Curiously Awesome Gifts

November 7, 2008 – 6:49 am

It’s Christmas time again, so we start thinking at our beloved ones, at possible gifts that they’d like. This year I’ve started looking for gifts earlier than ever. Maybe that’s because of the online shops I’m currently running. I’ve almost persuaded myself that I need an artificial tree this Christmas, although I’ve been a fan of natural trees all my life. Now, after I’ve seen how cool some artificial tree models can be, I’m considering buying one, thus saving one of the real pine trees.

I want to show you some strange gifts in the videos below. I’m not encouraging you to buy any of them, despite the fact that the videos are affiliate and I make a commission for each sale. I just wanted to share them with you, and have some fun together.








By Simonne | Posted in Household & garden | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

Multimedia Software For Video Encoding And Conversion

October 24, 2008 – 2:45 am

The multimedia age made all music devices I’ve used in my teens look obsolete. I grew up in the vinyl discs era and I have a great collection of such discs I don’t listen to anymore, but I can’t throw away either. Now we can do anything we want to our music: we can listen to it while relaxing, we can take it away with us when we go out, we can edit it and record our own original songs if so we wish. Of course, we can’t do all these without the help of specialized multimedia software such as an audio converter for changing the audio file format, a video encoder for converting AVI and WMV files to MPG formats. After we convert the files, we surely could use a DVD ripper software, so we can write the music on CDs or DVDs to archive it in our library or to take it with us in the car.

How to Choose the Multimedia Software


Multimedia software defines those computer programs which let you do all things I’ve mentioned above and even more. When choosing a multimedia application, you need to take into consideration your needs: what do you want the software to do? What’s your final purpose? Do you need only to rip music on CDs, or you could use some video creation and merging as well? You need to see what are the supported formats of files, to see if it is good for you.

Blaze Media Pro: All-In-One Multimedia Software


Blaze Media Pro is a multimedia application which offers all these functions: audio converter (supporting MP3, WMA, WAV, OGG and other known music files formats), an MP3 encoder and decoder, MPEG encoder and decoder, CD and DVD burner, video and audio editor, to name only a few of its facilities. The system requirements fall within the average range (800 MHz processor, 1GB RAM, 30MB hard disk, sound card). Of course, for creating CDs you’ll need a CD writer. The operating system can be Windows 98 SE/2000/ME/XP/Vista. I don’t know if it works also on MACs, but you can ask the support staff if you are interested.

I’ve shot some videos recently, and I needed to edit and merge some of them, so I’ve used the free trial version of Blaze Media Pro. The video editing operations that can be done with this multimedia software are multiple, covering actions such as deleting frames, cropping, trimming, flipping, mirroring, text overlaying. If you need, you can overlap an audio file over the video - this was the feature I needed so badly, because I had a part of video where the person speaking made a mistake and I needed to replace the text with the correct one.
What I also liked, but I didn’t have the time to play with yet, are the effects and color adjustments you can add to the video - this is on my to do list for the weekend.
Despite the fact that it’s a big time hog for me, I’m happy I discovered this multimedia software. I enjoy making my own videos, you know.

By Simonne | Posted in Tech & Internet | Comments (0)

Do You Read Online Humor Blogs?

October 23, 2008 – 2:05 am

I so much appreciate online humor when I find it, that I really need to tell you about my latest discovery: The Junk Drawer | Humor for the Masses, a blog run by Kathy, who defines the thing she’s doing there like this:

What’s in The Drawer? Here you’ll find stories about anything that amuses me, confuses me, or makes me blow a gasket. I complain a lot here, but that’s a good thing! Some of my regular readers consider a visit to The Junk Drawer cheap therapy. You can always come here to unwind and unload.

I arrived to Kathy’s humor blog by chance, reading a post about tweaking a blog to make money online by attracting more search engine traffic to it. The Junk Drawer was the subject of a small case study in there and I went to check it out. One hour later, I was still in the drawer, despite the fact that I had one client waiting for me to finish a job. I’m so familiar with tech support for old parents, that I can argue Kathy’s following statement any given time:

Despite our ongoing nightmare, there is one undeniable fact: My Dad may be the world’s biggest tech support challenge, but he’s the only octogenarian in his senior apartment complex who has a computer and is not afraid to use it, and I say that’s pretty cool.

This is surely cool, but I happen to know another one, who’s making me re-install his operating system every two months, because he doesn’t know any English at all, but clicks on everything that’s clickable.

Now, as Kathy says, go “take a look around the drawer. Just leave everything where you found it.”

Kathy, I left everything as you wanted. I just took your feed for my reader. I surely could use your online humor any given time.

By Simonne | Posted in Funnies | Tagged , , , | Comments (1)

How Often Do You Buy New Gadgets?

October 22, 2008 – 12:03 pm


I don’t know how unusual this is for a girl, but I love to buy new gadgets. If one month passes and I don’t change my keyboard, or get a new mobile phone, or even a new Logitech universal remote, I feel like a child without toys. I suppose I could very well live without all these cool, shiny, tech things. However, my life principle is something like: if your money is not enough, don’t cut on spendings, just go and earn more money. I know this is easier said than done, but still, I don’t want to change this lifestyle which I find fun and comfortable.

How Do You Find Out About New Gadgets?


Usually, I take my info about new gadgets from internet, TV and magazines. Even if I read about some cool device in a magazine, I still like to browse the net, to find reviews and opinions of other users, before I buy it. This is how I came across a website which offers information about gadgets and tech news. Gadget Advisor is one of the places where you can find out more about new gadgets and computer software and cool programs such as online backup service or top extensions for Firefox. All reviews offer detailed information, including prices and technical details. Besides, Gadget Advisor has a clean, pleasant layout, not crowded with ads like most of these new gadgets and tech review blogs.

So, what are your best tips for buying new gadgets?

By Simonne | Posted in Tech & Internet | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments (0)

Web Hosting Rating Site

October 7, 2008 – 3:12 pm

One of the biggest issues of webmasters is to find a reliable web host. Most of us want it also to be as cheap as possible. It is normal, when you just want to have your thoughts and ramblings published online, you don’t want to spend too much money for your hobby. In such cases, a really cheap, affordable host would be perfect, because you are less interested that your website is online 24 hours a day, seven days a week. However, when you are involved in an internet business, you can’t afford to go cheap, because reliability and good services come first. Each minute offline can cost you money, so you need to research thoroughly before deciding for a webhosting company to work with. Going offline for longer time may result in you losing important clients and sales. So, in such cases, don’t go cheap.
This is what the WebHostingGeeks.com can do to help you: web hosting companies reviews and ratings. In this way you can find all required information in one single place. For example, you can find out who won the Best Blog Hosting award this year, or which is the best Linux web hosting service. Additionally, you’ll have the chance to find out more technical info, in order to make it easier for you to decide which features you need and which ones you don’t. Nobody wants to pay for something that they don’t need. This is what makes research so important, when it comes to good web hosting.

By Simonne | Posted in Site reviews | Tagged , | Comments (0)

Tips For Remarkable Halloween Costumes

October 7, 2008 – 12:53 pm

Are you ready for this Halloween yet? If you aren’t, you should hurry up with the preparations, get your costumes, find the decorations, invite your friends and expect to have a lot of fun. We don’t have this celebration in our country, but I’ve set up a Halloween online shop for those who do. Browsing the shop, I found a cool girl costume which I want to show you:


Pumpking Princess size 8/10

Pumpking Princess size 8/10… more

 Pumpking Princess costume
She’ll light up the night, just like her pumpkin pals. Costume includes pumpkin stem hairpiece, and dress with fiber optic lights; 2-piece set. Comes with 3 button cell batteries. Polyester. Imported.

Baby Costumes Are The Cutest of All

These are absolutely gorgeous, and for the first time in my life I was sorry for two things: that I don’t have a toddler and that I don’t celebrate Halloween. See it for yourself, because it is also valid for the Easter bunny costume ideas:


Peeps® Marshmallow Chick Infant Costume - 6/12M

Includes one bodysuit…. more
Peeps® Marshmallow Chick Infant Costume - 12/24M

Includes one bodysuit…. more

Pastel Stars Empty Favor Boxes (4)

Includes 4 empty boxes. Each measures 6”W x 4”H x 3”D…. more
Lil Bunny - size 3/12M

Lil Bunny - size 3/12M… more

Deluxe Easter Bunny Costume

Deluxe Easter Bunny Costume… more
Deluxe Easter Bunny Adult Costume

Includes jumpsuit, hood, mask, gloves and vest. Does not include foam carrot. … more

Bunny-size XXS(2T/3T)

Includes ears, bodysuit and skirt. Does not include tights, shoes or makeup. … more
Bunny-size XS(4/5)

Includes ears, bodysuit and skirt. Does not include tights, shoes or makeup. … more

Bunny-size S(6/6X)

Includes ears, bodysuit and skirt. Does not include tights, shoes or makeup. … more
Bunny-size M(7/8)

Includes ears, bodysuit and skirt. Does not include tights, shoes or makeup. … more

Blue Bunny Infant Costume - 6/12 Months

Includes bodysuit, hat and rattle…. more
Blue Bunny Infant Costume - 12/18 Months

Includes bodysuit, hat and rattle…. more
By Simonne | Posted in Family & relationships, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments (3)

Choosing Webhosting Requires Research

August 28, 2008 – 4:54 am

Moving from free hosted web services to a self-hosted website can be very challenging. While all hosting companies promise lost of beautiful features, 99.99% uptime, an infinity of domains, subdomains or MYSQL databases, you cannot be sure that you’ll actually get what you were promised when you signed the contract. This is why new services started to make themselves known on the internet market. One such service is the web hosting rating, which ranks the best webhosting companies according to various criteria, thus making it easier for people to find lots of information in the same place.

Such websites, like WebHostingRating.com, also offer useful information for those who want to know more about technical stuff like Ruby-on-Rails, or payment options for an e-commerce site.

If you are looking either to choose a webhost for the first time in your life, or you are looking to change your actual web hosting company, research is a must, if you want to stay away from trouble as much as you can.

By Simonne | Posted in Site reviews | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

Computer Repair Tips That Never Helped Me

August 26, 2008 – 1:47 pm


I’ve only had experience with Windows operated computers, so this is what I’m referring to in here. Computer repair specialists were always hard to find, and many times we had to try to figure out a solution to fix a computer which stopped working, because no specialist would come home, and to take a PC to the service company was extremely troublesome, mainly because such computer repair centers were in the center of the city, where we barely had any parking spots. So, you had to carry that heavy computer for more than 1 km, to get it fixed. You can imagine that we tried to exchange information between us, to discover tips which worked, in order to fix the bloody PC without all that hassle. If I tell you that Internet wasn’t invented yet, then you can see that information was very hard to get.

If you don’t know, Windows operated computers tend to get sluggish after a time, especially if you repeatedly install and uninstall various applications. These are a few tips which everybody told me should help me make my computer faster, which I didn’t notice to help me very much.

Computer Repair Tip 1: Defragment Often

The information on the hard disk is written in chunks called sectors. One application can spread across many such sectors, and if they are not next to each other, the head which reads the information on the hard disk has to make additional movements, thus increasing the reaction time of the computer, resulting in sluggish, slow launch of the respective application.

While I believe the reasoning behind this, from experience I can tell you that defragmentation had no effect on my computer’s speed, at least not an effect that a human can notice. Milliseconds that I might have gained by performing the defrag operation every week were not worth the actual time spent on doing the defragmentation itself.

Computer Repair Tip 2: Clean Up Disk Errors

This is easy to do: on My Computer, select the drive you wish to clean up errors on, right-click on it, then select Properties. The first option from the second tab of the menu that opens is Check Disk. It won’t run, but you can schedule it to start next time when you’ll reboot your computer.

Computer Repair Tip 3: Remove Temporary Files

This is called the Disk Cleanup and you can find it in the same menu as in Computer Repair Tip no 2. It will free up some space on your hard drive, which is good, but the speed gain won’t be noticeable for human senses.

The only computer repair tip that worked perfectly each time, and offered me a fast system, at least for a couple of months was to reinstall Windows. I’m seriously considering switching to Mac at the next computer upgrade I’m going to get.

Do you have any more computer repair tips that never helped you improve your computer’s performance?

By Simonne | Posted in Tech & Internet | Tagged , , , , , | Comments (0)

Better Email Accounts Management with Zimbra Desktop

July 28, 2008 – 5:02 am

If you are involved in a lot of internet activities, like social media or running blogs, you may need to have multiple email accounts. While both Mozilla Thunderbird and Microsoft Outlook allow receiving messages from multiple POP3 email accounts in the same inbox, not all web-based email services offer this possibility. GMail does, but Yahoo doesn’t, as far as I know.

Recently, this feature has become available for Yahoo email accounts, thanks to Zimbra, a Yahoo company which deals with in open source, next-generation messaging and collaboration software. They have launched Zimbra Desktop, a desktop application which allows people to gather all their email accounts in one place.

Zimbra Desktop Key Features

  • Operating systems compatibility: Windows, Apple, or Linux desktop computers
  • Applications: email, contacts agenda, and calendar all in one application
  • Account Wizard facility: set up Zimbra, Yahoo! Mail Plus, AOL and Gmail email accounts without having to know technical issues
  • Other types of email accounts that can be added: any POP or IMAP email account
  • Email storage space: unlimited
  • Accessibility: both online and offline

Should you be interested in trying this desktop application which is currently in Beta, you can discover more advanced features and download it for free. Support is offered via Zimbra applications dedicated discussion forums.

By Simonne | Posted in Tech & Internet | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments (0)

Busy? Buy a Massage Chair and Relax

July 28, 2008 – 1:49 am

Massage chair with 16 air cussions

Everybody is busy these days. It seems like time is shrinking, forcing us to give up part of our pleasures ans sometimes even part of our duties. Massage is one of the relaxation ways we don’t have too much time for. Going to a massage center requires making an appointment, then respecting it, spending time driving to and from the beauty center… for extremely busy people this may be too much. Luckily, there is a faster way to your daily relaxation: buy a massage chair. I had the chance to try one of these chairs in a shop and I was impressed: that massage chair had air cushions everywhere, so it was able to give you a full body massage, from neck to sole. Moreover, it had the ability to combine different massage techniques, like friction, kneading, tapping, Shiatsu or impact, very easy to select from the remote control that operates the chair.If you are not sure what types of massage to use, you can let the chair do what it has been programmed to, and choose either one of the upper body automatic programs, or a lower body automatic program.

Briefly, I liked the idea of buying such a massage chair for myself, but I had other priorities at that time, so I almost forgot about it. Then I discovered that one of my friends has a company which sells such masage chairs. She promised me to give me the massage recliner I’ve been dreaming of, provided that I help her promote her chairs. This is what I’m doing now, so if you need more info about massage chairs, recliners, or portable massage chairs, just contact my friend and she’ll tell you everything you want to know.

By Simonne | Posted in Health & Fitness | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)