Be careful about unplugging TV's if they are CRT. CRT's need some power applied to the filimant at all times to keep it lasting for many years. If you unplug those TV's then the filimant will wear quicker and you will need to buy a new Tv sooner.

@Arminius, thats one of my hurdles right now is firrering input voltages. As I buy new equipment I try to make sure it can run from 12v. I currently have a 12v NiMH/NiCad AA/AAA battery charger with 12v input, my linksys router, my mini-ITX based server which I rsync my backups to, my cell phone charger and the HP…

Something you could do if you have multiple devices that need recharging is get a small timer and plug an outlet strip into that. Then set the timer to a time in the morning so it will turn on and recharge everything just before your ready to leave the house. This would only be cost effective if you have more than…

@WebCudgel

To stop the current from the wayy you need a largish realy to switch the 120v feed to the power supply off which would add size and cost to the charger.

@Macnerd1984

So what happens when you change one or more of your passwords every x number of days, you then would need to update that estate document all the time.

@Posco Grubb: The problem with this was it was super sneaky, there was nothing stating that they weren't covered if in a vehicle, what they used was the wording "for personal not business use" and even though they were my personal things and not used for business they decided I must be using them for business since I…

Just be very sure to read all the fine print. For example Allstate decided that since my stuff was stolen from my truck in my driveway that I must have been taking it to work with me and therefore using it for work so the extra I paid was voided because it doesn't cover anything used for business use even though I…

I quit using anything MSN (and Yahoo) when they started advertising with popups and flash and crap like that (was before popup stoppers were the norm). once you start with really intrusive advertising you fall in the same category as spammers with me and don't get any of my business.

My best upgrade was installing Linux. My guest vmware machines run faster. I don't need to run AV in the background, I don't need to run and update antispyware antiadware programs. I don't have to upgrade MS Money or MS office every time I turn around. File Metadata actually works. My PIM doesn't have a 2G pst…

Be careful with [bigwords.com] (I saw it mentioned above). My wife ordered books through them and was told they were all in stock, then when they didn't arrive the week before class was to start we found out they don't have anything in stock and just place the order after you have paid. We arued with an extermely…

rsync = good

There are always other jobs, my parents were not focused on education and neither was the local school. I packed up an old pickup truck with everything I owned and moved three states away to the only college that would take me and worked cleaning bathrooms while signing away for more school loans until I made it…

The problem with just saying I'm not interested and hanging up is they call back. Remember your dealing with companies with which will take every loopholeing the law they can and #1 is maiing the calls, they don't care if they wake you up or interrupt your dinner. Your number just drops back down in the queue for the…

#1 stop with crap software, if you want it point and click easy then you make some setup program that will configure the most common/popular programs people use, ship firefox and thundarbird on the cd, stop with the crapware that breaks so many people's sytems.

Well at least loosing microsoft works isn't much of a loss.

Also consider using a service like carfax to make sure the used car your buying didn't come from LA.

If the engine bay looks too clean, do the white glove test under something, feel the underside of a hose to see if its covered with grease indicating someone had a leak and powerwashed the engine to make it look clean, but the wash doesn't get under places.

What I was trying to say is instead of trying to keep so many places in synch why not eliminate a few. Do you really need 15 "free" e-mail addresses? Are they really free when you have to spend time checking them or finding something to keep them in synch. Thats where I was a few years ago and was able to simplify by…