Posted in Making Money With Your Computer, Computer Use Success Stories by webmaster
EBay continues to be something that a lot of people would like to learn and I will be conducting a number of workshops in the coming weeks. These will take place on Saturdays from 10 in the morning until three in the afternoon.
Last year at this time I was doing eBay workshops and having a hard time filling them. But since then, one of my students made a couple of thousand dollars on eBay, and there was an
article written up in my local paper. As a result, I have four workshops to present, all filled to capacity. It’s amazing what the power of social proof can do.
If you’re in the Toronto area, you’re welcome to send me an e-mail and I can give you the information if you’re interested in attending.
Technorati Tags: eBay, eBay workshops, Toronto, making money with eBay
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Posted in Computer Software, Computer Supplies and Gadgets by webmaster
I finally bit the bullet and bought Dragon Naturally Speaking version 9. It’s speech recognition software that turns talk into text and is faster and more accurate than typing. You can do e-mail, instant messaging and surf the web - all by voice.
Well, I like this product very much so far. It says no training required, get started instantly. But I found that I had to teach it how I speak. The way I pronounce words seems to cause it some trouble. I probably had to train the program about three times, for maybe half an hour each time. Now it’s working and I’m impressed how well it does its job.
I bought the cheaper standard version on sale for $79. The regular price apparently is over $100, at least here in Canada. There is also a preferred version which is more expensive. The main differences: the preferred version also transcribes recordings from handheld digital recorders, has wireless microphone support, and turns text into speech as well. The preferred version also plays back your dictation so that you can correct it, inserts your signature or logo with a simple voice command and allows you to import and export your user files to any PC.
I find that for what I need, the standard version is fine. With it, I am able to create e-mail, instant messages and documents simply by speaking. I can surf the web by voice, although I haven’t tried that yet. It’s possible to get started fairly quickly and there are helpful onscreen tutorials to show how to correct the program by spelling out words and increasing its vocabulary. I’ve only begun to see all the possiblilities and am not doing nearly as much as Naturally Speaking is capable of. The standard version will dictate directly into any Microsoft Windows application, and control Windows menus and dialog boxes by voice.
A fairly good microphone headset is included with the program as well. So far, I am quite amazed with this product. It’s really something to speak and see your words magically appear on the computer screen. Interested in finding out more, click here Dragon NaturallySpeaking 9 Standard - Use your voice to dictate and edit in just about any Windows application!
Technorati Tags: Dragon Naturally Speaking, voice recognition software, dictation
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Posted in Computer Software, Computer Hardware, Digital Photographs, Computer Kids by webmaster
I recently purchased a digital camera for my grandkids to use. Called “Kids Cam Digital Camera”, it’s advertised for ages six and up, but my three-year-old grandson was using it and had no problems at all. The camera supposedly takes 152 pictures , but that must be if you purchase a memory card or something. I’m one of those ‘hate to read instructions’ people, so I’ve only been able to take 20 photos at a time and then you have to download them to your computer so you can take more. Downloading the pictures was quite easy and the camera comes with software that allows you to edit and print your pictures using templates provided. There are also activities provided in the software package: a story maker, an edit center, a game center
and a slideshow maker. There is also a Web camera program.
The photo activity software is quite good and the camera itself takes good pictures when used outside. There is no flash, so indoor pictures tend to be very dark. Since this kids’ digital camera only cost me $19, I can’t expect too much.
The main thing that I don’t really like about the camera is the fact that you can’t preview the pictures. There is no lens view or anything like that, so the pictures have to be uploaded to your computer before you can see them.
For a young child, it’s the perfect little camera. The one I have is gray with dark red trim. There were a few different colors, and the case is plastic, so it’s a fairly sturdy little unit for child.
According to the information on the package, the edit center allows you to add effects, distort the pictures and tweak them with 18 different editing tools. You can also add captions and use the painting tools that are included. The slideshow maker allows you to produce, direct and star in your own megahit. Now, I haven’t tried either one of those programs yet, although I imagine they’re fairly easy.
The camera and the software were quite simple to install. Although not useful for any serious photo taking, the Kids Cam is an inexpensive introduction to an exciting hobby.
Technorati Tags: digital camera, kids camera, photo editing
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Posted in Making Money With Your Computer, Interesting Internet Sites by webmaster
A bit more about eBay. Although some people will tell you that eBay is no longer popular, my local computer store is now selling software to help you learn to sell on eBay. If you’ve seen it and are wondering if you should buy, don’t. Between the free tutorials available on eBay and the ease of using their system, it isn’t really necessary.
When buying on eBay, you will come across a number of abbreviations, some of which are listed here. As a seller, using these abbreviations will sometimes be necessary, especially when you want to describe something in the title of your item, which has very limited space for text.
BIN: Buy it Now. A fixed price auction.
BNWT: Brand New With Tags. An item that has never been used and still has its original tags.
BW: Black and White. Used for films, photos etc.
EUR: Euro Currency.
FC: First Class. Type of postage.
GBP: Great British Pounds Currency.
HTF: Hard To Find. Not quite as misused as ‘rare’, but getting there.
NIB: New in Box. Never opened, still in its original box.
NR: No Reserve. An item where the seller has not set a reserve price.
OB: Original Box. An item that has its original box (but might have been opened).
PM: Priority Mail.
PP: Parcel Post.
SH: Shipping and Handling. The fees the buyer will pay for postage.
USD: United States Dollars Currency.
VGC: Very Good Condition. Not mint, but close.
Technorati Tags: eBay, abbreviations, selling on eBay
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Posted in Making Money With Your Computer, Interesting Internet Sites by webmaster
Last year, my daughter and I taught a class on “Buying and Selling on eBay” at the local seniors’ center. The class was six weeks long and hands-on. Each person brought an item in to sell and we took them through the whole process, from signing up with eBay and Paypal, to writing a description and taking a photo, to actual sale of the item. One of the ladies has earned almost $3,000 on eBay since taking the course.
For those of you who would like to start buying and/or selling on eBay, the following is a glossary of terms:
Bid: telling eBay’s system the maximum price you are prepared to pay for an item.
Dutch: an auction where more than one of an item is available.
Feedback: positive or negative comments left about other users on eBay.
Mint: in perfect condition.
Non-paying bidder: a bidder who wins an auction but does not then go on to buy the item.
PayPal: an electronic payment method accepted by most sellers.
Rare: once meant hard to find, but used so often on eBay, it’s now meaningless.
Reserve: the minimum price the seller will accept for the item.
Shill bid: a fake bid placed by a seller trying to drive up their auction’s price (not allowed).
Snail Mail: the post, which is obviously very slow compared to email.
Sniping: bidding at the last second to win the item before anyone else can outbid you.
Technorati Tags: eBay, eBay glossary, selling on eBay
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