olympic broadcast network, largely attributable to an increase in daytime coverage, and NBC Sports Network will serve as home to U.S. team sports with 292.5 hours of total coverage including 257.7 hours of original programming – the most-ever for an Olympic cable network.

NBCOlympics.com will live stream every event and sport for the first time ever. In all, the site will live stream more than 3,500 total programming hours, including the awarding of all 302 medals.

How much of the coverage will be live?

NBCOlympics.com will live stream every event and sport for the first time ever. In all, the site will live stream more than 3,500 total programming hours, including the awarding of all 302 medals. By comparison, NBCOlympics.com live streamed 25 sports and 2,200 hours for the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Why are the Olympics so important to NBC?

The “Olympic Halo Effect” bolsters the entire NBCUniversal television group, including news, entertainment and late night. To deliver the same number of gross household impressions NBC delivered during the 17 days of its primetime Beijing Olympics coverage, one network would have to own the rights and broadcast the Super Bowl, the Academy Awards, the Grammy Awards, the Golden Globes, the AFC Division playoffs, the NFC Championship Game and six games of the World Series all within a 17-day span.

What was the fee paid by NBC to have the rights to broadcast the Olympics this year?

The rights fee for London was $1.181 billion.

Will the Olympics be broadcast in HD?

All Olympic venues will broadcast in high definition. High definition coverage will be available on NBC‘s HD affiliates.

If you want NBC’s complete 182-page guide to their coverage of the 2012 Summer Olympics, you can download it in PDF format from WordPress here.  (Right-click on that link and choose Save Link As or Save Target As)

Usually, to celebrate Independence Day, our family gets together to barbecue some hot dogs and hamburgers for lunch.  This year was a little different.  My daughter is currently taking university classes in Spain.  And my wife is visiting a friend in New Orleans.  We each have a computer, an internet connection, a webcam, and a microphone.  So I did a little research to find out if there was a way we could “meet” over the internet without spending a small fortune.  I found a great way to do this.

Actually what I wanted to do is not anything new.  It’s done in the business world all the time.  You may have even attended one – they are called webinars.  For business purposes, people from all over the country or the world can log in and either observe or participate in a corporate meeting.

The common way to do this is through GoToMeeting, or GoToWebinar.  However, those are both pretty expensive – hundreds of dollars per year.  That’s fine for companies that want to pay that, but I wanted something less expensive (or even free).

I found exactly what I was looking for at AnyMeeting (www.AnyMeeting.com).

With most of these services, anyone that wants to attend an online meeting will first need to download some software to their computer and install it.  This is one of the big advantages of AnyMeeting – there is no software to install.  Participants just show up at a website.  Easy!

Here are some other things I like about it:

I can have as many as 200 people in at the same time.  Up to 6 at a time can display their webcams and communicate either with a microphone or by typing in an on-screen chat box.

As the presenter, I can click a button and change from displaying my webcam to displaying my own screen (this is handy if I am demonstrating how to use a program, or if I want to show a Powerpoint presentation).  And, I can designate anyone else to also have “presenter” status if needed.

I can record the meeting (full video and audio) so that if anyone couldn’t make it, they can still watch it later online.

I can also integrate it into other social media such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and GooglePlus.

And of course, one of the best features – it’s free!

Setting up an online meeting is easy:

1. Go to the site and create a free account.

2. Create a meeting and set the date and time.  You can also choose if you want to require people to register for the meeting ahead of time, and a few other options.

3. Enter the email address for each person you want to invite to the meeting, and include a message from you to be included in the invitation (the meeting date and time will already be in the message anyway).

Here is a comparison of features to other webinar services:

I can tell you that this worked out great for us on the 4th of July.  We had 4 different locations participating – Spain (my daughter), New Orleans (my wife and some friends), Clearwater (my parents, my son, and my brother and his family), and me at home in Safety Harbor.  It took a little playing around to get everyone’s mic and webcam adjusted properly but it worked out well (and you don’t NEED a webcam and mic to use this service – you can still attend a meeting and hear and see everyone else).

How is this free?  Because it is ad-based.  You can get the paid version if you want, and get rid of the ads.  But here’s a secret – even the free one doesn’t always have ads.  When we did our family meeting, I didn’t see a single advertisement.

If you are thinking you would like to use AnyMeeting to arrange a business webinar or a family meeting, here is a video that shows the basics of how to do it:

So what do you think of this?  Would you use it?  I would love to see your thoughts in the Comments section below.

The solution is a service called LastPass (www.LastPass.com).  The name is based on the fact that it’s the last password you will ever need to remember.

I love LastPass!

(As an aside, I wanted to mention something.  One of the most popular services for password storage and retrieval is Roboform.  A lot of people use it.  For me, I never found it intuitive or easy to use at all.  I actually made a concerted effort on at least two different occasions to use Roboform, and failed both times.  With LastPass, however, I found it to be super easy and sailed right through the setup process.)

What does LastPass do?  To put it simply, it will create and remember your passwords so you don’t have to.  Here are some features:

- It works on any computer.  So it doesn’t matter if you use Windows, Mac, or even Linux – it will work.

- It’s free.  Yes, actually free.  And you can use it on all of your computers.  There is a paid version, but that just means you won’t see any ads.  If you know me, you know that I despise ads.  But I don’t find these ads to be intrusive or distracting at all.  And if you do want to be ad-free, the paid version is only $12 per year anyway.

- It’s secure.  The first concern I had with this is, “All my passwords in one place?  That doesn’t seem safe.”  But it is safe.  More on that in a minute.

- You can access it from anywhere.  That means you can be traveling, and if you want to get access to a site that you don’t remember the password for, you can still access it through your LastPass account quickly and safely.

- It’s easy.  This is probably the best part!  No more getting to a site you haven’t visited in months, and trying to remember the good, non-guessable password you created.  One click and you are logged in!

So here’s what you do…

Go to www.LastPass.com and create an account.  Part of that process is creating a Master Password, and this is important:  make this a good quality password.  That means:

• 12 characters
• unpronounceable (not a dictionary word or proper name)
• combination of letters and numbers
• combination of upper and lower case
• include a special character or two, such as $ or &

This password you will want to write down carefully, and store it carefully where it won’t be found.  This is the one password you will need in order to get into your LastPass account.

Once your account is created, you will be asked if you want to bring in all of your “unsecured” passwords.  This means all of the passwords that are already stored for you in Internet Explorer, Firefox or Chrome.  You want to do this!  Let LastPass store them for you securely instead of having the browser store them where anyone can get to them.  After that information is brought in, you can have LastPass delete them from your browser because you don’t need them there any more.

To get a better understanding of how LastPass works, check out these videos:

Why use LastPass?

Use LastPass to generate secure passwords:

Another quick tutorial:

The big question – is it safe?  Yes, it is.  All of your data is encrypted locally on your computer.  To accesss it, you need your Master Password – and only you have that.  The people at LastPass don’t even have access to that.  So you definitely need to remember it!

So there you have it – the solution to your password problem.  I’m using it every day, and I recommend you do as well.

Some people actually have done that.  For most, however, it’s not easy to stick with it.  You have to remember to do it, then you have to open MS Word (or some other word processing program), date it, save it to your computer… and hope your backup is good when your hard drive dies.

Or, you could do it in the form of a blog – but if your blog can be read by everyone, there might be some things that you don’t want others to see.  Especially if you happen to write about them in your journal entry!

There is an easy way to keep up with it – and I can attest to this from personal experience.  I actually wrote about this service back when I started using it in September 2010, and I have been keeping my online journal ever since then.  For me, I used it to track my weight loss progress and now I track my running and other life events.

What makes it so easy?  For me, it’s because it doesn’t really require me to do something different than my routine.  To make an entry for the day, all you have to do is reply to an email.  I reply to email every day anyway, so it’s just one more.

The website is ohLife (www.ohlife.com).  This is a completely free service.  When you sign up, they will start sending you an email each day (or however often you want to receive them).  Their email to you will just say: “It’s Monday, May 21 – How did your day go?” in the subject line, and the body of the email will be blank.  Whatever you write as a reply to that email is your journal entry for that day.

All of your entries are saved on their server, and it’s all secured so that no one else can get in and read your journal.  Of course, you can log in and read them whenever you want.  If you had a boring day when nothing happened worth writing about, skip that day.  You can write nothing, or a few lines, or thousands of words; it’s your journal so it’s up to you.

I love this service because it is free, and it makes it really easy to keep up with journal entries.  Wouldn’t  you like to be able to read the story of your life, years from now?  Get signed up and start writing!

Do you keep a journal?  If you have some tips on journaling that help you keep up with it, please comment below.