If you have been watching TV lately you may have seen advertisements about SafeLink, a company offering free cell phones to individuals who may qualify under a special government program. The spot shows a distraught woman, in the background is her car, hood up and engine smoking, and she is heard lamenting the fact that she can’t call home. At first I thought that this may be a public service announcement, but the number of spots and the placement in some very expensive air time slots soon convinced me it might be otherwise. Since the offer seemed too good to be true, I thought I would investigate. It had to be a scam.
After some investigation I found that it is indeed a legitimate offer. The phones and limited monthly service are free and are being provided by TracFone, a major pay-as-you-go mobile phone provider. The company has contracted with the government to provide this subsidized service. The specific calling plans are controlled by each state, but, generally if your income is less than 150% of the US poverty level, you could qualify for the unique program. The program is available to those living in Ohio. Kentucky is to adopt the program soon. Currently SafeLink is not available in Indiana and I could find no information on plans to offer it soon.
The genesis of the program goes back several years when the federal government set up a “Life Line” program. http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/lllu.html This program was designed to assure that low income citizens could have access to basic telephone service. The first phase only covered land line phone service. With the mobile phones quickly becoming much more than a convenience, the program was expanded to include them as well.
The SafeLink program www.safelink.com in Ohio will provide a free phone and up to 68 minutes of use per month. If the user wishes to have more minutes they can purchase them from TracPhone at a hefty 20 cents per minute.
I am sure there will be those who disagree with me but I think that this program can provide some much needed security for a segment of our population that needs it and the hour of talk time should be more then adequate. I do feel that the program should be a bit more restrictive. As it is now, the user can buy additional minutes and text services as well as many other add-ons. These of course would be charged to the user. My fear is that they will end up paying inflated fees. The 20 cents per minute for time over 68 minutes a month is excessive.
For more information about the SafeLink Service and to review the eligibility requirements you can go to www.safelinkwireless.com or call 1-800-977-3768.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Monday, August 24, 2009
Online Banking ...What Are You Waiting For?
The other day I was talking to a friend about how much I like online electronic banking and how it saves me so much time. My friend commented that she would not like online banking since she still wants to have control over her money. I pressed her a bit to find that she was equating electronic banking with automatic bill payment.
Contrary to what my friend thinks, not only does online banking give you more control over your money, it allows you to take full advantage of billing cycles without worry that Uncle Sam’s mail truck will get a flat tire causing penalties from the credit card company.
You don’t need to use automatic bill payment at all. In fact, the beauty of the service is that you can tell the bank when to transfer the funds down to the day and it can be different each month. So if your BP Oil bill is due on August 26th, you can tell the bank to make the payment on August 25th. Since it is an electronic payment there is no time delay and BP has your money on the 25th. The next month if the bill is due on the 27th, you can pay it on the 26th. In the olden days you needed to make sure that you mailed the check several days before the due date since there was no telling how long snail mail would take.
Most banks offer electronic statements as well as access to an archive of many months or years of your records. This is invaluable when doing your taxes. Having these statements stored off site in some bank’s computer beats the shoe box in the front hall closet.
Almost every bank now offers some level of electronic banking. They do this because it saves them money, too. After all, when you go into a bank the teller is essentially entering information into the same system that you use on line. If they can get you to do the work, they save money. Not mailing out paper statements is also a cost savings.
Security can be an issue, but if you use common sense most pitfalls can be avoided. For sure, keep your passwords safe and don’t use your kid’s name or your phone number as a password. Also, you should be cautious doing any online banking using a public wifi hotspot or a computer that is not yours. There are some nefarious people who can gather your passwords by electronically eavesdropping at the library or Starbucks. Do your banking at home or at the office on a computer that your know is secure.
If you have not already tried it, go for it. You can still write your paper checks when you want. Perhaps you can start by just setting up an account and using it for some of your bills. Once you are comfortable, you will never go back.
Contrary to what my friend thinks, not only does online banking give you more control over your money, it allows you to take full advantage of billing cycles without worry that Uncle Sam’s mail truck will get a flat tire causing penalties from the credit card company.
You don’t need to use automatic bill payment at all. In fact, the beauty of the service is that you can tell the bank when to transfer the funds down to the day and it can be different each month. So if your BP Oil bill is due on August 26th, you can tell the bank to make the payment on August 25th. Since it is an electronic payment there is no time delay and BP has your money on the 25th. The next month if the bill is due on the 27th, you can pay it on the 26th. In the olden days you needed to make sure that you mailed the check several days before the due date since there was no telling how long snail mail would take.
Most banks offer electronic statements as well as access to an archive of many months or years of your records. This is invaluable when doing your taxes. Having these statements stored off site in some bank’s computer beats the shoe box in the front hall closet.
Almost every bank now offers some level of electronic banking. They do this because it saves them money, too. After all, when you go into a bank the teller is essentially entering information into the same system that you use on line. If they can get you to do the work, they save money. Not mailing out paper statements is also a cost savings.
Security can be an issue, but if you use common sense most pitfalls can be avoided. For sure, keep your passwords safe and don’t use your kid’s name or your phone number as a password. Also, you should be cautious doing any online banking using a public wifi hotspot or a computer that is not yours. There are some nefarious people who can gather your passwords by electronically eavesdropping at the library or Starbucks. Do your banking at home or at the office on a computer that your know is secure.
If you have not already tried it, go for it. You can still write your paper checks when you want. Perhaps you can start by just setting up an account and using it for some of your bills. Once you are comfortable, you will never go back.
Monday, August 17, 2009
Smaller & Simple Might Be Better
On occasion in this column I have discussed the propensity of engineers and designers to add power and features to various electronic appliances far in excess of what most users will ever use. We joke about it, but it is very true that the computing power in the iPhone, iPod and many mobile phones is more robust than what is found in the aging computer systems assisting air traffic controllers keeping us safe in the sky. That is another column perhaps…
There is a whole new category of computers that may reverse the trend of giving us things we don’t need, don’t want and will never learn to use. Called “netbooks,” these computers, smaller than lap tops but larger than cell phones on steroids, are designed and engineered to do very specific tasks.
While smaller than a regular lap top, the keyboard is very close to full size. The screens are somewhat smaller, but can display a page of text or email. Perhaps the biggest difference is in what they do not have. You will not find a large capacity hard drive, there is no DVD or CD drive, the processor will not compute the trajectory of a spacecraft heading for Mars.
These “netbooks” are meant to be connected to the Internet either by direct connection, i.e. a wire, built-in WiFi or a "3g" mobile network card. In other words, the power of this machine is derived from the Internet, not from its innards.
Both Google and, more recently, Microsoft have developed free word processing and spreadsheet software that you can use. Instead of the software being resident on “netbook,” it remains on the remote location and is accessed only when needed via the Internet. In so doing you don’t need all that hard drive space for large software programs.
The cost of these new scaled-down machines is comparably low starting at about $300. Of course if you want the leather seats and sun roof you can pay much more. Most of the bog box retailers have a wide selection as do Dell and HP on the web.
My advice is to make sure that you try the model you are buying. You should make sure that you like the keyboard and can live with the sometimes non-standard layout. Also, while I usually suggest not buying a service contract on electronic devices, in this case it is a good idea. By the very nature of how you are going to use this device, it is going to get knocked around.
If you want to edit video and play games on line, a “netbook” is not for you. If your computing activity is basically email, web surfing and modest word processing, a “netbook” is worth considering.
There is a whole new category of computers that may reverse the trend of giving us things we don’t need, don’t want and will never learn to use. Called “netbooks,” these computers, smaller than lap tops but larger than cell phones on steroids, are designed and engineered to do very specific tasks.
While smaller than a regular lap top, the keyboard is very close to full size. The screens are somewhat smaller, but can display a page of text or email. Perhaps the biggest difference is in what they do not have. You will not find a large capacity hard drive, there is no DVD or CD drive, the processor will not compute the trajectory of a spacecraft heading for Mars.
These “netbooks” are meant to be connected to the Internet either by direct connection, i.e. a wire, built-in WiFi or a "3g" mobile network card. In other words, the power of this machine is derived from the Internet, not from its innards.
Both Google and, more recently, Microsoft have developed free word processing and spreadsheet software that you can use. Instead of the software being resident on “netbook,” it remains on the remote location and is accessed only when needed via the Internet. In so doing you don’t need all that hard drive space for large software programs.
The cost of these new scaled-down machines is comparably low starting at about $300. Of course if you want the leather seats and sun roof you can pay much more. Most of the bog box retailers have a wide selection as do Dell and HP on the web.
My advice is to make sure that you try the model you are buying. You should make sure that you like the keyboard and can live with the sometimes non-standard layout. Also, while I usually suggest not buying a service contract on electronic devices, in this case it is a good idea. By the very nature of how you are going to use this device, it is going to get knocked around.
If you want to edit video and play games on line, a “netbook” is not for you. If your computing activity is basically email, web surfing and modest word processing, a “netbook” is worth considering.
Monday, August 10, 2009
Google Voice Worth A Look
So how many telephone numbers do you have? Not too long ago that would seem like a strange question. Today, it is very common for many of us to have multiple telephone lines and numbers and multiple voicemail boxes. Many of us have a home phone and a phone at work as well as a mobile phone. It is not uncommon for families to have mobile phones for both parents and each of the kids.
So what number do you give to family, friends and business colleagues? With the blurring of “work time” and “home time” that decision is not always easy. The issue is even more complex, since many of us, myself included, try to keep our mobile number somewhat protected from the telemarketers and other electronic miscreants who call at the most inopportune times.
The folks at Google, the Internet search engine behemoth, will soon roll out a new free service that addresses this issue. Called “Google Voice,” the service has been in testing for sometime, and according to Google sources, will be available to the general public in a month or so. I have set up an account and I have to say I am impressed.
Google Voice provides the user with a new telephone number. The subscriber gives that number to individuals instead of any of the “real” numbers assigned to your home, office or mobile phones. When you set up the system, you decide where you want the various incoming calls to go. For instance, if you give the number to a business associate, when he or she calls, the call will be routed only to the office line. If you give the number to a neighbor, you can program it to ring only the home or mobile lines. For your spouse or other important persons, you can direct the system to ring all the lines simultaneously if they should call. For those you don’t want to talk to at all, the calls can go directly to voice mail.
Another great feature is a single voicemail box. Instead of checking the office voicemail, the home answering machine and your mobile voicemail, all messages are stored in one place. Google will even allow the voice messages to be available in text format for reading and saving via a special web page or sent to you via email or to your phone as a text message, or all of the above.
There are several other features within Google Voice such as screening spam callers or telemarketers and automated dialers. You can even record incoming or outgoing messages. Perhaps the best part is that is FREE!
Google Voice is an expansion of a service called “Grand Central” that has been available for sometime and should be ready for general use very soon. You can put your name on a list for notification at www.google.com/voice
So what number do you give to family, friends and business colleagues? With the blurring of “work time” and “home time” that decision is not always easy. The issue is even more complex, since many of us, myself included, try to keep our mobile number somewhat protected from the telemarketers and other electronic miscreants who call at the most inopportune times.
The folks at Google, the Internet search engine behemoth, will soon roll out a new free service that addresses this issue. Called “Google Voice,” the service has been in testing for sometime, and according to Google sources, will be available to the general public in a month or so. I have set up an account and I have to say I am impressed.
Google Voice provides the user with a new telephone number. The subscriber gives that number to individuals instead of any of the “real” numbers assigned to your home, office or mobile phones. When you set up the system, you decide where you want the various incoming calls to go. For instance, if you give the number to a business associate, when he or she calls, the call will be routed only to the office line. If you give the number to a neighbor, you can program it to ring only the home or mobile lines. For your spouse or other important persons, you can direct the system to ring all the lines simultaneously if they should call. For those you don’t want to talk to at all, the calls can go directly to voice mail.
Another great feature is a single voicemail box. Instead of checking the office voicemail, the home answering machine and your mobile voicemail, all messages are stored in one place. Google will even allow the voice messages to be available in text format for reading and saving via a special web page or sent to you via email or to your phone as a text message, or all of the above.
There are several other features within Google Voice such as screening spam callers or telemarketers and automated dialers. You can even record incoming or outgoing messages. Perhaps the best part is that is FREE!
Google Voice is an expansion of a service called “Grand Central” that has been available for sometime and should be ready for general use very soon. You can put your name on a list for notification at www.google.com/voice
Monday, August 3, 2009
What Internet Speed Do I really Need?
Once the Internet was used for writing short notes to friends or an occasional search for an address or phone number. Some of the more daring among us may have booked some travel plans or even purchased a book or two. Now more and more of us are using the Internet for banking, stock trading, downloading music, sharing photos and videos with our family and friends and even watching network TV programs. An increasing number of us use our home computers to tie into our network at the office. In short, just like the highway systems have been overloaded with automobiles, Internet “traffic” is growing almost exponentially.
It was not long ago that most of us used a standard telephone line to connect out home computer to the Internet. When our main use was an occasional email or two, this was more than sufficient. Over time though, higher speed connections have been the rule. In our neck of the woods there are essentially two options of high speed Internet; DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) service provided by Cincinnati Bell or another phone company and a cable based service provided by Time Warner or other cable provider.
When you get right down to it, either will provide a level of service adequate for most home Internet users. There are some differences in how each works.
The cable based system uses the Cable TV network to connect you to the Internet. It is sort of like a water system. There are large pipes that connect to the source of the water and as the system spreads out the pipes get smaller and smaller with all water users sharing in the supply. If everyone on the system decides to take a shower and water the lawn the system slows to a trickle. Since this almost never happens, it is not a problem.
The DSL configuration is different. Just like your phone, Cincinnati Bell provides a dedicated wire from your house to the phone company office. This line is only used by you. So if everyone in the neighborhood is on the phone or computer, your speed does not change.
In most cases the speed provided by the cable modem is slightly faster than the DSL service. If you want to check your speed there are several Internet sites you can use. One of the easiest is CNET. You type in your zip code and type of service and it will show you what speed you are now getting and compare it with the various options in your area. To use the test go to http://reviews.cnet.com/ and you will see the “test button” in the box in the upper right hand corner of the page.
My rule of thumb for most home users is to go with price as both options are adequate.
It was not long ago that most of us used a standard telephone line to connect out home computer to the Internet. When our main use was an occasional email or two, this was more than sufficient. Over time though, higher speed connections have been the rule. In our neck of the woods there are essentially two options of high speed Internet; DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) service provided by Cincinnati Bell or another phone company and a cable based service provided by Time Warner or other cable provider.
When you get right down to it, either will provide a level of service adequate for most home Internet users. There are some differences in how each works.
The cable based system uses the Cable TV network to connect you to the Internet. It is sort of like a water system. There are large pipes that connect to the source of the water and as the system spreads out the pipes get smaller and smaller with all water users sharing in the supply. If everyone on the system decides to take a shower and water the lawn the system slows to a trickle. Since this almost never happens, it is not a problem.
The DSL configuration is different. Just like your phone, Cincinnati Bell provides a dedicated wire from your house to the phone company office. This line is only used by you. So if everyone in the neighborhood is on the phone or computer, your speed does not change.
In most cases the speed provided by the cable modem is slightly faster than the DSL service. If you want to check your speed there are several Internet sites you can use. One of the easiest is CNET. You type in your zip code and type of service and it will show you what speed you are now getting and compare it with the various options in your area. To use the test go to http://reviews.cnet.com/ and you will see the “test button” in the box in the upper right hand corner of the page.
My rule of thumb for most home users is to go with price as both options are adequate.
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