TracR -- A Small Device to Track Anything

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2498629,00.asp

although PC magazine sort of liked these devices, actual users didn’t .. so I guess it is not the product I thought it might be.  It doesn’t use GPS, but Bluetooth, so you have to be reasonably close to find something, I can’t think if your car was stolen you would find it with this device.

I deleted the initial post because of this review and the actual user's comments

Finally, A Mobile Passport To Speed Through US Customs.

The Wall Street Journal tech editor favorably reviewed this new app for world travelers.  Finally a way to breeze through US Customs when you arrive back home.  He said it works.  http://mobilepassport.us/   Certainly worth a look if you travel overseas.  You will still need the real passport, but this could making coming home a great deal more pleasant. 

Iowa, I think is the State, that is experimenting with driver’s licenses that will be on your smart phone – so they will never get lost (in the usual sense) and will always be with you (as most people never get more than a few feet from their smart phone).  Someday that will be normal, USA wide.  It helps make traffic stops much faster.

Someday the US Government will get up to speed on technology for things like those just mentioned, which could save much time and money.  However, improvements in hacking defense would be welcome before much more tech is deployed. 

Photo Book Printing Tips, Updated March 2016

http://www.adoramapix.com/app/home/

Was, I think, top rated among a recent test by a professional blogger of 12 different on line photo book making services.  It comes with very heavy paper, and lay-flat pages, a very expensive (normally) option.  It also nicely prints titles on the cover, and binder as well.  Print quality on the pages was superior I think.  To view all the reviews, try this link.   https://thedailydigi.com/12-different-photobook-printer-reviews   While all printing services have their good and bad points, Adormapix seems to have most of the bases well covered.  I have done photo books from many different companies, some of which have gone out of businesses (including my favorite from price and print quality point of view). All offer sales and substantial discounts from time to time.

But, for some people, printing a photo book from your iPhone or Android phone can be fun and easy.  A relative new source for this is https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/photo-books-by-simple-prints/id548773050?mt=8  Simple Prints photo book.  I have watched YouTube videos on how to do it, it seems very good and very easy. I like the pinch and enlarge feature, to make your photo look best on a page (cropping, as we used to call it).  If they have a coupon or a sale, I might try one book from them.

Bottom line, for Adoramapix and most others --- to get a good deal you need to get a coupon or first time users “discount” to get the price into the $38 range with shipping. I am talking hard bound books here, with normal page counts and photos on the cover.  But, with really good discounts you might get one for $30 now and then.  In the end, they are really nice keepsakes, and probably worth it. I love all my existing photo books.  I also make home made photo books now using 3 ring binders and acetate, archive quality, plastic pages to slip in the 8 x 11 color photos from my HP Printer (with Instant Ink contract, it is by far the least expensive way to get large color photos).

Reading Magazines? Need More In Depth?

There is an app  www.layar.com  that will work with any smart phone. If you are reading INC Magazine (and perhaps others) and see a tiny logo in the shape of a smart phone somewhere on the page (maybe the lower left corner) you can pull out your phone and photograph that page (obviously using the layar “app” 's camera fumction) and it will show you videos and other bonus content on your mobile device. For just this one page you are interested in. 

Obviously this saves the publisher printing costs and mailing costs, and adds video of the article that might be useful.  I think of this as a step towards the day when magazines will be thinner, but function as a Kiplinger's Newsletter.  That is, they will give you enough information to let you know if the story would really be of interest to you, or not.  If it is of interest, you could bury yourself deeper by photographing the page using “layer”. 

While I am still a big fan of print media, I know many have time poverty and thus are suing smart phones on public transportation to catch up with things they are interested in.  I use Flipbook app extensively, as it seems to be the best designed, shows me what I want to see by category or interest (Apple news, photography news, many other categories).  It also shows me this in the most cosmetic of ways, with bright color pictures.  I can pass over the story, or drill down very easily.  Best of all, with a few finger touches, I can email the story to a friend that might be interested.  Or post it on Facebook, or whatever. A form of information sharing (instantly) that was never available in the past.

Finding Information On The Web Fast

Courtesy of Tom Hill Institute Eaglezine blog today, I know of a website called www.Refdesk.com which contains links to hundreds of tools to track down almost any information. For example, it links to dozens of encyclopedias, general ones like Britanica and specific ones like legal and technology encyclopedias. It contains links to “Ask the Expert” sites, all kinds of newspapers, specialty search engines, classic reference works such as The Elements of Style, and much, much more.  www.Refdesk.com    is like having the ultimate library reference desk at your fingertips, 24-7, free.

"The real world is much smaller than the imaginary." - Friedrich Nietzsche

I asked the Google option on RefDesk a question that came up today with a grandchild “which mammal sleeps the fewest hours per night?”  I knew the answer, and tried to find it on the Google search on this website.  It actually gave it to me on the very first hit.  But I noticed that this one is called Custom Google Search – wonder how that varies from the normal Google ?  I found valuable links all over the RefDesk website home page.  For example check out https://gethuman.com/  This one tells you the phone number to get quick and good support from many companies – avoiding their usually worthless main-phone-number they post on websites and such.  This one will tell you the real human line where (hopefully a smart) person will answer and give you help or direct you to the correct person quickly. 

PS == the sleep question answer is the Giraffe, sleeps only 2 hours a day (or night). 

What Is The Best Travel Reward Credit Card?

This question comes to my mind often, especially when I have to pay the annual fee on my two credit cards. I primarily use a card that is connected to my most often used airline, but have considering changing to get a better deal. There is a new website that advises individuals on the best ways to stretch their budget (www.wisebread.com) and I noticed today they had a nice article on choosing the most valuable (profitable) credit card.  All cards have good and bad aspects; however, this article spells out some excellent choices.

http://www.wisebread.com/top-5-travel-reward-credit-cards?ref=nav

I found it interesting that they came up with the same #1 choice as several other stories I have read in magazines of all types.  It is the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

Chase Sapphire Preferred®  has a booking site and you get 20% off travel booked there if you have the card. The card offers double points for dining and travel transactions (1 point per $1 on other purchases). No foreign transaction fees. The annual fee of $95 is waived for the first year. You earn 50,000 bonus points when you sign up, if you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months. That's $625 in travel when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards.

Therefore, by switching cards you could pickup $625 in free travel the first year, not a bad deal. Will switching cards every few years hurt your credit rating?  Please comment below, especially if you have experience in this matter. I am curious.

PS – the Wisebread website appears to be new, and incomplete, not yet a great resource, so I can’t recommend it other than the reprinted credit card article.