NWA-PCUG 11/2000 NewsLetter Article 18861 N. Hwy 112, Springdale, AR 72762-9303 Notes to Editors. I apologize for the inconvenience last month. I guess you could call it just another goof in the world of computers. Explanation below. There should be about 1607 words in this column, including this note. From the Dealsguy, Bob Click, Greater Orlando Computer Users Group Editor Dave Gerber from Sarasota PC User Group uses the Deals column and noticed they weren't listed on my distribution page. He submitted the stats so now they are there. Also, Mark Schwind of Knights of Columbus PC Users Group has started using the column and sent me their info. Pat Passalacqua of Lake Monticello Computer User Group is also newly listed, but they do not use the column because they don't go for deals. To each his own!! If you haven't checked the announcements on my Web site, do so before I purge the older ones if these companies interest you. Announcements Page itself has a few items, but I have separate pages linked to it for Binary Research, O'Reilly Publishing and Aladdin. [http://www.dealsguy.com] *A Tough Education I was out of town at the deadline last month and needed a last minute correction. I write the column in MS Word at home and all the URLs and e- mail addresses are in hypertext, but I have only Word Perfect and SmartSuite on my new laptop. I opened my MS Word file in WP to make a one- line correction and noticed I could save it as a .doc file (MS Word format). Great, I thought, and quickly sent it out to the editors. Minutes later, I received e-mail from Don Singleton showing me that only the brackets remained for URLs (apparently Word Perfect had stripped all my hypertext during the conversion). Since I had stupidly saved it back to the original file, I e-mailed all the editors about the problem saying I would send it again when I returned home. Later that day I remembered I had uploaded the column to the editor's private page on my Web site so I downloaded it and resent it in tact to everybody. So much for editing a Word file in WP. I've been holding back a few items that I felt would have limited interest and decided to run them before they got too old. When checking the URLs before sending it to my proofreader, three of the vendors were missing. There was no sign of them and I was unable to track them down. Even the phones were disconnected. Good thing I didn't use them before. Imagine my last minute haste! *Still Good Ken Winograd's games are all still good. The Pinnacle user group program is ongoing. NetSonic's Pro deal should still be good, but you actually need to go into the ordering process to see the $29.95 price when you use that long URL. It should show that price on your order form. The Enfish software is still free. Be aware that there are URLs built into the software, but you don't see them unless you want to. I also read an uncomplimentary article about freedsl.com in a magazine. *Now for the deals and last minute additions that I hope will catch your interest. *Check Out Your Smarts And Make Money ItPaysToLearn.com is "said to be" a site where visitors can go to take a quiz while getting PAID, even if your answer is WRONG. Supposedly you're paid 1/10th cent for each WRONG answer, and 2/10th cent for a CORRECT answer. They also encourage what might appear to be a "pyramid scheme." You recommend more people who might then recommend additional people, all on your behalf, and that small change actually can translate to a right smart amount of money, according to them. Perhaps it could be used to help your user group's treasury. I don't mean to be skeptical, just suspicious. However, it doesn't hurt to take a look at [http://www.ItPaysToLearn.com] for yourself where you will be asked to "sign-in." On their Web site there's even a choice for groups and you can graduate to other events. I suggest you have your firewall in place. I wonder if it is an "open-book" test! You will also be asked to take surveys and I assume that produces income for them. Good luck! *Help For AOL Mail You can look into this at [http://www.enetbot.com]. I have not tried it, even though I do also use AOL. Check carefully, since it is not part of AOL and I really didn't understand what I saw, but had no time to investigate further at this writing. It looked like it offers some good features. You can download a 30-day trial version and if you like it, the cost is $19.95. *Another Internet Phone Service - ("Hello Again Mom, Its Your Cheapskate Son") I assume you are all aware of Dialpad.com and the following may be a similar service. It offers "free" PC-to-phone calling to US, Canada, UK, Ireland and Germany right now. They plan service to other countries at a later date so sign up for the newsletter. Look it over for yourself at [http://www.go2call.com]. This company was written up as a recommended "buy" in Financial Sentinel (NASDAQ symbol NTOP) and they spoke glowingly about its "voice technology." The article said they charge "a penny" for long distance calls within the US, but I didn't see that on their Web site. However, I haven't bought any of their stock yet. *How About a Free Voicemail Box For Life EchoBuzz by Blue Diamond Software Inc. was supposedly the first free voicemail service to be launched. EchoBuzz will be completely toll-free to users nationwide using speech recognition technology. It is ad supported and targets 12-24-year-olds that don't have their own phone line. EchoBuzz members can pre-register for their private voicemail box by logging onto [www.echobuzz.com] and completing a brief personal profile, after registration. This allows the service to personalize three-to-ten-second ads to the specific interests of the caller. Members will hear approximately one to three ads per call, depending on the number of options they choose. It's FREE, it's private and it's easy to use according to the CEO of Blue Diamond Software. "It's also the first voicemail service made available to consumers outside the business community without the barriers of separate phone lines and access or usage fees, and should be useful to the younger set." To use EchoBuzz, callers dial a toll-free number, 1-877-EchoBuzz (1-877- 324-6289), to send and retrieve messages. That number always seems to be busy, so it needs work. Besides the traditional method of menu-driven touch-tones, EchoBuzz will employ speech-recognition technology, permitting hands-free navigation of the voicemail system. EchoBuzz, now used in Southern California, begins nationwide in September, just in time for students heading back to school. Let's hope this helps free up your phone line if you have kids. *A Tune-up For Your Windows by iolo technologies (no caps is correct) The following is their words: "Keep your PC running faster, cleaner and error-free. Even speed-up your Internet connection by as much as 300% with 'System Mechanic's' full suite of 15 powerful tools! These powerful tools allow you to find and fix problems with your system, ensure reliability and speed, and properly maintain your PC so problems don't occur. "(NEW!) Tweak and customize almost 100 undocumented settings in Windows. Clean and optimize your system registry. Hunt down and remove junk and obsolete files. Maintain privacy and security by eliminating tracks left behind while using your computer or surfing the Web. *Properly* remove such items as browser cache, cookies and other history files. Find, fix, or remove broken Windows shortcuts. Find and remove invalid uninstaller information. Find and remove duplicate files. Securely delete files and folders. "Manage the programs that start when Windows does. Track and report on changes made to your system when installing programs. (NEW!) Consolidate critical system maintenance into one easy step. (NEW!) Automatically keep System Mechanic up-to-date with its self-healing WebUpdate feature. Log statistical information and quantify benefits of all above tools. A fully functional 30-day trial version of System Mechanic is available from iolo technologies Web site [http://www.iolo.com]." Special arrangements were made to obtain a discount for readers of this column. Purchase System Mechanic directly from their secure order form [http://http://www.iolo.com/order/] ONLY between November 1st and December 31st 2000 using the Coupon Code "DealsGuy" and get a $10 discount off the $59.95 retail price. Alternatively, you can call their toll-free sales number 1-877-239-4656 and quote the same coupon code. I have not tried this product yet. *ClickBook Is Back (Thanks to Cathy Grammar Margolin for passing this on). ClickBook 2000, (Prints Double Sided Booklets) offers 20+ new features. It is a powerful yet easy-to-use printing utility that automatically rotates, reduces, and realigns files to print double- or single-sided books, business cards, day planner pages, wallet booklets, brochures, greeting cards, catalogs, microfiche, and more! User Group members will receive 20% off - $39.95 (retail $49.95) at: [http://www.bluesquirrel.com/scripts/orderpage.asp?skey=cb2000&ASCID=633]. Due to it's length, the ordering URL is supposed to be changed to: [http://www.bluesquirrel.com/usergroup] At this writing the new URL didn't take you to the discounted price yet, so check them both. For more product information, go to [http://www.clickbook.com]. That's it for this month. Meet me here again next month if your editor permits. This column is written to make user group members aware of special offers I have found or arranged, and my comments should not be interpreted to encourage, or discourage, the purchase of products, no matter how enthused I might sound. Bob (The Cheapskate) Click [dealsguy@mindspring.com]. Visit my Web site at [http://www.dealsguy.com] for past columns and this column in its entirety if your editor does not print it all.