Spotlight on Dropbox by Forbes magazine

Forbes magazine had a nice overview of Dropbox and what people may use it for. Yeah, I am still getting it for free.  It looks like I will continue receiving it at least until October of this year.

Dropbox is a website that provides free on-line storage of any files for the first 2 GB. You will need to pay a monthly fee for space above that threshold.  The benefit of Dropbox over Google docs is that you can store picture and music files without any problems.  It also has software that will automatically sync/update files that are also on your computer.  So update the computer file and the Dropbox gets updated as well.

Interestingly, someone installed a keylogger (a program usually used by hackers to find out your passwords) on their computer which uploads the keystrokes up to Dropbox.  So if someone steals their computer, the keylogger will upload what the thief is typing.

Some people are also storing their MP3 files in their Dropbox and streaming the files live to their phone.

I am trying to rationalize the need to setup yet another account at another website with another ID/Password combination.

Click here to read the article on Forbes.com

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Click here to go to Dropbox.

Pandora's "Music Genome Project"

I will admit that sometimes I jump on certain technologies quick, but more often, I drag my feet because I just do not know what to do with it.  For example, I do not own an iPod and I do not sync my MP3s with my phone.

The website and company called Pandora (www.pandora.com) has about 25 musicians rate music on up to 400 characteristics.  Then, depending on what a user asks to listen to (IE Elton John), Pandora will recommend music that is similar to what you are listening to.  Similar to TIVO, if you give certain songs a thumbs up or down, it will tweak your own preferences and suggest music according to what it "learns" by your ratings.

The best part is it is free for the users.  They make their money off of advertisements and their commission on iTunes and Amazon MP3 sales.  They pay the recording artists and labels about $0.02 per hour to play their music for the users.

I have not joined for probably a variety of reasons including:

• Yet another user ID and password to remember
• Most of the time, I concentrate better and can get more accomplished in a music-free environment
• Most of the time, I have a ton of stuff to do
• I have not even checked to see if my phone can stream it

Well...maybe sometime later...  Maybe it will help me "broaden" my music tastes.

Remember that you can support me by buying your MP3s through Amazon.  Click here to: search Amazon.com for mp3 downloads or click on the Amazon Searchbox on the right side of my blog.

A Nice Flag Database

In case you are looking for what each country's flag looks like, I found this website that may be able to help you out.

Click here for www.flags.net

Money Magazine: 20 best websites

I still am getting Money Magazine for free. The label as a Dec10 in one of the corners so apparently I will be getting through the end of the year. Click here to subscribe for 1 year for $10: Money (1-year) subscription.

In one of the recent issues, the main article spent some time briefly discussing their top 20 websites that they recommend.

Click here for the article.

CDC website for H1N1 (Swine) flu updates and information

Just in case anyone needs or wants information about the H1N1 (formerly Swine) influenza, check out the CDC's website.

SparkPeople.com

My wife found this interesting website that tracks caloric intake (food, liquids, etc.) and expenditure (activity, exercise, etc) and tracks it over time. For the caloric intake, it breaks it down into fat, protein, and carbohydrate grams. It appears to have a large library or database of commonly eaten foods as well. It gives you guidance on your target calorie intake and customizes it to your weight loss goals.

Overall it looks like a free (ad-driven) website that mimics something that Weight Watchers would do (not familiar with their website).

For more information go to SparkPeople.com