It gave me a chuckle, Janis. I've been messing with computers since 1966 when I took my first course in it, on the big mainframes at our local University. Took a couple more courses in programming down the road in the early seventies. I remember when everyone was WAITING FOR WANG! The vision for PCs was there much earlier than today's kids could imagine. I laughed at Lilo's Luddite comments. I am pretty darned close to one, but I don't cut my nose off to spite my face. I'm fine with technology if it fulfills a purpose for me and then I don't have any problems wrapping my mind around it. I have some really deep seated personal agendas when it comes to the disposable mindset, however. It really rubs me the wrong way to have perfectly good machines sent to the boneyards because the technology behind them has gone defunct. I guess because sometimes that technology doesn't necessarily do a job better. Before Skype, I used to use ICQ. I knew how to use TDY terminals to keep in touch with my deaf friends. I had a cable way back in 1970 twenty years before they became available here, and as soon as digital phones came down the block, I had one. I sat here counting the number of computers I've had over the last twenty years, and I think I am up to six PCs, my first one custom-built before they became available in box stores. However, I just bought my first laptop and had to ask my kids how to turn the danged thing off. LOL. I do know older people who refuse to learn anything electronic. It can bite them in the butt, it can. But, so much of the new stuff coming down the block are toys and expensive ones at that. Fine, if you have the time and money to play. My DD and I have speculated about whether my father would have gotten into computers had he lived past his 81st birthday. We both concluded that he'd have the best systems out there and have them figured out forward and backward.

it is extremely risky to go to social networking sites, there are special infections that are made just for those pages, many of them are not set up by who you think they are, they are set up by very nefarious people with hidden exploits on the websites, if you viist those sites or ones they have hacked and your pc is lacking the most current updates not only for windows but for java, adobe, etc then you can get infected with out even doing a thing and they are bad infections. I have a very good friend who recently asked me this same question I begged her to stay far away from social networking sites specifically facebook, I sent her many links to show her how these infections happen and explained it to her that she could just visit the page and get infected, well she said ok I will be careful unfortunately there is no being careful in those situations and exactly one week later her computer was so badly infected it would do nothing and it had to be completely reformatted back to original condition, she had nothing backed up of course so all her stuff from years was lost and getting all her updates for the pc took hours/days. I do NOT go there period, the safest way to stay clean is to surf smart, the number one cause of infected computers is the user. If you do not have malwarebytes on your pc I highly suggest you get it if you are seeing infections and are going to any social networking sites. Make sure every single thing on your pc is updated including windows and everything else, use the Secunia Online Software Inspector, Oh and since she went and joined facebook guess who else is now getting lots of junk facebook email??? ME! So be prepared for everyone on your address book to suddenly be swamped with those lovely emails and hope they don't actually open them.

Stargazzer, and owbist, I picked up what's called "Classic Presentation Book" from Wal-mart that is a plastic book with 12 clear full page pockets in it. No rings as they are glued as a binding into the cover. Can slip discription of what it is used for in the pocket on the front cover or edge when on a shelf. Easier for the "uninvited" to see where they are? (smiles) I then type my info of passwords to which sites along with my user name on a sheet of paper to slip in a pocket. Avery® Classic Presentation Book 47671, White Product Number: 47671 Your report is a real page-turner when it's displayed in this Classic Presentation Book. Durable polypropylene provides a sturdy cover for your important information. A window on the front cover allows you to insert a customized title page and spine that boldly announces the contents of your report. Twelve clear pockets inside the cover protect your pages and allow readers to flip through with ease. The acid-free, archival-safe plastic preserves your documents and won't stick to the print or to other pages. Predesigned templates and software at avery.com provide easy customization of title pages. It all comes together to form a book your readers can page through again and again. - Book contains 12 pockets to hold documents - Durable polypropylene protects your pages from damage - Interior pockets keep your pages well protected - Acid free and archival safe to keep documents in optimum condition - Translucent cover window holds your title page, Here is a link that might be useful: Booklet

On #s 15 & 16, I think it's important to point out that often the alternative to refi and the like is simply pay down the principle! Especially if you're early in the mortgage, every nickel you pay toward the principle means the balance of the loan's interest on that nickel goes into your pocket. Ol' Joyful, I'll need some of your expertise here, but could you figure a rough calculation of an average type house loan, average refi costs applied to the current loan and how that would compare in the end? I think it'd be interesting. Also, said before, but often people think they "need" a new car and don't consider if they put some money into the old one, it'd save in the long run. Remember, new cars have higher insurance and license costs so there's more than the initial price to consider. I would take a bit of issue too with the convenience store avoidance. You could actually save money if wise. Often, convenience stores sell eggs, milk, bread etc at very low prices, often far less than the markets. Plus it's not a special trip, saves time plus there can be (tho not guaranteed - it's up to you) fewer impulse buys. The longer you're in the grocery store, stats say you'll spend more. Again, it's how savvy you are, but be careful. #18 (Shudder) Buyer's Brokers are seldom a good thing. Let's face facts, no real estate agent/realtor or the like works FOR the buyer! Who pays them? The seller. How do they get paid more? By "benefitting" the seller. There's no way the buyer benefits from realtors. The fewer the better in most cases. Why? Because you can often negotiate the realtor fees. If you have one realtor taking the entire commission, it's far easier to negotiate them down than to negotiate with multiple agents and try to negotiate down when they're getting 1/4 or less of the commission. Beware of this statement and check into these claims. You're far better off to have a good real estate attorney on your side. S/He'll be working for YOUR benefit. Mine found problems in the paperwork and embarrassed the daylights out of the stack of realtors, closers and the like at my closing! It was hilarious! Now as for the inspector, yes, that can be worthwhile, but don't use one recommended by the realtor (kickbacks) and make sure you know what they're inspecting, their qualifications and the like. A good alternative can be a trusted friend with qualifications. Hire like any professional. Realize, though, that the inspectors DO NOT GUARANTEE the house! So if they overlook something, it's not their fault or responsibility and they won't be doing anything for you so know what you're getting. A title examination, especially of abstract properties, can be very important especially if you don't know how to read an abstract. Torrens is less problematic. Buying a home brings up a pandora's box of potential problems and far too many to go into here, but there's some things to be careful of. #21 Consumer Reports is a pet peeve of mine. They're often very biased in their reporting. Plus, keep in mind that they do not "test" ALL models and versions, even of similar products! Do you realize that the washer you buy at Home Depot is different than the one you buy at Best Buy and they're both different than the one you buy from a mom-n-pop dealer? That can have significant differences in the specs and needs. One can have cycles and features the other doesn't. Don't get caught up in the CR myth. Read their magazine with a shaker full of salt and do far more research than CR. You'll be doing yourself a favor. That's enough for now. There's more opinions coming, I'm sure! :) Happy saving all! Enjoy the frugal season!